Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1898-05-26
WASHINGTON LETTER.
From our Regular Correspondent
WASHINGTON, May %, 1898

Had the Administration been as success
ful in bottling up that Spanish fleet, which
is fiittering around in Cuban waters, as it
has been in bottling up every particle OF
interesting war news, the end of the war
would be in sight. OF course everybody
recognizes the necessity for keeping news
of contemplated movements out of the news
papers, least their publication should aid.the
enemy, but there is no good reason why
this state of affairs should exist Had
every cable from Cuba been cut as soon as
war was declared, and the same rigid
censorship been put into effect upon
European messages that is now exercised,
Spain could have derived no benefit from
the publication of war news by American
papers. If the present censorship be
followed by results, there will not be
much complaint, but if it be merely a
cloak to hide the blunders of somebody,
Congress will not long remain silent
Orders have been issued in profusion to
our fleets in Cuban waters, and there is, of
course, a general hope that they will sue
coed in finding and fighting the Spanish
aeet-no one doubts that we can lick If
we can get at them-but Secretary Long
seems to take it for granted that the
Spaniards can avoid fight just as long
as they may desire to.
Those who for one or another reason
are DESTROYS OF dragging the war on in
definitely have again been trying to per
suade Mr.. Mckinley to postpone the in
vasion of Cuba until Fall. They have got
a new argument now-that it will take
four months to make as much ammunition
as they think the army ought to have
before being sent TO Cuba. They also
ring the changes on the old argument that
military operations on large scale cannot
be carried on in Cuba during the rainy
season, which usually begins about the
tenth of June and continues for six or
eight weeks-an argument long ago dis
posed of by the active campaigns of the
insurgents during rainy seasons. Ii the
statement about ammunition be true.
which there is reason to doubt, there is
something radically wrong about the War
Department. 1t is supposed from the
hurryipg of volunteers to the South, that
the Invasion of Cuba will be pushed at
once, but plans have been changed so often
that it is difficult to say what will be done.
Gar Reed has the Hawaiian annexa-
tionists on the anxious bench. The other
four members of the Committee on Rules
are evenly divided, and it is for him to
decide whether the Commute will report
special rule for the consideration of the
annexation resolution, without which the
resolution cannot be brought to vote.
As a sort of answer to criticisms from
every direction, it has been semi officially
announced that the Naval War Board,
popularity known as the Board of
Strategy" and spoken of by some irreYer-
emit persOds as the board of letha' gy,"
which is composed of naval officers, has
nothing to do with conducting the war,
but is merely charged with the duty Of
advising Secretary Long. This will strike
most persons as an attempt to make
distinction where there is no difference. Ii
Secretary long did not consider the advice
of the hoard worth being followed, the
board would speedily be abolished. 1t
would be safe to say that every important
order issued by Secretary Long has been
upon the advice of this board. 1t would
be the most natural thing in the world
that both Mr.. Mckinley and Secretary
Long, neither of whom has had any expe-
rience in naval fighting, should seek the
assistance of naval officers in conducting
that branch of the war. The unnatural
iuiDR 10 budI cuCD otdJOunOAp OhOOAA ho ~
been allowed to have been made. The
Naval War Board has certainly done all
the conducting of the war that has been
done from the Washington end and if
there is any credit, it should not be
deprived of it, any more than 1t should be
shielded from criticism.
Senator Daniels made one of the strong
est speeches yet made against an issue OF
bonds, and in favor of paying the expenses
of the war as we go along, rather than
saddling them upon posterity. Replying
to the contention that the issue of bonds
proposed was intended for effect upon
Spain, Senator Daniels said that if the
desired effect could be assured he was
ready to vote to issue the bonds But"
he impressively continued, if Spain was
not convinced at Manila that this country
was in earnest in this war, then Sampson
and Schley and Miles and their Lieuts.
have some arguments to submit to her that
will prove to be even more assured vehicles
of conviction than any issue of bonds
could be.' He declared the stamp tax to
be the most odious and pestiferous tax
invented by man.