The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1899-03-02
HOW GOMEZ COT BACK
10 Cuba to Re-Commence the
War for independence.
HIS SERVICE ABROAD
In the Interval Between 1878
and 1895.

New York March IA contributor 20 the
| Evening Post Writes:
Gomez. the shaggy browed, why little
autocrat who leads the largest band of in
| surgents in the Manigua, goes almost IN
armed, save for curious. crescent shap-
ed machete, different in pattern from the
usual Cuban weapon
This sentence from the report of a cor
respondent away back in the early DAYS
of the Cuban uprising had for some
| strange reason or other fastened itself up
on my memory. 1 knew the .ong, lean
| pen-knife shape of the insurgent arm, but
had never seen anything like the other
Some time later was shown one-a short
wicked yataghan affair, curved and wedge
shaped at the point and heavy as an axe
for all its shortness. And l was told that
| this was the pattern in the island OF Santo
! Domingo. the birthplace, strange 10 say,
/ of the foremost figure in Cuba's struggle
| against Spain for liberty.
| 1t was with some pleasure, therefore,
when one orning during the late war the
! despatch-boat upon which I was a pas
! senger was ordered to SantO Domingo, that
/ 1 anticipated the possibility of securing
! some light on the history of Maxine Go
mez from the people among whom ne lad
been born and brought up. l found that
| everyone in Santo Domingo knows of
! Maxine Gomez. Strange TO say, however,
very little that is definite is to be ascer-
| tanned concerning him from those in au-
thority. But with the common people
the mestizos of all shades and co.ors that
form the bulk of the population-things
are vastly different. With them the in
surgent chieftain has become a popular
hero, little short of the demigod. and it
was not so much a question Of making
them talk as of having them sa ysome-
thing that even willing listener could
halfway accept. At Bani, in the south Of
the island, they show you the more or less
authenticated house where he was born.
and on the outskirts of the town of Monte
Cristi, where for some years after the i'll
starred ten years war" Gomez managed
a tobacco plantation, the people are full OF
all sorts of legendary tales concerning his
force of character, his personal bravery,
and the fascination of his basilisk eye that
compels men 10 follow when he wills.
But it was not until some time later that
I found one who had been in personal con-
tact with him and whose accounts were
free from the creole hyperbole that so fire.
quently BATTLES the seeker after informa-
ton. We were riding easily at anchor III
the open harbor of Porto Plata, and under
ha IN trtF
could not shut out the blazing sun of the
tropics, was seated little knot of resi-
dents who had come aboard TO welcome
the representatives Of the almighty
American press. One of these, a slender.
saIiow man of tnirty-five years, very cour
teous and retiring in manner, was intro
duced as John Poloney. the interpreter of
of party. His English was fairly fluent
a heritage. so he explained, from British
grandfather. who had settled in the Do
grandfather, who had settled in the Do
himself had lived there az his life, trav-
cling from town to town. filling at various
times number of minor government
posts. and plying his business as ships
comprador and shipping agent on a small
scale. 1t was to his good offices that Co
owed it that just at the beginning of the
late outbreak in Cuba they were able to
to leave Santo Domingo and find their way
to the Cuban coast.
And this is John Poloney's story:
When, on February 10, 1873 , the ten
years war came 20 an end al Fl Zanion,
Gomez like many other insurgent leader.
was at Toss whittier to turn for a livli-
hood. Othello's occupation was gone, and
there was little business that a man was
fitted for after ten years spent. more or
less, in the jungle or under the open sky.
Fortunately the republic o fCosta Rica was
building UP an army and needed an organ
izer. Gomez applied for the post. and in
the fall of 1873 was given the appointment,
which his administrative abilities and his
command Of men well fitted him for. But
when that work was done there was little
else to occupy him there. and after wand
ering about simlesSy for while he ac-
cepted the offer OF Ximenez & Co. firm
OF San;o Domingo tobacco growers, 10
manage their plantation near Monte Girls
IT,
Perhaps his sOiourn in Cuba had taught
him some OF the secrets n the vueIta Aba
10 tobacco-curers. which he now hoped 70
make renunerative. Perhaps. after his
long Odyssey he was eager only. Ike
h0ming-bird. for Il sight Of the land Of MS
birth. Those who have known Gomez in
his ungusrded moments have hinted AT
nursing strange dreams Of a union o. IS
land republics. in which Cuba and Santo
Domingo were 20 be foremost. and whose
first effort would 10 10 wipe the black -e-
public Of Hayu or the map. But. whether
ne had ever contemplated these things
or not. they awaited him little. row that
Cuba had once more come fully under the
dominion az Spain. and that he himself
was no mo-e than prescribed revolution
arv cabeciHa.
He arrived IT Guayscsnes early n -
and settled down % improve the Dom.ni-
can growth - tobacco after Cuban me-
thods. Bat upon ore q his innate energy
The rnouotouv OF MS employment soon
paIed For years ne rode daily over the
vast ingenio, experimenting hts aeid-hands :
but when there began 70 b whispered
rumors q 4 coutenpuistrd Cuban or
break. w1ich vas being fementef b re 4
jBn.ss fl New York and Parss. Gomez En- 1
tered heart ard soul into the cause
Early IN 1ses Jose MART came = n NsE 4
York "a Monte C-is-i Mart had that .
curious combination - the poet. roztor 4
dreamer rad ruaa ~ acton hat some 4
times goes Nth genius. and re arouz1t /
news % 2 tre-eu5uous secret organ ration. /
efficiently equiDE-e5. Ea3eh Eas once nor I
70 atteuU 70 free CuHa. AID EisscE had 4
then stayeie so-58I7vrns esa5 tzm 80
beer STAYED bur not stopped. - ihe SEX
ure % his ozn SHhus-srlng expedition az
Fe-ae7sf-z pa q fe= months before