The Irish standard., 1896-04-11
is A BOLD, BLACK, BAD, MAN
Such Is the Nature and Appsarance ol
Captain General Weyler, of
spain.
HIs WHOLE OBJECT is 70 SUCCEED

But As Cares Nothing As TO ths Means
lie Shall Use TO That
End.
/ Most men resemble their regulations, and
| if life fainously spent is in the mind Of
| one who visits character OF worldwide
/ repute, he quite naturally discovers pecu-
| liarities of facial expression and physique
I which appear to account FOR the individu-
aiity of the man fighter, philosopher, crinl-
| inal. refoTmer or whatever he may be!
All this is true of Gen. Weyler He is one
| OF those men who creates a. first Impress
| ion. the first sight of whom can never be
| effaced from the mind. by whose presence
the most careless observer is impressed in
stantly. and yet, taken altogether, ne is
man in whom the elements of greatnes
are concealed under a cloak Of lmpene tra-
bic ohscurity. Inferior physically, unsol-
dierly IN bearing, exhibiting no trace Of re-
nned Sensihil1tieS nor pleasure in the gen.
| tie associations which others live for or
at least seek as diversions, he is nayerthe-
less the embodiment OF mental acuteneSs,
crafty, unscrupulous, fearless and indom-
ltab1e perseverance.
he IS one of the most magnetic men In
whose presence I have ever st0od--yet not
attractive. His overwhelming personality
| is lFreslstible--yet he is unplee SAINT of ap-
| pearance. He turns the mind into quick
seeker for similarities and one comes
quickly To me it was Marat. | have
never seen a presentation Of Marat that
might not profitably be exchanged for
| dellneation Of Weyler. 1t would account
more satisfactorily for the power he at
| tanned. that domination or men with
| which it is SO hard to eandidly associate
those pictures Of the tyrant that are fa-
miliar TO the stage.
am not saying that Weyler is a second
Marat; but l recall sWeyler's history, and
that now his will is life or death to over a
million and a half of people, that from his
/ decree there is no appeal, that the making
! or the laws has been given to him by a
decree 50 absolute that he may confer all
| his powers upon any subordinate.
have talked with Campos, Marin and
| Weyler, the three captains general to
| whom Spain has intrusted (thus far un-
I successfully the reconqueSt of Cuba. Re
/ conquest seems an ill-ch0Sen word, but
| one Of Gen. Wevler'S staff has so nominate
| ed this war, and Cuban revolutions can be
suppressed only by conquests Campos was
an exceptional man. Marin was common
place. Weyler is unique. Canpos and
| Marin affected gold lace. dignity and self
| consciousness. Weyler Ignores them all as
! useless, unnecessary inlpediments, If any
| thing, to the one object Of his existence.
| Campos was fat, good-natured, wise, phil
| osophicaI, slow in his mental processes,
! clear in his Judgment, emphatic in his
| opinions, OutSpOken, and withal loveable
1 humane, conservative, constructive pro-
! gressive with but one project ever before
! him, the glorihcation Of Spain as a mother
| land and figure among peaceful, en-
| lghtened nations. Weyler is lean, dimin-
utlve, shrivelled, ambitious for immortal
| ity irrespective Of its odor, master Of di-
| plon1acy, the slave OF Spain for the glory
| of sitting al the right of her throne, un-
lovable. unloving, exaltedr-and doubtless
| justly-in seif-esteem. because ne is un-
mistaken in his estimation of his value
| TO his queen. His passion is success per
| Sc, foul or fair consequences or the conven-
tiOnal ideas of humanity Notwithstanding
Imagine that man ever loving woman,
That is the first exclamation. his presence
suggests They say that Weyler had a
mother, and that he loved her. / know,
for | have heard him say SO, that he re-
members something Of his grandfather
who was a German whence came his
name. But there is not enough blood in mis-
fra1l little body to warm into life those
passions that revere the closer relations OF
Womanhood, and mentally he is incapable
OF all ranks, groomed, barbered and pow
| for is completely epitomized in his person.
and, as Others have been, I also was con-
sclous OF it the first time / saw him. That
was IN the palace of course The gates
| We're guarded by gaudy soldiers tinseled
and polished. Every turn In the stair
way and corridors was elnblazoned with
the arms and emblem Of Spain. Officers
| OF all ranks, groomed, harbered and pow
dered, were Visible in scores. In the great
| Gala de Recibifniente were all military
| conditions from lieutenants to generals
| whose hushed conversat ton and func-
tIonal palaver were oppressive. On
through this crowd and through more
| obstacles of formality to the presentation
| the journey through the forest of gold lace
| tsrnIina ted before the closed door of Cen
i al al ia ~ ,Ii Iityt
ant more bedizzened than the rest of the
| dazzling multitude trod softly to the por-
| tico. gently opened the way, retired again
without a word and we were alone in the
presence of the man.
And what a picturei A little man An
apparition of blacks-black eyes, black
hair, black beard. rk-exceedingly dark
! ---complexion a plain black attire, black
/ shoes, black tie, very dirty shirt and
! soiled standing collar, with no jewelry and
/ not relief from the aspect Of darkness
| anywhere on his person He was alone
! and was standing facing the door I en-
tered. He had taken a position in the very
! center of the room. and seemed lost in its
| immense depths. It Is capable OF holding
400 people. Its vast marble floor is vacant
of furniture, and its walls, of great height
are covered with portraits, larger than
| life. Of the captains-general of Cuba dur
| ing 120 years. Voices echo in the cavern
Gus chamber, ana the ancient persona gas
/ looked down upon an invasion of their
quarter almost as If they, too. were re-
| ceiying, with the living picture which
4 will some day hang among them. It was
like q stage setting around this remark
able man.
It IS not remarkable that / momentarily
| hesitated TO make certain that this was
/ actually Weyler. Doubt was dispeled
| with a look at his face. His eyes. far
! apart. bright. alert and striking. took me
I in at q glance. His face seemed to run
| to chin, his lower Jaw protruding far be-
| yond any ordinary indication of firnlness,
! persistence or will power. His forehead
is neither high nor receding: neither is it
| that of a thoughtful or pllilosophic man.
i His ears are set far back: and what is
| called the region of intellect. in which are
4 those mental attributes that might be
| defined as powers of observation. calcula-
| ton, judgment and execution. is strongly
/ developed The conformation of his head,
is not one that is generally accepted as an
! indication OF any marked possession
l'of philoprog genitiveness or its kindred emo
1 tions and inclinations. His nose is aquiline,
i bloodless and obtrusive. When he speaks
it is with high nasal enunciation that
is not disagreeabis. because it is not pro-
longel. and his sentences justify every
impression that has already been formed
OF the man. They were short, crisp, en-
/ phatic and expressive.
4 aT have an aversion to speech I am an