The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1897-05-19
Gossip ait
the Capital
Special Correspondence of The Tribune.

Special correspondence Oh Inc tribune.
Washington, May is.
The mass meeting held on Sunday last
in Washington in behalf Of the cause of
| cuban independence was an event worthy
of more extended consideration than was
| given to it in the Associated Press report
| in Mondays Tribune. 1t was really one
| of the most significant Culminations of
| popular sentiment swaying a great and
| representative mass of people that the ma
| tional capitol has witnessed during this
| generation. The meeting was held in the
| Columbia theater, the largest in the city,
| and that vast structure was crowded to
| its very doors almost an hour before the
| designated time for beginning, hundreds
| being turned away. Among those on the
stage were Senator Galingcr. of New
| Hampshire; General William Henry
| Browne, president of the Cuban league;
| Dr. Lincoln, DR.. Allen, Rev. DIR. Easton,
Rev. Alexander Kent, Rev. Howard Will
| bur Ennis, Rev. Mr.. Couden, chaplain of
| the house of representatives; Senator AL
| len, Representative Livingstone, of Geor-
| gla; Admiral Crosby, ex-District Commits
| sioner Hine and General Titus. Mrs.
GaMinger, Mrs. Burrows, Mrs. Frye ana
Mr.. Frank Hume and parties occupied
| boxes, and Mrs. Sherman, wife of the
| secretary of state, was seated in the audi
| ence. The presence of Mrs. Sherman at
| the meeting was generally regarded under
| lHe circumstances as SlSHlUCdHl.
Just after the invocation had been pro-
| nounced by Rev. Hugh Johnston, pastor
| of the Metropolitan Methodist Episcopal
| churCh-the church that President Nc
| Kinley attends-a notable thing occurred.
| Somebody started the national hymn,
| America" Instantly the vast audience
| arose to its feet and, taking up the strain,
swelled it into a majestic chorus which
told, better than any formal words, where
| the American people stand on the question
| of Cuba's right to freedom. The first
| speaker was Senator Gallinger, of New
| Hampshire. He made an intensely elo-
quent address, in the course of which he
| said:
1T is said that we have no right to eX-
tend help to a struggling people unless
| they are in possession of a seaport town.
How, then. could a country situated like
| Switzerland ever get recognition as a bel
ligerent? Switzerland has no seaport. We
| are here to protest against the terrible
atrocities which are being committed in
| Cuba today. Manning, the English au-
| thority on international law, says that
the concession of belligerent rights may
at a certain epoch in the strife, be pro-
| claimed in the interest of humanity. 1t
! Is time in the interest of humanity that
| the United States should interfere in Gu
ba. Cuba is as sure to gain her inde-
| pendence as water is to run down hill.
The Cubans are fighting against taxation
without representation. out of the strife
that is going on In yonder beautiful Isle
viii come another republic to take its
place with the free nations of the earth"
| Letters of regret were read from many
eminent persons who had been unavoid-
ably kept Gway. Among these were Sena-
tors Chandler and Frye and Generals
Clarkson and sanguilly. Congressman
Amos ]. Cummings in his letter wrote:
"ln years to come the most disgraceful
page in the history of the administration
of Grover Cleveland will be his action
toward the Cuban patriots" Senator
Chandler wrote: II hope and believe that
congress and the president viii soon form
ally recognize a state of war and Cuban
bellgerency This step, followed as 1t will
be by all the other independent nations of
the western hemisphere, cannot fail to in
| sure the Cuban independence which is
| sought for. Moreover, without delay we
ought to send a fleet to enter the harbors
and an army to land upon the soil OF Cuba,
first to protect the lives and property
of American citizens, and secondly, to stop
the atrocious and uncivilized methods OF
warfare adopted by the Spanish generals
| In advocating these measures, l am con-
sciOus of no passionate hostility 10 Spain
| In 1861 she recognized the Southern Con-
federacy within less than three months
| a1ter llS military SlTuSBle DeBdll' anu
surely If she cannot hold Cuba without
making 1t one vast desert and graveyard
by driving the inhabitants into the cities
to starve, and by hanging, shooting, ol
: garroting Cuban officers and soldiers fol
rebellion and incendarism, she ought. tC
lose the island. If between 1861 and 1856
one Confederate general had been thus
put to death all the powers of Europe
/, with one accord, would have sent theil
fleets and armies 5000 miles across the
ocean to end such barbarous warfare ant
to establish and maintain the Southern
! Confederacy. Yet General Robert II. Lee
and all his generals were as truly guilty
? of rebellion and incendiarism as was Theo
dore Menendez Gonzales, who was sho
for that offense at Cabanas Fortress II
Havana on Monday last. Presl
dent Mckinley will soon do his par
toward making Cuba free and independ
ent. He may proceed with what will
| seem to impatient spirits to be undu
caution, with the cries and groans ringin,
, in his ears of unarmed men, women, an'
, children enduring inhuman cruelty AM
! dastardly murder, but he will not fail Z
2 be faithful to his pledges, and he will be
fore long register the decree which wen
forth in his triumphant election tina
Cuba should be taken from the control o
Spain and made peaceful and independent
l In this faith, i'm great party and ii
. president, let us rest patiently and mos
! hopefully"
An interesting speech was made by Kar
. Decker, the New York Journal correspond
ent, who spent several weeks in the cam
, of General Gomez. In it he told this Incl
: dent showing how far little nerve vii
! go toward curbing the Spanish: "On'th
/ | nth of December last, when resolution
looking toward the recognition Of belligeT
ent rights for the Cubans was introduce
in the senate, some Of these typical Spani
ards I'm Sagira la Grande made arrange
S ments to have a demonstration agains
, the American consulate. They gathere
, together all the arms they could find an
. about $50 of them met and proceeded I
: discuss the situation, and in the mea