sea.

ON THE NORTH SHORE.

COASTING the north shore on the steamships of the Munson Line, or of the Herrera Line, affords a thoroughly enjoyable experience. The ship's course is for most of the way quite near land, and the ports are so close together that there is none of the monotony of a long voyage at Most of the harbors are landlocked bays, entered through narrow winding channels; many of the towns are picturesque, as Gibara and Baracoa; there is much that is novel to the northern eye; and the scenery is attractive, the interest growing as we proceed to the east and the mountain ranges come into view. There is much to engage the attention at sea and in port, and in some of the harbors the Munson Line steamers provide launch excursions for sightseeing, hunting and fishing, while the ship is receiving or discharging cargo.

The route of the ships of the Munson Steamship Line is from New York direct to Matanzas, thence to Cárdenas, Sagua la Grande, Caibarién. Nuevitas, Puerto Padre, Gibara and Vita, and Baracoa. Returning, they stop at Gibara and Nuevitas, sailing from that port to New York. They visit also, on occasion, the ports of Manati, Bariay, Sama, Banes, Nipe, and Sagua de Tánamo.

The ships of the Herrera Steamship Line touch the ports of Sagua la Grande, Caibarién, Nuevitas, Puerto Padre, Gibara, Sagua de Tánamo and Baracoa; thence on the south coast Guantánamo and Santiago de Cuba.

The ships of both lines are well equipped and comfortable; the table is excellent, and the association with officers and fellow voyagers is agreeable. The principal ports visited are noted in brief.

CARDENAS is thirty miles east of Matanzas on Cárdenas Bay, a harbor which is magnificent in extent, but shallow. Settled in 1839, the city is one of the youngest on the island, as it is one of the most flourishing; it ranks fifth in importance in importations and second in exportations. It is modern in plan and construction, with wide streets and pavements, substantial buildings, handsome stores, an imposing cathedral and pleasant plaza. Americans have always been an important element in the business and social life, to such a degree that it has been called an American city. The Plaza del Recreo has a statue of Columbus, presented to the city in 1862 by Queen Isabella II. A peculiar phenomenon of the harbor is the flow of fresh water which gushes up from subterranean rivers. The harbor contains extensive asphalt deposits, and vessels moor over the beds to dredge up their cargoes. The bay was the scene of the Winslow tragedy of the Spanish-American War. In old days Cárdenas Bay was a stronghold of the pirates, and a distributing point of their booty to the towns of the interior. There are large sugar plantations in the vicinity. The

exports are honey, wax and mahogany. The population in 1889 was 24,861. SAGUA LA GRANDE is on the river of the same name, which is the most important of the north coast, being navigable for twenty miles. The port of entry, La Isabel, called also Isabella de Sagua, is a town built on stilts over the water. Among the interesting Sagua relics of the past is an ancient looped tower, which was built for protection against the pirates. CAIBARIEN is the seaport of Remedios, five and a half miles inland, and is an important sugar exporting point. There are large plantations in the vicinity. Other industries are sponge fishing, mahogany and cedar cutting, and the production of honey.

NUEVITAS is situated on a very narrow, winding passage, four and a half miles in length. From the entrance open two bays, Mayabano and Nuevitas. Vessels anchor in the harbor two miles from the wharf. Passengers are conveyed to and from the ship in small boats, for which the fare is 50 cents. Nuevitas is the seaport of Puerto Príncipe, with which it is connected by the Puerto Príncipe & Nuevitas Railroad. The population in 1899 was 10,355. The town, situated in the center of a crescent range of hills surrounding the harbor, rises from the water in a series of terraces, and as seen from the bay the picture is pleasing. The Church of the Virgen de la Caridad and the municipal building stand out conspicuously on the summit of the hill. The water supply is poor; in the dry season drinking water is very expensive; artesian borings have been sunk to a depth of 544 feet and abandoned. The bay is noted for its fish and sponges; good tarpon fishing may be had. Numerous tame pelicans are a pleasing feature. The chief export of Nuevitas is sugar. There is likely to grow up a large trade in vegetables for the Northern markets; many Americans are settling in the vicinity; not far away is the colony of La Gloria, an American enterprise which has passed through many vicissitudes. Entering the harbor Oct. 28, 1492, Columbus named it Puerto Principe, and here in 1515 was established the town of that name, which was afterward removed to the old Indian village of Camagüey. The present Nuevitas was established in 1820.

Fifty miles east of Nuevitas is the harbor of PUERTO PADRE, entered through a winding channel between low banks of mangroves and coral rock, which looks like the Florida coquina. The ship anchors in the bay a mile from the town, which is small and without interest. The port is of growing importance as the center of extensive sugar production. The Chaparra sugar mill, of which the smoke stacks are seen in the distance on the left as the ship enters the harbor, is the largest in existence; it is owned by an American company in which Mrs. Hetty Green is interested. GIBARA is another town which has picturesque situation on a hill slope rising from the water. The houses are brightly painted, and if we enter the harbor late in the day the scene is full of color. In the foreground the custom house overhanging the water is painted pink and red; to the

right of this is a house of bright blue with white trimmings; just beyond, the cathedral is cream with red towers and domes; and other color combinations are of yellow and blue, and green and red. The houses fairly glow amid their settings of palm and banana; and sea and sky and town unite to make a painted panorama. Enclosing the town is a high stone wall, which begins at the water's edge on the left, climbs the hill, extending along the crest, and descends to the sea on the right. At commanding points here and there it is complemented with high watchtowers. The wall was built in 1870, to keep out the Cuban insurgents; it is falling into ruin, and the watchtowers are peopled by negroes, goats and dogs. Sharks of formidable size infest the bay, and alligators may be seen from the wharf. The Plaza and Cathedral are but a block distant from the wharf to the right, and just beyond is the relic of Fort San Fernandina, on the point of that name jutting into the bay and commanding the harbor. The fort long ago fell into disuse, but the old moat and the drawbridge still remain. If time permits, an excursion should be made to the top of the hill back of the town, a half-mile from the waterfront. On the crest of the hill are the remains of the Spanish barracks. The view here afforded is well worth the climb to attain it. Below lies the town, its predominating color tone the deep red of the tiles, which is interspersed with shades of blue, pink and brown, set off by the green foliage of the gardens and patios. Beyond the harbor entrance, the coast line stretches eastward in a series of crescents, marked by surf of silvery whiteness. There are hills all about, and in the southern distance lie the isolated mountains Silla de Gibara, the Saddle of Gibara, and Sugar Loaf and Table mountains, all densely timbered on the lower slopes, and near the summits steep and scarped and in certain lights shining like snow peaks. From Gibara the Holguin & Gibara Railroad runs to HOLGUIN, a town lying on a high plain twenty miles inland. The elevated site and beautiful

character made it a favorite military station for troops newly arrived from Spain, who were sent here for acclimatization. Gen. Prando took 5,000 troops to Santiago when that city was under siege by the Americans, and 10,000 more remained here. When the Spaniards evacuated the town they left 3,000 cases of small-pox, and the streets were filled with filth, dead animals and wrecked furniture. The entire city had to be cleaned and scraped from end to end. But here, as elsewhere in Cuba, the Americans did the work thoroughly, and Holguin has been a clean and healthy town ever since. There are still many reminders of the Spanish military occupation. On the summit of a high hill overlooking Holguin, and silhouetted against the blue sky, is an old Spanish watchtower, occupying a position whence the country might be scanned for miles in all directions. Near it stands a wooden cross, marking the spot to which vast multitudes resort for the celebration of the first of May, Dia de la Cruz-the Day of the Cross. As many as 10,000 people have participated in some of the festivals. Despite its Spanish garrisons, Holguin was the center of military operations in the early days of the last war, and was at one time in the possession of the revolutionists. Its patriotic people have bestowed on the three plazas the names of Cespedes, Garcia and Maceo. Holguin householders affect pink, red, yellow, brown and delicate pea-green for exterior colors; there are in the narrow streets many fascinating bits of architecture and color which halt the exploring visitor; and in the old Church of San José Holguin has a study to delight an artist. Holguin has stage (volanta) connection with Cacocum, on the Cuba Railroad.

SAGUA DE TANAMO, the next port east of Gibara, is entered through a narrow winding channel opening into a bay filled with clusters of islands, on which are little settlements of thatched houses surrounded by banana groves. The background is of mountains, parting very high, their slopes clothed with dense verdure in many shades of green. The combination of bay and islands and mountains makes up one of the loveliest landscapes in Cuba. The town is situated ten miles inland on the Sagua River. NIPE BAY is the finest harbor on the north coast. There is no bar; the chart shows 198 to 210 feet in mid channel between Mayari and Ramon points, which mark the entrance from the sea. The slopes of Carenero Point just within the mouth of the harbor and the opposite shores are covered with miles of banana plantations, and a higher elevation glows with the vivid green of alfalfa fields. The bay opens before us like an inland sea; it is ten miles between shores from east to west, and eight miles from north to south. The channel carries deep water clear up to Corojal Bay in the northwest corner, where on Corojal Point, the terminus of the Cuba Railroad, Sir William Van Horn has located the model town of Antilla. One would go far to find a more beautiful site, or one of more generous possibilities and richer promise. From Corojal the eye takes in the broad sweep of bay and range of mountains in the

distance. High up on the face of one of them a waterfall catches the light and shines like a silver mirror. There is an expansiveness about Nipe, and a grandeur of scenery which impress one unlike and beyond any other in Cuba.

The country all about is fertile. Orange groves and banana plantations line the shores of the bay. Mayari on the Mayari River, which empties into the bay on the east, is famed for its fine tobacco. There are extensive sugar plantations near Antilla; an immense sugar mill is among the projected enterprises; cattle ranches and truck farms are others. Vegetables grow here the year around; sweet potatoes (boniatos) once planted, establish themselves and grow indefinitely; tomatoes run wild. Nipe lies three degrees below Havana, but it is one day nearer the New York vegetable market. The bay was at one time selected as a rendezvous for the United States troops, and Sampson cleared the harbor of Spanish ships and sunken mines. Near the western shore at the mouth of the Mayari River are the wrecks of the Spanish gunboats "San Jorge" and "Hernan Cortez." The bay affords good fishing; there are Spanish mackerel, red snappers, tarpon and other fish of brilliant hues, with a profusion of marine growth, fascinating in form and color. When the tide is favorable, submarine gardens of wonderful beauty are revealed near the mouth of the bay. There are sharks here, of course, as in all Cuban