Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1899-06-10
GOMEZ SAYS FAREWELL.

GOMEZ SAYS FAREWELL.
Parting Words of the Patriotic Old Cuban
General.
General Maxine Gomez, the former
commauder.in-chief of the Cuban army,
issued his farewell address on last
Tuesday. In substance the address
says:
"The mission I have been intrusted
with is nearly concluded. have at
tempted to find solution of questions
concerning the army which I COM
manded during the bloodiest wsr
known in America. am now leaving,
regretfully, to attend to necessary pri-
vate business.
"a parting word to the people for
whom have sacrificed 80 years Of my
life, and to my friends in the army
just disbanded, which action should
have been taken instantly after the re-
moval of the bloody weight of Spain's
merciless regime. We armed our
selves and, therefore, now we no lon
ger want soldiers but men for the main
tenance of peace and order, which are
the basis of Cuba's future welfare.
at is necessary to understand that
the nation in this epoch, most difficult
and unequalled in history, should avail
itself of the opportunity to show it
possesses virtues, in spite of the vices
by colonial government and the harsh
ness of warllke life. We wanted and
depended upon foreign Intervention to
end the war. This occurred at the
most terrible moment of our contest,
and resulted in SPANS defeat. But
none of US thought this extraordinary
event would be followed by military
occupation of the country by our al
lies, who treat US as people incapa-
BILE of acting for ourselves, and who
have reduced us to obedience, to SUBJ
mission and to tutelage imposed by
force of circumstances. This cannot
be our ultimate fate after the years
of struggle, and we should aid by
every pacific method in finishing the
work Of organizing, which the Ameri-
cans accepted in the protocol, and
which is disagreeable for them as for
ourselves. This aid will prove useless
without concord among all the island
ers. Therefore, it is necessary to for
get past disagreements, to completely
unite all elements and to organize q
political party, which is needed in any
country.
ut is always said that countries
have the government which they
merit, and Cuba will have that which
her heroism entities her to. Today
she can only have one party in Cuba,
with one object, that of obtaining the
aspiration of years.
1--WE must devote ourselves to pa
cifc labors, gain the respect of the
world and show that though our war
was honorable, our peace must be
more so.
"We must make useless by our be-
havior the presence of strange pow
er in the island and must assist the
Americans to complete the honorable
mission they have been compelled to
assume by a force of circumstances.
This work was not sought by those
rich northerners, owners of a CONT
nent. I think doubts and suspicion
are unjust. We must form Immediate
ly a committee or a club to be a nu-
cleus of a government. This will
serve Cuban interests purely and act
as an aid to the intervenors.
II, as one of the first Cubans, al
though one of our last old soldiers and
not far from the grave, without pas
sions or ambitions, call on you with
the sincerity of father and urge q
cessation of the superhuous discussions
and the creation of parties of all
kinds, which disturb the country and
tend to cause anarchy. In this coun-
try there should not be one man whom
we consider stranger. Today we no
longer have autonomists or conserya-
tive, but only Cubans.
"My mission having ended, will
absent myself temporarily, to embrace
my family but I will return shortly
to Cuba which I love as much as my
own land.
"My last words for my soldiers are
that, as always, where my tent is the
Cubans have friend"