The Fragile Republic 37apply the operating principles and methods he had found so
successful as a department commander. With independence
in the offing, Wood, turning away from developing local self-
government, concentrated on institutionalizing his public
health program and educational reforms. He continued his
drive for just, humane, efficient government. At the same time,
Wood tried to delay independence as long as possible (though
he was under severe pressure within Cuba and from Wash
ington) in order to allow his reforms to take root.
Wood began his administration with his usual self-confidence,
telling a correspondent of the St. Louis Globe-Democrat that
"success in Cuba is so easy that it would be a crime to fail."
He described his own task as doing "all we can for them
[the Cubans] and to get out of the island as soon as we
can/'^35 This, and other statements, soothed critics in the
United States and Cuba, for it was wide-spread knowledge
that Wood favored a long period of tutelage and ultimate
annexation.
With a deadline, however indefinite, hanging over the
Military Government, Wood zealously attacked what he
believed were Cuba's major problems. His purpose was to
establish the standards of good government, by imposition if
necessary. Major decisions on policy were his or Root's.
Though 97 per cent of the government's employees were
Cubans, none had a meaningful influence on matters of
importance. Wood's Council of Notables, a group of dis
tinguished Cubans, served more to check criticism than to
give advice. In his first full year in office, Wood issued twice
as many decrees as had Brooke, backed by an American army
of occupation of eleven thousand men and the Rural Guard,
a national constabulary of some one thousand Cuban veterans.
Wood, apparently with forethought, reigned with the
noblesse of a Latin American caudillo. He was intensely
military in appearance and bearing, made frequent tours
about the island, became a skilled jai-lai player, and rode
rough shod over the sensibilities of his critics.
36
In terms of
material and humanitarian accomplishment, Wood's adminis