The evening times. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1895-1902, 1898-04-12
OPINIONS OF THE PRESS
EcAinley'S Message TO Congress
Severely Criticised.
TIE EDITORS ARE DISGUSTED
Partisnnship NO Factor i'm the Wave
of Newspaper Indignation SWEEP
ing the Country-Instead of "A Call
TO Arms Nc ss N summons 10 RE
treat-Weak, FIabby, Nerveless.

New York, April 1.-THE press OF the
country is practically unanimous in criti-
cising the message Of the President on
the Spanish situation sent TO Congress
yesterday. The New York Journal says.
editorially. under the heading, America
and Cuba betrayed"
1.-The President has profoundly disap-
pointed the American people. Instead OF
a call TO arms his message is a summons
TO retreat IL is weak, fiabby and nerve
less But its weakness is its least OBJ
nOxious feature. For that the people
have been prepared by long course of
helpless vacillation. The really shocking
thing in the message is its scarcely yelled
intimation that our Intervention in Cuba,
when il comes. may be in behalf Of the
Spaniards, for the suppression Of Cuban
liberty. That is so incredible that il finds
the most uncharitable OF McKinley's i'll
wishers unprepared.
THE policy the President favors is that
of intervening as an impartial neutral
by imposing a rational compromise be
tween the contestants A compromise
manifestly implies concessions on both
sides. III the Cubans concede anything
they must accept some measure of Span
ish sovereignty. But il has been known
terms that left her flag still flying in-I
Cuba, while the Cubans have infleNibly
refused to consider any proposition Of the
Kind. Therefore. the Spanish acceptance
of the proposed compromise is a foreEone
conclusion. and the Cuban rejection of il
equally certain. That leaves the Cubans
the only obstacles 10 the Presidential
pacihcation, and arrays the United
States and Spain as allies in the noble
work Of crushing the patriots who have
won their independence by three years of
martyrdom.
1T is evident from the Presidents ac-
count of his dealings with Spain that he !
has muddied the entire negotiation and /
left us in a false position, from which 1
Congress will find great difficulty in extri- 4
eating us with credit 1t appears that 4
throughout the long, weary weeks when 4
the impatient American people supposed /
that Mr. Mckinley was pressing Spain /
TO withdraw from Cuba, he never men
toned the subject of independence at all.
The result is that if Congress should de-
clare war tomorrow we should be put in
the position of fighting Spain TO secure
something she had never been asked 10
grant.
ION the question Of the Maine the Pres
ident is as disappointing as on that Of
Cuba. He accepts the report of the Court
of Inquiry: he admits that our battleship
dered by a Spanish mine. and then. af-
ter recoUnting Spains proposition 10 sub
init the matter to an international tri-
bunal he calmly remarks: To this /
have made no reply
Was it because he had no reply 10 |
make? Did the tragedy in the harbOr Of |
Havana stir one thrill Of generous indig- 4
nation i'm the sluggish fluid that creeps |
through the Presidential veins?
Mr.. MckinleN's predecessor in the Waite 1
House was almost everything that a 4
President ought not to be. Yet, stolid ]
and brutal as Grover Cleveland was 4
there were moments when he could rise !
above the sordid influences Of his sur 4
roundings and strike a note OF genuine 4
national feeling
The World SAYS:
"The Presidents message is strong in its 4
rhetoric, but lamentably weak i'm its con-
illusions.
I'VE do not question the purity Of his |
intentions. but it il hard to solve the I
mystery of his action.
Mr.. Mckinley hercically says: The ]
war in Cuba must stop" Spanish diplo- 4
macy. twiddling its fingers on its nose. /
can reply. THE war in Cuba is already
stopped; we have proclaimed a cessation .
Of hostilities' OF course if the wicked .
Gomez shall attack the soldiers Of d ma
tion that has ceased hostilities" he ana .
not Spain will be to blame!
with singular ohtusenossorperversity
the President fails 10 thrust TO the front
of the controversy the two things that
stir the hearts of the people and Justify
Intervention by our Government. These
are:
THE treacherous destruction Of the
Maine, and
Freedom of Cuba.
1.-The people OF the United States SYM
pathze with the heroic struggle of the
Cubans for freedom and independence 4
and are determined to help them
Americans without regard to party de-
mand prompt and ample atonement for |
the destruction of the Maine and the as
sassination OF her PC seamen. As Spain
will not punish her miscreants they are
resolved to punish Spain.
These are the two grounds for interven- |
tion that have moved the people to de-
mand action by Congress. President Nc
kinley has ignored the first reason and
minimized the second. II is this that rem
ders his message lame and impotent"
The Sun, after briefly referring to the 1
Presidents message by saying 'ft is I'M
necessary here TO express an estimate"
continues:
'Wearied by the protracted labors in
diplomatic negotiation and disappointed
at their failure, the President resigns the
leadership and announces his readiness
10 perform WHAT ever uulleS may De inn |
posed upon him. Ii is for Congress to
move. And the goal, in plain sight, and
neither periodically nor wisely avoid
able is war"
In another editorial under the caption
THE Hour" the Sun denounces the peace
party's influence over the President which
IS regarded as having been unfortunately |
too powerful The editorial concludes:
THE Cuban situation, however, is so
revolving, the relation between the Unit
ed States and Spain so uncomfortable, and
the state Of international politics aris-
ing out Of it, as that has been illustrat-
ed by the action of the foreign powers. is
so unwhoesome and so ominous that the |
only thing that can adequately clear the
air. indeed, the very wisdom and the ne
cessity of the occasion. is shot from an
American gun aimed at Moro Castle.
"The United States warships should be |
AT Havana before the daylight of tomor-
row. When the moment for action ar
rives the commander who will not lead is
like the man i'm the ranks who will not
follow"
FOREIGN PRESS OPINION