ANNEXATION OF CUBA.

Lyttelton Times, Volume V, Issue 298, 8 September 1855, Page 3

ANNEXATION OF CUBA.

On this subject, we find the following jeu (Tisprit in the Alta California. It is given in tlie form of " Private despatch to General Pierce, from Major Jack Downing." Although written in a strain of deep irony throughout, the socalled despatch appears to verify the old axiom, that " many a truth is uttered in jest." "We've got to take Cuba, if we have the power," says the writer, who immediately adds,"and I know we have. We must have Cuba, or our whole country would go to rack and ruin." Farther, the major says— That Cuba's a fine country. We've been having a glimpse at it once ma while, with out spy-glasses, through ' the hole in the wall,' and round the corners, and it's raly a fine country; 'twould do your heart good to look at it. And you shall have a chance before long, for it's got to comedown ; its got to knuckle, and no mistake. I've got my commission to go ahead from Mr. Buchanan, and Mr. Mason, and Mr. Souley. And the nub of the whole thing is, we've got to take Cuba, " if we have the power," and I know we have, as Sally Giles said to her sweetheart. Says Sally, says she, 'you shan't kiss me, unless you are stronger thau I am, and I know you be.' Jist before we come out I see by the papers that Louis Napoleon lias a notion of going to the Crimea to see Sebastopol fall; and so I thought may be you mijiht like to come out here and see us take Cuba. Now, if you dv, jest say the word, and tell me in your letter what day you will be down on the pint of Floriday, and I'll bear up with the Two Pollies and take you up. You musu't feel hurt because I didn't come to Washington to see you before starting ou this cruise ; but the fact was I hadu't time. Our country was in so much danger it wouldn't do to wait. Our Congress in Ostend went over the whole ground and examined it carefully, and come to the conclusion that it was neck or nothing with us. We must have Cuba or our whole country would go to rack and ruin, and ' the Union can never enjoy repose nor possess reliable security as long as Cuba is not embraced within the boundaries.' I sent you a despatch last fall about the duins of our Congress at Ostend, where we took up the affairs of Englaad and France and Spain ; but filially concluded we couldn't make anything out of that business yet, and should have to wait a little longer. Well, then them three S.'s—Souley, Sickles, and Sanders—said there was one thing we could dv : we could take hold of that Cuba business and finish it up brown. And for fear Louis Napoleon might have spies round us there at Ostend, we concluded it was best to hitch a little further off. So we went over to Ax-le-Shapple and finished up the business. The upshot was, we concluded we would have Cuba by hook or by crook ; and that Mr. Souley should go back to old Spain and tell the Queen so. If she'd a mind to give it up quietly and make no fuss about it, he might promise to give her something pretty handsome in the way of money ; we didn't care nothing about that, as we've got plenty of money at home. If she refused, and told Mr. Souley to mind his own business, and we shouluu't have Cuba no how, then we told him uot to be mealy-mouthed, nor mince matters, but pick a quarrel ihe best way he could and clear out. Well, Mr. Souley went back to Madrid with a stiff upper lip, and beguu to try to dicker with the Queen's spokesman for a bargain. That Souley's a smait fellow, Gineral. He talked right np to them, and wasn't afeavd. Well, he waited till the two weeks was out, and no answer didn't come; and then slat round, and picked up his clothes, and locked up his trunks, and cleared out. Then he come over where we had been waiting for him, and told us how the matter stood. He said old Spain refused to give up Cuba, and refused to settle, and he had jrot the quarrel in such a shape now that we could cany on any'wayito suit ourselves. And now, said Mr. Souley, what's to be dove next ? Wai, says I, Mr. Souley, you've only just got to look at the instructions drawn up by our Congress at Ax-le-Shapple, and signed by yon and Mr. Buchanan and Mr. Mason, and you'll see the course is marked out as plain as a b c Jest open the dockyment and read : •'Cuba is as'necessary to the North American Republic as any of its present members. " The Union can never enjoy repose nor possess reliable security as long as Cuba is not embraced within its boundaries.

"But if Spain, deaf to the voice of her own interest, and actuated by stubborn pride and a false sense of her own honour, should refuse to se.l Cuba to the United States, what then ? "Self preservation is the first law of nature ; with Stales as well as with individuals." Mailers and things being thus said so, then by every law, human and divine, we shall be justified in wresting- Cuba away from Spain, if we possess the power. There, says I, there's your chart, as plain as the nose on a man's face ; and all we've got to do is to go ahead. So we all put our heads together to draw a plan of the campaign, and we wasn't long about it. It. was finally concluded that Sanders should go and stir up the Southern division, head quarters at New Orleans ; Sickles should take charge of the centre wing, head quarters at Washington, and a branch at New .York;, and I should goon as fast as possible "down East," head quarters Downingville, and fit out a naval force that would put Cuba through. A.id here I am, Gineral, and you may depend oii't the work's got to be dove. But now I must ask you, Gineral, what in thunder Mr. Marcy means by backin' and filiu' so. I have just got some of the latest New York papers by an outer-bound vessel, and one of the first things I see is Mr. Marey's letter to Mr. Souley, dated 13th of November, and is so full of milk and water it makes me fairly sick. I was always a little afraid Marcy was an old fosy, but I did think he had a little more: backbone than he showed in his letter. He's I no Christian, and he's violated the Scripture, for he's put his hand to the plow and looked , back. He seems now to be for soothing over matters ; thinks may be our country could, manage somehow or other to get along without '[ Cuba; don't know but old Spain means to do the thing that's about right after all; better; dicker a little longer with her in a friendly kind .'. of a way; better not do anything to affront her; keep things quiet till Spain gets in the right mood, aui\ then if she won't sell out Cuba, perhaps she'll settle and pay up. Nowy I'll tell you «vhat 'tis, Gineral, our Eurup cabinet don't swallow so much miik and water stuff as that. What's got into Mr. Marcy ? Last year he told Mr. Souley to demand three hunjdred thousand dollars for'the Black Warrior .right down on the nail and not stop to parley about it. But now he quivers and shakes one ■way and t'other like a leaf in the wind. I'm afraid Mr. Marcy is getting old. And there's puor uncle Joshua, Postmaster at Downingville, I find he's getting old and timersum too. Uheu I got hum to Dowuingville and told the family I was going to fit out the Two Pollies and be off the next day to take Cuba, uncle Josh was struck all of a heap. Says he, « Major, I beg of you not to go into any of that filibustering business : it's nest akin to piracy ; and there's the neutrality laws dead agin you, too.'' "Oh no," says I, "Uncle Joshua, I ain't ' going to undertake any of your low filibustering. 1 m only jest going out to take Cuba man fashion, because our country can't get along without it and self-preservation, you know, is the first law of nater, and because old Spain keeps iusulttn oi us, and won't pay up." "But don't you see, Major,' says uncle Josh, ua, if you go to take Cuba, y., u are making w-u-against Spain; and you can't do that ac°covdmg to the Constitution. Nobody in this country has any puW er to make war'but Congress." "But you're mistaken there, Uncle Joshua," says I. »Did'nt Mr. Polk make war upon Mexico? " ' " No, by no means," said uncle Joshua. "If you will look back and read the dockyrnents of them aays, you will find it reads, ' Whereas war exists oetween this country and Mexico.' You see that wur come itself. But you have no ri-rht to make war upon Spain or Cuba unless you get your authority from Congress." " Wai, uncle, I have got my authority from Congress," says I ; '< what mure do you want" ' Oh, no," says he ; "'Congress han't declared war because it would be in the papers, and I should a seen it. 1' " But I don't mean your lazy old Fogy Congress to Washington," says I ; <• I „,£„ our bump Congress". And then L took the dockyment out of my pocket, and showed it to him, signed by Mr Buchanan, and Mr. Mason, and Mr. Souley At first he was thunderstruck, and couldn't say nothin. Then he fell back onto the Constitution agm, jest as he always does, and said he didn't

believe our Oonsrrpss over there in Eunip was constitutional. Then he reached up to the shelf and took down the old Constitution, covered with morocco, that 'Gineral Jackson sent him more than twenty years ago, aud lie put on his spectacles and looked it all over from beginning to end, and said lie couldn't find nothing about any Congress in Europe. " But if you call your meeting over there in Euvop a Congress," says he, " I should like to know where you find your authority in the Constitution to make war upon Spain or to go. fillibusterin about Cuba." "Why. uncle .Joshua," says I, "we find it in that clause where it says ' I take the responsibility.' " " There!" said Cousin Sergeant Joel, who had been listening all the time without saying a word: " there, uncle," says he, " I knew you would find tlie .authority in the Constitution somewhere. That's one of the amendments to the Constitution that was added by Gineral Jackson, you know, and therefore it must be rig-lit." Then Serjeant Joel turned to me, and says lie, "Major, I've been round and notified the whole company of the Po.wingville militia, and they are all ready, armed, and equipped as the law directs, and will be aboard to morrow at ten o'clock. They are full of grit, and ready to swallow Cuba alive.'' I had't got near through my story, Gineral, for I wanted to tell you more about fitting out the Two Pollies, and about the crew, and the sogers, and the marines, and the boss-marines, and the vise, but 1 shan't have room in rhisdisipatcli, and the little clipper that's a waiting for me to finish writing:, lias got a smart .wind, and wants to be off. If I don't see you standing on "tlio pint of Floriday as we go by, T shall take it 'for granted that you have concluded not to go out and.see us take Cuba; but if I see a man ; standing there, and swinging his hat, I shall ■know it's you, and we'll bear right up with the Two Pollies and take you off. I remain your old friend, and Minister-Gene-ral at large, and Bear Commodore of the Fillibuster Fleet.— Sydney Empire.