The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1897-05-15
THE CRISIS REACHED.
President Will Send Message to
Congress On Cuba.
DOCUMENT LIKELY TO BE GIVEN
NEXT TUESDAY.

Will Ask For Some Measure Relief For
Americans on the Island-Minister De
LONE in Conference With Assistant
Secretary of State Day.
2 Washington, May 14.-President Nc
Kinley has under earnest consideration
the advisability Of sending a message to
Congress next week on the Cuban uues-
tion
He has not yet come to decision in
the matter, though he is at present in
clined to send to the legislative branch q
communication suggesting that measures
be adopted to relieve the distress among
American residents in Cuba.
The message, if it goes in, will not be
of a warlize or sensational tenor. In or
der to have the facts on which to pre-
dictate a message, Mr.. Mckinley has had
cablegrams sent to every consular officer
in Cuba asking each to give exact infor-
nation as to the status of affairs in his
district and to telegraph replies at once.
1t was understood today by some mem
Ders of the Senate committee on foreign
relations that these communications
would be communicated to the Senate,
but whether they would be accompanied
by a message of recommendation is a
matter of doubt.
The prospects are, however, that consid-
cradle opposition may develop in the SEN
ate to a single proposition to relieve.
Senator Burrows of Michigan, TODAY
pointed out the objections to such a pro-
cedure
= Are we going to feed the Spanish
army and assist Weyler in his ca1nnaign p,
he asked. The distribution of relief is
almost impossible and the scheme
thoroughly inpracticable. How is the
citizenship of the people asking relief to
be determined, and must there be an in
vestigation of the citizenship of every
starving woman and child who ask re-
lief? We will be prevented from taking
care OF the Americans in the insurgent
lines and cannot relieve distress even in
the insurgent hospitals We shall simp-
ly helping Spain to feed her hungry peo-
ple.'
The cabinet met at 10 o'clock this
morning, an hour earlier than usual.
The Cuban situation was gone over in de-
tall and shown by the latest reports from
the island. 1t was announced that after
LII O'Clock that a message ON Cuba would
not be sent to Congress ON Monday, but
whether or not one will be sent in later
Ii lne Week Is not yet settled.
/The final decision of the question was
postponed until Consul General Lee and
other consuls in Cuba, and probably
Mr.. Calhoun make their reports by cable
to the department. They have been re-
quested to cable the latest facts as to the
existing situation. These reports will
be probably here when the President and
the Cabinet return tomorrow night 1t
seems probable now that message will
be sent to Congress Tuesday.
The Spanish minister, Dupuy de LONE,
called at the state department shortly be-
fore noon today and conferred for some
time with Assistant Secretary Day rela-
tive to the reported intention of the gov
ernment to send relief to. American suffer
ers in Cuba. The minister gave assurance
that the Spanish government would be i'm
entire sympathy with any benevolent
movement and would lend it every assis-
tance.
The Spanish minister does not question
the existence of misery and suffering in
the island, but declares that it is such
only as accompanies insurrection and
war, heightened in this case by the diseas-
es peculiar to low tropical countries.
The conference between Secretary Day
and Senior Dupuy de Lone lasted for
over an hour and was confined entirely
to discussion of the extension of relief
measures No objection was made in be-
half of the Spanish government to the
supply of food, medicine and clothing
to the distressed Americans in Cuba,
but it was sclearlyunderstood that the relief
was to be extended only to American citi-
zens through general plan not yet.decid-
ed on. The Spanish authorities have not
recorded any objection on their part to
a general distribution, provided this is
not carried to the extent of provisioning
the insurgent forces in their resistance
to Spain. On this point it can be stated
positively that it is the present idea of
the administration that it will have full
filed all Of it's proper functions when it
has cared for it's own citizens. Attention
was called by the Spanish minister to the
fact that the Red Cross had been given
full permission to operate in Cuba, and
that in the distribution Of it's charitable
offices, the society makes no distinction
in nationalities, SO that the distressed
Spaniard, Cuban or American might
with equal right claim it's bounty.
Senator Morgan said today that the
of the President, if it should ap-
ply to relief measures in the way of food
and clothing, would not cause him to
deviate from his purpose of pressin g his
resolution for the recognition of state
of war, as he had given notice he would
do before, 1t was assumed that the Presi-
dent would send in such message.
The friends of the Morgan resolution
will not antagonize measures contemplate
ing temporary relief, but they are not
disposed to accept such measures in place
of more general and far reaching decla-
ration.
The opposition also will acquiesce in a
resolution appropriating money to relieve
wants.
Senator Hale, who is generally recog-
nized as the leader of the opposition to all
measures looking to q general declaration
in the Cuban interest, is absent from the
such measures as a rule, said today that
while there are objections to extending
our charity to such an extent he would
no dismissed TO offer no onroq;tio,, 70 s,,ch