New-York daily tribune., 1859-02-10
A DIPLOMAT ON THE COAST OF
ARRICA.

Our naval officers on the Coast of Africa, at
least if Commander Totten of the ship vlncennes
is to be taken as specimen, seem to have entered
very sympatheticalIy into the feelings and views OF
Mr. Secretary Cass. Doubtless, they are just as
anxious as Mr.. Secretary Cas- is-and he says he
is exceedingly anxious-for the suppression of the
slave.trade. But then everything must have its
turn. What is the sentiment of Christendom or
our own faith, pledged by treaty, compared with
the nyiolability of the American flag BY everybody
but pirates and slsve-tradersi Pirates and slave
traders, from their very infamous character and
total deadness to all sense of right and pro-
priety cannot be expected to respect our
fss. Mr. Cass, reasonable man that he
is, does not seem to expect that such
worthless fellows will respect it. He
thinks it useless to expend upon them any Of
Uncle Sans powder aud shot, or any Of bis own
still more deathIy diplomatic correspondence. But
the British nation and the British cruisers being,
in spite of goes and Mr. Casss broken sword,
toerably clever fellows and ready to heac reason,
they must and shall, by pure dnt of diplomatic i'm
portuDity be made to respect the inviolablllty OF
the American flag, even though it hangs at the
fore peak of a pirate or SLAYER Commander
Totten enters fully into all this. He is sent
to cruise on the African coast under the
Ashburton Treaty, but instead Of looking after
the numerous sayers, some of them-hke the Wan
derer which Commander Totten did not catch,
though he made quite fuss about looking
after her-real American vessels, and many Others
hosting the American flag as mere cover, the
Only real business Of the Vncennes on the African
coast, the small time that she spends there seems
to be to look after the British cruisers and to cor
respond automatically, Cass fashion, with their
captains. And at last this gallsnt commander aud
skillful diplonatist seems to think that he has
really got cave, which, with all the haste Of puet
which has laid its first egg, he exutingy communi-
Gates to the Secretary of the Treasury; aud which
the Secretary of the Treasury, with no. lees hem
Ike promptitude, hastens to communicate to The
n. Y. Times Commodore Totten picks up on the
coast Of Africa Portuguese fellow named Peter
Caldna, who claims to be an American citizen,
srd " no swears that he arrived on the coast a
few days before from Matapzn, in Cuba, in an
American vessel named the Rufus Scule, which
vessel, according to bis account, was taken pos
session of by the British steamer Viper the hatches
opened, the crew taken out and landed on the
coast, and the vessel burnt. Upon the strength Of
this information, Commander To.teu sends to ask
the captain of the Viper concerning the destruction
by FIRE of the Rufus Soule, and particularly if she
had the American flag flying when visited by the
yiper's boati If her papers were correct' And
if the American flag WAS still flying when her
matches were opened And if not, how it came
down
To the frst question the commander Of the
Viper replies that the SLAYER did have the American
flag flying when visited BY his boat. In fact, it
was quite superhuous for Commander Totten to
have asked this question. He might be supposed
to know, what everybody else knows, that every
slsver on the point Of being visited by British
cruiser-if she is known or supposed to be British
-hoists the American flag, and very likely in do
ing co. at least, they are unsratefu fellows if they
do not, the crew give three cheers for Gen. Cas',
Who has devoted the most famous abors Of his long
life to efforts to enable them to fnd protection
under il; but adds the Commander of the Viper,
We knew very well from informatio We had that
she was cheat and slsver. To the second ques-
ton he replies that her papers were not correct At
least not in his judgment. To the taird ques-