New national era. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1870-1874, 1871-05-18

SantO Domingo-No. :.

In these papers, so long continued, and now
possibly beginning to be somewhat tedious,
many of my respected readers may have deemed
it strange, that while have said SO much Of
what would be gained by Sauto Domingo from
her annexation to the United States, that SO
little has been said Of the supposed advantages
to be derived by the latter from that measure.
They may have also come to the conclusion
that this branch of the subject has 1een avoided
because of its barrenness. The fact 10 quite the
reverse The benefits likely to accrue to the Uni
ted States from the acquisition ofSanto Domingo
were the frst to challenge general attention.
They have been often ably, forcibly, and vigor-
ously stated by others. President GRANT has
more than once stated The facts on this side Of
the question. and stated them SO strongly that
it almost seemed that be cared only for the in
terests of the United States, and nothing for
the interests of Santo Domingo. The views
and opinions of the President have been stated
in thousand different forms by the press and
on the platform. have not felt it worth while
here to Join in the repetition, and have therefore,
as my readers will have observed, kept steadily
in view the welfare of Santo Domingo, and that
of the colored people generally, as likely to be
affected by the measure. For it has been mainly
In that direction that annexation has met with
the most effective resistance. Thetopposition
having its handspring in the slavery -engen-
Sered prejudicss of some of the American peo-
pie is we'll understood, and as it belongs to the
dead and putrid body of slavery rather than to
living forces 1 have passed it by in silence
and left it 10 be disposed of as it will be by
time and the growing enlightenment Of the
public mind. Bot to the question.
What do the people of the United States want
with Santo Domingos This is asked over and
over again, and just as if no satisfactory answer
could possibly be made to it; and yet no ques-
tions "a be more easily answered We want
Santo Domingo just as We want anything else
that we can make useful to ourselves. Who can
doubt thstSAe, possession of fifteen or twenty
thoussQ III, more or less, of tropical coun
try, wis6Sply three or four days sail of our
shores, aboun ding in excellent timber for ship
bailding, dye woods and cabinet woods Of the
finest qualities known 20 commerce, capable Of
producing sugar, coffee, COCOA, cotton, indigo,
and every variety ofszopical plants and fruits
that one can think Of, would be an advantage
to the American people? So long as land and
professions are valuable at ALL they will be as
valuable to the American people as 70 others,
and no scornful question as TO what we want
with it will be allowed TO obscure the fact. In
this vein Of dsparagement, even cool-headed
ststesep like Senator MORRILL,, tell US they
would not h(Ds Santo Domingo as gift. Mr..
SEIZURE is o. the same way of thinking. In
Santo Domingo fkey find a country incapable
of serving any valuable human purpose, and
for the existence Of which no valid apology can
be made; and yet Il is fair to presume that both
gentlemen consume their full share Of just such
productions as Santo Domingo and other tropi-
cal countries can alone produce. All this talk
of the worthlessness of Santo Domingo, is
against the established and eternal arrangements
Of nature, and inconsistent with the daily prac-
tice of the very men who resort to it. Whether
the torrid zone produces great nations or small
ones, strong men or weak men, the lands within
that belt Of our globe does produce just such
things as men in other ATTITUDES consider use
ful, beautiful, and palatable, and which are
pretty generally used by those who can obtain
them. = 1t may be that the American people
think this all wrong, and that it would be far
better that all commerce with the tropics should
cease, and that men should use and consume
only those articles which are produced within
the lines of latitude where they happen to be
born, and where they live; but thus far they
have not reduced this thought to practice.
The morning sun does not more regularly ap.
pear in the eastern sky than they take their
sugar and coffee Senator ScHURz, the most
brilliant Of all the Senatorial assaiants of Santo
Domingo, denounces the tropics with lips warm
and person fragrant, with his Havana cigar. To
he sure, be tells US (for he is logical in words,
At least, that only slave labor can succeed in
the tropics, and that for himself, he would
rather dispense with the use Of tropical pro-
ducts than have them at the expense of humanity
and Justice yet he takes his coffee and his
cigar, asking mo questions for conscience
sake" apparently never stopping to inquire
where these things come from, or by what pro-
cess they are produced.
Just here comes in an argument OF liberty
and civilization in favor Of Santo Domingo.
The purely tropical productions We now con-
sumo in the United States aBe produced in
slave countries and by slave labor. They are
gathered under the eye and the lash OF the
task master. The laborer receives no wages
for his work, but is literally robbed of his hard
earnings by men who, like the lilies Of the
field, neither toll nor spin. OF these, and not
Of the honest laborers who produce them, we
buy our tropical products, and thus help to per-
petuate the barbarous and inhumsn system Of
slavery abroad which We poured out millions
Of treasure apd rivers Of blood to abolish at
home. In answer to the question, What do we
want with Santo Domingo? i answer, we
want il 10 enable US the better TO discourage
,lavery and promote the freedom Of mankind
ne want to supplant slave labor with free
abor, and TO strike blow at slavery wherever
4 may exist in the tropics; We want 1t 10 bring
% us the bountes peculiar to that latitude free
rom the sweat and blood Of wretched bond
men and bondwomen. The anti slavery side OF
is to me the strongest and most con-
trolling. There - reason to believe that that
measure would powerfully tend to the speedy
of slavery in Cuba and throughout
The western world. II we are really in favor
Of freedom and free institutions, if we would