e was only possible at
the cost of heavy loss.

The insurgents were careful that news of their oft-repeated successes
against the Spanish troops should be published throughout the island,
despite the desperate efforts of the authorities to suppress it; and, as
a consequence, new recruits were constantly being added to their ranks.
The insurrectionary movement grew apace; and at length a provisional
Government was formed, with the Marquez de Cisneros at its head, as
President of the Cuban Republic. The first act of the new Government
was to divide up the entire island into different districts; and over
each district was appointed a civilian as Prefect. It was of course
only natural that the Prefecture of the Pinar del Rio district should be
offered to Don Hermoso Montijo; but when he was made fully acquainted
with the views of the provisional Government he declined it, for he
considered that these views on certain points were so extreme as to
render the Government unpopular, and to bring absolute ruin upon a very
important section of the community, the planters to wit. One of the
proposals of the new Government was to impose certain taxes for the
purpose of raising funds wherewith to carry on the revolutionary
movement, and to this there could of course be no reasonable objection;
but when it was further proposed that non-payment of those taxes should
be punished by the destruction of the buildings and crops and the
seizure of the live stock of defaulters, Don Hermoso asserted that such
action was altogether too drastic, and savoured too much of tyranny to
meet with his approval, and he firmly declined to associate himself in
any way with it, electing to continue instead to serve the movement, as
heretofore, by lavish contributions of money, and the assistance of the
yacht.

The next step of the insurgent leaders was also one of which Don Hermoso
very strongly disapproved, and against which he passionately pleaded--in
vain, with the result that a certain feeling of estrangement, not very
far removed from enmity, arose between him and the leading spirits of
the revolution. The latter, it appeared, had conceived the idea that so
long as industry was permitted to flourish in the island, so long would
Spain be able to find the necessary funds for the maintenance of a large
army in Cuba; but that the moment industry ceased, the fountain of
revenue must run dry, and the troops must be withdrawn. They therefore
determine