Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1910-09-23

thls book. How gloomy the outlook was ia set
loitn n grapmcaly in confidential letter from
Cen Martinez Campos to Canovas de, Castillo
prime minister of Spain.
Although from the very first l
ieanZed the gravity of the situation I refused to
peheve 1t; my visits in Cuba Principe and Hol.
gin appalled, me; however in order not to appear
pesslmistc, did not express all my thoughts and
i decided to visit not only the maritime commun
ties. but the towns in the interior The few Span
lards who live In the island do not dare to men,
tion their origin except in the cities The rest
Oh the population hates Spain. Wherever you pass
farm and ask the women where their husbands
are, they answer with terrifying frankness: In
the mountains with Chief So and So'
You could not get anyone to carry a message
tor 900 nor 1000 pesetas; he would be hanged If
he were ever caught.
The rebels who charged Weyler with wanton
cruelty seldom restrained themselves from accom-.
plishing deeds of violence likely to terrorize the
few remaining supporters of the Spanish rule To
quote Weyler
"The insurgents did not return in any way the
cousiderate treatment accorded to them by this
generous commander (Martinez Campos) At the
beginning OF the war Maxine Gomez showed him.
self very fair; but Maceo, shall prove by a,i-
thentic documents, ordered his bands to set fire
to all the sugar mills whose owners were not pay
Ing war tribute, to plunder and loot the country
to Shoot mercilessly all the messengers men
caught repairing railroad lines or bringing pro.
visions into the villages Worse yet: The insur.
gent chiefs did not hesitate to kill with their own
weapons defenseless islanders, and Maxine Co
mez in his Memories confesses to having shot
personally man he had sentenced to DEATH
deed which / call willful murder And still that
individual pre5umes to call assassin"
AS his authority for the foregoing statement
General Weyler not only quotes extracts from the
Cuban papers but appends proclamation of
Maceo, Gomezs lieutenant, to his bands.
Comrades in Arms: Destroy, destroy every
thing, day and night to blow up bridges to derai
trains, to burn up villages and sugar mills, to
annihilate Cuba is the only way to defeat our ene
miles, We have not to account for our conduct
to anyone. Diplomacy, public opinion and history
don't matter. 1t would be sheer insanity to seek
the laurels of the battlefield to bear the fire Of
the enemy's artillery and contribute to the glory
of the Spanish commanders. The essential thing
is to convince Spain that Cuba will be but a heap
of ruins What compensation will she receive
then for the sacrifice entaed by the campaign +?
We must burn and everything It would be
folly to fight as though an European
army. Where rifles of avail let dynamite
do the work. A. MACEO."
The only way to subdue such bloodthirsty. des-
-perate pirates was to adopt their tactics. The
insurgents, of their admission, never gave
nor accepted battle, but harassed the regulars and
destroyed their sources of supply. "Concentra-
ton" seemed to be the only solution Of the prob
lem. for the wives and children of the insurgents