The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1898-07-20
SAGASTA'S SLY CANE
First Make Peace, and Tell
the People Afterwards.
SPAINS REIGN OF TERROR
Government Thinks a Huge
Bluff is Imperative,

New York, July ia dispatch TO the
World from Madrid says:
In consequence Of the reign Of terror in
augurated by the government the people
believe the widest rumors afoat. Every
body says that the papers hint much be-
tween the lines affecting to know more
than perhaps they really do.
The universal impression is that the
government is acting dictatoraIIy simply
because it has grounds to believe that the
monarchy is menaced not only by the
Carllsts and the republicans but also by a
wide spread popular and military dtscon-
tent, in consequence of which a high
handed policy is deemed necessary in or
der to make peace quickly without the
assistance of the Cortes, which will only
be asked TO pass a bill OF indemnity when
the nation is somewhat reconciIed to the
sacrifice Of territory in the West Indies
and the Philippines.
1t is furthermore believed that France,
Austria Russia and Germany have again
told the queen and her ministers that
it is Indispensable to secure an early
peace which alone can save Spain from
financial and commercial ruin.
The queen audiences to Romero and
General Weyler expressly to obtain their
neutrality if not consent to negotiations
for peace and TO persuade them 10 prevail
upon the generals to answer for the loyal
Of the army in Spain.
The capital of Spain presents q strange
aspect under the extra ordinary meas
ures taken by the government to impose
silence upon the press.
AT first all the newspapers ATTEMPTED to
protest against proceedings which have
no precedent since the last years of the
reign Of Isabella II on the eve Of a rev.
olution. Then similar seventies were re-
sorted to by the reactionary cabinet agaist
the opposition, which at that time were
headed by such leaders as Sagasta, Cas-
telar, Serrano and Prim.
General Chincilla, the captain general
Of Madrid, again summoned into his pres
ence today ten Of the principal editors in
Madrid. He sternly warned them that he
was not going to be triffled with; tina he
would suppress the newspapers and i'm
prison and court martial the editors If
they dared TO disobey the rules laid down
He even forbade them 10 publish papers
with blanks in the spaces in their columns
where the censor had suppressed articles
or paragraphs, intimating that the spaces
must be filed up anyhow.
The public, however, ignores the sever
tiles Of the censorship wirlch are even
worse in the provinces than in Madrid
One of the leading Liberal statesman
explains the conduct of the government
thus: Premier Sagasta had to resort TO
the severe policy Of state of seige (mar-
tial law because several generals-even
Weyler, Campos, Polaviejo and ChincilIa
Jtold him they could not answer for the
consequences Of an agitation fomented by
the press and republicans conspiracles.
ION the other hand the papal nuncio
and the foreign ambassadors told him
that no step could be taken toward peace
unless President Mckinley was assured
that the government could enforce the
conditionse imposed by events.
For the same reasons Senior Sagasta
and the minister of war affected TO ig-
uore the progress of the negotiations for
the equalization of Santiago, although
Generals Blanco and Tolar elegra phed
every day the successive stages Of the
parleying, Blanco washing his hands of
all responsibility and Toral begging Sa-
gasta TO authorize him 10 act, while the
government in Madrid took care to state
officially that Toral aced entirely on his
own responsibility and coud not undertake
TO offer TO surrender all the forces of the
whole province of Santiago. When all is
over Sagasta will spring the news on the
country.
He intends 10 act in the same way in
regard to the conditions Of peace. He will
only let them out when they are signed:
1T is very risky game, but it is the
only means Of saving the monarchy and
the regency If the army remains loyal"