Washington sentinel., 1855-03-09

I u
| resign my commission Of Envoy Extraordi-
nary and Minister Plenipotentiary fthe United
States near this Court, and beg the extreme
kindness Of the President to be retired from
duty by the end of January. have, &c.
Hon. WM. L. MARCY. PIERRE SOULE.
BRITISH AND FRENCH INTERVIEW
TION IN THE AFFAIRS OF CUBA.
Mr.. Marcy's Letter soi Of Instructions to sir.
lM. Marcy to Mr.. buchanan.
Extract
DEPARTMENT OF STATE,
Washington, July 2, 1853.
ought not to conclude this communication
without indicating the views Of the President
| in relation to the Intervention of Great Britain
| in conjunction with France in the affairs Of
| Cuba. These powers proposed to this govern.
| ment in April, 1852, to enter into tripartitc
convention for guarantying the Spanish do
| miuion over Cuba. The proposition was very
properly declined by this government. To this
course neither England nor France could
Justly take EXCEPTIONS but they have con-
Jointly expressed dissatisfaction with certain
parts of the letter Of my predecessor, Mr..
| Everett, rejecting their overture. In future
| despatch / may submit to you the Presidents
1 opinions upon this joint protest, as he regards
| it, against some Of the doctrines contained in
that letter, for the purpose of having them for
mally presented TO the consideration OF the
government of Great Britain. At this time
| shall only state the fact, that distinct init
nation is conveyed by both England and
France that they will resist the transfer Of
| Cuba TO the United States and assist Spain in
case Of any foreign interference in aid of the
| Cubans, whether openly or coyertly applied, in
any attempt they may make to escape from the
| Spanish yoke.
The course Of England and France in send.
| ing their ships of war on to our coast during
the late disturbances respecting that island,
| without previous notice or specification Of their
object, and the supervision they claimed the
right to exercise along that coast, were Ito use
| the mildest expression) not respectful TO this
| republic. The fact cannot be disguised that
both England and France suspect the United
States of a design to detach from Spain the
island Of Cuba, and appropriate it to them.
selves, without regard to the rights of Spain,
or respect for the law of nations. Their SIM
ultaneous movement on that occasion is un-
questionable evidence that they then INDUCED
that belief. There is nothing in the history of
our pest course as a natiQn to justify such un.
worthy suspicious. 1t is true we have in the
last half century greatly lyenlarged our territories
and so have Great Britain and France enlarged
theirs but we have done it in manner that
may proudly challenge the most rigid scrutiny
Of mankind. In our territorial expansion in
| ternatonal law has been observed the rights
of others vigorously respected; nothing, in
short, has been done to justify the slightest sus-
picion Of rapacity. The government of the
United States is not unwilling to submit its
whole public conduct in this, or indeed, in all
other respects, to the most scrupulous exami-
nation. But if our course had been less open
| ly marked by honor and honest intention, Eng
| land and France should reluctantly be our ac.
cusers. We need 90 no further back than to
the British orders I'M council, and the imperial
DEGREES of France, to show that we have been
the victims of the broken law Of nations-not
the violators of that law. We have not sub.
verted ancient governments or wrested from
feeble dynasties possessions which they have
4 held for ages to add new dominions to our own:
but every acquisition we have made has been
| obtained by an equivalent voluntarily accepted.
For many reasons the United States feel
deeply interested in the distiny Of Cuba. They
will never consent to its transfer to either OF
the intervening nations, or to any other foreign
State. They would regret to see foreign powers
intererfere to sustain Spanish rule in the island
should it provoke resistance too formidable to
be overcome by Spain herself
i When oppression over n colony or depen-
dency is SO severe as to excite revolt, and that
revolt becomes too strong to be suppressed by
the power which provokes it, the oppressor has
assuredly no better right to invoke foreign aid,
nor any better excuse for employing it, than
the victims Of arbitrary misrule have to relief
1 frnua no ri - H.
stood that Spain had applied to the allied SOW
ereigns of Europe for assistance to recover her
reyolted colonies in America, the Government
Of the United States protested in emphatic
terms against such procedure and if the
| protest had failed in its object, this Government
would undoubtedly have had recourse TO other
means to arrest such interference.
| IL is intimated though not authoritatively
announced, that 1t Is the design OF Spain,
whenever she clearly perceives that she can no
longer retain possession Of Cuba, to render the
island worthless to any other power ut the
hazard Of making it source Of annoyance TO
this country; and that England is disposed TO
concur in such measure. Though unwilling
to believe that such scheme is entertained by
Spain, or could be concurred in by England,
| yet the suggestion is not too idle to attract
some attention. We do not complain that
in regard to the emancipddos in Cuba but if
il should prove to be true that she is using l,r
influence in furtherance Of design TO gil that
| island with emigrants from Africa, in order
that when Spanish rule over it shall cease IL
may become an African colony given over to
barbarism, she ought to be conscious that she is
concurring in an act which in its consequences
must be injurious TO the United States. Afri-
cans thus imported and held in limited serv.
tude, and slaves now on the island converted
| into apprentices, would constitute but another
form OF slavery, and it requires the test Of cx.
pertinent to show how far such a substitute,
under the inevitable abuses which would at
tend il, would mitigate the evils Of the present
system.
Cuba, whatever be its political condition,
whether dependency or sovereign State, is, Of
necessity, our neighbor.. 1t lies within sight
Of our coast. in carrying on trade between
some Of our principal cities, our vessels must
pass along its shore Intercourse with il is