The copper country evening news. [volume] (Calumet, Mich.) 18??-1907, 1898-04-21
|GYH OF CONFLICT.
renee OF Opinion Upon This
Vital Subject.
PRESIDENT NOT OPTIMISTIC.

he Coast Cities Fear Spain Contem-
rs War Upon American Commerce.
the High Seas SPANS Navy Badly
tered-Interview with a Prominen,
al Officer--Naval Attack ON MORO
lie Would BADLY Cripple our Fleet.
shington. April 21.-Opinions as to
duration OF the impending war be-
the United States and Spain diff
videly. The preponderance OF the
nent is that actual hostilities will
last longer than three months, al
rh the warlike situation may con-
for six months or year. Sena-
and representatives have spoken
J affair lightly and with one accord
it ought. to be over in a month.
{president takes no such optimistic
and his military and naval advis-
mink the. war is likely to last from
TO six months. The naval au-
|ties do not look for disastrous re-
What puzzles the men who are
kting the army and naval move
of this country is the apparent
of effort on the part of Spain. Her
is badly scattered and far from
held of possible conflict.
War on American Commerce.
here is no thought among the army
navy strategists in America OF
hing on a warfare on the east coast
e Atlantic. 1t has never been con-
blated that our navy could go far
Ind the vicinity of Cuban waters
bot for the purposes of intercepting
1 destroying an approaching fleet.
ke is a lurking suspicion that is Civ
<much uneasiness to the people OF
Ion, New York. Baltimore, Charles
land Savannah that the Spaniards
emplate war upon American COM
he on the high seas and upon the
kipal big coast cities. Some alarm
|etters have been received from city
ais and leading business men in
cities since the war talk got grave.
4 chief of engineers and the coast
|fcations officials say the coast cit
Are all amply protected by mines,
Rdoes and other submarine defenses
hoy the harbor forts augmented by
monitors which have been refitted
|put in position.
Would Cripple Our Ships.
Ehope," said a prominent naval off,
4 who has given much thought to
<subject. that the plan of opera
/ decided upon by the department
hot include an attack by our fleet
Lorro castle and the forts at Ca
Us as the first stroke of the cam
b. If we do this many of our ships
sure to be crippled and sent home
REPAIRS. Our docking facilities on
South Atlantic coast are so lin
THAT the vessels would either have
+ sent far north to be repaired or
await their time for docking in the
sh. The Spaniards are taking the
and are displaying much military
scity in the movement of their ships.
y are concentrating them in their
p ports and If our fleets are dis
d by attempting to reduce the for
btlons at Havana they will steam
here and infiict irreparable dam
bon them.
Starve Out the Spauiartls.
seems to me the proper thing for
D do would be to land a large force
pen in Cuba, surround the fortifi-
pns and starve out the Spaniards,
5hwhile keeping up blockade of the
Dor and the coast by our fleet Of
3. | think. with an army of 10000
supplemented by the insurgents
bgth on the island, we would be
to do this. You will remember that
hg our late war our fleets suffered
6derably in the attack on the forts
harleston harbor, whereas when the
|ers. holding them ascertained that
imam was coming with an army
the inland they began to evacuate
p he was 100 miles away. These
{ers have been brought to the at
on of the strategic board which is
| formulating plan Of campaign"