Bennington semi-weekly banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 1894-1902, 1895-10-25
WHAT SPAIN THINKS.
GENERAL MELLA GIVES HER SIDE OF
THE CUBAN QUESTION.

rECtiOn--S nat He IhinkS OF the Unlteu
States Interest In Cuba.
One of the most perfect military types
that have met in Cuba is Major General
Pedro Mclla Montenegro, civil and mill
tary governor of Puerto Principe, who is
also commanding general of the Fourth
army corps, now in active operations
against the insurgents of the province of
Puerto Principe. Through the courtesy
Of Lieutenant Colonel Rafael Vassallo
chief of local battalion, l secured an au-
dience with the general shortly after my
arrival, in which interview 1 obtained a
most interesting outline of the situation
from an official and authorized source.
When l asked the general his views upon
the situation, smiling confidently and
handing me II cigarette, he said:
"In this province and that Santa
Clara the campaign will be q short one.
In the Oricnte however, the rebels may be
able to sustain themselves in the noun
tains for several months longer.
"MaceO | consider to be the leading fig
ure of the present outbreak, and his black
and mulatto followers, owing to their ex
traordinary powers Of endurance, may be
regarded as the backbone of the insurgent
movement.
"Gumrz's so called army is made up of
Il few adventures, veterans of previous
revolutionary movements, who, possessing
neither property upon the island nor per-
Sonal effects elsewhere, have gone into the
movement rs IL matter of speculation of
residents of the province who, finding
themselves upon the eve Of bankruptcy, go
To the woods to avoid their creditors. Be
sides these many youths of l6 TO 20 years
are with the insurgent fOrCos-yOung men
wholly unaccustOmcd to the harCships of
the camp and totally untitled to be of any
real service in the field, who probably
never realized the seriousness of the step
they were taking when they allowed them
selves to be mislcd into Gomez's ranks.
Unfortunately, continued tho gcncr-
Isl, "Our Spanish school system in Cuba is
hardly what it ought to be. Teachers,
especially in the primary classes, should
make a more prominent feature of Spanish
history, that boys under their guidance
might know moro of the glOries of CASTLE
and Leon. Cuban families of prominence
should also b. somiOificially encouraged to
send their sons to the peninsula to COM
plcte their studies instead Of to the United
states, from which the young men too
often return inspired by ideas impractica-
bic here and entirely foreign to our system
of government.
"Cuba will never be independent. AS
an integral part Of the Spanish Kingdom
il has no more right to scCcdc from the
union than your own state of South Caro-
lima had when the war of 1861 began.
And Spain is Just as determined now as
the government mt Washington then was
to crush the revolt and preserve the nation
intact, and Premier Canovas and General
Martinez Gampos are disposed, as were
President Lincoln and General Grant in
your case, to make any sacrifice of men or
money to sustain the union. And with
the entire peninsula to back him and fresh
re.cnforcemcntS coming by almost every
steamer | believe General CampOS will bo
able to crush tho revolt completely by tho
LIST Of March.
There will be no compromise. CncOn-
ditional surrender is all that can save the
insurgents from being wholly extGrminat-
I'd. Indeed, if need be, Spain is disposed to
put 200, 600 mon in the field, and the gov
crnmcnt to carry out necessary measures
counts upon the patriotic and united sup
port of all the political parties upon the
peninsula. In brief, we are determined to
end the war and end it quickly, cost what
ii may.
Cuba today is represented in the cortes
at Madrid just as are other provinces of
spain. The same code of laws Is in effect
here as in the peninsula. As in the Unit
I'd States, the higher federal officers and
customs collectors are appointed and sent
out by the central government, but the
people of Cuba form their own provincial
and municipal boards and hold many
positions of trust under the
general government.
"Cuba, however, is untitled, as yet for
an autOnumic government like that given
by Great Britain to the Dominion of Can
ada. Besides, the Spanish government
can hardly be expected to grant the island
privileges not enjoyed on the peninsula by
any of our home provinces"
Referring to the United States, the gen
3ral said frankly that he believed that
President Cleveland and Secretary Olney
are doing all in their power to preserve the
laws of international neutrality and keep
good faith with Spain as friendly and
neighboring state.
As to annexation, he said:
81 am sure Spain will never sell Cuba.
and l believe that the great majority Of
the better thinking people of the United
states have never thought seriously of an
nexing the island The American govern
nent, as shown clearly in the cases of st.
Thomas, Santo Domingo and Hawaii, is
not disposed, as yet, to go into the bust
ness of annexing foreign islands, peOpled
by races differing widely from the Anglo
saxon Yankee type in race, language and
personal character.
"Tne Yankee wants the trade of Cuba
and nothing more. If the Cubans succeed
in making occasional trouble for Spin,
they would make more trouble for the
government is shrewd enough to keep
hands off. 1t wants to complete its new
navy and fully develop its own vast terri
DRY of the great west before it goes out Of
is way to seek complications abroad.
"By continuance Of friendly relations
With Spain the United States may obtain
rom Cuba, under the Spanish flag,
through wise and just reciprocal treaties,
hat portion of the islands trade which
S naturally hers"
The general is, above all, patriotic, and
MS views are probably more perfect re-
lection of Spanish opinion than anything /
hat has yet been printed by the American
)ress.-Special Cor. New York Herald.