New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1899-09-17
THE COLOR LINE ~ CtBi.

limitation may appeal to nations rs wen IL ~
irdiyidralS as The Sinccrcsi form ol ""',','
Vet fine disposition noticeable JusI now j" "'''
, t,troducc the color line Nank"" i"Sh'l "'"
roliti.s should provoke the S"N'reSi c"hu''l'l''
,ion rron American opinion. Recent dispatches
fro,n Havana have limited ~ growing 'I'"'
600 in tbc former Revolutionary party u"' w.
,ho Iisturbiug Influences of race pr'Ju"''''
orintin Handcra. negro general Of prominence
n, the eastern provinces. il is stated. mas "''
,i,lod IN found in Santiago a newspaper organ
devoted f. promoting the political interests u
,h, moro militarv element as such; while juan
c,olncrto Gomez. the abcst and most aggreS
.i,, ucero politician in Cuba. has just puphclE
sor.r.d his connection with the so-caled Ma
,,onoi marty and announced that he Will head
~ now orqanizatlon recruited chiefly from the
nooroes- officers and prvates-who undoubted
" bore the burden of the Instruction against
c,,oir ON tho other hand LA Lucha, the
leading newspaper in Havana, has been ma
tcrially promoting the tendency to"a'" i"''"'
ontoconisms in politics by declaring that negro
suffrage. under an independent government II
not 10 be thought Of. and that the DiacN man
must prepare himself for subordinate ro'e III
onv scheme Of autonomy which may folio"
American military rule
These symptoms Of a hardening OF lF""t
along lines of race and color are 10 he sincerely
dcnlorod There is little or no excuse Tor the
creation of a race issue in Cuban politics. Cupah
life in general has long been free from the as
examinations based here and elsewhere on me
variations of race and blood. practical
oouolity in the trades. in industry, in commerce.
even in social relations and privileges. has been
fairly maintained in Cuba among the natives
of all shades Of complexion ana all dlVerSl''''
of origin In the Ten Years war ana III '""
later nsurrection blacks and whites par'''F
mated on equal terms. and no scale was ever
rocognized which assigned the one race 10
nosltion socially or politically subordinate 10
the other. In the Military Assembly, when as
banded in April last. though several OF us con
sricuous members were Of negro blood, the
divisions created were in no way due 10 racial
differences: and until recently no whisper mas
hoon heard in Havana of political alliances
hosod not on common personal or public IN
forests but simply on anagonsms OF COM
plexion and descent.
If is PERHAPS true that in the eastern
provinces q certain race antipaihy mas eNlS''"
for many years. But in the east the negroes
have not ONLY CONSTITUENT Il h'''NNN '''''"
OF the population but, being Of purer African
and Indian stock. have shown an aggressive
ness in public life wholly lacking III havana
and the west. Moreover, in Santiago pohucal
interest has not yet been seriously attracted 10
the problems of future autonomous govern
ment. the native population being more an
sorbod AT present in securing independence Of
central control in Havana than OF obtaining III
sular independence of the United States. ter
tanlv IN Western Cuba. where race prcludlc'N
and antagonisms have so far been kept III
wholesome allegiance, political organization
along color lines would be an unlualihed ms
fortune American opinion. which has seen the
djscouraclng results OF such experiments In our
own Southern States. will be reluctant at al
events 70 approve a new outbreak Of the strug
Gle for power between the races under me
perilous conditions which autonomy IN 'upa
would present.