New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1874-01-05
columns, we shall still find it easy to surren-
der all the space necessary to record it.
THK MADRID COUP UETfT

merOn, President of the COrtes. The cause OF
disagreement was the old question upon which
Sahneron resigned the Presidency. lie Is OPP
posed to capital punishment for any political
ofiense, or for any infractiOn OF military dis-
cipline. This view of his was not accepted
by the COrtes, or the army, and he gave up
the government in consequence His high
character and influence, however, secured for
him the scarcely less important post OF Presl-
dent of the Cortes, and for time it seemed as
if CASTELAR, could rely implicitly upon his personal
friendship and his hearty official cooperation.
But the same vexed question has recently
come to the surface again, in view OF the
probable capture of Cartagena and the sup
preston of the cantOnal instruction. Inc
Government felt so sure of catching their hare
that they began to quarrel about the sauce
with which it should be served In this quar-
rel, to the establishment of all the short
sighted people who looked upon the President
as poet and rhetorician merely, CASTELAR,
favored rigid Punishment of the ringleaders
and of the deserters from the army, and Sal
merOn, prominently practical man, adopted
the radical idea of universal amnesty ms
ouorro, :, -r:.o vi all efforts to heal II, con-
tlnueu up W tut OptuluS VI NV co''N' W.
Friday.
The message of Castelar, of which we print a
telegraphic abstract this morning. seems !to
have been an unusually sincere and courageous
presentation of the state of the country. lie
did not pretend to disguise the disagreeaDle
features Of the situation He told the unpleas-
ant truth about both the Carlist and the Com
munist instructions, and admitted that the
sum of twenty millions of dollars had been
spent in efforts, thus far unsuccessful, to sup
press Them He indicated what was necessary
to be done to set the Republic on firm basis
and secure the recognition of European pow
ers. Nothing is easier than to point
out these necessary measures, and nothing
more difficult in Spain than to induce
politicians to put them IN practice
The battle was joined Immediately. The mes
sage of CASTELAR, was in fact q chivalrOus de-
fance to the opposition. There is no evasion
OF reserve in it. He places his plans and his
opinions distinctly before the Congress, and
asks their concurrence with him. The first
vote resulted in defeat of the Government.
In the Chamber which few months ago made
CASTELAR, President with almost dictatOra pow
ers, he was defeated on Saturday by majority
of 20. The details of the vote have not yet
reached us, but the most probable explanation
of it is that the Monarchical and COmmunistic
odds and ends combined against the Govern
ment, and, joined by considerable section of
the Republicans under Salmeron, defeated it.
The intranSigenteS, the Carlists, the AlfOnsists,
each separated by an impossible gulf from the
other, may have formed this momentary cOali-
ton based on common hate of the conservative
Repablic, and the detection of SalmerOn has
probably given success to the combination.
1t is evident that the reactionists foresaw this
unfortunate result and determined to be pre-
pared for it. 1t would even seem that Caste
lar made the way straight for them. He
filed the city with troops last week, and the
r11mor of a contemplated coup d@tat was gene
raj in Madrid before the meeting OF the depu-
ties AS soon as the Government was out
voted, Gen. Pava, who commanded the dis
trict, at once took possession of the Legisla-
tive Palace, dissolved the COrtes, and,
according to the dispatches of this morn
ing, summoned the notables OF the Assembly
to form a new Cabinet, consisting almost en-
tirely of the old politicians of the revolution
of 1868, and of the shOrt-lived reign of Anna
deus Marshal SerranO is at It's head Adj
miral ToDete takes his old Bureau OF the
Marine Echegaray, Figuerola and Becerra
come back. Sagasta takes once more the De-
partment of Foreign Affairs, doubtless to the
profound discomfort of the Diplomatic Body
in Madrid. The names are all familiar
that one involuntariy looks for that Of
Marshal Prim, vino so ably drilled that squad
of statesmen in the C0rtes when they occu-
pied the blue bench of the Treasury with
him.
The long threatened coup dftat announced
in Gen. Sickles's dispatches to the State De-
partment has taken place at last, and it would
require very sanguine spirit to be sure that
the Republic will survive 1t. The unfortunate
discussions among the Republican leaders Laid
them open to this attack from their visilant
and INSCRIPTIONS enemies, and the result is a
disaster of the gravest description. The dis
patches of yesterday committed the unaccOunt-
able error of attributing this revolutionary
action to President CASTELAR,. We should have
been profoundly disappointed if this honest and
gifted Republican had made use of the bayonet
to reverse decision of the national assembly,
however unwise he might have considered such
a decision to be. The action seems to have
proceeded from Gen. Pavia himself. Ii is one
of those singular revenges so frequent in
Spanish politics. that the man who was to
betray the Republic into the hands of Serrano
should be the loyal General whom the rebel
Serrano defeated in 1868, and who fell des-
perately wounded on the bridge of Alcoles,
shouting "Viva la Reina." 1t remains to be
seen whether the reactiOnists will attempt to
restore Don Alfonso Every man IN the new
Grated her dynasty. Bnt nearly eyery one has
also kissed her hands and sworn allegiance to
her. SerranO especially has never forgotten