Besides depriving Spain of her revenue, Gomez had another though a lesser reason, for burning the sugar cane. He knew that those who were thrown out of employment would flock to his standard, and his forces thereby be greatly augmented. On the whole, we do not see that the criticism and blame which have been given to the insurgents for destroying the crops and for the time being laying waste the land, are deserved. It was a measure of war, and one, which it seems to us, under the circumstances, was thoroughly justified. Now let us contrast, for a moment, the different methods of the Spaniards and the Cubans in waging warfare. In the first place, we do not mean to affirm that the insurgents have not committed actions, which, in the light of civilization, are indefensible, but they are few and far between, and they were forced upon them. After all the horrors to which they were subjected, they would have been less than human if they had not retaliated. The Cubans, both in the Ten Years' War and in the present one, have been merciful to those of the enemy who fell into their hands. The latter have been almost invariably treated with kindness and allowed to go free and unmolested. But the Spaniards never reciprocated. It has been their invariable policy not to exchange prisoners, a notable instance of this being their recent refusal to exchange the gallant Hobson and his comrades. To be sure, according to international law they are not compelled to do this, but it is doubtful if there is another civilized nation (by the way, it is an undeserved compliment to intimate that Spain is civilized), which would have acted as the country which boasts of its chivalry has done. Just here, let us say that those acts of cruelty which have been committed by the Cuban army have been very far from receiving the sanction of their leaders. On the contrary, they have been done in violation of the explicit orders of those leaders; and whenever the offenders have been discovered, they have been hanged as bandits to the limb of the nearest tree. The hatred and barbarity which the Spaniards have without exception, evinced toward the Cubans have done much to alienate the latter, have been the chief causes why peace could not be maintained, and have made only one outcome possible--the freedom and independence of the island. We have already seen the humanity with which Gomez, Maceo and the other Cuban chiefs treated the wounded of the enemy who chanced to fall into their hands. But how was it on the other side? How did the Spaniards behave toward the insurgent wounded? When not killed at once and their sufferings ended immediately, they were cast into loathsome dungeons, with insufficient food and with no medical attendance whatever.