wantoned in luxury wrung from slaves with the cruel hand of
unchecked power. She has been the unjust and merciless court of
last resort. From her malignant verdict there has been no possible
appeal, no power to which her victims could turn for help.

But the end has come at last. The woe, the grief, the humiliation,
the agony, the despair that Spain has heaped upon the helpless,
and multiplied in the world until the world is sickened with it,
will be piled in one avalanche on her own head.

Liberty has grown slowly. Civilization has been on the defensive.
Now liberty fights for liberty, and civilization takes the
aggressive in the holiest war the world has even known.

Never was there a war before in which so many stimulating deeds of
bravery were done in such a short time, and this in spite of the
fact that the public has been restless for more action. It is
almost worth a war to have inscribed such a deed of cool,
intelligent heroism as that of Hobson and his men with the
Merrimac, in the entrance to the harbor of Santiago de Cuba. That
is an event in world history, one never to be forgotten, and in
the countries of Europe quite as generously recognized as by our
own people. There is a word to say for the Spanish admiral. In his
chivalry after that act of heroism, Cervera proved himself a
worthy adversary, who could realize and admire bravery in a foe,
even when it had been directed against himself with such signal
success. Not every commander would be great enough in that
circumstance to send a flag of truce to the opposing admiral, in
order to inform him that his brave men were safe and that they
were honored as brave men by their captors.