The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1898-07-01
rlckinley and His Policy.

Why Mckinley followed and copied
Cleveland so closely in the most impor-
tant measures of his administration, will
probably never be generally known, pos
sibly Mr. Mckinley does not know him
self, but there undoubtedly is primary
cause.
In his Cuban policy, Mr.. Kinley only
took up the thread where Cleveland
dropped it, the Spanish premier making
an innocents diversion by a pretense of
granting autonomy to the Cubans, in
order to give Mckinley an excuse for
continuing the policy OF Cleveland. This
policy consisted in helping the Spaniards
against the Cnbans by policing the coast
with revenue cutters and arresting sus-
pect filibusters pointed opt by Spanish
spies. course the very opposite TO the
declaration in regard to the Republican
party's Cuban policy laid down in the st.
Louis platform. Mr.. Mckinley has utterly
ignored the rights of the Cuban patriots,
so did Cleveland. With permission of
the Spaniards he proposed TO feed the
refused to aid the Cubans by allowing
them to procure arms and food which
would have enabled them to protect their
friends, placed i'll starvation pens by
Weyler. And it finally came out that
Mckinley had not even protested to the
Madrid government against Weyler's
horrible policy which shocked the world.
So intent has Mckinley been in his
determination to ignore the Cuban in
surgents that not gun was given them
till Sampson armed a few of Garcia's
soldiers and employed them in protecting
the marines who were landed, and had it
not been for the Cubans would have been
killed or driven back to their ships again.
When General Shafter and Admiral
Sampson were preparing to land troops
and consulted with the Cuban officers,
they saw not only the Importance but the
necessity of having the Cubans as allies
and at once provided several thousand of
Garcias men with arms and food, appar-
emily in defiance of McKinley's seeming
antipathy to the Cubans.
In place of copying Cleveland had the
President followed Monroe's policy the
probability is that no war would have
resulted between Spain and the United
States. When Spain was at war to put
Hn,u,i her CaptI At,arino, aud Max,;,o,,
colonies that were driven to rebellion by
her unparalleled tyranny and mis-
rule as Cuba has been, President
Monroe admitted the rights of belligerents
to the colonies, and allowed both parties
to purchase anything they desired and
ship from our ports and the revolving col
onies wore Spain out in tie contest. Had
the same policy been pursued toward the
Cubans they would have beaten the
Spanish and been able to protect their
innocent people that the SpaniarLs penred
up and starved. But the Cleveland policy
was followed in place of Monroe's and
the inevitable result was war, which true
craftsmanship must have foreseen.
The whole world knows the result of
McKinley's dilly-dallying after war was
declared. No effort was made to arm the
Cubans or save the remainder Of the
reconcentrados from starvation. The
very first move that all military men, and
civilians too, expected was to capture
Havana, which Lee and others who ought
TO know said could easily have been done,
but two months were given Blanco to
fortify and make the place as impregnable
as possible. In place of attacking Havana,