The Cape Girardeau Democrat. (Cape Girardeau, Mo.) 1876-1909, 1897-05-22
The U OF CUBA

II - oeAGN
the Slaughter.
WASHINGTON, May 17.-An thu
sstic audience of men and women.
many of them well known in Wasning-
ton, packed the Columbia theater tolts
doors yesterday afternoon at a monster
mass meeting held in behalf OF the
cause of the Cuban insurgents Inc
theater was appropriately decorated
Seated on the platform and partlclpaS
ing in the exercises were Senators 1ai.
linger and Allen, ex-senator Butler, Oh
South Carolina; Rev. Hugh johnson.
pastor of the Metropolitan Metno
dist church; Rev. Howard Wilbur En-
mis- and a number of others identihec
with the interests of the insurgents
Gen. William Henry Brown, presi-
dent of the Cuban league, called the
meeting to order and introduced Sena-
tor Gallinger as the presiding ohcer.
The latter made a brief address and
read a number of letters and kilograms
of regret, among them being those
from Senators Frye and Burrows n
Commander Garrison, of the 6. A. b.
Mr.. Chandeliers letter was as follows:
WASHINGTON, D. c., May 10
Senior A. Il. Aguire, Washington, ID. e.:
DEAR SIR-Althodgh unable to attend the
meeting tonight, 1 send q few words OF sym
pathy, and of hope for the relief and inoepen-
dence of Cuba.
As 1 wish to see the United States declare
and maintain the independence of the island a.
France did that Of the American colonies, ant
made the United States a nation, of course J
shall, as o practical friend, vote for every
minor method tending to the same benencenf
end. I hope and believe that congress, ana the
president will soon formally recognize a state
of war and Cuban belIigerency. This step, fol-
lowed, as it will be by all the other Independent
nations of the western hemisphere, cannot Gl
to insure the Cuban independence which Is
sought for.
Moreover, without delay. we ought to send q
fleet to enter the harbor and an army to land
upon the soil OF Cuba, first to protect the lives
and property Of American citizens, and, sec
ondly, to stop the atrocious and uncivflizee
methods OF warfare adopted by the Spanish
generals.
In advocating all these measures 1 am con-
scious of no passionate hostility to Spain. In
1861 she recognized the southern confederacy
within less than three months after its mill
tary struggle began; and surely, If she cannot
hold Cuba without making it one vast desert
and graveyard by driving the inhabitants into
Tie CltlcS W SIshFNts III ny houSAASs oAcOeA
or garroting Cuban officers for rebellion and in
cendiarism, she ought to lose the island. II be-
tween 1861 and 1855 one confederate general hae
thus been put to death, all the powers OF Eu-
rope with one accord, would have sent their fleets
and armies 5000 miles across the ocean to END
such barbarous warfare AMI to establish and
maintain the southern confederacy. Yet Gen.
Robert E. Lee and all his generals were as
truly guilty of rebellion and incendiarism as
was Theodore Mendez Gonzales, who was shot
for that offense at Cabanas fortress, in Havana
on Monday last.
We blame England for abandoning the harm
less and peaceful Armenian Christians to mas
sacre by the Moslems and for submitting the
lberty-loving Greeks to slaughter by the Turk
ish despot. England retorts that we dare not
stop the methods of unciviliZed warfare at our
very doors in the American Crete-the fair IS
land Of Cuba-and both charge and counter
charge are justly made.
In helping to make Cuba independent we sre
observing q traditional and universal Amer
lean policy, the duty to promote at the first
good opportunity the severance OF Cuba from
Spain. In 1896, also, the democrats pledged
themselves to do this by their declaration Oh
sympathy for the people of Cuba in their heroic
struggle for liberty and Independence" and
the republicans by their promise that the Uni
ted States should endeavor to restore peace
and give independence to the island" There
uccQ Dc Ltt1c 1cdE budb buCSc pACukCo NI1N
be violated. President Mckinley will
ingly recognizes the binding force
Of the platform upon which he was.
elected, and will do his part towards making,
Cuba free and independent He may proceed
with wha will seem to impatient spirits
to be undue caution. with the cries and groans
ringing in his ears of unarmed men, women and
children enduring inhumsn cruelty and dRs-
tardly murder, but he will not fail to be faith
full to his pledges, and he viii before long reg
lister the decree which went forth In his tri-
umphant election that Cuba should be taker
from the control OF Spain and made peaceful and
independent. In this faith in a great party anG
its president let US rest patiently and hopefully
Very respectfully,
WILLIAM E. CHANDLER
Mr.. Karl Decker, of Washington
who, as correspondent of the New York
Journal, spent some time in Cuba,
much of it with a branch of the Cuban
army in Santa Clara province, gave a
description of affairs existing and OF
the pitiable plight of many of the
people suffering for the necessaries of
life. He ridiculed the claims set out
by Gen. Weyler that the island had
been pacifed, and said that If the
Cubans were granted belligerent rights
by the United States they would GER
tainly win. Mr.. Decker has just re-
turned from Cuba
In the course of some interesting re-
marks, Senator Allen, of Nebraska
h~umorously declared there was no di-
vision in the popullst ranks on the
question of Cuban liberty. In this
whole matter he thought there had
been too much sacrifice to a spirit OF
commercialism, and it was time this
government had a little more HUMANITY
and a little more Americanism. He de-
clared that the United States could not
afford to have a decaying monarchy
with a foothold on this continent, and
he would be delighted to see Spain and
the Ottoman empire wiped from the
map of Europe. If the president were
to send a feet to Havana, war in the
island would cease IN 30 days and il
would not b.. necessary to fire a rum.
If the United States should say to
Spain you shall not war upon the
hospitals, upon women and upon child
hood" Weyler's occupation would be
gone.
Mrs. Clara Belle Brown, of the Wo-
mans National Cuban league, said the
league had but one platform, one aim
and n end, and that end was the es-