Spirit of the times. [volume] (Ironton, Ohio) 1853-1858, 1853-01-05
J. &. Adams on Cuhar

ter written by John Quincy Adams while
Secretary Of State in 1928, to our Minis.
terto Spain. twill be seen that he was
not only decidedly in favor Of the annex.
alton of Cuba to our country, but that
he anticipated that in the course of a
halfcentury its acquisition woull be Gin.
dispensable to continuance and integri.
ty oflhe Union" 1t is true the half cen.
tury has notyc expired, but events have
rolled on in the fast days much more rap.
idly than could have been calculated up.
on in those old slow coach times in
which he wrote; and it seems probable
that the coarse Of events to which he re.
icrred, is nearly run; and the opinion
seems 10 be gaining ground rapidly, that
the annexation Of Cuba is an event nei
thcr uncertain nor very distant
"ln the war between France and Spain,
now commencing, other interests, peculi
arly ours, will, in all probability, be
deeply involved. Whatever may be the
itsuc Of this war, as between those two
European powers, it may be ,kcn for
granted that the dominion Of Spain upon
the American continents, North and
South, is irrecovcrably gone. But the
islands of Cuba and Porto Rico still re.
main nomally, and SO far really depcn.
dent upon her, that she yet possesses tho
power of transferring her own dominion
over them, together with the possession
Of them, TO others. These Islands from
their local position and natural append.
ages TO the North American continent,
and ono of them, Cuba, almost in sight
ofour shores, from multitude Of consil.
cration', has become an object, Of trans.
cendcnt importance to the commercial
and political interests of our Union. Its
commanding position, with reference to
Gulf of Mexico and the West India seas;
the character of its population; its situa.
tion between our Southern coast and the
Island of ST. Domingo; its safe and ca.
pacious harbor of the Havana, fronting
long line of our shores destitute of the
same advantage; the nature of its produc.
tions and Of its wants, furnishing the
supplies and needing the returns of a
commerce immensely profitable and mu.
tually beneficial, give it an importance
in the sum ef our national interests with
which that of no other foreign territory
can be compared, and little inferior to
that which binds the different members
of THE Union together.-Such indeed are
0etweem the interests Of that island and
cfthis country, the geographical CONNER.
cial, moral and political relations form.
edby nature. gathering, in the process Of
time, and euen noao rerging to maturi.
ty, that IN looking .foracard to the prob.
able course Of erents, for the short peri.
cd Of haJa century, it is scarcely pos.
sTle to resist the conuictiom that the an.
ncratiom Of Cuba to our federal republic
scW be indispensable to the continuance
and integrity Of the Union itrey. 1t
is obvious, however, that for this event we
are not yet prepared. Numerous and
formidable OBJ icctions to the extension of
our territorial dominiens beyond sea
present themselves to the first contempla.
ton of the subject; obstacles to the sys.
tenn ofpolicy by wbice alone that result
can be compassed and maintained are
to be foreseen and surmounted, both from
at home and abroad; but there are laws
of political as we'll as of physical gravit.
alton, and if an apple severed by the tenn.
pest from its native tree, cannot choose
but fall to the ground, Cuba, forcibly dis,
jointed from its own unnatural connex.
ion with Spain, and incapable Of self
support, can gravitate only towards the
North American Union, which by the
same law Of nature, cannot cast her off
from her BOSOM"
A comparison ofthese views with Fill.
more's twattlo on the same subject in his
Message, exhibits the wide difference be.
tween the ideas of statesman and those
of a mere party politician. Mr.. Adams
thought the acquisition of Cuba would
be "indispenaable TO the continuance
and integrity Of the Union," while Fill.
more thinks it very "hazardous meas.
ure," and "lraught with serious peril"
Which is the better opinion, an immense
majority Of our people will have no diff.
Guilty in determining, and no hesitation
in declareing when the proper time comes
VIM. Kissane, Lyman Cole, James w
Chandler, Lorenzo Chaplin, and Amasa
Chaplin, who were arrested by Marshall
Jones, on the charge of being implicated
in causing the terrible disaster on board