The Brunswick times. [volume] (Brunswick, Ga.) 188?-1900, 1897-04-04
CUBA WILL BE FREE.
SPAIN is VIRTUALLY VANQUlSHED,
AND TIE WAR WILL SOON END.

Efforts to Crush Insurgents Are Prac-
tically ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Recognized
as an Utter Failure-RebeIs May Buy
Cuba or Take 1t by the Sword.
Spain is at the end of her string, and
Cuban independence is in sight. 1t is
an open secret in diplomatic circles
that Spain has practically abandoned
the effort to crush the Cuban insurrec-
tionists. Forces stronger than the wan
ing political and military power of that
decaying empire have compelled Span
ish statesmen to choose which they
shall save-Cuba Or the Philippines
and the decision is in favor of the lat
ter.
The war in Cuba has now reached
the negotiation stage The question of
the future is as to whether the people
of the island will buy their independ-
ence or whether they will win it by
the sword. They may easily do either.
Information warranting these state
ments has been received at Washington
from time to time during recent days.
1t is official information, supposed to
be secret, but the secret is not we'll
kept. 1t is well understood in the high
er diplomatic circles that the end is
near i'll Cuba The prediction is freely
made that within a short time the
Spanish government will initiate nego-
tiations with the United States looking
to settlement of the Cuban trouble.
1t is no secret that General Weyler's
campaign in the provinces to the east
of Havana has been failure. 1t is as
much of tiasco as was his pacification
OF Pinar del Rio, Havana and Matan-
zas provinces, i'll every one Of which
the insurgents are still provokingly &C.
tive. He marched out at the head Of
great army two months ago, and he
has not had a battle. He has accom-
plished literally nothing. This is adj
mitted by the Spanish press of Havana
and of Madrid and is not denied by the
Spanish minister i'll Washington. Wey-
Ter made his boasts that he would crush
Gomez, but he has not even engaged
that willy chieftain's force, and there
is little chance of his doing SO. There
is not province in Cuba in which the
revolutionists are not strong in the
field. They still control two-thirds of
the island. This is the military situa-
ton at the beginning of the third year
of the war;
A single regiment of United States
regulars could have crushed the insur-
rection in a month.
But as fast as Spain poured in troops
the rebellion spread 1t overran the is
land, province after province 1t threat
ened the capital itself. 1t shut the
Spaniards up in the cities. They have
since, under pressure of public opinion
at home, sailed forth in Pinar del Rio,
in the extreme western province, and
Weyler has marched out through Ma
tanzas and into Puerto Principe. But
there are more insurgents there than
ever before. They hover around the
Spanish columns. From 500 rifles they
have grown to $4,000. Thirty expedi-
tions have been landed by their friends
in the United States. The insurgent
army grows i'll strength, while the enor-
nous importations of royal troops dis
solve through disease. The royal troops
are disheartened. They are poorly pro-
visioned and in arrears in pay Their
officers lead them not to battle The
climate is deadly.
In few weeks the hot and rainy
season will come on, and that will
mark the end of Spain's efforts. Then
will ensue the months of waiting, in
the course OF which the statesmen at
Madrid will seek to save what they can
out of the wreck, already tacitly ac-
knowledged. The coming summer will
bring on the end. There can be but one
result Spain will squirm for time
and seek to hold titular sovereignty
with autonomous rule, but will ulti-
mately abandon the contest, and Cuba
will acquire her Independence Walter
Wellman in Chicago Times Herald