The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1898-06-30
THURSDAY. JUNE 80, 1s9s.
HOW DID 1T ALL CONE AbOoi
ANYHOW?


If any one will take trip through '''0
country and see and talk with the Poo-
v,le in their homes and at the county
oourt- houses. ne viii be inevitably IN
a,,ced 10 ask himself how on earth we
cot into this Spanish war Ihere was
absolutely no sentiment in favor OF u III
r,obmond and the other cities, but as VIZ
-,,n,a,s congressman and Senators seem
cd as eager for it as the greatest Jihsoia's
Of the nation II was 10 be presuiiieu
that they knew the country people were
for IT anyhow. But If any one VIII at
tend a meeting of a county court ana
TAN. with the four or five hundred couh-
,rv neople VINO assemble there. he VIII
soop find out that there was no sehu-
,nent amongst the farmers favorable 10
A. and he will find out also mat 'her
whole interest in the war now Is one Oh
curiosity. They look on 1t as a sort Oh
curious show that is being given ana
while they are an perfectly unanimous
that the government shall be backed by
all the resources of the nation, now that
1t is in it, they feel as though IL was
somebody else's war and not theirs.
How then did we get into this war any
how? No congressman were hotter LOT
n than the Virginia congressman but II
they were the only Virginians that were
for IT. why may not the same have been
she case in Illinois or New YORK OF
Michigan?
II Is a curious condition Of things but
however. we got into IL, we must DO
all that Is necessary to bring # to sue
cessful conclusion.
And how does the case stand in re-
spect to that?
The gentlemen who rushed US into the
war, assured US also that it was going
10 be a very trinlng affair. We heard
story after story about the way the
spaniards would not fight. We were told
that their soldiers in Cuba were half
clad. half fed. entirely unpaid, without
discipline or organization, and 1t was
vaguely insinuated when not openly
stated that they would run away with
out firing a shot as soon as American
soldiers lined up against them and even
81 they did fire that they did not know
how to shoot and would be perfectly
harmless therefore.
Well they may be without clothes and
without food. and they may not have any
discipline nor ever be paid off. But
colonel Woods experience with them last
Friday enectually disposes of the PIE
tension that they wont shoot and that
they don't know how TO shoot in that
encounter they stood their ground very
much in the way that the Spanish infan-
try have been doing II these last few
centuries and our dead and wounded,
prove that they fired with deadly effect
even Il they did not know how 90 point
their guns. That part Of the case fails
entirely therefore and our jingoes must
find some other ground on which 10 place
their claims that the war is going TO be
a mere picnic TO fairy tale accompani-
ment. We have got 10 stand up against
men who have no ships that can match
ours, but who know how when placed
upon terra hrma, to fire Mauser rifles
with deadly precision and who are en-
tirely willing TO take all the risks OF
When will We take Santiago? II the
Spanish infatry would only play the part
IN the drama, for which they were cast.
we ought to have Santiago easily now
within the next day or two. But, II they
are going TO abandon their part and take
up role for which they were not cast,
why then the whole play may be botch-
cd and Il hunger and thirst fail to come
10 our assistance we may be sitting
down before Santiago longing TO march
into 1t many days before we actually do
So we confess that the task OF march
ing right along into Santiago without
saying a word 10 General Linares upon
the subject does not seem TO US q very
attractive one. -Four lines Of rifle pits
with forts at all the angles and seven
lines Of barbed wire feces in full view
and easy range Of tho rifle pits. constitute
most repelllng prospect TO a line that
has an idea OF charging them. General
Grant tried charging one line OF rife pits
at Cold Harbor and ho lost nearly four
teen thousand meu. killed and wounded
in thirty miutes while tho COfederates
had barely more than I'VE hundred hurt.
He learned lesson from this and he sat
down before General Lees lines for near
~ "a ys@r Without trying another such