Page:The Presidents of the United States, 1789-1914, v. III.djvu/322

 270 LIVES OF THE PRESIDENTS those guilty of violations of neutrality. The ad ministration was blamed in Spain for supposed failure to enforce the law, and in the United States for attempting to enforce it too stringently. Strong efforts were made to induce the adminis tration to recognize the insurgents as belligerents, and in April, 1896, a resolution in favor of such recognition passed both houses of congress. Mr. Cleveland disregarded these resolutions as being an attempt to invade the prerogative of the executive, and Secretary Olney stated publicly that the ad ministration regarded them merely as &quot;an expres sion of opinion on the part of a number of eminent gentlemen.&quot; Besides the resolutions just referred to others were introduced at various times provid ing for intervention, for special investigation, and for recognition of the Cuban republic. On June 3, 1896, Mr. Cleveland sent Fitzhugh Lee to Ha vana as consul-general in place of Ramon O. Wil liams, and it was generally believed that Gen. Lee was expected to act in some sense as a special com missioner of the president, to report to him on the state of affairs in the island. Many expected that the appointment would be only a preliminary to in tervention, but the administration, though instruct ing Gen. Lee to guard the rights of American residents, continued to watch for filibustering ex peditions and to intercept them when this was pos sible; and in July, 1896, the president issued a sec-