The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1870-03-19
The st. Domingo Middle.

President Grant and the senate committee
on Foreign Affairs are said to tie at logger
heads about the business of ST. Domingo an
nexation. We Should think that quite like
ly, from the evident middle into which the
whole business has fallen. President Grant,
envious of the fame Andy johnson and Bill
Seward had reaped as Diplomats in the Alas
ka and ct. Thomas annexation business,
opened negotiations, last summer, with a spec
ulative adventurer in st. Domingo, who had
got himself proclaimed President of that Gre
public" for the annexation of the white half
OF the island to the L.. A treaty was read
lily concluded with President Baez, (he adj
venturer aforesaid,) the marrow Of which was,
that the U. s., in consideration of the annexa.
ton of the Dominican portion of the island,
should pay the Dominican debt, which was
rated at from two to six millions, then worth
about 10 cts. on the dollar, and chiefly held
by the aforesaid President Baez and knot
of English and New York financers of the
Fiske- Corbin stripe. But previous to the an
nexation, the people of the island were to
vote on the question. This vote was had in
February, and was Of course favorable, as only
such towns as were under the IMMEDIATE con.
troll Of Baez were allowed to vote. The re-
turns were sent to President Grant, who there
upon went to the senate chamber, and calling
out the committee on Foreign Affairs, insisted
that they should Immediately report the trea-
ty to the senate with recommendation that
it be ratified. This was week ago, but the
committee unaccountably hangs fire; and the
President Indignantly asks, why is this thus 2
The committee are said to be influenced by
various considerations. In the first place,
President Baez has control Of less than half
of the Dominican republic. The other half
is in open Instruction under the leadership
Of one Cabral, whose strong point against
Baez is, that he favors annexation. Secondly,
the Baez part of the republic has still an un-
finished war on hand with the niger half of
the island, known as the empire of Hayti
Thirdly, the senate committee have obtained
some ugly information through one Hatch
who happens to know to much about the f.
nancial schemes of Baez and his co-conspira-
tors, and whom Baez accordingly had tried
to squelch by having him sentenced by a
drumhead court martial to be shot-a SEN
tence the execution of which was only stayed
by the determined interference of our consul.
And tourthly, worse than all the rest-when
admiral Poor, whom Grant sent with two iron
clads to warn the niger emperor of Hayti
to stop fighting the Dominican., as that re.
public was about to be annexed to the U. S.,
the Emperor gave him saucy answer, saying
the Hay,iens knew their rights and dared
maintain them, and that they must be allowed
to judge Of their own policy. So the middle
with the senate committee is n formidable one.
While with Grant the annexation Of Domini-
ca only means diplomatic glory to eclipse
Johnson and Seward, in the view of the SEN
ate committee it means the sanction of dirty
financial swinde, the purchase of an insurrec-
ton in Dominica and mean war with Hayt;
| while, at the same time, not to ratify the
treaty, will be equivalent to turning Baez and
Grants Dominican friends over to the tender
mercies of Cabral, and will look, besides, as II
the Z. s. had been scared by the brusque
language of the greasy breechless Niger en-
peror Of Hayt.