New-York tribune., 1896-04-27
THE SITUATION IN CUBA.
=. Drv1Ew BY ONE WHO HAS BEEN ON
THE GROUND.
,s AND INNOCENT woRKMEN BRUTALLY
SHOT powN-sPAIN HAS HARD rAsN
ro CRIrsH THE REBELLION.


,,or nowN-sPAIN HAS A HARD TASK
TO CRUSH THE REBELLION.
uoh. Is thrown upon the actual situa-
pun Cuba by the following interview with
non Clark. staff correspondent OF the
J. Press. who has just arrived from
Havana; .,or,se,ves unon me
,osuIt Of five months observation Of
I" .rogress Of the revolution in Cuba SAID
the pc "rbe insurgents are making re-
N'. oh,y rood fight Spain has demonstrated
MAJ ,-oh,,;tv 10 put them down. The END Is
hs' .,obt mt Cuba Is surely slipping away
no' Ct, and unless some new element is
fron' ,oa sba will be lost to the mother coun-
'nuV. ,n.bile atrocities are being committed
Try. ..oas ~ warfare are being follower
ana ~, countenanced by civilized nations.
VIM u,ode two trips to Cuba. The hrst was
:. the beginning Of April 1880, "hen 'ne II"
o. ~. ".,or was in its infancy. I remained two
9Th. returning to the states III june ha'H
monu's' went back to Cuba. finding that
~ n..,o, and Maceo. whom left IN the mountains
49,. eastern district. had marched ooo i"'ieF''
u .,,u the wave of revolution westward ana
''"' . ,hsn almost at the gates OF the cap'.a'
~. uhen I left Havana week ago t"e III
wy ...,on was larger. more Formidable ana ap-
.U .n,,v more promising of success than az
l"' ,,,,. IN the fourteen months since the
C,,han. rose against Spain
-, m Cuba not as the representative oi
~. newspaper, with an editorial OPINION
any IA avn hut as the correspondent OF the
., 49,, prsss an association whose sole mis-
o"'.N =. ohtain facts and disseminate news
BIZ" ..r,v mart Of the struggle, before the
.,,s -" had made much progress. my re-
rore criticised by Cubans as unlalr 10
p Nou that they have swept over the
'neA ,,sh,ro the troops Of Spain before them
.,,,,c record that will live In history
,-a. s"U Gov that my reports are unfair to
ss.,n IN both cases have told the truth.
-,,rv,rp HARD ON CORRESPONDENTS.
..n.,oro tho arrival OF General Weyler corre-
son,. were permitted to accompany Spanish
spo~. .,a IN the early stage Of the war Span
,.h Generals even permitted correspondents 10
visit the enemy's camps. Since the enen'! "'
80, from, scattered bands to organized ana
ss,r,v well armed and drilled columns II Is
matter of life and death for a correspondent "
,enetrate the rebel lines. He would De "eico"ou
nv the insurgents but shot upon his return "
s,ansh camps l have had experience WIN
,ou- Captain- n-Generals-Calleja, Campos, Marin
and Weyler. TIE last is the only one OF tneih
who made the life of a war correspondent our
densome Suave and courteous in his taiK' pro-
f,me IN offers to aid correspondents In strung
ruth from error polite in his receptions OF all
Americans vet he had a way Of impressing upon
a correspondent without putting 1t into woros
that II would conduce to his personal safety 70
report nothing but Spanish official news AS
these fail to mention a single insursent success
from the BEGINNING. and are record OF many
Spanish victories which exist Oh paper ohiS'
the correspondent who accepts them at lace
value beguiles his readers.
III Spain were winning battles. why not per-
init accredited correspondents TO accompany
columns Of troops ana report from personal oo-
vervation? II battles are fought whenever an
bounced offlcially. why are correspondents re-
used safe-conduct pass to enable them 70
,isit the battlefield, when all Is over? II the
.ffair at Gustao was battle and not Dutch-
Try, why were the correspondents thrown INTO
Morro Costle charged with having visited the
place, which Is only twelve miles from havana 7!
rhe Spanish correspondents Of Madrid papers,
The Spanish reporters OF Havana papers. are
ali subject to the r-ess censor and the American
are penned up in Havana, ana
every effort is made TO keep the world in dark
ness as TO what is being done in Cuba. Every
cable dispatch is carefully edited before 1t can
be transmitted. Everything unfavorable to
Spain or favorable to the Cuban cause is elimi-
mated. The malls are searched to prevent news
paper correspondence being sent off. But with
ell these precautions the truth cannot be sup
pressed and every Wednesday and Saturday the
papers Of the United States arrive in Havana,
and long accounts Of rebel victories, and Span
ish brutalities which are true. are read by the
English speaking residents and translated for
the benefit of Spaniards.
MILITARY STRENGTH OF BOTH SIDES.
The situation in Cuba is not difficult to
gauge Spain has sent 100000 regulars and
5000 volunteers have been raised In the cities
Of the island. The latter are used almost en-
trely for home defence. OF the regulars. ap-
proximately, $4,000 have succumbed to bullets
ana disease during the year; 1900 are In the
hospital, or have been relieved from duty, ana
about 100000 are available or-active operations.
These figures are estimates made by an army
surgeon and are very near the truth. The
spanish ofhcial loss of $500 men from all causes
eai'ns the year Is too absurd TO be considered.
u''' haii OF the regulars available for active
opefauohs are required for garrison duty In
.'Hes ana towns. About 1000 small forts or
oiocKhouses have been built and these are oc-
cup'ed oy the troops. The establishment Of the
'a'es' rocha, that between Mariel and Majana,
aosoros 10000 regulars for the defence Of the
nne' -here are about 10000 regulars, divided
mto nying columns OF 800 to 1000 men each,
sselaung aggressively against Maceo just west
ue trocha in Pnar del Rio, and in all Of the
H provinces there are not more than 1900
w. Nv 'n the field against the enemy.
ai Weyler made numerous attempts to
-. Mound and crush Maceo and Gomez during
49,. month on the island. He did not sue
,.S ne then resorted to the well-worn Span
a.e ''ee called trocha, which had been aban-
49," oy Campos and Marin as useless. In
49, 70 max. II a strong line he has practically
Sp"a aggressive operations In all the provinces
sp' tne western one. and concentrated his