The herald., 1896-03-04
Write the Truth as you see Its
Fight the Wrong as you find it: Pub.
lish all the News, and Trust the
Event to the Judgment of the People
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 4, 1906.
SPAIN AND THE RESOLUTIONS

SPAIN AND THE RESOLUTIONS
The Senate's Cuban Resolution con-
tinues to keep the Spanish pot boiling,
and one is almost justified, after read
ing the dispatches, in concluding that
nothing short of an abject backdown
on the part of the senate will avert i'm
mediate hcstilities. The people and
the press of Spain fume and thre aten
and storm in way that is quite terri
flying. The light of battle is in the
Spaniard's eye, and the call to war is
on his lips.
The indignation of Spain over the
recognition of the Cubans as belliger-
snts is not altogether justihable. The
recognition, under the circumstances,
docs not violate in any way either
treaty OF international law. Neither
does it imply hostility to Spain. While,
for the reasons that THE HERALD has
frequently given, the act is not poll
tic one for this country, and will prove
of little, if any, substantial benefit to
the insurgents, it is not an act of bad
faith or unfriendliness. It is a recog-
milton of the indisputable fact that q
state of war exists, and has ex-
listed for more than year,
between the Cuban people and Spain.
A recognition of belligerency does
not involve a declaration of sympathy
with or favor for either combatant,
but places both parties on the same
footing and accords to both the same
rights to trade with this country.
While it is hard to see what practical
advantage Cuba is to derive from q
recognition of her belligerency, it
is easy to discern that some
advantage may accrue to Spain.
When this government official
ly recognizes the insurgents as bellig-
erents and thus grants them the same
l1i7ileges as the Spanish enjoy in
American ports, it confers on Spain
the right to stop and search American
ships on the high seas for contraband
Of war, 80 that every shipment o! arms
and ammunition from this country for
the Cubans is liable to seizure while on
the way to the sever faithful isle"; it
also relieves Spain of all liability for
damages done the property or persons
of American citizens by Cubans after
the date of the recognition. This latter
result of recognition should prove
most agreeable to Spain and very
dissgreeable to American citizens
residing in or having -destructible
property in Cuba. As is we'll known
the campaign of the insurgents has
been one of devastation; the torch with
them has been more conspicuous as
q weapon than the machete or the rifle.
In the general destruction American
property has been treated impar.ially.
It has gone up in smoke or suffered
some other form of annihilation like
the rest. For every dollars worth de-
stroyed up to date the Spanish govern
ment can be held responsible.
+ But after recognition the Cukans
must be held responsible. The value
of the latter responsibility will de-
pend, first, on the success of the rebel
lion, and second, on the solvency of
the new government. But while the
resolution of the senate declaring for
recognition affords no adequate reason
for such an ebul)ition of Spanish tenn
per, the second senate resolution, call
ing on the president to request Spain
to grant the Independence of Cuba, ex-
cuses an outburst Of indignation,
but hardly threats Of war. Such
q request by this government
would be unprecedented and would
really constitute piece of imperti-
nent intermeddling on our part. The
resentment of spain about such an &C.
tion will be no greater, in all
probability, than the resentment Of
the northern people would have been
if a similar request had been
made by England or France of the
federal government on behalf Of the
southern confederacy. In this con-
nection the remarks OF Senator Lodge,
when interviewed as to the statement
that the Spanish minister at Washing
ton had been instructed to protest
against the action and speeches of the
senate, is amusing. This senatorial
freak. who has been lately distin-
gnished for flapdoodle oratory about
foreign affairs and debating society
speeches on financial and revenue
legislation, said that such a step by
Spain "would be inconceivable, it
would be an interference with our
domestic affairs which no independent
Dtate could tolerate for a moment"