The republic. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1849-1853, 1853-01-06

island in her possession, and England and France
should be engaged in death struggle with each
other, Cuba might then be the prize of the victor
Till these events all take place, the President does
not see how Cuba can belon to any European
power but Spain.
The United States, on the other hand, would, by,
the proposed convention, disable themselves from
making acquisition which might take place
without any disturbance Of existing foreign reia-
tons, and in the natural order OF things. The
Island Of Cuba lies at our dOors 1t commands the
to the Gulf Of Mexico, which wa hes the
shores of Eve of States. It bars the entrance IF
that great river which drains half the North
American continent, and withits tributaries forms
the largest system of internal water communica-
ton in the world 1t keeps watch at the doorway of
our intercourse withCalfornia by the lsthmusroute
If an island like Cuba, belonging to the Spanish
crown, guarded the entrance ofthe Thames and the
Seine, and the United States should propose con
venton like this to England and France. those
powers would assuredly feel that the disability az
sumed by ourselves was far less seriou tina that
which we asked them to assume
The opinions of American stat stren Mt differ
ent times, and under varying circumstances, have
differed as to the desrableness OF the acquisition
of Cuba by the United States Terrisoriaily and
commercially it would, in our hands, be an sx.5
hemeiy valuable possession. Under certain con.
tingencis it might be almost essential to
safety. Sill, for domestic reasons. on which, in
communication of this kind might not he proper
to dwell, the President thinks that the iacorpnra
ton OF the island into the Union at the present
time, although effected with the consent Of Spain
would be hazardous measure; and he would
consider its acquisition by force, except in just
war with Spain, (should an event go greatly 10 be
deprecated take piace,) disgrace to the civil
zation of the age.
cerity with which he holds these views He. has
thrown the whole force of his Institutional power
against all illegal attacks upon the island. Ii
would have been perfectly easy for him, without
formidable character to gather strength by comm
vance. No amount of obloquy at home, no en-
barrassments caused by the indiscretions of the
colonial government of Cuba, have moved him
from the path of duty in this respect The Captain
General of that island, officer apparently of
upright and conciliatory character, but prob
ably more used to military command than the
management of civil affairs, has, pune
tito in reference to the purser of private
steamship, (who seems to have been entirely in
nocent of the matters laid to his charges) refused
to allow passengers and the mails of the United
States to be landed from vessel having him on
board. This certainly is very extraordinary
mode Of aniInadverting upon supposed abuse of
the liberty of the press by the subject Of foreign
government in his native country The aptain
General is not permitted by his government, three
thousand miles off, to hold any diplomatic inter-
course with the United States He is subject in
degree to the direction of the Spanish Minister
at Washington; and the President has to choose
between resort to force to compel the abandon
inent OF this gratutous interruption of commercial
intercourse, (Which would result in war,) and a
delay Of weeks and months necessary for nego.
tiation with Madrid, with all the chances of the
most deplorable occurrences in the interval, and
all for trifie that ought to have admitted set
Element by an exchange OF notes between Wash
gton and the Havana. gz5
The President, however, has patiently submitted
to the Sc evils, and has continued faithfully to give
to Cuba the advantage of those principles of the
public law under the shelter of which she has de
parted, in this case, from the comfy of nations.
But the incidents to which allude, and which are
still in train, are among many others which point
decisivey to the expectancy Of some change in the
relations of Cuba; and the President tn INKS that
the influence of England and France with Spain
would be we'll employed in Undue ng her 80 to
modify the administration Of the governme mt of
Cuba as to afford the means Of some prompt
NEEDY for evils Of the kind alluded to, which
have done much TO increase the spirit of unlawful
enterprise against the island.
That a convention such is proposed would
be transitory arrangement, sure to be swept
away by the irresistible tide of affairs in
new country, is to the apprehen ion of the Pre-
sident too obvious to require labored argument.
The pre- ect rests on principles applicable, if at
all, to Europe, where interna tional relations are,
in their basis, of great antiquity, slowly modified
for the most part IN the progress Of time and
events, and not applicable to America, which, but
lately waste, is filling up with intense rapidity,
and adjusting natural principles those territorial
nent, were in good degree fortuitous. The compa
rative history Of Europe and America, even for a
single century, shows this In 1852 England,
France, and Spain were not materially fferent in
their political position in Europe from VIII t they
now are. They were ancient, mature, consoii
dated States, established in their relations with
each other and the rest of the world-the leading
powers of western and southern Europe. Totally
different was the state of things in America. The
United States had no existence peopIe-a line
of English colonies, not numbering much over
a million of Inhabitants, stretched along the
coast. France extended from the Bay of 81.
Lawrence to the Gulf of Mexico, and from
the Alleganies to the Mississippi; beyond which,
westward, the continent a wilderness, &C.
cupied by wandering savages, and subject to
a conflicting and nominal claim on the part
of France and Spain. Every thing in Europe
was comparatively fixed; every thing in America
provisional, lnclplent and temporary, except the
law of progress, which is organic and vital in
the youth of States as of individual men. strug
gle between the provincial authorities of England
and France, for the possession Of petty stockade
at the confluence of the Monongaheia and the Allie
gany kindled the seven years. war, at the close
OF which the great European powers, not materi
ally affected in their relations at home had under
gone astonishing changeso on this continent France
bad disappeared from the map OF America whose
Utmost recesses had been penetrated by her zeal
Gus missionaries and her resolute and gallant ad-
venturers. England had added the Canadas to
her transatlantic dominions. Spain had b, come
the mistress OF louisiana; so that IN the language
of the archbishop of Mexico in ITO, she claimed
Siberia as the northern boundary of New Spain
Twelve years only from the treaty of Paris
elapsed and another great change took place. fruit
full of stiH greater changes to come. The Arneri
can revolution broke out; it involved England,
France, and Spain in tremendous struggle, and
at its close the United MATES of America had taken
their place in the family of nations In Europe
the ancient States we're restored substantially to
their former equilibrium, but new element o,
incaculable importance i'll reference territorial
arrangements ia hencetorth to be recognised in
America. ~...s#a< .&. ....... -
just twenty years from the close OF the of the
American Revolution, France, by treaty witt,
Spain, of which the provisions have been dis
closed, possessed herself OF Louisiana, but did
only to cede it to the United States and in the same
year Lewis and Clarke started on their expedition
to plant the flag of the United States on the shores
ofthe Pacific. In 1919 FL rida was sold by Spain to
the United States, whose territorial possessions in
this way had been increased three. told in half
century. This last acquisition was 80 mu h mat
ter of course that it had been distinctly ioreseen
by the Count Amanda, then prime minister of
Spain, as long ago as 1888 But even those mo-
mentous events are but the for erunners of new ter
ritorial revolutions still more stupendous dy
nastc struggle between the Emperor Napoleon
and Spain, commencing in 1908, convuIsed the
peninsula. The vast possessions OF the Spanish
crown on this continent, vice royalties and plain
generalships, filling the space between California
and Cape Horn, after another asserted their in.
dependence. No friendly power in Europe at that
ala Fohln