The Politics of Intervention

244 THE POLITICS OF INTERVENTION

for Law, Order, Patriotism, Independence, and Gomez. (They
also had plenty of unpleasant things to say about the Zayistas.)
Popular response, however, was luke-warm. The crowds (from
500 to 3,000) were well-behaved. The only development of
interest was that Gomez was trying to get Mario Menocal to
be his running mate.^5
In April, 1908, the Miguelistas found in Oriente that the
only way to whip up a crowd was to denounce the Americans;
therefore Gomez allowed Loynaz del Castillo, Enrique Collazo,
and Orestes Ferrara to berate the United States. Their speeches
(to American ears) were full of hints of violence, anarchism,
and demagoguery.^6 As the Gomez entourage moved up the
island, the crowds grew, the speeches became more violent,
and the choice of speakers varied. Gerardo Machado and
Nicanor Lopez, representing the Spanish Board of Trade of
Havana, joined the Gomez partisans, which added another
insurgent officer and a representative of "commercial or indus­
trial character" to the platform. The oratory continued to run
heavily to anti-Americanism and threats of violence, but
Gomez preached that the elections must be peaceful. He
explained away the inconsistencies to a Marine officer by
saying that there "must be some pepper in the food."^7 The
Military Information Division believed Gomez was pitching
his campaign away from the common people to win more
influential backers. As the August 1 elections approached,
the single most controversial issue was American policy
in Cuba.^8
The Zayistas' canvas differed in few respects from the
Miguelistas' except that they were less cautious in their
criticism of the United States. The general line of the Zayistas'
appeal was summarized by Captain John W. Furlong:

On all sides can be seen the signs of general discontent coming from
the political and economic condition through which the Island is passing,
and for which the American government is responsible.
It has been asserted in private conversation that the United States
government is exercising a policy very much akin to the one it sawfit to
apply to California and Texas in days gone by. As a result, Cuba finds
itself in a disorganized political and social state in order to please