The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1851-09-25

Americans: and that his landing was the sgnai
for q general rising and that within ten days
after landing he would he at the head OF an
army of ten thousand men that there were also
two whole regiments of Spanish troops TO come
over to him with their equipments The same
story was told to all Was it so! As have
already stated. our first salutaton was yolIey
of musketry. instead Of. rs the Delta asserts, a
large BODY of friends. with horses, stores nc,
for our use.
Instead of finding the creoles our friends,
we found them our most bitter enemies, far
more so than the troops-keeping the troops
constantly informed Of our movements. ana
hanging on our skirts putting to DEATH without
mercy. all those who struggled on the march'
OF the troops | cannot but speak in praise,
without a single exception They treated the
prisoners with the utmost kindness, giving them
wine, segars bread, tobacco, ana aguaueh'e'
freely, and from their own small means
He then pays compliment to Cr'tenden
and states that Lopez did not desert him, but
committed an error in leaving him. He adds:
Had Lopez carried out his original inten-
ton of landing near Puerto Principe the result
might perhaps have been dfferent-he might
there, perhaps, have found friends and raised a
force sufficient to sustain itself until reinforce
ments were sent out from the States. In land
ing where ne did Lopez without doubt acted as
he thought for the best: but there, as III many
other instances, he erred
"Of his personal courage there is no doubt :;
but when we speak of military knowledge, or
Judgment, of his ability to lead an expedition, |
say at once he has neither Lopez was probably
,n1 mo thAa
expedition His ambition led him to be the tool
and victim of hcarssesysr~suaters Avariec, not
philanthropy, wasthe handspring of this expe-
dition
IL now distinctly openly assert, that all those
letters purportimg to he from Cuba, which were
published during the month of July last and
copied through the Union, were base forgeries,
for the express purpose of deceiying the citizens
of the United States, and advancing the sale of
Cuban bonds Knowing the ambition of Lopez,
and that strong disposition to extend the glorious
boon of freedom which fills the breast of every
American citizen. these spectators in human
blood took advantage of their knowledge to
further their own ends They well knew how
little effort was required to start and keep alive
this excitement. They thought, or at least
tondly hoped, that more men would go gut to
JUN .Tot.SNNSsSd ana tnds CfcGtortliy tiic
'ri.,.y.ss =, Sast q. s.,. G,&.s t8adE as>o ,S:h
or were selling at from 10 TO 20 cents on a dol
lar, when this expedition left
Naturally they would increase in value, as
the prospect of iberatng Cuba became more
certain and if this expedition succeeded as they
pretended to think it would, Cuba, when liberia
ted from what they demonnated the tyranny of
Spain, would have been burdened with debt
of from fifty to hundred millions of dollars
at least fifty per cent of which would have
been in the pockets of these wOud-be philan-
thropists, who, active as they wished to be
thought in the holy cause of liberty, took the
best of good care to peril neither life nor their
own precious liberty in its behalf
"At the expiration of the war, and if Cuba
should have become free then it was to be an
nexed to the United States and as matter of
course the payment of these Cuban bonds was
to be assumed by that Government. What do
they care for the mothers, wives, and sisters, of
the gallant men who formed this il-fated expe-
dition who have been rendered utterly wretch
ed and miserable forever! They do not fbel
the chains, the anguish borne by those one hun
bred and sixty noble fellows doomed to spend
the best ten years of their lives in Spanish
prison No: they feel the blood money in their
pockets and laugh over the result of their spec
ulatiOnp
This statement of Lieutenant v will doubt
less induce counter-statement We therefore
refrain from comment.