Washington sentinel., 1854-02-28

telhgence most wofully if they believe that
they can cover up their footprints with leaves,
and dupe and mislead the public by shallow
plausibilities. The slavery question, more than
any other question, has attracted the attention
Of the people for the last fifteen years. The
people understand it and the people watch the
conduct Of public men and public presses with
regard to that momentous subject.
EUROPEAN INTERvENTION I'm CUBA.
We cannot say that a late item of Euro
pean news, which has created some excitement
here, has at all surprised us. We have been
prepared for it, and we are happy to see that
General Cass has SO promptly adverted to it in
the Senate. We refer to the clause in the
speech of Lord Clarendon, the British minister
of foreign affairs, delivered at the opening OF
the new session of Parliament, wherein his
lordship, referring to the alliance between Eng
land and France, says: "The union between
the two governments has not been confined TO
the Eastern question, but affects all parts Of
the aOorld," !" and that "there is no portion Of the
taco hemispheres with regard to which the poll
cy Of the two countries is not now in entire har-
mony," and that they are ready to act heart
lily together in any just and righteous cause"
We say that this revelation does not at
all surprise us, because for some time past
we have been in possession of information,
grounded on official documents, relative to
the efforts Of England and France to estab-
lish an African empire In the Antilles. AS
ted States, and as there can be no further doubt
that England and France have concluded to
regulate the future destiny Of Cuba regardless
Of our avowed determination of preventing at
all hazards any such presumptuous interfer-
ence, we consider it to be our duty to examine
the whole question, and call public attention
to the stipulations of the present existing trea-
ties between England and Spain for the sup
preston of the slave trade in Cuba, and to
show, also, that, whilst England has gone to an
enormous expense to suppress that trade, she
has materially yco-operated to increase it. Her
object in so doing is too obvious to need any
further explanation at our hands than that
which is furnished in the following extract Of
q communication from Lord Palmerston to
Lord Howden, the British minister at Madrid,
urging upon Spain the total abolition Of sa-
very in Cuba. It is as follows
AFoREIGN OFFIcE, October 20, 1851.
MY LORD / have received your lordship's
despatch Of the lst instant, transmitting copy
Of note which you had received from Mr. de
Mirafores, in reply to your note of the 10Th ult,
recommending, on behalf Of her majesty's gov.
ernment that the government Of Spain should
follow the example set them by New Granada
in declaring the total abolition of slavery in
that republic.
81 have to instruct your lordship to observe
to Mr.. de MiraAores, that the slaves of Cuba
form a large portion, and by no means an un-
important one, Of the population of Cuba; and
that any steps taken to provide for their eman-
cipation would, therefore, as far as the black
population is concerned, be quite in unison
with the recommendation made by her majesty's
government, that measures should be adopted
for contenting the people Of Cuba, with q view
to secure the connexion between that island
and the Spanish crown; and it must be evident
that if the negro population Of Cuba we're rem
dered free, that fact would create most pow
erful element of resistance to any scheme for
annexing Cuba to the United States, where
slavery still exists"
Our readers will remember the correspond
ence which took place between Lord Howden
and Mr.. Corbin, an American gentleman re-
siding at Paris, in which the former undertakes
to classify and cnumerate those negotiations
which occupied him most with the Spanish
government at Madrid, bearing on Cuba; and
it is mystery which it would be gratifying to
us to have explained, the omission of this i'm
portant negotiation in his (Howden's) letter to
Mr.. Corbin. That the negotiation was entered
into, late events prove too clearly to leave any
manner of doubt; and Lord Howden's boast,
of having obtained the total liberation Of all
the emancipados in Cuba, is sufficient to con-
vince even the most sceptical observer Of British
diplomacy.
But what does his lordship mean by the
emancipadoss That our people may fully un-
derstand it, we will glance over the existing
treaty between England and Spain, of 1917, for
the suppression of the slave traffic; and we will
prove that, since the enforcement of that treaty
in 1920, England has tolerated the smuggling
Of negroes into Cuba as emaacipados, with the
avowed purpose Of forcing Spain at some future
day to hberate them, and thus create a most
powerful element of resistance to any scheme
for annexing Cuba to the United States"
Shortly after the celebration of the treaty of
1917, between England and Spain for the sup
preston Of the slave trade, and of its enforce
ment in 1920, the system Of smuggling negroes
into Cuba commenced; and to such an extent
was it carried on, that it gave rise to serious
complaints on the part Of the British minister
at Madrid to the Spanish government which
issued royal order, commencing thus: The
minister of her Britannia majesty having ex-
claimed against the fraudulent introduction Of
negroes into the island of Cuba, in manifest