“Some of the Republicans in Congress ... are investigating the question as to whether the United States under international law, if it intervened in Cuba and cut off the revenues, could be held responsible for the Spanish bonds, said to aggregate $400,000,000, which have been issued against the revenues of the island. Mr. Bromwell says he is looking into the question, and finds some warrant in law for such responsibility....
“Congressman ‘Blank’[[167]] in the House on Monday, said he had $10,000 worth of Cuban bonds in his pocket ... while H. H. Kohlsaat, in an editorial in one of the Chicago papers, charges the Junta with offering a bribe of $2,000,000 of Cuban bonds to a Chicago man [to one man!] to use his influence with the administration for the recognition of the provisional government....
“Mr. Guerra made the somewhat startling statement that a man representing certain individuals at Washington has sought to coerce the Junta into selling $10,000,000 worth of bonds at 20 cents on the dollar. ‘This man practically threatened us that unless we let him have the bonds at the price he quoted, Cuba would never receive recognition. He said he was prepared to pay on the spot $2,000,000 in American money, for $10,000,000 of Cuban bonds, but his offer was refused.’”
As the possibility of “good things” increased, the statesmen’s tender hearts were deeply stirred, naturally, and they set up a melodiously patriotic howl for intervention. Many powerful newspapers were turned upon the public to “work” the working class, and soon tens of thousands of humble fellows of the working class were wild with eagerness to rush to the front and “help the poor Cubans.”
But a very high authority, Professor McMaster (University of Pennsylvania), assures us[[168]] that the outrages committed against the Cubans by the Spanish Government had been common for more than fifty years. “The Cubans had rebelled six times in these fifty years.” But not until American capitalistic interests were well developed did it seem “noble” and “grand” and “the will of God” to intervene. But by the year 1895 “upwards of $50,000,000 of American money were invested in mines, railroads and plantations there. Our yearly trade with the Cubans was valued at $96,000,000.”
It was time to weep—profitably.
Hence the tearful orations and powerful editorials for intervention. How the orators and business men far from the firing line loved “the men behind the guns.” Here is some more evidence:[[169]]
“The canned roast meat ... a great majority of the men found it uneatable. It was coarse, stringy and tasteless and very disagreeable in appearance, and so unpalatable that the effort [!] to eat it made some of the men sick. Most of them preferred to be hungry rather than eat it.... As nine-tenths of the men were more or less sick, the unattractiveness of the travel-rations was doubly unfortunate.... In some respects the Spanish rations were preferable to ours.... We had nothing whatever in the way of proper nourishing food for our sick and wounded men during most of the time.... On the day of the big fight, July 1, as far as we could find out there were but two ambulances with the army in condition to work—neither of which did we see.... On several occasions I visited the big hospitals in the rear. Their condition was frightful beyond description from lack of supplies, lack of medicine, lack of doctors, nurses, and attendants.... The wounded and the sick who were sent back [to the hospitals] suffered so much that, whenever possible, they returned to the front.... The fever began to make heavy ravages among our men ... not more than half our men could carry their rolls.... But instead of this the soldiers were issued horrible stuff called ‘canned fresh beef.’... At best it was stringy and tasteless, at the worst it was nauseating. Not one-fourth of it was ever eaten at all even when the men became very hungry.... The canned beef proved to be practically uneatable.... When we were mustered out, many of the men had lost their jobs, and were too weak to go to work at once. Of course there were a few weaklings among them; and there were others, entirely brave and self-sufficient, who from wounds or fevers were so reduced that they had to apply for aid....”
While our government was feeding its soldiers on meat unfit for a dog, our export trade included millions of pounds of the best meat on earth—sent to Europe to be eaten by the aristocratic snobs of the “better class.”
Shakespeare has asked the thoughtful man’s question: