The Mason County journal. [volume] (Shelton, W.T.) 1886-1927, 1898-04-29
" ashingtOn Letter.
From our regular Correspondent
WASHINGTON, ID. G. April "a, 1898


tervention in Cuha, while the general
expectation was that the business
would be done in two daNs at the ont
side; he knows what responsibility is.
The delay has been beneficial to this
government may be seen from the
following language, used by IA mem
Der OF the Cabinet to an impatient
friend who was repeating the argument
used on all sides against the apparent
tardiness both of Congress ond the
President: Nobody has the remotest
idea how unprepared we were when
Congress made the appropriation of
5O.OOO,OOO. AS ID matter of fact, there
were not five rounds of ammunition
i'll fortified place in the country, and
the ships did not have ammunition
enough to fight anything. We were
simply ready IN an amateurish man
ner. The President was shocked when
he learned the tull facts. A knowledge
of these facts had as much to do with
making him cautious as a desire to
avoid war. Had this country been
forced into war three weeks ago. we
might have gotten the worst of things
for awhile. | think we are now about
ready and can give an account of our
selves" These words should be con-
sidered by the hairtrigger individuals
who blame the President for not rush
ing into war weeks ago.
Nothing official has been said about
the program that will be followed after
the resolution reaches the President,
but the statement is made upon good
authority that the President will make
a demand upon Spain to evacuate
Cuba and will grant one or two days
for the answer. This will be largely
for form sake, as it is already practical
ly certain that Spain will refuse, and
will probably accompany the refusal
with message of defiance Then the
naval forces of the country will be put
in motion and the first steps taken to-
wards driving the Spaniards out of
Cuba, while the troops now being hur-
rled as fast as steam can carry them
towards convenient points of embarka-
ton will be got in shape to he rushed
over to Cuba just as soon as the fleet
has captured a desirable location on
the island for them to be landed.
Once landed the war will be pushed to
a speedy and victorious end both on
land and on water.
Naval officials smile at sensational
predictions of damage that will be
done to our commerce by Spanish
prlvateers. Instead of having any
fears on that score, they think that
we shall have so many fast and for
midable auxiliary cruisers on the seas
that any Spanish privateer that gets
far from home will be extremely for
tunate if 1t escapes destruction or cap
ture by some of them. The Spanish
are not ignorant of our preparation in
this line, and they are not likely to
90 as extensively into the privateering
business in reality as our sensational
lists have maed them go in imagina-
ton.
The massing of practically three
fourths of the regular army-about
$4,000 men-at Chickamauga Park,
New Orleans, Mobile, and Tampa, is
the first open move towards the mill
tary occupation of Cuba. The plan of
campaign is all made out, but so well
has the secret been kept that no per-
son, not an official, can positively say
whether these regulars will have militia
assistance in their invasion of Cuba OF
not. The general impression is, how
ever, that they will, and that a call
for volunteers from the militia will be
issued by President Mckinley within
4S hours of the moment his signature
is attached to the joint resolution
authorizing forcible Intervention in
Cuba. 1t is understood, but not Of
ficially, that the President has decided
to adopt the plan of calling for volun-
teer militiamen rather than one call
ing upon each state to furnish lis
quota of the number of men desired,
and that the organizations which
volunteers first are to be accepted re-
gardless of the states from which they
come. According to estimates made
by War Department officials, mOle
than 100000 volunteers have been
offered to the government, which is
about twenty times more than anyone
expects to be needed.
Just after a meeting of the Cabinet,
at which the probability of the mater
ialization of the fo:cible European in
tervention upon which Spain relies to
save it from a terrible thrashing was
referred to in a discussion, member
was asked what would be the probable
result of an attempt on the part OF
the six great European powers to force
the u. S. to withdraw its demand that
Spain evacuate Cuba. Fighting and
plenty of it," was his prompt reply.
That represents the position of the ad-
ministration to dot 1t proposes to
drive Spain out of Cuba, regardless of
whether it has to fight Spain alone, or
the allied powers. This is very well