processes of nomination. An appeal was made for a postponement of the day of election, and for a representation of the Maso party on the various Boards of Canvass and Scrutiny. The appeal was refused. On December 31, the withdrawal of the Maso party was announced. At a meeting of the party leaders a resolution was adopted which contained the following expression: "The Central Board is a coalition of partisans, and General Maso, after exhausting every means to insure impartiality, rectitude, and justice at the coming elections, has become convinced that neither in official circles in the United States nor in Cuba does the intention exist to see that the elections are carried out with sufficient legality to reflect the real wish of the Cubans, who are desirous of independence and anxious to elect freely their first constitutional government." The Palma faction declared that the withdrawal was due to a recognition of weakness and the futility of a contest. Whatever the facts may be, whether Maso's followers were numbered by hundreds or by thousands, the entire incident can only be regarded as a matter for regret, inasmuch as the justice and the fairness of Cuba's first national election must remain as an undetermined question, and a doubt must remain of the entire good faith of the officials of the Intervention. Some weakness appears in the official argument from the fact that, notwithstanding the Maso withdrawal, eight pronounced Masoists were chosen out of the sixtythree candidates for the electoral college. How much this might have been increased had the campaign been conducted upon broader lines cannot, of course, be estimated. Charges of fraud and irregularity were brought, but the methods proposed for hearing and decision were unacceptable to those who brought them, and the matter was dropped as hopeless, leaving some to believe that injustice had been done with the support and connivance of the Military Governor. The Spanish press took no part in the campaign, and as it had no ardent affection for either side, its opinions may be regarded as, to considerable extent, nonpartisan. The general tenor of the comment of the local Spanish papers was to the effect that Estrada Palma was regarded as the candidate of the United States and of Cuban officialdom, and that it was therefore useless to oppose him. It is unfortunate that any ground should have existed for the assertions and allegations of the time, even if it be admitted that they were not warranted. America's hands in Cuba should have been so clean that no stain could have clung to them. Her acts should have been beyond the possibility of impeachment. Election day was marked with quiet and order throughout the Island, and only a light vote was polled. In his report for 1902 (p. 3), General Wood says: "I regret to state that a large portion of the conservative element, composed of property owners, business and professional men, etc., did not take such an interest in the elections as proper regard for the welfare of their country required, and consequently the representation of this element among the officials elected has not been proportionately as large as the best interests of the Island demand.” Something is to be said upon the other side of this question. General Wood did not command the respect and the confidence of this "conservative element," which saw him surrounded and influenced by a political element in which they had no confidence. They noted his neglect of and general indifference to the economic interests in which they were most deeply concerned. For these reasons, precisely as many of our own citizens do in this country, they held aloof from participation in insular politics. Subject to the conditions set forth in the preceding chap ter, the statement of revenue and expenditure for the year The foreign trade for the year is given by General Bliss, Collector of Customs, as follows: Total Imports Total Exports $67,751,911.00 Of the imports, $28,469,251 came from the United States, and $39,282,660 from other countries. Of the exports, $50,016,318 was sent to the United States, and $16,486,215 to other countries. The deficit for the year 1901 exceeds $700,000. The deficit of this year, taken with that of the preceding year, gives ground for a legitimate comparison. During his incumbency, *For fuller details, see article on Revenues and Expenditures, Chapter XX. General Brooke accumulated a treasury surplus of nearly $2,000,000. General Wood, during his term, appears to have overspent his revenues by about $1,500,000. One year after the American withdrawal, the Cuban Treasurer reported an available cash balance of nearly $3,000,000. This was done in spite of an increase in the running expenses for items which did not appear in the Wood budget, such as the payment of a congress, a larger salary and appropriation for the executive, and the maintenance of a diplomatic corps and a consular service. It was also done with no appreciable diminution in the efficiency of government in the departments of law and order, education, sanitation, and public improvements. As a financier, General Wood was outclassed by both General Brooke and Señor Estrada Palma. CHAPTER XII THE END OF THE INTERVENTION THE opening days of 1902 found the Island of Cuba upon the threshold of a new life. The conditions under which the United States proposed withdrawal had been accepted. A national election had been held, and although another election was required for full determination, the personnel of the new government was generally known. On February 24, the second election was held, and Tomas Estrada Palma was formally chosen as Cuba's first President, with Luis Estevez as Vice-President. The elected Senators included some whose names had been made familiar to American readers by their participation in the military operations of the revolution, and the political operations which followed the termination of hostilities. So far as Cuba was concerned, nothing remained except the official organization of the various elements. May 20 was announced as the date of American withdrawal and of the definite establishment of the Cuban Republic. Economically and industrially, the Island was in a state of suspense and unrest. The struggle for tariff concessions in the United States was in active process. This will be treated in another chapter. Notwithstanding the fact that the generally predicted industrial disaster did not occur, there is no doubt that the situation was seriously menacing, and that a real ground existed for the wide-spread apprehension that was both felt and manifested. That the |