Waterbury evening Democrat., 1906-10-09
CUBAN SITUATION.
ls More Serious than Appears or
 Surface, says Army Officer.

Surface, says Army Officer.
 Washington, D. C., October 9-"Cu- ba is face to face with very serious situation. If the Liberal party, rep resenting the reyolutionists should be successful ill the general elections which 1t is proposed to hold, it will means negro domination in the island -the very thing the best people of the island have been ! trying to avert since republic wAs erected fn Cuba"
 This statement was made by prominent army officer who had an extended experience in Cuba during the first American occupation of the island. For obvious reasons his name cannot be used; but he speaks Spanish like native; is thoroughly familiar with the social and political situation and is acquainted personally with every prominent man-liberal or moderate-in Cuba. His judgment is backed by other army officers who have had Cuban experience. It can be said that every one of them take a pessimistic view of the present situation on the island and that ev- cry one of them believes the Ameri- can army is there to remain for T long-perhaps, for very long, time.
 Nobody who has not been in Cuba and studied conditions there at close range" continued the officer ..can form any intelligent idea of the situation. In this country. to the south of the Potomac river, the blacks are not permitted to dominate politi- cal affairs. The whites will not stand for negro domination and that is all there is to it. In Cuba, condi- tiOns, material and social, are far worse than they are in our South. The lowest class of negroes in Cuba Is immeasurably inferior to the low est class of blacks we have in the south. They are absolutely shiftless, worthless and irresponsible. To place them in positions of power would be calamity that, eventually, would carry the government of Cuba to ruin.
 '.Of course, if general elections are held, at which all these people are permitted to participate-and 1 may say that in that participation they would be dominated by rascally and interruptions leaders-the so-called libeEal party probably will be success ful, and negroes will fill most of the offices of the government We shall have, then, another edition of Santo
 Domingo and Haiti at our very doors with a never-ending prospect of se- rious trouble.
 We who have come into direct contact with these people cannot un- derstand why our government. should promise. through Secretary Taft. at this early stage of intervention, that our occupation of the island will be only temporary There may be req sons of state of which we know noth- ing for assuming this attitude, but, necessarily, it is impossible yet to tell what the result of our intervention may be. In week we may have se- rious trouble in Cuba. Those recalci- trants down there cannot be depended on for twenty-four hours. Jose Miguel Gomez, Jesus Monteaguedo and oth- CTS of their stripe are likely to raise disturbance at any moment. They have lot of followers, too. who could kNt uS dll. uuiouill VI tloubit.
 "Why, is It., that we are spreading marines all over the island, if every thing is lovely; why is General Bell. the commanding officer of the entire American army, ordered to Cuba In a hurry: why is Judge Magoon.- one of the strongest men in the country, suddenly switched from his most i'm portant appointment in the Philip pines to be provisional governor of Cuba? The questions answer them selves. The situation is far more se- rious than the country is being taught to believe. We probably shall be In Cuba for long period. No gen eral elections will be held, in all like lihood, until far into next spring even if a disturbance should not meantime be raised: and after that we shall have to supervise the new government for a year or more. When we finally get sout-if we ever do-we shall be confronted with the constant fear of trouble, for 1t is certainty that the oil and water of those races down there will not mix. One or the other can be depended on 10 make row. The result will be that the restraining hand of the American government never. with safety, can be lifted from C,tha [.