Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1896-12-14
The SPANISH STORIES
Of the Alleged Death Of Gen. MaceO
DiSSeCted.
His Taking OF Assumes a Wonder
fully Complex Form When all
the Tales are Analysed and Con-
traSted.

New YORK Times.
1t may be that Antonio Moceo IS dead,
but whether he is or not, the continued
and continually revised story of his taking
off will remain a monument of The Span
ish capacity for adding new interest to
death in the manner of reporting It. They
are said to nave held the news jla1 tie
most formidable leader Of the Instruction
was dead for twenty-four hours in Havana
before giving it out. Perhaps the story
was not ready sooner and perhaps they
did not believe it themselves, and were UNI
certain whether others would. II had to
be made circumstantial, for Maceo had
been reported dead at least twice before
within year.
To give the first version fun authenticity
it was confirmed on the second day by way
of Madrid with new particulars. There is
nothing like roundabout repetition of
story TO commend it to belief. According
to the tale, Maceo had turned his back
upon General Weyler in the province OF
Pinar del Rio with 1000 men, and he en-
countered Major Ciruieda i'm the Havana
province. whose whole force was about 500.
With the customary Spanish promptness
Cirujeda defeated this vastly superior
army leaving forty dead on the field and
losing three men killed and having thirty
one wounded-about the usual allowance
in the dispatches Among the Cubans kill
ed were two well dressed" officers, who
had kindly labeled themselves to- save
trouble, and one of whom considerably
left a memorandum of the fact that he
had committed suicide rather than desert
the body of his General The General
was Maceo and the other officer was the
son of Maxine Gomez. It seems ike
Maceo 10 wear silk stockings on his cam
paigns with his initials thereon for pur-
poses of identification. and ii is natural for
young Gomez to shoot himself and let any
Spaniard who ran across the bodies know
al the circumstances.
Then there was a diary ON Maceo's per-
son containing a sketch of the operations
from November 9th to December It'll"
the date of the battle This sketch was
dated December %. and told what hap
pened on the 4th. 5th. 9th and 9TH, iudicat-
GERS. This was an extraordinary case Of
clairVoyance as we'll as imprudence. \
letter two months and a half old was
found in Gomez pocket of which am Eek
tract" was given. which extract" includ-
ed the date address and signature, and
seemed to be all there was of the letter
There appeared TO be something lacking
i'm the way of plausibility i'm this story.
Why did the prowing Spanish soldiers
leave these bodies when they We're SO
clearly identified instead of bearing them
off i'm triumph? This was explained i'm
sequel which said thst the plunderiug sol
diers did not examine the evidence until
they got back TO camp and looked over
the stockings, diary. etc. and then they
went back and the bodies We're gone. But
by this time they had cumulative evil
dence i'm the way Of sword. revolver and
ring. which had been NTaceo's. At least.
they said they had but the bodies they
could not produce The Cubans who had
carelessly left them on the field i'm their
hurry to get away from a fourth of their
number of Spaniards had stolen them
away. and it was not known where they
had laid them.
how. and now appeared a. surgeon who
had been with Maceo. and who obligingly
surrendered himself TO the Spaniards to
give them more confirmation. He knew
all about Maceo's clothes and could de-
scribe the sleeve buttons which had been
added to the evidence. But this doctor
was formerly i'm the Spanish service, and
had drinking habits. Moreover. he had
surrendered unnecessarily and had OBJ
tanned amnesty i'm return for his evidence,
and an unbeleving world was suspicious
of his testimony. He does not seem to
have been properly coached, for he gives
an entirely new account of Maceo's get
ting from Pinar del Rio into the Havana
province. He did not cross the trocha at
all. but came around 10y water i'm a boat.
and had only forty men with him. What
becomes of the battle of Punta Bravo, with
1000 soldiers. of whom forty We're left
dead. and how about the diary. which said
that Maceo passed the trocha on the 4th.
-ioining forces with Lieut.. Vasqucz ON
the 5th Colonies Acosta and Sartorius ON
the 6th. and Sanchez on the 1th?'
There are still other versions of the tale
of Maceo's death. and more contradictions
which we viii not presume for dcscrip-
tons of the insurgent Generals under
clothing and iewelry do not convince us
that any of the statements are true. ana
we know they cannot all Doe SO. Perhaps
NIacco is dead. or perhaps he has contrived
to make the Spaniards think he is dead
for purpose of his own. and has set
them al work furnishing their wonderful
evidence of the fact; or. again. perhaps
the Spaniards have been pretending he is
dead for purposes of their own. Quien