Show SUGAR PLANTERS HELPLESS lack Means Harvest and Transport Trans-port Their Crops Havana Dec nLa Lucha referring re-ferring editorially to a protracted meeting S meet-ing being held by sugar planters of the island presided over by the Marquis de Apestegui to devise ways and means of gathering cane and beginning the work of grinding says it will be impossible to accomplish anything unless the government gov-ernment goes to the assistance of the planters with the necessary funds about 500000 The planters throughout the island La Lucha says lack every means required re-quired either to harvest cane or to transport the crops to points of shipment ship-ment The country is destitute of oxen and even if they were obtainable the I planters with the possible exception of a dozen in the provinces of Santa Clara and Matanzas have neither money nor credit to purchase them The oxen from numerous estates were donated to the government by the owners and I have been employed since the commencement I com-mencement of the war in transporting supplies for the troops |