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The Record of Desolation and Despair: Weyler

In justifying the war of the torch and explaining his invasion of the west end, Antonio Maceo says, in a letter dated at El Rubi, at Pinar del Rio: "I have been compelled by circumstances to resort to extreme measures. General Weyler, in his wild desire of gaining glory and of obstructing the recognition of our belligerency, went in his proclamation so far as to promise the planters that they would be able to grind their sugar cane, while to the government he gave the assurance that the elections could be peaceably held, and to the country at large he declared that the Pinar del Rio and some other province would be soon pacified. Some of the planters, showing themselves willing to believe that the general would keep his promise, began to get ready for grinding the cane. Under the circumstances I made up my mind to invade Pinar del Rio again, in order to show that we are fully able to compel obedience to the orders of our government. "I am perfectly satisfied with the success which has attended all my operations during this second invasion, which shall last so long as there is anything to destroy from which Spain may derive any revenue. As you will see, the discredit which the proclamations of Weyler were intended to throw on our revolution has, through what we have accomplished, fallen on Spain, whose incapacity to control our movements has been again plainly shown. A correspondent with the rebels writes:

I asked Dr. Dominguez why the insurgent columns burned the towns when the inhabitants were really in sympathy with the Cuban cause. "The burning of the towns," he answered, "is often a necessity. The Spanish troops are unwilling to sleep in the open air. We therefore burn a town to harass them, but the principal purpose is to prevent its becoming a headquarters from which they may skirmish the surrounding country." The Spaniards have begun a general slaughter of horses wherever they find them, no matter to whom they belong. This is to prevent them from falling into the hands of the insurgents, and is probably in accordance with orders from the military governor at Matanzas or from General Weyler. Outside of the cities the soldiers kill every living thing. In addition to the common outrages on non-combatants, they kill horses, donkeys, cattle and mules for amusement or for practice. In many parts of the country people have abandoned their plantations and have taken their families into the cities to save their lives.