Staunton spectator and vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1896-1916, 1898-07-21


Steelton Company of Baltimore. be-
lieve. owns great mine of manganese
near Santiago de Cuba. the scene of
military operations at this time.
While great losses have been infiict-
ed on the great proprietors, it is in
cridible how much they have saved
and laid aside in New York, in London
and in Paris, but not in Spain. The
experience of their neighbors in San
Domingo appears to have made pro-
found impression on them. Since 1925
Cuba has been in condition of COM
bustion. Since 1850. when the aboli-
tion agitation in the United States
gave them warning, curiously enough
they have acted with infinitely more
discretion, intelligence and energy than
the great Shareholders of the South.
They deliberately prepared for the
cataclysm, which they had sagacity to
see was approaching. but which we did
not. They brought in Spanish col
onies, mainly from the Canary isis IDS,
apportioned them 40to 80 acre farms,
built houses, sold them stock and fed
them. The colonist cultivate the land
under the direction of the proprietor,
and hauled his cane to the sugar-house.
where he got his due share of sugar.
Under this system the production of
sugar increased so per cent. between
1878, when slavery was abolished, and
1888, and will increase still more when
peace is restored. Now, after this long
introduction, to the point as to the ad
vantages offered to energy, intelli-
gence, industry. I put aside the ques-
tion of annexation. A large per cent.
of Cubans in the field will oppose it,;
that is human nature. After such q
struggle they want to enjoy the fruits
of victory. Gomez wants to be presi-
dent, Garcia to succeed him, etc.
But the forces of nature, the laws of
society, march with an irresistible
power which laws and constitutions
are powerless to withstand, l under
stand now, as I never did in 1861 65,
that the watershed of the Miss issippi,
inhabited By homogeneous race, must
be under our system of government. l
thought then, as l think now. it would
have been better for human progress
better for the happiness of the North
American people-if the Gulf States
had been allowed ito go in peace" for
| believed the attraction Of political
cohesion would have reconstructed the
Union by the reunion of the valley of
the Mississippi, and the great strain on
the theory and practice of govern
ment by consent would have been
spared. We do not yet know how it
will result. The march of imperialism
from Appomattox has not yet been
stayed, but l can Bee movement of the
imperial democracy manifest toward
the Antilles. Cuba is part of the
United States as surely as Florida was
as the mouth of the Mississippi was.
The United States are bound to estab-
lish solid, orderly gov ernment there,
and must occupy the country until
such government is established. The
interregnum of military government
will fill the island with American ad-
venturers, just as Texas and California
were filled up.
The 1000 miles of railroad will be ex-
panded to 10000 miles, for each great
plantation will have its own system of
railroads. Telephones will net the
country. From my office in Baltimore
when am there l can talk to every
village in Maryland. In two years the
population of Cuba will double. Its
area is about equal to that of Pennsyl-
vania. The yellow fever will be
abolished. The great mountain ranges
will be cleared and cultivated. Silver,
gold and iron will be dug out of them;
mahogany, rosewood-the most valu-
able timber in the world-will be rush
ed into Baltimore, and the epoch of the
Argonauts in 1849 will be repeated.
I have answered your question when
1 tell you that fair mechanic can
earn So per day, and will be able to do
80 for years. after this mine of agricul-
turaI, mineral and forest wealth is
open to the energy, enterprise and in
dustry of the free Americans.