PROVINCES, CITIES, ¿iV£> TOWNS OF CUBA 157
Its original name was San Carlos Alcazar; that by
which it is now called, meaning ‘ I butcheries, is an
ill-omened reminiscence of a massacre of the aborigines
in this neighbourhood. There is a .la rg e
public square, garnished with a statue of Ferdinand
V I I ., and having the commandant s residence on
one side, and a beautiful park up the valley of the
Yumuri. The Estaban Theatre is the finest m the
West Indies, and the Empresa Academy is said to
be one of the best educational institutions. T h e
Casino and Lyceum are attractive buildings, and
the Boulevard de Santa Cristina is a handsome
thoroughfare. Matanzas is chiefly engaged in the
business of exporting sugar and molasses, which has
suffered much in recent years. Abou t two and a
half miles east of the city and opening on the bay
are the beautiful stalactite caves of Bellamar, much
used for bathing, the intrusive sharks being excluded
by iron gratings.
T h ir ty miles farther east in the Matanzas province
is the thriving port of Cardenas. Though founded
in 1828, it has grown to a city of more than 20,000
inhabitants, and is handsomely built and actively
engaged in manufactures and trade, in which Amen-
cans take so large a part that it has been called the
“ American c ity .” Its spacious harbour is sheltered
from the north-west winds by the Punta Icacos, mid
it is connected by railway with Matanzas and Havana
and with all the important interior towns as
far as Santa Clara. Its trade is mainly in sugar,
molasses, rum, and tobacco. T he centre of the sugar
industry in the interior is Colon, formerly called