an acquisition that assured him of final success.  Under these circumstances Blanco, the representative of the forces against which Gomez had been contending, appealed to Gomez to join with him in an effort to repel the United States forces.  Such an appeal under the circumstances, in view of the fact that Blanco was regarded as an intelligent man, showed the Spaniard to be incapable of appreciating the sentiments which prompted a people to maintain a struggle for liberty.

General Blanco based his appeal upon the claim that the Cuban and the Spaniard belonged to the same race and worshiped at the same shrine.  He sought to stir up within Gomez’ breast racial and religious prejudices, and went so far as to suggest that in the event Gomez united his forces with those of Blanco, Spain would give liberty to Cuba, and would “open her arms to another new daughter of the nations of the new world who speak her language, profess her religion and feel in their veins the noble Spanish blood.”

Gomez’ letter was interesting for several reasons.  To those who had pictured him as a coarse, illiterate man this letter was a revelation.  It was not, however, a surprise to those who had carefully studied Gomez’ career and who understand that he was a scholarly man as well as a thorough soldier.

“I only believe in one race, mankind,” said Gomez, and that sentence will occupy a conspicuous place in the history of this continent.

“From the wild, tawny Indian to the refined, blond Englishman,” said Gomez, “a man for me is respectful according to his honesty and feelings, no matter to what country or race he belongs or what religion he professes.  So are nations for me.”  Such excellent sentiments were doubtless wasted on the Spaniard, but men of all civilized nations, even we of the United States, may find great value in these splendid expressions by the Cuban general.

The man who believes that there is but one race to whom we owe allegiance, that that race is mankind, and that to that race he owes all allegiance, must have his heart in the right place.  The man who discards the consideration of accident of birth and, apart from patriotic affairs, applies the term “comrade” to all of God’s creatures, that man has not studied in vain the purposes of creation.  The man who forms his estimate of individuals according to the manhood displayed by the individual, banishing from his mind all racial and religious prejudices, must certainly have studied the lesson of life to good advantage.

“I only believe in one race, mankind.”  That is a sentiment that the religious instructors and the sages have endeavored to impress upon us.  But the combined efforts of all the instructors and all the sages in teaching of the brotherhood of man have not been so impressive as was the simple statement of this splendid patriot wherein he repelled the temptation to racial and religious prejudice.

Mankind is the race, and the honest man’s the man, no matter to what country he belongs or what religion he professes.  That was a sentiment of Maximo Gomez, the Cuban patriot, the clean-cut American, a sentiment to which the intelligence of the world will subscribe and in the light of which prejudice must finally fade away.