The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1900-09-16
Gu A'S TRUE AIMS.
4 Letter From Senior yarona Declininx 10 De
ConsututIonaI DELEGATE.

Senior Enrique jose varona. Gen. Woods
Secretary OF Public Instruction. has recently
written a letter declining the request Of his
admirers In the Province OF Puerto Principe TO
represent them In the coming Constitutional
Assembly. Ii is one Of the broadest-gauged
productions yet issued by any Cuba states
man. He looks the situation squarely In the
face without blinking and. divcsting himself
OF all prejudice, tells his countrymen some
plain truths. He declines to serve In the Con-
stitutional Convention because he sees only
too plainly that his views are utterly antaeo-
nistio to those OF the people VINO would have
him represent them They believe In imme-
diate absolute independence. He sees the
futiity of such hopes and he refuses TO make
himself a martyr to public Indignation when
he knows his martydom will be OF no avail.
Senior varona has long been recognized AZ
a. one Of Cuba's leaders. He Ia a Jourra list
by profession and as late as the early part OF
Gen. Brooke's Governorship Of the island was
editor Of La Pdtria. His letter follows:
Gen AZ. Ramos. President Of he Republican
Portt, Puerto Principe;
DEAR SIR AND FELLOW CITIZEN; ] am
Indebted to our Camaguey for many tokens
OF affection and confidence, but none has
moved me as much as this one brought TO mo
by your telegram. Long hours of anxious
meditations have elapsed before answering
TO beg a deferment. During their course 1
have felt that my spirit was weighed down
more and more by he gravity az this situation.
which. being Obscure In itself. has been rem
dered more uncertain and perilous by nearly
two years OF blind forGetfulness OF reality.
You desire that ! will represent your people
In the National Convention. More than u
month AGO many respectable fellow citizens,
YOU among them. wrote TO me with the pro-
posal. answered. e~Ncusng my self and prom
iaed to write to them clearly and distinctly. You
now insist and the occasion has arrived to state
my point Of view which makes me feel that |
lack strength for the enormous task.
Far from believing, like many prominent
mon Of the Revolution. that the. American In
[I ooEe ,'i TPon ma" It az tie inevitable result Of the
Ever since the, United States. arrived q, the
the Cuban question almost Ike a domestic AZ
fair and theiiL dlpl1n aGy Its rtoceedee sc-
tho European Powers. hut for the most mart
with their acquicscencc. Spain not being able
to resist that permanent pressure. even when It
"By vIrno 81 what riehtg nv that Of their
enormous social and politica' strenstl by
virtue ", tho, r'ghi thai, as naiurali2ed Bel,
limits 70 the independence ~ tho. 9 two sta, "a.
that sane right that held back victorious Turkey
so that Il should not crush Greece and that NO
vented the Canadians from a%nneSins the Hellenic
and forcing them to be content with
an AUTONOMOUS government under the su1cr-
aint" OF the Porte ~ that same right that
krnps Bosnia and Herzegovina with Us million
and y half ~ inhabitants under the administra-
ton Of Auslril-Hungarv
"a nght lint springs from the solidarity
- modern nations. whose nHf'rGl md Tora
iutrr'sta are ~ blended to-day, that none Of
them cen constitute Itself IN "a sci RTate world
ard n mus -ufcr l'ssnni = o thei t~heore'l-
cal indcr rndpnCa, p"cHu.c all arc irdeIondent
The Intervention carr because IL hnd to
becEus" I hho been ANNOUNCED ever
declared TINT II could rot elbow q Coun-
try in Ierm0neut iusurrrCtion nj It's doors.
And II would only have failed to come If W.,
the Cubars, should have had enough str, ngtf
20 v~anquish SIain rnd driv, her cut ~ 0ur
territory, Or II Srnin had enough foresight 10
agree IN time with the CubHnS Neither the
one thing nor the other occurred. and the
United States in;ervened with their land and