The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1867-08-02

Minister Romero's vindicatton Of Mexico.
Minister Romero is naturally anxious to JUS
tfy his country In the eyes of the United
States. In the dispatches which were pub
lished in the HERALD yesterday he claims that
the government of President Juarez has not
adopted the principle of shooting Its prisoners
of war, but, on the contrary. has treated French
and Belgians in some instances with great leni-
ty. We are glad 10 hear H. Some shading Of
humanity is greatly needed to tone down the
mereiiess butchery of.San Jacinto, the execu-
tons at Puebla, and the still more deplorable
tragedy of Quer6taro. But paper excuses are
Of little value. The best vindication Mexico
can offer for herself before the world is to
maintain peace In her borders from this tins
forth to set to work and build railways and
roads, and to institute those fiscal and social
reforms which are 80 much needed by the
country. In this way only the gross political
blunder and crime involved in the execution
of Macmillan may be atoncd for. We are
willing to hope that Mexico is preparing to
advance in the path of peace and internal re-
form. We are willing to aid her in the effort
by our sympathy and encouragement But if
the policy of men like Escobedo is to prevail /;
if the harsh counsels of Lerdo de Tejada are to
be listened 10; If a worse than Chinese system
Of exclusiveness is to be tho policy of the
Juarez government; if the torrents of blood
already shed are not deemed sufficient, and If
executions pronuncianpientos and revolutions
are still to be the news OF the day, why then
the Uni ed States, having to some extent gone
bail for Mexico before the world, will have to
interfere, in justice to herself, and clean out
the whole country. We have given Mexico a
fair chance in the past Our government, by
the decided stand it has taken ag ainst ilibus-
tering, has shown disposition to give the
country fair show in the present. But the
Mexico of the future will have to be very diff
ferent country from the Mexico of the last fifty
years, or the strong grip of the United States
will quickly put things on o changed basis,
leaving Minister Romero to write endless vim
dications at bis leisure.
The part which Mr.. Seward plays in this
diplomatic correspondence is far from credit
able. The pusillanimity and shiftlessness of
the Secretary of State are in nothing more con-
spicuous than in this memorandum of an inter-
view between Mr.. Seward and Mr. Romero"
While on the one hand the Secretary fecbly
dcprecates the resort to extreme measures, on
the other he directly urges the Mexicans
to 60 ahead, assuring them that he does not
think that Mexico has to apprehend any at
tempt at retaliation by European Powers as a
consequence Of whatever extreme decision the
Mexican government may make" Far better
to have made no representation at all in favor
of the unhappy prisoner than to have accom-
panied it with such an insidious suggestion. By
this and similar expressions, and by the delay
in sending a minister to the Juarez government
Mr.. Seward has rendered himself virtual
accessory to Maximilian's death. Had there
been properly accredited representative Of
the United States government In San Luis
Potosi on the 10th of June last, Macmillan
would not have been shot The temporizing
policy Of Mr.. Seward, and the personal timidity
of Minister Campbell, had as much to do with
his ultimate fate as the duplicity of Marshal
Bazaine and the ill-starred counsels of MARQUEE
and the British Minister.