The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1897-12-23
Significant.


IN Havara. in convention assembled. is
highly significant. This convention,
representing, it is said. about so per
cent of the wealth of the island--most
of it stolen from native Cubans-re-
solved:
II. To reject autonomy as unpatriotic
ar dangerous to the sovereignty oi
Spain in cuba.
- TO affirm the entire support OF the
party to General Weyler and his policy
and method of warfare.
'3. To send d despatch to General Wcy-
lcr complmenting him upon his latest
declarations and Offering him the support
of the lONalist Spaniards Of cuba.
~ 70 refrain from any participation
I'm any election or public act during the
autonomist regime.
-. To authorize the board Of directors
TO act i'm the name of the party and op-
pose the government. If it is necessary.
without calling another assembly"
In other words the bone and sinew
| Of the Spanish element in Cuba, en-
cepting only the army. has declared
formally and it would seem irrevoCa-
| bly, it's reputation of autonomy This
rtpudiatiOn is not quite so emphatic
| in the manner of its declaration as is
| that of the armed insurgents, who
have emphasized their opinion on the
subject by hanging the Spanish peace
| commissioners, but it suffices to indi-
| cate that Marshal BlancO is between
| two fires. He has in the support of
| his programme a crippled army, a
| small foreign element made up of
| planters who desire autonomy in order
that they may resume agricultural or
| cane grinding activities, and the COM
| binod Reformsta and AutOnOmista
| parties of native Cubans, numeric-
| ally unmportant factor. Unless the
| army can conquer the insurrection by
| force, Spain's last hope SO far as Cuba
is concerned will expire.
| on the other hand. the action of the
| Conservatives at Havana combines
| with the attitude Of the opposition in
| Spain, now rapidly concentrating
under the spectacular and peculiarly
| Castilian leadership Of Weyler, to con-
| stitute a formidable menace to the life
| of the present ministry at Madrid and
| possibly to the life of the reignine
| dynasty itself. Sagasta might be able
| to weather the gale if he were in pos
| session of adequate funds, but it is
| notorious that Spains treasury is
| empty, the Spanish taxpayers squeezed
| dry, industry in Spain al standstill
her foreign credit gone, her sOldierS
unpaid and the national deficit ncreas.
| L
ity. It would be open to cOnsidera blC
doubt if Spain could recover from the
losses of the Cuban war without a revo,
luton at home even were the CubaI
insurgents al this moment to throw
down their arms and bend again t
the yoke. But with three-fourths o
Cuba itself in arms against Spain ol
at open variance with the ruling ad
ministration at Madrid, the chances fo
revolution in Spain are multiplied al
most incomputably.
Some American journals profess I,
believe that the shooting of the Span
ish spy, Colonel Ruiz, by the insur
points To the desperation and speed.
overthrow of the Cuban cause. Thes
journals forget that the Spanish caus
survived after practcing that kind o
warfare and worse for a period o
more than two years, receiving at tn
same time the official cooperation ant
moral support of the executive brancl
of the government at Washington
The insurgents at the present time ar
only one among many powerful fac
tors that are at work i'm the behalf o
, Cuha I.ibre.