The Sun.
London, England, 1819-01-28 00:00:00

this indispensable engagement, and to demonstrate to 114
world, that neither the desire of conquest nor hostility'
Spain had any influence in the Councils of the Unitsd States;
has directed the unconditional restoration to any SPanisd
Officer, duly authorized to receive them, of Pensacola an,
the Barrancas, and that of Si. Mark's to any Spanish f•rc"
adequate for its defence against the attacks of the savages.
Bet the President will neither inflict punishment, a° Pass
a censure upon General Jackson, for that conduct, the ll'
tires for which were founded in the purest patriotism, 01
till
necessity for which he had the most immediate and OW;
tual means of forming a judgment, and the vindication °it
which is written in every page of the law of nations, as We
as in the first law of nature, self-defence. Ile thinks it,
°lt
the contrary, due to the justice which the United States hart
a right to claim from Spain : and you are accordingly
t"str
all
ed to demand of the Spanish Government, that inquiry
be instituted into the conduct of Don Jose Mazot, G2recn°:
of Pensacola, and of Don Francisco C. Luerigo, Command°
of St. Mark's, and a suitable punishment inflicted upon
for having, in defiance and violation of the ene'agement6:6
Spain with the United States, aided and assisted these hot'
of savages in those very hostilities against the 'United Sesta
which it was their official duty to restrain. This ing:siral
is due to the character of those officers themselves, "-
file Wigs'
to the honour of the Spanish Government.
(ion of Spain to restrain by force the Indians of Fl ea
from hostilities against the United States and their citizen:
is explicit, is positive, is unqualified. The fact, that I°l.
series of years they have received shelter, assistance, sPPliels:e
and protection, in the practice of such hostilities frau' t"t:
Spanish Commanders in Florida, is clear and 'unequivocal.
XXXI L] as the Commanders both at Pensacola and St. Mark.:
XLII.I have alleged, this has been the result of their sireakne;
rather than of their will—if they have assisted the JOWL
against the United States to avert their hostilities frog
ti;
province, which they had not sufficient force to defend &On
them, it may serve in some measure to exculpate, indicidtv
;
the;
ally, those officers; but it must carry demonstration .1.10
sistible to the Spanish Government, that the right at
United States can as little compound with impotence as 2'4
perfidy; and that Spain must immediately make her eleeti°"
either to place a force in Florida adequate at once to tile
Pia
tection of her territory and to the fulfilment of her eagttie
ments, or cede to the United States a province, of 1/171,
she retains nothing but the nominal possession ; bpt
is, in fact, a derelict open to the occupancy of every enr
my, civilized er savage, of the United States, and sersitl
no other earthly purpose than as a post of annoyance to theta'
That the purposes, as well of the Negro Indian banditti,
with whom we have been contending, as of the British iU'
vaders of Florida, who first assembled and employed thetn:,
and of the British intrudiag and pretending traders, sigee.lll
peace, who have instigated and betrayed them to destrocto;
have been not less hostile to Spain than to the United Stat
the proofs contained in the documents herewith enclosed
conclusive. Mr. Pizarro's Note of the 29th of It
at
speaks of his Catholic Majesty's profound indignatinrito
the " sanguinary executions, on the Spanish soil, ni .0,
subjects of Powers in amity with the King,"i;
Arbuthnot and Ambrister. Let Mr. Pizarro's successor tail,
the trouble of reading the enclosed documents, and he W
discover who Arbuthnot and Ambrister were, and what vW,
XLIX. I their purposes; that Arbuthnot 'was only the 5600,
LVIII. cessor of Nicholls, and Ambt ister the agent of Wpfio
bine, and the subaltern of M'Gregor. Mr. Pizarro r1t°113",,,e
General Jackson's necessary pursuit of a defeated °"
enemy beyond the Spanish Florida hue as a shafruj'al
te
sion of his Majesty's territory; yet that territory was t_Ahn'
territory also of the savage enemy, and Spain was be4w-
to restrain them by force from hostilities against th:t
United States; and it was the failure of Spain to ftliwi
.at
territory;
alic.tss n.:: at;
Acog pursue
character
usticiu,ttiae:
errwrrt(heoh.
les
.laalf Ne sysasil
cli,h,alaildigosi made it necessary for Ge e
Nicholls',
AI across Majesty's
je
eisnst
tyvy" ss
pitheofronorlftoiosnuf
and
nu
1.11
si
pWnivitial
t
hat
at tile;
been violently seized on by General Jackson. Had the' 0
been seized en, nay, harinot the principal of his forts b .stt
blown up by Nicholls, and a British fort on the same Spar° 0
territory been erected during the war, and left standig 1,
Negro fort, in defiance of Spanish authority, after the Peaces;
Where was his Majesty's profound indignation at that?
his Majesty suspended formally all aegociation with the
reign of Colonel Nicholls, for the shameful invasion 21
bef'
territory without colour of provocation, without pretenet?
necessity, without the shadow or even avowal of a Prcte%to.
Has his Majesty given solemn warning to the British G2vest,
merit, that these were incidents " of transcendent Innate
capable of, producing an essential and tholough o°4°i
the political relations of the two countries?" Nieh°llBl,3"s
Woodbine, in their invitations and promises to the 6-- cae.
to run away from their masters and join them, did not
..,e°re,
fine themselves to the slaves of the United Staters: the' 0
25 t,l
ceived with as hearty a welcome, and employed with 4100
readiness, the fugitives from their masters in Florida,
xxv.i from Georgia. Against this special injury thevri,
vernor of Pensacola did earnestly remonstrate with
% ;
tish Admiral Cockburn (see the document marked .ose
hut against the shasneful invasion of the territory---arn:o,
the violent' seizure of th f and places—aainst the hi'
ing up of the Barrancas,e and St he erection angd maintenatiticei
.....,
under British banners, of the Negro fort on SPanish.;°t
against the negociatiun by a British Officer in tbe ef
peace, of pretended treaties, offensive and deferasis'-es
navighion and commerce upon Spanish territorY, hetviaati
treat Britain and Spanish Indians, whom Spain was havoi
to controul ahrl restrain—if a whisper ,of expastniati°ll4ls
ever wafted from Madrid to London, it was not foo ouch
to
to be heard across the Atlantic, nor energetic et'"...,esh
transpire beyond the walls of the palaces from which it is
and to which it was borne. ti bay
1 connexion between Arbuthnot and Nie"'",s,', 81:1d be
tweep Ambrister, Woodbine, and M‘Gregorsis estaw's-heors
yond all question,by the evidence produced at the trials "-very
the Court partial. I have already remarked to you onto b 0 be
extraordinary circumstance, that a British Trader fr
;tie/
yond the sea should be permitted by the Spanish Author r
to trade with the Indians of Florida. From his lett' kid
Hambly, dated ad May, 1817, (see the documents ins 10,
G is the proceedings of the Court-martial) it aPPe°3
his trading was but a pretence; and that his princil'a 'too
pose was to act as the agent of the Indians of Floridttlotnit
outlaws from the Creeks, to obtain the aid of the
13
Goreintnent in their hostilities against the GUlted Sta t
teboe
He expressly tells Hambly there, that the Chid 0f heir%
rattlaws was the principal cause of his, Arbuthnots, fore
in the country; and that he bad come with all :100 "r 0 of
Earl Bathurst, delivered to hint by Governor CaMern.d d
New Providence, to certain Indian talks, in which. thls
the British Liorcrinalcnt Lad been solicited. 11°21111