MUNICIPAL PROBLEMS IN HAVANA
The American authorities and American enterprise have jointly taken hold
of the municipal problem of Havana with considerable energy. This
subject is of such vital importance, not only to the industrial
reconstruction of Cuba, but to the future of the Island itself, that no
apology is necessary for devoting an entire chapter to it. The problems
which General Ludlow, the present Governor of Havana, has taken up
energetically are those relating to the reorganisation of the police
force, public works, water and gas supply, fire department, and other
branches of local government. Private enterprise, both English and
American, has lost no time in securing the street-railway system and
some of the public theatres, and in various ways engaged in semi-public
enterprises, the result of which will be greatly to improve existing
conditions, and make Havana a much more desirable city, both for
business and residence.
Next to the question of sanitary improvement, which is absolutely
imperative unless the United States stands ready to sacrifice thousands
of lives next summer, is the organisation of the police force for the
preservation of life and property. For several years past it is said the
attention of the police of Havana has been directed more to political
arrests than to prevention of crime. Whether these rumours are well
founded or not, General Greene, whose report upon the sanitation of Cuba
was presented in the previous chapter, is not prepared to assert; but he
contends that at the time he made his report, last December, the police
force was completely disorganised. As it formerly existed, the police
force of Havana consisted of two parts, namely: the Government police,
under the direct orders of the civil governor of the province; and the
municipal police, under the orders of the Alcalde, or Mayor. The
functions of the latter were mainly those of inspectors, to look after
the enforcement of city ordinances in regard to buildings, public
health, and such matters. They numbered 200. The Government police
consisted of a battalion called the _Orden Publico_, the colonel in
command of which was chief of police. The battalion numbered about 1200
men, and was recruited from the Spanish army, among men who had passed
through not less than six years' service, who held the grade of
sergeant, and who had won certificates of perfectly good character. This
force was disarmed and shipped to Spain in November, on the ground of
alleged mutiny; the facts being that they claimed the money belonging to
them which had been deposited with the regimental paymaster, and by him
embezzled.
In addition to the municipal police and the _Orden Publico_, there was a
force, detailed from the _Guarda Civil_, whose total strength was about
3500 men. This force constituted the rural police of the entire Island,
under the orders of the civil governor of each province. About 300 were
used by the civil governor of Havana for duty in the suburbs of Jesus
del Monte, Cerro, and other outlying neighbourhoods.
At the time the control of the city passed from Spanish into American
hands, the police force consisted simply of the municipal police, about
200 in number, with a few additions, all of whom were temporarily
organised into a Government police force after the disarmament of the
_Orden Publico._
The city, according to General Greene's report, is divided into ten
districts, and these are still further subdivided into thirty-nine
_barrios_, or wards. The _barrios_ correspond in a measure to the
precincts in New York, and in each there was a _celador_, corresponding
to a sergeant in New York. He received $100 per month, and had charge
of the police in his _barrio_, or precinct. There were five inspectors,
each of whom had two of the principal districts under his charge. They
received $125 per month. They were in turn subject to the orders of the
chief of police, and he to the orders of the civil governor. The
appointments to all of the positions named were made by the
Governor-General on the nomination of the Governor. Each inspector had
an office on the ground floor of the house where he lived, and these
were all connected by telephone, through the Telephone Exchange, with
the Police Headquarters on Cuba Street, near Quarteles Street.
Similarly, each of the _celadors_ had an office in his own house. There
were a large number of details for special service at banks, theatres,
public offices, and similar places, and while the nominal strength of
the _Orden Publico_ was 1200, yet vacancy, sickness, and other causes
reduced its effective strength to 800 or 900.
According to this report, in the opinion of the civil governor, a force
of 600 carefully selected men, thoroughly well organised, under proper
officers, will be ample for the security of life and property in this
city. The orders of the President of the United States authorised the
organisation of a force of 1000 men. Subsequently the Secretary of War
telegraphed General Greene to employ such number of men as was
necessary. In the judgment of the commanding general the number
authorised by the President was sufficient, and the proposed
organisation, inaugurated by General Greene and just completed under the
direction of General Ludlow, aided by ex-Chief of Police of New York
City, McCullough, is as follows:
Salary per month
1 Colonel (U. S. V.), Chief of Police..........
1 Deputy Chief of Police....................... $250
1 Secretary Inspector.......................... 165
1 Chief of Detectives, Deputy Inspector........ 165
6 Inspectors, officers U. S. V.................
6 Deputy Inspectors............................ 150
12 Captains..................................... 115
48 Lieutenants.................................. 90
48 Patrol Sergeants............................. 65
10 Detective Sergeants.......................... 115
14 Detectives................................... 100
12 Detectives................................... 75
820 Patrolmen.................................... 50
1 Stenographer and Interpreter................. 150
6 Clerks....................................... 50
6 Drivers...................................... 40
12 Janitors..................................... 35
2 Surgeons..................................... 100
The total expenses for salary would be $56,360 per month, or $676,020
per annum. In addition there would be expenses for rent of office,
telephone, telegrams, patrol service, 100 horses for use in suburban
districts, and other expenses, which would bring the total cost of the
police up to about $723,660 per annum.
It is proposed to put the entire police management under charge of an
officer of the volunteer army, and to give him a deputy chief, who shall
be a resident of the Island, and, if possible, experienced in police
matters. Similarly, to put officers of the army of junior rank as
inspectors in the principal districts--six in number--and to give to
each a deputy inspector, who will be a resident. At the beginning, it is
deemed essential that the police management should be in the hands of
army officers who can be relied upon, but each will have a deputy who
will be a resident, and if possible thoroughly experienced in the police
service. It may be necessary to change these resident officers once or
more before the best men for the positions are finally found. After the
system has been in operation, and the men have proved their efficiency,
it will be possible for the army officers to be relieved, and the native
or resident officers to assume full control.
In his report on the organisation of the Havana police force General
Greene says:
"There are three sources from which the men can be obtained,
namely, the existing police force, the Cuban troops under General
Menocal, and the discharged Spanish soldiers. The President's
instructions are positive that this force should be selected
without reference to previous affiliations, either for or against
the revolutionary movement, and by drawing from the three classes
above named; these instructions will be carried out in letter and
in spirit."
In accordance with the President's instructions, every officer and
member of the police force will be required to subscribe the following
oath, which will be printed in both Spanish and English:
"I do solemnly swear that I will bear true and exclusive faith and
allegiance to the Government of the United States existing in the
Island of Cuba, and that I will faithfully and obediently perform
my duty as a member of the police force of Havana under the said
Government. So help me God."
The uniform of the new Havana police officer will consist of straw hat,
dark blue blouse and trousers, tan-coloured shoes, and white gloves.
The public works needed in Havana are sewers, pavements, a new
slaughter-house, buildings for the police, fire, and health departments,
and new hospitals. All of these will require a very large sum of money,
and the ability of the city to raise this money is not yet evident. For
the present, all that can be done is thoroughly to clean, disinfect, and
repair the existing public buildings, either owned or rented, so as to
make them habitable for the public officials, both American and native.
The means of communication are entirely inadequate. They consist of
lines of tramways running out to Jesus del Monte, Cerro, and the foot of
the Principe Hill. The tracks are in bad order, the cars are old and
dirty, and they are drawn by three horses each. The live stock is in bad
condition, and the stables are filthy. These lines are owned by a
company called the _Ferro Carril Urbano y Omnibus de la Habana_, under a
concession granted February 5, 1859. The same company also runs, in the
suburban districts, a few lines of very small omnibuses, drawn by two
mules. The service is extremely bad. In addition to these facilities for
transportation there is a "dummy" line, running from the centre of the
city to the western end of the Vedado, a distance of about four miles.
The track is in bad order, and the service is unsatisfactory.
Undoubtedly one of the first enterprises that will be pushed to
completion in Havana will be an entirely new tramway system, with
mechanical traction. General Greene recognises the necessity of this
when he says in his report:
"There is a great need of a thorough and modern system of electric
street railways in this city. While the streets are narrow, yet a
single track could be laid on each street, near the curbstone on
one side, in such a manner as not to impede traffic. It is a
question, however, whether these tracks should be laid prior to the
laying of the sewers, which would cause the tearing up of every
street in the thickly populated portion of the city."
General Greene is undoubtedly right in saying that the new sewerage,
gas, and water pipes, tramways, and paving of Havana should all be done
at one time. If a general plan of this sort were inaugurated, the
streets could be taken one at a time and finished. It should be borne in
mind that this sort of work cannot be done as it is done in American
cities, by reason of the fact that the streets are so narrow that to
pull part of them up and leave any room for traffic is impossible. Added
to this, the paving which should be done in Havana is more like masonry
work than ordinary paving, because in consequence of the tremendous
rains in the rainy season when the streets practically become small
rivers (for it is not an unusual thing to see small boys swimming in the
street), the sort of pavements we are familiar with would be entirely
inadequate.
In the chapter on Havana mention was made of the excellent water supply.
While the following description of the water supply of Havana by
General Greene partially covers the statement already made, it brings
out an interesting point in relation to the necessity of not only
encouraging but also insisting on the additional use of water in Havana.
It is nothing less than criminal for a city so abundantly supplied with
magnificent spring water as is Havana not to insist upon its more
liberal use. The waterworks themselves were built by American enterprise
and there can be no doubt that those responsible for their management
will be glad enough to increase the use of the water, and in so doing
reduce the price to the consumer. However this may be, the water supply
of Havana is so closely allied to its sanitary condition, that whatever
the United States Government may decide to do in regard to its sewerage
should be taken up in conjunction with the water supply. It is not a
matter that should be left to the decision of the people of Havana
themselves, but should be managed with no uncertain hand by those in
authority, and the supply paid for by the city if the people are too
poor or too indifferent to appreciate the necessity of cleanliness. Note
what General Greene says on this point:
"The present water supply of Havana is excellent, although it is
used by only a portion of the population. It comes from enormous
springs on the banks of the Almendares River, about eight miles due
south of the city. These springs are inclosed in a masonry
structure, about 150 feet in diameter at its base, and 250 feet at
the top, and 60 feet deep. Masonry drains are laid around the upper
surface to prevent any surface water from washing into the spring.
At the base of this spring the water is constantly bubbling up, and
appears to be of remarkable purity. The supply is so large that it
more than fills all the present requirements, and a large portion
of it runs to waste. From the spring the water is conveyed under
the Almendares River by pipes situated in a tunnel, and from the
north side of the river the water is conveyed in a masonry tunnel
or aqueduct for a distance of about six miles, where it discharges
into a receiving reservoir, the altitude of which is 35 metres, or
about 108 feet, above the sea level. From the distributing
reservoir the water is carried into the city by gravity in pipes,
the highest point in the thickly populated portion of the city
being, as already stated, 68 feet. The pipes in the streets are
said to be small, and there is not sufficient pressure to carry the
water to the upper stories of the small number of buildings which
exceed one story in height. In these buildings pumping is
necessary.
"There are said to be about 18,000 houses in the city, and from a
report made by the municipality in 1897 it appears that the number
of houses directly connected with the water pipes is 9233. The
poorer houses, which are not thus connected, obtain water either by
purchase from the street vendors or by getting it from public taps,
of which there are a certain number scattered throughout the city."
Of the efficiency of the fire department, General Greene, in his report,
said that he was unable to speak without further knowledge. "It is
generally considered," he says, "to be very satisfactory, and the
inhabitants of the city take great pride in it."
The fire department of Havana appears to consist of two branches--the
Municipal Fire Department and the Commercial Fire Department, the former
being partly supported at public expense and the latter at the expense
of private individuals.
The Municipal Fire Department is organised as a battalion, as follows:
1 Colonel, Chief of Fire Department. 74 Corporals.
1 Lieutenant-Colonel, Deputy-Chief. 10 Cornets.
2 Majors 1531 Firemen.
1 Adjutant. 1 Chief Surgeon.
12 Captains. 4 Assistant Surgeons.
16 First Lieutenants. 1 Chief Apothecary.
13 Second Lieutenants. 2 Assistant Apothecaries.
44 Sergeants.
The only paid employes, however, are a few machinists, drivers, clerks,
and a telegraph operator. The entire expense in the budget of 1897-98 is
as follows:
For salaries.. $ 6,713
For materials. 7,062
-------
Total... $13,774
The apparatus consists of five steam fire engines in Havana, one in
Jesus del Monte, and one in Marianao; two hose-carts, and one hook and
ladder carriage.
There are 78 fire-alarm stations and 356 water-plugs distributed in
different parts of the city.
The debt of the city of Havana on December 31, 1898, according to a
statement signed by the Mayor and Controller, was as follows:
Loan of April 22, 1889, fifty-year 6 per cent. bonds (mortgagee,
Spanish Bank of the Island of Cuba)
$6,721,000.00
Loan of October 17, 1891, fifty-year 6 per cent. bonds (mortgagee,
Bank of Commerce, United Railroads, and Regla
Warehouses) 2,882,000.00
Notes 23,830,94
Floating debt for salaries, materials, interest, and sinking fund.
2,450,064.78
--------------
Total $12,076,895.72
By the end of this year the floating debt will be still greater, and the
total obligations of the city at that time will probably be about
$12,500,000.
[Illustration: HOUSE OF PARLIAMENT, HAVANA]
The mortgage for the loan of 1889 to the Spanish Bank is a document of
158 printed pages, including the index. It recites that in 1877 the city
borrowed from the Spanish Bank a sum of money which, together with its
interest, amounted in 1889 to $3,177,053.25; that the city was in
arrears for interest and sinking fund, and that lawsuits have been in
progress to compel the city to pay; that the city also desired funds for
the completing the water-works and other purposes, and it was finally
agreed that the city would issue $6,500,000 6 per cent. fifty-year bonds
for the purpose of taking up the existing debt and completing the
water-works, the expense of which was estimated at $1,850,000; and that
the balance of the loan, which was taken at 90, was to be turned over to
the city for general purposes. There was a further provision that the
loan might be increased to $7,000,000 in case the city found it
necessary, and this was done. The sinking fund provides for withdrawal
by lot and payment of a certain number of bonds every three months
during the fifty years, the amount at the end of the first quarter being
$5000 and the last quarter $100,000. As security for the loan the city
gave a first mortgage on the following property:
Canal de Vento, valued at................ $5,030,000
The aqueduct of Fernando VII., valued at. 153,000
The Cristina market, valued at........... 103,000
The Tacon market, valued at.............. 960,000
The Colon market, valued at.............. 304,000
----------
Making a total of.................. $6,550,000
together with all revenues and receipts from them during the period of
the loan. In addition the municipality mortgaged as further security
upward of fifty houses which it owns in various sections of the city.
The amount of this loan was $7,000,000, which has been reduced by the
operations of the sinking fund to $6,721,000. The mortgage of 1891 is
also for fifty years and at 6 per cent., with the same property as
security. The original amount was $3,000,000, which has now been reduced
by the operations of the sinking fund to $2,882,000. The amount of
arrears of interest and sinking fund on the two loans is $343,600.56,
which figures as part of the floating debt first above stated.
The floating debt of Havana arises from the failure to pay practically
any salaries, contractors, or bills for materials during the whole of
the year 1898, and for some debts contracted prior to this year. The
items are given as follows:
Salaries........................... $ 678,117.55
Supplies........................... 230,205.77
Materials.......................... 1,183,312.31
Public works....................... 2,568.59
Interest and sinking fund of debts. 343,600.56
Notes overdue...................... 12,160.00
-------------
$2,450,064.78
This is _prima facie_ a valid obligation of the municipality, and should
be funded. But before making a new loan for the purpose of paying these
debts it would be only proper to have a court of claims established,
before which all the creditors of the municipality could appear and
definitely prove the amount of their claims and the date at which they
accrued.
The debt question of Havana can not be disposed of lightly. In his
instructive report on the municipal finances of Havana, General Greene
gives it as his opinion that $12,500,000 is not excessive for a city of
the size and wealth of Havana. Discussing the question with prominent
financiers of Havana, the author found that these gentlemen agreed
substantially with General Greene, some going so far as to declare the
city could easily stand double the present debt, which would bring it up
to $25,000,000. According to the last census, the only city comparable
with Havana in the United States that carries a debt approaching this
was Cincinnati, which had then a debt of $24,737,611. Cleveland, on the
other hand, with a population about the same, had in 1890 a debt of only
$6,143,206. The other United States cities of about the same population
are respectively Pittsburg, debt, $10,026,806; Buffalo, debt,
$10,843,029; Milwaukee, debt only $2,915,900; and San Francisco, less
than $1,000,000 of municipal indebtedness. The debts of both Boston and
Philadelphia were in 1890 less than $30,000,000. It will be bad
financiering to burden Havana at present with more debt. When the budget
is fully examined by expert accountants a large floating debt will be
found, some of which it may be right and just to pay, and much of which
is fraudulent. There will be long past-due gas bills, aggregating over
$500,000; unpaid bills for street cleaning; salary accounts unadjusted,
and a great variety of debts the validity of which may have to be tried
in the courts. To meet current expenses the revenues of the city will
have to be increased and honestly expended. Naturally, the city will
have to bear its share of the important sanitary work which must be done
in Havana, but as this work is for the general welfare of the Island,
part of it may rightly be taken from the general funds. Judged from an
American point of view, the municipal debt of Havana at the present
moment is quite large enough, and great care should be taken not to
increase it beyond the danger line.
The revenue of the city is derived entirely from licences and indirect
taxation. Real estate is not directly taxed, and the municipality does
not receive directly anything from it. The Island of Cuba imposes, among
other taxes, a duty of 12 per cent. on the estimated rental value of all
houses in the city and country, and it pays over to the city of Havana
18 per cent. of the amount thus collected on rents within the city
limit. The Island of Cuba also levies a tax on industry, commerce, and
professions, and it pays over to the city of Havana 25 per cent. of all
such taxes collected within the city limits. The other sources of city
revenue, which are directly collected by the municipality, are the rent
of houses owned by the municipality, revenues of the waterworks,
slaughter-house, and markets, taxes on meat, coke, and wood, licences on
factories and business of all kinds, and various minor licences. The
total estimated revenue for the year 1897-98 is slightly in excess of
$2,000,000, and the principal items, taken from the budget, are as
follows:
1. Rent of houses owned by the city............. $159,598.16
2. Special taxes and licences:
Street vendors............................. $ 15,000.00
Slaughter-house............................ 163,000.00
Water rents................................ 300,000.00
Tax on pleasure houses..................... 12,000.00
Tax on wood................................ 9,000.00
Tax on charcoal and coke................... 44,660.00
Licence on factories....................... 26,000.00
Licence on advertisements and signs........ 8,101.90
Sundry licences, etc. ..................... 12,496.00
-------------- 590,257.90
3. Charities--Income of legacies................ 4,000.00
4. Public Instruction--Income of legacies....... 1,138.80
5. Public Correction--Income from shops, private
cells, etc. .......................... 30,638.42
6. Extraordinary Receipts:
Building permits........................... $ 29,000.00
Fines, municipal ordinances................ 6,000.00
Special sewer tax.......................... 50,000.00
Replacing street openings.................. 22,258.57
Licence on cedulas......................... 28,000.00
Tax on business............................ 111,300.00
Tax on meat................................ 663,000.00
Special deposits........................... 20,000.00
Sundries................................... 3,300.00
-------------- 932,858.57
7. Contributions by General Government:
Quota from real estate..................... $ 165,200.00
Quota from industry and commerce........... 206,700.00
-------------- 371,900.00
-----------
Total................................ $2,090,441.95
These receipts amount to something between $8 and $10 per head of a
population estimated between 200,000 and 250,000.
The expenses of Havana are such as are common in every city, namely:
expenses of the Mayor and Council (Ayuntamiento), police, fire, health,
schools, charities, correction, courts, street cleaning, lighting,
repairs and paving, interest, and sinking fund. There is only one
unusual item, namely: a contribution of $100,000 towards the expenses of
the government of the province. The items are shown in the following
statement, taken from the budget of 1897-98:
1. Council:
Salaries................... $ 79,220.00
Materials.................. 9,792.00
Elections.................. 9,100.00
Cost of collections........ 49,500.00
Sundries................... 1,874.00
-------------- $ 149,486.00
2. Police:
Mayor, deputies, etc. ..... $ 43,060.00
Salaries, municipal police. 99,470.00
Materials.................. 3,650.00
Fire Department............ 13,974.00
-------------- $ 160,154.00
3. Urban and rural police:
Sundries...................$ 806.00
Street lighting............ 134,589.50
Street cleaning............ 125,577.28
Tree planting, etc. ....... 11,212.00
Slaughter-house............ 20,149.50
-------------- 292,334.28
4. Schools:
Salaries...................$ 53,452.00
Materials.................. 13,890.00
Rents...................... 28,904.90
Sundries................... 300.00
-------------- 96,546.90
5. Charities.................... 177,308.80
6. Public works:
Salaries................... $ 22,270.00
Labor, repair streets...... 170,000.00
Material, repair streets... 12,200.00
Sundries, repair streets... 4,500.00
-------------- 208,970.00
7. Corrections--Prisons......... 78,683.50
8. Trees........................ 1,000.00
9. Justice and Legal Credits:
Interest and Sinking Fund.. 676,195.00
Provincial expenses........ 100,000.00
Repayment special deposits, etc. 26,950.00
Litigation...................... 11,000.00
Street condemnation............. 5,000.00
Subsidy in harbour works........ 5,000.00
Sundries........................ 9,013.47
---------- 833,158.47
10. New Works:
Ditches and Drains................... $45,000.00
Subscription private Fire Department. 2,400.00
----------- 47,400.00
11. Contingencies:
Public Calamities and unforeseen contingencies 45,400.00
-----------
Total..................... $2,090,441.95
The current annual estimated expenses of Havana, according to the
printed budget, which the author has had translated for 1897-98, were
$2,090,441.95, and the revenue, of course, is made to balance. This
looks all right on paper, but it is exceedingly doubtful that the
present authorities will find the real facts corresponding with these
figures. The items that are excessively high are moneys spent for
salaries, for office of mayor, for gas, for street cleaning, for
charitable institutions, for paving, and for contingent expenses. By
"excessive" is of course meant excessive when compared with what the
city receives for the money thus expended. The officials do little or
nothing for their salaries, the gas is wretched and intolerably
expensive, the streets are not cleaned, only the vilest patchwork in the
way of paving has of late years been done, and the charitable
institutions, so called, are in a miserable and filthy condition. In
spite of this, the city of Havana is mulcted to this extent for these
purposes:
Salary of employés and experts and
expenses of mayor's office $120,000
Municipal lighting 134,000
Street cleaning 125,577
Charitable institutions 177,308
Pavements and paving and drains 208,000
Provincial contingent 100,000
---------
$864,885
If honestly and economically expended, these sums would produce good
results without greatly increasing the taxes. The interest and
liquidation of the debt makes an annual charge of $676,195, about
one-third of the present total revenue of Havana; which, if not
excessive, is quite enough under existing conditions of the population.
General Greene thinks the revenues may be with safety increased, say to
$3,000,000. There is force in this, but probably the better way would be
before the debt and taxes are increased to try what an honest
expenditure of the present revenue will do for the rehabilitation of
Havana. Here is what General Greene says on this subject:
[Illustration: TACON MARKET, HAVANA.]
"I am inclined to think, although further study might modify this
opinion, that the wealth of Havana is such that a judicious
system of taxation would yield a revenue of $15 per head, or upward
of $3,000,000, and this, if honestly and judiciously collected and
expended, would probably be twice the actual net revenue now
enjoyed by the city. The collection of taxes of all kinds is now
farmed out on a basis of five per cent. commission for collection,
which is added to the tax. The tax collector states that there are
no arrears, but this statement is vigorously disputed. The whole
system of taxation is radically different from that used in
American cities, and the system has been so long in operation, and
is so intertwined with the system of taxation for the Island, that
it would probably be unwise to attempt to introduce American
methods during the period of military occupation, the duration of
which is so uncertain. It would seem that all that can be done is
to make an honest collection, substantially on the basis of
existing laws, increasing such items as in the judgment of the
military governor can stand an increase without hardship. Such
arbitrary changes would create no surprise, as the population has
for generations been accustomed to having them made by the Spanish
Governor-General."
Arbitrary changes are the one thing the military authorities should
avoid in Cuba, for therein lies our greatest danger with these people.
The fact that the people were accustomed to such action under Spanish
rule makes them far more sensitive to such action than they otherwise
would have been. Note the flutter in Santiago because of the order to
send the custom-house funds to Havana, a perfectly righteous order in
itself, but promulgated in too arbitrary a manner. Notwithstanding this
it created something akin to a panic in Santiago, principally because it
reminded the people of that province of the high-handed Spanish way of
doing things. It is not advisable to increase either the debt or revenue
of Havana at present, but, in the opinion of the author, it would be far
wiser to keep the total revenues about as they now exist. The sources of
revenue may be changed, however, to great advantage; increased in some
directions, reduced in others. For example, ordinances should be passed
compelling the owners of all houses not having water supply (and,
according to General Greene, there are about 18,000 of these) to put in
a water supply immediately. If this were done the water tax could be
spread over a larger number of population, the individual taxes reduced,
and yet the revenue from this source measurably increased. A good
water-works, like that of Havana, should be made self-sustaining, and
under proper management the profits from this department could easily be
made sufficient to pay all the expenses, and at the same time to take
care of the interest and sinking fund of the water-works bonds. From the
American point of view the most unwise tax in Havana is that which has
made the slaughter-houses of that city a constant source of scandal.
To-day every kilogram of meat killed and used costs the people of Havana
4-1/4 cents, and thus the cost of living of the poorer classes is
greatly increased; yet the revenues of the slaughter-house are pledged
to pay the interest on the water-works bonds, when the water-works
themselves are ample security for this purpose.
The real estate of the city should be reassessed fairly and justly, and
a tax-rate arranged which would relieve many of the professions and
industries of unnecessary taxation. It would seem from a glance at the
budget of Havana that, if this were done, and the petty, annoying taxes
abolished, sufficient revenue could easily be raised for all legitimate
purposes. As a matter of fact, a very large proportion of the taxes
collected for municipal purposes in Havana has been diverted from
legitimate channels only to find its way into the pockets of those who
have had charge of municipal affairs. According to the evidence of
several witnesses who appeared before the author in Havana, a large
amount of money was exacted from the people of the city by corruption,
in the way of petty fines paid direct to officials, and not into the
treasury of the state, and also large sums of money in the shape of
payment for indulgences, much in the same manner as the Tammany
officials exact tribute from those conducting illegitimate business or
those engaged in breaking the ordinances of the city. Relief from this
sort of exaction has been at once felt in Havana, but will not be fully
appreciated until the present Governor of the city is able to ferret out
and stop these several forms of imposition.