El Paso daily herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1881-1901, 1898-03-23

WASHINGTON. March 23.-The SEN
ate at noon passed the house bill for
the relief of the officers and crew of
the Maine.
Senator Gallinger, of New Hemp
shire, addressed the senate
this sftarr oon on the condition of af-
fairs in Cuba, having recently returned
from a visit to the island. 1t was q
stirring speech and attracted a large
audience to the galleries, notice being
given yesterday it would be deliver ed.
Mr. Gallinger was more outspoken
in condemnation of Spanish methods
than Senator Proctor was last week,
and his recital of the starvation ard
desolation of the Cubsns was appsll-
ing.
After telling of his call upon General
Blanco aud paying the highest COM
pliments to Consul General Lee, the
senator declared that General Weyler,
because of his cruelties, was driven
from Cuba by force of American public
opinion.
The Cuban war was preculiar one,
not the XII d he became a. a'quainted
with at Shiloh, Wick burg, Chancellor
vile and Gettysburg, and which Grn-
eral Sherman summed up in three
laconc words: ''War is he l." 1t was
not the kind of war Generals Grant,L Lee
| Sherman and Ja:kson participated 10.
1t was war OF starvation and exter-
mination: war more cruel than any
the orld had ever known; was even
worse than that of the Kurds against
the Armenians.
| These horrible conditions existed
right in Havana, under the shadow of
the churches and cathedrals where
Spain's authority is absolutely unques-
toned 1t was war of ext rmination
instead of oEe Of bon0r.
Among the Spanish soldiers dis
cipline wAs slack: they have been un-
paid for six months and are made
quately fed. Except for la TX of arms
the insurgents who held most Of the
island were their superiors.
A touching tribute was to paid Miss
Clara Barton. She informed him that
even in Havana the famine was some
thing awful and that in Cuba at large
it was worse than anything she had
ever witnessed either in Armenia or
Iudia
At Los FOcusin, in one old building,
he found lying on the floor 645 people,
many entirely nude and all suffering
the papes Of starvation.
At Matanz.s the full extent Of the
suffering was realized. The railroad
station was crowded with poor helpless
creatures driven from their homes
only to beg for death. The appeals of
the naked children were simply heart
rending. General Weyler had here
devised a scheme of human suffering
and sorrow that put "Dantes Inferno"
in the shade and he has succeeded in
converting a contented aud prosperous
people irto herd of starving unfor-
tunates. No opportunity is given
them to work Every means of sup
portir @ life is taken from them by the
edict of this merciles tryant. A day
in Matsnzas was one never to be for
gotten. Once a beautiful aud pros
porous city, it is now literally a place
of beggary and death.
In San Cristobal, one coach used as
: hearse had carried to the cemetery 500
. dead in six days, while many uncoffi led
dead were disposed of in other ways.
In Santa Cruz del Norte, every dog
and cat has been eaten by the starving
reconcentradOs.
The number of people who have
: starved in Cuba will never he definite.
: ly known, although it was reported
that 200, coo of the 100000 who bave
been drive from their homes into the
cities have already perished, but the
Red Cross society is in possession OF
: facts showing that nearly half a million
Cubans have died of starvation and
that 200, 900 more must inevta bly, die
Mr.. Gallinger next remarked he had
been asked many times: "What of the
Maine?" He did not know; but there