The Burlington weekly hawk-eye. [volume] (Burlington [Iowa]) 1860-1876, 1864-01-09
Politics Of Europe i'm relation TO
tRle United StaicS-Er;lnce. Mex
EcO. Texas and the CONGRESS-

Inc year Oh 1905 has closed With MANY
unsettled accounts in the political world -
Europe is agitaed with several important
questions. The whole Of Asia lies IL "a
chaotic state, going through q transition
period, which can be reduced to order only
by vast oyerturning OF society. Ourown
rebellion is unfinished, though the prom
Use Of . speedy END is now very strong,
and last, but not the least important
France introduces herself by force, on the
American continent, TO cause new wars
and commissions. There can be very little
doubt but the Mexican question is the one
upon which Napoleon was nlost anxious,
when ho called the European Congress.
Other objects were thrown forward, as q
test to the whole. But France is not real
ly in Poland I; she has arranged Italy to
suit herself, and she will leave Schleswig
HOstein to be arranged by the German
Powers. 1t is scarcely possible that IA
French stateman can dream of getting the
boundary Of the Rhine. 1t Is true that she
has been two centuries fighting for it, but
it is further off than ever. The least step
in that direction would unite England,
Belgium, Prussia and Russia, and their
armies would encaInp in Paris, they
| hayedon twice before. The real difficulty
| is Mexico into W hich France got by agross
| oversight in policy.
France wants colonization. All great
nations want it. Algeria was rather a bar
| rem COLONY, more COSTLY LIldIl lFullluI. Sn6
| has tried her luck in Asia with the British,
but the old Lion of England carries off the
spois. There was no more tempting spot
on earth than that wide region between the
Sabine and the Paciiic--cOmprised in Tex
as and Mexico. When the Satanic leaders
of the South set up their rebellion, Napo-
! leon thought his time for action was come.
! 1t was in his mind a grand opportunity.
But his mind, which though very acute al
ways acts indirectly, failed to see what
a direct straightforward statesman like
Chatham would have seen: that to succeed
| in his policy he must strike a blow at
once. lie failed TO do 1t and has lost his
game, There were many persons III this
country sympathiaing with the rebels who
expected France to recognize theSouth and
make war for them. He failed TO DO this
for two reasons. First, because he was
afraid. He had good reasons for that
France is not strong naval power when
it comes to seamanship and gunncry.-
The United States is. Ii such war comes
ii is to be on the ocean. In three months
time French commerce would be annihil:-
ted France would be shut up SO COM
pletely that the rebels and the world will
laugh at her impotence If Napoleon did
did not believe this in the fullness of our
statement, he believed much Of il because
he knew it. Besides this, England lags
behind, whose entente cordial with France
at the present time. much resembles that Of
cats and dogs. This was his first reason
There was another which led him ia anoth-
er mode of action. If he incurred al this
risk he wanted to make bargan-a profit
able business oft. 10 do this it was neces-
sary to secure, not merely the vaSsalage of
Mexico, but that OF Texas. TO do the last
it was necessary 10 bargain with the rebels
in advance: and mere was the difficulty
| which will finally defeat ali his plans
The rebels have furnished the evidence
that he only sounded them on the subject
| through the Consuls i'll Texas. But the
rebels (lunatic as they are are Americans,
| and would not submit 10 the cession OF
| Texas for any consideration. Texas, too,
was intrlnsicaiy worth One-tourth OF the
/ whole pretended rebel dominion. Then,
without the aid Of England, was it certain
| that France could give the consideration?
| Was it certain that French fleet, instead
| of releasing Charleston, would not be sent
| to the bottom ofthe ocean? Was 1t certain
| that french commerce would not be locked
up in Havre and Marseilles? Was it GER
tain that the powers OF Europe would not
| take this opportunity to get rid OF an usurper
and nuisance? The South would not
! give up Texas, at least then, so Napoleon
| had to proceed little differently. Eng
| land and Spain, for some commercial pur-
| poses, not merely lent themselves to
| France, but undertook to introduce u 'lcaU
principal INTO the tdps of nations. This
| was, that nation had right to 60 to war
with another nation to collect the debts of
| an indtu1dudl. This, at any rate, was the
sole pretense Of their attack on Mexico.-
| The non payment of the decker bonds was
| the sole pretense for an invasion OF Mex
| leo. Now, whether it is worth while to
| collect private debts in this way or not,
certainly it is no part Of the law or usage
of nation. The invasion of Mexico was
precisely as that Of Japan has been by the |
English-without the slightest plausible |
right of any kind. England and Spain |
" ere soon glad to get out OF 1t. France |
continued the conquest OF Mexico, on
the avowed ground Of extending the |
power of the Latin race. By the way, the |
idea was supremacy ridiculous, when we
consider that four tifths Of the Mexicans |
are native Indians, and 4 large part of the |
residue of mixed blood; and when we con- !
slider, too, that the French are largely de-
seconded from the Celts, and have no more
to do with the LatiDs than to have been |
conquered by them. But these facts only |
made his main object more palpablc. Il |
was not to extend or enlarge the dominion |
OF q race or people at all. III was to eX-
tend his o,o,s dominion. He has a confused |
idea that he is the representative head ofthe
Latin rower,-nOt q power ex lstent anon |
peoples and nations, but the power of gov !
ernmentS aud hierarchies. He wants 10 |
use the Roman Church on one hand, and, |
by cunning devices, the governments Of Eu
rope on the other, TO aid i'll establishing the /
permanent dominion of the Napoleon dy-t
nasty. This he has done from the begin
ming, and this is now palpable 70 all OBJ
servers.
Having failed largely in his American
designs by failing to bargain with the South
for Texas, and by failingto strike the Uni
ted States when a blow might have accom-
plished something, he finds his position in
Mexico (successiul as conIuesD sur
rounded by instant and pressing danger.
He has large army, immensely expen-
sive, (for which he now proposes a loan,)
surrounded by sn insurgents population,
hostile on every side. Great as this hazard
is, it is small compared with what lies be-
hind. His conquest of Mexico is an insult
to tho American people. 1t is impossible
to see it in any other light. Mexico is not
ours, but we had said to the world, and the
world understood it, that no part Of this
continent should be again conquered by
Europe. No human being believes that, If |
this country had been at peace and united,