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THE MONROE DOCTRINE 367 - 



and later the anti-slavery party in Congress, successfully 

 thwarted every effort the national government made looking 

 toward purchase. Indeed, the great slavery controversy 

 that soon came to overshadow all other questions in national 

 politics affected any action respecting Cuba. It colored 

 every discussion on the Monroe Doctrine, as it tinged every 

 phase of American politics. 



From about 1845 to the beginning of the Civil WarJ 

 our connection with Cuban affairs is marked by a desire*' 

 for annexation not so much as a measure of self -protection, :\ 

 as too often asserted, but as a means of extending the slave- 

 holding area of the country. To maintain itself in Congress, 

 the slave power had need of more representatives, and to get 

 a larger representation in Washington, additional territory 

 was essential. The land hunger which sharpened the appe- 

 tite for Texas was equally strong for Cuba, and this period 

 of fifteen years preceding the Rebellion of the Southern 

 states, developed a series of attempts on the part of the 

 United States to obtain the island either by purchase or by 

 force. 



In 1845-47, a strong popular sentiment in favor of the 

 purchase of Cuba prevailed in the Western states, which, 

 championed by the press, soon spread over the entire country. 

 The movement was given fresh impetus by reports that 

 Great Britain was again contemplating the seizure of Cuba 

 this time for the purpose of holding Spain's valuable pos- 

 session as a security for the payment of Spanish bonds. 

 The bulk of the Spanish debt was owned in London, and the 

 interest was greatly in arrears. The President was therefore 

 called upon to act immediately. Mr. Folk's aggressive for- 

 eign policy was relied upon by the country, especially by the 

 South and West, to accomplish this cherished object. 



On January 17, 1848, President Polk sent lengthy and 

 " profoundly confidential " instructions to Mr. Saunders, the 

 American Minister in Madrid, touching upon the extreme 

 danger of English annexation of the island, which he 

 sought to prove by a full account of British aggression in 

 Central America. He authorized Mr. Saunders to urge 



