Otto Schoenrich

“ In the country near Azua and Monte Cristi I have imagined myself on the plains of New Mexico, with their scorching heat, their cactus, mesquite bushes and distant violet mountains fading into the azure sky. While arid, these western regions of Santo Domingo are as fertile as the rest of the country and when irrigated give remarkable crops. One of the Dominican government's projects is an extensive irrigation scheme for the Monte Cristi district. The most productive portion of the Republic is undoubtedly the Royal Plain in the Cibao Valley, which is of almost incredible fertility. ”

“ The greatest pride of the Dominican people is that they are the custodians of the mortal remains of Christopher Columbus. The same honor is claimed by Spain, but a Dominican would consider it almost treasonable to doubt the justice of the Dominican claim. It is a strange freak of fate that not only should the great navigator have been denied in life the rewards promised him, not only should the new world he discovered have been given the name of another, but that his very tomb is a matter of controversy. ”

“ He ordered the entire population, without distinction of age or sex to gather on the plaza and the men, women and children to be separated into different groups, the whole plaza being surrounded by strong forces of cavalry. Appearing before the terrified people Toussaint declared slavery abolished and began to walk up and down and ask the women in broken Spanish whether they were French or Spanish, touching them with his cane in an ever more insolent manner. It was too much for one high-spirited young woman, who commenced to upbraid him for daring to touch her. ”

“ Since the declaration of Dominican independence in 1844 almost every revolution has involved a siege of the capital. Within the last twenty-five years the city has made rapid strides forward and spread far beyond the old city walls.
To the stranger Santo Domingo is by far the most interesting city of the Republic, on account of its stirring history and its venerable monuments of the past. Unfortunately the relics of the early days have met with scant respect from later generations, and ruins which would be the pride of other cities have been wantonly demolished. ”

“ They have tasted the sweets of power but also the bitterness of defeat, alternately occupying high positions in the government and pining in prison or exile. Almost all the chiefs of state since 1899 would have done honor to any country, but all have been obliged by the exigencies of politics to give places in their entourage to men of low standing, whose deeds or misdeeds when in power and whose unbridled ambition, have been a factor in the civil wars. ”

“ The friction became more severe until Morales, fearing that both his office and his life were in danger, on the day before Christmas, 1905, fled from the capital, while the Jimenistas rose in Monte Cristi and marched down to attack Santiago and Puerto Plata.
It was the anomalous spectacle of a president leading an insurrection against his own government. Fortune was against the insurgents from the beginning. ”

“ Clouds or rainstorms moving over portions of the vast expanse, add animation to the landscape. Columbus, gazing out upon the enchanting scene, was so impressed by its magnificence that he gave the great vale the name it still bears—La Vega Real, The Royal Plain.
To the south of the central range the number of plains is greater. The largest expanse of level land on the island is the great plain which forms the southeastern part of the Dominican Republic. ”

“ Unnumbered sins have been committed under the cloak of patriotism, and true personal liberty, such as it is understood in the United States, has never prevailed in Santo Domingo; but the adoration of these conceptions continues and it is to be hoped that now, with American assistance, it will bring real and lasting liberty to the country. Perhaps it is their idealism, as much as their isolation, which causes the Dominicans to take themselves so very seriously and renders them so extremely sensitive to criticism or jokes on the subject of their country, customs or revolutions. ”

“ A charming characteristic is the open-hearted hospitality everywhere encountered. The stranger who is introduced in any home is immediately assured in the customary Spanish way: "This is your house." The words, though figuratively spoken, are sincere, and the hosts are glad to have their new friend visit their house as though it were his own. As companions the Dominicans are delightful, being generally jovial and amiable. Some there are, especially among the country people, whose natural reticence makes them seem sullen, but once the ice is broken they are quite as light-hearted as the others. ”

“ As in other Spanish countries the churches are bare of seats, and people who attend either send small chairs before the service, or stand. It is not unusual to see well dressed ladies carrying their chairs to church. Women are much more in evidence than men, and the Dominican woman is not different from her sisters in other countries, for a new hat or dress is apt to awaken in her an irresistible yearning to go to church. Young men are fond of attending, too, but it is to be feared that in many cases their object is to see the young ladies rather than to hear the sermon. ”

“ It is interesting to speculate on what the future of Santo Domingo would have been if annexation had been realized. The power of the United States would have maintained peace; salutary laws would have educated the people in self-government; liberal tariff concessions would have stimulated agriculture and industry; the influx of a good stock of immigrants would have developed and settled the interior; honest administration would have provided roads and schools, and soon the country would have attained a high degree of development and prosperity. ”

“ Another valuable contribution to civic development is rendered by the municipal bands existing in many towns. They are voluntary associations and tend to awaken in the inhabitants an interest and pride in their city. On Sunday night and sometimes on other nights during the week they play on the plaza, while the people, following the usual custom in the Spanish cities, promenade up and down. Such scenes are very attractive, the ladies, dressed in their best, with their light gowns brilliant in the moonlight; the men walking with them or watching the promenaders. ”

“ The feature of the city which attracts the traveler's attention unfavorably is the neglect of the city streets. During the dry season the lack of pavements does not matter but when the rains come the rich loam turns to a deep black mud. Along most streets there are narrow sidewalks, but where there are none, or where it is necessary to cross to the other side, the mode of progress is by hop, skip and jump from one dry place to another—the religion of the virtuous pedestrian being put to a severe test when after a strenuous jump he lands in a muddy place up to his shoe tops. ”

“ Columbus' panegyric on the beauty, fertility and resources of the Island has been echoed by every writer and traveler who has since visited the country. The United States Commission of Inquiry to Santo Domingo reported in 1871: "The resources of the country are vast and various, and its products may be increased with scarcely any other limit than the labor expended upon them.... Taken as a whole, this Republic is one of the most fertile regions on the face of the earth. The evidence of men well acquainted with the other West India Islands declares this to be naturally the richest of them all." ”

“ A wait of five years is necessary before the coffee bushes begin to bear, but after that they continue indefinitely every year, the only labor required being that of keeping the plantation clear of brush and picking the berries when they are ripe. The trees grow to a height of six or eight feet; they bloom with a fragrant, white, star-like flower which on withering leaves the green embryo of the berry. When the berry has reached the size of a hazel-nut it turns red and is picked, much of the picking being done by women. ”

“ Many prominent Dominicans were in doubt as to whether the republic would be able to maintain a stable government and resist the incursions of the Haitians, and believed that the best course for the safety and prosperity of the country would be to seek the protection of a foreign power. These men, who came to be known as conservatives and who counted Santana among their number, began to spread their doctrines and were bitterly opposed by a different element, calling themselves liberals, among whom were Duarte, returned from exile, and the members of the central council of government. ”

“ During the incumbency of strong leaders, such as Santana, Baez and Heureaux, the Congress was little more than the tool of the executive, but when the personality of the president was not so overwhelming or when many of the deputies were followers of a rival chieftain, as in the administrations of Jimenez and Morales, an independent and sometimes a nagging spirit has been manifested. ”

“ The new city led a languishing existence until it became the interior terminus of the Samana-Santiago Railroad which gave it a great impetus. It is regularly laid out, the streets are fairly wide and a majority of the houses are built of brick. The city has a pretty plaza laid out as a garden, a new market building, a theater, and like every other town of importance in Santo Domingo, a club. ”

“ He is about forty-seven years old, was born in Tamboril, near Santiago, and advanced through the stages of schoolmaster, shopkeeper, secretary to Vasquez and Caceres, and cabinet minister, to the position of a political leader.
The ill-feeling akin to hatred between many members of the political parties is incredible to one not accustomed to Latin-American politics. They will have nothing in common, neither will acknowledge the existence of any good in the other, they endeavor to keep apart in the clubs, they do not care to buy in each other's stores. ”

“ By showing an interest of this kind the United States will properly fulfill its proud mission of spreading liberty and prosperity in the new world.
The closer relations between the United States and Santo Domingo will bring that country one boon of inestimable value, namely, peace. It is obvious that all the troubles which have befallen the Dominican Republic are due directly or indirectly to the state of civil disorder which has so long been the bane of the country. Another advantage which these relations will bring is a proper administration of the country's finances. ”

“ The Dominican woman is very domestic, she rarely goes out except to church, to an occasional dance or to the band concerts on the plaza. Before her marriage she is carefully chaperoned and guarded; all courting takes place in the presence of her mother or some other near relative.
Notwithstanding the large mixture of African blood and long isolation of the Dominican race, the strong personality of the Spaniard has survived unmodified and the population is to-day as thoroughly Spanish in character, customs and mode of thinking as the people of Cuba and Porto Rico. ”

“ In the beginning of the year 1905 Santo Domingo had fallen to the lowest depths of bankruptcy and financial discredit. After decades of civil disturbance, misrule and reckless debt contraction, the deluge had come. The substance of the country had been wasted in military expenditures; agriculture and commerce were stagnant; a debt of over $30,000,000 had been contracted with nothing to show for it but forty-two miles of narrow-gauge railroad and two small gunboats; the government obligations were chronically in default and interest charges were piling up at ruinous rates ”

“ A protected state has many obligations and few rights. It must defer to the wishes of the protector, but the protector is under no absolute duty to further its development or the happiness of its inhabitants. On the other hand, when annexed to the stronger state, it may expect and demand that interest be shown in its progress and well-being. While annexation would probably entail a temporary government by officials foreign to the country, American traditions would not permit such a condition to continue for any length of time and autonomy would eventually come. ”

“ When the French revolution broke out in 1789 both the Spanish and French colonies of Santo Domingo were enjoying a high degree of prosperity. In the French colony there were about 30,000 whites, and the haughty white planters were wont to indulge in every form of luxury and sybaritic pleasure; the negro slaves, whose number had grown to almost half a million, were subjected to the most barbarous ill-treatment; and a class of about 30,000 ambitious free mulattoes had arisen, many of whom where cultured and wealthy, but who were all rigidly excluded from participation in public affairs. ”

“ But those of clearer vision recognize that there is no alternative, that the independence of the Republic has long been a fiction, that real freedom is only now beginning to dawn, and that American assistance will give the greatest impetus to prosperity. ”

“ At the present moment perhaps the most prominent political figure is Federico Velazquez, a man of unusual force of character, who as minister of finance under Caceres, enforced the settlement of the Dominican debt and gave what was probably the most honest administration of public revenues in the Republic's history. He is one of the few men having the moral courage openly to advocate American cooperation in the government of the country. ”

“ It soon became evident that the neighborhood of Isabela was not a healthy one. Fever invaded the colony; Columbus himself was not exempt. Discontent came and an uprising among the soldiers was nipped in the bud. On recovering from his illness Columbus resolved to make an exploration of the interior; and with drums beating and flags flying a brilliant expedition left Isabela. The beautiful Royal Plain was soon reached and friendly relations established with its peaceful inhabitants, whose wonder at the Spaniards and terror at their horses knew no bounds. ”

“ In social life the clubs are prominent features. A town must be unimportant indeed if it has not at least one club where the men can meet, read the papers and play cards or billiards. The first attention shown the stranger within the gates is to take him to the club and enroll him as a visitor, this action being equivalent to a general local introduction. The clubs give pleasant musical and literary entertainments and dances attended by the best local society. In Santo Domingo, Puerto Plata and Santiago the ladies have a club of their own where they can meet and chat to their hearts' content. ”

“ For several years the number of persons taking such a broader view has been rapidly increasing. It was not long ago when friends of mine in Santo Domingo would lead me to the middle of the plazza, out of hearing of any eavesdropper, and then with bated breath confide their conviction that the only salvation of the country lay in the United States. Ruin and sorrow brought by the civil wars have caused such ideas to spread and be openly expressed. ”

“ In view of such conditions so favorable to wrongdoers, the low criminal record of Santo Domingo is all the more remarkable and speaks highly for the character of the population. Crimes evincing malice and a depraved disposition are exceedingly rare. The Dominican boasts that it is possible to travel without fear from one end of the Republic to the other, though unarmed and carrying large sums of money. The few attacks on travelers which are on record have generally been due to revenge or some other personal motive. There is petty thievery, but no more than anywhere else. ”

“ As no census of the Republic has ever been taken and data relative to births and deaths have not been collected regularly, it is not possible to compile statistics as to the death rate in the various provinces. The data so far available seem to indicate that the healthiest province is Puerto Plata, followed by Santiago, Azua and Monte Cristi, after which come Santo Domingo, La Vega, Espaillat, Pacificador, Samana and Barahona. The mortality rate is highest in the province of Macoris where the annual number of deaths is reported to average about thirty per thousand. ”