The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1898-02-14
THAT De LONE LETTER
Was Secured in Cuba From the
Havana Postoffce.
IT WAS A DEEP LAID PLOT
The Letter Was First Seen by Cuban
Spy in De Lome's Of1ce-Plans
Were Perfected to Purloin
1t at Havana.

Philadelphia, Feb. 13.-The Press will
print tomorrow what it asserts to be
the true version of the acquisition and
publication of the letter of Minister De
LONE to Senior Canalejas. The author
lty cited for it's authenticity is "a
Cuban standing high in the councils of
the party who received his information
from headquarters in New York
The story proceeds to say The let
ter was not stolen from the United
States mails, but was secured by an
agent of the Cuban junta in the post
office at Havana. Don Jose Canalejas,
to whom the letter was addressed,
never saw the original. He did not
know until eight days after the letter
reached Havana that such a letter from
Spain's representative at Washington
had been written him.
DE LONE wrote the letter in his pri-
Vate residence in Washington instead
of at the Spanish legation. The paper.
however, was marked with the official
type. and read in the corner Legacion
de Spana The same inscription was
upon the left hand upper corner of the
envelope. Senior De LONE did not mail
the letter from his house; in fact, he
had not quite completed it upon the
morning Ii was written and carried 1t
to the legation where it was first seen
employ of the embassy acting in a sub
official capacity. The letter lay upon
the desk of the minister in his inner
office, the outer office being his place of
reception to visitors. During an alb
sence of half an hour from the inner
offices of De LONE, the clerk-in question
saw the open letter and read some OF it.
The next day this same person sent
word to his Cuban associates in Wash
ington to the effect that he had seen
letter from De Lone to Canalejas in
which President Mckinley was villified
and autonomy called a scheme. Sew
eral of the Cuban patriots got together
and asked the empoye of the embassy
to secure the letter. They did not be-
lieve implicitly in his story, although
he urged them to come into the public
prints and make charges against De
LONE. Because they did not have the
letter in their possession the leaders re-
fused to say anything about it, The
employe of the legation was urged to
use all means in his power to secure the
letter although it was considered prob
able that the letter was already in the
mails when the Cubans at the Hotel
Raleigh We're informed of its existence.
The clerk in the employ of Minister
De LONE saw no more of the letter.
His memory written abstracts were
forwarded to New York, and it was
quickly agreed that could possession of
ments proven true, the letter would be
of ncaculable value to the Cuban
cause as substantiating what Cuban
leaders had maintained regarding au-
tonomy and the general Spanish policy,
in official circles, toward this country
and its officers. Immediately words of
warning and urgings to be on the alert
were sent to every Cuban who might
be in position to obtain track or in
tercept the much sought for missive.
The letter reached Havana five days
after its postmark in Washington. An
agent of the Cuban party, who is an
employe of the Spanish postoffice, knew
that the letter was on the way and
when it came into his hands it was car
ried from the postoffice and a copy was
made of it,
Word to this effect was sent to the
Cuban leader at Jacksonville, Fla, who
at once asked the secret Cuban junta
in Havana to secure the original let
ter, that copy was not what was de-
sired. The Havana postoffice clerk was
not willing to do this at first, but after
wards consented, as he was obliged to
account for it to the other employees of
the department. The original was then
taken, several blank sheets We're sub
stituted in place of the paper upon
which De LONE had written, and the
letter finally postmarked in the Hava-
ma office and sent on its routine way.
Eight udyS ITOI1 It's arrival IN Inc Hd-
yana office the sealed envelope, properly
addressed to Senior Canalejas, was de-
livered at the hotel Inglaterra. Senor
Canalejas did not regard the matter
seriously at the time. although the no.
tel boy who brought him the letter and
the postoffice employe who had last
charge of it were arrested. So also was
the hotel employe who went several
times daily to the postoffice for the
mails. All three We're discharged after
examination.
Senior Canalejas communicated al
most Immediately with Minister De
LONE and for several weeks letters and
cablegrams passed between the two, but
no trace of the letter could be found.
Canalejas shortly afterward left Hava-
ma. going to Madrid.
1T is not explained why the letter
was kept by the Cubans for several
weeks before it was given out for pub
lication. An informant. other than the
person who gave the foregoing, but in
side the Cuban official circles. declares
that the delay was at first occasioned
by desire on the part of the junta TO
be assured absolutely that the writing
was that of the Spanish minister, so
that he might not have any chance to
deny its authorship and cause a reac-
ton. which undoubtedly would have
been the result of the propagation of a
fake"