Porto Rico Part 1

Porto Rico.

by Arthur D. Hall.

CHAPTER I.

THE ABORIGINES OF PORTO RICO.

Porto Rico, or Puerto Rico, as it is sometimes called, has lately become of the first importance in the eyes of the world. To Americans it has a.s.sumed special interest, as it is now practically in the possession of the United States, and sooner or later will be represented by a new star in our beautiful flag, that flag which recently, by the magnificent exploits of our navy and army, has a.s.sumed a greater importance than ever among the standards of the universe.

Uncle Sam will certainly find this beautiful and fertile island a most valuable possession, every foot of which he could sell at a large substantial price, if he chose to do so.

Until recently there has been an impression in the United States that Porto Rico did not amount to much, that Cuba was the only island in the West Indies which was of any especial value. But this is the most grievous error, as we shall endeavor to show in the course of this little book.

The island, without much exaggeration, can really be called the garden spot of the world, and there is no doubt but that when the Stars and Stripes wave permanently over it, and there is an influx of American enterprise and wealth, there will be a marvelous increase in values of all kinds.

Like all Spanish colonies, Porto Rico has been wofully mismanaged. The Spaniards have looked upon it in the light of a more or less valuable cow from which every drop of milk must be squeezed. But now, under more fortuitous circ.u.mstances, under a more beneficent rule, the charming little island will undoubtedly "blossom as a rose"; for those who have looked into the subject have declared that more can be raised on an acre of land in Porto Rico than in any other portion of the globe. Later on we shall examine in detail the truth or falsehood of this statement.

Porto Rico is older than the United States, for it was discovered by Columbus on November 16, 1493, during his second voyage to America. The great discoverer remained there only two days in the port of Aquadilla, but he did not come in contact with any of the ingenuous natives, for they fled in terror when they saw his ship.

During their subsequent conquests in the West Indies, the Spaniards paid no attention to Porto Rico until 1509. At this time Ponce de Leon, then governor of Hispaniola, afterward known as Hayti, determined to extend his dominion. With the idea of obtaining fresh supplies of gold, he went to Porto Rico and made a long visit to the chief of the natives, by whom he was received and entertained with the greatest kindness and hospitality. The chief willingly pointed out to his Spanish guests all the great resources of the island, and when, with the greed which has ever distinguished the men of their country, they asked for gold, he took them to streams where the sands were loaded with the precious metal.

Ponce de Leon was so delighted with the beauty and fertility of the island that he imagined he could find there the fountain of perpetual youth for which he so long sought in vain. In this chimerical idea, however, as in Florida, he was doomed to disappointment.

The original name of the island is said to have been Borinquen, and the population of the natives, who were of the same race as the inhabitants of the other islands of the Greater Antilles, has been estimated at six hundred thousand.

Dr. C. T. Bedwell, recently British consul at Porto Rico, has published a most interesting report in regard to the aborigines, and from this report we have obtained considerable of the information which follows.

Among the Sibaros, or sallow people of to-day, one rarely sees a physical trace of Indian descent, although in their mode of living much of Indian character exists. Fray Inigo Abbad, who wrote a work on Porto Rico, published in Madrid in 1878, says that when the Spaniards first came to Porto Rico "it was as thickly populated as a beehive, and so beautiful that it resembled a garden." Fray Inigo says that the color of the Indians of Porto Rico was the copper color known to the aborigines of America, though they were of a sallow and somewhat darker complexion.

They were shorter in stature than the Spaniards, stout and well-proportioned. They had flat noses with wide nostrils, bad teeth and narrow foreheads. Their heads were flat, both in front and at the back, "because," says the author, "they were pressed into this shape at the time of their birth." They had long, thin, coa.r.s.e hair, and, according to Fray Inigo, they were without hair on their face or on other parts of their body. This, however, is disputed by some writers.

The small quant.i.ty and little substance of the food they used, the facility with which they supplied material wants without labor, the excessive heat of the climate, and the absence of quadrupeds for the exercise of hunting, caused them, he says, to be weak and indolent, and averse to labor of all kinds. Anything that was not necessary to satisfy the pangs of hunger, or that did not afford amus.e.m.e.nt, such as hunting or fishing, was regarded with indifference. Neither the hope of reward nor the fear of punishment would tempt them to seek the one or to avoid the other.

Fray Inigo admits, however, that there were some exceptions among them, and says that some of the Indians displayed much bravery and strength in the contests with the Spanish soldiers.

Their forms were light and free, and there were no cripples among them.

They were governed by Caciques, whose eldest sons inherited the succession. In the absence of a son the chief was succeeded by the eldest son of his sister, that there might be no doubt as to true descent.

The tutelary deity was Cerni, who was made to speak by the Buhitis or medicine men, who were at the same time the priests. The Buhites hid themselves behind the statue of Cerni and declared war or peace, arranged the seasons, granted sunshine or rain, or whatever was required, according to the will of the Cacique. When announcements were not fulfilled the Buhites declared that the Cerni had changed his mind for wise reasons of his own, "without on this account," says Fray Inigo, "the power or credit of the pretended deity, or his mendacious ministers being doubted, such being the simplicity and ignorance of the Indians."

The chiefdoms were divided into small provinces, which for the most part only comprised the inhabitants of a valley; but all were subject to the head Cacique, who at the time of the conquest was Aqueyn.o.ba. He was actually governor-in-chief, the others being his lieutenants, who carried out his orders in their respective districts.

Men and unmarried women wore no clothing, but painted their bodies abundantly, and with much skill, drawing upon them many varieties of figures with the ores, gums and resins which they extracted from trees and plants. In this uniform they presented themselves in their military expeditious, public b.a.l.l.s, and other a.s.semblies. To be well painted was to be well dressed, and they learned from experience besides that the resinous matter and vegetable oils with which they painted their bodies served to preserve them from excessive heat and superabundant perspiration. The paint also served to protect them from the changes of atmosphere, the dampness of climate, and the plague of the numerous varieties of mosquitoes and other insects, which, without this precaution, constantly annoyed them. They wore headdresses made of feathers with exquisite colors. They put small plates of gold on their cheeks, and hung sh.e.l.ls, precious stones and relics from their ears and noses, and the image of their G.o.d Cerni was never forgotten. The chiefs used as a distinctive emblem a large golden plate worn on their b.r.e.a.s.t.s.

Married women wore an ap.r.o.n which descended to about half their leg; but no clothing was worn on the rest of the body. The wives of the Caciques wore their ap.r.o.ns to their ankles except at the national game of ball, when they also wore short ones.

The men took two, three or more wives, according to their ability to support them. The chiefs possessed a larger number of wives than their subjects, but one of them was generally preferred over all others. The women, besides their domestic duties, had charge of the agricultural pursuits and worked in the fields. Those best loved were buried alive with their husband on his demise. The men did not intermarry with relatives of the first degree, from a belief that such marriages resulted in a bad death.

Their huts were similar in structure and in character to those of the North American Indians.

The hammock was the chief article of furniture of the aborigines, and the calabash sh.e.l.l their only cooking utensil.

Their arms were a bow and arrow, in the use of which they were very skilful. They had canoes both for fishing and sea voyages. These were hewn out of the timber of enormous trees, the like of which, owing to fires and seasons of drouth, no longer exist upon the island. Some of the canoes were large enough to hold forty or fifty men.

When the Indians saw that the sick were near to death they suffocated them. Even the chiefs did not escape.

After death they opened and dried the body by fire, and buried it in a large cave, in which were interred also some live women, the arms of the deceased and provisions for the journey to the other world. Sticks and branches of trees were then placed on the top, and the whole was covered with earth, which was thus kept from the bodies of those interred.

They were accustomed to perform a national dance which was called the areito. At the conclusion of this dance, all became intoxicated with drinks made by the women of fruit, maize and other ingredients, and with the smoke of tobacco which they inhaled in their nostrils.

As has been said, at the time of the conquest the name of the native chief was Aqueyn.o.ba. He was friendly to the Spaniards at first and lived peaceably with them for some time.

There is no doubt but that the aborigines were confiding, generous and peaceful. But, like all savages, they were very superst.i.tious. They worshipped a vast quant.i.ty of idols, but believed in one superior deity. With the exception of the Caribs, who occupied the eastern part of the island, they were not cannibals. They were in the habit of practicing quite a large number of domestic arts, such as the cultivation of the soil, the carving in wood and stone, and the manufacture of pottery and furniture.

The Spaniards have ever been treacherous, selfish and a nation of money-grubbers.

Now followed an instance which is only one of many to prove the truth of this statement.

After Ponce de Leon had won the confidence and had been the recipient of boundless hospitality from the islanders, he returned to Hayti and at once commenced to fit out an expedition for the invasion and subjugation of Porto Rico. From a purely selfish point of view, this was a most senseless proceeding on his part. He could have done much better without having any recourse to force, for at first the natives regarded the Spaniards as immortal visitors from Heaven, as superior beings whom they could not kill.

But they speedily recognized their mistake and discovered the abominable character of the invaders.

De Leon killed off all the natives that he could and made the rest slaves to work in the gold mines of Hayti.

When any one resisted he was killed, and if he attempted to escape he was hunted down by bloodhounds.

It is related that Ponce de Leon had a dog which became noted as a slave catcher. So valuable was he in this respect that his name was actually carried on the army payroll for the benefit of his master.

When the natives found that they were being slain or deprived of their liberty they naturally became exasperated and turned against their dastardly oppressors. But from their point of view it was absolutely necessary to find out if the Spaniards were mortal. If they were not, it would be an act of impiety to resist them.

This vital question must be settled, and therefore one of the native chiefs was detailed to try if he could kill a Spaniard. The trial was eminently successful. A young man named Salzedo was found alone and was drowned by the natives.

The action is thus related in the words of a competent authority:

"The guides conducted Salzedo to the bank of a small river through which they must pa.s.s, and to prevent his being exposed to the water one of the Indians kindly offered to take him on his shoulders and carry him over.

Salzedo mounted to his high seat and was borne into the middle of the stream, when the Indian and his burden fell into the water. The other Indians immediately rushed into the river with the apparent purpose of rescuing their guest, but contrived, while professing to offer him a.s.sistance, to keep his head continually under water. The result of this practical biological experiment, so adroitly conducted, brought hope and joy to the despairing natives. The body was kept immersed until long after every sign of life had gone, but they still feared animation might return. Carrying the body to the bank, a new farce was acted; they lamented over him, they begged his pardon for the accident, and they protested their innocence of any design. In every way they provided themselves with a plausible defense in case he should recover or they should be suspected. After several days, putrefaction happily settled all their doubts about the mortality of their conquerors, and the glad news was communicated to their people."

The natives then at once commenced to ma.s.sacre the Spaniards. But this did not last long. Ponce de Leon immediately sent for reinforcements, and the Indians believed that these newcomers were the resurrected bodies of those they had killed. This idea caused them to lose all hope and courage, and they fell an easy prey to their enemies. It was not many years before the aboriginal population, large as it was originally, was completely exterminated.

The Spaniards now began to colonize the island and the town of Capana was the first one settled by them. Its site was found, however, to be too high and inaccessible. It was therefore abandoned and in 1511 the present city of San Juan was founded.

In this city Ponce de Leon built the governor's palace called Casa Blanca, a structure which is still in use.

After de Leon's unsuccessful expedition to Florida, where he received a mortal wound at the hands of the Indians, his remains were brought to Porto Rico and interred in the Dominican church.

The inscription upon his monument reads as follows: