The

VOLUME LXXXIII.-NO. 142.

San

Francisco

Call

SAX FRANCISCO,. THURSDAY, APRIL 21, 1898.

PRICE FIVE CENTS.

FOR PEACE OR WAR SPAIN

MUST DECIDE BY SATURDAY
PRESIDENT
SENDS HIS
ULTIMATUM
Woodford Will Present It
To-Day if Sagasta Will
Permit Him.
Clash of Arms
out That, for
Fleet Has
Cape

May Come WithSpain's Torpedo

Sailed From
Verde.

NEW YORK. April 20

The Herald's Washington correspondent telegraphs: Diplomacy has ended. War is
now upon us. Spain's fleet
sailed to-night from St. Vincent for an unknown destination.
American men-ofwar are on lookout for the
Spanish ships, and all is in
readiness for the word to
move on Cuban ports.
The first un is to be
fired as a necessary
prelude in the mind of
the President to for=

ma! declaration
of
war, but when he
signed the act of Congress to-day calling

CUBAN SARCASM.
Copyrighted, ISPS, by James

Gordon
Bennett.
HAVANA,April 20 La Lucha
says ironically to-day: "According: to the last cable we have received President McKinley will
fix the time of forty-eight hours
for Spain to withdraw her army
from Cuba. It will be necessary
to ask McKinley for delay because it i-s not possible to withdraw 20,000 soldiers and guerrillas and 300,000 volunteers from
the country in the time the telegTam says the President
of the
great republic is going to fix. If
prolong
the time we
he does not
will rebel against the President's
order on account ot the practical

impossibility of fulfillingIt. To

drive away the master from his

own house in a fixed and peremptory time is having but little
consideration for him, don't you

think?"'
The directive board of the Autonomist party did not hold last
night the session for which it had
convoked the members for the
purpose of approving candidates
for representatives before the inThere was no
sular cabinet.
quorum.

SPAIN WILL BE
GIVEN UNTIL NEXT
SATURDAY TO REPLY.
WASHINGTON, April 20.The text of the President's ultimatum will not be given out here untilit has been presented in Madrid
and McKinley has received notice of that fact from Minister

Woodford.
It embodies the demands of the resolutions passed by Congress
that Spain shall withdraw her army and navy from Cuba and Cuban waters at once, and the American Minister is instructed to impress upon the Sagasta Government that he will not wait longer
than Saturday for his answer. There Is a dispute as to whether
the ultimatum runs by its terms until Saturday at noon or Satthe President
urday at midnight, but it is not thought probable
will attempt, as one statesman expressed it, "To hold a stop watch

on the Spanish

Government."

* * *- *
*

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THE FIRST INFANTRY MARCHES AWAY TO THE WAR.

Column Passing Down Van Ness Avenue.

THE ULTIMATUM
NOT DELIVERED
TO SPAIN YET
Minister Woodford Will Present
It to Sagasta To-Day if
He Is Permitted to

"WAR! WAR! WAR!"

for forcible intervenDo So.
LONDON, April 21. Accordtion and dispatched
MADRID, April 20. Minister Woodford has received from the PresIng to a special dispatch from
ident his ultimatum and will present It to the Spanish Government
an ultimatum to Spain
Madrid Senor Sagasta on being
to-morrow. The Spanish employes at the legation will pass the
opinion
of
asked the
the Cabinet
night at Minister Woodford's residence.
he knew full well that
as to the outlook, replied: "War!
After the opening session of the Cortes the Ministers met In counWar! War!"
war must follow.
cil extraordinary and discussed exclusively naval and military matters.
No statement has been issued regarding the decisions reached.
Spain still has until
After the council Senor Sagasta, the Premier, declared that the
prepared
plans
ly
for forcibly
Saturday morning to
Government had up to that time received nothing regarding the ultimatum.
consider the ultima- intervening to put an end to
United States Minister Woodford has not yet asked for his passtum which Minister Spanish misrule in Cuba will ports.
Herbert W. Bowen, American Consul-General
at Barcelona,
will
Woodford was to-day be put into execution. The
leave
that city on Thursday, after transferring the papers of the
movement
of
naval
vessels
to
instructed to immediconsulate to the British Consul.
The Ministerial paper, El Correo, says to-night: "When the ultiately present to the begin the preliminary work
matum is delivered Spain will worthily reply, stoutly defending her
blockading Cuban and.
of
Madrid
authorities.
honor.
Porto Rico ports may, thereLONDON, April 21. The Madrid correspondent of the Daily Mall
No one supposes that fore, commence
telegraphing at 11 o'clock Wednesday everting says:
to-morrow
she now even wants unless Spain desires to take
General Woodford's family left to-night by the ordinary express for
Biarritz. The American Minister himself has taken tickets
for the
this much time. The advantage of the full limit of
south of France by the express to-morrow.
He haa received extendispatches
of
assumption
sive
instructions.
of the time allowed her before makItis doubtful if he will have an opportunity of presenting the ultimatum since, in
all probability, Senor
President and his ad= ing reply to the ultimatum.
Gullon, the Foreign Minister, will
send him his passports at 8 o'clock
to-morrow morning (Thursday) with, a declaration that diplomatic
visers is that Spain
reIn any event the war
lations between the two governments have been broken off.
will immediately re=
General Woodford has handed the archives of the legation
fleets will be on the
to the
British Embassy, where he dined to-night.
ply to the ultimatum move by Saturday.
The Republican minority met this afternoon and agreed to grant
by sending Minister The war squadrons
the Government
whatever measures might be necessary for war. Some
at
uneasiness
is felt at the movements of Don Carlos, which are being
Woodford his pass- Hampton Roads, Key
closely followed. Itis asserted that the Government will not resort to
ports, thereby throwprivateering.
West and Hongkong
ing down the gauntlet
waiting,
with
are
to the United States. steam up, for the word the United
States invasion of Cuba*
The waiting period will to move.
is concentrating
A proclamation will be isat
then be over and the carefulThe regular army of Southern ports forthe sued by the President to-

SPAIN'S TORPEDO
FLEET NOW ON
THE HIGH SEAS

GERMANY

A FRIEND TO
AMERICA.
BERLIN, April 20. The officials of the Foreign Office here
confirm the report that the Spanish Government has asked Germany to sell ordnance and army
supplies. They add that the request has been refused.

The Ships Sailed Away From the

Cape Verde Islands Yesterday

BOUGHT TWO
CUNARDERS. |
LONDON. April 21.The Daily
declares this morn-
that the United States Government has purchased the Umbria
and the Etruria of the Cunard
line.
i
\u25a0

Telegraph

\u25a0
\u25a0
\u25a0

if final action is
taken by the Senate, calling
for 80,000 volunteers. There
were important conferences
between the President and
his War and Naval Secretaries and the members of
the Military and Strategic
Board at the White House
this afternoon, and the conferences lasted until night
between the War and Navy
Department officials for the
purpose of effecting details
and getting everything in
readiness for the final plunge.
It has been a day of war
talk and warlike actions.
"Who will fire the first
shot?" "How long will the
war last ?" are questions
heard in every quarter.
Everybody has stopped askmorrow,

for Some Unknown

Destination.

NEW YORK, April 20. The Washington correspondent of

the Herald sends the following: Spain's answer to President McKinley's ultimatum may take the form of shot and shell. Her
formidable fleet, which has been mobilizing at Cape Verde Islands
for some days past, sailed to-day from that point for an unknown
destination. This information was received to-night by the attaches of the late legation of Spain who have remained in this
city.
Itis conceded to be highly probable that the fleet willhasten
across the ocean to Porto Rico and Cuba to prevent by force the
ousting from the islands of the naval and military forces of the
Spanish Government.
In order to ascertain the whereabouts of the Spanish vessels
it is probable that a swift man-of-war will be sent to Eastern
waters. As soon as they sight the enemy it will be their duty
to return and inform the Government of what they have seen,
when Commodore Schley's forces and those of Captain Sampson will
be gathered to administer a crushing blow to the enemy.
Itis admitted to be possible that the vessels may not go to
Cuba or to Pcrto iiico, but may make a counter demonstration
against New York or one of the Northern ports, in which event it
would be necessary to draw ships away from the gulf coast to
give them battle. Officials say they will have plenty of time to
prepare for the Spanish fleet, as at least a week will be taken up
in making the distance between St. Vincent and Porto Rico.

ing, "'Will there be war ?"

Forcible intervention it will
be, and forcible intervention
means war, but President
McKinley still insists that
Spain shall fire the first shot.
The ports of Cuba will be
blockaded as a preliminary
movement for carrying out
the intervention plan. There
are such things as peaceful

blockades. If Spain does not

fire a shot while the blockading is in progress, the next
move will be to send a ship
laden with supplies and convoyed by American warships
to Matanzas, where an effort
will be made to land them
and to distribute them to the
starving. A ship was chartered to-day for this purpose.