iards "never paid any tribute for the privilege of erecting a fort and custom-house at San Juan ;" he even thinks they never obtained the leave of the Mosquito King to do so! The document next in order, is a letter from Mr. O'Leary, British Chargé at Bogota. He thinks the New Grenada claim to the territory in question better than that of Central America, and observes "that as New Grenada has no settlement between Boca del Toro and San Juan, she would probably gladly accept that river as the north-west boundary of her territories; and looking at the map the river San Juan, would seem to afford the King of Mosquito a distinct and secure boundary on that frontier. But," he continued, in the strain of Mr. Chatfield's concluding paragraphs, "the extent and importance of the coast situated between the mouth of the San Juan and Chiriqui Lagoon, cannot be overlooked;" and adds, "that if the pretensions of the King of Mosquito to this part of the coast could be maintained, the Chiriqui Lagoon, which affords safe anchorage, would likewise form a secure frontier !" The circumstance of "safe anchorage" and good harbors, must have been of high importance in connection with the pretensions of the Mosquito King; regard for the Mosquito marine must certainly have been at the bottom of the suggestion! Mr. O'Leary concludes by suggesting "the expediency of setting the whole question at rest by means of a negotiation with New Grenada. the Mosquito shore to that capital, who was received with great respect, is also of great moment in Mr. Walker's estimation. Whether they took his portrait and gave him a cocked hat and sword, as we are accustomed to do at Washington, when savage chiefs are brought there, we are not advised; but no doubt they gave him an abundance of " aqua ardiente," which judging from what we know of the tastes of the royal line of Mosquitia, male and female, must have been more acceptable! It may be thought undignified to talk in this strain, in the pages of a respectable periodical! What then must be thought of a parliamentary document containing such stuff as we have referred to, issued too by way of supporting one of the gravest measures which any Government has seen fit to adopt within this century, and one which involves the highest principles of international right? The remaining documents presented by Mr. Walker prove two things: that there was a certain extent of the eastern shore of Central America which was called the "Mosquito shore," but which no two authorities concurred in defining, and which was used as a geographical designation, without the slightest reference to sovereignty or jurisdiction; and second, that from before 1830 downwards, the British agents in Central America, had attempted by various acts, professedly under Mosquito authority, to acquire some shadow of claim to various parts of the Atlantic coast, from Cape Honduras to Veragua. The impudence of quoting the assertions of British officers, who at the time of writing were Thus much for correspondence and the taking the initiatives to their prospective travail of collecting "historical evidence." usurpation, as "historical evidence," is We now come to action. On the 1st of wonderfully cool, and entirely in keeping September of the same year, (1847,) with the spirit of the whole procedure from Mr. Walker addressed an impudent letter the start. Mr. Walker concludes his letter, upon an unimportant matter to the Comnot as Mr. Chatfield had done, with a mo- mandant at San Juan, which concludes dest reservation which might be "useful with the following paragraph:-"I think hereafter" in perfecting and securing the it fair to tell you, as until now you can ultimate objects of the felony, but which it hardly have received the information, that would hardly do to put forward at this time; Mr. Chatfield, H. B. M. Consul-General Mr. Walker, we say, concludes his letter in Central America, has received instrucwith the unqualified assertion that the rights tions to point out to the several States the of the King of Mosquito extend from Cape boundary which the British Government Honduras to Veragua, upon a line which has determined to maintain, in right of the he traces so as to include half of Honduras, King of Mosquito, and this boundary commore than half of Nicaragua, and an equal prehends the San Juan river." This letportion of Costa Rica! He observes, also, ter was sent by the cutter "Sun," comvery naively, that "he believes" the Span-manded by Captain Watson, and bearing ernments of Nicaragua and Honduras to Mr. Chatfield's circular. They are not deficient in argument or force, and the subjoined extracts will be read with interest. The Secretary of Foreign Relations of Nicaragua, Don Sebastian Salinas, acknowledges the receipt of Mr. Chatfield's circular, notes its contents, and adds: the flag of the "Mosquito nation." The design of this display is obvious. The Commandant of the port, under date of September 6th, replied civilly to Walker's note, concluding as follows: "I appreciate as it deserves, the friendly notice which you have given me as to the particular protection which the British Crown is disposed to afford to the Mosquito nation; but without entering into the question of its legitimacy or of its territorial limits, which is the pro-lished practice for a society which considers vince of the Governments, I can only obey the orders of my superiors." At the same time this officer addressed a note to the commander of the cutter, saying that, although he had already informed him that the flag which he bore was not recognized, and that he had told him to take it down or leave the port, &c., yet out of considerations of politeness he would allow him to remain in the harbor until he had executed his commission of receiving the letters of the expected steamer. He, nevertheless, informed him that the vessel could not again enter the harbor under the flag it bore, unless it had express permission from the Nicaraguan Government. "You know, Sir, very well, that the estabitself capable of assuming the rank of a nation, to obtain its recognition as such, is, to solicit through its chief, his ministers or direct lished States; but this rule of international accredited agents, the recognition of establaw, has in no way been complied with by the pretended king of Mosquito, who now assumes to raise questions of boundary with Nicaragua. This Government has not recognized and does not now recognize such a kingdom as 'Mosquito,' much less the territorial pretensions of which you speak. No such king has existed or now exists. It is preposterous, Sir, that a few savages wandering in the forests and wastes on the coasts of Honduras and Nicaragua, living by the chase and fishing, without houses, without a known language, without written characters, without arts, laws, or religion, without any of the elements which, according to received principles, are necessary to a national existence,-that such a horde of savages should profess to constitute a regular society, or what is more an Empire ! On the 24th of Nov. the Rt. Hon. E. J. Stanley, of the Foreign office, addressed a note to the Secretary of the Admiralty, stating that he was informed by Mr. Walker, "that the Commandant acting for "We are not ignorant of the fact that certhe Nicaraguan Government, at the mouth tain British subjects, under favor of the adjaof the San Juan river, had expressed his cent settlements of the Belize and Jamaica, determination not to acknowledge the flag have attempted to fix themselves in our soil, or territorial rights of the Mosquito King-associating with the Mosquitos, and causing dom," and suggests that the commanders of any ships of war which may be in that quar ter be instructed to communicate with Mr. Walker, "as to the best manner in which to resist the pretensions of the Nicaraguan Commandant," and establishing the Mosquito authorities at the mouth of the San Juan. On the 1st of September, however, Mr. Chatfield addressed his circular, in accordance with his instructions of January 30, to the Governments of Honduras and Nicaragua, and next day he wrote to Palmerston, informing him of what he had done, and adding, "I have taken the precaution of inserting the words, 'without prejudice to the rights of the Mosquito King to any territory south of the river San Juan."" We may here anticipate events a little, and notice briefly the replies of the Gov the son of some favored family, to be educated ment to secure their designs, under the title of to their fashion, and thus preparing an instru'King.' This fantastic personage has not, and cannot be presented to the civilization of the nineteenth century, nor make himself acknowledged by neighboring or other nations; such an act, would be an admission of the right of the savage hordes which exist in different parts of the world, to form kingdoms under the protection of other Governments, and put themselves in comparison (en paragon) with civilized states; thus placing limits on civilization, and licensing universal disorders. Subjects and agents of Her Brittannic Majesty are the only persons who have announced and proclaimed the leader of this tribe as a Sovereign, and an ally of the English Government: but none of these agents has presented, or has been able to present to any Government of Central America, credentials of his appearing to be a real and direct agent of the suppositious King of Mosquito; neither has Great Britain herself accredited a Chargé d'Affaires to these Governments, who might have moved these questions of sovereignty, territory, and appropriation of a Port acknowledged by the whole world as the property of the sovereign State of Nicaragua. If these new pretensions are well-founded, and the Port of San Juan does not belong to Nicaragua, how comes it that the Government of Her Britannic Majesty ordered a blockade of that port by Vice Admiral Sir Charles Adams in the year 1842, in order to enforce the payment of $14,000, claimed of this Government by British subjects?" The Secretary then goes on to protest against these pretensions in a strain of mingled eloquence and irony, asserting that Nicaragua will disallow, resist and repel with the force of justice and all her strength, even to the extent of disappearing from the face of the earth, the encroachments with which she is threatened, and before obscure barbarians shall snatch away from her a property which, according to the great boundaries of nature, sanctioned by laws, international right, and immemorial possession, belongs to her alone. Thus," he concludes, "my Government solemnly protests. It will denounce the spoliations with which it is menaced before all the Governments of civilized nations; and the world will see how the ambition of a few British subjects darkens the enlightened minds of the Cabinet of Her Britannic Majesty, even to the point of placing the august Queen Victoria as an equal by the side of a despicable savage!" The answer of Gen. Guardiola, on behalf of Honduras, is shorter but equally to the point. He says: "It has been repeatedly demonstrated that the pretended king of Mosquito, recognized as such by the British Government alone, wants the smallest shadow of dominion over any part of the territory of Honduras; and it cannot, and ought not to be considered that the vagrant tribe, called Moscos, should be regarded as a nation. "It is easy to see, from the hostile manner in which it is intimated, that a claim will be made on the territories of Honduras, that no reasons will be heard, and that force alone will terminate the dispute you have raised. It is remarkable that the cabinet of St. James arrogates the right of making claims, and putting forward intimations, which, if its own pretensions are to be credited, belong solely to the savage chief of the Moscos, and who has never been consulted respecting them! "And it is equally worthy of notice, that without attending to any of the means prescribed by the law of nations, in reference to a territory, at most disputable, force should be resorted to, as if there were no reasons to be heard, rights to be examined, forms to be observed, and jealousies to be awakened. The nations of America and Europe, Sir, will not see with apathy, or indifference, this new system of acquiring territories,-unknown, and contrary to the usages between Governments. "The Government of Honduras is weak, and that of Great Britain is powerful, nevertheless, we shall make our rights known. They will have the same importance as if strength and resources. Therefore, my Govthey were balanced between nations of equal ernment solemnly protests that it will use the means, which all the world employs, to preserve the integrity of its territory, and repel aggression; and you, and the British Government must answer before heaven and earth for the ills which the contest must produce, and which you have provoked!" To these eloquent protests Mr. Chatfield thought proper to reply, by means of a circular, brief and pointless, and only worthy of notice from the following extraordinary passages, which, if written in earnest, imply the keenest impudence, or the profoundest stupidity. He says: "The position assumed by your Government rests on a supposed hereditary right, derived from Spain, to whom, it is alleged, as I understand, that the Mosquito territory formerly belonged as part of the Spanish possessions in America, it being assumed that the act of expelling Spain from this continent, conferred upon the States which expelled her, all the sovereignty and rights which Spain is considered to have enjoyed in it! On an impartial consideration of this question, I am convinced that you will perceive the fallacy of such reasoning, and admit that no State can justly claim to inherit rights, or territories, from a nation, which does not recognize its political existence!" Sapient Mr. Chatfield! To return. Before Mr. Stanley's note had been acted upon by the Secretary of the Admiralty, His Majesty's ship of war, "Alarm," commanded by Capt. Granville G. Loch, whose name will now frequently appear in this narrative, arrived o Bluefields, on the Mosquito coast, where it took on board Mr. Walker, and his protege, "the King." They proceeded straightway to San Juan, where they arrived on 26th Nov., when they informed the Commandant that the King of Mosquito was on board, and that he must be saluted, or the town would be fired on. As this request was not complied with, an armed party went on shore, and as there was no efficient force to resist, run up the Mosquito flag, fired a salute, and returned on board, leaving the flag flying. This dignified proceeding over, the "Alarm," and its precious freight, set sail for Jamaica, where Mr. Walker wrote a garbled statement of what had been done, to Palmerston. It is a little singular, however, that in his account of this proceeding, he makes no mention of a subsequent one, which was not quite so successful. In the flush of their triumph, Mr. Walker, and the commander of the "Alarm," thought it would be a good thing to go through the same performance at Truxillo, the principal seaport of Honduras. Perhaps, as this is a tolerable harbor, they thought it would be good also to seize it for his Mosquito Majesty. So, in proceeding to Jamaica, they made a detour to this point. The "Alarm" was anchored in the harbor, the boats were duly manned with armed men, and Mr. Walker and the commander went on shore. They were met by the officer of the garrison, whom they ordered to retire, with his men, to the mouth of the river Aguan. The Commandant declined to do anything of the Mr. Walker then told him that "he should be obliged to eject him by force," to which the Commandant replied that he had better try it," falling back, and ordering his men to form, the call for the militia to be sounded in the plaza, and the guns of the castle to be brought to bear. This was more than was bargained for. Mr. Walker and his associates decamped with all despatch, contenting themselves with elevating the Mosquito flag on a desert beach, outside the harbor. sort. Meantime the plot thickened, and, to give some show of decency to their proceedings, a grand imaginary Mosquito council was held at Bluefields, the senior member of which purported to be a Mr. George Hodgson, which went through the imaginary form of addressing a letter to the Director of Nicaragua, giving him to the first of January, within which to withdraw the Nicaraguan establishment from San Juan. Besides Mr. George Hodgson, there were imagined to be present at the council: "Hon. Alexander Hodgson, Hon. H. Ingram, Hon. James Porter, Hon. John Dixon, and Hon. James Green;" the last, her British Majesty's Vice-Consul."* The Government of Nicaragua had the bad taste and worse policy to notice the absurd document, and to reply that the Nicaraguan establishment would not be removed from San Juan, and that if forcible measures were resorted to, force would be used to repel the assault. Whereupon the august imaginary council was again convened, and the imaginary clerk (also a British subject!) directed to make a reply, which he did as follows, under date of December 8, 1847. "The Council passes over in silence the disrespectful tone of your letter, but directs me to forward you copies of addresses which His Majesty received on his recent visit to Jamaica from the honorable the council and house of assembly of that island; and I am to that, in point of rank, intelligence, independremind you that the civilized world knows ence and wealth, the public bodies of Jamaica cannot be excelled in Nicaragua !" This rare epistle concluded by saying that the port of San Juan would be retaken possession of (this reminds us of reannexation) by British and Mosquito troops, on the first of January, prox. There was a strange mixture of puerility, villainy and low cunning in the proceedings of Walker and his associates, which is probably without a parallel in any similar transaction. When the "Alarm" arrived at San Juan, as before related, the Commandant of the port made a formal protest against the proceedings of its officers. His language affords a strange contrast to the highway tone assumed by the British officials. He said "he could not help deploring the attack which had been made upon the rights of sovereignty and the integrity of the free State of Nicaragua, by the commander of Her Britannic Majesty's frigate "Alarm," and as under present circumstances the State of Nicaragua wanted other means for the defence of * Mr. Hodgson, "the senior counsellor," afterwards testified that no such council was ever held, and that he knew nothing of the business, until informed of it, subsequently, when a prisoner in Nicaragua. The whole was the work of Walker. her rights than those of reason and justice,, sustained by the moral force of the civilized world, he now remonstrated and protested against the proceedings of the commander, solemnly and in the presence of God and the world." The frigate, it is proper to add, entered the port under British colors, and afterwards hoisted the socalled Mosquito flag. In the meantime, the Government of Nicaragua, in consequence of the delay and uncertainty attending the transmission of communications from Leon to Guatemala, the residence of the Consul-General, named and empowered. Messrs. Duran and Lopez, singly and jointly, to act as the commissioners of the Government in Guatemala, with a view to the adjustment of the disputes which had arisen; omitting, it will thus be seen, no means to settle affairs in a just and peaceful manner. But Mr. Chatfield refused to have any communication with these commissioners, and wrote to Palmerston, under date of December 3d, that, "independent of the unfitness of these lawyers to entertain questions of this nature, he conceived himself without authority to discuss the right of Mosquito to the mouth of the river San Juan." Mr. Chatfield had not forgotten the epistolary contests he had been from time to time involved in with the Nicaraguan "lawyers," and in which, not less from the badness of his cause, than his own incapacity, he had been uniformly worsted. He concludes by inquiring what regulations shall be made for the trade of the San Juan "after the occupation of the port by Mosquito." The Nicaraguan Government still anxious to adjust affairs amicably, then empowered the Guatemalean Minister of Foreign Affairs to act as their Commissioner. But Mr. Chatfield answered that matters had passed the period of negotiation. Still, "out of deference" to the Minister, personally, he was willing to receive and transmit to Her Majesty's Government, any proposals or explanations which the Nicaraguan Government may desire to make on the proceedings at San Juan: Her Majesty's Government being desirous that Nicaragua should feel assured that, in this instance, as in all others, its acts are based on the BROADEST PRINCIPLES OF JUSTICE AND EQUITY!" Admirable complacency! Such was the state of things when the Supreme Director of the State of Nicaragua, Don José Guerrera, issued a proclamation, from which we can only quote a few paragraphs: "Under favor of good feeling, the public morality and the efficiency of the authorities, the agitations consequent upon our revolution, and peculiar to the political infancy of every country, have been calmed. The energies of the State are directed to the improvement of its resources, and the cultivation of peace, friendship, commerce, and credit with all the civilized nations. But now, under shadow of the colossal tower of Great Britain, professing to stand first among civilized nations, our repose is disturbed and our prospects darkened, by a scandalous attempt upon the integrity of the territory of our State. A fraction of our population, the nomad tribe of Moscos, at whose head has been placed an imbecile child, with the title of "King," surrounded by native ignorants and unprincipled foreign agents, who direct every thing to their own liking, has intimated to this Government its intention of taking possession of the port of San Juan through the aid of the British Government !" The Director goes on to set forth the indisputable right of Nicaragua to the port in question, in a clear and conclusive manner, recounting in detail the agressions which have been made, and continues: "Thus is it that civil war is stirred up by the savage against the civilized portion of Central America; thus it is attempted to wrest from Nicaragua her only and best port upon the north, possessed by her from time immemorial, without dispute, and recognized by the acts of Great Britain to be hers alone. * * * |