Mr. Romero’s respects to Mr. Seward, enclosing the speech of General
Bazaine made at a meeting in the city of Mexico, on the 14th of
January last, to decide whether the empire that the French Emperor
tried to found in that republic had power to sustain itself or
not.
The speech was published in La Liberté, Paris, 28th August last, and
is worthy of preservation as a historical document, showing the
insincerity of the French government in its intervention in
Mexico.
[From La Liberty
Paris, Wednesday, 28th August,
1867.]
Inquest on the Mexican expedition.
Marshal Bazaine’s speech read at the meeting of the 14th January,
1867:
The peaceful evacuation of the principal forts armed by the
imperial garrisons, whenever the enemy appeared, has destroyed
the little confidence we had in the military protection of the
empire. The people are now all against the empire. Every State
has resume edits rank in the federation. The elections, by the
constitution of ‘57, have restored most of the federal
authorities after the departure of the imperial officials, and
thus federal rule is re-established ail over the country. What
good would it do to try to reconquer, at a great cost, the lost
territory? It would be vain! After waiting two years the people
are not disposed to favor a continued support of the empire.
Troops sent into the interior would imbibe the same feeling and
rebel, or thinned by garrisons they would be obliged to leave in
large towns, they would see their weakness and give up. The
garrisons would be constantly harassed, and their communication
with the central government would be cut off. Commerce,
manufactures, and agriculture being entirely stopped, the people
would become dissatisfied, and, as an immediate consequence, the
means to sustain an army would fail.
A republican form of government seems the only kind to secure the
country from hostility with the United States, and that
consideration has much influence upon the people, who have
reason to fear their neighbors of the north, under any other
form of government.
First. In a military point of view, I do not think the imperial
forces can keep the country quiet enough for the emperor’s
government to be fully in power; the mirflary operations will
only be small fights without result, calculated to keep up civil
war by the arbitrary measures necessary, and certainly to
demoralize and rain the country.
Second. In a financial point of view. As the country cannot be
properly governed, it cannot possibly furnish the means to
support the empire, whose agents will be obliged to resort to
forced loans that will increase the people’s
dissatisfaction.
Third. In a political point of view, the majority of the people
is republican, and I am sure they would not vote for the empire.
They might not even respect a call for a national vote on that
point.
In fine, I think his majesty cannot continue to govern the
country properly without becoming a partisan leader, and I think
it best for his honor as well as his safety to resign his
charge.
After this speech, so full of late confession, what are we to
think about the truth of the boasting bulletins of our
occupations, published in 1863 and 1867, in the two Moniteurs,
the big and the little? What are we to think of the unanimity of
those millions of electors they said voted for the empire
against the republic, and for the Austrian archduke against
President Juarez?
