The Sun.
London, England, 1869-11-24 00:00:00

(From the Anglo-American Times.)
Last Saturday week it was announced in this
paper that the United States had concluded the pur-
chase of Samana Bay, that the Stars and Stripes
were flying over the town, and that General Banks
was about to pay a visit to the island. Last Satur-
day we gave the message sent from New York the
preceding day, to the effect that the United States
steamer Albany, loaded with heavy ordnance for the
coast defences and carrying a regiment of infantry,
had sailed on the 11th inst. from New York to take
formal possession. On the same day an official denial
was given, the assertion being that the Albany was
destined to replace a vessel leaving the American
squadron stationed in the Gulf of Mexico. Messrs.
Peter Lawson and Son, who are interested, as the
house which brought out the last loan for St. Do-
mingo on the London market, immediately tele-

graphed for information to their New York corres-
pondents, who reilied—" Deputies from Washing-

ton went down on a very important mission.

think towards annexation. Cannot get reliably

information yet.

Will keep you advised." "

our leading papers contain long editorials favouring
annexation, but as yet they can only surmise."
The effect of the message on the 12th was to raise

the value of the loan, as it was anticipated that if
the United States acquired possession of the peliin-

sula on which stands the town of Samana, forming
the northern side of the bay, that the end must be
the annexation of the whole island, whereby the

Government of the United States would be sabsti-

tuted for that of the unstable Dominican Republic,

vastly increasing the value of the bonds.

Hayti is

one of the richest and the most beautiful of the

Antilles, and next to Cuba both in size and position.
Its greatest length is close on 400 miles, its breadth

93; and the area 27,690 square miles. It is irre-

gular in outline, indented by bays, and having cor-
responding projections. The finest of the harbom
these form is that of Gonaive, in the west or
the Haytian part, and of Samana, in the east,

or the St. Domingo part. Three mountain chains
intersect the island east and west, with wide

fertile valleys, plains, and savannahs between.
Samana is a peninsula separated from the main
land by low marshy grounds, estuaries, and chan-

nels. One of the ranges, rising near Monte Christi,

skirts the Northern coast and ends abruptly near
these marshes, but recommencing on the peninsula
terminates in Cape Samana. It is one of the heal-
thiest of the 'West India Islands, with fewer earth-
quakes and hurricanes than any in the Carribbean
group. A frightful earthquake, however, occurred
in 1751, which levelled Port-au-Prince and many
other towns, submerging 60 miles of coast, and de-
stroying thousands of lives. Tropical vegetation
is no where else seen to greater advantage, but the
Haytian section of the island is better cultivated than
the eastern, the staples being coffee, indigo, sugar,
cocoa, tobacco, and cotton. The mineral products
are gold, platina, silver, copper, quicksilver, iron,
tin, sulphur, manganese, antimony, rock salt,
bitumen, jasper, marble, opal, lazislite, chalcedony,
&c. In the 16th century the gold mines of the
Cibao Mountain were very productive. That peak
reaches to the height of 7,200 feet, the loftiest in
Hayti. There are many lakes, two of which are
salt, the Enriquillo twenty miles by eight, lying
in the valley of the Neiva, and the Arzuey ten
miles by six, besides the fresh water lake of Limon,
about the same size as the Azuey as well as others.

Hayti was discovered by Columbus in 1492, who
founded the first Spanish colony of the New World
at Isabella. After exterminating the native tribes the
Spaniards introduced African slaves. The French, in
1630, settled inthe western part, which the Spaniards
had abandoned, and in 1777 that portion was gua-
ranteed to France by treaty with Spain. The popu-
lation of French Hayti in 1790 was 540,000, com-
posed of whites, coloured, and the far more numerous
blacks; on the outbreak of the French Revolution
sanguinary though petty war ensued between the co-
loured people and the whites. As might have been an-
ticipateditended in a rising of the slaves, who joined
the coloured inhabitants (for, though not slaves,
they were deprived of all political privileges), and
expelled the French, when power fell into the hands
of the greater number, and a negro chief assumed
the reins of Government. France made an attempt
to regain the island, but after a few successful cam-
taigns by the army despatched from Europe, it
ended in the permanent retirement of the French.
In 1801 the Republic was declared independent,
and resumed its indigenous name of Hayti, which
means, the mountainous country. In 1821 the •
Spanish portion having also assumed independence,
Boyer, the President of the liberated French side,
soon subjugated the liberated Spanish side, and
brought the island again under one Government.
Boyer was expelled by a revolution in 1842, and in
1844 the Spanish portion rose against the Haytians,
and declared for a Republic under the name of Do-
minica. Herard Riviere, who succeeded Boyer,
was defeated by Santana in his invasion of the new
Republic, and Santana became President, but Sou-
louque, after the lapse of a few years, again in-
vaded the Dominican Republic, when Santana in-
flicted a second and total defeat on the Haytians.
After a term under Baez as President, Santana again
succeeded in 18b3, and in 1858 Valverde took the
chair, but, in 1861, after seventeen years' trial of
self-government, Spain, on the invitation of the
citizens, resumed possession. A people so accus-
tomed to license did not long endure Spanish rule, and
after several events Baez again found himself Pre-
sident of the Dominican Republic. A successful
revolution deprived him of office, and he fled to
St. Thomas, General Cabral being elected. In
January, 1866, Mr. Seward visited San Domingo,
and bad an interview with President Baez, whom
he informed that the United States regarded such
Republics founded on the equal rights of man as
outward buttresses, which it was in the interest of
the American Government to multiply and to
strengthen as fast it could be done without the exer-
cise of fraud or force. The Dominican Republic
extends over an area of nearly 20,000 square miles,
containing a population of about 200,000. It will
be seen therefore that Hayti or the west end is much
smaller, though far more productive and populous.
The irhabitants of the Hayti side number nearly
600,000. The revenue in 1860 was $1,762,500 ;
the public debt, $12,000,000. The Haytiau laws
are based on the Code Napoleon ; the Roman
Catholic religion is professed and others tolerated ;
there are four zolleges and 107 State schools are sup-
ported, wherein are educated about 17,000 pupils.
When France ruled the exports were close on
50,000,0001b5. of clayed sugar, and nearly double
that quantity of muscovado; 76,835,2191b5. of
coffee, and 7,004,2741b5. of cotton. In 1860 the
exports of coffee fell to 50,000,0001b5., and the cotton
to 1,200,0001b5. 'The western side of the island
prospered greatly under French rule, and doubtless
if the whole island became a State of the Union.
this progress would be resumed in an increased de-
gree. In the contest against the French for in-
dependence the Haytians were much aided by an
English fleet. Soulouque some 20 years ago pro-
claimed himself Emperor under the title of Faustin
1., but after an absolute rule of 10 years the Haytians,
having had enough of that bauble, turned him
out, and he was replaced in 1858 by President Jeff-
rard. The largest town is that of Port-au-Prince,
at the head of the Bay of Gonaives, with a popu-
lation of 26,000. Santo Domingo, the capital of
the Dominican Republic, is situated on the south-
t est at the mouth of the Ozama River, which ad-
mits vessels drawing 12 feet of water, but, like all
the rivers of the island, is impeded by a sand bar.
The town is enclosed by walls and bastions, with
regular streets, and stone houses of one storey.
There are 14 churches and chapels ; among them
the Cathedral, commenced in 1514, where lay the
remains of Columbus for two centuries. The pa-
lace of Don Diego, the son of Columbus, and the
Convent of San Francisco, are mementoes of a
former magnificence, first interrupted by Sir Francis
Drake, who assaulted, pillaged, and almost de-
stroyed the city in 1586, a ruin nearly completed
by the earthquakes of a century after. There are
still, however, remains which attest this city's an-
cient wealth as the first permanent settlement of
the Spaniards in America, although now the popu-
lation is but 10,000. We give this rapid sketch,
carrying the history of the island down to within
recent times, as it is probable that the action of the
United States may impart a fresh interest to Hayti.
We may add that St. Domingo is not only the next
largest island to Cuba, but is only separated from
it by a Strait called the Windward Passage, and
any country possessing Cuba and St. Domingo
could carcely fail to control all the West Indian
islands, and rule in these seas.