CHAPTER NINE
RESTORATION AND WITHDRAWAL
Ai
LTHOUGH no date had yet been set for the
Jirst round of elections, the Cuban politicos
were campaigning in earnest by the fall of 1907. Their
speeches, as analyzed by the Military Information Division,
had made Havana indifferent, the provincial towns excited,
the peasants fearful, and the whole situation unpredictable:
"Politics are becoming more and more complicated every
day; the pretensions of the politicians are changing from
hour to hour. The enthusiasm of the populace for the Presi
dential candidates of today is constantly diminishing, and
none of them are able to count upon victory."^1 The reaction
of the Havana bankers and merchants to this situation was
to send a memorial to Roosevelt asking him to postpone all
but the municipal elections until all the political factions
requested them.^2
The style and content of Jose Miguel Gomez' campaign
for the presidency were characteristic. Gomez, accompanied
by compadres like Loynaz del Castillo and Monia Delgado,
made speeches for strong government, national unity, and
patriotism to small crowds around Havana.^3 He then shifted
his base back to Santa Clara where he continued to campaign
with discretion and moderation. On one occasion, when a
man shouted "Viva Jose Miguel Gomez, Abajo los americanos,"
Gomez shook his head and said, "No, we need the Americans."
He then added that he hoped the American Army would
remain to back the government.^4 Gomez stumped around the
province, banqueting, laying a wreath on the grave of Enrique
Villuendas in Cienfuegos, and listening to his orators speak