Daily inter mountain. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1881-1901, 1901-04-01
CUBANS COMlNG
DELEGATES TO TALK OVER THE
CONSTITUTION.
WANT TO SEE THE PRESIDENT
But Congress Alone Has Power to
Change Provisions OF the Plat !:
Amendment.

New York. April IA special to the
Tribune from Washington says:
1t Is believed in administration circles
ehat within day or two the Cuban con-
su'utlonal convention will appoint d
special commission to come to Wash;g-
ton for the purpose of consulting, =. q
president and cabinet about modifyins
some of the conditions of the Piatl
amendment. Though the convention at
havana has been discussing the advsa-
billty of this move for about a week. Il
was not until yesterday that official in
formation on this subject reached WASH
lngton. 1t the visit it made by the Gu
pans 1t Will have to be done within the
next two weeks. The president and
cabinet will leave Washington on April
20 for the Pacific coast, and will na
away six weeks. 1t is thought that tie
Cuban visitors would want at least
week or ten days in which to exchange
views with the president and his adj
vlsers. so If they desire to take up the
subject before the summer is we'll al
vanced they will have to come here BY
the middleof the month.
If the Cubans ask for the elimination
from the Plat amendment of the pro.
visions for naval stations and the right
of this country to intervene for the
| preservation of peace and order tho :,
will be disappointed, because the admin
istration has neither the authority nor
| the disposition to modify the act Of con-
gress defining what ought to be the rea-
tions between Cuba and the United
States 1t is believed. however. that the
visit of the Cubans would be productive
| of much good in an educational way
They could obtain from President Nc
kinley and others competent to speak
for the government an assurance of this
countrys beneficent aims toward Cuba
a guarantee that neither in spirit nor i'm
| tent does the Plat amendment contain
anything that should be construed as a
| yelled purpose to establish protectorate
| over Cuba in the meaning of that word
| in the international code.
| At the same time it is thought to be
| possible to subserve the same object
| through another device which may make
| unnecessary the visit to Washington by
| committee of the constitutional con-
! vention. Considerable literature for pub
| LEGATION in Cuban newspapers has been
| sent to the island in the last few days
| by high officials at Washington. This
! literature deals frankly with the subject
and interprets seriatim the provisions Ce
| the Plat at endment When this litera-
| ture has been disseminated in Spanish
among all classes of Cubans it is con-
| f1dently believed that it will have such
a quoting effect that the convention at
| Havana can with safety to the political
future of it's members, ratify the Platt
! amendment. Still no objection is urgel
| in Washington against the proposed
visit of the Cuban committee, and If the
convention decides on this course, as
now seems probable. Governor General
Wood may be instructed to place an
army transport at the service of the cons
| mittee selected, and the visitors will be
treated with marked official courtesy
when they arrive here.