The Columbian. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1866-1910, 1898-07-28
WASHINGTON.
From our Regular Correspondent.
WASHINGTON, July 22d, 1903

ing a gigantic bluff for the purpose of
frightening Spain into begging for
peace upon any terms that we may
choose to offer, or has actually deter
mined to utilize the enormous resour.
ses at its command to force the fight
ing in every direction until Spain is
whipped to her knees, is not clearly
apparent at this writing. But every
thing points to one or the other.
Members of the administration say it
is the latter. Every good American
ought to hope it is.
The Porto Rico expedition, now
under way, under command of Gen.
Miles and Admiral Sampson, is no
bluff, for one of the certainties OF the
war is that we are to get and keep
Porto Rico for our very own. The
landing Of the advance guard of the
troops is expected to be accomplished
by the first of next week, and then the
combined land and water movement
against San Juan will begin. How
soon the town will be captured will,
of course, depend upon how vigorous
ly the campaign is conducted.
The bluff, If bluff it is, is in connec-
ton with the movement against Spain
itself. All this week there has been
mystesious talk about Watson's fleet
being accompanied, or closely follow
ed, by an army of invasion, and the
activity in the movement of troops
from the various camps, which has
been much greater than was neces-
sary in connection with the invasion
of Porto Rico, has lent probability to
the talk. And the calling of Gen.
Stewart L. Woodford, who is still
drawing salary as U. S. Minister to
Spain, to Washington for the purpose
of comforting with Mr.. Mckinley and
his Cabinet, has not lessened the talk,
although some think that Woodford
was sent for in connection with some
proposition for peace that may have
been received, Notwithstanding the
official denial that any such PROPOSE
ton had either been received or
made.
The clashing between Gen. Shafter
and Admiral Sampson, which formed
such a disagreeable feature of the
campaign against Santiago, broke out
iii the Cabinet this week, Secretaries
Long and Alger respectively taking
the sides of their subordinate as to
whether the valuable Spanish mer-
chant ships that were in the harbor
at Santiago when the place was sur
rendered to Shafter should be held by
the army and thus become the pro-
perty Of the government without the
payment of prize-money or should, in
accordance with SIMPSONS demand,
he turned over to the navy. Just as
the two Secretaries were getting
warmed up in their dispute Attorney
General Griggs settled the whole bust.
ness by saying: 'Neither of you
may have the ships. The Supreme
Court has rendered decision on that
very point. When there is a Joint
capture of ships by army and navy, or
when the army alone captures them
they are not to be considered prizes.
Nobody gets any prize money" OFF,
cial orders have been issued in ac-
cordance with what Griggs said.
Those who have stood up for the
Cubans are anxiously waiting to see if
Skaters official reports will confirm
the press dispatches, as to the insur-
gents under Garcia being in almost
a state of revolt because Santiago was
not turned over to them also as to
the numerous stories of Sinking, both
OF working and fighting, on the part
OF the insurgents. If these stories
are officially confirmed, stock in the
insurgents will take a decided slump.
1t has already been seriously affected
by the dispatches of the correspond
ents with the army, many of whom
are known to have gone to Cuba
strongly prejudiced in favor of the
insurgents and morellkely to exagger-
ate their good qualities than their bad
ones.
Secretary Alger is being accused of
allowing his political prejudice against
the Southern regiments, most of the
members of which are known to be
democrats, to prevent his giving them
chance to win any glory out of the
war by fighting. 1t is pointed out
that such extraordinary orders as
combining two brigades have been
issued from the War Department SO
as to shut out a southern regiment
from each brigade also that Gen.
Fitz Lee was being kept in camp with
the hope that the war might end be-
fore he had a chance to do any fight
ing. These are not pleasant things
fO write hut the o,o,e,t;ou. -. L.