The commonwealth. (Greenwood, Miss.) 1896-1923, 1898-03-11
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OUR DUTY TO CUBA.


OUR DUTY TO CUBA.
: property d the inhabitants are subie.
70 his caprice This condition Of thinl
has existed for centuries Promises
. reform are never fulfilled The Te
Years War. closed IN 1878 by the treat
. On. ns e is termed, the agreement
! of zaugjohe, gained from the mOtht
country the promise Of many reform
which. had ths3 been carried on
would, without doubt have restore
the sstruugsd Cubans 10 loyalty t
Spain The govsrnorgeneral who NJ
gOtiated this agreement was not only
grent soldier and statesman, bat q pa
triot, a humanitarian, and an homes
man. Yet Can0yas del Castillo, tb
late prime minister who At that tim
was also at the head of the Spanisl
government refused to submit th.
agreement To The Cortes for ratification
He was compelled to resign and Mar
tinez Camp0s formed q ministry which
adopted IT, Campos justified th'
treaty by declaring that the reform,
promised must he granted or the wal
be carried to determination, which Inf.
ter alternative ha couhi NOT accept
Yet this dreadful alternative scented
more agreeable 10 Canovas than m,
concessions, however wise, inst or nee.
esEary. made IN insurgents IN arms
He demanded that the Cubnns shouh'
digrn and submit themselves absolute
ly n the pleasure Of Spain; relying on
promises that had often beon made and
as often shamelessly violated.
In short; Canoyas, as prime minister
during both wars, deliberately chose
the policy Of determination. He al.
lowed Martinez Campos, because Of hin
soldieFly and administrative capacity
to he ssnt to tho island At the outbreak
Of the present rebellion bnt this gallenl
man again refused to be the agent Of 81
ruthless = policy. He was recalled By
Canoyas; and Gen. Weylsr. whose
views Of humanity accorded with
those Of the prime minister, was semi
to execute tho plan. Gen. Woylef
wal vigorous IN his work, so FAR as the
Cubans allowed him to be. Is II
sirnnge, then, that Che latter make 80
desperate q r~esistence3
The Cubans are desperate, moreover.
because no population Ia any civilized
country carries such a burden Of taxa
ton, not nj twenty eth part Of which
is expended for their benefits taxa.
ton that wonld drive to revolt the
most peaceful and submissive people in
the world, Their public affairs are
administered BY strangers who despise
and plumber them they are governed
by officials who, whether civil or mil
itary are almost universally corrupt.
Even Justice Is for sale and no mans
are secure, The Cubans are
ont from public employmentB, aud
are denied q proper and Legitimate
Geld for their ambition. II they were
not today In rebellion, they would be
.despisahlo IN the eyes Of honorable
men, They have displayed a courage,
a devotion, q fortltude and q persist
8nce Of purpose that has ELECTED the
admiration Of the world; thus demon,
their ability to govern them.
selves 4 free and ~indipendant republic,
and to assume and performe all the obi.
Of 3 member Of the family Of
There ia no Spanish. Ameri-
an country so At in every respect for
Independence.
However this may be, no failure at
.glf government BY the Cubans can be
dCpiorAbly bad as the misgovern.
Of the island by Spain. They
viii be able 10 levy, collect and expend
heir own taxes with more benefit TO
hemaeIves than they derive under the
system. The three thousand
niles OF ocean between the ruler and
uled seem to engulf all n OF jus
ice, prOpFlety and humanity. The
prefer destruction to any form
Z peaceful settlement, except indie
.endehCe, Their distrust is too pro
Ound 10 allow them 10 submit to q
eturn to allegiance. The form Of
utonomy presented by sagasta and
pprovCd by the American Govern
nent has been as heartily ropudiated
y the spaniards on the island citizens
nd soldiers-as by the insurgents.
ne whole scheme WIS o failure from
he beginning. Meanwhile the policy
{ determination soes steadily forward.
tarvation is doing lts expected work,
ut too slowly for the anEuinary
volunteerS who desire a swift
means Of destruction. / have learn.
! from reliable authority that IN the
ear 1897, 900. COO died Of starvation
nd the diseases incident thereto.
very day thousands moro are perish
.g. The American people are now
king whether the loss Of life and
has not been sufficient Every
horror Is a trumpet.call 10 our +.
mpathies; every vandal act Of waste +
! appeal to our enlightened self.inter.
and the public should give an ex.
Of its wishes which the gov
nment could not disregard. Il il
fe to say that there Is not a people In
lrope that does not ~Eyspathizs with