MANNERS AND CUSTOMS. 



551 



' This war has origiuated from 

 a combination of causes in which 

 both parties have, perhaps, 

 something to complain of, and 

 something to blame themselves 

 for. 



General Artigas and his fol- 

 lowers profess a belief that it is 

 the intention of the government 

 of Buenos Ayres to put them 

 down, and oblige them to submit 

 to such arrangements as will de- 

 prive them of the privileges of 

 self-government, to which they 

 claim to have a right. They 

 say, however, that they are 

 willing to unite with the people 

 on the western side of the river ; 

 but not in such a way as will 

 subject them to what they call 

 the tyranny of the city of Buenos 

 Ayres. On the other hand, it is 

 stated that this is merely a pre- 

 text; that the real object of 

 General Artigas, and of some of 

 his principal officers, is to pre- 

 vent a union on any terms, and 

 to preserve the power they have 

 acquired, by giving an erroneous 

 excitement to the people who 

 follow them : that it is wished 

 and intended to place these pro- 

 vinces on a footing with the 

 others : that the respectable por- 

 tion of their inhabitants are 

 aware of this fact, and anxious 

 for a union ; but are prevented 

 from openly expressing their 

 sentiments from a fear of General 

 Artigas, whose power is uncon- 

 trolled by law or justice; and 

 hence the propriety and neces- 

 sity of aiding them to resist it. 

 Armies have accordingly been 

 marched within the present year 

 into these provinces ; but they 

 were not joined by a number of 



the inhabitants, and were defeated 

 with great loss. 



This war is evidently a source 

 of great injury and regret ; and, 

 at the same time, of extraordi- 

 nary irritation to both parties ; 

 for, independently of other causes 

 of recrimination, each accuses 

 the other of having brought about 

 that state of things which threatens 

 to place a most important and 

 valuable portion of their country 

 in the hands of a foreign power, 

 who has invaded it with a regular 

 and well-appointed army, and is 

 gradually taking possession of 

 commanding points, from which 

 it may be difficult for their united 

 force hereafter to dislodge them. 

 That they will unite is, I think, 

 to be calculated on, unless some 

 event disastrous to the cause of 

 the revolution itself takes place ; 

 for their mutual interest requires 

 a union. But more of modera- 

 tion and discretion may be neces- 

 sary to bring jt about than is at 

 this time to be expected from 

 the irritated feelings of some of 

 the principal personages on both 

 sides. 



The city of Santa Fe, and a 

 small district of country around 

 it, also refuse to acknowledge 

 the authority of the government 

 of Buenos Ayres. 



In Paraguay the events of the 

 revolution have differed from 

 those in any other province, as 

 the inhabitants of that country 

 have uniformly resisted the efforts 

 of the other provinces to unite 

 with them. After having aided 

 the Spanish authorities placed 

 over them, to ^epel a mihtary 

 force which had been sent to 

 overthrow them, they themselves 



expelled 



