was as follows: "That there is hereby appropriated out of any money
in the treasury, not otherwise appropriated for the national defence,
and for each and every purpose connected therewith, to be expended at
the discretion of the President, and to remain available until June 30,
1899, fifty million dollars."

This bill, it was reported, was the outcome of a conference held at the
White House. The situation was considered so serious that it was
necessary that an immense appropriation should be made for national
defence.

* * * * *

Talk of the United States buying Cuba has revived during the last week.
The Spaniards seem to think better of this than they did some months
ago, and it is reported that one paper in Madrid has come out in favor
of selling the island to this country.

It is a question whether it would be wise for this country to buy Cuba.
It would involve the expenditure of $300,000,000 or $400,000,000; and,
again, the people who live on the island might not be a desirable
addition to the voting population of the United States. Spain has
misunderstood this country in regard to the purpose of our proposed
intervention in Cuba. She believes that we would intervene in order to
obtain possession of the island. The truth is, that the only reason for
our stopping the war would be for the sake of mercy, for the war that is
going on in Cuba is uncivilized and horrible.

About twenty-five hundred men have been sent to Cuba recently as
reinforcements to the Spanish army, and Spain is putting forth the
greatest efforts to stop the revolution before the rainy season sets in.
Five torpedo-boats are to be towed from Madrid to Havana. It will be
unfortunate for Spain if she has no better luck towing these boats than
she had with her immense dry-dock, which we told you about several weeks
ago.

* * * * *

The _Vizcaya_, which left New York on February 25th, arrived in Havana
safely. The _Almirante Oquendo_, a sister ship of the _Vizcaya_, has
also reached Havana.

The _Oquendo_ is a very powerful vessel, 340 feet long, 65 feet wide,
and can steam 20 knots an hour. She is said to have cost $3,000,000. She
left the Canary Islands on February 15th, the day the _Maine_ blew up.

The men on board, of course, had not heard of the catastrophe, and when
they saw the wreck they could not imagine what it meant. With these
vessels and the _Alphonso XII._ in Havana