The evening times., 1898-03-22

| been terrific. Weyler's order of recon
/ centration was preceded. accompanied
and followed by a slaughter Of paciffcos
men. women and children, as brutal.
| unprovoked and merciless as an Apache
massacre. II is estimated that POO, 00C
reconcentrados are now in need OF con-
tinued relief.
There is a semblance of relief from
the autonomist government. but it is
as yet vague and unimportant. nor is ii
plain that ii can at any time be ef-
fective since the autonomist govern
ment is lacking in revenues sufficient
to maintain the machinery of its own
operation, and it has no Immediate
prospects Of betteIment. so long as the
war continues.
"The necessity for absolute. uncondi-
tional repeal Of the order of reconcen-
tration is apparent to every one who has
made even "A cursory examination of the
situation. Gen. Blanco has merely mod
flied it in its important particulars The
excuses for its non-reDeal are entirely
inadequate. so far as the women and
children are concerned. There is abso-
lutely no apology for its existence. As
for the men. they are a harmless class.
who seem to have lacked stamina to
take machetes and fight for their lib
erty, and have in consequence been
ground between the upper and neither
miIl-stones of the insurrection.
THE autOnomist administration is be
tween two fires The Cubans will have
none of it, and the intransigeante Span
iards are working tooth and nail to de-
feat ii in the coming elections. As TO
that. however. the autOnomist govern
ment controls all the election machin-
cry. and makes no concealment of its
purpose to return a majority of the new
colonial assembly.
"All this. however. is dependent on the
failure of any external effort to settle
the whole Cuban problem Autonomy is
doomed to failure The autonomist lead
ers themselves have made overtures to
the insurgent government proposing au-
tonomy on far more radical lines. Even
these have been Contemptuously rejected.
Cuba is to be ruled from Havana, not
from Madrid. The most sanguine Span
lard who is honest and intelligent admits
that Spain can never regain her control
of the island.
''The customs receipts at Havana are
nearly doubled not because importations
have doubled. but because the receipts
are finding their way into the treasury
instead of into the pockets of the corrupt
Spanish ring.
In military and naval circles the thiev-
ing still goes on, but it is not as rampant
as under weyler. There is less to steal
1.-The Cuban problem reduces itself to
question of American policy. Internally
it is evident that no solution is possible.
The present situation might continue for
years With the reconcentrados tempor-
arily relieved the ends to be attained are:
"First-Peace.
''Second-Stable government.
''It is painfully evident that peace will
not come to Cuba until II Is imposed by
the action of the United States. This
country has suffered enormous and ir-
reparable losses from the continuation of
a conflict which has few of the attributes
barbarous struggle.
Neither international obligations nor a
of civilized warfare and all the evils of a
desire for the maintenance of peaceful
relations can justify the United States
in permitting a further continuance of
this disturbance at our doors. Peace can
not be attained except through interven-
ton. and the sooner that can be had the
sooner can stable government be estab-
lished.''