ABSTRACT
As New Year’s Eve approached, the reports sent to Batista from Santa Clara grew increasingly ominous. The situation there seemed hopeless, for only a handful of officers still had any will to fight, and defection and insubordination were increasing. According to Batista, “The noise made by the undisciplined personnel and the purposeless shooting was aggravated by . . . interference in communications, caused by the shortwave transmitter that had fallen into the hands of the enemy.” This, Batista said, created further confusion in the orders emanating from headquarters. 1
