Kansas agitator. [volume] (Garnett, Kan.) 1890-1905, 1898-04-15

| for the supply Of the cities Reconcentra-
| ton, adop ed avowedly as war measure.
| in order to cut off the resources OF the In
surgents. worked its predestined result
| As said in my message of last Dece m Der,
It was uncivilized warfare, 1t was extermi.
nation. The onl' peace 1t could bcget was
that of the wilderness and the grave.
Meanwhile the military situation in the
island ha, undergone 4 notice able change.
The extraordinary activity that character
| ICED the second year of the war. when the
Insurgents invaded even the hitherto un :
harmed fields of Pinar del Rio and carried
| havoc and restitution up to the walls of the
| city of Havana itself. has relapsed Into
logged s:ruggl, in the central and eastern
provinces The Spanish arms regained
measure of control in Plnar del Rio and
parts of Havana. but, under the existing
conditions of the rural country, without
immediat. inn -ovement of their product
i've situation. Even thus partially restrict
ed, the revoutonists held their own and
their subm sslon put forward by Spain as
the essential and sole basis of peace,
| seemed as far dis.'rt 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 De-
|
the steps taken with q view of relieving its
| acutcncss and opening the way to some
| form of h norablc settlement
The war In Cuba Is OF such a nature that
| short OF subjugation or exter minatton
| final military vi tory for either side seems
| impr acticable. The alternative lies In the
physical exh lustion of the one or the other
party, or perhaps both-a condition which
| in effect ended the Ten Years war by the
| truce OF Zankon The prospect of such
protraction and conclusion of the present
| strife is contingency hardly to be contem-
plated with equanimity BY the civilized
| world. and least of all by the United states.
affected and injured as we are deeply and
| intimately by It's very existence
His ArmistIce Proposition.
Realizing this, it app, AIRED to be my duty,
In spirit of true friendlines IS, no less to
Spain than to the Cubans who have so
much to lose by the prolongation of the
| struggle. to seek to bring about an imme-
diate termination of the war. To this, I
| submitted on the 9th ultlmo. as result of
much representation and correspondence.
through the United States minister at Mad
rid, propositions to the Spanish government
looking TO an armistice until October LIST
for the negotiation of peace with the good
ofllces of the President.
In addition I asked the immediate revoca :
ton of the order of concentration So as to
permit the people to return to their farms
and the needy to be relieved with provis
Ions ar" supplies from the United States.
c cope Ing with the Spanish authorities
so as to afford full relief
The Reply OF Spain.
The reply of the Spanish cabinet was
received ON the night Of the 3lst utimo
1t refers as to the means to bring
about peace in Cuba. TO coniins
sular department, inasmuch as the
concurrer c of that body would be neces-
sary TO reach a final result, 1t being how
ever, und Sto I'd that the powers reserved
by the constitution to the central govern
ment are no, lessened or diminished AS the
Cuban parliament does not meet until the
4th of Ma next, the Spanish government
would not object, for its part, to &c cpt 1t
once a suspension of hostilities, II asked for
by the insurgents from the general In CHER,
to whom 1t would pertain, in such case, to
de ter mine the duration and condition Ut
the mistice.
The proposition submitted by General
Woodford and the reply of the Spanish gov
erumrnt were both in the form OF brief
me NOR anda. the texts of which are before
me- and are substantially in the lauguas e
above given. The function of the Cuban
parliament in the matter of preparing"
peace, and the manner of its doing SO are
not expressed in the Spanish memoranda
but from General Woodford's explanatory
reports of preliminary discussions proceed
ing the final conference, 1t is understood
that the Spanish government stands ready
TO give the insu!ar congress full powers -
settle the terms ct peace with the insur-
gents, whether by direct negotiation or in
directly by means OF legislation, does not
appear
with this last overture in the direction of
immediate peace and its disappointing re-
ception by Spain the executive WAS brought
to the end of his effort.
In my annual message of December last
] said:
of the untried measures there rem ain:
Re- ogni ion of the insurgents as belliger-
ents: rec, gnition of Independence of Cuba;
neutral intervention to end the war by I'M
posing rational compromise between the
contestants and Intervention in favor of
on. or the other party ! speak not OF
torcible annexation. tor that cannot he
thought Of That, Ivy our code of morality,
would be criminal aggression
Nothing has since occurred to change my
view in this regard, and | recognize as
fully now as then that the issuance OF
proclamation of neutrality, by which pro-
cess the So called recognition of belliger-
ence Is published, ould, of itself and un-
attended by other action, accomplish moth
ing toward the one end for which we labor,
| the instant paciiication of Cuba and the
| cessation of the misery that affiicts the
/ island.
| Turning to the question Of recognizing at
| this time the in dependence of the present
| insurgent government in Cuba, We find safe
| precedents in our history from an early
| day. They are well summed up in Presi-
| dent Jacksons message to Congress, De-
| cember 81 1886, on the subject OF the rec
| ognition of the Independence OF Texas. The
| President quotes at considerable length
from Jackson's message and then con-
| tinues:
| The United States, in addition to the test
| imposed by public law as the condition OF
| the recognition of independe nee by neu'
tai state to-wit, that the revoltcd state
| shall constitute fact body polite, hav'
ing a government in substance as we'll as In
name, possessed of the elements OF s;abil
Ity," and forming deftcto "if left to itself
| state among the nations, reasonbly capa
| bic of discharging the duties of state,
has imposed for its own goverance, in deal
ing with cases like these, the further condi'
ton that recognition of independent state
hood Is not due to a revolted dependency
until the danger of its being again subju
gated by the parent state has entirely
passed away This extreme test was in fact
applied in the case of Texas
Recognition Not Wise.
Nor from the standpoint of expedienct