The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1852-11-28
The Excitemcnt I'm Town-The Cu0a S"e~
t,ou-rne President and George Law.

dent Of the United States TO Collector Maxwell, IN
reference to Mr. George Law and the Crescent City
difficulty, That let.er, fer the fullest p'eFmanon
Of our readers, we 70 putlish this morning. We
also give a correct statement Of the conversation
between Mr.. Law and Mr.. Maxwell, which has been
misreprescnted, and under this Misrepresentation,
appears TO have been OF the reasons for the pub
icatcn Of the letter; also letters from Mr. Postmaster
Brady, relative 10 the mails, and one from Judge
ShsIkey, our Consul at Havana.
The President defines his position in this matter,
fin no other, with considerable nerve and irmness
He will net permit Mr. George Law, on his own pri-
yate account, to make war upon Spain, even if
il should require the whole combined strength
of the army and navy of the United States to stop
him. This, wima facie, is sound doctrine pri-
vate citizen has right TO levy war against for
eign power, especially if his object be to drag the
government into his quarrel and the energetic
tone with which the President discusses the qnes-
ton very clearly shows that he is not to bs triaed
with any longer upon this question. Congress is
the making power; and the Collector is author
lied to inform Mr. Law Of that fact. In word, the
President is determined 20 submit to every exacton
and every outrage which the Cuban authorities have
committed,o or may commit, against our commerce
our citizens, until the meeting Of Congress. The
whole business is to be turned into their hands.
Mr. Fillmore is resolved that he will not the
responsibility himself and that nobody else shsll
do it, and thus bring him into the scrape He will
preserve our relations Of peace with Spain. right
or wrong. at the risk Of war with the whole Cali
fornia Steamship Company, of which Mr. George
Law is the energetic chief
To this end, the Havana mails are removed from
the eompany's ships to the Isabel, Of the Charles
ton line; and it is reported that tbs contingent
sale by government of some 100000 muskets,
mere or less, to Mr. Law, is to be quashed, and
that the muskets are to be taken out Of his pos
session. and returned to the United States arsenal
at Washington for safekeeping. Thus. in addition
to the army and navy combined against him, Eek
ceptpg the Japan expedition, the flag ship of which
has sailed), Mr.. George Law is to be disarmed in
the very outset, and is declared an outlaw, if, on
his own account, he shall attempt to run Purser
Smith and the Crescent City or Cherokee into
Havana, in the teeth of The Moro. The fate of the
fifty deuded men slaughtered in front Of the Castle
Of Atares, under cover of our Presidents procama
ton, will, we apprehend, be very apt to bring Mr..
Law to a surrender. Whist is the ruin of a steam.
ship company to the President, if be can keep out
Of scrapc thereby private citizen of the United
States, disaImed Of his muskets, deprived of his
contract, and rebuked and outlawed by his govern.
ment, is hardly match for the army and navy, the
President and his Cabinet, and the Spanish author
tiles of Cuba, all combined He must succamb,
and swat little longer"
Mr.. George Law, no geyor, has not gone recklessly
into this business. He asked advice and counsel of
the government, and they gave him answer,
excepting very offensive one, to an inoffensve
citizen, entitled as such to the protection of the
government The administration is, therefore,
responsible for the present state of things. II
it had made known its objects and policy in
season, Mr. Law would have acted differently
But the Presidential election was, unfortu.
nately, in the way for conf ierable time and
hence the discretion allowed to the steamship
company, and the mystery which involved
the designs Of the government till the election
was over Viewed in any light, the course pursued
by the administration in this matter, from begin
ming to end, has been very weak and disgraceful,
and worse than useless, either for the pre-
seryation of peace the msintensnce Of the honor
and dignity Of the country-both of which are in
measure sacrificed by the Facilitating policy of the
administration.
In the meantime, every thing being conceded to
the Spanish authorities Of Cuba which they have
demanded, we should like to know wha. the Cabinet
are negotiating about. Is it new treaty for tho
protection Of Cuba, what I What is it And
why is the British feet increased in those waters
WHAT CouRss WILL GOVERNOR SEYMOUR RI.
Commend N RELATION TO THE CANAL POLICY p
The nomination Of Horatio Seymour, - the dsns
cratic candidate for Governor, was considered =
very hazardous undertaking by largo portion Of
the democratic party. They were for a more avail.
able candidate-some enc who wm uncommistsd on
the subject of the late canal Law and lettings or who
had expressed opinions satisfactory TO the wishes
of the immediate Enlargement contractors and
SPECTATORS. 1t was known that Gev Hunt would be
taken up by the wings more I" speedy enlarge
nsnt'' candidate, and it wss feared that il ssns
psr,on no. placed against him possessing similar
views with himself upon the canal question, he vsua
sweep tie State, especially along the canals. with
tremendous force.
There was highly sommeAdabls bsldnsss and
honesty in the friends Of Mr.. Seymour, in placing
him before the people upon principle alone, whish
all honsst Een must approve From the inception
Of the famous canal DILL, the democratic party in
the LsgiLa.urs opposed it with all their might
They resisted its p,asaxs step by step. They
discovered the party finger of Seward in its
sf6y Aeit Ais ScstiOn Va
obtained the control OF twenty millions of funds
it would b mostly ussd to psrpetuate the Z" higher
law" doctrines. Hence, in the eyes Of the dsms.
Gratis, the necessity Of defeat, if possible. Whom
the Efforts Of the democrats became exhausted, aad
tho act was declared valid By Washington Hunt,
Mr. Seymour was the irst man publicly to dsnounes
the measure as being wrong 10 principle and IN sx-
press violation of the financial provisions Of the con-
stiiution Other leading men followed Mr.. S. in de-
nouncrg the canal law, when, finally, the Court Of
Appeals adjudgcd it invalid, being violation Of
the constitution, not coon enough, however, to
prevent the wings from obtaining q million and
half, large portion Of which has been applied to
the payment Of contracts not coming under the law
At all.