The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1898-05-14

if the facts ever got to the palace. The
writer landed in Havana some months
ago with a bundle of kilograms in his
pocket that ought to have put him in
| Cabanas. They were addressed TO an
other correspondent who was too much
under the ban to receive mail or tele-
grams in his own name at Havana. The
| carrying Of the bundle Of messages from
Key West was merely a friendly job that
half dozen other correspondents had
! often done before. To have concealed the
papers on ones's person would have been
a confession of conscious guilt in case OF
/ discovery; 50 the bearer simply folded the
mess ages Iengthwise and stuffed them
/ into the big state department envelope
! that held MS passports. The officials who
received the passports saw the messages,
but never questioned their contents.
! That incident was mild, however, com
! pared with the exploit of another and
more venturesome and radical correspon-
/ dent who, being in full sympathy with the
/ Havana Junta, undertook to convey them
about thirty pounds OF dynamite at time
when they needed it badly. and when the
lines on f!bustering were drawn IN
usually close.
He simply packed this explosive in two
big wooden candy boxes and put in layer
Of big chocolate creams over oiled paper
on top. The special agent at the gang
way Of the steamer knew him. and when
he started down the ladder TO the shore
boat said to him jokingly: Whats that
you've got-dynamite?"
you guessed it," said the unabashed
scribe, pulling back the lid, take some up
to Blanco."
The astute special agent took generous
handful Of the chocolate, and the dyna-
mite went ashore
Letters from the woods" as the in
surgent lines are vaguely termed in Ha-
vana, were almost as dangerous as dyna-
mite, but they were passed through the
lines quite as often. One OF the several
newspaper men who went into the field
returned during Weyler's regime with
enough letters to have hung him, several
being official documents for the Jurta In
New York. There were three Spanish ON
Gals on the train that brought him into
Havana from Sagua La Grande. and he
had reason 70 think they had marked him
and were going TO arrest him al the depot
in Havana. Just before the train stopped
ne called his Cuban servant, and taking a |
bundle of the sOiled shirts from his grip, /
tossed them to him with the remark: /
Take these up to Blank" meaning a /
laundry with a very pro-SpaIish proprie- /
tor. The man got off with the bundle, !
which had the insurgent letters safe in |
!,
correspondent and his baggage were rig /
idly searched, but there was nothing |
found on him but a couple of very pro- /
Spanish letters written him by Cuban !
friends for just such an emergency.
Another of the correspondents who IS |
in close touch with the Cubans and has
done more for them than any other news
paper man in Key West tells with smile |
how he helped a Spanish captain capture |
a Spanish standard which exploit made /
the captain a major forthwith, and |
landed him on Weyler's staff at the
palace.
The standard was made to order by the
Cuban Junta in Havana and the CORES
pendent and the captain took it out with
them one night with a small detachment
VI oAdIl4Sll CdNdlAy from AIdINZaS. CON-
ing 10 a good dark place in the road, the
two conspirators raised a war yell and
dashed ahead, emptying two Mausers and
four siX-shooters into the bushes. The
cavalry escort punched itself in the mid
lie of the road and commenced shooting
n a general way at the scenery
That is always a tactful move that the
Spanish make when they think they are
attacked. After many rounds of ammuni-
ion had been wasted, the captain came
flashing up with Cuban standard on a
short section of a broken staff. The af-
iair was chronicled as Spanish victory,
md the promotion of the gallant captain
,OllOwed In due course. The intrinsic value
IF the standard was about $3.50 in labor
and material. and for 1t hthe Cuban Junta
'eceived a pass to carry 225 pounds of
medicines through the Spanish lines
OF all the methods of smuggling through |
he custom house, however, one OF the
most unique was recorded in Havana by
letter from Gomez not long ago. before
he blockade was inaugurated 1t reads:
MANY thanks for the cavalry trumpet
rom our friend in New York. I can safely
ay it is one of the sweetest toned trum-
vets in the world. We hope to hear it
down as soon as we get the jelly boiled
ut Of it."
It had come in a consignment OF pre-