The Montgomery advertiser., 1901-08-14
1he ADVERTISERS
 M HOME STUDY CIRCLE

soon as the adjacent lands were set- tied. for Spain neither colonized Flor Ida successfully nor controlled 1t just ly. The colony was so distant from the mother country. and her interest in a land barren of gold was so slight that she exercised there practically no po- lice control. Consequently Florida was to the United States an unyielding source of Irritation.
 Spain herself was in constant trouble. Napoleon was dragging her in his cap- tive train or she was in throes of revo- luton at home, or her colonies were in revolt; she had as little leisure as she had inclination to give heed to distant Florida That territory. thus left in anarchy, became center of trouble 1 for the young republic. The English, during the war of 1872, hostile Indians. runaway negro slaves. smugglers and pirates made Florida a veritable pest to her northern neighbor. Spain was none too anxious to control her colony in the interests of the United States, even had ste been able. For she had against us grievances to offset our complaints on account of her closure of navigation ia the Mississippi just before the transfer to France. She was injured by various filibustering expeditions in aid of her disaffected' South American colonies, Finally dip lomatic relations were severed in 1908 and in 1Sl0 President Madison took military possession of West Florida. The next year. Congress. by secret acts. authorized the President to take temporary possession of East Florida. This was not meant to be final seiz- ure but was to be done pending the ability of Spain to take care of her own refractory province. The war of 1872 brought new occas- ions of trouble between Spain and the United States in the Floridas. It also developed the great man who was to deal in a summary way with the whole trouble. and to loose the Gordian knot by cutting it. That man was Andrew Jackson. the third factor in the acqui- sition of Florida by the. United States,
 The war of 1912 developed a glorious list of American sea fighters-Hull, Lawrence; Perry, Decatur, Macdonough and others. On land. Andrew Jackson, of Tennessee. was the only commander of great power and conspicuous suc- cess Rough and ready, he seemed bound by no rules whatever. Passion ate. vepgful, dictatorial he was one of, the men who was bound to have. his own way. To him we owe the winning of Florida. although in winning 1t he violated nearly every rule of internat- ional law.
 The troubles of 1872 with Great Brit ain gave the Creek Indians an oppor- tunity to harrass the settlers of the Mississippi territory. It vas in subdu- ing them that Jackson won his spurs and became a figure of national celeb rity. Their subjugation opened the way for his next step. Pensacola. though On neutral Spanish territory. was held by the British. Without walt ing for permission from Washington, Jackson drove the British out. By req son of this victory he was able three months later to defend New Orleans against Welington's veterans. and to show the English that Americans could fight on land as we'll as at sea.
 Even after peace was made between Great Britain and the United Stats. Florida soil was held by British adven- turers, who sought to found There a State in alliance with Great Britain. Their undertaking had to be put, down, and their fort on the Appalachicola de- stroyed. These events male manifest what a menace to us was the Spanish possession of Florida. New complica- tions arose when other adyenturers in the name of Buenos Ayres and Vene- ztela established themselves n Amelia island. just off the northeast corner of Florida. and proclaimed Florida free from Spain. This led Congress to as- sert its unwillingness that any portion of Florida should pass into the posses sion of a third power, and an Ameri- can officer occupied Amelia island. The cup of our irritation was full when Seminole Indians attacked united States. troops north of the Florida line and then sought shelter on the other side.
 Forbearance had now ceased to be a virtue It was time for man Of the Jackson type to take matters in hand. When directed to proceed against the Indians Jackson was more than req ly. Assembling his Tennessee veterans of the Creek and Indian wars. he march ed into the Spanish territory. He had wri:ten to Washington: Let t be sig nified to me that the possession Of the Floridas would be desirable to the Unit ed States. and In 50 days 1t shall ee accomplished Receiving no answer (his mail often went conventionally astray). he proceeded in his own arbi- dently making no effort to maintain trary manner. The Spaniards were evi- neutrality. So Jackson felt Justified without a formal declaration of war in seiztnR their chief stations. St. Marks and Pensacola. He found that an En- 4lishman named Ambrister and a Scotchman named Arbuthnot were ring leaders in the Indian trouble. These citizens of another country together with two Indian chiefs, he hanged.
 This campaign by Jackson placed the United States in 1918 in full possession of Florida, but as Jackson's actions had been so illegal her forts were re- stored to Spain on condition that she should garrison them and maintain order in the colony. She was, however, ready to sell Florida rather than at temnt the task of controlling 1t. In IS1o the treaty of cession was drawn up which was finally ratified in 1921. It surrendered all Florida and established The western boundary of the United States at the Sabine river Cthe presnt Iine between Louisiana and Texas), thou1h we have seen in a former paper that what is now Texas was of right made part of the United States by the Louisiana purchase. The terms of the cesslon treaty involved the abandon r,ent of all claims by each government
 :. .-o,-1o against the other, and hound the United States to pay the
 it's own citizens against cnain The sum named at first was $5,- ono ooo hut over $6,0OO.000 was paid at last ,,.,.. ood
 Thus the corner lot was bought ana the boundary became natural one. we t Io~tinad to have no more war