Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1898-04-14

tratlCn, inaugurated by the captain
generals bando of Oct. 81, 1896, in the
province of Pinar del Rio, was thence
extended to embrace all OF the island
to which the power of the Spanish
arms was able to reach by occupation
or by military operations. The peas
antry, including all dwelling in the
open agricultural interior. were driven
into the garrison towns or isolated
places held by the troops The raising
and movement of provisions Of all
kinds were interdicted. The fields
were laid waste, dwellings unroofed
and fired, mills destroyed and in short.
everything that could desolate the land
and render it unfit for human habita-
ton or support was commended by
one or the other of the contending par
ties and executed by all the powers at
their disposal BY the time the pres
ent administration took Office year
ago, recommendation, so-called, had
been made effective over the better
part of the four central and western
Nldld, -ftdldhLdo,
Havana and Pinar del Rio. The agri-
cultural population, to the estimated
number of 10000 or more, was herded
within the towns and their immediate
vicinity deprived Of their means OF
support, rendered destitute of shelter.
left poorly clad and exposed to the
most unsanitary conditions. AS the
scarcity of food increased with the
devastation of the depopulated areas
Of production restitution and want
became misery and starvation. Month
by month the death rate increased in
an alarming ratio, by March, 1897 ac-
cording to conservative estimates from
official Spanish sources, the mortality
walton and the diseases thereto Incl
dent, exceeded so per cent OF their
total number AS I said in my mes
sage last December. it was not civil
lied warfare; it was determination.
The only peace it could beget was that
Of the wilderness and the grave.
Meanwhile the military situation
in the island had undergone a notice
able change The extraordinary &C
tivity that characterized the second
year of the war, when the insurgents
invaded even the hitherto unframed
fields of Pinar del Rio and carried
havoc and restitution up to the walls
Of the city of Havana itself had re-
lapsed into a logged struggle in the
central and eastern provinces. The
Spanish arms regained a measure OF
control in Pinar del Rio and parts of
Havana, but, under the existing con-
tons of the rural country, without i'm
mediate Improvement of their produc-
tive situation. Even thus partially
restricted the revolutionists had their
own way and their submission, put
forward by Spain as the essential and
sole basis of peace, seemed as far dis
tant as at the outset In this state of
affairs, my administration found itself
confronted with the grave problem of
its duty. My message of last Deem
Der reviewed the situation and de-
tailed the steps taken with view of
relieving its acuteness and opening
the way to some form of honorable
settlement. The assassination of the
prime minister, Canovas, led to
change of government in Spain. The
former administration, pledged to sub
jugation without concession gave
place to that of more liberal party.
committed long in advance to a policy
of reform involving the wider principle
of home rule for Cuba and Puerto Rico
The overtures of this government,
made through it's new envoy, Gen
Woodford, and looking to an immedi-
ate and effective amelioration of the
condition Of the island, although not
accepted to the extent of admitted me-
diation in any shape were met by as
surances that home rule, in an ad-
vanced phase, would be forthwith
offered to Cuba, without waiting for
the war to end, and that more humane
methods should thenceforth prevail in
the conduct of hostilities.
While these negotiations were in
progress, the increasing restitution of
the unfortunate reconcentrados and
the alarming mortality among them
claimed attention. The success which
had attended the limited measure of
relief extended to the suffering Ameri-
can citizens among them by the judi
cious expenditure through the consular
agencies of the money appropriated
expressly for their succor by the joint
resolution approved May "a, 1897,
prompted the humane extension of a
similar scheme to the great body OF
sufferers. The propositions submitted
by Gen. Woodford and the reply of the
Spanish government were both in tho
form of brief memoranda, the texts Of
which are before me, and are substan-
TALLY in the language given. The
function of the Cuban parliament in
in the matter of preparing peace and
the manner OF its doing so are not ex-
pressed in the Spanish memorandum:
but from Gen. Woodford's explanatory
reports Of preliminary discussions pre-
ceding the final conference IL is under