The system is, therefore, well named, for the Colono receives first consideration, while the enterprise carries the burden and accepts all risks; against which the advantage of a possible abnormal yield is certainly an inadequate compensation. Furthermore the mill owners generally assume the burden and risk of “financing” their Colonos; frequently advancing credits of from three to five times the amounts contributed by the Colono himself. However, with all its disadvantages, the Colono system is likely to prevail for some time to come, as it is doubtful if, under existing labor conditions, the large tonnage of cane now required could otherwise be obtained. The “guajiro,” or cane-cutter, is the autocrat of the situation; he knows he is scarce and, therefore, believes that he is indispensable. As a result, his efficiency has fallen from three and a quarter to two and a quarter tons a day; while his earnings, on a tonnage basis, have risen from 150% to 200%, when compared with pre-war conditions. The only solution for this unfavorable situation seems to depend upon the provision of continuous employment for labor, and the effecting of a rearrangement of the Colono system so as to permit of the performance of all heavy work, such as plowing and preparing the lands for planting, and hauling the cane from the fields, by the owners of the sugar-producing properties. They can afford to equip their establishments for the doing of such work upon a large and comprehensive scale, that will accomplish an indirect reduction in the present cost of producing and delivering cane to the mills, which, while increasing the profits of the Mill Owners, will not reduce the net earnings of labor or of the Colono. Natural conditions combine to favor the production of sugar in Cuba. Ample rains, so essential to the growth of cane, fall during the summer season while the cane is growing; and during the rest of the year the weather is sufficiently cool to bring about the complete ripening of the cane and the formation of its sucrose content, and to make possible the easy harvesting and handling of the cane in the fields, and its economical conveyance to the “centrales.” Careless and uneconomical methods have heretofore prevailed in the treatment of soils and in the cultivation of cane, which will undoubtedly be remedied in due course of time. Under a more intensive system of cultivation, assisted by a better selection of seed, and the judicious and generous employment of fertilizers, including irrigation, wherever practicable, the position of Cuba as the largest and most economical producer of sugar in the world will be permanently assured.