No. 358.
Mr. Sickles to Mr.
Fish
No. 256.]
Legation of the United States, Madrid,
January 19, 1871. (Received February
17.)
Sir: I have the honor to transmit herewith a
translation of a note dated the 17th instant from the minister of state, in
reply to mine of the 21st ultimo, relating to the delay in the execution of
the law of 23d June, 1870, emancipating certain classes of slaves in the
Antilles.
I inclose also, for your information on the subject of colonial reform, a
fuller report, taken from El Correo de España, of the debate in the Cortes,
of which I sent you what now appears to have been a resumé in my No.
233.
Mr. Martos, one of the signers of the proposal made to the Cortes on the 20th
ultimo, to authorize the government to put the proposed constitution for
Porto Rico into immediate operation, is now minister of state for foreign
affairs. Mr. Moret, then minister of the colonies, is the secretary of the
treasury in the present cabinet.
I am, &c.,
[Translation.]
Ministry of State, The Palace,
January 17, 1871.
Sir: The minister of the colonies, to whom a
copy of your note dated the 21st of last December, respecting the
question of slavery and political reforms in Cuba and Porto Rico, was
duly furnished, in a communication of the 12th instant, makes the
following statements, which I have the honor to set before you.
“The law of slavery, passed by the constituent Cortes on the 23d of June
last, has been fulfilled and obeyed in all its parts in Cuba from the
date of its publication, although the absence of regulations for its
execution makes it necessary that what would have otherwise been a
matter of mere form should be made the basis for regularly instituted
proceedings for the clear determination of each case. In order that the
execution of the said law may suffer no obstruction, this ministry has
prepared ample and detailed bases to serve as a starting-point for the
regulations referred to, which have been already framed at some length
by the superior civil governor of that Antilla, and have been
transmitted to the council of state, subject to the provisions of the
law organizing that
[Page 760]
high body,
in order that the definitive regulations for carrying out the law in
question may he drawn up without delay. Meanwhile it has been ordered
that the bases referred to shall be provisionally obeyed in all cases
where their enforcement may not be absolutely impossible. In Port Rico
the law of the 23d of June has also been promulgated, and the
preparation of its regulations is under consideration. The slaveholders
of that island have anticipated abolition in the name of the Cortes and
the government, and the fact of the law not having been before
promulgated in that Antilla is mainly owing to the desire on the part of
the authorities to give time to the proprietors to accomplish
emancipation spontaneously, as, in fact, the greater number have already
done, for it is better that the slaves should owe much to their masters
in the question of freedom, and that they should not depend alone on the
action of the government. Besides the precepts of the law passed by the
Cortes, in which the public opinion of all countries has seen the
demonstration of the intention of the Spanish government to bring about
the disappearance of slavery from its American domain, this ministry is
in active correspondence with the superior authorities of the Antilles
with the aim of accomplishing the complete abolition of slavery, and for
this purpose the government has authorized meetings of the slaveholders,
that they may consider and prepare a plan for the immediate realization
of this object. The representative of the United States at this court
can bear witness to the earnestness with which the government of Spain
is acting in the question of slavery, and knowing, as he does, as well
by the official documents made public by this ministry as by the
communications made to him personally, all the steps that have been
taken in so important a matter, he must appreciate the good results thus
far obtained and those confidently to be looked for in the future. None
of the nations in whose dominions slavery existed were able to realize
its abolition, nor even to modify the system preparatory to its
subsequent extinction, without serious perturbation of public order and
detriment to agricultural and industrial interests. Spain, although
occupied with internal questions of policy and forced to sustain a
formidable conflict in the most important of her possessions, has
initiated and made great progress in the solution of this transcendent
problem without complications or disturbances arising, and has seen with
satisfaction that the slaveholders themselves, animated by feelings of
pure patriotism, are aiding her in her humanitarian work, and are even
considering and preparing for complete abolition. As for the political
reforms proposed for the Antilles by the government in the early days of
the revolution, your excellency is perfectly aware how sincere this
ministry has been in its intentions and what perseverance it has shown
in the fulfillment of those promises. A provincial law and a municipal
law in complete harmony with the Peninsular government are now in force,
and are obeyed without opposition in Porto Rico, and that island has
been represented in the constituent Cortes.
“The war in Cuba has impeded the extension of analogous reforms to that
colony, but its end being near, the government will soon have facilities
for realizing with all proper prudence the designs above indicated.”
I improve this occasion to reiterate to you the assurances of my most
distinguished consideration.
The Minister Plenipotentiary of the United
States.
