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THIS IS THE SIXTH PAGE OF
DOCUMENTS ON THE PERIOD THROUGH 1927 on Nicaragua's Atlantic Coast region, housing
materials dated during the month of December.
The page opens with a
full-page open letter broadside (in
English & Spanish) from S. H. Baker,
manager of the Cuyamel Fruit
Company, asking planters to make
sure the bananas they load are are
not spoiled or bruised, and more
broadly, that they work to help
"bind up the nation's wounds, and to
bring back prosperity to both, the
Company and the planters" (1
Dec). The
following letter of 7 December from
the lawyer of Paul Kling provides
insight not only into the byzantine
world of local juridical proceedings
and tax disputes, but to material
relations of production & exchange
in the interior. "Kling is the owner
of the Topaz mines," writes Kling's
lawyer Samuel Weil, "situated in the
district of Rama, about ninety miles
from [Bluefields]." As it
turns out, "these mines have been
abandoned about thirteen years, all
its tunnels are caved in, and the
machinery ruined." These and
other echoes of the civil war
continue in Capt. Kendall's
intelligence reports, for instance
his 7 December report on former
Liberal commander Laurino Aragon
retaining his arms in defiance of
the Espino Negro Accord. "It
is believed that arms are concealed
in several places on this coast by
former liberal officers acting under
orders from Carlos Pasos and Onofrio
Sandoval," reports Kendall.
Meanwhile local police work
continues apace, as in Kendall's 22
December report of the capture of
"the remaining member of the Pearl
Lagoon assassins" who had killed US
citizen John Bolten the previous
May.
Again, at this point
Sandino and his rebellion are simply
not part of the Atlantic Coast
political or social landscape.
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PERIOD MAPS
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1894 mosquito
shore
27 MB,
library of congress
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1920s
Standard Fruit Co.
6.5 mb,
US National archives
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1928 Rio wanks
Patrol
3 mb, us
national archives
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1931 Moravian
2.4 mb,
coMENius press
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1 December
1927.
Open Letter
(in English), S.
H. Baker, Cuyamel Fruit
Co., Bluefields, "To the Planters," p.
1.
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1 December
1927.
Open Letter (in Spanish),
S. H. Baker, Cuyamel Fruit Co., Bluefields,
"To the Planters," p. 2.
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1.
7 December
1927.
Letter from
Samuel Weil,
Bluefields, for Paul Kling
of New Orleans, to US Consul A. J.
McConnico,
Bluefields, p. 1.
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2.
7 December
1927.
Letter from
Samuel Weil,
Bluefields, for Paul Kling
of New Orleans, to US Consul A. J.
McConnico,
Bluefields, p. 2.
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3.
7 December
1927.
Letter from
Samuel Weil, Bluefields, for Paul Kling
of New Orleans, to US Consul A. J.
McConnico,
Bluefields, p. 3.
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4.
7 December
1927.
Letter from
Samuel Weil, Bluefields, for Paul Kling
of New Orleans, to US Consul A. J.
McConnico,
Bluefields, p. 4.
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5.
7 December
1927.
Letter from
Samuel Weil,
Bluefields, for Paul Kling
of New Orleans, to US Consul A. J.
McConnico,
Bluefields, p. 5.
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6.
7 December
1927.
Letter from
Samuel Weil, Bluefields, for Paul Kling
of New Orleans, to US Consul A. J.
McConnico,
Bluefields (transcription), p. 6.
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7.
7 December
1927.
Letter from
Samuel Weil,
Bluefields, for Paul Kling
of New Orleans, to US Consul A. J.
McConnico,
Bluefields (transcription), p. 7.
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8.
7 December
1927.
Letter from
Samuel Weil,
Bluefields, for Paul Kling
of New Orleans, to US Consul A. J.
McConnico,
Bluefields (transcription), p. 8.
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1.
7 December
1927.
Intelligence
Report, Capt. D. J. Kendall, Bluefields,
p. 1.
"ATTITUDE
OF CIVIL POPULATION TOWARD FORCES.
In general tolerant. Conservatives
improving due to seizing of some rifles
from Liberals. Liberals
conciliatory and apologetic due to
finding of rifles in their hands.
Pearl Lagoon and creole population
conciliatory due to hopes and desire for
forces to apprehend several fugitives
involved in assassinations there, thus
allowing trial to progress.
ECONOMIC CONDITIONS. Banana
business continues excellent.
Mahogany business slightly improved due
to purchase of land, equipment and
contracts of an inactive company by a
company which was operating and letting
of a few additional contracts by
companies which are operating."
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2.
7 December
1927.
Intelligence
Report, Capt. D. J. Kendall,
Bluefields,
p. 2.
"POLICE
OPERATIONS. No change in police
operations. It is rumored in
Bluefields and Puerto Cabezas that Louis
Castro, the present agent of police in
Puerto Cabezas is to be relieved by a
conservative from Bluefields named
Jacquin. It is hoped that this
will not take place. The services
of Castro have been highly satisfactory
and it is believed the Conservative
desire to secure that post in order to
bring about political control in Puerto
Cabezas. MILITARY OPERATIONS.
On Saturday December 3rd a patrol of
five Marines seized ten military rifles,
100 rounds of ammunition and two shot
guns in the house of Laurino Aragon on
the head waters of Cacra River.
Aragon was the Liberal commander in that
locality during the revolution. He
and his two sons are confined in
Bluefields awaiting action by the court
on the charge possession of arms.
Aragons wife stated that the arms were
concealed in the house and were not
turned in due to orders received to that
effect from Onofrio Sandoval. It
is believed that arms are concelaed in
several places on this coast by former
liberal officers acting under orders
from Carlos Pasos and Onofrio Sandoval."
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3.
7 December
1927.
Intelligence
Report, Capt. D. J. Kendall, Bluefields,
p. 3.
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14 December
1927.
Intelligence
Report, Capt. D. J. Kendall, Bluefields,
p. 1.
"ATTITUDE OF
CIVIL POPULATION TOWARD FORCES.
Radical elements antagonistic due to
killing of three and wounding of one
criminal in Puerto Cabezas district.
Attitude of better element somewhat
prejudiced against Marines by escapades
of drunken Marine in Puerto Cabezas.
ECONOMIC CONDITIONS. Banana
business continues excellent. It
is expected that the Cuyamel Fruit
Company will begin shipping bananas from
Punta Gorda river within thirty days and
this may in a measure counteract the
slackness due to the reduced mahogany
cutting. ATTITUDE OF PRESS.
Local press has treated the Marines
fairly as regards the killings in Puerto
Cabezas district although it is
understood some of the local
correspondents of papers have sent
grossly exaggerated and false reports of
the occurances there."
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14 December
1927.
Intelligence
Report, Capt. D. J. Kendall, Bluefields,
p. 2.
"FRICTION
BETWEEN TROOPS AND CIVIL POPULATION.
Some friction mostly by the radical
element on account of the killings of
criminals by Marines in the Puerto
Cabezas district. POLICE OPERATIONS.
On Sunday December 4th Marines stationed
at Wawa Central shot and killed one
native Manuel Molina who with Rafael
Flores was attempting to escape after
having cut another native Gregorio
Molina very seriously with a machete at
Tungla. Same date at Wakiwas party
of three marines on a Railroad motor car
were attacked by four natives armed with
machetes. The natives slashing at
the Marines started to run when the
Marines grabbed their rifles and two
were shot and killed by the marines,
shooting being the only way of
preventing the escape of the natives as
the car was in motion and could not be
stopped immediately. At Wakiwas
about one month ago a sergeant lost his
pistol and another marine was knocked
down and lost his rifle momentarily in
attempting to stop a drunken brawl.
The natives at Wakiwas are a
particularly lawless lot and have been
in the habit of stopping railroad
motorcars and robbing the occupants.
At Yulu farm on the night of December
4th a native prisoner captured by
Marines after a fight between some
natives grabbed the rifle of a Marine
but was struck by the butt and started
to run. The Marine shouted to him
to stop three times and then fired and
wounded the prisoner twice in the leg
before stopping him so as to recapture
him."
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19 December
1927.
Letter from
Samuel Weil,
Bluefields, for Paul Kling
of New Orleans, to US Consul A. J.
McConnico, Bluefields.
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20 December
1927.
Letter (with
cover letter by Consul A. J. McConnico
to Sec. State) from
Samuel Weil,
Bluefields, for Paul Kling of New
Orleans, p. 1.
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20 December
1927.
Letter (with
cover letter by Consul A. J. McConnico
to Sec. State) from
Samuel Weil,
Bluefields, for Paul Kling of New
Orleans, p. 2.
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22 December
1927.
Intelligence
Report, Capt. D. J. Kendall, Bluefields,
p. 1.
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22 December
1927.
Intelligence
Report, Capt. D. J. Kendall,
Bluefields,
p. 2.
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27 December
1927.
Intelligence
Report, Capt. D. J. Kendall,
Bluefields,
p. 1.
"ATTITUDE
OF PRESS. Favorable. One
conservative newspaper published correct
details of the killings of natives by
Marines at Wakiwas while the other
conservative spanish paper and the
Liberal spanish paper ignored the
incident. The creole liberal
newspaper published in english, gave the
correct details of the affair. All
the newspapers ignored the escapade of
two drunken Marines who "beat up"
several civilians in Bluefields, except
the creole paper, which published a
brief account passing it off as mischief
"caused by the Marines indulgence in the
pernicious native drink known as casusa
[cususa].""
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27 December
1927.
Intelligence
Report, Capt. D. J. Kendall, Bluefields,
p. 2.
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31 December
1927.
List of Correspondence 1927,
US Consul
A. J. McConnico, Bluefields.
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