Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1898-04-08
WASHINGTON LETTER,
From our regular Correspondent


WASHINGTON, April 4,-The Presi.
dent now recognizes the inevitable,
that war with Spain is only a ques'
ton of days. He went as far as his
own views or the overwhelming
sentiment of the country would per-
NIT when he gave Spain an opportnni-
ty to escape war by recognizing the
independence of Cuba, This OPP
portunity the Government Of Spain
chose to decline. The diplomatic
correspondence with Spain, about to
be laid before Congress, reflects credit
upon the President, as an official, as
q patriot, and shows that he has not
at any time deviated from the policy
adopted in the beginning and out
lined in his annual message TO Con-
gress last Observation-Disclosures,
if Spain did not bring about peace IN
Cuba.
Although there are still few
in Washington who are advocating a
continuance Of diplomatic efforts to
avoid war, and more outside who are
trying to influence Senators and
Representatives by wire to do moth
inc, there isn't the shadow ola doubt
that Congress, the sentiment of which
is practically unanimous, will this
week, almost certainly within the
next three days, take action that
will make war certain. The admins
tration is arranging everything with
that expectation, in order to be able
to start the fighting with vigor.
Everything around the Government
departments is already on a war
footing; no information as to the
of troops or the con-
tempated movement of ships is now
given out, and beginning with yes
terday no outsiders are allowed to
visit the Washington Navy Yard
without a pass. All of our ships have
been under emergency orders.
Congress is thoroughly in the
fighting humor, and, in addition to
adopting the legislation that will
make war unavoidable, it will this
week pass the legislation that will
furnish the Government with the
money that will be needed to carry
on the war. The probabilities are
that the money will be raised by
special taxes, instead of by an issue
of bonds. There is a very decided
prejudice against an issue of bonds,
if it can be avoided.
The Spaniards do not live up to
the maxim that lie well stuck to |
can often be made to pass for the
truth. They lied glibly enough in
their report declaring the Maine to
have been blown up from the inside,
but they so far neglected to stick to
the lie that they have actually been
trying to make it appear that the
Maine was blown up by Cubans, thus
admitting the fllsity of their own
official report. The Spanish minister
made public the affidavit of New
York inventor Of explosives, in which
he says he was called On by num-
Der of members of the Cuban Junta
who were greatly interested in the
powerful explosives he had invented,
and endeavored without saying so in
so many words to leave the impress
ION that the Cuban Junta had the
Maine blown up. The official refer
ence to the Maine in SPANS long
communication to this Government
was unsatisfactory, not to say posi-
lively insulting. The President in
his message to Congress last week
said that he trusted to Spain's honor
md sense of justice-undiscovered
Iualities-for a proper response to
he Maine court of inquiry. He
.rusted in vain. Spain referred TO
he loss of the Maine as an "occur-
-ence," and suggested that it could
,e submitted to arbitration, and ex-
PRESSED neither regret nor special in
crest in the matter, thereby display
no a lack Of wisdom and adding to
he anti-Spanish feeling in Congress,
A 1. .