Wilmington journal. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1844-1895, 1858-01-08
From The washington Evening Star.
t,effer from Gen. Henningsen.
WAsH1NeroN Cry, d. G., Dec. Il, 1857.

SII: In accordance with your desire, lncose some
notes on Central American affairs. gu will perceive,
from their REFUSAL that the bulk of the population is In
diam An Indian race, however, iii wise resembling
the Indian of our Northern continent who is pomade,
hunter and savage but the same people found by
the Spanish conquerors- agricultural lndus
trous patient and superStitiOus-and who had bullt
large cities and raised StupenOus temples on whose al
tarS smoked indeed the blood of human victims This
Indian race the only portion of the population which
abOrs and produces amounts to from twOhrds to three
quarters of the whole population 1t has never had any
share in government but is periodically torn from It's
peaceful avocatlons to fight the battles OF the mixed race
in their inCtssant revolutions.
The mixed race consists of Spanish INDIAN and negro
blood mingled and re-inermlngled in every Imaginable
variety and degree 1t may be considered as for the
most part in state of moral and physical degeneracy
large majority are born with the hereditary faint OF
disease Their leading incurabc factionists i'll
capable of free goverment-showng, indeed, the same
plarsibilty in writing procamatOns and in diplomacy
the Chinese, but without the practical sagacity to
raise or manage even MILL The decay of cities,
of industry and population and the abandonment OF
plantations and Of mines, everywhere attest the rapid
decine of the countries they have controlled Yet
have no hesitation in putting record my conviction
that in few years after Central America is american
i:ed as some day it inevitably will be- its crops of sugar
and coffee will approach or equal that of Cuba now,
whilst its mineral products will fall little short of those
of California at present. When | say dmericani=ed,
use term by which, with instinct prophetic OF their
destiny the Spanish and mixed designate the po
litical predoninancc Of the people of this Union.
The climate in those regions is mt least healthy for
emigrants from the United States that of Georgia
South Carolina and those emigrants arc not affected
by the epdemcs which decimate the native populations
Yet if by any CONFUSION of nature all communication
could be cut off by the United States and those cOun-
tries, satisfied that in half century, and probably
within half that time, this mixed race would be wiped
out by the Christanzed Indian, and the Christanzed
Indian i'll turn subugated and assimated by the Pagan
Indian. Years ago. i'll Guatemala, which alone contains
half the population of Central America the mixed race
would have been cxermnatcd but for the accident that
Carrera, himself Indian, control the Indians, and
gained over by the clergy and few families who
have bowed to the savage despotsm of msn, on the
accident of whose life depends the exile OF their race
Back of these socaled ChrstianiZed Indians are the
heather Maya Indians, who will surely absorb them
as they will the mixed races. Already these Mayas
have ravaged Yucatan with IMMUNITY They are raw
aging it now In Mexico the savage is everywhere en-
crOacing its cfetc civilization. In this mixed race
under various denominations of party is class OF revo-
luton mongc who have brought those regions to their
present condition. and they determnately opposed
to the Amercanization of the country. a majority,
however i'll it the only prospect OF stable govern
mcnt future security for life and property In Mica
ragu after the Spaniards were driven out everywhere
in Central America, Democratic party predominated
but in the reaction consequent their excuses, the
Servc party obtained the ascendancy lost it, and again
resumed it through ntcninable series of revolutions
(sXccn governments having succeeded each other with
in six years. always in diminishing minority till dwn-
died down to faction, it is, recently was, tenn
porarly established under Martinez. That is to say
Martinez drew and resources from about Onethrd
of the country.
This servilc party, consisting originally of the arsto
cratic families and old employees of the Spanish govern
ment, and which itself accepts the originally given
by its opponents represents what would be represented
in the United States by the tories of the of indie
pcndenCc
As to the legitimacy of President Walkers acts and
government, without gross msapprehensiOn misrep
rcentation Of facts his adversares may be challenged
to show any difference between the circumstances under
which Lafayette and kOsciusko took part in the strug
gle for independence here and he in the civil
Nicaragua, which is not in his favor. He duly in
vitc by the Democratic government OF Castion, which
| had proved 10y occupying the whole country, except
Granada that it had the sympahies of the majority
Ho repaired the subsequent reverses this party had me-
with He captured Granada the sacred city of
and Of the Services and put down all opposition. Ht
elected President by large aority of voters, al
most exclusively the votes of the abOrng classes of the
population. He defended the territory CALAMITY agans
the simultaneous invasion by foreign States He wa:
only temporarily driven from it by the unauthorized in
reference of United States officer.
For the position assumed in recent communication
to the Secretary of State that but for the Intervention
of Capt. Davis, Gen Walker would have marched OF
LeOn-if indeed the siege of Rvas would not have beer
rased-is abundantly confirmed by the recent message
of President Mora on the 18th of October, at San Jose
in which he says specifically that Walkers position al
Rvas really superior to that of the Central Ameri
cans and that in twenty days dissolution of the
allied army was inevitable. 1t is true that Mora attr
butes to his own sagacity what accomplished by the
interference of Captain Davis and by the seizure OF the
i schooner Granada
The administration through the Secretary of the Navy
has expressed its dsapprobatOn of the seizure and sur
render of the Granada to the Nicaraguans beg leave
to remark that the Granada was given up to the Costa
| IN he
OF public officer is not the reparaon of public wrong
I The introduction of American civilization and institu
tons into the Spanish American countries, by pacific
colonization through treaties all experience shows
be illusory.
What has become of all the emgrants who lured b,
the decisive treaties and contracts have gone to thos
countries with their engines, their pOnghshares, ant
their tools? Is there now Oh the lsthmus OF Panama
after years. common security Tor life or proper
y except under the guns of United States squadron
What has been the result of the attempt at pacific colo
nization in Paraguay? On the other hand the rifles
the Texans changed that wilderness into ourishin
State of the Unon and Indirectly brought New Mex
leo and California into those relations with this countr
t which have not only benefited them and the Unite
States but the whole of the civilized world. When
consider that in Mexico proposed colonization is to
, limited to the Latin race that in the Republic of Sa
Domingo, United States citizens were specifically exclu
ded, and that the allied States invading Nicaragua
tered with the avowed purpose Of eXterminatng a
Americans, think you will agree with that the
suit desired will be better attained by modification
neutrality laws, than by all the treaties that
CT be made with the present Spanish American govern
a ments. l am sir, yours respectfully,
: c. T. HENNINGSEN.
| Hon. ALEX. Ii. STEPHENS.
Il SUPREME COURT OF THE CHERoKEEs-A correSpol
dent of the Arkansas Intellgencer writes from Table
quah capital of the Cherokee Nation gives nteres
ing account of full blooded Indian Supreme Court
As one walks into the room when the Supreme Coul