The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1856-06-24
The Presidency-The Foreign Policy OF Mr..
Buchanan.

tous perhaps of that important distinction which
every paper setting itself up as the regular den
ocratic organ OF this city has suffered, comes
magnanimously to the relief of Mr.. Buchanan,
from his Ostend manifesto, and undertakes an ex-
most amiable, conciliatory and pacific character.
In this singular explanation of the sound conser-
yatism of the Cincinnati nominee and the position
which he occupies, we have a lame apology OF
special pleading for the Cincinnati platform, fol-
lowed by the strongest assurances to the Wall
street brokers' that Mr. Buchanan's elegant letter
of acceptance is an ark of perfect safety against
all possible contingencies of danger.
But what is the real valMe of this velvety
letter upon which such great stress is laid?
Substantially it is but the acceptance OF
The Cincinnati nomination and the resolutions
annexed. 1t is such letter as would most pro-
badly have been written by Mr.. Douglas, or Gen.
Quitman, or by Mr.. Soule himself, or any other
man. conservative or filibuster, selected as the
Presidential candidate of the great democratic
party. 1t is intended for peaceable people, and
to quiet them. 1t is full Of generalities and
pleasing declarations Simplifying, in fact, little or
nothing In word, as the key to the foreign
policy of Mr. Buchanan, our Wall street cotem-
pora1y gives this letter entirely too much impor-
lance. We are not to look for the real admins
trative opinions or purposes Of Mr.. Buchanan in
this polite and charming paper for the campaign.
When the lion would be amiable his claws are
always concealed. We must 60 to the history
the official acts, the repeated and deliberate opn-
IONS and the political antecedents and associations
of Mr.. Buchanan as the data for our judgment of
both his domestic and his foreign policy. We do
not say this from any feeling of hostility to Mr.
Buchanan, nor with any view to contribute to his
defeat; for we presume that he will be elected
without much difficulty, considering the sense
less distractions and divisions among the oppo-
sition ranks. We are, however, by no means
disposed to see the nominee of the democracy
extolled in one quarter as a flibuster and in
another as model Of peace and Christian cha
rity He is with the filibusters or against them
Give us his history, his acts, his opinions and the
platform upon which he declares himself to stand
and we shall be able to understand his position
without the aid of an interpreter
For the last two or three years Mr.. Buchanan
has filed the responsible Office Of our Minister to
England; and it is scarcely necessary here to
say that through the whole of this interval he
has been charged with the most delicate and i'm
portant negotiations. But it is equally notorious
that during these three years busy cores
pondence with the British government, Mr. Blu
chanan supported and strengthened by Messrs.
Pierce and Marcy, instead Of settling the Central
American dispute or the Champion embroglio,
only aggravated the causes Of quarrel, in both
cases, to the fighting point, and returned home
with the question Of /" Will there be war y the
prevailing inquiry on both sides the Atlantic.
1t may be said that Mr.. Buchanan was hampered
by the administration, and that his own views
and inclinations were constantly arrested and
countermanded by his instructions from Wash
ington. But this plea is hardly admissible in
the case Of Mr.. Buchanan. Unquestionably his
Instructions harmonized with his own views, or
he would, or should, have thrown up his COM
mission. He is no young neophyte in pub
lie affairs to play the part Of mere
schoolboy. There was sympathy of some
Sort or desirable object, common to
the President, the Premier and the Minister or
they could never have logged along for three
years SO comfortably together, albeit they were
on the downhll road to universal war. Mr.. Blu
chanan therefore must share in the responsible
ties of the administration touching our relations
with England and the critical pass in which we
now find them The moment that Mr.. Souls was
convinced that there could be no harmony be
tween his Spanish policy and that of Secretary
Marcy that moment our high spirited Minister to
Spain threw up his appointment Marcy's letter
upon that Ostend manifesto was enough for
Soul but it was not so with Mr.. Buchanan,
whose name is the first appended to that docu-
ment. He accepted the rebuke without recant-
ing the act, and returned to his post at London,
as ready to filibuster there in obedience to Mr..
Pierce as at Ostend and Aix-la-Chapelle in de-
fiance of Marcy No Wall street apologist or
party organ can do away with this record of es-
tablished facts.
If we are not mistaken, that Ostend manifesto
was designed as coup d. tat against the Secreta-
ry Of State, and if our memory be not at fault,
such men as Gushing, JEFF. Davis, Forney Sou4
and others, bent upon filibustcring foray, were
concerned in the plot Had Marcy quailed before
that Ostend conference, and accepted their mani
festo as the policy of the administration, doubt
less at this moment we should be enjoying the
exciting luxury of war, by land and sea, against
the combined powers Of England, France and
Spain, from Canada to Cuba. and all over the
globe. 1t is to Marcy that we are in
debted for the rejection of that Ostcnd
Hrebrand. As far as the name and infiu-
ence Of Mr.. Buchanan could go, the Ostend |
was declared the policy of our gov
the policy Of strong arm, the policy of
settling the Cuba question az William the Con-
queror settled his dispute concerning the crown
Of England. This has been the filibuster's policy
from the time of the first great overland expcdi-
ton of the ancient Israelites down to the late