The Opelousas courier. [volume] (Opelousas, La.) 1852-1910, 1871-04-08
BAEZ AND HIS ARMY.
The Gallant President of Sau
Domingo and his Fol
lowers.

ACdSUuoOAC OOuuC VI ClC Va tllO
population. If that is to decide the ques
ton of annexation, the solution is easy.
They are unanimously in favor of it. AS
Mr.. Wade says: They would be con-
demned fools if they were not" But
whether it is worth our while to accept
the island is another matter altogether.
I wrote you when we first landed at Santo
Domingo City that Baez was excited
over a rumored activity of Gabriel on the
frontier. The stir lasted for several days.
Gabriel was reported to be marching up
on Aqua with all his forces (they number
about 200 y, and Baez either was or
pretended to be seriously alarmed. L
had the inestimable privilege of witness
ing the muster. of the Dominican force
which was dispatched to meet the in
surgents. All the available soldiers in
and near the capital were got together
inside the walls. They were barefooted,
ragged, dirty, and probably hungry, hut
better humored rabble of negroes |
never saw. Few of them had any better
weapons than a sword or a long knife.
Small boats conveyed them in detach-
ments to wretched little schooner lying
in the harbor, on board which they were
CIONOtu I'LL tltIc NAo Looh SSSh
for pilot. This was the flagship of
the Dominican navy, and as the troops
clambered over its side brass band on
the shore brayed an inspiritring farewell.
One thing the army carried which sur
prised and grived me. They had no
standard of their own, but they bore with
great pride an american flag, of the reg
ulation regimental size. This was no ac-
cident, or lawless fancy of the soldiers.
Baez has made similar use of false colors
before. His troops raised our flag at
Higuey recently. aud the day before yes
terday, when I vas going aboard ship
with one of our party, the President ask
ed US to "tell the captain of the Yennes-
see to. send him Immediately a large
American flag" at Aqua. What he want
ed of it-whether it was to deceive his
own people, or to frighten the insurgents
Il do not know. 1t is hardly necessary
to say that Capt. Temple did not COM
ply with his request.
The fact is Senator Sumner spoke
nothing but the truth when he called
Baez "a political jockey" He Jockeys
his people, apd he has done his best to
Jockey the Commissioners. He completes
the thing by dressing as much like a
Jockey as any man can in the tropics
When he came aboard the Tennessee,
he reminded me of horse race. The
Dominican flag was run up to the mast.
head of this beautiful frigate, the off :.
GERS grouped themselves on deck in full
dress uniform, with swallowtail coats,
epaulets, white trowsers, and cooked
hats; q salute was fred of twenty-one
guns, and the man for whom all this pa
rade wes made came on board in bril-
liant jacket, light pantaloons, and Grim,
son velvet jockey cap, trimmed elabo.
rately with gold lace. and looking, to
tell the plain truth, like shrewd and
rather tricky "sport." He has no wife,
but scores Of children. He has no SAL
ary, but he lives in luxury while the SOL.
diers starve. He has neither character
nor courage, and he cannot quell con-
temptible insurrection, though his nom
inal power is almost absolute. In re-
public he rnles like royal despot. And
yet, as I said before, he is popular, and
practically there is NO respectable op-
position to his government. The insur
rection of Cabral deserves very little
consideration. There has never been
fighting enough to hurt anybody, ard
Of late there has been none at all, for the
rumored movement against Azua proved
to be phantom attack, and the army
had its voyage from Santo Domingo for
nothing. Assuming that the insurgent
forces are as ragged as those of Baez, I
may cay that military operations lsrs
confined on both sides to great deal of
vigorous parading in undress uniform
TorroeS,nm1enee Th-shasna