The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1900-02-27
DREAMING THE cuBANs.

The voice of universal national approval
has continued to be heard concerning all
that We have done and avoided In our
administration of affairs in the island Of
Cuba. But now and again note of dis
sent is heard, and complaint and criticism
are INDUCED in quite freely.
1t is feature of all this criticism that
1t is not so much criticism of American
methods as Of Cuban. 1t all runs to the
Idea that we should handle things our
selves in our own way, since we must
handle them at ALL and leave the Cuhans
out of the case altogether According to
these critics the Cubans are as incapa BILE
and corrupt as their Spanish masters,
and they should be excluded entirely
from the conduct of affairs. This line
of comment on Cuban affairs is not at all
as largely INDUCED in as it was during
the early months of our control in Cuba.
But it is more insistent, and, on the sur
face at least, has more to sustain it. But
1t is the same in origin and motive. The
underlying thought is that there never
can be enduring peace and prosperity in
Cuba until We give up the delusive idea
that the Cubans have the slightest dis
position to establish representative in
situations the island with or without
our help.
The strongest instance of this resort
to special pleading by the enemies of
Cuban autonomy, who seek to promote
annexation without having courage or d.
rection to avow their purposes, is fur
nished in a recent article in the North
American Review, by Maj J. E. Runcie.
That gentleman does not hesitate to as
sumo responsibility for the following very
sweeping statement:
ut may be stated, in brief, that wfer-
ever Cubans, under nominal American
control, have been trusted to exercise the
, functions OF government, the result has
been worse than failure. The courts are
corrupt and incompetent; the police
forces are hopelessly inefficient; the pub
lie schools are unorganized; the munich
paiitieS are all bankrupt dependents on a
political machine; the Offices of govern
ment.. high and low. are filed very large
~. with unworthy and incompetent off,
Gals: the laws, the courts and the meth
DDS of procedure are unreformed: and.
finally, almost every abuse against which
Cubans rebelled and to remedy which the
United States interviewed is In Operation
today under American authority
This is a very broad indictment of ma
tive officials under the American system.
The man who drew 1t, however, has made
the very familiar mistake of the over
Jealous advocate: He has proven too
much Ha qeeks to ec+ahlist 49, -
only conditions which Cubans are capable
of creating in the administration of gov
crnmental affairs are those against which
they rebelled. What strange race the
Cubans must be- If this is to be seriously
thought of them.
Maj. Runcie may not regard himself as
holding brief for the jobbers of the ad-
ministration who want to get their
as they now have 1t on the windpipe of
the Philippines But he is, none the less.
advocating the cause of this gentry as
stoutly as If he had
But, after all, Maj Runcie and his set
do not count American public sentiment
has accepted the statements of Gen.
Wood as to the ability and disposition
of the Cuban natives to assume the work
of public administration, and 1t has de-
clared IN favor of their having the op-
portunity to sustain the claims of Gen.
Wood afforded to them as soon as the
preparatory work is done which is neces-
sary to transferring to them the abb
folute control of the affairs of their own
government.