of the United States was the urgent necessity for a transformation of Cuban sanitary conditions. The island had long been recognized as a distributing centre of yellow fever, which appeared with disastrous results from time to time in the Southern States. This work was begun under General Brooke, who was appointed military governor at the end of hostilities, but was most energetically promoted under his successor, General Wood,* who was splendidly equipped for such work. Associated with him was Colonel Waring, whose labors in a similar cause in the city of New York were so successful, and as the result of their campaign of cleanliness, Cuba became transformed. This fact, joined with the recent knowledge of the causation of yellow fever and malaria, leads us to believe that the last visitation of the yellow scourge in the South has occurred.

The other reforms considered particularly desirable related to local and municipal government and to education. These were carried out as adequately as conditions would permit,

* Appointed December 21, 1899. His advisory cabinet consisted of Diego Tamayo, Secretary of State; Luis Esterez, Secretary of Education; Juan B. Hernandez, Secretary of Finance; Enrique Verona, Secretary of Public Works; Jose R. Villaton, Secretary of Agriculture.

Transmission by bites of mosquitoes. To prove this Surgeon Walter Reed, U. S. A., made some investigations at Havana of great value to mankind. In the course of these one of his assistants, Dr. Lazear, lost his life, and another, Dr. Carroll. narrowly escaped meeting the same fate martyrs to the cause of science.

and in furthering the last named, many young Cuban men and women were sent to the United States, where they were given the advantages of the schools and universities. It was conceived that by this means they would gain an insight into American educational methods which might be applied later to their own schools.

These reforms being well under way, President McKinley, in his message of December 3, 1900, directed that a call be issued for the election in Cuba of delegates to a constitutional convention. This was proclaimed to the citizens of Cuba by Governor Wood, the date of the election being September 15, the convention to be held November 5, in Ha

vana.

Cuba is divided into six provinces, and the representation according to population at the time of the election was as follows: Havana, 8; Matanzas, 4; Pinas del Rio, 3; Puerto Principe, 2; Santa Clara, 7; Santiago de Cuba, 7. Three political parties were represented in the election of delegates, the Nationalists, Republicans, and Democrats, whose representation was 17, 12 and 2 respectively. The constitutional convention met according to their mandate in Havana, November 5, and on January 22, 1901, the draft of the proposed constitution was submitted. This was modeled primarily upon the constitution of the United States, and was adopted without serious modification.

On February 27, 1901, the convention adopted a series of five declara

tions defining the relations of Cuba with the United States. These were as follows:

First.-The Government of Cuba will not make a treaty or agreement with any foreign power which may compromise or limit the independence of Cuba, or which may permit or authorize any power to obtain by means of colonization or for military or naval purpose, or in any other manner, any foothold or authority or right over any portion of Cuba.

Second. The Government will not permit its territory to be used as a base of operations for war against the United States or against any foreign nation.

Third. The Government of Cuba accepts in its entirety the Treaty of Paris, in which are affirmed the rights of Cuba to the extent of the obligations which are explicitly indicated, and especially those which the international law imposes for the protection of life and property, substituting itself for the United States in the pledge, which they assume in that sense according to Articles 12 and 193 of the Treaty of Paris. Fourth.- Cuba recognizes as legally valid all acts of the Military Government during the period of occupation, also the rights arising out of them in conformity with the joint resolution and the Foraker amendment and the existing laws of the country.

Fifth. The Governments of the United States and Cuba ought to regulate their commercial relations by means of a treaty based on reciprocity, and with tendencies toward free trade in natural and manufactured products, mutually assuming ample special advantages in their respective markets.

This declaration, however, was not acceptable to Congress, and as a result on March 8 an amendment to the army appropriation bill was adopted,* providing for the independence of the island on the following terms:

First. That the Government of Cuba shall not enter into any treaty or other compact with any foreign power or powers which will impair or tend to impair the independence of Cuba, nor in any manner authorize or permit any power or

* Proposed by Senator Platt of Connecticut.

powers to obtain by colonization or for military or naval purposes or otherwise lodgment in or control over any portion of said island.

Second. That the Government shall not assume or contract any public debt, to pay the interest upon which and to make reasonable sinking fund provision for the ultimate discharge of which the ordinary revenues of the island, after defraying the current expenses of government, shall be inadequate.

Third. That the Government of Cuba contends that the United States may exercise the right to intervene for the preservation of Cuban independ ence, the maintenance of a government adequate for the protection of life, property and individual liberty, and for discharging the obligations with respect to Cuba imposed by the Treaty of Paris, on the United States, now to be assumed and undertaken by the Government of Cuba.

Fourth. That all acts of the United States in Cuba during its military occupation thereof are ratified and validated, and all lawful rights acquired thereunder shall be maintained and protected.

Fifth.- That the Government of Cuba will execute, and, so far as necessary, extend the plans already devised or other plans to be mutually agreed upon, for the sanitation of the cities of the island, to the end that a recurrence of epidemic and infectious diseases may be prevented, thereby assuming protection to the people and commerce of Cuba, as well as to the commerce of the southern parts of the United States and the people residing therein.

Sixth. That the Isle of Pines shall be omitted from the proposed constitutional boundaries of Cuba, the title thereto left to future adjustment and treaty. Seventh. That to enable the United States to maintain the independence of Cuba, and to protect the people thereof, as well as for its own defence, the Government of Cuba will sell or lease to the United States lands necessary for coaling or naval stations at certain specified points, to be agreed upon with the President of the United States.

Eighth. That by way of further assurance, the Government of Cuba will embody the foregoing provision in a permanent treaty with the United States.

The Cubans considered these very stringent terms, but a modified form was adopted on May 28, which was rejected by the administration on the

ground that it was not a substantial compliance with the resolution of Congress. Accordingly, the terms of the first Platt amendment were accepted by the Cuban convention on June 12, by a vote of 16 to 11. The constitution was accordingly signed and proclaimed and an electoral law was drawn up, which provided for a general election on December 31, 1901, for the selection of presidential and senatorial electors who were to cast their ballots for president, vice-president and senators on February 24, 1902.

Two other steps in America's march toward a colonial empire was the accession of Guam and Tutuila. The former was gained by occupation, the cruiser Charleston, which was convoying the transport of the first military expedition to Manila, taking possession of the island, much to the surprise of the Spanish garrison, who were unaware that hostilities were in progress. This island* is only 32 miles long and intrinsically of small worth to the United States, but the possession of the Philippines necessitated the securing of coaling and strategic points in the vast distances

*The island of Guam, the largest of the Marianne or Ladrone Archipelago, lies in a direct line from San Francisco to the southern part of the Philippines, and is 5,200 miles from San Francisco and 900 miles from Manila. It is about 32 miles long and 100 miles in circumference, and has a population of about 8,661, of whom 5,249 are in Agana, the capital. The prevailing language is Spanish. Commander Taussig, of the United States gunboat Bennington, took possession of the island and raised the United States flag over Fort Santa Cruz on February 1, 1899.

of the Pacific. Hawaii was one, Guam the second, and Samoa the third. The last had been under protection of the United States, Great Britain and Germany by virtue of a tripartite treaty signed at Berlin June 14, 1889. On September 7, 1899, Secretary Hay informed Ambassador Choate at London that Germany desired a partition of the islands, the United States to retain Tutuila and adjacent islands, Great Britain and Germany to divide the rest.* Accordingly, by a treaty concluded December 2, 1899, the United States became possessed of one of the most beautiful bits of territory in the world, with Pago-Pago,t the finest harbor in the Pacific. Wake Island, a tiny speck of land mid-way between Hawaii and the Philippines, was also annexed on January, 1899, by Commander Taussig, on his way to Guam. This of course is of no importance save from a strategical standpoint.‡

Thus suddenly did the victory of Dewey transform the relations of America to the Far East. While all of these readjustments were being made to insure defence of the Philippines, the nation itself was not sure that it desired to keep them. Imperialism and expansion became the is

* Moore, Digest of International Law, vol. 1, pp. 536-554.

Ex-Chief Justice Chambers, of Samoa, says of Pago-Pago that "The harbor could hold the entire naval force of the United States, and is so perfectly arranged that only two vessels can enter at the same time. The coaling station, being surrounded by high bluffs, cannot be reached by shells from outside.

See pp. 78-79.