The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1898-04-28
THE WAR WITH SPAIN.

to recall any war of recent decade
which has been SO formally placed upor
the boards as this one has been. Not /;
detail of the solemn parade has beer
omitted.
All that has been lacking so far is q
little genuine fighting to make it real
war. Whether there will be any Of this
is not at all certain. Spain is in a queer
dilemma. She is gathering, or pretends
TO be gathering, mighty fleet at the
Cape De Verde. This at first looked
quite threatening, but on cooler exami-
nation it lost lis alarming character
When all is said and done, and Spain
given credit for the entire apparent
strength of every ship that she can
gather there, it is seen to be far from a
match to the feet which we have sent to
Habana. Il is very doubtful if it could
make much of a stand against even
the smaller FLYING Squadron, which we
have at Fort Monroe. Competent
judges have every confidence in the
result if the Spaniards should leave
Cape Verde and start for Cuba, and
find the Flying Squadron across their
path off Porto Rico. They would arrive
there short Of coal, and more or less
shaken up by their voyage across the
| Atlantic, and so be in very poor shape
to encounter five such perfectly appoint
ed and equipped ships as compose the
Flying Squadron, which has only had
run enough to get them into good sea
trim. If the Spaniards are not able to
whip the Flying Squadron, they are
much less able TO whip Admiral Samp-
sons feet. Yet unless they whip both
of these they will be unable to raise the
blockade of Habana Gen. Blanco
must surrender at discretion within
very few DAYS. If Gen. Blanco is
starved out, as he must be, unless he
can get an enormous amount of pro-
visions at once, the game is up
Last Sunday the Queen Regent sum-
moned q Admirals for consultation
upon the situation. She needed all of
them, and u times 81, for the emer-
gency. The problem before them was
this:
l. Unless they can drive off the
American feet at once Blanco must be
quickly starved into surrendering.
2. If they attempt to drive the fleet
of, they will inevitably lose their own
feet, and the Spanish navy be wiped
out Of existence more efectually than
it was at Trafalgar, SO years ago.
1t is not known what advice the 81 |
Adnirals gave the Queen Regent. If
they had lucid interval they told her
to make the best of a bad Job, by
keeping the feet at safety in a neutral !
port, leaving Blanco to bis fate. This
being cold common sense it is probably
not what Spanish Admirals told
Spanish Queen. Yet even Spanish
ADMIRAL is not necessarily a blatant
fool, and must know that to venture to
battle with an American feet means
certain destruction, with no hope of
benefit. So far the game has all gone
our way. Our feet has not fired a shot
at Habana, because there was no neces-
sity for it, There is no use of wasting
costly ammunition on prey that, like
Capt. Scots coon, will come down
without shooting.
The only real hope that the Spaniards
can have is to make sneak on us some
where where We are unprepared, and
infict singing damage. Our long
seaboard, with its numerous harbors and
seaports, forms the basis Of this hope.
If they could have an hour or two's
bombardment Of New York or Boston.
or even Of Charleston, Mobile, or Gal
weston, they could surrender with better
grace. But it is wholly unlikely that
they will have this satisfaction. It
could only be done now by a swift
cruiser, making long secret, run from
some unsuspected point. But we know
where every one of her cruisers is, and
the extent of her striking range. We
have swift vessels disposed so as to inter
ccpt any such an attempt. Our ports