837.00/1890
The Minister in Cuba (Long) to the Secretary of State
[Received November 16.]
Sir: In amplification of this Legation’s telegraphic reply dated November 10th, 3 p.m. [noon],51 to the Department’s telegram of November 8th 6 p.m.51 I have the honor to report as follows:
On the day of elections and for a few days thereafter public interest in the count of votes ran very high and a great many telegrams came to the Central Electoral Board which made up an unofficial estimate based upon the information then available, no figures were given out officially. It was about this time that the President of the Central Electoral Board acquainted Major Stephenson with the advices they had received up to that time. Immediately thereafter it seems that some one suggested that the telegrams might contain erroneous information, since which time the Central Electoral Board has been loath to give out any advice whatever it being held that they must await the result of the Municipal scrutiny and the reports of the Provincial Boards.
I have found it somewhat difficult to draft a reply to the Department’s telegram under acknowledgement, which will cover all of the inquiries contained therein. The Central Electoral Board was closed on Monday and Tuesday owing to the illness of the President. No one seems to know the precise colleges which have failed to report to the Municipal Boards nor is there any way at the moment to tell, some of the colleges having mailed returns to the Central Electoral Board when they should have sent them to the Municipal Boards.
Article No. 192 of the Electoral Code requires college scrutiny to terminate at midnight November 1st whether complete or not. The last paragraph thereof provides that Municipal Electoral Boards shall begin counting returns of colleges, which did not complete scrutiny, within six hours after received. No information has reached me to the effect that the Municipal Boards have failed to respect the law in this regard.
Article No. 199 [196] gives the Municipal Boards eight days in which to complete their returns. This task should be completed at midnight tonight but it is apparent that this cannot be done because most serious delays are occurring. The facts in two instances are at hand and I give these for the Department’s information as examples of what may exist in other Municipalities. The uncounted returns for sixty five colleges in this City were turned over to the [Page 39] Municipal Board of Havana at midnight on November 1st. I am advised that up to November 8th, 11 A.M., twelve had been scrutinized. The Municipality of Cienfuegos similarly received forty eight uncounted colleges; five are said to have been scrutinized November 6th at 4 P.M. At this writing it is not possible to foresee when the reports of the Municipal Boards will be finished. When done they are to be transmitted to the Provincial Electoral Board where, under Article No. 200, five days are allowed in which to complete their scrutiny. When this shall have been done and the returns of the Provincial Boards reach the Central Electoral Board we can hope for an official announcement of results.
If the law were strictly complied with and Municipalities reported November 10th at midnight provincial returns could be available by November 16th or 17th.
Pending the conclusion of official reports there appears to be no other source from which to receive fairly accurate information except through the Director of Communications under the Secretary of the Interior. As his information is obtained from unofficial telegrams which may contain errors, they are, especially where the count is so close, to be accepted tentatively.
Liberal leaders have volunteered to submit a list of the colleges in which no election was held or in which they believe the election as held was illegal. Presumably this will form a part of a comprehensive resumé of their contentions.
I have [etc.]