A Compilation of the Messages and Papers of the Presidents, Volume - James D. Richardson
But what gives a peculiar criminality to this invasion of Cuba is that,
under the lead of Spanish subjects and with the aid of citizens of the
United States, it had its origin with many in motives of cupidity. Money
was advanced by individuals, probably in considerable amounts, to
purchase Cuban bonds, as they have been called, issued by Lopez, sold,
doubtless, at a very large discount, and for the payment of which the
public lands and public property of Cuba, of whatever kind, and the
fiscal resources of the people and government of that island, from
whatever source to be derived, were pledged, as well as the good faith
of the government expected to be established. All these means of
payment, it is evident, were only to be obtained by a process of
bloodshed, war, and revolution. None will deny that those who set on
foot military expeditions against foreign states by means like these
are far more culpable than the ignorant and the necessitous whom they
induce to go forth as the ostensible parties in the proceeding. These
originators of the invasion of Cuba seem to have determined with
coolness and system upon an undertaking which should disgrace their
country, violate its laws, and put to hazard the lives of ill-informed
and deluded men. You will consider whether further legislation be
necessary to prevent the perpetration of such offenses in future.
No individuals have a right to hazard the peace of the country or to
violate its laws upon vague notions of altering or reforming governments
in other states. This principle is not only reasonable in itself and in
accordance with public law, but is ingrafted into the codes of other
nations as well as our own. But while such are the sentiments of this
Government, it may be added that every independent nation must be
presumed to be able to defend its possessions against unauthorized
individuals banded together to attack them. The Government of the United
States at all times since its establishment has abstained and has sought
to restrain the citizens of the country from entering into controversies
between other powers, and to observe all the duties of neutrality. At an
early period of the Government, in the Administration of Washington,
several laws were passed for this purpose. The main provisions of these
laws were reenacted by the act of April, 1818, by which, amongst other
things, it was declared that--
If any person shall, within the territory or jurisdiction of the United
States, begin, or set on foot, or provide or prepare the means for, any
military expedition or enterprise to be carried on from thence against
the territory or dominions of any foreign prince or state, or of any
colony, district, or people, with whom the United States are at peace,
every person so offending shall be deemed guilty of a high misdemeanor,
and shall be fined not exceeding $3,000 and imprisoned not more than
three years.
And this law has been executed and enforced to the full extent of the
power of the Government from that day to this.
In proclaiming and adhering to the doctrine of neutrality and
nonintervention, the United States have not followed the lead of other
civilized nations; they have taken the lead themselves and have been
followed by others. This was admitted by one of the most eminent of
modern British statesmen, who said in Parliament, while a minister of
the Crown, "that if he wished for a guide in a system of neutrality he
should take that laid down by America in the days of Washington and the
secretaryship of Jefferson;" and we see, in fact, that the act of
Congress of 1818 was followed the succeeding year by an act of the
Parliament of England substantially the same in its general provisions.
Up to that time there had been no similar law in England, except certain
highly penal statutes passed in the reign of George II, prohibiting
English subjects from enlisting in foreign service, the avowed object
of which statutes was that foreign armies, raised for the purpose of
restoring the house of Stuart to the throne, should not be strengthened
by recruits from England herself.
All must see that difficulties may arise in carrying the laws referred
to into execution in a country now having 3,000 or 4,000 miles of
seacoast, with an infinite number of ports and harbors and small inlets,
from some of which unlawful expeditions may suddenly set forth, without
the knowledge of Government, against the possessions of foreign states.
"Friendly relations with all, but entangling alliances with none," has
long been a maxim with us. Our true mission is not to propagate our
opinions or impose upon other countries our form of government by
artifice or force, but to teach by example and show by our success,
moderation, and justice the blessings of self-government and the
advantages of free institutions. Let every people choose for itself and
make and alter its political institutions to suit its own condition
and convenience. But while we avow and maintain this neutral policy
ourselves, we are anxious to see the same forbearance on the part of
other nations whose forms of government are different from our own. The
deep interest which we feel in the spread of liberal principles and the
establishment of free governments and the sympathy with which we witness
every struggle against oppression forbid that we should be indifferent
to a case in which the strong arm of a foreign power is invoked to
stifle public sentiment and repress the spirit of freedom in any
country.
The Governments of Great Britain and France have issued orders to their
naval commanders on the West India station to prevent, by force if
necessary, the landing of adventurers from any nation on the island of
Cuba with hostile intent. The copy of a memorandum of a conversation on
this subject between the charge d'affaires of Her Britannic Majesty and
the Acting Secretary of State and of a subsequent note of the former to
the Department of State are herewith submitted, together with a copy of
a note of the Acting Secretary of State to the minister of the French
Republic and of the reply of the latter on the same subject. These
papers will acquaint you with the grounds of this interposition of two
leading commercial powers of Europe, and with the apprehensions, which
this Government could not fail to entertain, that such interposition, if
carried into effect, might lead to abuses in derogation of the maritime
rights of the United States. The maritime rights of the United States
are founded on a firm, secure, and well-defined basis; they stand
upon the ground of national independence and public law, and will be
maintained in all their full and just extent. The principle which this
Government has heretofore solemnly announced it still adheres to, and
will maintain under all circumstances and at all hazards. That principle
is that in every regularly documented merchant vessel the crew who
navigate it and those on board of it will find their protection in the
flag which is over them. No American ship can be allowed to be visited
or searched for the purpose of ascertaining the character of individuals
on board, nor can there be allowed any watch by the vessels of any
foreign nation over American vessels on the coast of the United States
or the seas adjacent thereto. It will be seen by the last communication
from the British charge d'affaires to the Department of State that he
is authorized to assure the Secretary of State that every care will be
taken that in executing the preventive measures against the expeditions
which the United States Government itself has denounced as not being
entitled to the protection of any government no interference shall take
place with the lawful commerce of any nation.
In addition to the correspondence on this subject herewith submitted,
official information has been received at the Department of State of
assurances by the French Government that in the orders given to the
French naval forces they were expressly instructed, in any operations
they might engage in, to respect the flag of the United States wherever
it might appear, and to commit no act of hostility upon any vessel or
armament under its protection.
Ministers and consuls of foreign nations are the means and agents of
communication between us and those nations, and it is of the utmost
importance that while residing in the country they should feel a perfect
security so long as they faithfully discharge their respective duties
and are guilty of no violation of our laws. This is the admitted law of
nations and no country has a deeper interest in maintaining it than the
United States. Our commerce spreads over every sea and visits every
clime, and our ministers and consuls are appointed to protect the
interests of that commerce as well as to guard the peace of the country
and maintain the honor of its flag. But how can they discharge these
duties unless they be themselves protected? And if protected it must be
by the laws of the country in which they reside. And what is due to our
own public functionaries residing in foreign nations is exactly the
measure of what is due to the functionaries of other governments
residing here. As in war the bearers of flags of truce are sacred,
or else wars would be interminable, so in peace ambassadors, public
ministers, and consuls, charged with friendly national intercourse,
are objects of especial respect and protection, each according to the
rights belonging to his rank and station. In view of these important
principles, it is with deep mortification and regret I announce to you
that during the excitement growing out of the executions at Havana the
office of Her Catholic Majesty's consul at New Orleans was assailed by
a mob, his property destroyed, the Spanish flag found in the office
carried off and torn in pieces, and he himself induced to flee for
his personal safety, which he supposed to be in danger. On receiving
intelligence of these events I forthwith directed the attorney of the
United States residing at New Orleans to inquire into the facts and the
extent of the pecuniary loss sustained by the consul, with the intention
of laying them before you, that you might make provision for such
indemnity to him as a just regard for the honor of the nation and the
respect which is due to a friendly power might, in your judgment, seem
to require. The correspondence upon this subject between the Secretary
of State and Her Catholic Majesty's minister plenipotentiary is herewith
transmitted.
The occurrence at New Orleans has led me to give my attention to the
state of our laws in regard to foreign ambassadors, ministers, and
consuls. I think the legislation of the country is deficient in not
providing sufficiently either for the protection or the punishment of
consuls. I therefore recommend the subject to the consideration of
Congress.
Your attention is again invited to the question of reciprocal trade
between the United States and Canada and other British possessions near
our frontier. Overtures for a convention upon this subject have been
received from Her Britannic Majesty's minister plenipotentiary, but
it seems to be in many respects preferable that the matter should be
regulated by reciprocal legislation. Documents are laid before you
showing the terms which the British Government is willing to offer and
the measures which it may adopt if some arrangement upon this subject
shall not be made.
From the accompanying copy of a note from the British legation at
Washington and the reply of the Department of State thereto it will
appear that Her Britannic Majesty's Government is desirous that a part
of the boundary line between Oregon and the British possessions should
be authoritatively marked out, and that an intention was expressed to
apply to Congress for an appropriation to defray the expense thereof
on the part of the United States. Your attention to this subject is
accordingly invited and a proper appropriation recommended.
A convention for the adjustment of claims of citizens of the United
States against Portugal has been concluded and the ratifications have
been exchanged. The first installment of the amount to be paid by
Portugal fell due on the 30th of September last and has been paid.
The President of the French Republic, according to the provisions of the
convention, has been selected as arbiter in the case of the _General
Armstrong_, and has signified that he accepts the trust and the high
satisfaction he feels in acting as the common friend of two nations with
which France is united by sentiments of sincere and lasting amity.
The Turkish Government has expressed its thanks for the kind reception
given to the Sultan's agent, Amin Bey, on the occasion of his recent
visit to the United States. On the 28th of February last a dispatch was
addressed by the Secretary of State to Mr. Marsh, the American minister
at Constantinople, instructing him to ask of the Turkish Government
permission for the Hungarians then imprisoned within the dominions of
the Sublime Porte to remove to this country. On the 3d of March last
both Houses of Congress passed a resolution requesting the President to
authorize the employment of a public vessel to convey to this country
Louis Kossuth and his associates in captivity.
The instruction above referred to was complied with, and the Turkish
Government having released Governor Kossuth and his companions from
prison, on the 10th of September last they embarked on board of the
United States steam frigate _Mississippi_, which was selected to carry
into effect the resolution of Congress. Governor Kossuth left the
_Mississippi_ at Gibraltar for the purpose of making a visit to England,
and may shortly be expected in New York. By communications to the
Department of State he has expressed his grateful acknowledgments for
the interposition of this Government in behalf of himself and his
associates. This country has been justly regarded as a safe asylum for
those whom political events have exiled from their own homes in Europe,
and it is recommended to Congress to consider in what manner Governor
Kossuth and his companions, brought hither by its authority, shall be
received and treated.
It is earnestly to be hoped that the differences which have for some
time past been pending between the Government of the French Republic and
that of the Sandwich Islands may be peaceably and durably adjusted so
as to secure the independence of those islands. Long before the events
which have of late imparted so much importance to the possessions of the
United States on the Pacific we acknowledged the independence of the
Hawaiian Government. This Government was first in taking that step, and
several of the leading powers of Europe immediately followed. We were
influenced in this measure by the existing and prospective importance of
the islands as a place of refuge and refreshment for our vessels engaged
in the whale fishery, and by the consideration that they lie in the
course of the great trade which must at no distant day be carried on
between the western coast of North America and eastern Asia.
We were also influenced by a desire that those islands should not pass
under the control of any other great maritime state, but should remain
in an independent condition, and so be accessible and useful to the
commerce of all nations. I need not say that the importance of these
considerations has been greatly enhanced by the sudden and vast
development which the interests of the United States have attained in
California and Oregon, and the policy heretofore adopted in regard to
those islands will be steadily pursued.
It is gratifying, not only to those who consider the commercial interests
of nations, but also to all who favor the progress of knowledge and the
diffusion of religion, to see a community emerge from a savage state and
attain such a degree of civilization in those distant seas.
It is much to be deplored that the internal tranquillity of the Mexican
Republic should again be seriously disturbed, for since the peace
between that Republic and the United States it had enjoyed such
comparative repose that the most favorable anticipations for the future
might with a degree of confidence have been indulged. These, however,
have been thwarted by the recent outbreak in the State of Tamaulipas,
on the right bank of the Rio Bravo. Having received information that
persons from the United States had taken part in the insurrection,
and apprehending that their example might be followed by others, I
caused orders to be issued for the purpose of preventing any hostile
expeditions against Mexico from being set on foot in violation of the
laws of the United States. I likewise issued a proclamation upon the
subject, a copy of which is herewith laid before you. This appeared to
be rendered imperative by the obligations of treaties and the general
duties of good neighborhood.
In my last annual message I informed Congress that citizens of the
United States had undertaken the connection of the two oceans by means
of a railroad across the Isthmus of Tehuantepec, under a grant of
the Mexican Government to a citizen of that Republic, and that this
enterprise would probably be prosecuted with energy whenever Mexico
should consent to such stipulations with the Government of the United
States as should impart a feeling of security to those who should invest
their property in the enterprise.
A convention between the two Governments for the accomplishment of that
end has been ratified by this Government, and only awaits the decision
of the Congress and the Executive of that Republic.
Some unexpected difficulties and delays have arisen in the ratification
of that convention by Mexico, but it is to be presumed that her decision
will be governed by just and enlightened views, as well of the general
importance of the object as of her own interests and obligations.
In negotiating upon this important subject this Government has had
in view one, and only one, object. That object has been, and is,
the construction or attainment of a passage from ocean to ocean, the
shortest and the best for travelers and merchandise, and equally open to
all the world. It has sought to obtain no territorial acquisition, nor
any advantages peculiar to itself; and it would see with the greatest
regret that Mexico should oppose any obstacle to the accomplishment of
an enterprise which promises so much convenience to the whole commercial
world and such eminent advantages to Mexico herself. Impressed with
these sentiments and these convictions, the Government will continue to
exert all proper efforts to bring about the necessary arrangement with
the Republic of Mexico for the speedy completion of the work.
For some months past the Republic of Nicaragua has been the theater of
one of those civil convulsions from which the cause of free institutions
and the general prosperity and social progress of the States of Central
America have so often and so severely suffered. Until quiet shall have
been restored and a government apparently stable shall have been
organized, no advance can prudently be made in disposing of the
questions pending between the two countries.
I am happy to announce that an interoceanic communication from the
mouth of the St. John to the Pacific has been so far accomplished as
that passengers have actually traversed it and merchandise has been
transported over it, and when the canal shall have been completed
according to the original plan the means of communication will be
further improved. It is understood that a considerable part of the
railroad across the Isthmus of Panama has been completed, and that
the mail and passengers will in future be conveyed thereon.
Whichever of the several routes between the two oceans may ultimately
prove most eligible for travelers to and from the different States on
the Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico and our coast on the Pacific, there is
little reason to doubt that all of them will be useful to the public,
and will liberally reward that individual enterprise by which alone they
have been or are expected to be carried into effect.
Peace has been concluded between the contending parties in the island of
St. Domingo, and, it is hoped, upon a durable basis. Such is the extent
of our commercial relations with that island that the United States can
not fail to feel a strong interest in its tranquillity.
The office of commissioner to China remains unfilled. Several persons
have been appointed, and the place has been offered to others, all of
whom have declined its acceptance on the ground of the inadequacy of the
compensation. The annual allowance by law is $6,000, and there is no
provision for any outfit. I earnestly recommend the consideration of
this subject to Congress. Our commerce with China is highly important,
and is becoming more and more so in consequence of the increasing
intercourse between our ports on the Pacific Coast and eastern Asia.
China is understood to be a country in which living is very expensive,
and I know of no reason why the American commissioner sent thither
should not be placed, in regard to compensation, on an equal footing
with ministers who represent this country at the Courts of Europe.
By reference to the report of the Secretary of the Treasury it will be
seen that the aggregate receipts for the last fiscal year amounted to
$52,312,979.87, which, with the balance in the Treasury on the 1st July,
1850, gave as the available means for the year the sum of
$58,917,524.36.
The total expenditures for the same period were $48,005,878.68. The
total imports for the year ending June 30, 1851, were $215,725,995,
of which there were in specie $4,967,901. The exports for the same
period were $217,517,130, of which there were of domestic products
$178,546,555; foreign goods reexported, $9,738,695; specie, $29,231,880.
Since the 1st of December last the payments in cash on account of the
public debt, exclusive of interest, have amounted to $7,501,456.56,
which, however, includes the sum of $3,242,400, paid under the twelfth
article of the treaty with Mexico, and the further sum of $2,591,213.45,
being the amount of awards to American citizens under the late treaty
with Mexico, for which the issue of stock was authorized, but which was
paid in cash from the Treasury.
The public debt on the 20th ultimo, exclusive of the stock authorized
to be issued to Texas by the act of 9th September, 1850, was
$62,560,395.26.
The receipts for the next fiscal year are estimated at $51,800,000,
which, with the probable unappropriated balance in the Treasury on the
30th June next, will give as the probable available means for that year
the sum of $63,258,743.09.
It has been deemed proper, in view of the large expenditures consequent
upon the acquisition of territory from Mexico, that the estimates for
the next fiscal year should be laid before Congress in such manner as
to distinguish the expenditures so required from the otherwise ordinary
demands upon the Treasury.
The total expenditures for the next fiscal year are estimated at
$42,892,299.19, of which there is required for the ordinary purposes of
the Government, other than those consequent upon the acquisition of our
new territories, and deducting the payments on account of the public
debt, the sum of $33,343,198.08, and for the purposes connected,
directly or indirectly, with those territories and in the fulfillment of
the obligations of the Government contracted in consequence of their
acquisition the sum of $9,549,101.11.
If the views of the Secretary of the Treasury in reference to the
expenditures required for these territories shall be met by
corresponding action on the part of Congress, and appropriations made in
accordance therewith, there will be an estimated unappropriated balance
in the Treasury on the 30th June, 1853, of $20,366,443.90 wherewith to
meet that portion of the public debt due on the 1st of July following,
amounting to $6,237,931.35, as well as any appropriations which may be
made beyond the estimates.
In thus referring to the estimated expenditures on account of our newly
acquired territories, I may express the hope that Congress will concur
with me in the desire that a liberal course of policy may be pursued
toward them, and that every obligation, express or implied, entered into
in consequence of their acquisition shall be fulfilled by the most
liberal appropriations for that purpose.
The values of our domestic exports for the last fiscal year, as compared
with those of the previous year, exhibit an increase of $43,646,322. At
first view this condition of our trade with foreign nations would seem
to present the most flattering hopes of its future prosperity. An
examination of the details of our exports, however, will show that the
increased value of our exports for the last fiscal year is to be found
in the high price of cotton which prevailed during the first half of
that year, which price has since declined about one-half.