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General looting began when the offices of the Heraldo de Cuba, long the leading Machado news organ, were stormed by a crowd so reckless that typewriters, swivel chairs and even desks were tossed out of windows, injuring mobsters in many cases. After wrecking Heraldo de Cuba's presses and setting fire to the building, exultant citizens stormed the residential quarter of Havana, sacking mansion after mansion, wrecking automobiles and stealing everything movable from the house of Secretary of State Orestes Ferrara. Signs marking General Machado Avenue were torn down for a distance of three miles, the imposing Machado Monument was destroyed by patriots with crowbars. Meanwhile where was Machado? Who was President?
Gold Dollars & Cespedes. Congress did not meet until evening to designate a Provisional President but at 2 p. m. (while looting in Havana was at its worst) Sr. Machado and four aides arrived at General Machado Airport, 15 mi. outside the city. They chartered an amphibian plane but officials refused to let it take off until they obtained authority from the Cuban War Department—which took an hour and a half, during which Sr. Machado seemed calm, his entourage nervous. At 3:32 p. m. the amphibian roared away. That evening it came down in the lee of Andros Island in the Bahamas. The refugees spent the night aboard, next day flying on to Nassau. There Machado, haggard in his crumpled white linen suit (he had had no time to pack even a suitcase), led his party to the sumptuous, somnolent Royal Victoria Hotel. He ordered tea, whiskey, a bath and a tailor. "I am glad I am with English people," he said. "England understands trouble and my relations with England were always good. I expect to sleep most of the day." Britons thought it possible he might sleep well, since Sr. Machado is reported to have a personal deposit with the Bank of England of 500,000 gold dollars. Senora Elvira Machado —estranged from her husband for the past five years—was escorted with other members of the fallen Dictator's family to his gunboat-yacht, the Juan B. Zayas, which carried them safely to Key West.
Fleeing Havana by the regular "Yankee Clipper" plane of the Pan American Airways, frightened Cuban Secretary of State Orestes Ferrara & wife were fired at by mobsters who put several bullets into the plane but did no serious damage. On landing at Miami, Dr. Ferrara was jeered by members of the local Cuban revolutionary Junta one of whom challenged him to duel. Having fought eleven duels, Dr. Ferrara was about to accept when a U. S. policeman intervened.
"Ambassador Welles offered me a refuge in the United States." said Dr. Ferrara. "I leave criticism of Welles's policy in Cuba to History."