The Toledo Blade
August 21, 1959.
Officer From
Toledo Favors Hard Work On Cuban Farms
HAVANA, Aug. 20 (AP)—Maj. William Morgan of Toledo, who helped smash the recent anti-Castro conspiracy, said today he felt the plotters should not be executed but should serve hard labor terms on Cuban farms.
Major Morgan and Maj. Eloy Gutierrez Menoyo, who also posed as a counter-revolutionary to frustrate the plot, were interviewed on television. Under new laws counter-revolutionary activities may be punishable by death before a firing squad.
Major Morgan and Major Menoyo, who both fought in Fidel Castro’s revolution, reiterated that the conspiracy originated with the Dominican Republic’s strongman, Generalissimo Rafael L. Trujillo. But Generalissimo Trujillo’s immediate collaborators were so corrupt, Major Morgan declared, that the plot had no chance of success.
As an example he said he asked Generalissimo Trujillo for $10,000 and got only $4,000—that a Spanish priest acting as go-between kept $1,000 and the Dominican consul at Miami took $5,000. The consul was not named.
Major Morgan said the consul arranged for the purchase of arms which were shipped out of Miami aboard a private boat. He said he met the vessel on the high seas and brought it to Havana.
This varied from earlier unofficial reports published here. They said the boat had come from the Dominican Republic and Major Morgan, on board all the time, suddenly turned on the crew, captured them and brought the ship into port with the aid of other Castro men posing as conspirators.
Major Morgan said he made several trips to Miami and at one time was questioned at length by U.S. Government agents. He said he was able to elude them and contact the arms-bearing ship.
Major Menoyo said he told Generalissimo Trujillo he would participate in the plot if Generalissimo Trujillo would turn over ex-dictator Fulgencio Batista and former Gen. Eleuterio Pedraza. He said Geeralissimo Trujillo replied he would surrender both men after the conspiracy had succeeded. Mr. Batista, who fled to the Dominican Republic last New Year’s Day, left yesterday for new sanctuary in Portugal’s Manderia Islands, off the Moroccan coast of Africa.
Reports of those accompanying Mr. Batista did not list Mr. Pedraza, who has been described as one of the master minds of the recent anti-Castro conspiracy. Unconfirmed reports from Ciudad Trujillo have said Mr. Pedraza was imprisoned on Generalissimo Trujillo’s order because the conspiracy had failed.
The Cuban government today ordered the American owned Cuban Electric Co. to cut its rates 30.4 per cent in metropolitan Havana
Government intervenons who took over general supervision of the company soon after Mr. Castro’s victory charged that the company was spending $3 million a year in unnecessary administrative expenses, and was paying excessive capitalization costs and excessive consultation fees to a foreign engineering firm.
The utility is an affiliate of American & Foreign Power Co., whose Cuban investment is valued at $300 million.