Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1898-04-14
WOODBURY., N. J, THURSDAY, APRIL Il, 1898

ted to return to their homes and aided
to resume the self supporting pursuits
OF peace; public works have been or
dered to give them employment, and a
sum of 100000 has been appropriated
for their relief
Military Victory Impracticable.
The war in Cuba is of such a nature
that. short of subjugation or extermi-
nation. a final military victory for
either side seems impracticable. The
alternative lies in the physical exhaus-
ton of one OF the other party, or per-
hapS Of both; condition which in eff
feet ended the ten years war by the
truce of Zanjon. The prospect of such
a protraction and conclusion of the
present strife is a contingency hardly
to be contemplated with equanfmity
by the civilized world, and least of all
by the United States, affected and in
jured as we are deeply and intimately
by its very existence.
Realizing this, it appeared to be my
duty, in a spirit of true friendliness, no
less to Spain than to the Cubans, who
have SO much to lose by the prolonga-
ton Of the struggle, to seek to bring
about an immediate termination of the
war. To this end I submitted, on the
9th ult., as a result of much represent
alton and correspondence, through the
United States minister at Madrid, prop
ositions to the Spanish government
looking to an armistice until Oct. l for
the negotiation of peace, with the good
offices of the president.
In addition asked the immediate re-
vacation nf Of
tion, SO as to permit the people to re-
turn to their farms and the needy to
be relieved with provisions and sup
plies from the United States, cooper
ating with the Spanish authorities, so
as to afford full relief.
The reply of the Spanish cabinet was
received on the night of the 31st ult 1t
offers as the means to bring about
peace in Cuba to confide the prepara-
ton thereof to the insular parliament,
inasmuch as the concurrence of that
body would be necessary to reach a
final result, it being, however, under
stood that the powers reserved by the
constitution of the central government
are not lessened or diminished AS the
Cuban parliament does not meet until
the 4th of May the Spanish govern
ment would not object. for its part, to
accept at once a suspension of hostili-
ties If asked for by the insurgents from
the general in chief, to whom it would
pertain in such case, to determine the
duration and conditions of the armis-
tice.
The propositions submitted by Cen
eral Woodford and the reply of the
Spanish government were both in the
form of brief memoranda, the texts of
which are before me, and are substan-
TALLY in the language above given. The
function of the Cuban parliament in the
matter of preparing" peace and the
manner of it's doing so are not express
ed in the Spanish memorandum, but
from General Woodford's explanatory
reports of preliminary discussions pre-
ceding the final conference it is UNDER
stood that the Spanish government
stands ready to give the insular con-
gress full powers to settle the terms of
peace with the surgents-whether by
direct negotiation or indirectly by
means of legislation does not appear.
With this last overture in the di-
rection of immediate peace and it's dis
appointing reception by Spain, the
executive was brought to the end of
his efforts.
In my annual message Of December
last l said:
The Spanish Reply.
''Of the untried measures there re-
main only: Recognition of the insur-
gents as belligerents; recognition of the
independence of Cuba; neutral inter-
vention to end the war by imposing a
rational compromise between the con-
testants, and Intervention in favor of
one or the other party. / speak not
of forcible annexation, for that cannot
be thought of That. by our code of
morality, would be criminal aggres-
sion."
Thereupon I reviewed these alterna-
tives, in the light of President Grant s
measured words, uttered in 1875, when
after seven years of sanguinary, de-
structive and cruel hostilities in Cuba,
he reached the conclusion that the rec
ognition of the independence of Cuba
was impracticable and indefensible,
and that the recognition of belligerence
was not warranted by the facts ac-
cording to the tests of public law. /
commented especially upon the latter
aspect of the question, pointing out the
inconvenience and positive dangers of
a recognition of belligerence which,
while adding to the already oneFous
burdens of neutrality within our own
jurisdiction, could not in any way ex-
tend our influence or effective offices in
the territory of hostilities. Nothing has
since occurred to change my view in
this regard, and recognize as fully
now as then that the issuance of a
proclamation of neutrality, by which
process the so called recognition of
belligerence is published, could of It
self, and unattended by other action,
accomplish nothing toward the one end
for which we labor, the instant pacifi-
cation of Cuba and the cessation of
misery that afflicts the island.
Turning to the question of recogniz-
ing at this time the independence of the
present iusurgent government in Cuba,
we find safe precedents in our history
from an early day. They are well suEf-
med up in President Jackson's message
to congress Dec 21, 1886, on the sub
j.ct of the recognition of the independ-
ence of Texas. He said;
I'm all the contests that have arisen
out of the revolutions of France, out
of the disputes relating to the crowns
of Portugal and Spain, out of the
separation of the American possessions
of both from the European govern
ments, and out of the numerous and
constantly occurring struggles for do
minion in Spanish America, so wisely
consistent with our just principles has
been the action of our government that
we have, under the most critical cir
cumstances, avoided all censure, and
encountered no other evil than. that
produced by a transient estrangement
of good viii in those against whom we
have. been by force Of evidence COM
PEELED to decide.
TT has thus been made known to tho
world that the uniform policy and
practice of the United States is to avoid
all interference in disputes which mere
ly relate to the internal government of
other nations, and eventually to rec
ognize the authority of the prevail
ing party without reference to our par
ticular interests and views or to the
merits of the original controversy.
But on this, as on every other try
ing occasion, safety is to be found in a
rigid adherence to principle.
In the contest between Spain and
the revolted colonies we stood aloof,
and waited not only until the ability of
the new. states to protect themselves
was fully established. but until the
danger of their being again subjugated
had entirely passed away. Then, and
not until then, were they recognized.