The sun., 1900-07-20
CABINET CONSIDERS CHINA.
PROVISION MADE FOR DEALING WITH
THE SITUATION.

| WASHINGTON. Juiv ta-President Mckinley
| left here for Canton tonight at 745 o'clock
! over the pennsvlvania l,nes and will arrive at
his home at about 10 o'clock to-morrow morn
inx. lie wus acoompanled by Private Secre-
,ary Cortelvou. Col Webb uaves and his
| pepbew william, Rarbour sscretary Root.
Postmaster -(;ene, n, smith and Adiutant-Gen
! eral Corbin saw the President of. Before
starting the President had the satisfaction Of
knowing that ali DOS ,ible provision has been
made for dealing with The present Chinese sit
uation. Early In the day there was a Cabinet
session. folio wed by an informal luncheon, at
tended by al the members and also by Gen.
| Leonard Wood. No important information
bearing on the Chinese question. official or
otherwis that has not already been made
| Iublic. was laid before the meeting. The sub
| jects formally discussed were.
First-The preparations being made by the
War Department for burryinR troops 10 China
Second-Ths situation in Cuba. with es pecial
| reference to withdraw wing troops from there
| for China service and of the preliminary steps
look M TO the holding OF a const tuto nal con-
vention and the ultimate establishment OF q
constitutional government by the Cuban peo-
| PIE.
Third-The appointment Of W. W. Rockhill,
chief Of the Bureau Of American Republics,
TO be special diplomatic agent OF the Govern
ment in China.
Fourth-The appointment OF Gen. Chafee to
be a Major General and the instructions 10 be
given him a. commander Of the troops In the
China service
The fact that the Cabinet meeting continued
SO long beyond the usual time gave rise to all
sorts Of more or less wild reports as TO what
was done and said. one announcement being
that II was decided to withdraw all troops from
Cuba and at the end OF eight months to leave
the Cuban people free to set up a government
OF their own without any military assistance
from the Unit d States No such determina-
tion as this was reached, nor was there any
formal discussion as TO the definite time when.
II ever all military support should be with
drawn from Cuba.
Gen Wood explained TO the Cabinet members
at length the conditions. civil. military, COM
mercial. social and industrial. In Cuba, and
gave information as to the preparations that
are being made for the holding OF consti-.
tutional convention and the establishment OF
free government He did not express an
opinion as TO when all military assistance should
be withdrawn. nor was the question asked Of
him The Administration has not yet reached
the point Of formally considering this matter,
and II is very well known that the Senatorial
committee who visited Cuba last Spring are
unanimously of the opinion that when the time
comes for removing entirely the military forces
OF the Government from Cuba the time will
havc arrived for the annexation OF the island
10 the United States.
Secretary Root took I'D large share Of the
time during the Cabinet meeting in explaining
In detail the rrangements that have beer made
for sending troops to China, and In the course
Of his statement he expressed the hope that NIL
will have Ian ded In China by the ist of October.
There was some informal talk about the effect
of the alleged declaration of war by Russia
against China. but no member OF the Cabinet
attempted to conceal his d sbelief Of the stats-
ment that war has actually been declared or
that Russia ha decided 20 declare IL II seemed
IN be the opnon OF the Cabinet members that
~ war should be declared IL would not n.ces-
sarily cause the Powers 10 Withdraw their
,roop, and leave Russia alone 10 f,pht the
Chinese. although IL might embarrass than
slightly under the circumstances,
There was no discussion at the Cabinet meat
ing Of the cable reports from Rome IN the
effect that the French Government had nro-
nosed an international agreement between thu
Powers on the Chinese question and that presi-
dent Mckinley hesitated to join with the other
nations in this agreement The reports were
not discussed because they are not believed to
be true. The Administration officials ara nat
urally indIsposed to furnish direct informa.
ton as 10 what negotiations are, tak-
ing place between tho Powers with re-
card 10 the settlement of the Chinese question
but those who have kno wledge OF what is going
on do not hesitate to say that the dispatches
above referred TO have their origin in Ignorance
Of what ia really being said and done. There Ia
no Misunderstanding as TO the attitude and
policy of the United States. for that was fully
set forth In the State Depar :ments note Of july
2, published in the newspaper press of july II.
and the responses that have come to the state
Department show that practical harmony
exists among all the nations concerned The
various proposals Of the Powers TO one another
concerning their jo nj action in China are being
discussed, but according to the highest possi-
bic auth ority no information has been received
here to Justify the statement that France 4.
endeayoring to have an agreement entered into
at this time for a settlement of the Chinese
question while the Powers are ignorant
as TO whether they are TO be involved in a
war with the Chinese Government or not. The
United States Government would hardly be
Justified in hesitating to give its views In re-
gard to any proposals In view Of the fact that
they were 90 clearly set forth In Secretary
- y,,,u .hi. Mil ii.