New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1872-12-25

drawing q fortune from the plantations Of
the Americans would feel rebellious il ordered
TO give them up TO their owners. At any rate.
tho PeniDsulars have neglected or refused
restoration. Our Government has shown unac-
countable laxity In the prosecution of these
claims, and when the Spanish-Amcrican Claims
Commission was at last organized, the State
Department seized this opportunity Of evading
further trouble by advising the claimants to
lay their demands for justice before that body.
Those who did 80 are caught as in vice.
Such Boards always move slowly, and their
decisions arc put in practice with still greater
delay. SO that it is probable that many years
will elapse before these rich plantations are
wrested from tho hands of the robbers who
are now spelling the substance Of our follow
citizens.
OF course, this question, Ike most others.
has two sides. A good many Of these Cuban
Americans sympathize with the wrongs and
sufferings OF their people, and some of them
have taken part in the struggle for independ-
ence. The Spanish Government considers abb
sence from the Island, or visit TO New-YOrk,
"a sufficient evidence of disloyalty to justify
an embargo of the property of tho truant
| The suppositon Of disloynlty is usually cor
rect for nearly every man, woman and child
born in Cuba, whether Spaniard or natural
lied American, cordially detests the Spanish
| name. But if it were accurate in all cases,
there il no justification for this unlawful seiz-
ure and withholding of property, and there
ia certainly no excuse for the conduct OF our
own Government in delaying tho proper de-
| Tense Of our citizens.
| There is one word Of our correspondents
lettor which throws some light Gu this in
action of the State Department When
he asked a prominent Cuban American what
he thought our Government should do in the
| case of his embargOed estate, lie replied WIZ
, the prompt unreason Of bis class, Recognize
the belligerency Of the CubansW Now we
! are sure that there is nothing which would givs
| Con. Grant greater pleasure than to recognize
even the Independence of Cuba, at the Inst
moment when this should seem colOrabiy war
ranted. But he has not yet seen his way clear
1 10 that and because the Cubans demand
this impossbility the Department OF state
hesitates to do justice TO their real needs
| 1t ia easy to appreciate the grave al
fculties which stand in the way OF
recognition Of Cuban independence or
beIIigerency by the President, but 1t is not
so readily seen why he should hesitate to
enforce against the Spanish Government the
lust claims of our robbed and outraged citi-
zens. We know well enough why the Cuban
authorities will not give up their hold. They
have excellent reasons for refusing. BY giving
up these unrighteous gains they would not
only lose money, but they would also iose
prestige and power. and damage their stand
ing among the jealous and exacting Volun-
teers It may DO true, as they say that IL
they gave up these stealings they would lose
the Island. But we.are not interested In these
considerations. It is not the business OF our
Government whether tho Peninsulars lose
Cuba or not. 1t ia very much their business
that they shall protect, at all hazards, the
lives the liberty and the property OF all
law-abiding citizens everywhere.