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"Cold steel did the grewsome work silently and mercilessly, sending many a poor lad of Castile to his end.
"Imagine the conditions for a moment, Hal, and you too, Gerald and Dora. You all know what a thick forest is like, for the 'Barn' in Florida is built in the midst of the jungle. Think what it must be to be weary with trudging along a path thick with mud; to be footsore, drenched to the skin, and hungry; and then to be wounded by some unseen hand. No wonder that the Spanish troops died in their hundreds, poor lads! Scarcely able to crawl themselves, was it wonderful that the transport of food and ammunition was difficult? It was impossible, and I can tell you that, though the cruel machete accounted for many, exposure, want, and disease killed thousands more.
"It was a wearisome rebellion, and it, too, died a natural death in 1878.
"And now to bring you and my tale to more modern times. Following peace came renewed prosperity, and with it myself, for it was then that I purchased a plantation. As I became acquainted with the ins and outs of the island life, I learned that the appearance of tranquillity was false after all. Discontent was manifest everywhere, and matters were beginning to wear an ugly look. Factions were openly at work stirring up the people; and of these, one clamored for a system of home government under Spanish guidance, while the other would have none of it, and openly advocated a free Cuba Cuba for its native people, exempt from all interference.
"I need not tell you that the haughty, careless officials who had come from the home country formed another party, which sneered at all things native, and, mindful of the fat purses to be made from their several appointments, cried loudly for military rule, less consideration and less conciliation, and, as a change, a tighter grip of the hand which had already cost Spain so dear.
"It is wasting breath to recount what happened. Of course, discontent grew to active rebellion, till the island was once more swept by fire and sword. To describe every detail of this new insurrection would be wearisome, for it has dragged on ever since, and not once has there been anything in the way of a battle. Minor skirmishes have been the order of the day; in fact, it has simply been guerrilla warfare.
"On the Spanish side the main scheme has been to divide the island into three parts, and so separate the rebels. For this purpose two continuous lines of forts, called 'trochas,' have been constructed. They stretch from north to south, cutting Cuba into three long strips. You will see one as we drive from Santiago to our destination, but I may tell you that they are of enormous strength, that a double fence of barbed wire protects a road cut through the jungle, and that along the latter innumerable forts have been erected, while a railway stretches from end to end.
"But these trochas have proved almost useless. The enormous force at the disposal of the general is swamped in garrisoning them, while the mortality is very high. And the insurgents are more active than ever. Trains are blown up with dynamite, the trochas cut, and the men in the forts forever harassed.
"And now I come to the stage in the rebellion which is the real cause of trouble with America. Determined to conquer, the insurgents have adopted the custom of burning the villages, so as to force those who were wavering, or who were faint-hearted, to throw in their lot with them. In addition, they have taken to destroying plantations, thus depriving the working classes of the means of livelihood. This naturally led to much misery and hardship, but the condition was as nothing when compared with that produced by the Spanish general, Weyler, who now came on the scene. Finding that the peaceful laborer of to-day was the insurgent of yesterday, he ordered all living in the country to come into the towns, a concentration order excellent in its intentions, but heartlessly carried out. Thousands were congregated together and starved literally and actually starved. There was no method in feeding them and looking to their well-being. The Spanish authorities had made utterly inadequate provision for them, and as a consequence they sickened and died in their thousands.
"And there you have the cause of trouble between Spain and America. My adopted brethren have warm hearts beneath a calm exterior, and their sympathy for the poor Cubans is deep. They resent this perpetual bloodshed occurring so
close to their coast as a slur upon their humanity; and they demand, for the sake of all, that it be put a stop to. Correspondence has passed between the governments, and seeing that America means business, Spain has promised to amend, and do her utmost to end the sad condition of affairs. As an assurance of the truth of her words and the honesty of her intentions, she has dispatched a warship to New York, and the unfortunate Maine was here on a similar friendly errand.
"And she was blown up by a mine. There were two definite and distinct explosions: the first produced beneath the keel of the ship, and the second in her forward magazine. That is my opinion, and others share it. I am sorry even to think it possible, and I say now, that it is my firm belief that Spaniards in general are too honorable, too chivalrous to attempt such a dastardly deed. But there are black sheep in every flock, and some inhuman scoundrel has this night sent numbers of his fellow-men to an untimely end, and at the same time has, in all probability, plunged two countries into war, the ultimate consequences of which one cannot even dream of."