The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1867-06-25

from bpe AftfUtu.
We published yesterday defense of Mr..
otterbourg by friend of his, who disclaims
the report that the newly appointed Mexican
Minister ever made any attempt to have the
empire of Mexico recognized Il is not our
intention TO make misstatements of any kind
and mayhap, in the hurry of the telegram,
mistakes orept ntoit; if so, it is to be regretted
The appointment, however, of Mr.. Otterbourg
is, at this iuncture of Mexican affairs, most
inOpportune, and Mr.. Seward could not have
made a'worse blunder, The naming of Mr.
Campbell was sufficiently unfortunate. This is
the worst blow yet struck at our Mexican
affairs, and threatens to throw them into an
even worse condition than they were before.
With all respect to Mr.. 0tterbourg's pri-
vate character as citizen, he is the
last man who should have received
the appointment. He is foreigner speaks
the Spanish language imperfectly, and
even the language of the country he is to
represent is not fuently at his command. Had
the appointment been for some other country
we could not have complained; for we know
that Mr.. Seward is little disposed to have as a
foreign minister any one who dares to think
for himself, and who is other than a mere clerk
of the State Department. The present appoint
ment is nothing but ruin to our Mexican inte-
rests, and Mr.. 0tterbourg can only show his
good sense by refusing commission which the
Senate cannot ratify if they have the slightest
respect for our relations with our sister repub-
lie. AT this delicate point in Mexican affairs,
when Minister has to grasp and shape the
policy of our Government for the next century,
we want one of our best, our abest men. We
want man, moreover, who stands high with
the Mexican people-One whom they can re-
spect, and whose dignity of character and per-
sonal attributes will enable him to handle the
great questions that are to arise in our Mexi-
can contact. The Liberal Government,
although spurred almost to desperation by the
demands of the nation to shoot Macmillan,
have risked being overturned by the popular
clamor, and, at our request, have retained him
prisoner, evidently awaiting the arrival of
proper Minister from the United States to
confer with us relative to the fate of the royal
filibuster. The first thanks we give them for
acceding to our request is gross insult, by
the appointment of man for whom they have
but little respect, who cannot represent us as
we should be represented, who speaks neither
our language nor theirs, who understands
nothing of the great questions which are wait
ing for settlement, who can only damage
American interests throughout Mexico, who
will not receive from the Mexican people that
homer due to our national representative, and
who can only, in fact, misrepresent the United
States. We already have a sufficient number
of ministers abroad to damage our contact and
commerce with other countries more than the
next ten administrations can repair; but this
last act of the State Department, in reference
to a country that requires one of our ablest
men, is worse than all the rest combined. Mr..
Seward must have experienced an unusual
scintillation of genius when he made this ap-
pointment. If the brain of the United States
Senate is hit by the same spark, truly we shall
despair of the nation.