The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1869-06-29
OUR GOVERNMENT AND THE CUBAN
STRUGGLE
From, the N. Y. Times.

From the NJ y. Times.
The ground which our Government has
taken from the start, and still maintains, re-
garding the Cuban struggle, is simply that of
duty under the admitted requirements of in
ternational law. AS it did not, on the one
hand, render any officious, premature aid to
the Spanish authorities in ferreting out
''Cuban sympathizers," 50, on the other
hand, it has not fallen short of its full duty
in promptly checking any known designs to
violate international law. The assertion of a
contemporary that the Government ''raised
false hopes in the Cuban sympathizers, which
it now as cruelty crushes" is as unfounded as
it is unjust. The chances of success in the
Cuban movement never were taken into con-
sderation, as we have been given to under
stand, in any Cabinet consultation as to what
governmental duty required.
For ourselves we see no inconsistency what
ever in the present marked activity Of the
authorities inpreventing violations of the law,
as contrasted with any previous conduct of
the authorities. What our Government de-
clined to do in the first instance was 30 pro-
ceed to harsh measures on mere suspicion;
when, however, direct information, of a sort
that could be efficiently acted upon, was fur
nished to it by the Spanish Minister, of in
tended criminality, it acted instantly and
satisfactorily. And one proof of the good
faith which our Government has maintained
towards Spain as friendly powor is the
satisfaction of its official representatives
in this country. Contrast this with the
experience of Mr.. Adams in Londcn in 1861
and 1862.
On the other hand, it is due to- our Govern
ment to observe that it has twofold difficulty
"a popular and geographical difficulty-in
maintaining its ghtforwardness regarding
the Cuban question. On the one hand our
people have sympathized heartily with the
(t11l,a
have the members of the administration,
which, unlike its predecessors, agrees cor
daily with majority of the people, both in
foreign and domestic political questions. On
the other hand, the proximity of Cuba to our
coast, our enormous sea-board line the large
number of restless and adventurous spirits
whom the war left in our large cities, and the
| great number of our resident Cubans have
made it difficult to discover plots for unlawful
| expeditions. Nevertheless, as we have said,
| the Spanish authorities have had no reason to
| complain of their information being slighted.
Now, of the alleged cases of neglect of
| duty which some papers, for partisan pur-
| poses, have set in array against our Govern
ment, the greater part will be found to in
volve no neglect at all. We have before ex-
| planned how the selling of arms in open
market, and similar procedures, had been
| misunderstood or misrepresented as infrac-
| tions of law by some of our contemporaries.
And as for the very few hostile expeditions
which have really started from our ports,
those that were not checked were not known
until they had safely. escaped. 1t was after
their departure that even the papers got wind
of them. The truth is that the Governments
honesty and rectitude of purpose in the
Cuban matter have been made manifest;
and the very disagreeableness Of it's duty
| should secure it praise. AS for the unfair
pretense of the World that the late activity OF
| the Government was caused by decline il
Cuban prospects, it is contradicted by facts
Cuban prospects for independence were never
brighter than now.