Our War with Spain for Cuba's Freedom

Again at War with a Foreign Power-Spain's Significant Flag-

Three Years Without an American Flag in Cuban Waters-Visit of the

Maine to Havana Harbor-The Maine Blown Up by Submerged Mine-

Action of President and Congress-Spain Defies America-Martial

Spirit Spreading-First Guns Are Fired-Cuban Ports Blockaded-

Many Spanish Ships Captured-Excitement in Havana-Spain and the

United States Both Declare War-Internal Dissension Threatens

Spain-President McKinley Calls a Volunteer Army.

Civilization against barbarism, freedom against oppression, education against ignorance, progress against retrogression, the West against the East, the United States against Spain. In this cause the flag of freedom was again unfurled in the face of a foreign foe, and our nation entered war against the people of another land, carrying the star spangled banner through successive victories in the name of liberty and humanity.

It is a proud banner, which stands the whole world over for freedom and right, with few stains of defeat or injustice upon its folds. The great heart of the nation swelled with pride at the righteousness of the cause, with an assurance that eternal history would praise America for the unselfish work. On land and sea the boys in blue gave new fame to the flag, and their proud record in the past was more than justified by the honors that they won.

Two wars with Great Britain and one with Mexico were the more notable predecessors of this conflict with Spain. If to these should be added the hostilities between the United States and the Barbary pirates of Algiers, Morocco and Tripoli, and the scattered brushes with two or three Oriental and South American countries, the list might be extended. But those affairs are not remembered as wars in the true sense of the word.

Except for protection against Indian outbreaks, the United States had been at peace for thirty years, when the war cloud began to loom in the horizon. It was with a full realization of the blessings of peace that the American people yielded to the demands, of humanity and righteous justice, to take up arms again in the cause of liberty. There was no haste, no lack of caution, no excited plunge into hostilities without proper grounds. The nation made sure that it was right. An intolerable condition of affairs resulting from years of agony in a neighbor island, with half a dozen immediate reasons, any one sufficient, was the absolute justification for this holy war.

Spain is the Turk of the West. Spain is an obsolete nation. Living in the past, and lacking cause for pride to-day, she gloats over her glorious explorations and her intellectual prowess of the middle ages when much of Europe was in darkness. Then Spain's flag led pioneers throughout the world. But her pride was based on achievements, many of which, to the people of any other nation, would have been the disgrace of its history. No indictment of Spain can ever be more severe, more scathing, if its true significance be considered, than the famous phrase which one of her proudest poets created to characterize her flag of red and yellow.

"Sangre y oro," he said, "blood and gold-a stream of gold between two rivers of blood."

It is almost a sufficient characterization to indicate the whole national spirit of Spain, to recall that this phrase is the proud expression used by the Spanish people to glorify their own flag. That sentiment is in no stronger contrast to the American phrase, "the star-spangled banner," than are the people of Spain to the people of the United States.

"REMEMBER THE MAINE."

From the day of the outbreak of the Cuban revolution, early in 1895, until nearly the end of January, 1898, there had been no flag of the United States seen in any harbor of Cuba except upon merchant vessels. Always before, it had been the policy of our government to have ships of war make friendly calls in the harbors of all countries of the world at frequent intervals, and Cuban waters had shared these courtesies.

So careful were the officers of the Cleveland administration to avoid the appearance of offense or threat against the authority of Spain, with which we were living in amity, that immediately upon the outbreak of hostilities in Cuba this practice was suspended, so far as it applied to that island. Our ships cruised through the oceans of the world and called at all ports where they were not needed, but the waters of Havana harbor for three years were never disturbed by an American keel.

Out of deference to the expressed wishes of the local Spanish authorities in Havana, Dr. Burgess, the splendid surgeon of the United States Marine Hospital service in Havana, who for thirty years has guarded our southern ports from the epidemics of yellow fever and smallpox, which would invade us annually as a result of Spanish misgovernment in Cuba, except for his watchfulness, ceased flying the American flag on his steam launch, by means of which he carried out his official duties in those foul waters. The American flag was a disturbing influence upon the minds of the Cubans who might see it flashing in the clear sunlight of the tropic sky, suggested the Captain General.

It must have been the language of diplomacy that was in mind, when the satirist explained that "language was intended as a medium for concealing thought." President McKinley, in his message to Congress transmitting the report of the naval board concerning the catastrophe to the Maine, explained that for some time prior to the visit of the battle-ship to Havana harbor, it had been considered a proper change in the policy, in order to accustom the people to the presence of our flag as a symbol of good will. The decision to send the vessel to that harbor was reached, it was explained, after conference with the Spanish minister, and, through our diplomats, with the Spanish authorities at Madrid and Havana. It was declared that this intention was received by the Spanish government with high appreciation of the courtesy intended, which it was offered to return by sending Spanish ships to the principal ports of the United States.

We are bound to accept this expression from the officials on both sides as frankly indicative of their feelings. But it is just as necessary to recognize that to the mass of the people in both countries, the significance of the Maine's courtesy call was very different. Americans believed that it indicated a changed policy on the part of the national government at Washington which would be more strenuous and more prompt in resenting outrages against the life and property of American citizens in Cuba. The people of the Cuban republic believed that the change meant an expression of sympathy and friendship for their cause, with probable interference in their behalf, and took courage from that sign. Finally, the people of Spain resented the appearance of the Maine in the harbor of Havana as an affront, and a direct threat against them and in favor of the insurgents. If the policy of making frequent calls in warships had never been interrupted, they would not have had this sentiment in the matter, but the resumption of the practice after three years' cessation, carried a threat with it in their minds.

TREACHEROUS DESTRUCTION OF THE MAINE.

The Maine entered the harbor of Havana at sunrise on the 25th of January and was anchored at a place indicated by the harbor-master. Her arrival was marked with no special incident, except the exchange of customary salutes and ceremonial visits. Three weeks from that night, at forty minutes past nine o'clock in the evening of the 15th of February, the Maine was destroyed by an explosion, by which the entire forward part of the ship was wrecked. In this frightful catastrophe 264 of her crew and two officers perished, those who were not killed outright by the explosion being penned between decks by the tangle of wreckage and drowned by the immediate sinking of her hull.

In spite of the fact that the American public was urged to suspend judgment as to the causes of this disaster, and that the Spanish authorities in Havana and in Madrid expressed grief and sympathy, it, was impossible to subdue a general belief that in some way Spanish treachery was responsible for the calamity. With the history of Spanish cruelty in Cuba before them, and the memory of Spanish barbarities through all their existence as a nation, the people could mot disabuse their minds of this suspicion.

One month later this popular judgment was verified by the finding of the naval court of inquiry which had made an exhaustive examination of the wreck, and had taken testimony from every available source. With this confirmation and the aroused sentiment of the country concerning conditions in Cuba, the logic of events was irresistibly drawing the country toward war with Spain, and all efforts of diplomacy and expressions of polite regard exchanged between the governments of the two nations were unable to avert it.

For a few weeks, history was made rapidly. Conservative and eminent American senators visited Cuba in order to obtain personal information of conditions there, and upon their return, gave to Congress and to the country, in eloquent speeches, the story of the sufferings they had found in that unhappy island. The loss of the Maine had focused American attention upon the Cuban situation as it had never been before, and though there were no more reasons for sympathetic interference than there had been for many months, people began to realize as they had not before, the horrors that were being enacted at their thresholds.

The sailors who died with the Maine, even though they were not able to fight their country's foes, have not died in vain, for it is their death that will be remembered as the culminating influence for American intervention and the salvation of scores of thousands of lives of starving Cuban women and children. Vessels were loaded with supplies of provisions and clothing for the suffering and were sent to the harbors of Cuba, where distribution was made by Miss Clara Barton and her trusted associates in the American National Red Cross. Some of these vessels were merchant steamers, but others were American cruisers, and Cubans were not permitted to forget that there was a flag which typified liberty, not far away. The strain upon the national patience increased every day, and was nearing the breaking point.

PRESIDENT AND CONGRESS ACT.

After a period of restlessness in Congress which was shared by the whole country, the President finally transmitted an important message. It included a resume of the progress of the Cuban revolution from its beginning and considered in some detail the workings of that devastating policy of General Weyler, known as reconcentration. The message related the progress of diplomatic negotiations with Spain, and disclosed a surprising succession of events in which the Spanish government had submitted to various requests and recommendations of the American government. The message ended with a request that Congress authorize and empower the President to take measures to secure a full and final termination of the intolerable conditions on the island of Cuba. Having exhausted the powers of the executive in these efforts, it was left to the legislative authority of the American people to establish such policies as would be finally efficient.

Congress rose to the occasion. The facts were at command of both houses, their sympathies were enlisted at the side of their reason and there was little time lost in acting. The House and the Senate, after mutual concessions on minor details, passed as a law of the land for the President's signature, an act directing him and empowering him to require Spain to withdraw her troops and relinquish all authority over the island of Cuba. The President was authorized to employ the army and navy of the United States for the purpose of carrying into effect this instruction and the interference was directed to be made at once. Best of all, from the point of view of the Cuban patriots, the act declared that the people of Cuba are and ought to be free and independent. But a few days more of diplomacy, and war was to begin.

SPAIN DEFIES AMERICA.

It was hardly to be expected that the Spanish government and the Spanish people would yield to the demands of the United States without a protest. So feeble is the hold of the present dynasty upon the throne of Spain, that it was readily understood that any concession upon the part of the Queen Regent would arouse Spanish indignation beyond the limits of endurance. The Queen-mother had to think of her baby son's crown. If she were to yield to the superior power of the United States without a struggle, Spanish revolutionists would overthrow the dynasty before he could come to the throne. However well she might know that the logical outcome of a war would be overwhelming defeat to Spanish arms, political necessities compelled her to take the position dictated by Spanish pride.

The Spanish Cortes met in special session at Madrid, and on the 20th of April the Queen Regent delivered her speech before that legislative body and declared that her parliament was summoned in the hour of peril to defend her country's rights and her child's throne, whatever sacrifice might be entailed. It was on that same day that President McKinley presented the ultimatum of the United States to Spain, in language diplomatic in form, but carrying with it a definite notice to yield Cuba's freedom and relinquish her pretense of authority in that island without delay. A copy of the ultimatum was forwarded to the Spanish ambassador at Washington, Senor Polo y Bernabe, who responded by asking for his passports and safe conduct out of the country.

Having reached the point where diplomacy no longer availed, the Spanish government for the first time made an aggressive move against the United States. Instead of waiting for the transmission of the ultimatum by American Minister Stewart L. Woodford, the ministry forestalled him and dismissed him from Madrid without affording him an opportunity to present that important document. It had been transmitted to Madrid by cable from the Spanish Minister in Washington, and the government felt no need to wait for formal messages from the enemy's representative in Spain. Minister Woodford left Madrid without delay, and finally reached the French frontier, after being subjected to many insults and attacks upon his train during the journey from the Spanish capital.

MARTIAL SPIRIT SPREADING.

A wave of national patriotic enthusiasm swept over the United States. North and South, East and West, there was hardly a discordant note in the great chorus of fervent applause which rose when it was understood that at last the forces of the nation were to be united in the cause of liberty and humanity.

But sentiment could not fight battles, unless backed by material equipment. The nation was preparing for war. From all parts of the United States the troops of the regular army were hurried by special trains southeastward to camps at Chickamauga and Tampa. In every navy yard work was hurried night and day upon all incomplete battleships and cruisers. Already the fleets of the American navy had been concentrated at points of vantage so that little was left to be done on that score. Congress lost no time in providing the sinews of war by generous appropriations for the regular channels of supply, in addition to one passed by unanimous vote of both houses granting $50,000,000 as a special fund to be at the disposal of the President. The war appropriation bill and the naval appropriation bill carried with them emergency clauses. Preparations were made for the reorganization of the regular army to more than double its normal size, and the President was authorized to call for a volunteer army of 125,000 men. Looking to the future, and the possibility of a long and expensive conflict, financial measures were prepared which would raise war revenues through the regular channels of taxation and the issue of bonds. Americans were ready to put their hands in their pockets and pay for the privilege of teaching a worthy lesson to the world.

American sense of humor never fails, and even in this period of stress the people took time to smile over the story of the Spanish Minister's journey from Washington to Canada. In Toronto, Senor Polo sought to discredit the assaults that had been made on Minister Woodford's train in Spain, and related that he himself had been the victim of assaults at two or three important cities on his journey through New York, which threatened great danger to himself and the train on which he was riding.

Upon inquiry it was revealed that the assaults which had aroused his fear were not quite as hostile as he believed. At the division stations on the line, the railway employees, according to custom, passed along the cars, tapping the tires of the wheels with steel hammers to test them for a possible flaw or break in the wheel, and it was this that made the Spanish Minister believe that he was the victim of an American outrage.

FIRST GUNS ARE FIRED.

The United States cruiser Nashville of the North Atlantic squadron, with headquarters at Key West, had the honor of firing the first shot in our war with Spain.

Early on the morning of Friday, April 22, the American fleet sailed from Key West, and, steaming southward across the straits of Florida, came in sight of Havana and the frowning fortifications of Morro Castle before six o'clock the same afternoon.

The sailing of the fleet, as dawn was creeping over the Florida keys, was a beautiful sight and a significant one, for from the time the first signals were hoisted until many days after, there was hardly an hour of inactivity. It was at three o'clock in the morning that the signal lights began to flash from the New York, Admiral Sampson's flagship. Answering signals appeared on the warships all along the line, and in a few moments black smoke began to belch from the funnels of all the ships and the crews woke from quietness to activity.

As soon as day began to break, the cruisers and gunboats inside the harbor hoisted anchors and moved out to join the big battleships which were already lined outside the bar. At five o'clock, when all the fleet were gathered around the battleships, Captain Sampson signaled from the New York to go ahead. The formation of the line had been agreed upon some time before and each vessel was in position for line of battle, the New York in the center and the Iowa and Indiana on either beam. The ships presented a most beautiful appearance as they swept out on the ocean without a vestige of anything not absolutely necessary on the decks. They were stripped of all useless superstructure, awnings, gun-covers and everything that goes to adorn a ship. Officers paced the bridge, marines were drawn up on deck and every man was at his post. They appeared as they were, grim fighting machines, not naval vessels out on cruise nor a squadron of evolution and maneuver, but warships out for business.

FIRST SPANISH SHIP CAPTURED.

The fleet had proceeded twelve miles from Sand Key Light, which lies seven miles southeast of Key West, when the Nashville signaled the flagship that a vessel flying the Spanish colors had been sighted. Admiral Sampson signaled from the New York for the Nashville to go and take it. The Nashville bore down on the Spanish ship and fired a blank shot from the port guns aft. This did not stop the Spaniard, and, to give a more definite hint, a solid shot was fired close over its bows. The Spanish ship immediately hove to and waited to know its fate.

The vessel proved to be the Buena Ventura, with a crew of about thirty men, bound from Pascagonla to Rotterdam with a cargo of lumber, cattle and miscellaneous freight. As soon as possible a boat was lowered from the Nashville and an officer was sent aboard the Buena Ventura. When the Spanish captain was informed that his ship could not proceed, he took his capture gracefully, shrugged his shoulders, and said he supposed it was only the fortune of war. It was suggested to him that the capture of a ship bearing that name, which, translated, means "good fortune," as the first prize of the American fleet in the war, seemed to be a striking coincidence. A prize crew of marines under Ensign T. P. Magruder was placed aboard, and, with the Nashville in the lead, both ships set out for Key West.

Inasmuch as the Buena Ventura was the first capture by the American navy in the war, it had a more definite interest than a success of the same sort would have a few months later. The first shot was fired by Gunner Michael Mallia of the Nashville, who therefore has the distinction of firing the first shot in the war. The prize was a rich one, estimated to be worth, including vessel and cargo, nearly $500,000, and the prize money resulting became a tempting amount. Captain Washburne Maynard, commander of the Nashville, who gained the distinction of making the first capture, is a native of Knoxville, Tenn. He is a son of former United States Senator Horace Maynard, and at the time of the capture was about fifty years old. He entered the Annapolis Naval Academy at the age of seventeen and graduated at the head of his class. He was for a number of years stationed in Alaska, and at the time of gaining his present distinction had been in command of the Nashville for four years.

BLOCKADE OF HAVANA BEGUN.

After the Nashville left the fleet to return to Key West with its prize, the remaining vessels of the squadron steamed onward toward the Cuban coast. Coming within fifteen miles of Morro Castle, the fleet scattered in a more open line of battle, some of the vessels turning to the east and others to the west, and making the blockade of the port complete. No ship could enter or leave the harbor, and every day brought new prizes to the vessels of the blockading squadron.

The blockade of the Cuban metropolis was well in progress by the time the formal notification of it was issued. The President issued warning to the nations of the world that the Cuban ports were sealed by the authority of the United States, in the following formal proclamation:

BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: A PROCLAMATION.

Whereas, By a joint resolution passed by the Congress and approved April 20, 1898, and communicated to the government of Spain, it was demanded that said government at once relinquish its authority and government in the island of Cuba, and withdraw its land and naval forces from Cuba and Cuban waters; and the President of the United States was directed and empowered to use the entire land and naval forces of the United States and to call into the actual service of the United States the militia of the several States to such extent as might be necessary to carry said resolution into effect; and

Whereas, In carrying into effect this resolution the President of the United States deems it necessary to set on foot and maintain a blockade of the north coast of Cuba, including all ports of said coast between Cardenas and Bahia Honda and the port of Cienfuegos, on the south coast of Cuba;

Now, therefore, I, William McKinley, President of the United States, in order to enforce the said resolution, do hereby declare and proclaim that the United States of America has instituted and will maintain a blockade of the north coast of Cuba, including ports on said coast between Cardenas and Bahia Honda, and the port of Cienfuegos on the south coast of Cuba, aforesaid, in pursuance of the laws of the United States and the law of nations applicable to such cases.

An efficient force will be posted so as to prevent the entrance and exit of vessels from the ports aforesaid. Any neutral vessel approaching said ports, or attempting to leave the same, without notice or knowledge of the establishment of such blockade, will be duly warned by the commander of the blockading forces, who will indorse on her register the fact and the date of such warning, where such indorsement was made; and if the same vessel shall again attempt to enter any blockaded port she will be captured and sent to the nearest convenient port for such proceedings against her and her cargo as prize as may be deemed advisable. Neutral vessels lying in any of said ports at the time of the establishment of such blockade will be allowed thirty days to issue therefrom.

In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand and caused the seal of the United States to be affixed.

Done at the city of Washington this 22d day of April, A. D. 1898, and of the independence of the United States the one hundred and twenty-second.

By the President: WILLIAM McKINLEY.

JOHN SHERMAN, Secretary of State.

MORE SPANISH PRIZES TAKEN.

The blockade was not a mere paper blockade, but an exceedingly effective one. Before two days had passed, the prizes taken began to multiply in numbers and in value. The second capture was the Spanish freighter Pedro, of Bilboa, which was taken by the New York in the afternoon of the first day's cruising.

When the fleet approached the Cuban coast and spread out for patrol duty, the New York turned eastward for her own watch, not knowing what might be found in the neighborhood. Far off against the dim, vague background of Cuban hills, half seen, half guessed, could be traced a faint film of gray smoke, the one visible evidence of a Spanish freighter striving vainly to race out the day without being discovered by the great gray monsters that blackened the sky to the west with a solid mass of black cloud from their roaring furnaces.

Vainly the Spaniard raced. Charging along at trial test speed, the New York soon lay across the bows of the Spanish ship, and the crashing challenge blazed from the deck of the cruiser. A huge puff of white smoke rolled out from the side of the flagship, and far off, just in front of the Spaniard, a fountain of white foam leaped into the air. In a moment the course of the strange Spaniard was changed, and she hove to.

Shortly after, the New York led her prize further out from shore and laid her to. Crew and captain could be seen rushing about the deck of the ship like a nest of ants, hiding their valuables and striving to avert some impending fate they could only guess at in their ignorance. As she came around her name could be clearly read on her stern, Pedro of Bilboa.

As soon as she was laid alongside, the Pedro was boarded by Ensign Frank Marble of the New York. Ensign Marble led a prize crew, consisting of a file of marines and seamen. With great formality the ensign swung aboard and assumed command. A burly, bare-footed American tar shoved the Spanish quartermaster away from the wheel and began to set the course of the Spaniard. The Spanish crew gathered in a terrified huddle near the forecastle and awaited developments.

Hardly had the prize crew been put on board before another freighter was seen going down the coast to the eastward. The New York, leaving the captured Spanish craft in charge of the prize crew, drew across the bows of the stranger and sent a shot into the water directly in front of her bows. She paid no attention to the challenge, but kept steadily on, and a few seconds later another shot was sent hurtling across the water in front of her. After this hostile demonstration she hauled up and soon followed the New York out to sea. It was discovered, however, that she flew the German flag, and consequently was permitted to proceed.

The prize crew from the New York took the captured vessel into port at Key West under its own steam. The ship was bound from Havana to Santiago with a valuable cargo of rice, iron and beer. On the same day two other captures were made, one by the torpedo boat Ericsson, which seized a fishing schooner under the very guns of Morro Castle and by the torpedo boat, Porter, which took the Spanish schooner, Mathilde, after a lively chase and a number of shots. Both of these prizes were taken to Key West to join their unfortunate friends.

EXCITEMENT IN HAVANA.

It was nearly five o'clock in the afternoon of that lucky Friday, when the semaphore by the lighthouse in Morro Castle signaled to the people of Havana that a fleet had been sighted. It was said to be without any colors to show its nationality. At that time La Punta, the fort on the side of the harbor opposite Morro Castle, was crowded with curious people, including many ladies. In addition, crowds of people could be seen at various points of vantage, many of them gathering on the roofs of houses. At 6 p.m. the semaphore signaled that it was the United States fleet which was in sight, and at 6:15 p.m. a red flag was run up at the signal station, warning guns were fired from Morro Castle, and afterward from Cabanas fortress, adjoining it. This caused excitement throughout the city, and was the first real note of war. When the first signal came from the semaphore station a British schooner which was in the harbor put to sea. She was immediately followed by the German steamer Remus. Some time afterward the American steamer Saratoga put to sea.

The cannon shots from the fortresses stirred up the regular troops and volunteers throughout Havana and its vicinity and there was a rush to quarters. The signal guns from the fortifications echoed to the palace and through the streets, causing people to rush from their houses, with the result that all the thoroughfares were soon crowded with excited inhabitants. Captain General Blanco heard the shots while at the palace, to which place the generals and commanders of the volunteers promptly reported, full of excitement and warlike enthusiasm. Some time afterward the Captain General, accompanied by his staff, the generals and others, left the palace and was warmly acclaimed by the soldiers and populace. The General then made a brief final inspection of the fortifications and went to a spot from which he could see the approaching fleet.

There was no sign of alarm anywhere. The Spaniards were confident that Havana was prepared for any eventuality, and they had great faith in the strength of their forts, batteries, etc., and in the effectiveness of their heavy artillery. In fact, there was a feeling of satisfaction at the warlike tremors which spread everywhere when it was seen that the hour of battle was apparently approaching and that the Spaniards were soon to give battle to their enemies.

As the time passed, more people crowded to the spot from which the fleets could be most favorably seen. By 8:30 p.m. there was a great movement of the masses through all the streets and on all the squares. The coffee-houses and clubs were crowded with excited people, discussing the arrival of the American war ships. The Spaniards expressed themselves as anxious to measure arms with the "invaders," and there was no expression of doubt as to the result. The civil and military authorities of Havana were in consultation at the palace, and every precaution possible to the Spaniards was taken to guard against a night surprise and to resist an attack if the bombardment commenced.

SPAIN'S DAYS OF GRACE EXPIRE.

When President McKinley sent his ultimatum to Spain, he indicated that it was to expire at noon on Saturday, April 23, and at that time the period allowed Spain to give up Cuba peacefully was ended. Spain, however, had not waited to take advantage of this time limit, but by her own preparations during the days that had passed, as well as by her diplomatic actions, had indicated plainly that war was to come. The action of Minister Polo in demanding his passport and leaving the United States, and the action of the Spanish government in ejecting Minister Woodford, were sufficient notifications of the policy which was to be pursued. It had been unnecessary, therefore, for the fleet to wait for a more explicit answer before investing Havana. Not until the expiration of the time allotted by President McKinley to Spain, did he take definite action which committed the country to a distinct war policy in advance of the declaration of war by Congress. But at noon on Saturday the President issued the following proclamation calling for 125,000 troops to serve two years if the war should last so long:

BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: A PROCLAMATION.

Whereas, by a joint resolution of Congress, approved the 22d of April, 1898, entitled "Joint resolution for the recognition of the independence of the people of Cuba, demanding that the government of Spain relinquish its authority and government in the island of Cuba, to withdraw its land and naval forces from Cuba and Cuban waters, and directing the President of the United States to use the land and naval forces of the United States to carry these resolutions into effect," and,

Whereas, by an act of Congress, entitled "An act to provide for the increasing of the military establishment of the United States in time of war and for other purposes," approved April 22, 1898, the President was authorized in order to raise a volunteer army to issue his proclamation calling for volunteers to serve in the army of the United States.

Now, therefore, I, William McKinley, President of the United States, by the power vested in me by the constitution and laws, and deeming sufficient occasion to exist, have thought fit to call for and hereby do call for volunteers to the aggregate number of 125,000, in order to carry into effect the purpose of the said resolution, the same to be apportioned, as far as practicable, among the several States and Territories and the District of Columbia, according to population, and to serve for two years unless sooner discharged. The details for this object will be immediately communicated to the proper authorities through the war department.

In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my hand, and caused the seal of the United States to be affixed.

Done at Washington this 23d day of April, 1898, and of the independence of the United States the one hundred and twenty-second.

By the President: WILLIAM McKINLEY.

JOHN SHERMAN, Secretary of State.

STATES BEGIN TO COLLECT THEIR TROOPS.

Although it was decided that formal notification to the Governors of the states of the call for volunteers should not be made until the following Monday, the first step was taken immediately after the signing of the proclamation, by the issuance of orders to the organized militia of the District of Columbia. Before dinner time the drums were beating and the roll was being called within sight and sound of the White House, and before night the drum beats were heard from the Atlantic to the Pacific and from the Gulf of Mexico to the Great Lakes.

There was no interruption in the sequence of captures by the American fleet around Havana, and two prizes of considerable value were added to the list. On Saturday the gunboat Helena took the big steamer Miguel Jover, a vessel of more than 2,000 tons, with a full cargo of cotton and staves on board. The prize was worth not less than $400,000. Friday night the Helena left Key West to follow the main fleet, but instead of sailing directly for Havana, turned westward toward the west end of the island of Cuba. The dark, cloudy night had barely broken to a brilliant Cuban sunrise, when the Helena saw smoke on the western horizon and gave chase.

It was soon evident that the quarry had sighted the hunter and was making a run for it. The freighter was no match in speed for the gunboat, however, and the Helena was soon near enough to fire a shot. Only one blank shot was required. The fugitive steamer shook out the Spanish flag and hove to. When the Helena came up the captain tried to talk Captain Swinburne out of his prize. He urged that he was from an American port, New Orleans, and knew nothing of a declaration of war. The talk did him no good. He was taken on board the Helena and a prize crew of a dozen sailors and sixteen marines, under Ensigns M. C. Davis and H. G. McFarland, was put aboard the Jover.

The first the fleet knew of the capture was when the Helena came steaming up with her prize and signaled the flagship. The other ships cheered and the Helena, started off for Key West, the Jover being worked by its own men, superintended by the prize crew.

VALUABLE PRIZE CAPTURED.

The most valuable prize yet taken was the transatlantic liner, Catalina, which was taken by the Detroit. The vessel's tonnage was 6,000, and with its general cargo the prize was considered worth nearly $600,000. The big ship was bound from New Orleans to Barcelona, via Havana, with a large general cargo. Twelve miles before making port the steamer was stopped by two shots, and a prize crew under Ensign H. H. Christy, consisting of sixteen men from the Detroit and New York, was put on board to take the vessel back to Key West.

In addition to these notable captures the torpedo boat, Porter, took the Spanish schooner, Antonio, laden with sugar for Havana, and the revenue cutter, Winona, added the Spanish steamer Saturnine to the list.

If it had not been for the excitement of taking occasional prizes, the blockading of Havana would have been dull business for the Jack Tars aboard the North Atlantic squadron. Saturday night they had to listen to the roar of the guns of Morro Castle and see the flashes of fire from their muzzles, without a reply from the fleet. Havana officials have declared that the discharge of those guns was only for signaling purposes and was not an attack on the fleet, but it would be difficult to make the sailors believe that Spanish marksmanship was not responsible for the fact that no balls fell near them.

SPAIN DECLARES WAR.

The Spanish government did not wait for further aggression on the part of the United States, but herself made the next formal move by issuing a declaration of the fact that war existed, and defining the conditions under which the Spanish government expected to carry on the conflict. This decree was gazetted in Madrid on Sunday, April 24, in the following terms:

Diplomatic relations are broken off between Spain and the United States, and the state of war having begun between the two countries numerous questions of international law arise which must be precisely defined chiefly because the injustice and provocation come from our adversaries and it is they who, by their detestable conduct, have caused this grave conflict.

We have observed with strictest fidelity the principles of international law and have shown the most scrupulous respect for morality and the right of government. There is an opinion that the fact that we have not adhered to the declaration of Paris does not exempt us from the duty of respecting the principles therein enunciated. The principle Spain unquestionably refused to admit then was the abolition of privateering. The government now considers it most indispensable to make absolute reserve on this point in order to maintain our liberty of action and uncontested right to have recourse to privateering when we consider it expedient, first by organizing immediately a force of cruisers auxiliary to the navy, which will be composed of vessels of our mercantile marine and with equal distinction in the work of our navy.

Clause 1-The state of war existing between Spain and the United States annuls the treaty of peace and amity of Oct. 27, 1795, and the protocol of Jan. 12, 1877, and all other agreements, treaties, or conventions in force between the two countries.

Clause 2-From the publication of these presents thirty days are granted to all ships of the United States anchored in our harbors to take their departure free of hindrance.

Clause 3-Notwithstanding that Spain has not adhered to the declaration of Paris the government, respecting the principles of the law of nations, proposes to observe, and hereby orders to be observed, the following regulations of maritime law:

1. Neutral flags cover the enemy's merchandise except contraband of war.

2. Neutral merchandise, except contraband of war, is not seizable under the enemy's flag.

3. A blockade to be obligatory must be effective-viz.: It must be maintained with sufficient force to prevent access to the enemy's littoral.

4. The Spanish government, upholding its right to grant letters of marque, will at present confine itself to organizing, with the vessels of the mercantile marine, a force of auxiliary cruisers which will cooperate with the navy according to the needs of the campaign and will be under naval control.

5. In order to capture the enemy's ships and confiscate the enemy's merchandise and contraband of war under whatever form, the auxiliary cruisers will exercise the right of search on the high seas and in the waters under the enemy's jurisdiction, in accordance with international law and the regulations which will be published.

6. Defines what is included in contraband of war, naming weapons, ammunition, equipments, engines, and, in general, all the appliances used in war.

7. To be regarded and judged as pirates with all the rigor of the law are captains, masters, officers, and two-thirds of the crews of vessels which, not being American, shall commit acts of war against Spain, even if provided with letters of marque issued by the United States.

Following is a summary of the more important of the five clauses outlining the rules Spain announced she would observe during the war:

THE UNITED STATES MAKES REPLY.

It took the House of Representatives just one minute and forty-one seconds on Monday to pass a declaration of war which replied to that of Spain. The Senate acted almost as promptly, and their respective presiding officers and the President of the United States signed the Act of Congress immediately, so that it became at once a law of the land. The declaration of war was passed by Congress in response to a message from the President requesting that action in the following terms:

TO THE SENATE AND HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA:

I transmit to Congress for its consideration and appropriate action copies of correspondence recently had with the representative of Spain in the United States, with the United States Minister at Madrid, and through the latter with the government of Spain, showing the action taken under the joint resolution approved April 20, 1898, "for the recognition of the independence of the people of Cuba, demanding that the government of Spain relinquish its authority and government in the island of Cuba and to withdraw its land and naval forces from Cuba and Cuban waters, and directing the President of the United States to carry these resolutions into effect."

Upon communicating with the Spanish Minister in Washington the demand which it became the duty of the executive to address to the government of Spain, in obedience to said resolution, the said Minister asked for his passports and withdrew. The United States Minister at Madrid was in turn notified by the Spanish Minister for Foreign Affairs that the withdrawal of the Spanish representative from the United States had terminated diplomatic relations between the two countries, and that all official communications between their respective representatives ceased therewith.

I recommend to your special attention the note addressed to the United States Minister at Madrid by the Spanish Minister for Foreign Affairs on the 21st inst., whereby the foregoing notification was conveyed. It will be perceived therefrom that the government of Spain, having cognizance of the joint resolution of the United States Congress, and in view of things which the President is thereby required and authorized to do, responds by treating the representative demands of this government as measures of hostility, following with that instant and complete severance of relations by its action whereby the usage of nations accompanies an existent state of war between sovereign powers.

The position of Spain being thus made known, and the demands of the United States being denied, with a complete rupture of intercourse by the act of Spain, I have been constrained, in exercise of the power and authority conferred upon me by the joint resolution aforesaid, to proclaim, under date of April 22, 1898, a blockade of certain ports on the north coast of Cuba lying between Cardenas and Bahia Honda, and of the port of Cienfuegos on the south coast of Cuba; and further, in exercise of my constitutional powers, and using the authority conferred upon me by the act of Congress approved April 22, 1898, to issue my proclamation, dated April 23, 1898, calling for volunteers in order to carry into effect the said resolutions of April 20, 1898. Copies of these proclamations are hereto appended.

In view of the measures so taken, and with a view to the adoption of such other measures as may be necessary to enable me to carry out the expressed will of the Congress of the United States in the premises, I now recommend to your honorable body the adoption of a joint resolution declaring that a state of war exists between the United States of America and the Kingdom of Spain, and I urge speedy action thereon, to the end that the definition of the international status of the United States as a belligerent power may be made known, and the assertion of all its rights and the maintenance of all its duties in the conduct of a public war may be assured.

WILLIAM McKINLEY. Executive Mansion, Washington, April 25, 1898.

WAR IS DECLARED.

The formal declaration of war as passed by the houses of Congress was short and pointed, worthy of recollection as a model for such unpleasant documents. It read as follows:

A BILL DECLARING THAT WAR EXISTS BETWEEN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AND THE KINGDOM OF SPAIN.

Be it enacted, etc.:

First-That war be and the same is hereby declared to exist and that war has existed since the 21st day of April, A. D. 1898, including said day, between the United States of America and the Kingdom of Spain.

Second-That the President of the United States be, and he hereby is, directed and empowered to use the entire land and naval forces of the United States and to call into the actual service of the United States the militia of the several States to such extent as may be necessary to carry this act into effect.

Diplomacy was still taking a hand in the war. Spain was indignant at the attack on Spanish possessions and endeavored to arouse sympathy among her European neighbors. The Queen Regent addressed telegrams to all the sovereigns of Europe protesting against the vitiation of the rights of Spain by the United States, and declaring that her government was firmly resolved never to yield until crushed. This was a personal communication from one sovereign to her brother sovereigns of the continental kingdom. At the same time there was made public Spain's memorandum to all the European powers which was an official utterance of the Spanish ministry and signed by Senor Gullon, the Spanish Minister of Foreign Affairs.

The memorandum began by recording the "moral and material aid the Cuban rebels have received from the United States" in filibustering expeditions and the operations of the junta. It mentioned Spain's repeated and positive denials to the allegations of cruelty toward the Cubans, and laid great stress upon President Cleveland's dispatch of Dec. 7, 1896, to the effect that peace would be possible if Spain gave a sufficient autonomy to Cuba.

The memorandum contended that, in the face of the new liberal constitution granted Cuba, which "has already borne fruits," it was difficult to understand why President McKinley, in his message of Dec. 6, 1897, and General Woodford, in the note of Dec. 20, 1897, should still doubt Spain's loyalty.

The document then spoke at some length of the Maine accident, and asserted that the Americans, under the pretext of the extra territoriality of the vessel, never allowed the Spanish authorities to visit the wreck for purposes of investigation; and it most solemnly asserted the absolute innocence of Spanish officials and of Spanish subjects generally.

The fairness and loyalty of Spain were then shown by a reference to the equitable treatment which American filibusters, more especially those of the Competitor, received at the hands of Spain, and in order to show more fully how pacific and correct have been the attitude of the Spanish government the memorandum enumerated the four clauses of the Spanish proposals. They were:

PROPOSALS OF SPAIN.

1. An offer to submit all questions arising from the Maine affair to arbitration.

2. An order to Governor-General Blanco to retire into the western provinces and to apply 3,000,000 pesetas for the relief of the agricultural population, with an acceptance by the Spanish government of relief for Cubans sent by the United States, provided such relief were sent in merchant vessels.

3. The co-operation of the Cuban parliament in formulating the extent of the powers to be reserved for the central government.

4. In view of the Cuban parliament not meeting before May 4, the proclamation of an immediate armistice.

The memorandum proceeded to declare that the United States had not accepted even these far-reaching concessions, and that the good offices of the pope had been equally unavailing. It asserted that the Maine accident was used by political parties in America as a means of hurling "most gratuitous and intolerable calumnies at the Spanish government," and yet, the document said, Mr. Olney, in an official note dated April 4, 1896, to the Spanish minister in Washington, himself expressed very serious apprehensions lest the only existing bond of union in Cuba should disappear in the event of Spain withdrawing from that island. Mr. Olney, as the memorandum argued, feared at that time that a war of races would ensue, all the more sanguinary in proportion to the experience and discipline acquired during the insurrection, and that two republics would at once be formed-one white, the other black-the upshot being that one of the two would swallow the other.

The grave view thus taken by Mr. Olney of the future of Cuba freed from Spain's rule was then enlarged upon, and inevitable racial wars were foreshadowed, which were "certain to wreck the existence of Cuba as a state, should Spain be deprived of sovereignty" over the island. Thus, being convinced, as Spain was, that right and equity are on her side "she will not and cannot surrender her sovereignty in Cuba."

TROUBLE FOR SPAIN AT HOME.

Spain's embarrassments at home were multiplying, and threatening danger only less than that from the hostilities of the United States. Twenty thousand republicans of all shades of opinion in Madrid signed and addressed to Senor Castelar, the republican leader, under the pretext of congratulating him upon his recovery from recent sickness, but in reality offering him their services if he would proclaim a republic.

At the same time Don Carlos, the pretender to the Spanish throne, was a disturbing element, threatening a revolution against the present dynasty if an opportunity were to offer.

During all these complications, which included at one time even a threat that the Spanish ministry would resign, there was no discordant note of any sort in the United States. Secretary of State John Sherman and Postmaster General Gary resigned from President McKinley's cabinet because of ill health, in order that the government might be in no way handicapped during the time of emergency. Secretary Sherman was succeeded by Assistant Secretary Judge William R. Day of Canton, Ohio, who had displayed remarkable aptitude for the office during his term of service, while Mr. Gary's successor was the Honorable Charles Emory Smith, of Philadelphia, a newspaper editor and formerly ambassador to Russia.

ALONG THE CUBAN COAST.

It was the torpedo boats which kept things exciting during the early blockade of Cuban ports. They are like hornets, which travel faster than anything that tries to escape them, sting when they strike, and vanish in an instant. Two of these brisk fighters distinguished themselves on Sunday, while the diplomats were busy in the cabinets of the world. The torpedo boat Porter, which is as fleet as an express train, has a dare-devil crew and an intrepid commander with an honored name. He is Lieutenant John C. Fremont, a son of the famous "Pathfinder," who himself never hesitated to lead the way, whether in wilderness exploration or any other duty that came before him.

Lieutenant Fremont, with the Porter, made a landing on the north coast of Cuba with a small force of his men, in search of certain information which was desired by Admiral Sampson for the guidance of his plans. It was a dangerous undertaking, for the squad might have been wiped out in spite of their readiness to fight, if they had stumbled upon Spanish troops. None were met, however, the journey was made in safety, and the landing party returned to the fleet in triumph with the distinction of being the first actual invaders of the Cuban soil in this warfare.

Earlier in the same day the torpedo boat Foote, in command of Lieutenant W. L. Rogers, was directed to take soundings of the approach to the harbor of Matanzas, an important city on the north coast of Cuba fifty miles east of Havana. The Foote drew the first fire definitely known to be directed against the blockading squadron. The little scout was taking soundings within three hundred yards of shore, when a Spanish masked battery on the east side of the harbor, commanding the entrance, fired three shots in quick succession. They all went wide of the mark, striking the water nearly a quarter of a mile away from the boat. The officers and men were momentarily startled by the volley, and then continued their observation. The cruiser Cincinnati, which was not far away, was hailed by the torpedo boat and Lieutenant Rogers reported his experience. The orders of Captain Chester, in command of the Cincinnati, did not permit him to shell Matanzas, so the fire from the masked battery was not returned.

THE CALL TO ARMS.

It was on Monday, the 25th of April, that the national authorities notified the governors of each state that they would be expected to furnish volunteers for our war with Spain. The response was immediate. In every state of the Union the call to arms was heard with delight and troops gathered at their armories for prompt enlistment. The speed and facility with which a trained and efficient army could be mobilized was an amazement to those who had not been familiar with the details of the organization of the National Guard of America. Within twenty-four hours after the receipt of the order, thousands of troops were moving to the state encampments where they had been directed to gather. Illinois was an example of this promptness, in sending nearly 5,000 men out of Chicago without delay, but this was no more notable than the record made by many other states in every part of the Union. The cheers and the blessings of hundreds of thousands of loyal citizens stimulated those who were to go to the front with the banner of freedom, and they realized that they were representing the sentiment of a united nation.

Those days near the end of April were exciting times. The whole nation was keyed up to a nervous tension of anxiety to know what would be the next event recorded on land or sea. The armies of the United States were preparing for the struggle, the coast defenses were brought to completion, and the government was ready for any emergency that might arise. Admiral Sampson's splendid North Atlantic squadron was blockading the ports of Cuba. Admiral Schley, with the flying squadron at Hampton Roads, was ready for prompt action in any direction where it might be effective, whether to protect the Atlantic coast cities from a threatened assault by Spanish warships, or to descend upon the Spanish fleet for a naval battle.

Admiral Dewey with the Asiatic squadron had been driven out of Hong Kong by application of the neutrality laws, and international obligations might embarrass him unless he took the aggressive, and made for himself a base of supplies in the Philippine Islands. It was expected every day that he would make an assault upon Manila, the capital of the Philippines, and that the first naval engagement of consequence in the war would be with the Spanish fleet in those waters. No one doubted that the Asiatic squadron would be able to give a good account of itself, although the fleet which was to oppose it did not lack efficient guns and fighting strength.

The capture of that valuable Spanish colony, in which rebellion against the government was in progress, would be not only a severe blow to the Spanish arms, but would also strengthen the position of the United States in the Orient by the capture of large supplies of coal and naval equipment, as well as a splendid base of operations.

But while these preparations were going on for the conflict which was destined to cost Spain her possessions in the western world, there were a few individuals who were still making desperate efforts to induce the administration at Washington to effect a compromise at any cost. Not even the actual declaration of war, and the call for volunteers, could bring the members of this peace-at-any-price party to a realization of the fact that patience has ceased to be a virtue, that we could no longer turn a deaf ear to the appeals of an oppressed people, and that the brave men who went down with the Maine must be avenged.

Every true American felt that the hour had come when we must defend the honor of our great nation, and it was evident to all that the time was near at hand when actual warfare was to begin both on land and sea.

The insurgents in Cuba, who have been struggling against almost overwhelming odds for so many months, received the glad tidings of American intervention with unbounded joy, and at once sent representatives to the United States to arrange for co-operation in the invasion of Cuba, and to assist in planning a systematic campaign against the Spanish forces. Every arrangement was completed for final action and with men and money, munitions of war and ships, all in ample supply, it was evident that the crucial test was soon to come, and that war was at last an actual fact.

In gratitude of Spain to the Great Discoverer Who Gave Her a New World-How Spain's Evil Colonial Policy Lost the Western Hemisphere to That Obsolete Nation-Early Settlement of Cuba- Character of the Natives at the Time of the Discovery-Founding of the First Cities-Havana Becomes the Island Capital-Docility of the Natives and Their Extermination by Spanish Oppressors.

Cuba and Columbus are names inseparably connected. This largest and most fruitful island of the Spanish Main was discovered by the great navigator himself on the 28th day of October, 1492, only a short time after his first landing upon the soil of the western hemisphere on the island of San Salvador. There is a sentimental association to Americans in the thought that the discovery of our own continent was due to the pioneer expeditions sent from Spain. But any regret in one's mind that animosities have risen between the two nations, may be mollified by the memory that Columbus was himself an Italian, that it had required years of his efforts to induce sufficient interest on the part of Spanish monarchs to father his undertaking, and that his life in the service of Spain was marred by the basest ingratitude on the part of those whom he had served.

Upon the handsome monument erected to the memory of Columbus in

Seville by Ferdinand and Isabella, is the simple inscription, "A

Castile y Leon, nuevo mundo dio Colon"-"to Castile and Leon,

Columbus gave a new world."

This was the tardy recognition granted to the discoverer by those to whom he had made the marvelous gift. Recognition had been denied him in his life, except after years of persistent urging, second only to those years he wasted in his effort to arouse Spanish interest and enterprise. Once he was removed from his West Indian governorship and returned to Spain in chains. The titles and honors which had been promised him before, were denied after he had earned them. He was a victim of foul ingratitude, and no American need permit sentiment to blind him for the sake of Columbus.

The splendid new world which Columbus gave to Spain, was the most marvelous addition of territory that has ever come into the possession of any nation upon earth. It included the whole of South America, except Brazil, which was acquired by Portugal, and the small colonies known as British, Dutch and French Guiana. It included the whole of Central America and Mexico. It included the whole of what is now the United States west of the Mississippi river. It included the whole of the coast of the Gulf of Mexico and the peninsula of Florida to the southern limit of Alabama and Georgia, and except for a few scattered islands, it included every foot of land in the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean sea, all the coral rocks, as well as the greater islands of the West Indies and the Antilles. To-day not a foot of all that enormous possession remains to Spain undisputed, except the islands of Cuba and Puerto Rico. These hundreds of thousands of square miles are inhabited by a free and peaceful people, most of them as republics, and the few exceptions under civilized and liberal colonial policies. Spain's hold on Cuba has vanished and Puerto Rico is slipping away. Spain could not preserve the gifts of Columbus.

SPAINS COLONIAL POLICIES.

The logic of events and the progress of civilization have commanded that Spain should withdraw from her possessions in the western hemisphere. Never has there been such a record of ferocity and barbarity in conquest, as that which blackens the pages of Spanish history in connection with Spain's acquisition and subjection of her newly discovered territories. Whether it was the peaceful Indians of the Antilles, the highly civilized Aztecs of Mexico, or the Incas of Peru, the policy pursued was always the same. First, treacherous friendship, then robbery and massacre, then slavery, and finally extermination, was the unvarying programme. And so, instead of winning favor and loyalty with their consequent happiness and prosperity from the native tribes, Spanish conquerors implanted in the possessors of the country an over-mastering and ineradicable hatred, which grew with association, until in colony after colony the bonds were burst by violence.

When Great Britain lost her American colonies by reason of her misgovernment and oppression of them, it was a lesson which her people never forgot. From that day, the colonial policy of the British government was altered, and the spirit of liberality and generosity began to dominate. To-day, every colony of Great Britain that enjoys representative government-Canada, Australia, Cape Colony and many others, owes to the United States the liberty which Great Britain grants.

But Spain could learn no such lessons. Her cruelty and misgovernment aroused colony after colony to rebellion ending in freedom, but her policies remained unaltered. One by one possessions of fabulous wealth dropped away until at last this old crone of nations has been left to shiver alone by her fireside, abandoned in her misery by all the children whose memory of her is nothing but that of vicious cruelty. The only pity to which Spain is entitled, is the pity that is due for her ignorance and her mistakes, not pity for the penalties that these have brought upon her.

Spain was once the intellectual leader of the world, as well as the pioneer of discovery. Spanish universities were centers of learning long before northern Europe had its intellectual birth. Spanish mariners sailed every sea and Spanish adventurers explored every land. If learning and advancement bring obligations, as they are admitted to do, it was Spain's obligation to be a leader in strife for liberty of mind and body, but the two most notable things in her history are the Spanish inquisition against freedom of thought, and the Spanish ferocities which enslaved a new world for many a year. Now she has reaped the harvest of her own misdeeds.

THE EARLY SETTLEMENT OF CUBA.

Every one knows that Columbus was not looking for a western hemisphere, but for the Orient, and that when he found Cuba he believed he had reached the East Indies and the islands of gold and spice which had been reported from that mysterious land. His first island discoveries he believed to be the outlying portions of that eastern archipelago and when the natives told him of a greater land near by, which he reached a few days later, he believed that at last he had reached Cipango, as Japan then was called.

The first name given to the island was Juana, in honor of Prince Juan, the son of Ferdinand and Isabella of Aragon and Castile. After Ferdinand's death, in his honor the name was changed to Fernandina. Still later it received the name of Santiago, as a mark of reverence for the patron saint of Spain, and another change was made a few years afterward, when the inhabitants, as a proof of their piety, called it Ave Maria, in honor of the Holy Virgin. In spite of all this effort at establishing a Spanish name, the original Indian name of Cuba, which it bore when the great navigator first landed on its shores, has asserted itself triumphantly through all the centuries and is now ineradicable.

According to the accounts given by Spanish writers who were contemporary with the discovery, and the century immediately following, the aboriginal inhabitants of Cuba were a generous, gentle, hospitable people, by no means energetic, but heartily cordial and courteous to the strangers who reached their shores. The mildness of their climate did not stimulate them to much activity in cultivation of the soil, because tropical fruits and vegetables came with scarcely an effort on the part of the natives. Their implements and utensils were crude and their life simple.

The system of government was by no means complicated. The island was divided into nine independent principalities, each under a Cacique, all living in harmony, and warfare being almost unknown. Their religion was a peaceful one, without human sacrifices or cannibalism, but the priests had great power through their pretense of influence with spirits good and evil.

Of all the people discovered by the Spanish in their colonization of the western hemisphere, the Cubans were the most tractable to the influences of Christianity so far as their willingness to accept the doctrines was concerned. Christianity, as practiced by the Spanish conquerors, was scarcely that of the highest type of the faith, and the inducements to accept it were somewhat violent. Nevertheless it must be noted that it is from Spanish sources this testimony as to the docility of the Cuban natives comes. Under these circumstances it becomes a magnified crime that the Spanish conquerors absolutely exterminated the hundreds of thousands of native Cubans whom they found at the time of the discovery, and that within little more than a century, there was absolutely not a trace of native stock to be found anywhere in the island.

When Columbus first rested his eyes on the island of Cuba it seemed to him an enchanted land. He was charmed with its lofty mountains, its beautiful rivers, and its blossoming groves, and in his account of the voyage he said: "Everything is green as April in Andalusia. The singing of the birds is such that it seems as if one would never desire to depart. There are flocks of parrots that obscure the sun. There are trees of a thousand species, each having its particular fruit, and all of marvelous flavor."

Columbus was first of the opinion that he had found an island, but after following the shores for many miles he concluded that it was a continent. He retained the latter belief until his death, for it was not until 1508 that the island was circumnavigated, when it was discovered that it was of about the same area as England. In a subsequent expedition he reached the coast of South America, but he had no appreciation of the magnitude of that continent, and to him Cuba was the grandest of his discoveries in the New World.

Cuba was twice visited by Columbus after its discovery, in April, 1494, and again in 1502, and these visits but confirmed his first opinion regarding the salubrity of the climate and the wealth of the soil. His sailors wrested from the natives large sums of gold and silver, and this led to the mistaken belief that mines of great richness were within their grasp.

SPAIN'S HEARTLESS TREATMENT OF COLUMBUS.

Biography furnishes no parallel to the life of Columbus. Great men there have been who have met with injustice and disappointments, but there is perhaps no other instance of a man whom disappointments and injustice did not dishearten and disgust; who had his greatness recognized in his lifetime, and yet was robbed of the rewards that it entitled him to.

It is probable that before his death Columbus confided his belief in the wealth to be found in Cuba to his son Diego Columbus, for in 1511 the latter fitted out an expedition for the purpose of colonizing the island. This company consisted of about 300 men, under Diego Velasquez, who had accompanied the great explorer on his second voyage. The first settlement was made at Baracoa, in the extreme eastern section, and this village was regarded as the capital of the colony for several years. In the meantime extensive settlements had been made by the Spaniards in the island of Jamaica, and in 1514 the towns of Santiago and Trinidad were founded on the southern coast of Cuba, in order that the inhabitants of the two colonies might be brought into closer communication. As immigration increased, other towns of importance sprung up, and the island became the base for the various operations against Mexico. Baracoa grew largely in population, and the towns of Puerto Principe and Sancti Espiritus were established in the central section, and San Juan de los Remedios on the north coast. In July, 1515, the city of San Cristobal de la Habana was planted, deriving its name from the great Discoverer, but this name was transferred in 1519 to the present capital, and the original town was called Batabano.

In 1518 the capital was fixed at Baracoa, which had by this time become a city of considerable importance, and the diocese of the colony. In 1522 both the seat of government and the bishopric were removed to Santiago de Cuba. In 1538 Havana was reduced to ashes by a French privateer; and to prevent a similar disaster in future, the Castillo de la Fuerza, a fortress which still exists, was built by Fernando de Soto, governor of Cuba, and afterwards famous for his explorations in the southern and western portions of North America, as well as for the discovery of the Mississippi.

Using a modern expression, this great fortress, added to her almost perfect harbor, gave Havana a wonderful "boom," and the city experienced a remarkable growth. The Spanish merchantmen were actively employed in carrying the wealth of Mexico to the Peninsula, and Havana was a convenient port for them to secure supplies of provisions and water. In 1549 Gonzales Perez de Angulo was appointed governor of the island, and he was so impressed with the beauties of the city, that he chose it as his residence. Several of his successors followed his example, and in 1589 it was legally made the capital of Cuba.

EARLY GOVERNMENT OF CUBA.

The early records of the island were kept in so imperfect a manner that it is not possible to give an accurate account of the early governors and their lieutenants. It is certain, however, that the seat of government was at Santiago de Cuba, and that Havana and other towns of minor importance were ruled by lieutenants. In 1538, Hernando de Soto, adelantado of Florida, and also governor of Cuba, landed at Santiago, and remained a few days before proceeding to the mainland. On his departure he left the government of the island in charge of a lady, Dona Isabel de Bobadilla, and gave her for a colleague Don Juan de Rojas, who had at one time been lieutenant governor of Havana. It is from this date that the gradual transference of the seat of power from Santiago to Havana may be said to have arisen.

Don Antonio de Chavez assumed the government in 1547, and he it was who gave Havana its first regular supply of water, bringing it a distance of about six miles from the river Chorrera.

The early settlers devoted themselves principally to the raising of cattle, paying very little attention to agricultural pursuits, or in fact to any means of livelihood that called for manual labor. Much time and money was wasted in explorations for gold and silver, but these were invariably unsuccessful, for while the precious metals have occasionally been found in the island, the quantity has never been sufficient to repay the labor of the search.

A LETTER WRITTEN BY COLUMBUS.

Nothing more interesting for the conclusion of this chapter can be offered than Columbus' own account of his first view of the island of Cuba. It is as follows

"When I reached Juana, I followed its coast to the westward, and found it so large that I thought it must be mainland, the province of Cathay; and as I found neither towns nor villages on the sea coast, but only some hamlets, with the inhabitants of which I could not hold conversation, because they all immediately fled, I kept on the same route, thinking that I could not fail to light upon some large cities or towns. At length, after the proceeding of many leagues, and finding that nothing new presented itself, and that the coast was leading me northwards (which I wished to avoid, because the winter had already set in, and it was my intention to move southwards; and because moreover the winds were contrary), I resolved not to wait for a change in the weather, but to return to a certain harbor which I had remarked, and from which I sent two men ashore to ascertain whether there was any king or large cities in that part. They journeyed for three days, and found countless small hamlets, with numberless inhabitants, but with nothing like order; they therefore returned. In the meantime I had learned from some other Indians, whom I had seized, that this land was certainly an island; accordingly, I followed the coast eastward for a distance of 107 leagues, where it ended in a cape. From this cape I saw another island to the eastward, at a distance of eighteen leagues from the former, to which I gave the name of La Espanola. Thither I went and followed its northern coast, (just the same as I had done with the coast of Juana), 118 full miles due east. This island, like all others, is extraordinarily large, and this one extremely so. In it are many seaports, with which none that I know in Christendom can bear comparison, so good and capacious that it is a wonder to see. The lands are high, and there are many lofty mountains, with which the islands of Tenerife cannot be compared. They are all most beautiful, of a thousand different shapes, accessible, and covered with trees of a thousand kinds, of such great height that they seem to reach the skies. I am told that the trees never lose their foliage, and I can well understand it, for I observed that they were as green and luxuriant as in Spain in the month of May. Some were in bloom, others bearing fruit, and others otherwise, according to their nature. The nightingale was singing, as well as other little birds of a thousand different kinds, and that in November, the month in which I was roaming amongst them. There are palm trees of six or eight kinds, wonderful in their beautiful variety; but this is the case with all other trees and fruits and grasses. It contains extraordinary pine groves and very extensive plains. There is also honey and a great variety of birds, and many different kinds of fruits. In the interior there are many mines of metals, and a population innumerable."

Present Men of Prominence Are Types of Those Who Were Infamous

Years Ago-Roman Rule in Spain-Weakness of Spanish Power of

Resistance-Discoveries in America-Horrors of the Inquisition-

Spanish Rule in Holland-Expulsion of the Moors-Loss of American

Colonies-Later History of Spain.

The signal fact that will present itself to the student of Spanish history is that from the earliest times the country has been in a continual state of conflict, internal, with its colonies, and with other nations; and seldom has it been a war of defense. In almost every instance Spain has been the aggressor. The Spaniard has ever been perfidious, avaricious, ferocious. In his veins still flows the blood of Ferdinand, of Torquemada, and of Philip II. Weyler is a prototype of Alva, and in Blanco we find another Antonio de Mendoza. Spain is the China of modern Europe. Her spirit is still the spirit of the inquisition. Her policy is not to conciliate, but to coerce; not to treat justly, but to rob and enslave; and her dependence is the ignorance and superstition of her people.

All reforms wrung from rulers must first be baptized in blood, and it is possible that the end of the present century may see a new nation, built on the ruins of the old, which will be a credit to civilization, instead of a disgrace.

ROMAN RULE IN SPAIN.

Prior to the first war between Rome and Carthage, which ended 241 BC, there is little or no authentic information regarding the history of the country now known to the world as Spain. To the ancients it was a land of mystery and enchantment, the home of the setting sun; and Iberia, as they called it, was but a name for an indefinite extent of territory in the far west, peopled by barbarous Celts and Iberians, with a few Phoenician settlements, for the purposes of trade, on its southern coasts.

At the close of the first Punic war, Hamilcar Barca, at the head of a Carthaginian host, crossed the strait of Gibraltar and commenced the conquest which his son Hannibal completed, and which resulted in the undisputed supremacy of Carthage throughout almost all of Spain. This brings us to 218 B. C. and marks the beginning of the second Punic war, when the Roman legions first entered Spain. After a struggle which lasted for thirteen years the Carthaginians were completely routed, and the country was conquered by the arms of Rome. It was many years, however, before the inhabitants were really subdued, but eventually they became more completely Romanized than any province beyond the limits of Italy. When brought under the iron rule of the Empire they were forced to desist from the intestinal wars in which it had been their habit to indulge, and adopting the language, laws and manners of their conquerors, they devoted themselves to industrial pursuits, and increased remarkably both in wealth and numbers. Their fertile fields formed for a considerable time the granary of Rome, and from the metal-veined mountains an immense amount of gold and silver flowed into Roman coffers. However, these were not voluntary offerings of the natives. They were compelled to labor in the mines for the benefit of strangers, and thus Spain, in the early ages, was the type of Spanish America in the fifteenth and succeeding centuries, with the difference that in the first case the Spaniards were the slaves, and in the second they were the slave-holders.

For more than 300 years Spain remained under Roman rule, until in 409 AD, hordes of barbarians crossed the Pyrenees and swept over the Peninsula. Suevi, Alani and Vandals ravaged with equal fury the cities and the open country, and brought the inhabitants to the lowest depths of misery. They were finally subjugated by a Visigothic host, and in 415, Walia, a war-like and ambitious chief, established the West-Gothic kingdom in Spain, on the ruins of the old Roman province. Walia concluded a treaty with the Emperor Honorius, and, putting himself at the head of the brave Goths, in a three-years' war he destroyed or drove the barbarians from the land. Spain, thus reconquered, was nominally subject to Rome, but soon became really independent, and began to be the seat of a Christian civilization. This West-Gothic kingdom lasted for about three centuries, from 418 to 711, when it fell before the Moorish invasion.

WEAKNESS OF SPANISH POWERS OF RESISTANCE.

Few things in history are more remarkable than the ease with which Spain, a country naturally fitted for defense, was subdued by a mere handful of invaders. The misgovernment of the Visigoths, the internal factions and jealousies, and the discontent of numerous classes, notably the Jews, co-operated to facilitate the conquest and to weaken the power of resistance. These conquerors were of the Mohammedan faith, but while they were united by religion, they were of different races. Besides the Moors there were the Arabs, the Egyptians and the Syrians, and when the task of conquest was achieved, and the need for unity removed, quarrels arose between them. So difficult was it to prevent these quarrels, that it was found necessary to subdivide the conquered territory, and to allot separate settlements to the different tribes.

During the period of Moorish domination a number of small independent kingdoms were formed in opposition to Moslem rule. These comprised Castile, Leon, Navarre and Aragon, and sometimes separately, sometimes in combination, they were in constant war with the common enemy. The age of the great crusades came, and all Christendom was absorbed in the struggle against the infidel, both in the East and West. Spain, like Palestine, had its crusading orders, which vied with the Templars and the Hospitallers both in wealth and military distinction. The decisive battle was fought in July, 1212, when the combined forces of Castile, Leon, Navarre, Aragon and Portugal met the Mohammedan army, and gained the most celebrated victory ever obtained by the Christians over their Moslem foes, the latter losing, according to the account transmitted to the pope, 100,000 killed and 50,000 prisoners. The king of Grenada was speedily forced to become a vassal of Castile, and from this period all danger from Moorish rule was over.

Following this time until the different kingdoms became as one, there is nothing in their history deserving a detailed account. The history of Spain as a united state dates from the union of Castile and Aragon by the marriage of Isabella and Ferdinand, the respective rulers of those kingdoms, in 1469. Grenada, the last remaining possession of the Moors, fell before the Spanish forces in 1492, and Navarre was acquired in 1512.

DISCOVERIES IN AMERICA.

The year 1492, during the reign of Ferdinand and Isabella, witnessed the discovery of America. Spain had become consolidated into one empire from the Pyrenees to the strait of Gibraltar, and civil wars were at an end. Maritime exploration was the task of the age, and under the patronage of Isabella, Columbus planted the flag of Spain in the West Indies. This grand achievement led to the opening of a splendid continent, teeming with riches, for Spanish adventure and despoliation. In 1498, Columbus landed on the continent of South America, and in a few years the entire western coast was explored by subsequent adventurers. In 1512, Ponce de Leon discovered Florida, and the following year, Balboa crossed the Isthmus of Darien, and gazed for the first time upon the Pacific.

The history of Spain, in connection with its discovery and settlement of the New World, is one long record of revolting crime. New England was settled by a people who came to turn the wilderness into a city, but the Spanish invaders went to the southern shores to turn the cities of the natives into a wilderness. In Mexico and Peru they found a civilization the equal and in many respects the superior of their own. With cross and sword in hand, in the name of religion, but with the lust for gold in their hearts, their coming was invariably a signal for every kind of attack that malignity could devise or avarice invent. Wherever they went, desolation followed them. They looted the towns, pillaged the cities, murdered the people; they burned alike the hovels of the poor, and the palaces of the rich.

The value of the treasure that Spain secured from Mexico and Peru never can be known accurately; but it is certain that within sixty years from the time of the landing of Columbus she had advanced to the position of the richest and most powerful nation in Europe. Victorious in Africa and Italy, Philip II, who was then the reigning monarch, carried war into France, and ruled in Germany, as well as in those provinces now known as Belgium and Holland. The money necessary to carry on these vast wars of conquest was undoubtedly acquired in the New World. When Cortez approached the palace of Montezuma, the King's messengers met him, bearing presents from their lord. These gifts included 200 pounds of gold for the commander, and two pounds of gold for each of his army. Prescott, in his "Conquest of Peru," says that when the Spanish soldiers captured the capital of that country they spent days in melting down the golden vessels which they found in temples and palaces. On one voyage a single ship carried to Spain $15,500,000 in gold, besides vast treasures of silver and jewels.

THE HORRORS OF THE INQUISITION.

The Inquisition was a tribunal in the Roman Catholic church for the discovery, repression and punishment of heresy and unbelief. It originated in Rome when Christianity was established as the religion of the Empire, but its history in Spain and her dependencies has absorbed almost entirely the real interest in the painful subject.

As an ordinary tribunal, similar to those of other countries, it had existed there from an early period. Its functions, however, in those times were little more than nominal; but early in the reign of Ferdinand and Isabella, on account of the alleged discovery of a plot among the Jews to overthrow the government, an application was made to the Pope to permit its re-organization. But in reviving the tribunal, the Crown assumed to itself the right of appointing the inquisitors, and of controlling their entire action. For this reason Catholic writers regard the Spanish inquisition as a state tribunal, and refer to the bull of the Pope, Sixtus IV., protesting against it. Notwithstanding this protest, however, the Spanish Crown maintained its assumption. Inquisitors were appointed, and in 1483 the tribunal commenced its terrible career, under Thomas de Torquemada.

The inquisition arrested on suspicion, tortured for confession, and then punished with fire. One witness brought the victim to the rack, two to the flames. The prisoner was not confronted with his accuser, nor were their names ever made known to him. The court was held in a gloomy dungeon at midnight, a dim light gleamed from smoking torches, and the grand inquisitor, enveloped in a black robe, glared at his victim through holes cut in the hood. Before the examination, the accused, whether man, maid or matron, was stripped and stretched upon the rack, where tendons could be strained without cracking, bones crushed without breaking and the body tortured without dying.

When the prisoner was found guilty, his tongue was cut out, so that he could neither speak nor swallow. On the morning of the execution a breakfast of rare delicacies was placed before the sufferer, and with ironical invitation he was urged to enjoy his last repast. Then the prisoner was led to the funeral pyre, where an address was given, lauding the inquisition, condemning heresy, and commanding obedience to the Pope and the Emperor. Then, while hymns were sung, blazing fagots were piled about the victim, until his body was reduced to a heap of ashes.

Some conception of the appalling cruelty of the inquisition under Torquemada may be formed from the statement that during the sixteen years of his tenure of office nearly 10,000 persons were condemned to the flames, and the property of 97,000 others was confiscated.

SPANISH RULE IN HOLLAND.

Horrible as the atrocities of the inquisition were in the mother country, it is doubtful if they ever reached the acme of savage cruelty that they attained during the period when Spain was seeking to strengthen the fetters with which she nominally held Holland in her grasp. The Spanish government, from the time when it first acquired a place among nations, has never been satisfied with a reasonable tribute from its dependencies. Its plan ever has been to exact all, and leave nothing to supply more than a miserable existence. So it was in the middle of the sixteenth century, when Philip II., greedy of the treasures of Holland, determined to spoil them of their wealth, and planned to establish the inquisition among them by the sword.

The duke of Alva, already famous for his harshness and bigotry, was named commander of the forces, with almost unlimited powers. He entered the Netherlands with about 20,000 tried troops, ready for cruelties, and all hopes of peace or mercy fled before them. There was a great and desperate exodus of the inhabitants; thousands took refuge in England, Denmark and Germany, and despair and helplessness alone remained to greet the cold Spaniard and his train of orthodox executioners. The Council of Troubles-the "Blood-tribunal"-was immediately established, and the land was filled with blood. In a short time he totally annihilated every privilege of the people, and with unrelenting cruelty put multitudes of them to death.

The more the peasants rebelled, the crueler were the methods of Alva. Men were tortured, beheaded, roasted before slow fires, pinched to death with hot tongs, broken on the wheel, flayed alive. On one occasion the skins of leaders were stripped from their living bodies, and stretched upon drums for beating the funeral march of brethren to the gallows. During the course of six years Alva brought charges of heresy and treason against 30,000 inhabitants, and made the infamous boast that, in addition to the multitudes killed in battle and massacred after victory, he had consigned 18,000 persons to the executioner.

This unholy war with the Netherlands lasted with occasional cessations of hostilities for eighty years, and during its progress Spain buried 350,000 of her sons and allies in Holland, spent untold millions in the attempted destruction of freedom, and sunk from the first power in Europe, an empire whose proud boast it had been that upon her possessions the sun never set, to the level of a fourth-rate country, cruel in government, superstitious in religion, and ever an enemy to progress.

EXPULSION OF THE MOORS.

In addition to the terrible drain upon the country from losses in war, the expulsion of the Jews and the Moors was productive of the direst results. In 1609 all the Moriscoes were ordered to depart from the Peninsula within three days. The penalty of death was declared against all who failed to obey, and against any Christians who should shelter the recalcitrant. The edict was obeyed, but it was a blow from which Spain never recovered. The Moriscoes were the back-bone of the industrial population, not only in trade and manufactures, but also in agriculture. The haughty and indolent Spaniards had willingly left what they considered degrading employment to their inferiors. The Moors had introduced into Spain the cultivation of sugar, cotton, rice and silk. In manufactures and commerce they had shown superiority to the Christian inhabitants, and many of their products were eagerly sought for by other countries. All these advantages were sacrificed to an insane desire for religious unity.

The reigns of Philip III. and Philip IV. witnessed a fearful acceleration in the decline of Spain by the contests with the Dutch and with the German Protestants in the Thirty Years' War, the wars with France, and the rebellion of Portugal in 1640, which had been united to Spain by Philip II. The reign of Charles II. was still more unfortunate, and his death was the occasion of the war of the Spanish succession.

Under Charles III. (1759-1788), a wise and enlightened prince, the second great revival of the country commenced, and trade and commerce began to show signs of returning activity. Previous to his accession to the throne, Spain appeared to be a corpse, over which the powers of Europe could contend at will. Suddenly men were astounded to see that country rise with renewed vigor to play once more an important part on the international stage. Commerce and agriculture were developed, native manufactures were encouraged in every way possible, and an attempt was made to remove all prejudices against trade, among the nobles. Meritorious as these reforms were, it would give a false impression to represent them as wholly successful. The regeneration of Spain was by no means accomplished, and many of the abuses which had been growing for centuries, survived the attempt to effect their annihilation. One of the chief causes of this failure was the corruption and ignorance of the lower officials; and a large portion of the population remained, to a great extent, sunk in sloth and superstition, in spite of all that was done in their behalf.

During the inglorious reign of Charles IV. (1788-1808), who left the management, of affairs in the hands of the incapable Godoy, (at once the queen's lover and the king's prime minister), a war broke out with Britain, which was productive of nothing but disaster to the Spaniards. Charles finally abdicated in favor of his son, the Prince of Asturias, who ascended the throne as Ferdinand VII. Forced by Napoleon to resign all claims to the Spanish crown, Ferdinand became the prisoner of the French in the year of his accession, and in the same year, Joseph, the brother of the French emperor, was declared King of Spain, and set out for Madrid to assume the kingdom thus assigned him. But Spanish loyalty was too profound to be daunted even by the awe-inspiring power of the great Napoleon. For the first time he found himself confronted, not by terrified and selfish rulers, but by an infuriated people. The rising on Spain commenced the popular movement which ultimately proved fatal to his power.

In July, 1808, England, on solicitation, made peace with Spain, recognized Ferdinand VII. as king, and sent an army to aid the Spanish insurrection. Joseph invaded the country on July 9, defeated the Spaniards at Rio Seco, and entered Madrid on the 20th. But the defeat of Dupont at Baylen by the veteran Spanish general Castanos somewhat altered the position of affairs, and Joseph, after a residence of ten days in his capital, was compelled to evacuate it.

Meanwhile Sir Arthur Wellesley, afterwards Duke of Wellington, at the head of the British auxiliary force, had landed at Mondego bay, and began the Peninsular war by defeating the French at Roliza and Vimiero. In November, 1808, Napoleon, who had been preceded by Ney with 100,000 men, entered Spain and assumed the command. For a time his armies were completely successful. In less than a week the Spanish forces were broken through and scattered, and Joseph was returned to Madrid. The victory was a short-lived one, however, for, in April, 1809, General Wellesley arrived in Portugal and at once commenced operations. By dint of masterly generalship and bold enterprise he finally succeeded in driving the French from the country. Napoleon, loth to lose his hold in the Peninsula, sent Soult, his most trusted general, to stop the ingress of the British into France, but the battles of the Pyrenees, (24th July 1st August, 1813), and of the Nivelle, Orthez, and Toulouse, in the beginning of 1814, brought to a victorious conclusion this long and obstinate contest.

LOSS OF AMERICAN COLONIES.

After the convulsions it had endured, Spain required a period of firm but conciliatory government, but the ill fate of the country gave the throne at this crisis one of her worst rulers. Ferdinand VII. had no conception of the duties of a sovereign; his public conduct was regulated by pride and superstition, and his private life was stained by the grossest dissipations.

For six years Spain groaned under a "Reign of terror," and isolated revolts only served as the occasion for fresh cruelties. The finances were squandered in futile expeditions to recover the South American colonies, which had taken advantage of Napoleon's conquest of Spain to establish their independence. In his straits for money, Ferdinand ventured to outrage national sentiment by selling Florida to the United States in 1819. Louisiana had been ceded to France in 1803, and when Mexico gained her independence in 1822, the last of the territory under Spanish rule in North America was lost to her.

The reign of Ferdinand's daughter, Isabella II., was disturbed by the Carlist rebellion in 1834-1839, in which England aided the Queen with an army commanded by Sir De Lacy Evans. Spain, under Isabella II., presents a dismal picture of faction and intrigue. Policies of state had forced her into a distasteful marriage with her cousin, Francis of Assisi, and she sought compensation in sensual indulgences, endeavoring to cover the dissoluteness of her private life by a superstitious devotion to religion. She had to contend with continual revolts, and was finally compelled, in 1868, to abdicate the throne and fly to France for her life.

A provisional government was formed with Serrano as President, and a new constitution was formed, by which an hereditary king was to rule, in conjunction with a senate and a popular chamber. The throne was offered to Amadeus of Aosta, the second son of Victor Emmanuel, in 1870, and he made an honest effort to discharge the difficult duties of the office. But he found the task too hard, and too distasteful, and resigned in 1873. A provisional republic was then formed, of which Castelar was the guiding spirit. But the Spaniards, trained to regard monarchy with superstitious reverence, had no sympathy with republican institutions. Don Carlos seized the opportunity to revive the claim of inalienable male succession, and raised the standard of revolt. Castelar finally threw up the office in disgust, and the administration was undertaken by a committee of officers. Anarchy was suppressed with a strong hand, but it was obvious that order could only be restored by reviving the monarchy. Foreign princes were no longer thought of, and Alfonso XII., the young son of the exiled Isabella, was restored to the throne in 1874. His first task was to terminate the Carlist war, which still continued in the North, and this was successfully accomplished in 1876. He died in 1885, and the regency was entrusted to his widow, Christina of Austria. On May 17th, 1886, a posthumous son was born, who is now the titular King of Spain.