Evening Star Newspaper, December 25, 1897, Page 1

————— THE EV ENIN( + STAR. PUBLISHED DAIL) EXCEPT SUNDAY. AT THE STAR BUILDINGS, 32€1 Terreylvania fvenze, Cor. 11th &t., b7 The Evening Star New:paper Company SH EAUFFMANN Prest’ Kew York Office, 49 Potts Bul’; ‘The Evening Star fe served te suber; ity by cerriers on their own nt. C mtn the at 10 conte jen at the . By o. —anrwhere fo the United States or Csnada—postage prepaid 30 ceuis er month. Saterday Qrintuple Steet Star. $1 per sear, with foreizn portage added. $3.00. (Entered a the Post Otc: (8 secend-clase mail matte E7All wall sutsertptions Rates of sdvertisine at Washington, D.C.. / | ast he pall In advance. | enon application | CUPID MASQUER HIGHEST IN YEARS © The Biggest Gold Reserve Since September, 1890. EFFECT OF WM’RINLEY'S ELECTION Raid on the Government's Yellow , Meta: Checked. > FOR -- U. S&S. NOTES a | DEMAND | pairment of confidence, which fotlowed the loperation of the Sherman law. The total | gold in the treasury on all a’ aunts on Sep- tember 30, 1588, was $332,551.306. This in- cluded $134,838,100 in gold certificates. The reserve moved upw: rd which has not iver he net gold resery 44 at the end of Ju before the ‘rman law received the roval of the Prosident. The end of July wed a gold reserve of $154,02, awl the end of Avgust $1 . From thai duie until patural of nward, fiom ume stood November, the was to t gements e New nder Pi acticn of t of 1806, w threatened to was caused the Foster, and 0 on De- mt the ten- serve was $110,44,- mt again occurred in reserve turned ov iminist to the new 4 38W, Was ony $10,25;. EB bonds had already been ordered by Secretary Fosier trom the bureau of engraving and printing. The evenis of the mex! three year: ‘bh cairied the reser as low us $4. 7 on January 31, 1895, for new from the trust f es, in order to redeem . are still fresh in the public stood at $l on August 31, c, in spite of the that it had been fai h move than $80,000,000 in gold coding thre tud- ee of the The tendency began to be upward xfter e3 fer the gold s the country dec and a reser: 80, 1896, increase: ary 31, 1807, and $355.540,800 om April Jo, 1807. There were some losses during the York | 1 July 31, | z ¢ Foe a —————— or Star. arq | 9m the maximum, although there sched $160,- | Usposition in the spring of 192 to heard ; ;; | Sold in the form of c Just | 4) cates on Jaauary 31, 1802, as high as #1¢ fourteen 1 15 | | ‘ ja No. 13,984. WASH GTON, D. CG SATURDAY DECEMBER; 25, 1897—-TWENTY-FOUR PAGE TWO CENTS. The regular permanent family circulation of The Evening Stat. is more than double that of any, other paper in Washington, whether published in the morn+ ing or in the afternoon. As a medium for unobjec-’, tionable advertisements it theres fore stands unequaled and un- } approachable. ADING "AS SANTA 1 down } » treasury had hi ay out in ex being driven to th t nsactions, where it was for three or four months has | been to posit of gold and to husband United notes and other forms of piper, in to meet the de- mand for currency e3 ‘The Gold Deposits. { While the treasury has thus accumulated ore than $16,000,007 as a Christmas goid rn the actual deposits of gold are vr less than before the gradual im- in gold certificates at this time were not far was a when the diminishing, which outstanding certifl- treasury reserve wa carried the amo The outstandiag certificates, repre- ented by gold in the treasury, began to after this date, and all possibility of Was arrested by the order of Sec- pending. the is- + m erder to pro- ter the net amount i Certifieaies were carefully hoarded after this order, but some millions were received at the times of the nd sales, and the net amount outsiand- ing, fully covered by gi fe'l from _ 380,- 114,049 on August a to $4 oy On . 18U6, about the time ef the com- pletion of the payments for the last boud is The de been very slow > that date, s at the clos nd- amount out eK Was $35, WORK FOR 15,000 MEN Indiana Glass Factories Lighted Up Last Evening. CAGO, December 2 ie from Anderson, Ind., says: ristm:s eve was 0! ed in this city d throughout the gas belt by fires being cd in almost ali of the window giass torieg and notices posted instructing the | ..who have been out since last July, to report for duty on the night of the 7th of next mo | This ends the longest strike and lockout | in the history of the window. glass manu- facturers in this country. Fifteen thous- j and men will retura to werk, at an advance of irom 13 to 17 per cent im their wages of jlast year. They have, however, it { estt lost 30,0 by not cecepting the offcr of the manufacturers made August 7, j wh was i per t lower than what they did gain after a four months"-strike. ‘The factories are clear of ail cld glass, a ‘condition they bave not experienced since Ih The companies began issuing their workmen advance wages last week and ail ‘A special to the Chron are in a positicn to observe the holidays. Most of the workers were reduced to strin- geut circumstances by the long shut-down. CLAU: NEW LOGAN STATUE The Pedestal Has Been Accepted by the Government. NOTIFICATION OF SHIPMENT RECEIVED Pleasing Combination of Sculpture and Architecture. ————— CIRCLE’S ORNAMENT IOWA Gen. Wilson, chief of engineers, has been informed that the pedestal for the eques- trian statue of Gen. John A. Logan, which is to be erected in Iowa circle, has been shipped from Rome by Mr. Franklin Sim- mons, the sculptor, and will reach this city in a few days. Mr. Draper, the United States minister to Italy, recently le a report to the State Department in regard to the Logan pedes- tal. He said that, in compliance with in- structions from the department and in ac- cordance with the contract with Mr. Sim- mons, he had designated Mr. Charles M. Wood, vice and deputy consul at Rome, as an agent of the War Department to Inspect the statue, and in case it met all require- ments of the contract, to accept it én be- half of that department. The report of Mr. Wood ts inclesed. It shows that the ped- estal is complete in bronze and ts ready for shipm nd that, as the sculptor had met all requirements, artistic and others, he had formally accepted it and arranged for its transportation to the United States and its delivery to the War Department here. The pedestal is 18 feet 11 inches long and 9 feet 11 inches wide. Its height is 17 feet 4 inches, not including any part of the plinth of the equestrian statue. It contains on each side a group of figures in high re- Nef—one representing Gen. Logan in the uniform of a major general in consultation with the officers of his command, each in the uniform of his rank, and the other group representing Gen. Logan in a civil capacity taking the oath of a senator of the United States. Each group is com- posed of nine figures. At each end of the pedestal there is an allegorical female fig- ure. One represents War, or the defense of the Union, and the other represents ‘Peace, or the preservation of the Union. The ped- estal is also surmounted by four eagles, one at each corner of the entablature. These figures add much to the architectural effect Of the structure. The total weight of the pedestal is more than 48,000 pounds. Mr. Wood says he was much impressed with the character and importarce of Mr. Simmons’ work. “This imposing and pleas- ing combination of sculpture and architec- ture—original in design and probably the first of its kind that kas been ‘executed for the United States,” says he, “geems to m¢ to have its distinguishing excellence in the beauty and harmony of-all the pagts, which the artist has rendered subservient, how- ever, to the one leading ie exalta- ton of the subject of she monument. a valuable contribution to American art. and a valuable addition to the number of monuments in our re! TO MOVE DOWN TOWN, + District National Guard Will Vacate the L Street Armory. RETURN 10 CENTER MARKE? BUILDING Location and Economy the Chief Motives for the Change. TAKE POSSESSION FEBRUARY 1 ss As a sort of general Christmas gift to District National Guardsmen, the official announcement comes that the local brigade will the Ist of February move into a new armory. Brigadier General George H. Har- ries, commanding the District militia, today notified the owners of the building now ‘used for armory purposes, at 446 L street, and of Convention Hall, used for drill pur- Poses, that the lease that has been in force fer the past three years, covering the oc- cupancy of the building and hall by the guard, and which expires the end of Janu- ary, will not be renewed. The future home of the brigade, or, at least, the greater part of it, is to be in the Center market building, occupied by the troops from soon after the date of organi- zation of the guard, in 1887, until the date of the removal to the L street armory, in February, 1893. The present armory will be vacated within the next thirty days, and the old soldiers, who used to sit hour after hour on the bridge leading to the arcade and the more youthful guardsmen who want to sit on the bridge, will be hard at work at their specialty before the expira- tion of one calendar month, Although no intimtien of the move prior to this announcement, has been given to more than haif a dozen individuals, it seems to be assured that it will prove the most popular and beneficial step ever at- tempted in connection with the volunteer soldiery of the national capital. Officers and men, discouraged because of the pre- vailing situation, will, it 1s believed, assume pleased expressions, and an awakening of enthusiasm is anticipated al} alung the line. Move or Dwingle, According to Gen. Harries the brigade had to either move into quarters down town or dwindle, and sconer or later prac- tically go out of existence, Before the ultimatum was reached today the proposi- tion was most carefully discussed, The feeling of the entire brigade was given a chance to develop itself through, represen- tative officers, and after an/inquiry which extended through several weeks it has been found that no difference of opinion exists. The move is to be made, says the commanding general, for the good of the brigade and for the comfort of the men after investigating a series of complaints affecting the L street quartets and ex- tending through three years. The main point considered”’in reaching the conclusion to moye was that ef? }oca- ton. The situation of the L street armory compared with the Center market loca- tion was thought sufficient to settle the matter. The guard would gladly bear with all sorts of fils if the present building was conveniently accessible, so it 1s stated. The L street building is away from the lines of travel, and the result has been that the guard nas been sliding downward and backward to such an extent that the situation assumed the proportions of the problem that just had to be considered. The National Guard service is voluntary. Men cannot be compelled to enlist, and will not do so, it has been demonstrated, so long as the armory 1s located where it is at present. Furthermore, company com- manders, to their consternation, have real- ized that desirable members of their eom- mands have, right along, been applying for discharge because they have had to suffer a good deal more than mere incon- venience. The rooms at the L street armory, according to the officers of high rank of the brigade, are genérally unsat- isfuctory. Drill Hall Unsatisfactory. Arrangements for the use. of the drill hall have also been very unsatisfactory. Under the lease, the guard is entitled to the use of Convention Hall three nights a week during about one-third of the year, and that only, it is said, when the hall is not in use for other purposes. A year or so ago Convention Hall was conyerted into an ice skating rink, and in consequence for almost the entire winter it was an impossi- bility for the troops quartered in the arm- ory to indulge in any form of drill beyond the manual of arms, unless they chose to don overcoats and maneuver about the Streets, in the dark and cold. Drills during that period were generally suspended, and the guard lost ground that required months of hard work to regain. Hereafter Central Hal}, the large in- closure over the 9th street wing of the Cen- ter Market, will be at the disposal of the National Guard exclusively, day and night, winter and summer. There will be ample opportunity for every company and bat- talion to drill to the extent they desire at any and all times. The hall will be well lighted and heated, convenient in location and entirely under control of the guard. For company quarters there will be front rooms 18 feet 6 inches by 83 feet in dimen- sions. These now exist. In the rear of each room the Market Company is to con- struct a locker room 18 by 20 feet in dimen- sions. Each set of company quarters will have but one entrance, and that from the balcony, and each will be complete and en- tirely to itself. : A new balcony is to be erected along the front of the building at the third story. The rooms on the upper floor, will have in- dependent entrances by this *belcony, the balcony being reached by’ the main stair- way. All the rooms will be well heated, brilliantly lighted and placed in, first-class condition in every possible way. In fact, the preparations ina:cate a cagdition of things that will surpass everything in the way of comfort and el that the guard has yet had. In the main building will be four toilet rooms, modal in every way. Rifle Gallery and Gemnasium. At the L street armory gymnagium facil- ities are miserably poor. Phe rife gallery is so situated that it is only.avaiable after 4 p.m., the armory being qlesed;until that hour. At the Center market bwiiding the 7th street wing i to be flogred ever, mak- ing avaijable @ space equally ag large a3 Central Hall. The south third ofthis space is to be transformed into ‘rie guliery. This will be independent gf the company quarters and will be open all day. The gallery will be larger than the present one, and will include many new features, in- cluding pistol targets. In the 7th street wing will also be an élegantly appointed gymnasium, to meet a gro’ feature of the local brigade. KE an entrance entirely } from: any en- trance the « thus making the property mic! than it ever has been. 5 “&.4 ‘The floor of the 7th street wing will be of concrete and ited iron, with a used as a gun shed and as quarters for the ambulance and escort wagons. Aside from the question of location, all the additional facilities to be obtained by the move will be secured for an annual rental smaller by several thousands of dol- lars than that now paid for the L street atmory and Convention Hall, which is an important point. The Ist Battalion wiil remain at its present quarters in the ar- mory of the Washington Light Infantry Corps, the Ist Separate Battalion will not be moved from its quarters on O street be- tween 7th and Sth streets, and it is be- lieved that Company C, 2d Battalion—the National Fencivles—wiil not care to va: cate their handsomely furnished quarters at 913 E street. Brigade headquarters, the office cf the adjutant general, the officers for the clerks, the quarters of the general staff and the store rooms will not be at the Center Market, but will be located in some convenient office building in the heart of the city: Increased Membership Expected. The move to the Center Market is made possible because the brigade is not so large in number of companies as it was whea the market building was vacated a few years ago. The 3d and 6th Battalions are now skeletonized, the troop of cavalry has been disbanded, the 24 Separate Com- pany has been merged into the Engineer Battalion, and the 34 Separate Company has been disbanded. Besides the brigades wil! net be increased in number of organi- zations, the effort being to strengthen the organizations that now exist. It 1s an- Ucipated that in point of numbers the Dis- trict National Guard will swell fully ber cent in ninety days, as a direct result of the move down town. As stated the brigade will vacate the L street armory by the end of January. Al- though every rt is to be expended at once i ting the Center Market, it will be impossible to have everything in readiness there within a month, so that it will be necessary for the troops to subm to some inc mvyenience for severa! However, the work will be pushed as rapidly as possible, and when it is complet ea the ind ms are that the District of Columbia National Guard will be as nicely ed and provided with as many co Yeniences that couid reasonably be expect- ed under the appropriation for its main- tenance and support. INSTANTLY KILLED John Histon Struck by An Engine Near Trinidad, es Stepped Of a Shifting Engine to His Death—An Unmar- ried Man. John Histon, twenty-five years old, em- Ployed at the Baltimore and Ohio Rail- road Company's round house at Trinidad, Was struck by an engine near his place of employment about 7:30 o'clock this morn- ing and almost instantly killed. The young man lived at 4th and I streets northeast and was unmarried. He left home about 7 o'cicek this morning just after en- Joying his Christmas breakfast ani started toward the round house. Soon after he left home he met a shifting en- gime and thought he would ride to Trinidad and save himself the walk in the cold. Just as the shifting engine reached a point opposite the round house Histon stepped off and started to run toward the building. An incoming express train hap- pened to be moving on the south-bound track only a few feet from where Histon left the shifting engine. The unfortunate man evidently saw the moving express train coming toward him, but he was un- able to get out of its way. Engine N 1308 drawing the train struck him in the side and threw him violently to the ground. Soon after being picked up he died and his body was brought to the city on a freight train and taken to the morguc. Policemen of the ninth precinct who do duty in Trinidad made an investigation of the case to report the facts to the coroner. They learned that Histon had ridden to work on shifting engines many times be- fore as had others employed in the round house, and he had become so accustomed to jumping from the engines that he had probably become careless. The train which struck and killed Histon was in charge of Conductor John Matthews, Engineer Pat- rick Fitzgerald and Fireman John Coyle. Coroner Carr was notified of the fata accident and will make an investigation before holding an inquest or giving a cer. tificate of death. ea THE PELAGIC SEALING BILL. It is Belleved That the President Will Sign It. The action of the Treasury Department in telegraphing instructions to the customs officials at San Francisco and at Port Townsend to give public notice in their dis- tricts of the passage of the bill prohibiting pelagic sealing by citizens of tne United States in the Pacific ocean north of the 25th parallel of latitude, 1s accepted in official circles as a clear indication that the Presi- dent will affix his signature to the measure and make It the law of the land. The delay in action on this bill !s due simply to a desire to accommodate Ameri- can dealers in seal skins who had made ecntracts for such articles before the pus- sage of the law, who, by, the President's consideration, will be enabled to receive the ccnsignments before the law goes into ef- fect. As ts well known, the bill prohibits the importation of seal skins into the United States, and provides for the seizure and confiscation of all such articles intro- duced into this country ‘rom the date it be- comes a law. The constitutional limit of ten days allowed the President to veto this bill will expire on the 2th instant, and if it is not returned to Congress within that period, it will become a law without his signature. It is understood to be .he Presi- dent's purpose, however, to sign the bill, but for the reasons already stated it is not likely he will do so until the tenth day. 2 _____ ARCHITECT CLARK ILL. Venerable Custodian of the Capitol Sufféring From Paralysis. The venerable Edward Clark, architect of the Capitol, has been, since Friday of last week confined to his home by iliness, the result, it is said, of a lignt stroke of pa- ralysis. His condition when first stricken ‘was regarded extremely critical, but within twenty-four hours he rallied, and is now said to be greatly improved, although unable to attend to any gurt of his public duties, his assistant Mr. Elliott Wood, be- ing in charge. Mr. Clark's advanced age is naturally against rapid recovery, and it Is believed several weeks must elaps2 before he can leave his house, ES Arctic Weather in Colorado. DENVER, Cok, December 25.—Arctle weather still prevails west of the great di- vide. The warm wave which visited Denver @ few days ago did not climb the moun- to the weather reports re- Denver tains. According. ee tg eneeas colors Ot te lo le ie ture from zero to 18 degrees W Zero ranges in the towns in the western slope. EES | American Relief im the Stricken Dis- tricts of India. Rev. Richerd G. Hobbs of Jacksonville, M., has just returned from a visit to India, where he went to assist in the distribution of relief to the famine-stricken inhabitants. He left San Francisco in July last on the steamer City of Everett, which was char- tered by the government to carry grain to India. The Everett carried 2,500 tons of Indian corn or maize and $200,000 in money, contributed in small sums in all parts of the United States. Most of the grain was donated by farmers of the middle west. Mr. Hobbs went as commissioner to distrib- ute the grain where it would do the most good. In a recent interview he summed up the results of his mission m- the following words: “Eighty million people were involved in the famine. The stricken district was in central Indfa, perhaps 200 miles long by wide. In. that district there was an abso- lute fallure of crops last year, due to the drought: The people left alive there have nothing. They had to sell all to keep alive. Wages are only 5 cents a day,wand even then work was not to be had. Tae people there do not eat wheat; it is too dear. They €at rice when well cff, and a coarse flour of millet ordinarily: It was a curious fact that during the famine wheat did not rise in price, but what we call ‘horse feed’ over here doubled. it was all the people could afford tu buy. “Our method of distribution was to give out grain in very small quantities, and in money perhaps two or three pice, worth half a cent, a day. On this a man could heep alive, and we hoped to tide over as F any lives as possible. All our grain was n out through Americans, chiefly mi mnaries. That was the agreement made when {t was sent over. The English gov- ernment also did all it could, and must have spent over $30,000,600. No one w has been in India can say that England's occupancy has not been of benetit to the conntry. “I want especially to emphasize the great gratitude the English showed toward Amer- ica for her gift. Everywhere we were met by the highest appreciation from all, es- pecially the official class, and the natives themselves showed deep feeling. They used to visit the skip while she lay at Calcutta and Madras, some times a thousand a day. One man traveled three hundred miles to visit our ship. Of course, what we did was small compared to what the English gov- ernment did, but it was thoroughly appre- cinted. We kept a careful record of ail our work, and can show where every bushei and every cent went.” a CURRENCY QUESTION No Independent Action for 16 to 1 by This Country, Position of Senator Hansbrough— Silver Men and Interna- tional Bimet The United States Senate is against the free coinage of silver by the United S‘ates alone at the ratio of 16 to 1. This Is the declaration of Senator Henry C. Hans- brough of North Dakota, and It derives pe- culiar significance from the fact that Sen- ator Hansbrough himself is an earnest advocate of international bimetallism and is opposed to recent utterances by Secre- tary Gage. Some of the friends of bimetal- lism who remained in the republican ranks a@ year ago and supported McKinley are prepared to follow the lead of the adminis- tration In opposing the plunge to a silver basis so long as the administration pre- serves its friendship for international bi- metallism. Their position, as stated by Senator Hansbrough and by Senator war- ren of Wyoming, in a recent interview, greatly clears the alr in regard to the prospect of currency reform. It indicates that these senators may not be unwilling to support a plan for putting the legal ten- der paper currency upon a stronger ~asis and authorizing an elastic banking curren- cy in their sections. Senator Warren and others have substantially intimated as much. The attitude of Senator Hansbrough is defined as follows: “Secretary Gage’s radical declaration in favor of the gold standard is not in line with the platform of the republican party. A special train carried a gold standard con- tingent to St. Louis last summer. The ob- ject of these gentlemen was to force ther peculiar financial views upon the party. They failed to do it, because they met there the combined republican wisdom of the country, and better counsels prevailed. Had they succeeded in their purpose Mr. Gage would not now be Secretary of the Treasury. “The President has earnestly endeavored to comply with the mandates of the con- vention which nominated him. He will not cease to urge other nations to join us in an international agreement, and the great mass of republican voters will sustain him. The Wolcott commission has done remark- ably well. The republican party, under a solemn pledge to promote international bi- metallism, has been in power a :.ttle more than eight months, and yet one of the great European nations has positively agreed to co-operate with us, whue the great Bank of England met our commissioners half way. The conditions in Europe are ripe for a continuation of further effort on our part. To stop now would be suicidal; it would be almost criminal. “There is no danger of the passage of any 16 to 1 legislation by the Senate. I am quite sure that there is not a 16 to 1 ma- jority in that. body. With the present bright prospects for international bimetal- lism, the majority of the American people are opposed to independent action on the 16 to 1 or any other revolutionary wasis. I do not know of anything that would drive this country into a financial revolution un- less it be the narrow, radical and pig- headed policy of the gold standard advo- cates. Mr. Gage’s policy has put new life into populism.” ———_—-e. WILL BE A GREAT DEMONSTRATION. Rendezvous of the North Atlantic Fleet in the Gulf. A telegram received at the Navy Depart- ment today announces the arrival of the monitor Terror at Norfolk. She has taken on coal and provisions and is all ready to start on her cruise to Key West, where she will join the other vessels of the north At- lantic fleet. No time has been set for the rendezvous of the fleet at the Florida port, but it is expected that all the vessels be- longing to it will be there within the next two weeks. The flagship New York, with Admiral Sicard commander-in-chief, on board, is at Norfolk, and the other vessels. including the battle ships Massachusetts, Iowa and Indiana and the cruiser Brook- lyn, are at the New York yard receiving final‘repairs ratory to their departure for Key West. When all have arrived there they will be put through a series of evolu- they will make a cruise in the Gulf of Mexico. It will be the most formidable fleet of warships that has been in those waters since the days of the rebellion, and its progress will be watched with consider- 80 many United States warships in such proximity to the queen of the Antilles. —__——-e--—____ Fire at Fostoria, 01 CLEVELAND, Ohio, December 25.—A special from Fostoria, Ohio, says: The Harter mill, the largest winter wheat mili in the country, was destroyed by fire last night. The losa is estimated at $150,00u, 5 SSeS Vesnel Ashore Netr Burnegat. NEW YORK, December 25.—A dispatch from Monmouth Seach life-saving station says that a is ashore on the New Jersey coast near Barnegat. am A CUBAN CONVENTION Plan of Autonomy Rejected by Con- servatives. a VAIN EFFORTS OF OPEZTEGUIA sen ee Much Ability Shown in Pulling the Wires. ——— NOVELTY ON THE I AND! ———e (Copyright, 18! Correspondence of The Evening Ster. HAVANA, December 2 Political conventions in Cu common € The institutions island under the system of gove has heretofore prevailed } aged parties as they w in the United States. forms of party organi Once it was Iibers by Charles M. Pepper. » not the of understood Nevertheless, the ion have obtained, anf conservatives. Then autonomista: formistas and con- servatives. The conservatives were the un- changing element, the union constitution- als, they called themselves, bourbons they wouid be called in the United States, tories in Great Britain. Under these names the Spanish cl: in Cuba went through the forms of electing deputies to the Madrid. A few Cu men of int gifts, wealth and soci sition but the m s of the pecple were as little concerned with these elections a the affairs of Greece and Turkey. The captain general usually influenced the selection of the deputies. While the system of government gave littie encouragement to popular inierest in pertics, there organtgations had a frame- work. There were local juntas or « it- tees, and a “junta directoire,” or ceniral committee, The latter was the vital organ. It was in reality, as well as in the directing force, e body of trustees which formulated policies and defined the position of the organization on the care occasions when a definition was necessi Political rallies are unknown in Cuba. The nearest approach to them was at the time when the autonomist movement was at the height of vigor and aggressiveness. That was a genuine agitation in which colonial home rule was sought. The Castilian tongue had no word which exacily de- scribed these gatherings. m the forma- tion of the Black Eagle Society seventy years ago, almost to the present time, every movement for either indepen of secrecy and, from Spain's standp« conspiracy. No Sam Adams has been known in the West India colonies,and there would have been no place fer him. The Antilics are a thousand years distant from the genesis of the New England town meeting. Having no word to describe a popular gathering, the Span- jards in Cuba took w English term and called It a meeting. A sense of reproach and disapproval is given when using it. The understanding of what makes a con- vention is also indefinite. It is .called an assembly, and its functions are not inte preted as they would be in either the Unit- ed States or France. All political organizations in Cuba have a prestdent. He might be compared to the chairman of a national committee !f there were a similarity in political affairs. But the comparison would be lacking because of the essential difference in institutions, The board of directors acting through the president of the party puts in operation the machinery of the organization, but the ma- chinery is so seldom used that this function is of little account. In the United States the national committee knows !ts own ina- tility to shape party policy, and is usually content to keep hands off. Here, as al- ready explained, the board of directors mold the policy. The directors of the autonomist party met and by resolution accepted the de- crees. The directors of the reformista party did the same thing. The Madrid cabinet was notified of the action taken. Congratulations were exchanged. Then the steps were taken to merge the two organ- izations into one President Galvez, on be- half of the autonomists, and the president of the reformistas, Marqueso de Rabele, ecnferred. The boards of directors con- ferred. Conferences were held in the sick room of the Marqueso de Montoro, \eader of the historic autonomists. The fusion was cemented. The reformistas, whose po- litical existence was a protest against the reactionary tendencies of the conservatives, had begun by advocating reforms as an antidote to autonomy. They ended by ac- cepting autonomy and the offices that go with it. This fusion wes as if Chairmaa Mark Hanna and the chaifman of the gold standard democrats, whose name escapes me, had met after the election in 1896 and arranged for the gold standards to have the majority of President McKinley's cab- inet and of the administrative offices. The union of the autonomistas and re- formistas is cited only because of its apt- ness for illustration. It shows that the American notion of popular government has not fully blossomed here, though the seed may be in the earth. No convention of either autonomists or reformistas was call- ed to ratify the union and make it binding. Such @ gathering would not be possible for the reformistas, because they are not numerous enough to hold a convention. It is impracticable for the autonomists sc long as what was once the rank and file of that organization remain in the field with the insurgents. It develops the ob- gtacle in the regimen of autonomy when the structure of the system must be from the top downward, instead of from the bottom upward. The conservatives are taking advantage of the situation to show that they are the only ones who are en- titled to respect as representing the real sentiments of Cuba today. They have done what the other organizations did not dare to’attempt. They have held a convention. Convention of Conservatives. It was of this convention that I sterted to write. The “call” wes regularly issued by Marques de Apezteguis, president of the pasty, or by the central junta through him. ‘Apezteguia is of Cuban birth. Much of his time fs spent in France, where he was educated. He is also a frequent vis- itor to the United States, as his wife is a New York lady. He was chosen the head of the party several years ago, when it was split into factions, and the ultra Spanish element felt the need of renewing itscif through native blood. , Apezteguia is president of the Sugar Planiers’ Association, and his influence is not therefore confined to political assoclar