Page:McClure's Magazine volume 10.djvu/498

MAXIMO GOMEZ, COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF OF THE CUBAN INSURGENTS.

From a pencil drawing made from life by Sylvester Scovel in December, 1897. Copyright, 1898, by The International Society.

not propose to make war with velvet paws, but to achieve his purpose of putting down the insurrection if he had to wade through, up to the visor of his helmet, the blood of every Cuban—man, woman, and child—on the island. And yet I found him in official intercourse affable, pleasant, and agreeable. He was always polite and courteous to me, and told me more than once that he wished I would remain in my position there as Consul General as long as he did as Governor and Captain General. He is small in stature, with a long face and square chin, wearing side whiskers and a mustache; quick and nervous in his manner and gait, and decided in his opinions. He was loved by some, and hated and feared by others. Whatever may have been his military qualifications, his warfare in Cuba did not demonstrate soldierly ability, because with an army of effectives of at least 150,000 men he failed to suppress an insurrection whose total fighting force did not number 40,000 men. He told me one day he would like to visit the United States, to which I replied that I thought he would enjoy seeing the new republic with its wonderful history; but he shook his head, saying that he could never go, because the people of the United States would kill him, and that they were already calling him in the newspapers, "The Butcher Weyler."

AN INSURGENT CAMP. THESE MEN ARE PART OF THE REGIMENT NAMED IN HONOR OF
GENERAL GOMEZ'S SON PANCHITO, WHO WAS KILLED BY THE SPANIARDS.