Red Lodge picket. [volume] (Red Lodge, Mont.) 1889-1907, 1898-04-16

claim on our part to the territory of Tex
as and of the avowed purpose of th'
Texans in seeking recognition Of indie
pendence as an incident to the ncorpora
, ton of Texas in the Union. concluding
thus:
President JacI&sOn'S Conclusions.
prudence, therefore, seems to dictat,
that we should stand alOof and maintain
| our present attitude, if not until Mexico
itself one of the great powers shall
recognize the independence of the new
government, at least until the lapse O
time or the course of events shall have
proved. beyond cavil or dispute, the abil
ity Of that country to maintain separat,
sovereignty and to uphold the govern
ment constituted by them. Neither Of tht
contending parties can justly compla il
OF this course. BY pursuing it we ar.
but carrying out the long established pol
icy of our government, a policy Whic.
has secured to us respect and influence
abroad and inspired confidence a. home
These are the words of Andrew Jack
son. They evidence that the United
States, in addition to the test imposed by
public law as the condition of the recOg-
milton of independence by neutral state
to-wit: That the revolted state shall
constitute in fact a body polite, having
a government in substance as well as in
name possessed of the elements of sta
bilty,' and forming de facto, IF left to
itself, a state among the nations, reason
ably capable of discha rsins the duties OF
Il state has imposed for its own govern
ance in dealing with cases like these, the
further condition that recognition of in
dependent statehood is not due to a re-
volted dependency until the danger Of its
being again subjugated by its parent
state has entirely passed away"
This extreme test was in fact applied
in the case of Texas. The congress to
whom President Jackson referred the
question as zone probably leading to war,
! and therefore proper subject for prev
iouS understanding with that body, by
whom war can alone be declared and by
whom all the provisions for sustaining
its perils must be furnished, left the mat
ter of recognition of Texas to the dis
cretion of the executive, providing mere
| ly for the sending of diplomatic agent
! when the president should be satisfied
| that the republic Of Texas had become
IAN Independent state"
Van Buren's Position.
| II was so recognized by President Van
| Buren, who commissioned a charge d'af-
| faires, March 7, 1887, after Mexico had
! abandoned an attempt to conquer the
| Texas territory and when there was at
| the time bona tide contest going on
| former sovereign.
/ said in my message Of December last:
/ 1t is to be seriously considered whether
the Cuban insurrecton possesses beyond
| dispute the attributes Of statehood which
alone demand the recognition of bel.
| ligerency in its favor"
The same requirement must be no less
seriously considered when the graver is
sue of recognizing independence is in
question, for no less positive test can be
applied to the greater act than to the
lesser, while on the other hand the in
| fluence and consequences of the struggle
upon the international policy of the
ognizing states. which form important
factors when the recognition Of belliger-
ency is concerned, are secondary If not
rightly eliminabe factors when the COM
munity claiming recognition is not indie
pendent beyond peradventure.
Nor from the standpoint of expedience
do / think it would be wise or prudent
for this government to recognize, a the
present time the independence of the
called Cuban republic. Such recognition
is not necessary in order to enable the
United States to intervene and pacify the
island. To commit this country now to
the recognition of any particular govern
ment in Cuba might subject us to embar-
RAISING conditions Of international obli-
cation toward the organization 50 recog
nized. In case of Intervention our con-
duct will be subject to the approval or
disapproval of such government. We
would be required to submit to its direc
ton and to assume to it the mere relation
of a friendly ally.
When it shall appear thereafter that
there is within the island a government
capable Of performing the duties and dis
charging the functions of nation and
having as a matter of fact the proper
forms and attributes of nationality such
recognized and the relations and inter-
ests of the United States with such ma
ton adjusted.
The Alternative Forms.
There remain the alternative forms of
intervention to end the war, either as an 4
impartial neutrality by imposing a ra-
tonal compromise between the contest
ants. or as the active ally of the one
party or the other. AS to the first, it is +
not to be forgotten that during the last /
few months the relation Of the United
States has virtually been one of friendly |
intervention in many ways, each not Of
itself conclusive, but all tending to the /
execution of a potential influence toward 4
an ultimate pacific result, just and hon
orable to all interests concerned.
The spirit Of all Of your acts hitherto /
has been an earnest. unselfish desire for /
peace and prosperity in Cuba, untarnished |
by differences between the United States /
and Spain and unStained by the blood OF I
American citizens The forcibe inter-
vention of the United States as neutral !
to stop the war, according to the large /
dictates of humanity, and following /
historical precedcnts where other states |
have interfered to check the hopeless sac
,ificc of life by internecine conflicts be- +
yond their borders, is justifiabe on ma
tional grounds. 1t involves however, /
hostile constraint upon both the parties
to the contest. as we'll to enforce a truce
as to guide the eventual settlement. The 1
grounds for such Intervention may be T
briefly summarized as follows:
Grounds for Intervention.
First in the cause of humanity and to
pUt an end to the barbarities, bloodshed,
starvation and horrible miseries now ex-
ist:ng there and which the parties to the
conflict are either unable or unwilling to .
stop or mitigate. 1t is no answer to say
TINS is in country belonging to another
nation and is therefore none of our busl-
ness. 1t is especially our duty, for it IS
right at door.
Second, we owe to our citizens in Cuba
to afford them that protection and in
demnity for life and property which no
government there can or will afford, and
to that end terminate the conditions that
deprive mem Of legal protection.
Third. the right to intervene may be
JuS:lhed by the very serious INJURY 10 INC
commerce. trade and business of our peo-
pie and by the wanton destruction of
property and devastation of the island.
Fourth, and which is Of the utmost
Importance, the present condition OF at
fairs in Cuba is a constant menace to our
peace and entails upon this government
enormous expenses. With such conflict
Waged for years in an island so near to us
and with which our people have such
I. 10 nd h,IS rp13 a
lives and liberty of our citizens are in
constant menace, their property de-
stroyed and they themselves ruin
ed. when our trading vessels are liable to
seizure and are seized at our very doors
by warships of a foreign nation, the expe-
dit:ons of filibustering that we are pow
erless to prevent altogether and the irri-
tating questions thus arsing-all these
and others are constant menace to our
peace and compel us to keep on a semi
war footing with that nation with which
we at peace.