The Sun.
London, England, 1851-08-29 00:00:00

44-S.Lltitt amt.
LONDON, FRIDAY, AUGUST 29, 1851.

We announced a few days since that General
AUPICK, the ambassador from the French Republic
to the Court of Spain, had officially informed the
Marquis of MIRAFLORES, the Spanish Minister for
Foreign Affairs, that France was prepared to afford
to the Spanish QUEEN not only moral support, but
material assistance to enable her to retain possession
of Cuba, and to repel the United States' pirates,
who are openly fitting out an armed expedition for the
avowed purpose of wresting from Spain her dominion
over the Queen of the Antilles. We trust
that General AUPICK was not the only
Minister at the Court of Spain who prof-
fered assistance to secure Cuba from the periodi-
cal attacks, we believe we may now call them an-
nual invasions, of brigands from the American conti-
nent. We cannot believe that, with the case of Texas
fresh in his memory, Lord PALMERSTON would again
suffer the Americans to play the trick of annexation.
As in the case of Cuba now, so in the case of Texas,
piratical expedition after piratical expedition
was fitted out and repelled, and as
each expedition failed, so was it regularly
disavowed by the United States Government,
al.hough for the inoividuals composing these expedi-
tions the protection due to citizens of the United
States was as regularly claimed and enforced. We
recollect that just about the period of the departure of
the last and 'ucceseful expedition for the invasion of
Tears the subject was brought under the attention of
the linthe of Commons by Mr. BARLOW Hor, and
the reply of Lord PALMERSTON was, that nobotb
could suppose the Americans were going to be so
w icked as to take Texas. Tne expedition,
disavowed by the United States Government,
as all similar previous expeditions had been,
left the United States and invaded Texas ; it suc-
ceeded in expelling the Mexicans from the coveted
territory, and then it was at once acknowledged by
the United States. Texas was declared independent,
such independence being merely the preliminary to
annexation ; Lord PALMERSTON, therefore, must be
now aware that the Americans are quite capable of
doing that which, in the case of Texas, he declared
nobody could suppose them wicked enough to do,
and therefore his Lordship must be prepared to offer
to Spain material assistance, unless he wishes to see
Cuba fall a prey to the American expeditions. We
could, by means of our marine in the West Indies
and on the South American stations, render to Spain
such assistance and co-operation as would effectually
preserve to her Cuba, by far the most valuable of her
colonial possessions ; and it cannot be doubted but
that Spain would be ready, in return for such co-
operation and assistance, to consider favourably any
rational and practicable proposal that may be made
for the emancipation of the black population of the
colony, who would then become the firmest supporters
of the Spanish dominion, and who would in such case
put an effectual stop to the fitting out of any further
piratical expeditions from the States by rendering their
success hopeless. In the interest of humanity, in
the interest of justice, in the interest of commerce
it is the duty of Lord PALMERSTON to offer frankly,
and without delay, to the Spanish Government the
assurance of such assistance, moral and material, as
Spain may require to enable her to retain posses-
sion of the most valuable of her colonies.
When we consider the immense amount of the debt
due from Spain to her foreign creditors, it is clear
that it is a duty which England, Holland, and France
owe to their own subjects, who have advanced money
to Spain, to take care that her resources for the
payment of the interest of that debt shall not be per-
manently crippled, and they would inevitably become
so were Cuba wrested from her. We hope, and we
believe, therefore, that we shall era long have to
announce that not only has the British Am-
bassador at Madrid been directed to proffer to the
Government of Spain the co-operation of our marine
on the West Indian and South American stations in
repelling the piratical expedition of Lorez and his
companions, but that we shall also be enabled to state
that our Minister at Washington has been directed
to seriously remonstrate with the American Govern-
ment on their supineness and want of good faith in
negl ectiug to adopt prompt and energetic measures
for the arrest of those concerned in fitting out this
piratical expedition. We cannot believe that, warned
as they have been by the occurrences of the last ten
years, our Government will allow the Americans to
take Cuba as it allowed them to take Texas.

Ever since the face of the country began to be in-
tersected by the existing network of railways, the
canal property of the kingdom has been, as a matter
of course, most materially deteriorated. In years
gone by many millions sterling have been invested in
what were then flourishing and promising concerns,
but which ba,,e been signally thrown into the back.
ground since the new age of iron has risen into the
ascendant. Nevertheless, it would appear that under-
takings constructed at so vast an expenditure, and
even at the present day affording considerable conve-
nience and utility to several localities, should not be
regarded with feelings of apathy or despair. In
this, as in all other matters not utterly
progress of the age cannotfai
obsolete,
l commensurateto
develop
improvement
latent resources may be inherent, and an interesting
illustration is presented by some recent experiments;