The Washington herald., 1910-12-04
MEXICO AND THE UNITED STATES
Will Soldiers of Fortune Create Southern Empire? the Question
Wanted Huge AreasAarOn Burr the Greatest Adventurer

free and independent, TO unite ii with
Mexico under a central government, and
10 annex Cuba. What an empire that
would have made But how fatuous such
an idea. how absurd In the light OF the
MACMILLAN disaster which followed. Mi
randa's dream was equally as grand,
equally as fatuous. He is none the less
AN interesting person because of his fall
ure-an interesting person, but one hard
~ knows where to place him. whether
among the patriots or the mere adven-
tErers. He was born in Caracas. At
seventeen he was a captain In the Qua
temalan army. de fought in the Ameri-
can Revolution with the French. He
fought in the French revolution under
Dumouriez and was expelled from the
country for treason. He sought refuge
In England. bat again returned TO France
and was again expelled, this time by the
First Consul Finding no work for his
hands and his active brains in Europe,
he came to America. where he gained
the friendship and sympathy of politi-
clans, and obtained financial aid from a
Mr.. ogden. OF New York
With the money borrowed from Ogden.
Miranda bought and fitted out the Lean
der and sailed away to effect revOlu-
ton. or revolutions rather, since he in
tended eventually 10 free all OF the Span
ish colonies from the yoke of the mother
country. His ambition Outmeasured his
judgment, for he started out for this
great conquest with only one ship, a
handful of men, and his native wit as
equipment
lie relied more upon the latter shan
the former and felt that by his diplomacy
and adrOitness he could win hioodless
victories. In this he was quite right. All
he did accomplish was through his elo-
qUence. his powers of convincing and Of
inspiring. To begin WITH he convinced
the poor dupes who enlisted with him
that he had secret understanding with
the authorities at Washington, and one
OF them wrote: we are encouraged in
the belief that our government has given
its implied saDction 10 this expedition,
and this circumstance, taken In connee-
ton with the official language of the
President and the known sentiments Of
some Of the political party that now pre-
walls, leads US 20 suppose that our gov
eminent expects or intends soon eX-
plieitly 10 authorize the use of force
against Spain" This was the sop that
Miranda gave his American men. that
they were simply the advance guard in
a projected war against Spain. He also
impressed them with the fact that 80
far as occasion shall require they would
have the countenance and cooperation
OF Great Britain"
Led TO Death.
These poor deluded men Miranda led to
death and Imprisonment. and it viii for
ever stand against him that after their
capture he made no effort to secure their
release. This is the blacklist page in his
history His critics declared that he
could have sent a flag OF truce to the
Spanish Main with conditions, and that
he might have procured the cooperation
of the English admiral for this purpose,
or he might have captured SOME Span
iards in retaliation and held them az
hostages: but he did nothing. A part Of
these men were executed at Porto Ca
bello; the rest were transported and i'm
prisoned at hard labor
That Miranda had the car of leading
statesmen in the United States is not 10
! be questioned lie correspondent with
Madison, jefferson. and Hamilton, and
ht is said 10 nave won the friendship of
| Washington. Had ne been successful in
/ his endeavor 30 arouse the Spanish col
Onies against the mother country il
would have been another story He
failed and he was denied and discreditcd
History does not count John A. Quit
man. Of Mississippi, a soldier OF fortune.
Yet he was greater than them all, for he
was successful He raised an army of