New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1875-11-03

which will bring matters to decision on
this battle-torn island" Under these cir
cumstances we could not hope for any
committal as to what side the Bulletin
might take in the event that the President
did mean to take such measures.
The Picayune thinks the tone of the
dispatch semi-official, and considers that
this, IN connection with the naval orders
OF the moment, "points Enthusiastically
to the adoption of an active and ag-
gressive policy on the part of our govern
ment."
In answer to its own question, s.Does it
mean war;" the Picanne replies:
In the event of war with Spain, there is
little doubt that we could speedily eject
her forces from the island, but we would be
compelled to suffer very material injury t.
our commerce.
10 characterize the intention of our
government as aggressive, after having
said:
In the meantime the interests of our own
country have suffered materially. Our citi.
owing to our anomalous relations to the
contendlng parties We have been able to OBJ.
tam redress and indemnity only with great
difficulty and after long delay.
Would seem little equivocal. If our
citizens have suffered violence and our
country has suffered materially from this
contest, it is not seen how we would suffer
more material injury to our commerce"
by even the improbable result of war than
by an indefinite continuance of the vio-
lence to our citizens and injury to our in
terests, which are admitted to have existed
during the disturbance in Cuba.
The Picoyune, in illustrating the stub
born dignity of the Spanish crown,
quotes the reported declaration of the
Spanish minister to Napoleon tnat Spain
never sold her possessions Is not the
Picoy.ns under some mistake about this?
Spain did sell, or what was far less royal
s,oap off the province of Louisiana for the
Kingdom of Etruria Tuscany. There
was no condition in the treaty of
Ildefonso, that France should sell Lou
isiana to the United States. 1t was sold
by Napoleon in 1903, as it had been
abandoned" to Spain without compen-
sation in 1764-for fear it should fall into
the hands of the British. Indeed, when
the treaty Of ession by Spain to France ex-
changed Louisiana for an Italian province,
there could not well have been a condi-
ton that France should cede Louisiana to
the government of the United States.
Napoleon, in fact, decided within two
hours after receiving notice that England
was fitting out an expedition for the West
Indies to sell Louisiana to tho United
States for sum almost nominal. He did
so for the avowed purpose "to make it
one day cost dearer to those who oblige
me to strip myself of it than to those to
whom wish to deliver it. Our own govern
ment, 60 far from supposing that France
was bound by treaty to give or sell Louisi-
ana to the United States had not even Of
fered to purchase, and had given our am
bassador no power to treat for title.
We know this is cratic and irrelevant
to the subject of this article. We desire
to know what position the Democratic
press proposes to take on this great ques-
ton? Shall the Republican administration
"go it alone" or shall it have the support
of the Democracy?
The Picdyune thinks
The agitation of this question just at this
lunoture is suspected to be a shrewd bid
from General Grant for reelection.
AS the result of a party election is re-
garded BY the politicians as of more con-
sequence than an improved market for
American produce or the extension of
American principles, and as foreign war
would be of questionable advantage, the
Picayune does not say whether it would
sustain the government in intervening for
the termination of the Cuban civil war or
not.
We do not hold our press responsible as
opponents of the programme Swallowed
by the press dispatch, but we really think |
very small encouragement is offered to the
administration in the indifference, sus-
piciou and criticism which mark the
tone of our contemporaries in their CON-