The republic., 1851-09-12

sures of last session. That opinion is, that those
measures should be regarded in principle as
finalsettlement of the dangerous and exciting
subjects which they embrace; that though they
were not free from imperfections, yet, in their
mutual dependent and connexion, they formed
a system of compromise the most conciiiatory
and beet for the entire country that could be OBJ
stained from conflicting sectional interest and
= opinions, and that therefore they should be ad
'hered to, until time and experience should de-
monsirate the necessity of further legislation to
guard against ev aston or abuse. Thatopinion 80
Tar as know, remains entirely unchanged, and
'will be acted upon steadily and decisively. The
'pcace ofthe country requires this; the securityof
the Constitution requiresth this; and everyconside-
ration of the public good demands this. If the
Administration cannot stand upon the principles
ofthe message, ii does not xpect tostand at ALL .
IDANIEL WEBsTKR's Letter TO the Union Meeting
at Westchsster.
The Law OF Treaties and the "HIgher Law"
OF sympathy.
Some of our contemporaries still persist in
urging their "higher law view of the Cuban
question, and in eulogizng the deluded follow
ers of LOPEZ as gallant men engaging in
glorious struggle for the emancipation of an op-
pressed race. 1t is admitted that they were
violating the statutes of their country; but it is
contended that they were an army of liberty,
initiating the examples of LAFAYETTE and
KoscIUsKo, and engaging in an enterprise SINH
lar to those in which the governments of the old
world have repeatedly permitted their subjects
90 engage without molestation.
Whatever may have been the statements cir
culated in this country in reference to the al
legged revolutionary spirit and insurrectonary
movements in CUBA-whatever may have been
the delusons on this subject honestly enter
tertained by the young men who have been sa-
crificed-we think there is now abundant and
conclusive evidence before the country that
there was no considerable party in the island
which had invoked foreign interpositon; and
that the Americans who perlshed 50 miserably
at Havana died in the belief that they had been
grossly deceived in this respect. The last let
ter of Colonel CRIrTENDEN fully establishes
this important fact my people," he says,
4'were entirely surrounded on every side. We
saw that we had been deceived grossly, and
were making for the United States when
taken. During my short sojourn in this island
have not met single patriot, We landed
Z some forty or fifty miles to the westward of
this, and | am sure that in that part of the
island LOPEZ has no friends When | was
attacked, LOPEZ was only three miles off. If
he had not been deceiving as to the state of
things, he would have fallen back with his
force and made fight, instead of which he
marched Immediately to the interior.n
1t seems then that the expedition of LOPEZ
was undertaken moi because the subjects ofSPAIN
in CUBA were so dissatisfied with their govern
ment as to rise in arms against it, but because
our "sympathizers" and liberators felt them
selves called upon to force the blessings of free
dom on reluctant, or at least an insensibe,
people. Being the citizens of a republic,
they were unwilling that their neighbors should
continue the subjects of despotism. The in
fashion, and consequently not according to our
tastes; and, on the idea that our internal affairs
were managed on better principles than those
of CUBA, it has been assumed that we were
right In carrying our principles by force into
the administration of their government.
Now, any one who will take the trouble to
recur to the times which called for the statute
of 1894, and the extreme solcitude of General
WAsHISeToN to prevent his countrymen from
meddling with the internal affairs of other
countries, cannot fail to be convinced that his
solicitude was entirely based on the great i'm
portance to his Own country of establishing the
principle of non-interference. 1t was on ac-
count of his o,on counuymen, and not for the
purpose of aiding anytoreign nation, that General
WAsHINGToN called upon Congress TO pass an
act contemplating the prevention, by our own
Legislation, con6rmatory of the law of nations,
of the fitting out of any expedition in our bor
ders to engage in hostilities against any State
OF Kingdom with which the United States were
at peace. And we cannot fail, on verylittle con-
sideration, TO appreciate the wisdom of this le-
gislation, and to feel that of all nations earth
the United States are most deeply interested In
establishing the important doctrine of non-in-
reference. President WAsHINGTos was no
"sympathizer." He never felt that it was any
part Of our mission to embroil ourselves with
foreign powers for the sake of extending among
them the benefits of our own institutions, or the
blessings of our own liberty.
1t is not to be denied that some Of our do
mestic Institutions are as little acceptable 20
many nations of the world as those of CUBA
can possibly be to us. When a body of "sym-
pathizers" get together in London, and de-
nounce the American people for holding slaves,
and pass abusive resolutions, and put forth in
hammatory documents, and raise money to send
GEoRGE THOMPSON to this country to harangue
us on the enormities Of slavery, and to stir up
an incendiary spirit and hostility to the laws Of
the land, on what principle do we condemn and
denounce all these movements2 Simply on
the ground that if slavery is wrong, or an op-
preston, il is an affair of our own, with which
neither the English government nor English
GEoRGE THoMPsoSs have any right under