Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1898-04-15

W'KtNtrY AS OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES
Spain. extending over croJ oi nearly
haii 20 century. each otuuch. during IT'S
progress. has subjected tao United ~utc,to
great effort and expense m enforcing its
neutrality laws, caused cnormlu, losses To-
American trade and commerce. caused ir-
rtation, annoyance and disturbance among
our citizens, and 10y the exercise of cruel.
bWbarouS and mciyiizcd practices of war
fare shocked the seushilties and offended
the humane sympahics of our people.
Since the present revolution began in Feb
ruary, 1898, this country has seen the fer
tile domain at our threshold ravaged by
fire and sword in the course of struggle
unequalled in the history of the island. and
rarely paralleled as to the number of COM
batants and the bitterness of the contest by
revolution of modern times where a de-
pendent people, striving to be free.
have been opposed by the power of the
! sovereign State. Our people have beheld
once prosperous community reduced to
comparative want, It's lucrative commerce
virtually paralyzed, its exceptional pro-
ductiyeness diminished, its fields laid waste,
its mills in ruins, and its people perishing
by tens of thousands from hunger and desti-
tuition
AS | said in my message of last De-
cember, it was not civilized warfare.
it was extermination The only peace
it could beget was that of the wilder
ness and the grave. Meanwhile, the
military situation in the island had UNI
dergone noticeable change The ex-
traordinary activity that characterized
the second year of war, when the in
surgents invaded even the hitherto un-
harmed fields of Pinar del Rio. and
carried havoc and destruction ND 10
the walls of me city of Havana itself,
had relapsed into logged struggle in
the central and eastern provinces. The
Spanish arms regained a measure Of
control in Pinar del Rio and parts Of
Havana, but under the existing condi-
tion Of the rural country without i'm
mediate Improvement of their produc-
/ tive situation. Even thus partially re-
stricted, the reyOlutiOnists held their
| own and their cJnQues, and submits
sion put forward by Spain as the as
sential and sole basis OF peace seemed
as far distant as at the outset. The
prospect of such protraction and con-
! ciusion of the present strife is a con-
| tineency hardly to be contemplated
with equanimity by the civilized world.
and least of all by the United States
affected and concerned as we are. deep
/ ly and intimately, by ms very existence.
| Realizing this it appeared to be my
| duty in spirit of true friendliness. no
/ less to Spain than to the Cubans, who
| have so much TO lose by The prolonga-
ton of the s ruggle to seek to bring
about an immediate termination of the
! war. AS a result of much representa-
ton and correspondence to this end /
submitted on the 27th ultimo, through
! the United States Minister at Madrid
| propositions to the Spanish govern
ment looking to an armistice until Oct.
| /, for the negotiation of peace with the
good offices of the President In addi-
ton 1 asked the immediate revocation
of the order of recommendation so as to
permit the people to return to their
farms and the needy to be relieved
with provisions and supplies the
United States, cooperating with the
Spanish authorities so as to afford full
relief. The reply of the Spanish Cab
met was received on the night of the
31st ultimO 1t offers, as the means to
bring about peace in Cuba to conflde
the preparation thereof to the insular
parliament, inasmuch as the concur
renee of that body would be necessary
to reach a final result. it being how
ever, understood that the powers re-
served by the Constitution to the CEN
trail government are not lessened or
diminished.
These elements of danger and disorder
already pointed out have been strikngly