Evening journal., 1898-03-18
THEY HEAR PROCTOR
Senate Listens to the Account
Of His Tour of Cuba.
GRAPHIC PICTURE OF DESOLATIOy.
Depicts the Horrors of weyIers Recon-
centrado order and Shows How
Pacified Cuba LooIss-Praise For
Lee and Miss Barton.

WASHINGTON, March Ex-senator
Proctor of Vermont, who returned last
Sunday from an extended trip TO and
through the island Of Cuba, yesterday
Afternoon made a statement to the SEN
ate of his observations on the island.
From many points or view the state
ment was remarkable. 1t had evidently
been most carefully prepared. Every
element Of sensationalism had been
studiously' eliminated from it, and ex-
cept so far as the facts recited were
sensational it bore not the slightest evil
dence of an effort to arouse the public
mind, already keenly alive to the con-
dition Of affairs on the island.
The scene in the senate just preced-
ing and during the delivery Of the
speech of Senator Proctor was almost
dramatic in the intensity of it's inter-
est. The occasion Of the address arose
very unexpectedly. The national quar-
antine bill was under discussion, and
Senator Mallory CFla.) had been rec
ognized for q speech in opposition to
the pending measure Mr.. Frye en-
tered the chamber and, interrupting
Mr.. Mallory, requested him to yield to
Mr.. Proctor, who desired to make q
statement concerning his observations
I'm Cuba Of interest TO the senate and
TO the country.
Instantly there was a commotion on
the floor and in the galleries. It had
been announced that Mr. Proctor would
soon make a statement, but it was not
supposed that he would make it on the
floor OF the senate. A call of the sem
ate was demanded by Mr.. Chandler IN
H). In a few minutes every senator
in the capitol was in his seat, and the
word having been passed through the
corridors people flocked into the gal
leries until they were packed.
Senator Proctor began by stating that
his trip had been quite unofficial. He
then proceeded to extol the work done
by Consul General Lee Consul Brice
and Consul Barker in Cuba. From this
he passed to the Maine disaster and
said that he had never asserted he be-
lieved the explosion to be an external
one, that on the contrary he had no
personal opinion in the matter at all.
lie urged that judgment be suspended
until the report of the court comes 70
| hand.
He rapidly outlined the geographical
features of the island stating that he
had only visited the four western prov
Havana, he said. things were quiet
| when he was there, Outside Havana.
he said. the desolation is terrible. He
described the trochas. or trenches, sur
! rounding every town and village and
holding in the reconoentrados. The
| villages, he said, are practically prison
yards. There is scarcely a house stand
/ Ing except in these towns and villages.
| Every man, woman, child and animal is
under guard. This" added Mr.. Proc
tor, in ringing tones. "is the pacified
condition of the island"
He then proceeded to depict the terri
| BILE results of Weyler's reconcentrado
order and how the guerriuas laid waste
! the country under this order. The con-
dition Of the unfortunates, he said, is
| awful and indeed uncomfortable. A
form Of dropsy is one result of the way
IN which the reconcentrados are forced
10 live. Deaths in the streets are not
uncommon.
He vigorously attacked the condition
Of the hospitals and stated that he saw
unfortunates in such a state that it
would be i'll fitting to photograph and
show them, as has been done in other
cases. Starvation is rampant within
these Spanish forts, practically prison
yards" He said he could not adequate
" portray the misery he had seen. OF
Miss Barton and her assistants he had
only words of praise.
While General Blancos order of Nov
13 somewhat modified the Weyler de-
cree it caused, he asserted, little or no
benefit In speaking Of the Spanish sol
diery he said that they are greatly in
ferior TO our own men. Blanco, he had
no doubt, was acting in good faith. but
is greatly hampered by the dislike OF
the Spanish army and citizens for au-
tonomy.
He concluded by saying:
But it is not my purpose at this time
nor do I consider It my province to sug-
gest any plan. I merely speak Of the
symptoms as 1 saw them, but do moi
undertake TO prescribe. Such remedia
. steps as may be required may safely b,
left to an American president and th'
American people,"
Senator Stewart gave notice of ar
amendment he will offer to the nava
appropriation bill providing for the con
struction OF IS coast defense monitors
OF the type of the Puritan, Montere!
and Terror and appropriating 81, ,8OO,O
with which to begin the work.