GENERAL MAXIMO GOMEZ Y BAEZ - AUTOGRAPH LETTER SIGNED - HFSID 218084

MAXIMO GOMEZ
The Dominican General writes a letter to friend Parraga giving him his opinion and advice on some war related issues
Autograph Letter Signed: "M. Gomez" in iron gall ink. 10¾x8¾. Fully Translated in English: "Kingston, April 2, 1886. Dr. J.M. Parraga. Dear Friend: The day before yesterday Bavastro gave me another letter from you dated on March which refers again to the loan and 'Bellido'. I have already given you my opinion about those two issues on the other letters I have sent you. The loan projects may vary, maybe among the patriots residing there and that are willing to help us to get back the corpse of revolution to life there is one that can come up with a better one and more useful than the one proposed by Mr. Ygnacio Belen Perez. Regarding the designation of Bellido for the 'agrupacion de Puerto Plata' his residency is unquestionable due to the reasons you give and that same thing must occur in the public conscience. I am with you for the management of some businesses, there is no doubt about the needing of new men. I think that if Carlos Manuel and Narciso Lopez come back to life in these moments, would do less than what you and Hernandez are doing, for instance. I am impatient because I haven't received any cablegram from you or Carrillo yet, I mean, I know three days ago the cable between La Habana and Cienfuegos was interrupted but Gonzalez has found out that it is working again. Maceo is still in Colon, I heard that Hernandez has reunited with him but I don't have more details-but we ought to guess that the absence of enough horses has stopped him, because it is not a secret for anybody that among all the big difficulties that we need to face off, that is a colossal one. By my zones I have one on hold for me but I don't know how I will get out. The ones that do not take care of those issues cannot know the difficulties that surround them because even having the horses, there is now the difficulty of a good practice for any concrete point because it is not possible to go where the franco places. You might remember how many times we had those drawbacks in mainland. I remember the friends, all yours M. Gomez." Dominican Major General Maximo Gomez y Baez (1836-1905) was initially trained as an officer of the Spanish Army at the Zaragoza Military Academy, originally arriving in Cuba as a cavalry Captain in the Spanish Army before taking up the rebel cause in 1968. Gomez famously helped transform the Cuban Army's military tactics and strategy, teaching the guerrilla independence fighters, the Mambises, their most feared tactic: the "Machete Charge". Gomez worked odd military jobs for the next couple decades: he became involved with the independence of Puerto Rico when he sold most of his possessions to finance a revolution, even volunteering to lead troops (later deemed unnecessary when Spain intervened), as well as was promoted to General of the Cuban army, improving the military's guerrilla tactics most effective against the traditional Spanish forces. The Spanish-American War, the result of the United States interfering in the Cuban War of Independence, forced Cuba to decide if they should choose heritage over their New World partners (Spain vs. U.S.), Dios decided to fight solely for his adopted country's independence; he lost his most trusted officer Antonio Maceo, and his son Francisco Gomez in the war in 1896, but by 1898 Cuba had obtained independence and Gomez was offered the presidential nomination, but he refused due to his Dominican heritage. By that time his was 75 years old, having spent half his life dedicated to the liberation of Cuba, and he died in Havana in 1905. Multiple mailing folds. Heavily toned. Worn at folds. Envelope attached. Otherwise, fine condition.