%images;]> LCRBMRP-T2211Cuba.: a machine-readable transcription.Collection: African-American Pamphlets from the Daniel A. P. Murray Collection, 1820-1920; American Memory, Library of Congress. Selected and converted.American Memory, Library of Congress.

Washington, 1994.

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03-024994Daniel Murray Pamphlet Collection, 1860-1920, Rare Book and Special Collections Division, Library of Congress. Copyright status not determined.
0001CUBA.

Letter to Hon. Char. Sumner

0002
INTRODUCTION.

The persistent and long-continued efforts of Cubans in this country, their sympathizers, and the filibuster portion of our American press to involve this country in a war with Spain; the gross misrepresentation and perversion of truth regarding the character of the Cubans and their cause, to effect that object; the abuse heaped upon members of the Administration because they have refused to cater to the wishes of these numerous agitators, and the intense excitement created by the affair of the steamer Virginius, has induced the writer to introduce the following statement of facts, and conclusions drawn therefrom, regarding the true nature of this warfare in Cuba, the prosperity of the Island previous to the outbreak of the Insurrection, under Spanish Rule, in comparison to the miserable condition of the neighboring countries under their so-called Republican Governments, and the policy that should be pursued by the United States in the management of its relations with Spain.

To every honest American who has the prosperity of his country at heart, and desires to see that country respected among the nations of the earth for the grandeur and influence of its free institutions and laws; for the ability of its people to govern themselves and advance the arts and sciences; for their disposition to respect the rights of other Governments, while demanding respect for their own--and, finally, for their creative and moral power in Peace, rather than their destructive power in War--the following communication, addressed to the Hon. Charles Sumner, of Massachusetts, is submitted:

0003
NEW YORK, Dec. 16th, 1873.TO THE HONORABLE CHARLES SUMNER,United States Senator:

Sir: It is now more than five years since the outbreak of the present insurrection in Cuba, and during that time the Cuban sympathizers and organs in this country have constantly sought, through the agency of sensational newspaper articles and unfounded reports of military operations to mislead the public concerning the true condition of the Cuban Revolution, and to create a bitter feeling of animosity against Spain which, if not checked in time, may involve our Government in serious international disputes, and place us, as a people, in a very unfavorable position before the civilized world. Before going too far, it may be well to make some inquiry regarding the merits of this Cuban controversy. When the Spaniards first took possession of Cuba, they found it inhabited altogether by the aboriginal or Indian tribes, living a wild, uncivilized life, without government, and strangers to law. This race, from causes which it is not now necessary to seek to explain, soon became extinct, and the Spanish discoverers remained the only actual possessors of the soil, and they and their lineal descendants have continued to hold it until the present time. Spain thus gave it its first and only government. It has never passed from her control for a day or an hour, and no other power has ever made or substantiated a claim of ownership. By the law of nations and in equity, it is as clearly the property of Spain and of the Spanish people as the city of Madrid or the province of Castile, and 80 per cent of this Spanish population so holding and owning the Island are loyal to the home Government. Who, then, are the insurgents? Are they Spaniards? If so, this so-called revolution is simply a civil war inaugurated by a dissatisfied minority against the more intelligent and successful majority. But if they are not Spaniards, by what right do they attempt to overthrow the present government?

The Cuban question having been thus prominently brought before the people of the United States, but few of whom have troubled themselves to ascertain the true condition of affairs upon the Island, its population, and classification of population, together with the sentiments of that population regarding a change of government, and as many of the articles on the subject published in our daily papers take their tone mainly from the political bias or sympathies of the writers, regardless in many instances of the actual facts, and as my late connection with the Cuban insurgent cause has enabled me to learn much that has a direct bearing upon the matter in dispute, I deem it not improper nor out of place to introduce the following statements and remarks:

At the breaking out of the insurrection Spain had but 12,000 regular troops upon the Island. In the rural districts, between Point Maysi and Cape San Antonio no soldiers were to be found. So great was the confidence of the government in the loyalty of the people, that all the country districts were left unguarded; hence it is plain that had the majority of the Spanish and Creole population desired a separation, the movement could have been successfully effected in thirty days, and Spain unable to prevent it; but the majority did not desire separation, and this is very evident from the following figures and statements. At the commencement of the revolution the Island was divided into three departments and into thirty-two jurisdictions. The departments are the "Oriental," the "Central" and the "Occidental." The rising at Yara spread at once to the Oriental Department, with the exception of the various district head quarters, where the Spanish authority remained unimpaired, and where all the leading families gathered from the surrounding country. The movement also spread to the Camaguey, where it was well supported. As I have remarked, the Oriental Department supported the rising, and it is therefore important to examine the population returns of each jurisdiction, which were as follows:--Baracoa, 10,800; Bayamo, 31,336; Santiago de Cuba, 91,851; Guantanamo, 19,421; Holquin. 52,123; Jignani, 17,572; Manzanillo, 26,493, and Tunas. 6,823--making for eight jurisdictions 256,419 souls. Of the Central Department but two jurisdictions can be said to have revolted--Puerto Principles and Nuevita, the former numbering 62,527 inhabitants, and the latter 6,376, a total of 68,903, which, added to the 00044eight jurisdictions already enumerated, gives 325,622. To this number we must add that portion of the country people inhabiting the villas who took part in the movement, estimated at 144,562, making in all 469,884. From this number we must now deduct the population of the headquarter cities of the jurisdictions in revolt, numbering collectively 87,167, and we have the total number on the Island supposed to be participating in and sympathizing with the movement at 382,717. In contrast to which we have the loyal population, of those in favor of supporting the Home Government, as follows: At Bahia Honda, 12,773; Bejucal, 23,748; Cardenas, 50,465; Colon, 64,217; Guanabacoa, 26,213; Guanajay, 39,843; Guines, 62,463; Havana, 190,332; Janico, 37,571; Matanzas, 76,462; Pinar del Rio, 68,926; San Antonio, 33,886; San Cristobal, 28,977; Santa Maria de Rosario, 8,646; Santiago de los Vegas, 15,850, and the Isles of Pines, 2,087--making a total of 744,789. Add to this number again 115,561, one-half of the population of the villas and Sagua, loyal, and the 87,167 residents of the headquarter cities already mentioned, and we have in round numbers 976,526, or three-quarters of the entire population of the Island, remaining faithful to the mother country; and as this number includes the greater part of the wealth, intelligence and respectability of the inhabitants, it must be evident to any unprejudiced observer that the present trouble has sprung from the act of an insignificant and headstrong minority, risen against the majority surrounding them and against the civilization and best interests of the country.

The above estimate gives us for the Island a population of about 1,400,000, half of whom are of negro origin, and the other half may be classified as follows: Spanish Creoles, say 537,017; Peninusular Spaniards, 70,000; Canary Islanders, 49,000; Porto Ricans, 500; Frenchmen, 2,600; Englishmen, 1,240; Italians, 500; Germans, 450; Portuguese, 150; natives of the Philippines, 50; other Europeans, 100; Americans, 2,500; Spanish-Americans, 3,420; natives of Yucatan, 150; Asiatics, 32,234; Dominicans, 64; Brazilians, 25. This calculation gives 162,983 whites, not born in Cuba, but still permanent residents. It is folly to suppose these people desire a change of government, and of the 537,017 Spanish Creoles, we cannot doubt but that the majority are opposed to the revolution. Should the insurgents succeed in overthrowing Spanish rule, it is reasonable to suppose the 162,983 whites of foreign birth, together with those among the Creoles who are loyal, would leave the Island or be massacred by the now subject classes; and as among the negroes the males exceed the females two to one, the proportion of negro males would be so far in excess of the white males, that the lives of the latter, together with the destinies of the Island, would be in the hands of the former, and even if the world was spared horrors similar to those perpetrated by the negroes of San Domingo and Hayti when they gained the ascendancy, is there any reason to believe the Island of Cuba would escape a like fate? Is there any material difference between the negroes and mulattoes of Cuba and those of San Domingo, at the time French and Spanish authority was overthrown there? And what terrible misrule has Spain been guilty of in Cuba, that we should wish to drive her out, and deliver the Island, with its immense wealth and resources, over to those antecedents prove them incapable of self-government? Abuse of Spain has become epidemic in this country, and yet why is it so? What has she done? What treaties made with us has she violated? Which one of our rights has she infringed? It is true the Spanish Volunteers have committed many acts of great severity, but what people under provocation have not done the same? England, the mother of our modern civilization, blew her Sepoy mutineers from the guns, and France shot her prisoners of the Paris commune, both male and female, by the score, yet we entered no protest. Then why this action against Spain? Is it truly because Spaniards are the terrible people we picture them, or is it simply because we want Cuba, and Spain is not willing to part with her? What an unfortunate people we are, shut up in this miserable little country, with the beautiful Island of Cuba within five days' sail of New York, and we cannot have it! And why? Why, those ignorant and brutal Spaniards say it is valuable, is their property, and they want it themselves. What monstrous impudence in them! And so, because we cannot prevail upon the Spanish Government to abandon or sell us the Island, we must encourage and advocate revolution, and send arms and ammunition to be placed in the hands of the subject classes, that they, by overthrowing the only power that is capable of enforcing law and preserving order, may inaugurate a war of races, so terrible and destructive in its character that the nations of Europe will call upon us, in the name of humanity, to end it by taking possession, and in that manner we shall get Cuba. Is it not a noble and far-seeing policy? Who but our American filibusters can conceive such another?

00055

Most, if not all, of the fighting which has taken place upon the Island has consisted of numerous and insignificant skirmishes and attacks by the Cubans upon poorly-guarded Spanish supply trains and defenceless towns and plantations. As for legitimate fighting, they (the insurgents) do not pretend to do any. These encounters, however, have been paraded before our reading public as glorious and substantial victories gained by the so-called Cubans Patriots over their blood-thirsty enemies, the Spaniards. As an evidence of the insignificance of the Cuban operations in the field, I will cite their reported capture of the town of Holquin, which has been called one of their most brilliant exploits. This town, and the fort at that place, was attacked last winter by a body of the insurgents, and being at the time in an entirely defenceless condition, they succeeded in gaining possession. They burned several houses, and held the fort until the following day, when they were driven out by a body of sailors and marines, landed from a Spanish war vessel in the harbor. That they were able to carry off considerable property from the town and fort is not surprising, as they held undisputed possession for several hours; but were driven out by a handful of sailors, is, to my mind, convincing evidence that they were nothing more than a gang of marauders, and as such should be dealt with. From all the information I can gather, I am satisfied that the insurgent force consists but of a few hundred half-naked, poorly-armed and badly officered, negroes, Chinamen and half-breeds, who, divided into several independent bands, roam through the almost inaccessible mountain districts of the eastern end of the island, seizing every opportunity to plunder and destroy; and this I believe, Mr. Henderson, the Herald correspondent, who visited the Island in the fall of 1872, if I read his report correctly, corroborates. He says, I think, that after leaving the Spanish lines, and penetrating some distance, into the mountain districts, he was met by Agramonte, who had with him about 100 men; that this officer conducted him by obscure and concealed paths still further into the interior of the Island, when he found himself in presence of a person who was introduced to him as Carlos Manuel Cespedes, who had with him several officers and 700 men, two-thirds of whom were negroes, and all very poorly clothed, many indeed being without pantaloons or shirts. These are all the forces Mr. Henderson saw. Cespedes, it is true, informed him their forces were 12,000 strong. Now we may believe this statement of Mr. Cespedes or not, as we think proper, but if true, it is singular that the Cuban leader, having been notified of Mr. Henderson's coming, did not make a better show of his military strength. Cespedes also asserted that he could increase his forces to 50,000 men if he had arms. This may be so, but what class of men would they be? Would they not be negroes recruited from the plantations? Then what is this but a negro insurrection? Now let us remember that the island of Cuba has some 1,400,000 inhabitants, that one-half of these are of negro origin, and that the negro males are far superior, both numerically and physically, to the white males. What, then, does a negro insurrection, if successful, mean? Will it not lead to the total extinction of the power of the whites, and the establishment of another black republic? Suppose the Spanish authority is overthrown, and the few Spanish Creoles now leading the insurgent movement establish an independent government, how will they maintain that government, surrounded, as they will be, by an ignorant, brutal and antagonistic race, who will outnumber them four to one? They may say, we will do so by virtue of our superior intelligence and moral force; but this is an absurdity! Superior intelligence and moral force cannot maintain itself without sufficient physical force to enable it to hold in subjection the element it seeks to govern. As well may we attempt to turn a tribe of savages from the war-path reading to them a chapter from the book of Genesis. Without this physical force, the governing classes are subject to the will and caprice of the masses they would control. History has demonstrated that the two races, white and black, cannot live together upon a footing of equality. One must be subject to the other. Which race, then, shall rule, the white or black? Which race will rule upon the Island of Cuba, in case the Spanish authority is overthrown, need require no oracle to determine. But, aside from any question of a war of races, why should we wish to have Spanish authority overthrown? Could we, in such an event, as a nation, reap any advantage thereby? Would not our trade and commerce, rather, suffer materially? Cuba, under its present government, has become one of the most productive and wealthy islands in the world; its exports and imports have, and still continue to furnish a large number of our merchant vessels with remunerative freights, which would otherwise lay idle at our wharves; and the duties on merchandise brought to the United States from the Island 00066and immensely to the revenues of the Government. As evidence of this increasing commercial prosperity, I will submit the following statements, taken from such statistics as I have at hand: At the commencement of the present century the population of Cuba was 300,000; it is now 1,400,000. In the year 1826 the value of her exportations was $13,809,383, and in 1859 they had increased to $57,455,185; during the same year the importations were valued at $43,465,185. In 1862 Cuba produced from her own soil and resources to the value of $305,919,875, a sum equal to $218 for each member of the population. In contrast to this extraordinary advance in prosperity, under the restrictions imposed upon the people by a legitimate and protecting government, let us compare the past and present condition of the neighboring Island of Hayti. That Island is divided into two parts; the western end is Hayti proper, and the Eastern is known as San Domingo, and this part is the property of the republic of that name. Next to Cuba, the Island is the most fertile of the Antilles. It is 416 miles long, running east and west, and its greatest breadth is 163 miles. It is supposed to contain 27,690 square miles, of which 10,091 belong to the Haytien Republic, and the rest to the Dominican section. The population of the whole Island is estimated at 600,000. This, however, is uncertain, as no reliable statistics exist.

Gold, silver, platina, copper, iron, quick-silver, tin, sulphur, saltpetre jasper and marble are among its mineral productions. It is probably one of the richest islands known. In the year 1799 Hayti had reached a high state of prosperity, and was a colony, with a population of 500,000, of which number 38,360 were whites, 423,270 colored slaves and 28,370 free negroes; during the same year the value of the exports was $27,828,000, the principle products then being as follows: Sugar, 163,405,220 pounds; coffee, 68,155,180 pounds; cotton, 6,286,126 pounds; indigo, 930,816 pounds. In 1793 the revolution broke out, and, with exception of the few who succeeded in escaping from the Island, and the whites of both sexes, young and old, were brutally massacred by the savage black hordes of Toussaint, and all that bore the impress of civilization were ruthlessly destroyed. But the terrible story is too well known to need repeating here. My object is simply to show the effect of emancipation from foreign rule upon its ignorant blacks and mulatto population, and upon the prosperity and commerce of the Island. In 1826, thirty years after the overthrow of French authority, the exports were reduced to the following figures: Sugar, 32,864 pounds; coffee, 32,189,784 pounds; cotton, 620,970 pounds; indigo, none. In 1849, the last certain data that the statistics furnish, and nearly 60 years after the revolution, the exportations of the above mentioned articles were as follows: Sugar, none; coffee, 30,608,343 pounds; cotton, 504,516 pounds; indigo, none. Since that time the exports have gradually decreased, and at the present time do not exceed in value $2,000,000. The plantations and towns are in ruins, and the moral condition of the inhabitants most deplorable. A very large proportion of them prefer the religion of Vandoux, or serpent worship. Commerce and its products have ceased in the Island since it became independent, and the people returned to many of the practices of African heathenism. The sexes mix and live promiscuously, without regard to decency. They can be seen in all the seaport towns running along the beach and bathing in large numbers in a state of naked nudity. They are rapidly, day by day, sinking lower and lower in the depths of demoralization, and what little influence of civilization, there is still visible is gradually disappearing, and unless soon brought under the protection of foreign rule, the Island of Hayti will become another Africa. Nor have the republics bordering on the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea fared much better since they set up for themselves. From the Rio Grande on the north to Brazil on the south, this part of the Continent is but little better than a wilderness. The number of square miles in the territory alluded to is 2,550,250, divided as follows: Central America, 155,770; Venezuela, 426,712; New Granada, 521,949; Ecuador, 287,638; British Guayana or Guinea, 96,000; Dutch Guayana, 59,765; French Guayana, 22,500; Antilles, 150,000. The masses of the population of this vast and rich country are in but little better condition than those of Hayti, being degraded in their morals and lazy in their habits; their liberation has been to them rather a curse than a blessing; besides depriving the world of the immense wealth which under a stronger and better government the country would produce, these miserable people have secured a political independence which has resulted in subjecting them to the most fearful bondage under which man can labor--the bondage, that of ignorance and vice. The republicans of Hayti have adopted for their motto the words liberty, equality and fraternity, which as understood and practiced by them, can only be interpreted as a liberty which casts off the restraints of law, a government which breeds crime and anarchy and an equality which destroys all distinction between persons, and, by destroying 00077that respect for morality which alone gives respectability to society, also destroys the ties of family, which corrupts virtue and brings all down to the level of the savage and brute beast; while the fraternity is of that kind which, holding all things in common, offers no rewards to industry and merit ignores talent, while it encourages ignorance and indolence. Seeing, then, what may, result from our philanthropic crusade in the cause of human freedom, which seems too often to be but another name for hut man demoralization, will it not be well, before going any further with our Quixotic attempt to civilize other nations and governments, to put our own house in order and demonstrate to those we would correct that we are wholly civilized ourselves?

In the efforts of the Cubans and their sympathizers to secure a recognition of belligerency from the Government of the United States no tale of fiction regard the prowess and successes of the insurgents is considered too highly painted, and no language is thought too severe, if used in abuse of Spain and Spaniards. Mr. Hamilton Fish is assailed, and called an enemy to the progressive spirit of Americanism, because, as Secretary of State, he will not favor an acknowledgment of the belligerency of the Cubans; and, when he says he can find no reason for so doing, he is accused of being in the pay of the Spanish Government. Yet I deem it safe to say that three-fourths of the people who are clamoring for the independence of Cuba have no better knowledge of the merits of the matter in dispute than they have of the dead languages. Delighted with the prospect of having another young republic so near our own shores, they will listen to no reasoning, and show a disposition to rush blindly on, regardless of consequences. Let it be reported that the captain of an American vessel, by evading the laws of the United States and violating his clearance, or by swearing to a false statement regarding his cargo, has succeeded in getting to sea with a supply of arms and ammunition, and landed the same upon the Island of Cuba, and the fact is at once telegraphed to every city and town in the country, and the event hailed as a substantial victory to republicanism. We are constantly being told that all the Cubans require to insure success is arms. In their attack upon Holquin they were repulsed--of course, for want of arms. What a misfortune, as otherwise they could have destroyed the entire town! Cespedes has said that if he had arms he could recruit 50,000 men. Just think of 50,000! Why, with this number he could perhaps burn and destroy nearly every plantation, town and city in the Eastern Department; and as there are at least 700,000 of this negro and mixed population, he might not only lay waste the whole Island, but succeed in cutting the throats of the entire Spanish population, both male and female. Yet we must be deprived of this glorious spectacle, simply because the Government at Washington is too blind and stupid to see the beauty of it; but before delivering the Island and its white residents over to the tender mercies of Mr. Cespedes and his compatriots, as Hayti was surrendered to Toussaint and his brutal successors, let us see what the consequences would be to ourselves, viewing from a commercial and financial standpoint. I have already referred to the general prosperity of the Island of Cuba, and as an evidence of this prosperity, submitted open statements based upon figures taken from statistics of the years 1826, 1859 and 1862. As these, however, give us but a faint idea of the actual wealth of the Island and the importance of its trade to the United States, I will now give the extent and value of the several crops of sugar and molasses raised from the year 1865 to 1872, inclusive, which I find to have been as follows: For the year 1865, sugar 625,000 tons; 1863, 612,000 tons; 1867, 597,000 tons; 1868, 749,000 tons; 1869, 726,000 tons; 1870, 213,400 tons; 1871, 152,500 tons; 1872, 200,000 tons--total for eight years, 1,658,700 tons, representing a cash value of $65,000,000, gold. Of the 5,256,000 tons of sugar, there was shipped to the United States, as nearly as can be ascertained, 64 percent; to Europe, 25 percent.; other ports, 11 percent. Of the 1,658,700 tons of molasses, the United States took 90 per cent., other ports 10 percent. The amount paid into the United States Treasury as duties on these shipments may be easily estimated by referring to the tariff on sugar and molasses. Apart from this, we must now consider the amount paid to our shipowners as freight money earned in transporting the crops to a market. 64 percent. of the sugar crops gives us 3,370,240 tons and 90 per cent. of the molasses gives 1,492,830 tons total, 4,863,070 tons. Now, as a fair average freight would have been $10 per ton, we can place the total sum paid our marine carriers on the above quantity during the eight years at $48,630,700, or 6,978,873 per annum. In addition to the sugar and molasses crops. I find that 00088Cuba produced during the year 1872 3,276 tons of coffee, 763 tons of wax, 574,738 barrels of honey, 106,674,000 pounds of tobacco, and 124,133 casks of rum; more or less of which was freighted from the Island in American bottoms. To this again add the freights paid on some $10,000,000 worth of merchandise exported from this country to Cuba, and then let me ask, what becomes of our commerce, if this trade is lost to it? It is folly to say our ships will find freights elsewhere. The freights are not to be found elsewhere. It is as much as our shipowners can now do to clear the expenses on their vessels, and a fair interest on the money invested. The profits are so small there is but little inducement to build new vessels; in consequence, many of our ship-builders are without work, and what few sailing vessels are being built are principally intended for the Cuban trade. Destroy this trade, then, and we shall not only find our vessels lying idle at our wharves, but every branch of our foreign trade seriously affected. Many persons hug themselves with the thought that if the Cubans receive their independence they will annex the Island to the United States, when its productiveness will be increased by our superior management and civilization, but this is a delusion born of the vanity and self-conceit so natural to the American character. Overthrow Spanish rule on the Island of Cuba and you at once destroy the present labor system, which alone keeps its mixed population in order and enforces the cultivation of the soil. Confer upon that population the benefits of our glorious system of liberty and equality, and they will throw their farming implements into the first ditch and return to the primitive condition of idleness in which they were found in Africa. The climate being warm, they will wear no clothing, and fruit being abundant, they will not plant; the plantations will be abandoned, and, in a word, demoralization will reign supreme. Nor can we say that a change of government will attract white emigration from this country and Europe, as the nature of the climate is an almost insurmountable obstacle. Upon the Island of Cuba the white man cannot work in the fields if he would, the statistics showing that at least 80 per cent of the white emigrants fall victims to yellow fever. That the negroes and the mulattoes will not labor unless forced to do so, is, I think, satisfactorily proved by reference to San Domingo and Hayti. But as some persons may attempt to ascribe the deplorable condition of affairs in those republics to the fact of the people being released entirely from white influence, it may not be out of place to introduce a few remarks concerning the Island of Jamaica. That Island is well known to be a colony of Great Britain. In the year 1808, before the emancipation, its productions exceeded in value the productions of Cuba in 1826, by $1,336,612, as the following figures, taken from the statistics, will show; Jamaica, in 1808, produced $15,166,000; Cuba, in 1826, produced $13,809,338. After the emancipation, however, this was all changed, and in 1854 Cuba produced $31,683,731, while in the same year the productions of Jamaica were reduced to $4,480,661. The estates of the Island of Jamaica, which in the year 1800 were valued at $250,000,000, were in 1851 barely worth $48,000,000. During the years 1848, '49, '50, '51 and '52, 224 plantations were wholly and 12 partially abandoned for want of labor, and to-day we find the Islands of Jamaica and San Domingo, which should produce to the commerce and trade of the world $300,000,000 annually, producing scarcely $10,000,000. Shall we, then, assist in reducing Cuba to the condition of these islands? Shall we, in order to satisfy a contemptible spirit of jealousy and hatred towards Spain, a nation that has ever treated us with courtesy, aid in robbing her of one of her fairest possessions, which is justly her property, and in so doing deprive our commerce of its main support, and our merchants of a market which yearly consumes from $10,000,000 to $15,000,000 worth of their goods?

The Island of Cuba is capable of sustaining a population of 8,000,000. This number it may have in from 50 to 60 years, and during that time what a mine of wealth its trade may be to the merchants of this country, provided it remains in possession of the power that has done so well for it in the past. But take it from Spain and its wealth and prosperity are gone, and the beautiful island we have so long known as the Queen of the Antilles will soon be converted into a pandemonium.

In the matter of this Cuban question we have frequently played the part of an overgrown bully, who, being too cowardly to attack those recognized as his equals in strength, loses no opportunity to brow-beat and intimidate, if possible, persons he considers do not possess the same amount of physical force as himself. Why did we not bully England during the discussion of the Alabama case and the Fishery and San Juan questions? Why not, indeed? Simply because we feared to do so. Yet we had good cause of complaint against England; but will any honest man pretend to say we 00099have a legitimate cause of action against Spain? We have threatened the Spanish Government with war time and again, and the State Department is reported to have gone so far as to say that unless the promised reforms were carried out in Cuba, and the slaves emancipated, a change might be looked for in the Cuban policy of this, the American, Government. Suppose that in the year 1857 the British Government had instructed their Minister at Washington to inform the Government of the United States that unless a bill was passed providing for the immediate emancipation of the slaves in the Southern States the friendly relations then existing between the two Governments would cease, what would have been the reply? Would not a howl of indignation have gone up from one end of the country to the other? I think so; and I also think the British Minister would have been told to attend to his own business, or take his papers and go home. Why, the very thought that we were considered unable to manage our own domestic affairs would have carried off half the nation with apoplexy! But, soberly, are we not carrying our love and admiration for the negro too far? Have we not done enough for him for one generation? To give the negroes their freedom in this country, we have sacrificed nearly a million of precious lives, and expended more than $3,000,000,000. From the commencement of this Cuban difficulty, the action of the U.S. Government regarding it has two-fold. The Administration has been shaking hands with Spain, while tickling the knees of the Cubans in rebellion. The Government has constantly declared that it did not, and would not, recognize the Cuban insurgents as belligerents, while they have been permitted to open Cuban agencies and organize Cuban juntas in all our principal sea-ports, from which they have carried on war against Spain for more than five years. If we have any just cause of complaint against Spain, let us call for another Geneva tribunal, or, as so many of our good citizens are spoiling for another fight, declare war, drive the Spaniards out of Cuba and take the island for ourselves. But are we ready for another war? We have a large number of iron-clads, but they are almost worthless, and, if the report of the Secretary of the Navy is correct, we have but a few ships fit for active service. We still have a national debt of $2,200,009,000. Will going to war reduce this debt or make our bonds and greenbacks more valuable? Our commerce is now so reduced that the American flag seen flying from the masthead of a ship in a foreign port excites remark. Will a foreign war add to the number of these ships? Besides, if we attack Spain, are we sure we will be permitted to fight it out with her alone May not England or some other of the European powers be inclined to take a hand? We have succeeded in making our republicanism an eye-sore and a warning to the greater part of the intelligent classes of the old world; will they, then, let pass an opportunity to assist Spain and beat us down, especially when they know that the success of the great republic will prove a death-blow sooner or later to monarchy? Again I ask, then, are we prepared for a foreign war? If we are, let us go at it at once and have it over as soon as possible; but if we are not prepared, let us mind our own business and leave Spain alone to attend to hers, for if we threaten too much, and do not make good our treats, we shall but become a laughing stock for others.

The recent capture of the steamer Virginius, and execution of Ryan and many of his associates, together with the captain and crew of the ship, at Santiago de Cuba, has created a wide-spread sensation, and given rise to an earnest discussion regarding the status of the vessel at the time of capture, and the duty of the U.S. Government in the premises.

The Cuban insurgents and their sympathizers in this country, and the enemies of the Administration, and of Secretary Fish in particular, are filling the columns of the opposition press with hot and fiery articles in denunciation of the lukewarmness of the State Department under this last so-styled Spanish outrage. Nothing will suit many of these patriotic American citizens and friends of Cuba but an immediate declaration of war against Spain, and the total aimihilation of the Spanish race. In their eager haste to precipitate a war and revenge this gross insult to the glorious American flag, they seem to forget or ignore the character and occupation of the vessel captured and of the men executed. Secretary Fish states that the Government can do nothing hastily, and must be governed by law and the facts, and not by sentiment. The secretary's right. Hasty action cannot but lead this Government into a false position, from which the Administration will find it difficult to withdraw with honor. The steamer Virginius, at the time of and previous to her capture, and by her acts, in the opinion of the writer, forfeited all right to the title of an American ship and to the protection of the American 001010flag; consequently the United States Government cannot extend her protection without becoming responsible to Spain for her acts. In support of this position, let us, as far as it is known, review her history. On the 26th of September, 1870, a register was issued to the steamer Virginius from the New York Custom House, showing she was owned by Mr. John F. Patterson, of this city. In 1871, she left this port for the West Indies, and has not since returned, but on the 20th day of July, 1871, we find her landing an armed expedition with hostile intent upon the Island of Cuba, near Santiago de Cuba. This expedition started a few days previous to the landing from Puerto Cabello, and was commanded by Raphael Quesada, a well-known leader of the Cuban insurgents. After effecting this landing the Virginius proceeded to Aspinwall, where she was followed by Spanish vessels of war, whose commanders sought to capture her, but were prevented from doing so by the United States Consul and United States Government ships lying at that port. On the first day of July last, the Virginius sailed from Aspinwall, and on the 7th of the same month we find her again on the coast of Cuba, landing another armed force, commanded, as before, by Raphael Quesada. After landing this second expedition, the Virginius proceeded to Kingston, Jamaica, where she remained, it is said, until she started on this, her last, and, to many of those on board of her, fatal voyage. From the time of landing her first expedition to the time of her capture her character has been notorious as that of a vessel in the service of, if not belonging to, the Cuban insurgents. It cannot be shown that during this long period, from July, 1871, to the date of her capture, she was at any time engaged in lawful or peaceful traffic. She left this port as a merchant ship with an American register, and under the American flag, yet for upwards of two years her have used that register and flag as a cover and protection for acts of piracy against the territory of a foreign State with which this country is at peace, and while preparing to commit these acts, to the shame of this Government it must be said, she has been protected by armed ships of the United States. The Virginius was not a blockade-runner. Running the blockade is the landing of supplies contraband of war, during war, for the aid and support of one belligerent against another, the ships of that other patrolling the coast of the ports and territory blockaded. There must be an actual state of war between two or more acknowledge belligerents, or a blockade cannot be said to exist; but no such state of war has been acknowledged as existing upon the Island of Cuba. Spain has given no notice to the world that her ships are blockading the coast or ports of the Island. She (Spain) claims exclusive possession of the Island of Cuba, and in sending her ships of war to patrol its coast she is simply guarding that which is recognized by the laws of nations as her own territory; hence she does not seize the Virginius as a blockade-runner, but as a pirate or filibustering ship, having already made two piratical descents upon Spanish territory, and captured in the attempt, or with the apparent intent, to make a third. The flag of the United States is not the flag of adventurers, turbulent revolutionists or pirates, and if used by such men should afford them no aid and protection in the commission of their illegal acts. The fact that the Virginius was under the American flag at the time of her capture is no positive evidence of the actual character of the ship and the persons on board of her. Her character has been so widely known and notorious that the United States Government, to avoid the charge of complicity in her acts, must disown the ship. Spain owes the United States no apology or reparation for the seizure. The apology is due rather from the United States for permitting a vessel under the American flag, holding an American register, and protected, has she frequently has been, by American war ships, to be used for the purpose of committing depredations upon the coasts of a friendly power with which the United States is at peace.

In view of the arbitrary and summary character of the execution of the captain and a large number of the crew and Cuban volunteers captured on board of the steamer Virginius, it is difficult to look calmly and dispassionately at all the circumstances of this most deplorable transaction. The mind becomes confused, and in a manner fails to exercise its full reasoning power in an attempt to conjure up the details of the bloody scene enacted in the public streets and square at Santiago de Cuba; yet there has never been, perhaps, a case brought before the American people and Government requiring more calm consideration and deliberate action.

At the present time we hear but little else than an insane cry for revenge, the immediate fitting out of our iron-clad fleet and its departure for the Island of Cuba, that we may take summary vengeance upon the Spanish volunteers and Spanish officials who aided and abetted the savage butchery 001111of the unfortunate people of the Virginius. But before heeding these impatient cries for vengeance and outcry against the Government for what many are pleased to call its tardy and cowardly action, let us endeavor to review the various events which have culminated in the capture of the Virginius and subsequently tragedy. No matter how much we may condemn the act which has created and brought forth wide-spread indignation, still we must not forget to be just while demanding indemnity. For several centuries the Island of Cuba has been the undisputed property of Spain, discovered by Columbus and the Spanish voyagers who accompanied him. Under their government and that of their descendants it has grown from a wild and pathless wilderness into one of the richest and most productive islands of the Western Hemisphere. Spain has looked upon it as her fairest jewel, and neighboring nations have envied her the possession of it, but in no country and among no people has this feeling of jealousy been pushed to such an extreme as in the United States. For the past fifty years we have viewed the island with covetous eyes, and have taught ourselves to hate Spain for being the holder of it. So eager has been our desire in the past to grasp the rich prize, that Spain's refusing to surrender it to us has been held by many to be a criminal offence. No opportunity for a quarrel has been overlooked, and no excuse to encourage revolution on the island has been neglected by our annexationists and filibusters. For years this aggressive warfare has been going on, and for years Spain has been on the defensive. The Lopez expedition was a fair illustration of this warfare-our desire to possess the island, and how unscrupulous we were regarding the means resorted to to obtain possession of it. That expedition was perhaps one of the most unjustifiable and unprovoked to be found in the modern annals of civilized nations. To resist it, Spain sacrificed several hundred of her best troops and many of her leading officers. The act of Lopez and his associates was simply piracy, yet many in this country applauded and encouraged the undertaking, and styled the filibusters heroes and martyrs in the cause of liberty, while Spain was villified and Spaniards called butchers for defending their own.

When the present miserable revolution broke out, in no country did the Cuban insurgents and would-be patriots receive such encouragement as in the United States. Here they came by thousands, exaggerating their grievances, and here they were received with open arms. Adventurers, filibusters, second-class politicians and Fenian newspaper editors throughout the country espoused their cause with overpowering enthusiasm. Offices were opened and revolutionary agencies established in all our principal seaports, and the ever-increasing cry raised of "Viva Cuba Libra! Abajo les espanols!" These Cuban leaders came to us as the champions of freedom and reform upon the Island of Cuba, shouting against the enormity of African Slavery, notwithstanding they were themselves slaveholders, who had made their fortunes by the use of the lash. Expedition after expedition has been fitted out in this country and dispatched to Cuba, to aid in extending the insurrection. When these expeditions have succeeded in effecting a landing in safety, the event has been hailed with joy, and if the expeditionist succeeded in massacring any number of Spanish troops who may have sought to oppose their landing, the event has been hailed as a glorious victory in the cause of civilization; but if, as in the case of the "Fanny" expedition, the Spanish troops succeed in driving off, dispersing, or killing the invaders of their territory, no epithet has been too vile to throw at them; they have been called butchers, dogs of the sea, and as many other abuses heaped upon them as a low and depraved fancy could suggest. And so this struggle has gone on, until Spain, in her efforts to resist these piratical expeditions, and put down this unnecessary revolution, has sacrificed millions of dollars, and the lives of some eighty thousand of her soldiers and her people; yet all this is lost sight of in the present controversy, and our Government is called upon to declare war against Spain, and take possession of the Island of Cuba, in order to avenge an alleged in ult to the American flag, which was one of our own seeking, and which, had the United States Government used one-tenth part of the diligence required of England in the Alabama case, we should not now be called upon to redress or deplore.

The writer is making no plea for Spain, nor is he seeking in any way to justify the summary putting to death of the men executed at Santiago de Cuba, but simply to ask the American people to give this Cuban question a little more sober thought, to lay away for a time their thoughts of revenge and ask themselves if they are not in a great measure responsible for the existing state of affairs between the two Governments. Have we not in almost every instance been the 001212aggressors? and have we not, by a persistent abuse of the Spanish people, created that feeling of hate which many of them have for us? We have sympathized with and encouraged the Cuban insurgents, not because we believe their quarrel just; not because we believe they will give us any better government upon the Island of Cuba, or because their gaining possession of it will be any advantage to civilization, but because we have coveted our neighbors' property, and believe the success of the insurgents will give us possession of it. It is written, "As ye sow, so shall ye reap." We have sowed the seeds of hate, and are gathering its fruit!

The arbitrary demand, accompanied by a threat of war, made upon Spain by the U.S. Government for the surrender of the steamer Virginius, before first determining the character of the ship and her right to protection, was hasty, undignified and evidently made to gratify the wishes of the leaders of our sensational press, and the mob portion of our population. Should the facts regarding this vessel prove what has already been charged against her, to wit: that she was the property of the Cuban insurgents, and as such was not entitled to an American register, and to the American flag which she carried, this Government will find itself occupying a humiliating position from which it may be difficult to withdraw with dignity. The theory so authoritatively set forth by many of our would-be statesmen and law-givers, that the flag in all cases covers the ship, can only be supported where the character, occupation and acts of the vessel are and have been lawful and legitimate. The proposition cannot be brought forward as a shield to a vessel so notoriously engaged in an illegal traffic as the Virginius. The Government of the U.S. cannot plead ignorance regarding the history of the vessel in dispute, since her departure from New York in the year 1871. She has been constantly before the public as a filibustering craft engaged in the service of Quesada, the well-known insurgent leader, who has boasted openly of the successful landing of military expeditions she has made upon the Island of Cuba in aid and support of the insurgents. The utter disregard paid by our Government to the frequent protests of the Spanish authorities, and the failure to order the Virginius to an American port that the truth of the charges set forth in those protests might be investigated, compelled and justified the seizure made by the "Tornado" as an act of self-defence, and placed the Government of the U.S. upon the defensive in the settlement of the controversy. Public opinion in this country has been too long governed by brainless and unprincipled demagogues, pot-house politicians and political charlatans, who in most cases having neither character nor fortune to lose, are ever ready to join hands for the purpose of creating panic, discord and revolution, both at home and abroad, hoping from the chaos and disorder which is produced they will gain notoriety and position, and thereby satisfy their own selfish ends and ambition. To this class belong many of the men who are frequently found at the Cooper Institute and other similar places of assembly, making bombastic speeches about the purity and glory of the American people, American institutions, and the unsullied grandeur of the "Stars and Stripes." These men fancy they possess ability, and put themselves forward as the exponents of international law and the up-holders of the honor and dignity of this country. They speak of their unsullied reputations and honest intentions, whereas many of them are but miserable tricksters and adventurers, living a life of uncertainty upon the bubbles they create.

Gen. N.P. Banks last winter offered a resolution in Congress recommending the President of the U.S. to open communication with foreign governments with a view of devising the most efficient means for the protection of non-combatants, to enforce emancipation and the rules of civilized warfare in Cuba, and finally to establish peace in the distracted Island; it also aimed at giving belligerent rights to the struggling patriots, a privilege they are said to have earned by five years of heroic warfare. This resolution of General Banks was in keeping with his past history as a revolutionist, and adds another link to the chain of mistakes which have marked his career. I scarcely know which most to admire, the brilliancy of his Red River campaign, or the profound wisdom of this political move favoring the Cuban revolutionists, and the Cuban bondholders. The General had for some time threatened to explode this Cuban recognition bomb-shell upon Congress, and it came, though I hardly thought he was so far gone in shrewdness as to do what he has done; but he did, it appears, commit the folly. Mr. S.S. Cox has also recently offered a similar resolution; but to suppose that Congress or President Grant will take any notice of either of these resolutions would be, I think, tantamount to considering them as blind and weak on this Cuban question as Messrs. Banks and Cox. Now, what have these valiant patriots of Cuba done during the last five years? They are said to be 001313fighting to entitle them to recognition from the U.S. Government. What battles have they fought, and where have they fought them? Surely, not in Cuba for of the people who call themselves Cubans, I do not believe there is a sufficient number remaining upon the island to fight. Upon the breaking out of the revolution, nine-tenths of the able-bodied men (those called white) ran from the country like sheep, frightened almost to death at the noise of their own bleatings. Where, then, have they carried on this heroic warfare?--We have in this country at least ten thousand of these men; there are about four thousand in England and France, and about six thousand more scattered through the South American States. Are these the men claiming recognition-a people who, being too cowardly to remain with the poor negroes and half-breeds who are now upholding what remains of the revolution, have distributed themselves over the world, shouting for liberty, and seeking to engage others to go and fight for them? We have seen them at Cooper Institute, rapturously embracing each other, and weeping more like school-girls than men, making long-winded speeches in praise of their own valor and patriotism! They have even had the vanity to compare themselves to the men of the American Revolution, the men of seventy-six. And yet what similarity is there between them? The one have proved imbecile, cowardly and deceitful, running away from the war for independence which they had inaugurated; the other were brave, noble and true. The men of 1776 remained upon the soil they claimed as their own, and fought, bled and died to make their claim good. None ran away from the struggle, nor asked strangers to fight for them. They fought for themselves. The educated and wealthy were foremost in the hour of battle, deeming it sufficient honor to be permitted to carry a musket in defence of their liberty. By nobly doing their own fighting, they proved that they were capable of self-government. Have these Cubans done the same? No. Since the breaking out of the insurrection upon their Island, they have done little else but study their own comfort and safety. Constantly annoying strangers with their importunities for aid and money, they have deceived nearly every man who gave them his sympathies, disgusted nearly all with whom they have had dealings, and the miserable manner in which they have conducted their operations shows clearly they should not be trusted with the government of the Island of Cuba. They have prevailed upon men to go to Cuba and fight for them, and when some of those men have returned sick and penniless, they have been left destitute in the streets, while they (the Cuban leaders in this country) are living at their ease and control millions of dollars made from slave labor upon the Island of Cuba under the protection and laws of the Government which they now seek to overthrow. They have issued their worthless bonds in this country, and endeavored to negotiate them with the American people, while their own agents have refused to take them at two cents on the dollar; and yet we are told they are noble, suffering, struggling patriots, and that they should be recognized. The people of the North blamed England because she recognized the belligerency of the Southern Confederacy; yet that Confederacy at the time had a regularly organized government, an army of 500,000 men, and held control of every seaport and city from Norfolk to the Rio Grande. The United States Government refused to treat with Maximilian in Mexico, notwithstanding he was recognized by the European States, held the capital and all the sea-ports, together with three-quarters of the whole country. How then, can the Administration recognize these Cubans with any degree of consistency? Could they, under the circumstances, do so with honor? Would not Spain be justified in considering the act one hostility, justified in considering the act one of hostility, justifying war? It is said these Cubans have supported the revolution upwards of five years, but this is not so. The revolution in Cuba has been supported by American expeditions, fitted out in the U.S., transported to the Island on American ships, officered and manned by American adventurers. Without this American aid the struggle would have been ended three years ago. Who, then, is the Government to recognize? The Cubans, who proved too cowardly to fight for their independence, and have fled to this country, claiming citizenship, that they may recover property they have forfeited by their treason, or the American filibusters who have so long supported the revolt against Spain from these shores? Besides, what are we to recognize? Where is the Cuban Government, its army, its navy, its capital? Do the Cubans hold one sea-port, city or town which they can call their own? Is not all this noise about a republic of Cuba made altogether by the Cubans and their sympathizers in this country, and by them alone? Suppose there is an insurrection of a portion of the subject classes upon the Island of Cuba, what have we to do with it? Are we recognized as the guardians of the peace of the 001414world? We had a great civil war in this country which continued upwards of four years, yet we notified the world it was a family quarrel, and outsiders must not interfere. It is true, England rendered the Confederates some assistance, but we have been granted an award against her of $15,500,000 in gold for so doing. Yet, where England permitted her neutrality laws to be violated once in aid of the Southern States, ours have been violated a dozen times in aid of these Cuban insurgents. Has Spain, then, no claim for damages against us? and if she calls for an arbitration, can we deny her justice? We are told it is time to put a stop to the barbarities, destruction or property and loss of life occasioned by this war in Cuba. Perhaps it is time, but who is to stop it unless the insurgents lay down their arms? Are we to tell Spain the must abandon the Island of Cuba because she cannot immediately drive the insurgent bands from the mountains, or because those insurgents will not surrender? Will recognizing them shorten the struggle? Did the recognition of the belligerency of the South lessen the destructive character of our civil, war or hasten its end? Who is it, indeed, that destroys the plantations, burns the towns and lays waste the country in Cuba? Is it not these same noisy insurgents who have been pictured to us as so wonderfully fair and noble? These men inaugurated the contest, and they alone are responsible for its consequences. They appealed to the sword when there was no necessity for so doing, and now, if they will not yield, let them perish by the sword when there was no necessity for so doing, and now, if they will not yield, let them perish by the sword. The Northern armies would have exterminated the entire population of the South had they continued in their so-called rebellion, and should Spain treat her rebels in the same manner, we have no right to interfere. We would not think of doing so did we believe Spain to be powerful; it would be cowardly to do so because we think her weak. To talk of recognizing the Cuban revolutionists but encourages them to continue the struggle and prolong the contest. To recognize them would be an absurdity.

The agitation of this Cuban problem raises a question which should be seriously considered, whether we have not petty republics enough upon this continent for the present. The republic of the United States is now nearly one hundred years old, yet it cannot be said we have reached that degree of national perfection which would justify a conscientious and observant man in holding us up as an example to others, or as an evidence of the entire success of republican institutions. Under our very liberal system of universal suffrage, our people have reached a high state of demoralization, which is not pleasant to contemplate. Many of our public offices are filled by men ignorant of the laws of government, entirely lacking in principle, devoted of honesty and wanting in every attribute which pertains to the gentleman and statesman. What with our Mormons in Utah, who live in open defiance of the laws of the land and the authority of the Government; the utterly ignorant and debased condition of our negro population, so recently released from bondage; the unsettled political condition of the Southern States; our laboring classes forming revolutionary societies, and advocating the principles of the Paris commune, the general stagnation in trade, caused by dishonesty and reckless speculation, threatening the country with bankruptcy, our commerce disappearing from the ocean, in short, with disorder, want of confidence and uncertainty everywhere visible, are we in a condition to extend aid and protection to a people who as yet have failed to demonstrate in any particular that they are deserving of support or capable of governing themselves. Unrestrained liberty is a dangerous thing to confer upon the uneducated rude masses. It is in many cases more dangerous and hurtful than the cruel hand of despotism; the latter is but a restraint upon the personal freedom of man, white the former, by removing all sense of responsibility, gives rein to the passions and demoralizes the senses. Despotism may create implements of torture for the body, but too much liberty bestowed upon those unable to understand its virtues and appreciate its blessings will prove a cancer in the body politic, destructive alike to the State and the individual. This fact is sufficiently apparent in the history of many of the South American States since they became independent, Of what advantage has been that independence to themselves and the world at large? What use have they made of their liberty? Have they advanced the interests of civilization and morality, or strengthened the foundations of liberal government? I do not think their record will justify an answer in the affirmative; in truth, if they have not retrograded, it can scarcely be said that they have advanced. Without commerce or credit, these republics have been for years the theatre of continuous civil wars, inaugurated by their various political leaders, who, to gratify their own unbridled ambition, passions and love of power, have succeeded in making their respective countries hot-beds of revolution and anarchy. Thus we see the 001515fairest portions of the earth desecrated, made unproductive, and their inhabitants demoralized and debased through misrule and a micapprehension of the principles of self-government. In the Island of Haiti we have seen the blacks and mulattoes banded together for the destruction of the whites, which being accomplished, they have turned their swords against each other, and continued the unnatural strife, until every page of their history is marked with blood, and the country reduced to a state but little better than a wilderness. But, to return once more to Cuba, are we prepared to assume the terrible responsibility of assisting to overthrow Spanish power on that Island--to place arms in the hands of its mixed population, that they may wage a similar war of extermination against each other--to recognize a government which has no actual existence and which is upheld in the field by a few robber bands of negroes and mulattoes, offered by adventurers from Venezuela and other countries, while it is represented abroad by men like Manuel Quesada and his associates, incompetent and unscrupulous politicians, who live upon and draw their daily sustenance from revolution? Are we prepared to do all this? or shall we, in the interests of peace, frown down revolution, and the apostles of discord, and instead of wasting our time in a vain pilgrimage to reconstruct foreign States, devote our labors at home in the purification and improvement of our own institutions and people? We are still a young nation, and should not be too hasty in pushing ourselves forward as teachers and monitors over those who are probably as competent as ourselves. There are pure, high-minded and honorable men as any we have here in Spain, who are struggling to give their country a liberal government, to raise her to a high position among the nations, and to release her from the influence of the institutions and superstitions of the dark ages. These men, if not assailed from without, will succeed in their undertaking. Let us, then, leave Spain and the regeneration of Cuba to them. We should not interfere. There are governments enough in the world--more, perhaps, than is for the world's good. Let us, then, assist to purify and establish on a firm basis those governments we have, before attempting to create others. We do not want Cuba, but in conclusion I will say, that if, in the opinion of this moral and liberty-loving American people, Spain in Cuba is an obstacle to the advance of civilization, or if the political interests of the United States require that she (Spain) be expelled, let this Government, by virtue of its great strength, and shielding itself under that principle of barbarism which teaches that might makes right, take possession; but do not drive Spain out to place the beautiful Island in the hands of an indolent, incompetent race, who will soon destroy all that is fair and valuable upon it, and give us, in return for our sympathy and support, another Hayti. I have the honor to be, sir,Your obedient servant,FRANCIS L. NORTON.