Mr. Asboth to Mr. Seward
Sir: In connection with my report No. 18, of March 25th, I have the honor to inform you that Lieutenant Commander Kirkland, United States navy, who sailed with the United States steamer Wasp, under his command, on the 10th of March, from this port up the La Plata and Parana rivers, having delivered on the Paraguayan lines the despatches received from me, returned here safely on the 31st of the same month with Mr. Washburn’s official communications.
Lieutenant Commander Kirkland having on his arrival in this port found peremptory orders from his admiral not to delay here, passed the package of official despatches to an officer in charge of a boat of the United States steamer Shamokin, and proceeded at once to Montevideo, without affording me the opportunity of a personal interview with him.
In the package brought by the Wasp there were four official despatches for your department from the Hon. Mr. Washburn, which I have the honor herewith to forward; also an official letter from Marshal Marquis Caxias for the [Page 158] Argentine minister of foreign affairs, which was transmitted to its address on the first instant, with an official note, a copy of which, marked A, I beg leave to enclose. I addressed also a letter to Rear-Admiral Godon, relative to the return of the United States steamer Wasp, copy of which please find under enclosure B.
In a letter to myself, dated Paso Pucu, March 25th and 27th, Mr. Washburn acknowledges the receipt of all the despatches and other papers forwarded to him. In the same letter he informs me of a diplomatic correspondence, which had passed between himself and the Marquis de Caxias, in which the Marshal stated that no proposition for a settlement of the existing war could be entertained by the allies as long as the present President of Paraguay remained in that country, to which Mr. Washburn replied “that the position thus taken by the allies, that no mediation can be entertained until one of the parties concerned no longer has a political existence, appears to render impossible anything like a peaceful solution of the impending strife, and the war must accordingly go on.”
Although the diplomatic notes, of this correspondence, were exchanged within the limits of my mission, without my knowledge or concurrence, I deem it proper to abstain, for the present, from any remarks upon them, very well assured that my worthy colleague, Mr. Washburn, has not only furnished you with full copies of them, but has also added his comments thereupon. While, however, refraining from remarks upon the notes themselves, I am obliged to confess my inability to regard the Marquis de Caxias in any diplomatic character, j as representing either the government of Paraguay, or that, respectively, of the allies. I look upon him as a Brazilian general, under orders to subdue Paraguay by force if possible, but certainly not accredited with any diplomatic mission. His decision therefore could hardly be taken as the decision of the allies, and I have difficulty in comprehending how it could be received as such by the United States minister on behalf of the Paraguayan government.
The correspondence, however, having actually taken place, was communicated by the Marquis de Caxias to the government here, and I received on the 2d instant the long delayed answer from the Argentine minister for foreign affairs to my note of 6th February.
While enclosing a full copy of the original Spanish of this answer, marked C, a literal translation of the same I have the honor to append here:
[Translation.]
Office of Foreign Relations, Buenos Ayres, March 30, 1867.
M. le Ministre: I have the honor to reply to your excellency’s note of 6th February ultimo, in which you deign to communicate to me the resolution of the House of Representatives of the United States of America, and those (the propositions) which, in consequence of it, the President submits to the several parties in the war which the Argentine Republic, the empire of Brazil, and the oriental republic of Uruguay are waging against the government of Paraguay, asserting that they do not imply an intervention, but a friendly mediation by which the United States desire to see re-established good faith and harmony among the peoples of South America.
The Argentine government, after having come to an agreement with its allies, hastens to make known to your excellency the resolution it has adopted.
As in repeated and constant acts of the Argentine people and government, the people and government of the United States will have seen the amity and sympathy professed towards them, and the respect and admiration inspired by their institutions, which the former endeavor to imitate and appropriate, they will not be surprised to know that the Argentine people and government feel highly flattered by the attention they have deserved, and appreciate very sincerely the brotherly desire to see the evils produced by the war in which the Argentine Republic is engaged put an end to, and to see good faith and harmony re-established among the peoples of South America.
The noble and generous step taken by the American people and government obliges the Argentine government to enter into explanations that may enable them to appreciate the justice and absolute necessity of the decision it has adopted with regard to the subject that has given rise to your excellency’s communication.
[Page 159]Paraguay, by a terrible fatality, found itself, since the first moments of the South American revolution, under the weight of a tyranny which has perpetuated itself up to the present day.
Its policy consisted in shunning the glorious sacrifices imposed upon us by that revolution, and attaining its own emancipation by extraneous efforts, availing itself of the time when other nations were engaged in the struggle, to practice unheard-of acts of violence against our own citizens and their property, to render impossible and prohibit all commerce, and to invade our own territory and towns, laying forcible hands on them, and maintaining themselves in that position in consequence of our own civil wars.
After half a century of sacrifices, the Argentine Republic succeeded in giving itself a constitution. It had recognized the independence of the province of Paraguay, dismembered from the ancient community, without exacting from it the least retribution or any of those conditions which strict justice demanded.
The Argentine government had grave questions to settle with the Paraguayan government, arising out of the facts already mentioned, and was engaged in trying to find an amicable solution to them by prudent and conciliatory means.
The Argentine Republic, whose only object was to consolidate peace with its neighbors, and draw closer its relations with them, as well as with all other nations, was unarmed, and in order to carry out the idea of employing its rents in promoting the material and moral progress of the country, endeavored to diminish gradually its few remaining forces until they could be reduced to what was strictly needful.
The Paraguayan government, which for many years back was preparing to do what has been witnessed, and what all understood, increased, on the contrary, its armaments every day more, until it succeeded in constituting itself into an immense military power, not only capable of defending itself, but sufficient to become an aggressor on its neighbors.
It sought connections among the internal political parties of the Argentine and Uruguay oriental republics, in order to legitimate its pretensions against these countries, and was making combinations with the object of imposing what solution it pleased to the serious questions pending between it and the Brazilian empire.
In the most unjustifiable manner, without previous explanation or notice, the president of Paraguay, violating public faith and the practice that obtains among cultivated nations since a treaty existed by which in no case could war be declared without six months’ previous notice, invaded our territory by force and treachery, took possession of our war steamers, and committed the most unheard of excesses against persons and property, to the extent of carrying off captive several respectable Argentine matrons, who were wives of meritorious officers, and who are still kept priseners in his camp.
He committed other offences and acts of violence against the Brazilian empire, and threw out serious threats against the Uruguay oriental republic.
These deeds, and the dangers they created for the future, gave rise necessarily to the alliance against the Paraguayan government, and to the war in which we are engaged.
The allied governments do not wage war against the Paraguayan nation, but against the government of General Don Francisco Solano Lopez. From him has come the spontaneous and wanton aggression of the Argentine Republic, the Brazilian empire, and the Uruguay oriental republic; from him has come the declaration of war, the invasion of the Argentine and Brazilian territories, the attempted invasion of the oriental republic of Uruguay, the acts of hostility and violence against the rights of nations, and the war which was preceded and accompanied by them.
The allied governments have taken up arms to repel the war brought upon them by General Lopez, and after the immense sacrifices of blood and money entailed upon them by this war, they neither can nor ought to consent to its termination unless their rights and their honor be at once vindicated, and unless they can secure for the future a solid and lasting peace with the republic of Paraguay, availing themselves of this opportunity to solve the various questions that might hereafter be the cause of ulterior misunderstandings. The personal government of General Lopez has ever been a constant menace to the peace of the river Plata, and has more than once given evident proofs of the violent and aggressive spirit that constitutes the traditional character of its policy, and nobody can ignore that as long as that government exists, constituted of the same persons and obeying the same influences, peace with its neighbors would always be precarious, the territorial security and the free commerce and navigation of the Paraguay and Alto Parana rivers and their affluents would continue under the weight of an unceasing menace, and the allied nations would have to maintain themselves in a defensive attitude ruinous to their treasuries, and highly prejudicial to their moral, political, and commercial interests.
The allied nations would much prefer to obtain through diplomatic negotiations what they seek by arms, and it would be very gratifying to them that this should be effected through the friendly mediation of the United States government.
But after what I have just exposed, and having in view the situation in which the belligerents find themselves at present, the Argentine government is convinced that the government, of the United States will understand that the resolutions (propositions) which it has presented in so friendly and brotherly a manner, negative the noble purposes it has had in view.
I avail myself of this opportunity to thank not only the government of the United States, but more especially your excellency for your constant efforts in favor of peace in the river [Page 160] Plata, which the Argentine government and its allies eagerly desire should be secured upon a solid foundation.
It is gratifying to me, with this motive, to renew to your excellency the assurances of my highest consideration and esteem.
RUFINO DE ELIZALDE.
His Excellency the Minister Resident of the United States of America,
General A. Asboth.
The long diplomatic letter of Señor de Elizalde is certainly not as clear as the short, soldierly one given on the Paraguayan lines by the commander of the allied army, Marquis de Caxias, to Mr. Washburn, but intended to accomplish the same result, viz: to gain time for another attempt to conquer Paraguay by force of arms. After duly considering this note from the Argentine minister of foreign affairs, I replied to it in the following terms:
No. 9.]
Legation oF the United States, Buenos Ayres, April 10, 1867.
Sir: I had the honor to receive on the 2d instant your excellency’s note of the 30th of last month, in answer to my note of 6th February, in which I laid before the Argentine government the resolution of the House of Representatives of the United States of America desiring the President to offer the good offices of the government for the promotion of peace and harmony in South America, and also the propositions which, in consequence of that resolution, the President of the United States submitted to the consideration of the several parties in the war which the Argentine republic, in alliance with the empire of Brazil and the Oriental republic of Uruguay, are waging against Paraguay; propositions calculated to bring to a termination the disastrous war and secure an honorable and permanent peace in South America upon a solid foundation, through diplomatic negotiations, under the friendly mediation of the United States.
Your excellency kindly refers, in your note of the 30th ultimo, to the amity and sympathy professed by the people and government of the United States of America, and to the respect and admiration inspired by their institutions, with a kindred appreciation, also, of the sincere brotherly desire of the United States to see the evils produced by this unhappy war in which the Argentine republic is engaged put an end to, and good faith and harmony re-established among the peoples of South America.
The solemn mariner in which your excellency has been pleased to give such honorable and highly satisfactory assurances cannot fail to find the liveliest echo in the United States and hope to confirm the heartfelt sympathy of the people and government. Not less flattering will it be to my government to learn from your excellency’s note that the allied nations would much prefer to obtain through diplomatic negotiations what they seek by arms, and that it would be very gratifying to them that this should be effected through the friendly mediation of the United States government. This frank assurance of your excellency cannot be taken otherwise than as the acceptance of the United States’ mediation, leading to an early armistice, the welcome precursor of lasting peace, equally honorable and beneficial to all the belligerents; and my government will therefore hardly be prepared for the conclusion of your excellency’s note, stating that after what your excellency had explained relative to the motives that have given rise to the Paraguayan war, and having in view the situation in which the belligerents find themselves actually, the Argentine government is convinced that the government of the United States will understand that the propositions which it has presented in so friendly and brotherly a manner negative the noble purposes it has had in view.
The history of the events that occasioned the present war, a history which your excellency has so ably condensed in your note, gives full weight to the circumstances that necessitated the alliance against Paraguay, but your excellency will pardon my confessing that those weighty circumstances fail to enable me to see that the propositions submitted by the President of the United States to the several belligerents negative the noble purposes he has had in view, viz: the pacification and consequent welfare of the La Plata and Parana republics. Those propositions may indeed be susceptible of modifications that may render them more suitable to the peculiar circumstances and present state of affairs here; but the Argentine government, guided as it is by a just and conciliatory spirit, and by its sincere desire for an honorable and lasting peace, might, without reserve, have pointed out under what modifications those propositions could be rendered more acceptable to it as the basis for diplomatic negotiations, with a view to the termination of the war. And I may add my conviction that the United States government, actuated only by the single desire to see all South American nations harmonious, prosperous, and happy, would certainly persevere in the tender of its good offices, provided that such modifications to its original propositions would not, as I cannot for a moment suppose they would, negative impartial justice.
It is true that the situation in which the allies find themselves actually is of a very peculiar and complicated nature, and that that of the Argentine government is particularly embarrassing, bound as it is to its allies by honor and by treaties; but I would respectfully submit [Page 161] to your excellency whether the honor of the Argentine nation has not been already fully vindicated, as well by the immense sacrifices entailed upon her by this unhappy war as by the gallant heroism of her brave sons, who, headed by their patriotic President as commander-in-chief of the allied armies, have undergone with good will and without murmur all the terrible hardships, dangers, and privations of a two years’ campaign, under the burning sun and amidst the pestilential marshes of Paraguay. Many bloody fights, more especially the ever-memorable assault on Curupaiti, have stamped indelibly the daring and bravery of the Argentine soldier.
I venture, however, to remark that, lofty and undaunted as have been and all the devotion and courage of your citizen soldiers, and great as was the enthusiasm of the Argentine people at large at the commencement of the war against Paraguay, the general feeling now, as indicated also by the public press, is one of weariness at the protracted sanguinary strife against a sister republic, with an earnest and unmistakable longing for peace. The loss of so many thousand brave Argentines, which has plunged into grief and desolation their once happy homes; the waste of so many millions of treasure, accompanied by a heavy and daily increasing public debt; the paralyzation of trade, the ruin of agriculture, the drain of the country’s resources, the open rebellion and anarchy in four provinces, with serious disaffection in others; the consequent temporary transfer by the President of the republic of the commander-in-chief of the allied armies to a Brazilian general, with the simultaneous withdrawal of the larger portion of the Argentine forces from the seat of war; and, further, the frequent Indian invasions, attended with murder, rapine, and desolation among natives and new settlers, thus checking the march of civilization to which the enlightened policy of the national government has opened so wisely and paved so liberally the way into the boundless tracts of the virgin pampas: all these woes and afflictions speak most eloquently in support of the people’s evident desire to see this disastrous war give place to the blessings of peace, and the future thus secured against complications perilous to republican institutions, which even the successful issue of the war may involve.
Let me, therefore, be allowed to hope that since your excellency’s note, as if concurring with the desire of the Argentine people, concludes with the assurance that both the Argentine government and its allies are anxious to see peace secured upon a solid foundation, the Argentine government may not be averse to a reconsideration of the propositions submitted on behalf of the United States government, with the tender of its friendly mediation in the Paraguayan war, and that your excellency will be pleased to inform me, in consequence, if any and what modifications would render these propositions more acceptable to the Argentine government. And let me moreover be permitted to add my personal belief, founded upon the views of my government, that the mutual grievances of the respective contending parties can be brought to a satisfactory adjustment, and an honorable and permanent peace secured in the La Plata and Parana regions on a safe and solid foundation, only through proper diplomatic negotiations, and not by force of arms, which render arguments powerless and which can subjugate but do not conciliate.
The United States of America, as I had the honor to state in my note of 6th February last, are actuated in this instance not only by a sincere good will, but also by the firm determination to uphold the dignity and interests of those who confide in them, and a glance at their past and present will not, I venture to think, fail to convince the Argentine government that, in achieving peace by diplomatic negotiations, the mediation of the United States government would be some guarantee for the safety and stability of that peace.
I avail myself of this opportunity to renew to your excellency the assurance of the distinguished consideration with which I have the honor to be your excellency’s obedient servant,
A. ASBOTH.
His Excellency Señor Dr. Don Rufino de Elizalde, Minister for Foreign Affairs.
I venture to remark upon the foregoing that I was quite unable to connect the high respect and admiration for the government of the United States, coupled with the desire for its mediation, professed by the Argentine minister for foreign affairs, with the refusal from the Argentine government to accept the tendered mediation, on the plea that the propositions submitted by the United States government negative its good intentions.
Accordingly I ventured to submit to the Argentine government that the propositions of the United States government might admit of modifications which would adapt them more to the present peculiar state of affairs here, and allowed myself to give the assurance that the United States government would not recede from its efforts for a peaceful solution of the existing unhappy difficulties, if such modifications were not inconsistent with impartial justice. By an earnest recapitulation of the miseries and misfortunes entailed by the Paraguayan war, I urged the Argentine government to reconsider the propositions [Page 162] of the United States with a view to their modification, and thus secure the initiation of those peaceful counsels for which the Argentine people so ardently long.
I hope that in so doing I have but anticipated the wishes of my government, and that my course will meet with your approval.
In conclusion I have only to add that I forward, in enclosure marked D, the continuation of my daily memoranda of political events from the 27th of March to the 10th of April.
I have the honor to he, sir, very respectfully, your obedient servant,
Hon. William H. Seward, Secretary of State, Washington, D. C.