that the Spanish Navy would try to unite with the Spanish Army. From
Matanzas and from Cienfuegos the troops from the Spanish ships could
go easily by railroad to Havana, through a part of the country still
in the hands of the Spaniards. I may have told you more than you care
to hear about the coming of the enemy's fleet, but I want to give you
an idea of the great anxiety felt by our Government at this time, and
to help you to understand what follows. You must remember that we had
not vessels enough to blockade every port, so we blockaded the ports
that seemed most dangerous.

Where was the Spanish fleet all this time, while our Navy was so
troubled? If you look at a map of Cuba you will find that the eastern
end of the island--the eastern province--is called Santiago de Cuba.
The chief city of the province is on the southern coast, and bears the
same name. The city of Santiago is next in importance to Havana, and
is said to be the oldest city in the Western Hemisphere.

Santiago is a picturesque city, five miles from the coast. It was
founded by Don Diego de Velasquez, who named it for the patron saint
of Spain. Santiago, San Diego and St. Jago are really one name, which
is translated St. James in our language. The city is built along a
sloping hillside, and its massive buildings are tinted pink, blue,
green and purple. There are plenty of red-tiled roofs, among which
rise towers, steeples and palms. The houses are low and built around
courtyards, where flowers and palms grow in profusion. The floors are
of brick or marble. There is a plaza, or central square, and a great
cathedral. The streets are narrow and dirty, and in the quarters
where the poorer class live, babies and pigs roll together in the
gutters, and boys and girls without a rag of clothing on them hold out
their hands for alms.