Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1898-02-07
General Pando's Statement Regarding
the Situation in Cuba.
DESPAIRING CRY OF SPAIN'S GENERAL
"God Help My Country, for She
Cannot Help Herself"
CONCEALMENT NOW USELESS

| Fla, February 6.-Crisis is on every tongue
| in Cuba. That may be one reason why il
| will not come soon.
I do not pretend to know whether 1t
| will come tomorrow or next year. Some
| things cannot be concealed either in Ha
| vana or in Madrid, and one of these is
| the complete failure of Captain General
| Blanco's mission to the eastern provinces.
What excuse or explanation Sagasta will
| make to the people of Spain cannot be
| fcretold. Possibly his course will be to
| strengthen the monarchy best he can,
| end then give an inking of the truth that
| the island is lost
Grounds exist for thinking that the rep
resentatives Of Spanish sovereignty In
| Cuba have given the word to tell the truth.
General Pando, who Is next in rank to
| Blanco, was at the town of Sagua in Santa
| Clara province this week. He was on his
| way to meet Blanco at the seaport. He
| talked freely to his friends, some of them
| autonomy officials
This month"; said General Pando to
| them, will bring about astounding de-
velCpments. The crisis can no longer be de-
ferred. What the end will be no man can
| say. All 1 have to say is, God help my
country, for she cannot help herself
Remarks Well Authenticated.
Now. I cannot vouch for it personally
| that General Pando used this language but
! l know that they who say he used 1t are
| persons Of good repute. They feel as deep
| ly as he does the impending disaster, and
they would gladly have reported some mes
| sage of cheer and hope. Pando had hoped
| to receive while in Santa Clara the pre-
sentation Of an insurgent chief of some
| Importance named Monteagudo, who was
| said to be considering the inducements Of
| fered him by laying down arms and ac-
| cepting the regime of autonomy. His de-
| sertion would not have weakened the in
| surgents except in one spot, yet it would
| have encouraged the Spanish military
| thorties to believe they were making
progress. Monteagudo is giving his an
| swer to the offers made him by attacking
the troops which garrison sugar planta-
tions that are attempting to grind. and is
making successful raids into the fortified
towns. The answer tells.
| While General Pando was disappointed
| at the failure of the insursent chief to sur
! render, that was not the cause of his des
pairing confession. This was based on
| broader grounds. Pando has better
| chance than Blanco himself to know the
| utter hopelessness Of the outlook. He Is
| in command in the province of Santiago,
and under his direction the vigorous mill
| tary campaign was begun to dislodge the
! insurgents from their control of that prov
| ince. In three months just one thing has
| been done, the rescue of the survivors of
| the garrison of Guanna. No progress has
| been made in forcing a passage up the
| river Cuato, which is the key to military
! operations. In a dozen engagements the
| irsurgent forces under Calixto Garcia have
| had the advantage.
Spanish advices say that Garcia is drink
| ing heavily, and that his followers are dis
| gusted with him. 1t must be the kind of
whisky Grant was charged with drinking
at Vicksburg. and which Lincoln wanted
| other generals to drink, for it helped TO
| win battles.
PandO Does Not Hope for Success.
Gen. Pando knows that even with the
| reinforcements given him there is no pros
pect of the Spanish arms winning a de-
Cisive success between now and the wet
| season. He knows, tee, the hopes that had
| been raised In Madrid from this campaign
in the eastern provinces, because, in criti-
cisins Weyler's tactics. he had done some
| boasting. Possibly the knowledge of the
disappointment that awaits the Sagasta
| ministry and the people of Spain is what
| leads him to predict astounding develop
mentS this month. 1t is plain that Sagasta
Will be in no better position to save the
| monarchy in April or in July ;han in Feb
| rrary. Every week will make the task Of
| telling the truth more difficult. l have
| sometimes wondered in seeing the scenes
OF wretchedness and starvation in Cuba if
| the outside world understood the sacrifice
| of innocent life that has been caused by
| this effort to save the crown to young
| King Alfonso. Whatever may happen, he
will never know the hunger that has gnaw-
| ed out the vitals of thousands of lads in
this island and left only their wasted
| frames for the grave. His right to the
| crown was no better than their right to
| live. Yet other thousands may be sacri-
| feed because the troops of the Spanish
monarchy are too weak to withstand the
shock which must come when it is known
| to the people Of Spain that Cuba is lost to
| them.
Talking War With United States.
| Tha signs Of the crisis are apparent in
| the palace. That may be another reason
why 1t will be temporarily averted. The
officials are again talking war with the
United States as the only means of letting
| go. That may be ground for believing
that Spain will eontrive to let go without
bringing another avalanche of debt and
| misery on her distressed people. This
| question can only be settled when the test
| actually comes. Meantime. the pretense
must be kept up that autonomy Is in opera
| ton. Government must go forward as
| though the crisis ware not impending and
plans be devised for staving off Intervention
| Of the United States until the yellow fever
season arrives. AS long as Spain can get
| money, the officials hope for autonomy to
! go on as 1t is now going.
| The dropping out from the calendar of
| a month now and then makes the arrears
| in the pay of the army less heavy
The pretense is kept up that the elections
will be held in April The officials them
| selves seem to have indefinite ideas of the
nature of the elections. They realize that
there should be two tickets in the field.
/ The conservative party, at Its convention
in December. decided on the policy Of
drawing within its shell and taking no
| part in public affairs The party has not
/ yet changed that policy. The officials want
1t to put up some candidates. II the
/ conservatives refuse to do this the govern
nsent itself may name two sets of candi-
dates, who will be government autono-
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