“ The surrounding country is one of the prettiest and most fertile regions in Cuba, varied with woods, rivers, rocky gulches, beautiful cascades and charming tropic vegetation. Several of the largest and finest sugar estates in the world are situated in the vicinity, including the Soledad (with a botanical experiment station maintained by Harvard University) , the Terry and others—most of them connected with the city by good driveways. Cienfuegos is a centre of the sugar trade on the south coast; tobacco too is exported. ”

“ On the 11th of May 1898 a force from two vessels of the United States fleet under Admiral Schley, searching for Cervera and blockading the port, cut two of the three cables here (at Point Colorado, at the entrance of the harbour) , and for the first time in the Spanish-American War the American troops were under fire. ”