Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1898-04-22
Gen. Lees Testimony.
What lie Told the Senate Foreign Re
latiOns Committee about the Maine
EHplOsiOn---the General Condition In
the IslRnd---the Hopelessness OF Peace
mnhnr SnnnIah


the Island---the HopeIessness Of Peace
under spanish Rule.
Immediately after his return from Hav-
ana Consul General Lee appeared before
the Senate foreign relations committee
and gave testimony in regard to the con-
dition of affairs in Cuba. With reference
to the responsibility for the destruction of
the Maine, Gen. Lee said
81 am satisfied the exp osion was from
the outside. | cabled the state depart
ment a few days after the board assembled
that it was almost certain that the
explosion was from the exterior.
have always had an idea about the Maine
that, of course, it was not blown up by
any private individual or by any private
citizen, but it was blown up by some of
the officers who had charge of the mines
and electrical wires and torpedos in the
arsenal there, who thoroughly understood
their business, for it was done remarkably
we'll
81 do not think Gen. Blanco, the present
captain and governor general Of the island
OF Cuba, had anything to do with il. |
do not think he had any knowledge of it. |
saw him just shortly after the occurrence.
l was sitting in my room at the hotel, and
from the balcony of the hotel | heard the
explosion and saw a great column of fire
| go up in the air. few moments after as
certaining that it was the Maine | went
| right down to the palace and asked for
Gen. Blanco. He came in directly by him
self. He had just heard of it and was cry
ing; tears were coming out of his eyes.
He seemed to regret it as much as any
body saw in Havana. | think the ex-
| plosioE came from some of the suballern
officers who had been there under Weyler.
and who Were probably anti Blanco any
how, and who had full knowledge Of the
| business
| Asked about the armistice which the
! queen had decreed ''at the request Of His
Holiness the Pope, Gen. Lee said: at is
| not worth the paper it is written on, be-
| cause truce or aImistiCe between the two
! coutending forces requires the consent Of
| both before it can be of any practical ef-
| feet, and II will not have the consent Of
! the insurgents
| OF the means Of subsistence Of the Span
ish in Cuba Gen. Lee said they were en-
tirely dependent on outside supplies
They are living there almost from hand
to mouth; the Spanards, and the citizens
in the town Of Havana also. | made some
inquiries on that point just before left.
They have good many barrels OF flour
and good deal of rice and some potatoes,
but not great many, and little lard, but
| everything that the town OF Havana has
! received in the last four OF five or six months
has been from the United States by steam
ers from New York, New Orleans and
Tampa
Senator Mills-Can they get no subsis-
tence from the island?
Gen. Lee-Nothing more than from the
floor Ondicating). The way the insurgents
do is this: They have little patches of
sweet pota.oes-everything grows there
very abundantly in a short time-and Irish
potatoes and fruits.
They drive their pigs and cattle into
the valleys and hillsides and they use those
and scatter out. That is the reason why
they all scatter out \ great many are
planting The insurgents plant crops in
many parts OF the island"
Senator Frye What is the condition OF
the Spanish soldiers in the island'
Consul General Lee-Nery bad.
Senator Frye-As to clothing and sub
sistence, how are they?
Consul General They are badly
clothed and very badly fed not well or
gained; not drilled. Nobody ever saw
Spanish soldiers drill
Senator Frye--If Spain has really APP
propriated $500, 600 for the sustenance OF
the reconcentrados, AS it is stated. do You
believe that that will be given to those
people and that their own soldiers will be
left TO starve?
Consul General Lee-Oh, no. There
will be very little of it paid TO anybody.
Senator FOTaker-What will become OF
it?
Consul General Lee-They will divide it
up here and there-a piece taken off here
and piece taken off there DO not be.
lieve they have appropriated anything OF
the kind. see those things on paper al.
ways.
Senator Frye You would have no con.
fdence in it and would not advise us tC
have any confidence in it?
Consul General Lee-Not particle.
Senator Frye-What, in you- Judgment
is the possibility of Spain conquering the
insurgents and restoring peace to the isl
and?
Consul General Lee do not think
there is the slightest possibility of theil
doing it at all in any way.
Senator Cullom-Provded they do moi
starye them al! to death.
Consul General Lee-The same condi
ton of things existed when Mr.. CLEVELAND
asked me TO go down there last June.
= year ago. gave him a report three week,
after | got there, in which | told hin
there was no chance, in my opinion, of tn,
Spaniards ever suppressing that insurrec
ton, nor was there any chance of the in
surrectionists expelling the Spanish sol
diers from the island. That report is il
the state department somewhere today
and if | had to write it over | would no
dot an 'f' or cross st, although hav,
J been there nearly two years since then.
When asked his opinion of the insur
gent government Gen. Lee said:
81 have never thought that the insur
gents had anything except the skeleton
form of governmental movable capital
l asked them one day why they did no
have some permanent capital, and thinl
E they gave very good reason. They sal,
i it would require large force to protect i
and defend it, and they could not afford t,
: mass up their men there; that the capita
y and the government officers had to NOV
where they could be safest"
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