Gaceta de La Habana. Periodico oficial del gobierno. Edicion Extraordinaria. Sábado 30 de Octubre de 1897

Habana: Imp. del Gob. y Cap. Gral por S.M., 1897. First edition. A very good copy, folded, with small tear along fold and some tiny chips to the edges.. Broadside. [31 cm. x 45 cm.]. Replacement of General Valeriano Weyler (1838-1930), known by the Cubans as the Butcher of Cuba. Weyler was named governor of Cuba in 1896 when rebellion was at its height with the charge to suppress the insurgency. Like those before him, Wyler was at first unable to successfully combat the guarilla tactics of the rebels, but soon began a policy of establishing "reconcentration camps," in which the local populace had to relocate or be subject to execution. By the end of 1897, Weyler had relocated more than 300,000 and cut the rebels off from their supporters. But "although he was successful moving vast numbers of people, he failed to provide for them adequately. Consequently, these areas became cesspools of hunger, disease, and starvation where thousands died. Weyler's reconcentration policy had another important effect. Although it made Weyler's military objectives easier to accomplish, it had devastating political consequences. Although the Spanish Conservative government supported Weyler's tactics wholeheartedly, the Liberals denounced them vigorously for their toll on the Cuban civilian population," (The Spanish-American War, Hispanic Division, Library of Congress). With a new government in power in Spain, Weyler was replaced by Don Ramón Blanco y Arenas who arrived and assumed power on October 30, 1897, the date of this paper and first day after a new constitution was adopted by the rebels. Not in Trelles.