Following this proclamation Captain H. S. Knapp issued a drastic order providing for a press censorship. "Any comment which is intended to be published on the attitude of the United States Government, or upon anything connected with the Occupation and Military Government of Santo Domingo must first be submitted to the local censor for approval. In case of any violation of this rule the publication of any newspaper or periodical will be suspended; and responsible persons,—owners, editors, or others—will further be liable to punishment by the Military Government. The printing and distribution of posters, handbills, or similar means of propaganda in order to disseminate views unfavorable to the United States Government or to the Military Government in Santo Domingo is forbidden." (Order secured from the Navy Department and published by The American Union against Militarism, Dec. 13, 1916.)
A similar situation exists in Hayti. The treaty of May 3, 1916, provides that "The Government of the United States will, by its good officers, aid the Haitian Government in the proper and efficient development of its agricultural, mineral and commercial resources and in the establishment of the finances of Hayti on a firm and solid basis." (Article I) "The President of Hayti shall appoint upon nomination by the President of the United States a general receiver and such aids and employees as may be necessary to manage the customs. The President of Hayti shall also appoint a nominee of the President of the United States as 'financial adviser' who shall 'devise an adequate system of public accounting, aid in increasing revenues' and take such other steps 'as may be deemed necessary for the welfare and prosperity of Hayti.'" (Article II.) Article III guarantees "aid and protection of both countries to the General Receiver and the Financial Adviser." Under Article X "The Haitian Government obligates itself ... to create without delay an efficient constabulary, urban and rural, composed of native Haitians. This constabulary shall be organized and officered by Americans." The Haitian Government under Article XI, agrees not to "surrender any of the territory of the Republic by sale, lease or otherwise, or jurisdiction over such territory, to any foreign government or power" nor to enter into any treaty or contract that "will impair or tend to impair the independence of Hayti." Finally, to complete the subjugation of the Republic, Article XIV provides that "should the necessity occur, the United States will lend an efficient aid for the preservation of Haitian independence and the maintenance of a government adequate for the protection of life, property and individual liberty."
A year later, on August 20, 1917, the New York Globe carried the following advertisement:—
Fortune in Sugar
"The price of labor in practically all the cane sugar growing countries has gone steadily up for years, except in Hayti, where costs are lowest in the world.
"Hayti now is under U. S. Control.
"The Haitian-American corporation owns the best sugar lands in Hayti, owns railroads, wharf, light and power-plants, and is building sugar mills of the most modern design. There is assured income in the public utilities and large profits in the sugar business. We recommend the purchase of the stock of this corporation. Proceedings are being taken to list this stock on the New York Stock Exchange.
"Interesting story 'Sugar in Hayti' mailed on request.
"P. W. Chapman & Co., 53 William St., N. Y. C."
Hayti remained "under United States control" until the revelations of the summer of 1920 (see The Nation, July 10 and August 28, 1920), when it was shown that the natives were being compelled, by the American forces of occupation, to perform enforced labor on the roads and to accept a rule so tyrannous that thousands had refused to obey the orders of the military authorities, and had been shot for their pains. On October 14, 1920, the New York Times printed a statement from Brigadier General George Barnett, formerly Commandant General of the Marine Corps, covering the conditions in Hayti between the time the marines landed (July, 1915) and June, 1920. General Barnett alleges in his report that there was evidence of "indiscriminate" killing of the natives by the American Marines; that "shocking conditions" had been revealed in the trial of two members of the army of occupation, and that the enforced labor system should be abolished forthwith. The report shows that, during the five years of the occupation, 3,250 Haytians had been killed by the Americans. During the same period, the losses to the army of occupation were 1 officer and 12 men killed and 2 officers and 26 men wounded.
The attitude of the United States authorities toward the Haytians is well illustrated by the following telegram which the United States Acting Secretary of the Navy sent on October 2, 1915, to Admiral Caperton, in charge of the forces in Hayti: "Whenever the Haytians wish, you may permit the election of a president to take place. The election of Dartiguenave is preferred by the United States."
The Cuban Treaty established the precedent; the Great War provided the occasion, and while Great Britain was clinching her hold in Persia, and Japan was strengthening her grip on Korea, the United States was engaged in establishing protectorates over the smaller and weaker Latin-American peoples, who have been subjected, one after another, to the omnipotence of their "Sister Republic" of the North.