The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1901-02-25

preme command of our armies. but
such work as there was 10 do he did
with commendable thor0trxiness. He
was promoted as the result ofrhis short
though brilliant campaigns To be brig
adler general OF volunteers. aud shortly
after was appointed military governor
OF santiago province. ~ this capacity
he showed his superb skill as an organ
lzer' and his medical experience came
into play particularly in the cleansing
OF the horribly fllthy city of Santiago
and the practical stamping out OF
smallpox and yellow fever. lie sup
pressed the hands OF bandits in the
mountains. created work for the Gu
bans by opening roads, laying down
sewers asphaltjng and macadamizing
streets, building hospitals and renovat-
ing and regenerating generally this pie
turesque city which for centuries OF
Spanish misrule had been stewing and
steamins I'm its own excretions.
1t cannot be denied that the example
OF one man like General Wood was "A
tower of strength 20 our government
when IL was laboring 20 bring about
settled condition of affairs I'm distracted
Cuba. All eastern cuba became peace
able and prosperous. the vagrant SOL
diers OF the erstwhile Cuban army gave
up their arms and settled down 10 la
Dor on the plantations, while the rev.
enues from this rich region soon ex-
ceeded the expenditures, vast as they
were. In his capacity as military gov
ernor OF Santiago General Wood had
shown himself possessed OF executive
ability of "A high order and when In the
process of pacflcation and reorganiza-
finn II hannrrar 70 a
man TO supersede General Brooke at
Havana as governor general no other
appeared SO well qualified for the high
position as Wood.
1t may be recalled in this connection
that Cuba has now been under the mil
itary control Of the United States since
December. 1898. and that II is Just two
wears since the treaty OF peace between
Spain and the United States was rati-
fed by our senate. BY the provisional
military occupation OF Cuba the United
States became responsible for the pres
ervation of order and the protection OF
life and property. The island was di-
vided into seven military districts, each
IN charge of a military governor. with
a governor general at Havana. The
first governor general was General
John r. Brooke. and at the time of the
Spanish evacuation there were but
"a 900 United States troops in the is
land. One-thied of the population. 1t
was estimated. had been wiped out by
war and famine. the "reconcentrados"
were still huddled together in the towns
and cities and on every side were dis
ease and desolation.
General Brooke had rendered the mill
itary character of the government as
inconspicuous as possible but political
complications arose which required a
diplomat--a man OF tact and executive
force. General Wood succeeded Gem
eral Brooke I'm the autumn of 1890 and
exerted all his energies 10 soothe the
excited "Cubanos," at the same time
maintaining firm grip on govern
mental affairs. He has steered them
through the turbulent seas of their con
stitutional convention and dexterously
avoided the rocks upon which another
perhaps, might have run the Cuban
ship OF state. His tact is admirable
his courage superb. his administrative
faculties OF a high order. and I'm no po-
sition in which he has been placed has
he failed TO realize expectations. And
yet all this may be said without dispar-
agement of any other official. civil or
military. who has been called TO the
front during the recent war It has
been repeatedly shown that at different
crises in our country's history there
has always been n man for the emer-
gency. and this is the most encourag-