Excerpt from Recollections of My Service and Experiences in the Spanish-American War: 1898-1899 Cuba had been restless ever since the severance of Mexico and Central and South America from Spain, caused largely by the pernicious laws, corrupt misgovernment, and exploitation of the colony for the benefit of the mother country. As early as 1850 there was acute discontent in the island, and, because of its proximity to the United States, not only our people but the Administration as well voiced their sympathy freely and frequently. The ten years' war, 1868-78, had moral as well as financial support from our citizens; and during the latter portion of the period intervention by our Government seemed probable. Spain, however, by the promise of the abolition of slavery, reforms in government, and colonial autonomy - in addition to general amnesty for those engaged - brought the war to a close. The promise of governmental reforms and real autonomy proved illusive. Reciprocity with the United States, which had been promised, was not put in force until 1891, and was terminated in 1894. The arrangement had been of great benefit to Cuba, and its termination caused discontent and unrest. Soon preparations for another war began. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.