Gulf Coast breeze. [volume] (Crawfordville, Fla.) 1897-19??, 1898-03-18
BAD FEELING IN HAVANA.
ATTITUDE OF NATIVES TOWARD
AMERICANS Is STRAINED.
THREATENED TROUBLE MAY OCCUR
Proctor's Visit Looked Upon with Disfa-
vor By spaniards. who Believe Court
Has AdJudged Them Guilty.

According to Fridays dispatches q
decidedly pronounced anti-American
feeling haa been openly displayed at
Havana and grows more pronounced
as the time goes by.
The new outbreak is attributable to
several events of recent date, the
most emphatic of which is a. general
belief that the Maine court Of inquiry
has forwarded to the American gov
eminent forecast of its verdict
and that that verdict charges the de-
struction Of the battleship to treachery.
Just how this idea first took shape
it seems impossible to say, but that it
has become fully developed there can
be no doubt in the minds of those who
hear discu ssons in clubs and hotels.
In some way Senator Proctor's de
parture had something to do with this
theory. Deny it as he would the i'm
preston prevails in Havana that the
Vermont senator went to Cuba as tho
special and personal representative Of
President Mckinley.
Not Pleased with Proctor.
Accepting that as correct the average
Spaniard declares that the sending of
Proctor into Cuba to acquire any in
formation is areflection upon the hon
esty and veracity Of Spanish officials
who make reports. 1t is not believed
either that special emissary would
come unless he came to seek informa-
tion calculated to injure Spain and it
is asserted that his report must neces-
sarily be decidedly partisan.
No one in the city can be convinced
that Senator Proctor did not carry
back with him the result of the court
Of inquiry and that result is univer-
sally believed to be of such nature as
will break all relationship between the
two countries.
Court Of Inquiry Finishes.
II is known that the court OF in
quiry is doing no more work. 1t is
realized by those conversant with the
situation that the board is only wait
ing for orders to return to Washington
to make its report. The absence Of
both stenographers and the presence
of no shorthand writer is taken as
significant.
Both stenographers have been away
some days and one of them has been
in Washington. There, it is believed
in Havana, he has read his marks and
that the departments have made n
verdict in advance of the court Of in
Quiry's finding
The i'll feeling manifested itself twice
Friday. The call of member of the
autOnomist cabinet on tho Montgom-
cry off GERS was witnessed by great
throng. When the salutes were fired
the temper of the crowd was shown in
the uncomplimentary remarks made
about the American cruiser and her
officers.
Then again the American yacht
Anita, which brought congressional
party, has been fined $500 for, it is
alleged, not having her papers In
proper order. The fine was paid un-
der protest and the charge declared
without grounds,
Spanish Admiral Interviewed.
Captain Peral, president of the
Spanish naval court of inquiry into the
cause OF the Maine disaster, granted
an interview to the correspondent of
the Associated Press, whom he author
lied to say it was the first and only
interview he had ever given any news
paper on the subject of the inquiry.
Captain Peral, among other things,
said:
"Our divers are hard at work exam
lining the hull Of the Maine.
1--WE think we have located the ram
or prov, but not in the position sup
posed. The forward turret, mounting
two large guns, was blown clear OF
the hull into the water on the star
board. We shall continue our work
and try to examine the hull forward
down to the keel. 1t is possible that
we may propose to the American au-
thoritied to raise the hull by means of
the floating dock brought from Eng
land and now in Havana harbor.
1--WE cannot believe there was an ex-
ternal explosion Of torpedo"