The times., 1898-04-11
MGR. IRELAND'S S FAILURE.
A Last Appeal for Peace at Any Price
Not Successful

That sinister influences were brought 20
bear on the President Saturday and yes
terday 10 prevent the transmission Of his
message to Congress today Is an undoubt-
ed fact That Mr. Mckinley resisted these
Influences. as there is every reason for
believing he did. is to his crdi,. The Times
has information to the effect that John
Ireland. Archbishop Of ST. Paul who has
been and is in Washington advocating
peace. made one last effort to secure de-
lay. using an excuse the so-caIIed ar
mistice granted by the queen regent.
As late as yesterday afternoon Arch
bishop Ireland was in a cheerful humor
/ and declared that he believed there would
be no message today
There is little doubt that the ecelesiaS-
teal influence held up the message last
Wednesday. The assertion that Gen Lee
was responsible has been utterly dis
proved
The suspension OF hostiIities in the ISL
/ and Is due solely to papai intervention at
the court OF Madrid When Leo XIII
/ found that the Queen Regent would lis
/ ten favorablyt0 such proposal he sent a
{ cablegram TO the archbishop asking him
/ to see the President and bring pressure
+ TO bear on him looking to son-actfon at
/ Washington. The archbishop had never
/ at the time met the President but he
/ came 10 Washington and arranged
through Bellamy Storer. of Ohio. AmerI-
can ministr to Belgium for an audience
Archbishop Ireland saw the President
and before explaining his mission de-
clared that. although he was acting for
the Pope, he would make no proposal
/ that was not consistent With the duty of
/ an American born citizen VINO loved his
/ country.
/ He told of the relations Of the Vatican
/ with the Spanish court and declared
/ that the queen regent was anxious for
/ any settlement consistent with honor
/ He went so far as to intimate that the
/ three powers. France, Italy and GeFma-
/ ny. would practically compel the Spanish
| people to accept the independence OF
/ Cuba
Mr.. Mckinley gave an attentive ear to
4 the scheme. but il fell through
After the action of the Spanish cabi-
net Saturday the proposals were renew
ed. but. as The Times is informed with
out result
In this connection it may as well be
understood that the Administration has
not yet given up hope that a peaceful
solution of the problem may be reached
For this reason, indeed, for this pur-
pose, the Maine disaster is being sup
pressed as much as possible as a cause
of war.
For no good purpose gossip of the pos
sibility Of an internal explosion has been
revived. This theory discredits Capt
Sigsbee. insults the Board Of Inquiry
and ISLANDERS the dead sailors of the
Maine. but the peace-at-any-pric gang
don't mind little things like these
1t is understood that officers OF the
cadet ship Amerigo Vespucei as well
as certain French officers now in Ameri-
ca. have declared their belief in the "in-
ternaI theory.
Commodore SchIey's language immed-
! lately after tfe disaster. in which he
declared that ne did not believe the ex-
plosion to be due TO an exterior force. is
also being much quoted just now by
! such Spanish papers that disgrace
American Journalism
All these things taken together should
convince the American people that their
battle for the nations honor viii not
have been absolutely won when the
President sends his message to Congress-
Ut noon today.