New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1869-01-28

sincerity than they had years months weeks ago.
Now they are making the best of the eccentric free
dom permitted them by the Captain-GeneraIs order
of the 9th. He gives them freedom, as You remem-
ber but, with strange confederation, puts Slavery
and the Church together and prohibits them out of
all free discussion till such time as the Constituent
Assembly of Spain shall declare about them. This is
liberty with the lions to be sure; but not all Cubans
believe that these lions VIII be fed forever by the
mother country have the authority of La PrenSd
the influential daily paper of tho Capuchin and
Retrogressve party for saying that excepting itself
and the organ of the Government, the DiaiIo dc la
Marina all the Havanese papers are democratic IN
their notions, pupils of a diluted Cyciopedlsm, of
which it mentions Hugo, Peletan, CASTELAR,, and
others as the head masters. Hero is an adj
mission at any rate. The Cubans are talk
ing great deal of selfgovernmeut, and the Capu-
chin is after them in reasoning humOr Now what
is the thing you all camoring about autonomy,
it asks in substance. Look at Jamaica, Hayt, Span
ish America-there's autonomy for you. So it pro-
ceeds saying with much the same force as OConnell
gave to the word parallelopipedOn," when he APP
piled it to an ignorant but talkative woman. The
DiarO which is the organ of Spain, right or wrong,
which supports Dulce as it did Lersundi, and was
tyrannica yesterday if liberal to-day comedies what
it cannot help to the spirit of self government 1t
insists and maintains that the rebels shall be crushed
speedily, with all force, if they do not accept Gen.
Dulces excellent amnesty; holds that rights in the
Cortes go with duties and responsibilities, which are
serious; believes that Cuba should have representa-
tves in the Spanish Parliament for the sake of her
commerce and finance chiefly; cOntemplates reform
and liberty of town councils; has objections to
freedom of the press, and of public meeting, with
some exceptions peculiarly Cuban, as touching the
pro-Slavery and revolutionary side of things. The
worst hurricane can be nothing to the damage which
would be done this island by widespread war, ar
CUES the DdrO and if everybody possessed sufficient
thought to reduce our possible losses to dollars and
cents there would be no such reckless complaint as
is heard now in the press. La Verddd or The
Truth, new paper, has been specially called
upon to deny the fasehoods the ophistical facts
brought forward by the other two. 1t is much the
best written of the Cuban papers, and aims to present
the actual feeling and belief Of the democratic. auto
n6matic side of the debate, with as cool and honest
a temper as it may. La Verdad, speaking week ago.
thought the situation serious, and Dulce late; and
that matters not to be pended without profound
concessions Of Justice The Government was besought
to treat frankly and Loyalty, without deceit or
double intention with the Government of the lnsur-
gents" and to offer them guarantees which should
rid them in earnest of the tyranny of Spain-that is
to say, give Cuba Canadian autonomy. This is not
the most evidently that Cubans night find 1t in their
hearts to ask-nay demand. on the provocation Of
events. La VerdGd panegyrizes its heroes departed
as this unfortunate and garroted line of brave were
never panegyrized before in the Everfaithful Isle:
"Annexationists OF Independents. Concessionsts or
| " Reformists, Cubans Peninsulists. Heredia or
| Hernandez Aguero or Lopez. BetancOurt or Bena-
yides, Amenteros or Pinto, Arrange or Mena Vavela
''or Estrampes, FaccOlo OF Monies de Oea-nobe and
honorable were their aspirations andilustrious shall
be their memory in the day when free ideas triumph
"defDatvely Not mere bandits, OF traitors, or yul-
gar adventures those who, giving up fortune and
brilliant future sacrificed their lives in the patri-
otto struggle for liberty" Time was, and not many
months ago. when such words, to speak mildly, were
a kind of treason punishable with exile. Cen Dulce
| is warned to be worthy Of his prepossessions and
good fame, and not to present Cuba any terms that
have not for their basis the astronomical idea the
government of the country for the country. One Of
the Philistmes answers in effect that Cuba cannot
get along by herself, and that worse happenings
must follow upon her practical independence. be-
leve it is La PreRSa herself which taking the same
view just alludes to the two ideas Of purchase and
annexation with the United States Beside the pa
pers named are score more, born mostly out of the
excitement of the revolution. and particularly out
of the bounty Of free speech which Lersundl has
granted with such monstrous exceptions. But the
Cubans can talk of liberty and autonomy insurrec-
ton and independence, after fashion; and these.
it must be confessed four ideas susceptible of
great amount of treatment in the way of freespeech
The Havana journals really show great tendencies to
talent for swarming. and don't know where they
swarm so much as on the word Autonomy. Tie idea
will serve as door either way, out of Spain
or into SPAIN 1t is TO be noted that thus far the
papers do not stand in palpable need Of that pro-
fessiOnal courtesy which is the common and rather
superficial merit of Spanish-American journalism
But it, hints in large type the best of the liberal
journals Cubans being assassinated for political
reasons, there will soon be an end to good temper
That there is a kind of brevet condition OF hatred
between the SpanIards and the Cubans / verify be-
ieye and perhaps have stated the case considerably
within bounds as respects extreme class Of the
latter Bad blood aroused in the Cuban by the brute
oyerbearance Of the Spanard and the materials exist
for feud supplementary to the one in tho eastern
part of the island Yet believe that the suspected
assassinations are not certified to as political affairs
after ALL To continue with the press the fecundty
Of Havana in this respect is astonishing. A dozen
new papers have been issued in scarcely than
week. We have an Idea Liberal, which caricatures
the victOrs Of BayamO; then VOice Of the People.
whose edtorship proclaims itself the that of
the late Friend Of the People; GillOtiHe set up in
the name of satire; La Franco, a feuUetOnist; the
Spoon fbe DeUH, humorous paper; the FosforitO,
which has been testing about the quiet taking down
of poor Isabel. l have not space to name all the
ephemere which are now flying around that
luminous word Autonomy. 1t deserves to be put on
| record however that tho CuckGra makes a large
demand for the best dishes to which a Liberal can
sit down, namely: universal suffrage liberty of
teaching, liberty of meeting, absolute liberty of
press, administrative decentralization municipal
and DTOVIupial self ONT trial nv toy