Fergus County argus. [volume] (Lewistown, Mont.) 1886-1946, 1901-02-20
fer0us County Hrgns.
PUBLISHED WEEKLY BY
JOHN N. VROOMAN, Editor aud Proprietor.
HALSEY R. WATSON, Business Manager.
TINE CUBAN SITUATION.

congress has had TO decide is that nov
troubling the minds OF statesmen
"What shall be lone with Cuba?"
Shall the American troops be at ono,
withdrawn and Cuba left 10 drift about
and battle with the waves of adversely,
Or shall this government insist upor
maintaining a sufficient hold to guild,
the young republic for n few years, o
until the people of that country have
firmly and intelligently graspcd the
reins of sclf-goyernmcnt?
That Cubans should 80 Soon have for
gotten their great debt To- this country
is not very surprising when il is re-
membcred that they are Of Spanish
descent.
But this country went 10 war Il free
Cuba from Spanish rule. More than
fifty million dollars were directly spent
and many times that sum indirectly,
The lives OF thousands ofits youth were
placed in jeopardy and the marks of
that service will not be- cfracedin a gen
Grafton. We have assumed over SEA-
DOC, 900 of claims arising thcrcfrom and
by statesmen saved Cuba from hay
ing To meet that immense bonded in
debtedness which Spain sought oplace
upon her shoulders. Foryears the con
dition of affairs in Cuba had been a
menace to America. The breeding
there of the germs of yellow fever
placed every southeastern port in
danger.
Having driven the Spaniard into the
sea, defeated in a few weeks an enemy
which the Cubans themselves could not
have whipped in years, having clcansed
their cities and their harbors, estab.
lished popular government in their
towns and villages, instituted schools
for the education of their children. sup
pressed lawlcSsncss and brought order
out of the general chaos resulting from
years of civil strife, this government is
now TO he told to get out. turn every.
thing over to the Cubans themselves
and take the same chances concerning
future relations ms any other nation.
This is Cuban gratitude.
The mischievous resolution intro
duced by senator Teller declaring that
the Cubans ARE and Of right ought to
be free and independent, adopted by
congress while under a spell, is now
being cited by Democrats and Repub.
licans as pointing out the proper course
for this country TO pursue. Get out of
Cuba, leave them TO themselves, let
them incur all the indebtedness they
want TO, make their own treaties. sell
their islands il they choose, quarrel
among themselves, bread more disease.
endanger the Monroe doctrine, do any
thing and everything they please-this
is to be the result of that sentimental.
ism.
The Cuban constitutional convention,
called by order Of the president of these
United States, was requested to formu-
late the relations which Cuba should
bear TO this country. But that conven-
ton has about closed its labors, and
they have not done that one thing
which this country rightfully requested
and expected it to do.
The Cubans are a people much like
those who go to make up the republics
in South America, where a revolution
is always in progress. For their first
president the %adventurer, Gomez-not
even a Cuban-is the leading candidate.
All this country desires is that some
guarantee be given that peace with
other nations will be maintained, that
immense values in bonds will not be
fioated which may afford the creditor
an excuse for interference in Cuban
affairs, that something will be done
toward ~repaying this country for its
great expenditures, that n or two
naval stations may be permitted us and
that the boards of health will continue
TO give as good service in the future as
in the past eighteen months. The first
two of these requests and the last are
made more for the protection Of the
Cubans themselves than for this coun-
try: the third and fourth are but justly
due us and not at all unreasonable.
But neither the administration nor
congress can afford to refuse to accept
the Cuban constitution as framed by