Birmingham state herald., 1896-06-16
IF THE DEVIL THREW HIS NET What a Haul He Would Make in
 Hays ma.
  CROWDED W I'll BUTCHERS All the Generals amin; ,,olones of the Spanish Army Sies to Be There.
THEIR PURPOSE IS PROBLEMATlCAl
It May Be to Change the Plan of Campaign or It May Be to Rob the Government. The Horse Bill an
 Instance.

Havana, June 13, via Tampa, Fla, June 15.-For the last ten days a lot of Spanish generals have been fiocking into Havana from all parts of the island. There are here at present Generals Oldare, Bar rague, Gonzales Munoz, Ruise, ,Melguisot, Hernandez, Ferrer, Basan Altacht, Sua- reg and Inclan. without counting Suarez Valdez, who was brought here disabled from the wounds he received in the Des- canso engagement with Maceo. Natu- rally with these generals there have ar rived great number of colonels, lieuten- ant-colonels and other minor officers forming the staffs of the generals, the list of which would fill a column. The hotels are crowded with them, to the great satisfaction of the hotel keepers, who are reaping rich harvest with so many guests. The cafes are also having boom, for at night nothing is seen in them but the white caps and blue uni forms of officers of all ranks, sipping their lemonades or other refreshing drinks, discussing war matters. Nobody looking at these men taking their drinks with such tranquility would ever imagine that the island is convulsed with a tremen- dous war, which only the American ad- ministration seems to ignore, and most of them have still on their hands the stains of innocent blood shed In their im- placable fury to destroy whatever bears the name of Cuban-be it man, woman or child. Nevertheless, some of them bear on their faces the stamp of their characters. Take for instance, Melguisot, a tall, lean, close-shaven man, with small, piercing gray eyes and general sneakish expression, which denotes his cowardice and brutality-an appearance which Is repulsive to witness.
 The presence of all these generals and officers Is exciting comment Many be- lieve they have been called by General Weyler to arrange another of his famous combinations against Maceo in order to force him out of Pinar del Rio, where it seems that he is doing whatever he chooses without the least intention of leaving the trap" they had set for him. They now appreciate the stupidity of having established that cordon after Maceo got inside of the province, and not before he tried to enter 1t, as any other foreign general would have done, according to the simplest rule of mili- tary tactics. Consequently, seeing the grave error they have committed and that the trocha is crumbling to pieces on account of the rains and levers, which are sweeping away the men by hun dreds, they have decided to push Maceo on the line and force him to cross 1t in order to have preteXt to break up the line It is also said they will clear the road and put no great Instructions in his way for that purpose. The question is to break up the trocha, which is sore wart on Weyler's nose. It remains to be seen what Maceo has to say about it.
 Another version of the generals visit is that they have come to ask money to pay the troops, who are without pay since the middle of February last. It is said that there Is a great discontent amongst them, and this Is the principal reason for so many of them deserting to the rebel ranks.
 Nearly every day In this city you are accosted by ragged soldiers requesting the gift of a few coppers to buy cigar cites or other articles. Nothing more sickening can be seen than these poor soldiers strolling around the city in their soiled tattered outfit, with an old straw hat, battered out of shape, and their toes protruding out of old shoes broken to pieces. It is a perfect shame and dis grace to Spain to keep these poor fel- lows in such pitiable state.
 And while the general officers look un- concerned on the miserable condition of their soldiers, they are filling their pock- cts with the proceeds of scandalous spec ulations, carried on with the greatest au- dacity. Something has already been said about the big sums which are being made by hiding the number of deaths occurring in the ranks, either killed from wounds or disease. The generals keep them living on paper-in order to receive their pay. This is the reason why no accurate data can De ODIa1neu or the aCtudl losses or the Spanish army since the beginning of the war, and all calculations are based on mere suppositions, which, according to good authority, exceed 30000 men.
 Another big speculation has been the horse hire business. When Campos or dered the seizure of all horses in the island to mount the troops he commanded that the owners were to receive $34 as the maximum price of each, they being given a receipt, which was to be collected in time, but has never been paid up to the present. Now 1t appears that the treas ury has paid $1, ,29S, ,695.20 for the purchase of 38197 horses, according to disburse- ments made in the following manner:
 April, 1895, 10.826.60; May, 1895, $780, SSO. 30; June, 1895, $93, ,132; July, 1885, $117,- $50; August, 1895, $334, ,164.80; September 1895, $S0,378; October, 1885, $81, ,039; No vember 1895, s9901546; December, 1885, $62, ,980; January, 1896, $57 ,025; February 1896, $9,061.44; March, 1896, $200; April 1896 $2O,355; May, 1896. $420s535. Total $1, ,29S, ,693.20.
 Now if one takes into consideration that according to the official reports, the troops have captured from the insurgents 51S,327 horses since the war broke out 1t will be easily seen that there was no necessity for buying these horses and that the money expended was sheer waste or e shameful robbery.