(1919) Through Santo Domingo and Haiti: A Cruise with the Marines

8/14/2019 (1919) Through Santo Domingo and Haiti: A Cruise with the Marines

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THE LIBRARY

OFTHE UNIVERSITYOF CALIFORNIA

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THROUGH

Santo Domingo andHaiti

(

A Cruise With the Marines

BySAMUEL GUY INMAN

Executive Secretary of the Committee on Co-operationin Latin America

/

Report of a Visit to these Island

Republics in the Summer of 1919

RNIA

JF.

COMMITTEE ON CO-OPERATIONIN LATIN AMERICA

25 MADISON AVENUE

NEW YORK CITY

77b0


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isnary

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CONTENTS

PAGE

* Map of Santo Domingo and Haiti 2. Foreword 4

Part I. Santo Domingo

I. General Observations and Travel Notes 5

TI. History Government American Occupation 15III. Commerce Transportation Resources 24IV. The People and Their Social Problems 34

V. Dominican Authors and Literature 40

VI. Education and Religion 45

Part II. Haiti

I. History 541 1. Crossing the Island 57

1 1 1. Problems of American Occupation 681 V. Commerce and Natural Resources 11

V. Education and Sanitation 74\ I . The People 7;

VII. Missions in Haiti 86

Bibliography 91


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FOREWORD

At the Annual Meeting of the Committee on Co-operationin Latin America, January 13, 1919, the Executive Secretarywas authorized to make a survey of religious, social andeducational conditions in the Dominican Republic and Haiti.

Thereport

presented herewith is a brief digest of thein-

formation gathered on this trip, presented partly in the formof a brief account of the trip itself, together with recommenda-tions for the development of an educational, social andspiritual program that will be a real help to these two needycountries.

Much material gleaned from the few available recentauthoritative sources on Haiti and Santo Domingo, of which

Schoenrich's "Santo Domingo, A Country with a Future," iseasily first, is included in the following chapters. Some ofthe best of this quoted matter is now out of print. Thewriter can scarcely assume authority or claim credit for allof this information, though careful effort has been made toinsure its reasonable accuracy. There is need for a real hand-book on the Island, and it is the meeting, in part at least, ofthis demand, rather than the production of a work that should

conform to all the canons of literary usage that has been theraison d'etre of this booklet. For other defects, no furtherapology is offered than the necessary haste of preparation.

A visit to Santo Domingo and Haiti probably carries withit more surprises for the average American than a trip to anyother neighboring countries. After only five days on a slowboat from New York one finds himself in the midst of con-ditions which continually remind him, on one hand, of theheart of Africa, and on the other of the neglect and arresteddevelopment arising from Spain's abuse of the oldest of herAmerican colonies. The problem that the United States isfacing in practically taking over the island is an enormousone. Its seriousness is probably recognized by very few indeed.

S. G. I.


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PART ONESANTO DOMINGO

CHAPTER IGENERAL OBSERVATIONS AND TRAVEL NOTES

"United States Urged to Withdraw from Santo DomingoSpanish Parliament Expresses Desire," was a recent head-ing carried in our morning papers.

And many people rubbed their eyes and asked what itmeant, and where was Santo Domingo and what had we todo with it? Just as a friend when told by a United StatesMarine Chaplain of being ordered to go to Santo Domingo,exclaimed : "Oh, ah, that's too bad ! How will you go, bySan Francisco?"

The Dominican Republic, or Santo Domingo (don't say(< San Domingo," there is no such combination in the Spanishlanguage) is a country occupying two-thirds of the secondlargest island in the West Indies. It lies squarely betweenCuba and Porto Rico, and is two-fifths as large as the formerand six times as large as the latter.

The high spots of Dominican history are these: Discoveredby Columbus on his first voyage and made the seat of the firstpermanent European colony in the New World ; the homeof Christopher, Bartolome and Diego Columbus ; of Las Ca-sas; Cortez ; Ponce de Leon, and most of the old Conquista-dores, who here first fell on their knees to thank God for anew found world and next fell on the Aborigines and tookthe said world for themselves. The slaughter of the nativeswas so ruthlessly carried out that the colony lost its wonder-ful prosperity, as its workers were exterminated within fiftyyears after the discovery. Then, for three centuries, it at-tracted little attention from the outside world.

About the beginning of the 19th Century, in the generalmovement for independence in Latin America. Haiti, treeingherself from France, extended her rule over Santo Domingo.The Negro Republic maintained its domination with its policyof making the whole island black, until 1844. Independencewas lost to Spain in 1861, but regained four years later, and


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maintained, in spite of almosl constant internal disorder, until

July 1916. when the United States hoisted the Star and Stripesover the turbulent people. As far hack as 1907 the UnitedStates had signed a convention with the Dominican Republic,whereby we collected her customs and administered herfinances. As the continued revolutions had largely centeredaround the custom houses, which were the principal sourceof national revenue, it was thought that in keeping these fromthe revolutionary leaders the too ardent desire for office wouldbe largely eliminated and armed disturbances stopped.

This did not prove true, however. During the presidencyof Jimenez in 1914 his old rival, Baez, challenged his power.With the consent of Jimenez the United States landed marineson both the northern and southern parts of the island. Thoselanding on the north had a rather serious time, fighting theirway across the island to the capital, which, by this time, waspacified. The new provisional president, Henriquez, refusingto sign a treaty proposed by the United States, along thelines recently arranged with Haiti, the United States, whichcontrolled all the revenues, iii turn, refused to turn over anymoney to the government. The deadlock was broken on No-vember 29, 1916, by the issuing of a proclamation by RearAdmiral Knapp placing the country under martial law. Ithas so remained up to the present.

It was into this interesting political situation, an interestwhich is intensified ten-fold by the history and marvelous

natural resources and beautyof the island, that I found

myself thrust in the summer of 1919.Every one had impressed on me the difficulty of travel in

that part of the world. There are two ways of getting toSanto Domingo. One is by the Clyde Line from New York.taking six days to the northern port of Puerto Plata andtwelve days to Santo Domingo City on the southern shore.The other way is to go to Porto Rico and take a little coaster

across the channel. There is only one boat now running fromPorto Rico to Santo Domingo, which makes a trip about everyten days, but it is so crowded that half of the would-be pas-sengers are generally left behind. There being practicallyno roads on the Island, it is quite difficult to travel, even onhorseback, at the present time, as swollen rivers and bandits

might delay one indefinitely. All my information was to theeffect that it was impossible to get from Santo Domingo to

Haiti. Added to lack of ships, absence of railways betweenimportant centers and almost equal lack of wagon roads, thenext report that there was such a demand for passage north

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(iii steamships at this season that $500 is often offered fora reservation, makes one appreciate some of the difficulties.

1 chose to go by way of Porto Rico and through thecourtesy of Captain Blood of the U. S. N. Yacht "Kwashing"1 was enabled to go directly from that country to Santo I ) *-*


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(1919) Through Santo Domingo and Haiti: A Cruise with the Marines