The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1898-02-16
The Mask Raised.

the Spanish minister, De LONE, which
has ended his diplomatic career at
Washington. The willy Spaniard made
haste to cable his resignation to his
government, when his too great candor
was made public, and Sagasta with
equal dispatch accepted, thus heading
off Minister Woodford's demand for
the minister's recall. So Spain con-
siders that the incident is closed, DEEM
ing that she can take no further notice
of her epresentative's misconduct.
AS usual in all the diplomatic scor-
ing between the two governments over
the Cuban question, Spain in this cpl
sode has the pole. When society be-
gins by trying to placate rascal, in
stead of resolutely bringing him into
subsection to the law, the rascal has the
control and society is the creature
of his wiles. Spain is rascal, and
this government has made the mistake
of treating the rascal as If he were
reputable being. The governments
extreme solicitude to avoid giving the
Spaniard offense, its temporizing with
his atrocious offenses against humanity
and his disregard of the rights of per-
son and property of American citizens,
lest his wrath be provoked, has had the
effect to create the very danger of war
this government has been anxious to
avoid.
The government at Washington, has
been the constant toy of Spanish du
picity. There is nothing in the De
LONE letter that any person of ordinary
discernment has not been observing
right along in the outcroppings of
SPANS policy in her dealings with the
United States. De LONE, under the
cover of private correspondence, simply
raised his mask. Sagasta's scheme of
autonomy, like that of Carnovas before
him, has been aptly described as the
gold brick of the confidence man, and
all the world understood the fraud.
When "the prologue of this second
method of warfare" had ended in the
appointment of the colonial cabinet, as
De LONE admits, and Spain fancied
that she had found in this trick of
autonomy "relief in the eyes of this
country for what may happen" in Cuba,
then it was deemed "most important"
that she should ''agitate the question of
commercial relations, even though it
would be only for effect" The minis
ter further recommended that Spain
SHOULD send here some man of import
ance " to assist him in the work of pull
ing the wool over the eyes of Uncle
Sam. And the astute diplomats were
engaged in these agitations for effect
when the Spanish minister was "hoist
by his own petard."
If the Washington government in
tends to intervene at all it should do so
should have interviewed long ago
while there is hope for the resurrection
of the island. The hundreds of thou
sands of lives lost, the awful cruelties
perpetrated, the millions of property
destroyed, constitute an appalling sac
rifce. This governments RESPONSE
bility for the further prolongation of
the period of blood and barbarism at
its own threshold should end now by
prompt and resolute Intervention, or it
should proclaim to the world that it
will not interfere, and, wrapped in the
mantle of its own selfishness and com.
mercialism, unmindful of the helping
hand once extended byFrance across the
ocean, forgetful of the divine teaching,
will have for Cuba only the considera-
tion the priest and the Levite bestowed |
upon the man who fell among thieves.
Such course might merit respect for
It's candor, if not for its humanity.