The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1902-01-25

William C. Claiborne whom he had
appointed governor of the Mississippi
territory, in preference to Judge
Andrew jackson, who was an APP
plicant for the place, the president
says with respect to Spain our
dispositions are sincerely amiable and
even affectonate. We consider her
possession of the adjacent country as
most favorable to our interests, and
should see with extreme pain any
other nation substituted for them. In
all communications therefore with their
officers, conciliation and mutual ac-
comodation are to be mainly attend
ed to. Everything irritating to he
avoided, everything friendly to be done
for them The most fruitful source of
misunderstanding will be the conduct
of their and our people at New Orleans
Temper and Justice will be the best
guides through those intrcacies.
Should France get possession of that
country, it will be more to be lament
| ed than remedied by us. as it will fur
nish ground for profound considera tion
on our part. how best to conduct our
selves in that case. 1t would of course
| be the subject of fresh communications
to YOU" As Spain closed against us
the navigation of the Mississippi the
next year. the sequel shows that the
LeXecutive was diametrcally wrong in
| tile line of his lamentations. In NOM
mating Chancellor Robert r. Living
! ston. IAN able and honorable man." TO
quote the words OF the president, as
minister plenipotentiary to France, Mr.
| Jefferson made probably the best ap-
| tra mil, lot 20 in,
| He was except for his serious deafness
an ideal diplomatic agent. Washing
| ton selected him for the same post in
1T94, but was obliged to fall back on
james Monroe, his third choice, Mon
roe consorted with the less crime
stained successors of Danton. Maret,
Robespierre, and other 'citizen assas-
sins" SO cordially. that he had to be
recalled for disobeying his instructions.
The references Of the secretary of
state Madison, to our relations with
Spain, England and France, were also
III conflict with the current of actual
subsequent events. On June Is. 1901,
Madison writes to Rufus King, our
minister to England: II cannot but
briefly add, however. that we have the
modification to find that, notwith-
deavors of the United States for the
establishment of just and friendly re-
lations with Great Britain, accounts
continue to arrive from different
quarters of accommodating trespasses
on our commerce and neutral rights
1t is somewhat singular that just ten
months later, the administration was
favorins, as will appear, an offensive
~ tnl
British trespassers on our commerce, in
a war of expulsion against France. On
the 9th of June, Madison wrote to
Charles Pinckney, the new minister TO
Spain: THE spoliations committed on
our trade, for which Spain is held re-
sponsible, are known to be already Of
very great amount, and it is to be ap-
prehended that they may not have yet
ceased. Hitherto redress has
been sought. sometimes in tribunals OF
justice, sometimes by applications TO
the government. and sometimes to both
these modes. Experience has suf-
hciently shown that neither the one
nor the other, nor both, can be relied
on for obtaining full justice for our in
Jured citizens. Some other effort, there
fore, is due to the sufferers, and. let me
add, TO the dignity of the United States
which must always feel the insults
offered to the rights of individual citi-
zens."
But on July 49, thirty-four days
later the president forgets about what |
is due 1.-The sufferers" and 1.-The dignity I
of the United States" while assuring
Governor Claiborne OF his "affectionate |
dispositions toward Spain. Truly Il |
sad case of unrequited affection.
During the whole year of 1901 and |
until March, 1902, the government at |
Washington remained ignorant of the !
terms of the Treaty of San IIdefonso |
signed October /. 1900, by the prince of |
peace and Lucien Bonaparte, the
younger brother of Napoleon. This |
significant treaty transferred to France
all that vast and vaguely defined ter
ritory known as Louisiana which France
had turned over to Spain in 1862. Bona
parties Initial policy and earliest am
btion was to restore to France all her
lost former possessions. But ii is the
privilege of great men to be incon-
sistent and also unsuccessful. 1t is a
matter of indisputable historic fact
that he restored nothing that remained
and never added q foot of ter
ritory permanently to France; on the
contrary he lost Belgium and the left
bank of the Rhine. A titled son of the
duke of Parma, a brother of the
queen of Charles " of Spain must be
provided for. To give consequence
and dignity to the brother of royalty
and to honor one OF Spain's illustrious
families, great partly developed en-
pire was offered by Spain to France
for the uncertain sovereignty of the
petty kingdom of Tuscany. Its price
less art treasures and historic mem-
ories probably did not weigh much on
either side of the scale. The earlier
secret treaty took effect March u,
1901, Napoleon prepared to displace
Marchal Victor with five batalions of
infantry and the required complement
or cavalry and artillery, but the dash
ing Victor and his forces and three
generals never sailed
Not until April 49, 1902, does Presl-
ient Jefferson wake up to the large
significance of the Louisiana question |
I'm letter of that date to Robert r. |
Livingston, our minister extraordinary
20 France, ne gives strong expression
10 some elastic views, but elastic in
he wrong direction: 1.-The cesslon OF
Louisiana and the Floridas by Spain to
france works most sorely on the United
states The day that France
axes possession of New Orleans fixes :
he sentence which is TO restrain her
'orever within her low water mark ;
L seals the union of two nations who
n conjunction can maintain exclusive
OF the ocean. From that
moment we must carry ourselves IN the