Birmingham state herald., 1896-02-09
VAR NEWS FROM CUBA General Marin's Campaign So
 Far a Failure. HE IS NO MATCH FOR GOMEZ Spaniards Were Led Into Trap by the h.
 surgents.
THE REBELS WON A DECISIVE VICTOR,
Two Rapid Firing Guns, 1000 Rifles and 200, ,ooO Cartridges Were Captured
 From a Government Train. Other Foreign News.

Havana, Feb. 5. via Jacksonville, Fla, Feb. S.-General Marin who left Havana a week ago. to take personal command of the operations in the field, and who ex- pected to strike a decisive blow against the enemies of Spain, has not yet suc- ceeded in forcing a battle. When the captain general, who has only a brief h. terval of power before the arrival of Gen eral Wey1er, started out, Gomez was awaiting the return of Maceo from Pinar del Rio province and the two rebel lead CTS were separated. It was General Ma rn's plan to place strong force between the two and prevent their union. He has not succeeded in accomplishing this, for both leaders are now in Havana province and are acting in conjunction with each other. During the week there have been several encounters in Havana province between Spanish columns acting under General Marins orders and bodies of rebels directed by Gomez, but only one of these was precipitated by the Spaniards. The others were planned by the insur- gents. In none of them has the result been to the advantage of the Spanish
 
 took the field occurred on the day he went out. General Canella was ordered west from Guanajay, a town near the border line between the provinces of Ha- vana and Pinar del Rio. He was to head off Maceo, who was moving east. The in- surgents set trap for General Canella's force on the Saladrigs stock farm, few miles southwest of Artemesia. The road which Canella was on passes through A1<aa acta4 a44 ax.1 i<x ao~ bod sJ- fields divided into squares by stone fences. Just west of these fences is small hill. Perez Diaz, one of the best fighting men in Gomez's following, had 400 rebel infantry lying fiat behind the stone fences to the left of the road. With 1000 rebel cavalry Diaz waited in hiding behind the hill further down the road. The rebels waited about two hours. Then the Spanish force appeared and advanc- ed until the head of the column had pass ed the stone wall The rebels then open ed with volley fire from behind the wall. Many of the Spaniards broke and ran across the fields to the right of the road, while others held their position in the road and returned the rebel fire. Diaz sent half his mounted force down the road, giving the men machete charge, and with other mounted men rode across the fields and headed off the Spaniards who had broken ranks. He then was in position to give the troops in the road cross fire, and this wrought havoc among them. General Canella managed to pull his shattered forces together and retreated toward Guanajay. The fight was of brief duration, but 1t was one of the most sanguinary of the war. No ac- curate account of the Spanish losses can be obtained, and probably none will ever be known. General Cane1la threw out picket lines extending over one mile and allowed no one to enter while he buried his dead. Their number is said to be nearly 200. General Canella himself is said to have been wounded. The insur- gent loss was very small. Although this fight occurred January 30, the govern ment has published no official report. a very unusual thing.
 On Saturday. February l, the second important fight occurred. It was on the strong line itself, and showed how little regard the insurgents have for the so- called wall of men between Havana and Batabano. It was the attack upon the train south of San Felipe, near Pogo Redondo. Four hundred insurgents did the work. Apparently they had infor- mation about the train. which was special carrying munitions of war to the troops at Batabano and for shipment to points along the south coast Two rapid fire guns were on the train when it left Havana, but were sidetracked at San Felipe, according to the government re- port. Cubans, who claim to be we'll in formed, say that this is not so, and that the guns fell into the hands of the insur- gents together with 1000 Mansur rifles and 10000 cartridges. They look upon the capture of the train as one of the greatest feats of their campaign. They were badly in need of ammunition. as the persistent campaign which General Marin is conducting had nearly exhaust ed their supply. The third fight of the week was at the Luz estate, near AL quizar. Gomez, after remaining only two days east of the strong line. had crossed south of San Felipe, and, going west of Guire de La Melones, closely followed by government troops, encamp- ed on the Luz plantation. Here Colonel Ruiz, with several squadrons of Span- ish cavalry largely made up of infantry men recently mounted upon horses which the government had seized, came upon the rebel outposts. It was on Sun day last Colonel Ruiz waited for sev- eral large attachments of infantry to come up and then attacked the rebel lines From the government report it D appears that he cut through the first line and reached the main body of rebels. He reports killing twenty. eleven of whom he says were killed with the sword or machete. A Cuban planter, who lives near the Luz estate, says that Colonel Ruiz did attack and cut into the first line. but that the main body fell upon him and instead of there being twenty dead rebels and four wounded Spaniards, the losses were just reversed. Even the Spaniards in Havana thought 1t remarkable that their side had learned to use the machete so quickly and with such effect If Colonel Ruiz did secure an advantage of Gomez he would nat urally follow 1t up, but no fight with Go meg has been reported since Sunday. Marin's campaign thus far has, there fore, not come up to the hopes of the authorities and loyal Spaniards. was told by a high official at the palace on the day that Marin left Havana that both Gomez and Maceo would be killed inside of one week and the rebellion broken so that 1t could not recover.
 Of the fight between General Luque and Maceo's people in Pasco Real, near Pinar del Rio town on Monday, which Is heralded as a great Spanish victory,