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SANTO DOMINGO
SANTO DOMINGO
1918 It is remarkable how little has been written about the Dominican Republic, a country so near to our shores, which has for years had intimate commercial and political relations with our country, which is at present under the provisional administration of the American Government, and which is destined to develop under the protection and guidance of the United States. The only comprehensive publications on the Dominican Republic, in the English language, are the Report of the United States Com
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CHAPTER I. Historical Sketch-Days of the Conquest—1492 to 1533
CHAPTER I. Historical Sketch-Days of the Conquest—1492 to 1533
Aborigines—Discovery—Founding of Isabela—Disaffection of the colonists—Indian wars—Oppression of the Indians—Founding of Santo Domingo City—Roldan's insurrection—Humiliation of Columbus—Ovando's administration—Extermination of the natives—Administrations of Diego Columbus—Treaty with Indian survivors. Decline of the colony—English attacks on Santo Domingo City—Settlement of Tortuga by freebooters—French settlements in western Santo Domingo—Border wars—Cession of western coast to France—Return of
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CHAPTER I
CHAPTER I
HISTORICAL SKETCH.—DAYS OF THE CONQUEST.—1492 to 1533 Aborigines.—Discovery.—Founding of Isabela.—Disaffection of the colonists.—Indian wars.—Oppression of the Indians.—Founding of Santo Domingo City.—Roldan's insurrection.—Humiliation of Columbus,—Ovando's administration.—Extermination of the natives.—Administrations of Diego Columbus.—Treaty with Indian survivors. When Columbus, in December, 1492, sailed along the northern coast of the island of Haiti or Santo Domingo, he was more enchanted wi
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CHAPTER II
CHAPTER II
Decline of the colony.—English attacks on Santo Domingo City.—Settlement of Tortuga by freebooters.—French settlements in western Santo Domingo.—Border wars.—Cession of western coast to France.—Return of prosperity.—Effect of French revolution.—Negro uprising in French Santo Domingo.—Rise of Toussaint l'Ouverture. —Cession of Spanish Santo Domingo to France.—Evacuation by Spain. Within forty years after its discovery Santo Domingo had passed the zenith of its glory. The vast and wealthy countrie
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CHAPTER III
CHAPTER III
Rule of Toussaint l'Ouverture.—Exodus of whites.—Capture of Santo Domingo by French.—War with negroes.—Government of Ferrand. —Incursion of Dessalines.—Insurrection of Sanchez Ramirez. —Reestablishment of Spanish rule.—Proclamation of Colombian State of Spanish Haiti.—Conquest by Haiti.—Haitian rule.—Duarte's conspiracy.—Declaration of Independence. Toussaint l'Ouverture's occupation of Santo Domingo occasioned a new exodus of white families who were fearful of what might happen under negro rule
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CHAPTER IV
CHAPTER IV
HISTORICAL SKETCH.—FIRST REPUBLIC AND SPANISH ANNEXATION.—1844 TO 1865. Constitution of the government.—Santana's first administration.—Wars with the Haitians.—Administration of Jimenez.—Victory of Las Carreras.—Baez' first administration.—Santana's second administration.—Repulse of Soulouque.—Baez' second administration. —Period of the two governments.—Santana's third administration. —Annexation negotiations.—Annexation to Spain.—War of the Restoration. Immediately upon the declaration of indep
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CHAPTER V
CHAPTER V
Restoration of the republic.—Military presidents.—Cabral's administration.—Baez' fourth administration.—Annexation negotiations with the United States.—Civil wars.—Heureaux's rule.—Administrations of Jimenez, Vasquez and Woss y Gil.—Election of Morales. From the very beginning of the War of the Restoration and for several years afterwards, the principal Dominican military chiefs were engaged in a disgraceful squabble for leadership. As soon as the Spanish forces retired from Santiago the revolut
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CHAPTER VI
CHAPTER VI
Financial difficulties.—Fiscal convention with the United States.—Caceres' administration.-Provisional presidents.—Civil disturbances.—Jimenez' second administration.—American intervention. The enormous foreign and internal debt left by the Heureaux administration had been constantly increased by ruinous loans to which the succeeding governments were obliged to resort during the years of civil warfare, until the country was in a condition of hopeless bankruptcy. In the beginning of 1904 every it
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AREA AND BOUNDARIES
AREA AND BOUNDARIES
Area of Republics of Haiti and Santo Domingo.—Boundary disputes.—Harbors on north coast.—Character of shore.—Samana Bay.—Character of east and south coast.—Harbors of Macoris and Santo Domingo.—Ocoa Bay.—Islands.—Haitian frontier. Of the great chain of islands which extends in a vast semi-circle from the southern coast of Florida to the northeastern coast of Venezuela, the second largest is the Island of Haiti or Santo Domingo, situated midway between Cuba and Porto Rico, and lying between latit
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OBSERVATIONS FOR SANTO DOMINGO CITY
OBSERVATIONS FOR SANTO DOMINGO CITY
Highest Lowest Mean Average Mean temperature temperature relative Average number temperature recorded recorded humidity rainfall of days °F °F °F per cl. inches with rain January 74 86 61 85 2.01 11 February 74 88 60 82 .96 8 March 75 87 59 79 2.15 9 April 76 91 59 80 6.86 14 May 78 88 67 83 6.29 13 June 78 90 67 86 7.42 18 July 79 92 67 86 8.34 18 August 80 95 68 84 6.77 17 September 79 93 69 85 7.63 16 October 79 92 67 86 9.63 15 November 78 91 64 85
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CHAPTER IX
CHAPTER IX
Rock formation.—Mineral deposits.—Gold.—Copper.—Iron.-Coal.—Silver.—Salt—Building stone.—Petroleum.—Mineral springs.—Earthquakes. The geological formation and the mineral wealth of the Dominican Republic have never been thoroughly studied, in part because of the physical difficulties and in part as a result of the civil dissensions. The government has never had money to spare for such objects, and private investigators have suffered much hardship and lost many days in opening paths through tangl
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FLORA AND FAUNA
FLORA AND FAUNA
Agricultural conditions.—Land titles and measures.—Wet and arid regions.—Exports.—Sugar.—Cacao.—Tobacco.—Coffee.—Tropical fruits.—Forest products.—Insects.—Reptiles.—Fishery.—Birds. —Cattle raising. Of all the islands visited by Columbus none impressed him so favorably as Santo Domingo. His enthusiasm is reflected in the glowing description given in his letter to his friend and patron, Luis de Santangel, dated February 15, 1493, of which the following forms part: "In it (la Española) there are m
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EXPORTS OF THE DOMINICAN REPUBLIC
EXPORTS OF THE DOMINICAN REPUBLIC
1913 1914 1915 1916 Sugar (raw) kilos[1] 78,849,465 101,428,847 102,800,551 122,642,514 value $3,650,556 $4,943,452 $7,676,383 $12,028,297 Cacao kilos 19,470,827 20,744,517 20,223,023 21,053,305 value $4,119,955 $3,896,489 $4,863,754 $5,958,669 Tobacco leaf kilos 9,790,398 3,705,549 6,235,409 7,925,151 value $1,121,775 $394,224 $972,896 $1,433,323 Coffee kilos 1,048,922 1,831,938 2,468,435 1,731,718 value $257,076 $345,57
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THE PEOPLE
THE PEOPLE
Population.—Distribution.—Race.—Descendants of American negroes.—Language.—Physical traits.—Mental traits.—Amusements. —Dances, theaters, clubs, carnivals.—Gaming.—Morality.—Homes. The estimates of the early Spanish writers as to the Indian population of Hispaniola at the time of its first settlement in 1493 range all the way from one million to three million inhabitants. While it is probable that the former number was nearer to the truth, it is evident that the island was well inhabited, for Co
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RELIGION
RELIGION
Catholic religion.—Concordat.—Ownership of church buildings.—Clergy.—Religious sentiment.—Shrines.—Religious customs and holidays.—Religious toleration.—Protestant sects. The Roman Catholic creed has been the dominant religion of Santo Domingo from the time of the conquest. When Columbus arrived on his second voyage he brought with him twelve friars, some of whom were as holy men as their leader, the vindictive Father Boil, was a nuisance. Others were not long in arriving and soon the country ha
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EDUCATION AND LITERATURE
EDUCATION AND LITERATURE
Education in Spanish times.—Work of Hostos.—School organization.—Professional institute.—Primary and secondary education.—Literacy.—Libraries.—Newspapers.—Literature.—Fine Arts. As in other Spanish colonies, it was not the policy of the Spanish government in Santo Domingo to foster popular education. Learning was confined to the clergy and the aristocracy and was imparted only by servants of the church. As early as 1538, the Dominican friars obtained a papal bull for the establishment of a unive
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CHAPTER XIV
CHAPTER XIV
Railroads.—Samana-Santiago Railroad.—Central Dominican Railway.—Roads.—Mode of Traveling.—Inns.—Principal highways. —Steamer lines.—Postal facilities.—Telegraph and telephone lines. A potent cause of the undeveloped state of Santo Domingo's agriculture has been the absence of transportation facilities, which has likewise been a cause and an effect of the internal disturbances. There are but two public railroads in the Republic, both in the Cibao region, with an aggregate length of 144 miles. The
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CHAPTER XV
CHAPTER XV
Exports and imports.—Foreign trade.—Trade with the United States.— Ports of entry.—Wharf concessions.—Domestic trade.—Business houses.—Banks.—Manufactures. The fact that Dominican commerce has more than trebled in twelve years demonstrates the epoch-making character of the fiscal convention with the United States. The trade figures since 1905 are as follows: GROWTH OF DOMINICAN TRADE (All figures are in American currency) Imports Exports Total 1905 $ 2,736,828 $ 6,896,098 $
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PROVINCE OF SAN PEDRO DE MACORÍS
PROVINCE OF SAN PEDRO DE MACORÍS
San Pedro de Macorís , about 45 miles east of Santo Domingo City, is one of the most modern and flourishing cities of the Republic. In 1885 it was merely a small fishing village, about that time sugar plantations began to be established in the surrounding plains and the town commenced to grow. To-day there are pretty houses, the streets are clean and in good repair, the plaza has a handsome park and the whole city wears a prosperous look. There are busy scenes on the modern docks and in the harb
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PROVINCE OF SEIBO
PROVINCE OF SEIBO
Santa Cruz del Seibo , 74 miles northeast of Santo Domingo, was originally founded by Juan de Esquivel in 1502, but being destroyed by an earthquake in 1751, was moved to its present location, to the north of its old site. It lies in the center of a region devoted to cacao planting and stockraising. The town has a pretty church, and is celebrated in Dominican history as having instigated the reconquest for Spain in 1808 and as having been the home and bulwark of General Pedro Santana, who was id
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PROVINCE OF SAMANÁ
PROVINCE OF SAMANÁ
Santa Bárbara de Samaná , 78 miles northeast of the capital of the Republic, is built on a cove on the north side of Samana Bay. The protected character of the inlet made it a favorite resort for pirates in the seventeenth century, and beginning with 1673, French buccaneers made several attempts to settle here but were driven out by the Spanish authorities. The town was definitely settled in 1756 by families from the Canary Islands. In the town and neighborhood live many English-speaking negroes
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PROVINCE OF PACIFICADOR
PROVINCE OF PACIFICADOR
San Francisco de Macoris , the capital of the province, is about 85 miles northwest of Santo Domingo City and occupies the site of a fort established by Ovando in 1504 and known as the fort of La Magdalena. It was founded in 1774 around a chapel dedicated to St. Ann which stood on a ranch called San Francisco. Lying in a fertile district formerly devoted to tobacco and now one of the chief cacao regions of the island, it is a town of considerable business. It is also called Macoris del Norte , t
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PROVINCE OF LA VEGA
PROVINCE OF LA VEGA
Concepción de la Vega , capital of the province and one of the most important cities of the Royal Plain, is 90 miles from Santo Domingo City. The old town of Concepción de la Vega was founded by Columbus in 1495 at the foot of the eminence known as Santo Cerro and at the place of residence of the Indian chief Guarionex. It quickly attained such importance that in 1508 it was declared a city and endowed with a coat of arms, and in the same year a bishopric was erected there, which was, however, i
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PROVINCE OF ESPAILLAT
PROVINCE OF ESPAILLAT
Moca , also called Espaillat , 100 miles northwest of Santo Domingo City, is a thriving city. It was the scene of the "Moca massacre" in 1805, when the Haitian general Christophe, having guaranteed the safety of the inhabitants, induced them to return from their hiding places in the mountains and assemble in the church to the number of five hundred in order to hold a mass of thanksgiving, whereupon they were massacred by the Haitian soldiers. In more recent history it has been taken and retaken
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PROVINCE OF SANTIAGO
PROVINCE OF SANTIAGO
Santiago de los Caballeros , Santiago of the Gentlemen, 115 miles northwest of Santo Domingo, was founded as a military station on a bluff of the Yaque River about 1497 by order of Bartholomew Columbus, and settled in 1504 by thirty knights, from which circumstance it derives its name. It received many settlers from the old town of Isabela, was given a coat of arms in 1508, reached a flourishing state, and was destroyed in 1564 by the same earthquake which overthrew La Vega. Its inhabitants then
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PROVINCE OF PUERTO PLATA
PROVINCE OF PUERTO PLATA
Puerto Plata , 150 miles northwest of Santo Domingo, is the most important port of the north of the Republic. Columbus is said to have made the plans for the streets of the town; as early as 1499 there were settlers here; and in 1502 the city was formally founded by order of Ovando. It enjoyed prosperity during the first years of the colony, but in 1543 was attacked by pirates and thereafter rapidly went to decay. The stringent laws which restricted the commerce of the island to certain ports of
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PROVINCE OF MONTE CRISTI
PROVINCE OF MONTE CRISTI
San Fernando de Monte Cristi , 196 miles northwest of Santo Domingo City, the capital of Monte Cristi province, was founded during the government of Ovando by sixty Spanish families, and after giving promise of prosperity decayed with the rest of the colony. It was supported for a time by a brisk contraband trade which sprang up with the Dutch and other nations and to put a stop to which the town was destroyed in 1606 like Puerto Plata and the inhabitants transferred to Monte Plata, to the south
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PROVINCE OF AZUA
PROVINCE OF AZUA
Azua de Compostela , about 83 miles west of Santo Domingo City, was founded by Diego de Velazquez in 1504 at a point four miles southwest of its present location. It was first called Compostela after a Galician official who held some property here, but the Indian name of the region prevailed. Hernando Cortez, later the conqueror of Mexico, settled here and for some five years was the notary of the town. At first prosperous, the city soon suffered a serious decline, but was beginning to revive wh
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PROVINCE OF BARAHONA
PROVINCE OF BARAHONA
Barahona , 126 miles west of Santo Domingo City, became capital of the Barahona district when a provincial government was established there in 1881. It is a small town, which began to be settled in the beginning of the nineteenth century, and suffered greatly during the Haitian wars and the revolutions following them. At present its fame is its fine coffee. Other towns are Enriquillo , formerly called Petitrú (Petit Trou) on the coast 22 miles south of Barahona; Neiba , 32 miles northwest of Bar
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CHAPTER XVII
CHAPTER XVII
Burial of Columbus.—Disappearance of epitaph.—Removal of remains in 1795.—Discovery of remains in 1877.—Resting place of Discoverer of America. 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
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CHAPTER XVIII
CHAPTER XVIII
Form of government.—Constitutions.—Presidents.—Election.—Powers. —Executive secretaries.—Land and sea forces.—Congress.—Local subdivisions.—Provincial governors.—Communal governments. From the date of the declaration of independence, February 27, 1844, down to the present time, with the exception only of a portion of the period of Spanish occupation of 1861 to 1865, Santo Domingo has remained in form at least, a republic. Herein it contrasts with its neighbor Haiti, which has experienced several
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CHAPTER XX
CHAPTER XX
Audiencia of Santo Domingo.—Legal system.—Judicial organization.—Observance of laws.—Prisons.—Character of offenses. In the year 1510 the Spanish government established in Santo Domingo the first of the famous colonial audiencias, or royal high courts, the list of which appears like a roll call of Spain's former glories. Others were added later in Mexico, Guatemala, Guadalajara, Panama, Lima, Santa Fé de Bogotá, Quito, Manila, Santiago de Chile, Charcas (now Sucré), and Buenos Aires. The audienc
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CHAPTER XXI
CHAPTER XXI
Financial situation in 1905.—Causes of debt.—Amount of debt.—Bonded debt.—Liquidated debt.—Floating debt.—Declared claims.—Undeclared claims.—Surrender of Puerto Plata custom-house.—Fiscal convention of 1905.—Modus vivendi.—Negotiations for adjustment of debt.—New bond issue.—Fiscal treaty of 1907.—Adjustment with creditors.—1912 loan.—Present financial situation. Rarely have the fiscal affairs of a country experienced so rapid and radical a change for the better as those of Santo Domingo since
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NATIONAL FINANCIAL SYSTEM
NATIONAL FINANCIAL SYSTEM
The revenues of the general government are derived chiefly from customs duties and secondarily from miscellaneous minor sources. There is no direct tax on land. Prior to 1904 the revenues fluctuated according to the state of tranquillity of the country, being usually something less than $2,000,000 per annum, but immediately upon the establishment of the American receivership in April, 1905, they went up rapidly. The increase has continued steadily and the government's annual income now amounts t
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MUNICIPAL FINANCES
MUNICIPAL FINANCES
Like the national government, the municipalities or communes depend almost entirely upon indirect taxation for their revenues. One of the principal sources of income is the tax on the slaughter of cattle and sale of meat. The communes may further, with the authority of Congress, levy a "consumo" tax, a small duty on the imports and exports of merchants within their jurisdiction, which tax has given rise to much confusion and controversy. Business licenses also form an important fount of revenue.
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APPENDIX A CHIEFS OF STATE OF SANTO DOMINGO
APPENDIX A CHIEFS OF STATE OF SANTO DOMINGO
1492-1918 Governors Admiral Cristopher Columbus, viceroy 1492-1500 Adelantado Bartholomew Columbus 1496-1498 Comendador Francisco de Bobadilla 1500-1502 Comendador Nicolás de Ovando 1502-1509 Diego Columbus, Second Admiral 1509-1515 Licentiate Cristábal Lebrán, in connection with Royal Audiencia 1515-1516 Luis de Figueroa, Bernardino de Manzanedo, and Ildefonso de Santo Domingo, friars of the order of San Jeránimo 1516-1519 Licentiate Rodrigo de Figueroa 1519-1520 Diego Columbus, Second Ad
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FRENCH COLONY
FRENCH COLONY
Governors General Toussaint l'Ouverture 1801-1802 General Antoine Nicolas Kerverseau 1802-1803 General Marie Louis Ferrand 1803-1808 General L. Barquier 1808-1809...
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SECOND SPANISH COLONY
SECOND SPANISH COLONY
Governors and Captains-General Brigadier Juan Sánchez Ramárez 1809-1811 Colonel Manuel Caballero y Masot 1811-1813 Brigadier Carlos de Urrutia y Matos 1813-1818 Brigadier Sebastian Kindelan y Oregán 1818-1821 Brigadier Pascual Real 1821...
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STATE OF COLOMBIAN REPUBLIC
STATE OF COLOMBIAN REPUBLIC
Governor and President Licentiate José Nuñez de Cáceres 1821-1822...
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HAITIAN RULE
HAITIAN RULE
Presidents Jean Pierre Boyer 1822-1843 Charles Riviáre Hérardi ainé 1843-1844...
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FIRST REPUBLIC
FIRST REPUBLIC
Presidents Central Council of Government (Provisional government) 1844 Pedro Santana, Provisional and Constitutional President 1844-1848 Manuel Jiménez, Constitutional President 1848-1849 Buenaventura Baez, Constitutional President 1849-1853 Pedro Santana, Constitutional President 1853-1856 Manuel de Regla Mota, Vice-President 1856 Buenaventura Baez, Vice-President 1856-1858 José Desiderio Valverde, Constitutional President 1858 Pedro Santana, Provisional and Constitutional President 1858-1861 G
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AMERICAN INTERVENTION
AMERICAN INTERVENTION
Military Governor Rear-Admiral H. S. Knapp 1916-...
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APPENDIX B
APPENDIX B
The equivalents between old weights and measures still in use in Santo Domingo with the legal or metric system, are as follows, the equivalents with American measures being also given: Dominican American Metric Measures of length: 1 league 3.46 miles 5.5727 kilometers 1 ona 3 feet, 10.79 inches 1.1884 meters 1 yard 35.996 inches 0.9143 meter 1 vara 32.91 inches 0.836 meter 1 foot 10.945 inches 0.278 meter 1 inch 0.9055 inch 0.023 meter 1 line [1] 0.0787 inch 0.002 meter Surface measures: 1 tarea
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APPENDIX C
APPENDIX C
_Concluded February 8, 1907 Ratification advised by Senate February 25, 1907 Ratified by President June 2, 1907 Ratified by President of the Dominican Republic June 18, 1907 Ratifications exchanged at Washington July 8, 1907 Proclaimed July 25, 1907_ Whereas a convention between the United States of America and the Dominican Republic providing for the assistance of the United States in the collection and application of the customs revenues of the Dominican Republic, was concluded and signed by t
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