

368 AMERICAN DIPLOMATIC QUESTIONS 



upon the Spanish Government the advisability of parting 

 with Cuba to the United States, but he hastened to give 

 assurances that the United States would not seek to acquire 

 it "except by the free will of Spain." It was to be by 

 "fair purchase" only, and 8100,000,000 was suggested as a 

 maximum price. Popular feeling in Spain was outraged 

 by the very suggestion of releasing this gem of her few 

 remaining possessions. " It was more than any minister 

 would dare," replied Mr. Saunders to Mr. Buchanan, "to 

 entertain any such proposition ; sooner than see the island 

 transferred to any power, they would prefer seeing it sunk 

 in the ocean." It thus became clear that the purchase of 

 Cuba was entirely out of the question. 



In 1849-50, during the presidency of Gen. Taylor, an inci- 

 dent occurred in connection with Cuban affairs which brought 

 to light a new phase of the Monroe Doctrine. Among the 

 many political disturbances and revolutionary movements 

 which illustrate the history of Cuba, one in particular, the 

 Lopez rebellion of 1849-50, received its main, if not entire, 

 support, in the United States. 



Narciso Lopez, a Venezuelan by birth, once prominent in 

 Spanish military service, became the leader of a revolution- 

 ary j>arty in Cuba. In the summer of 1849, he organized 

 an expedition in New York, made up for the most part of 

 Mexican war veterans, and was about to embark in the 

 cause of " Cuba libre " when he was arrested by the United 

 States authorities. President Taylor thereupon issued a 

 proclamation (August 11, 1849) in which he announced that 

 44 It is the duty of this government to observe the faith of 

 treaties and to prevent any aggression by our citizens upon 

 the territories of friendly nations. I have therefore thought 

 it necessary and proper to issue this my proclamation to 

 warn all citizens of the United States, who shall conduct 

 themselves with an enterprise so grossly in violation of our 

 laws and our treaty obligations, that they will thereby sub- 

 ject themselves to the heavy penalties denounced against 

 them by our acts of Congress, and will forfeit their claim to 

 the protection of their country. No such persons must 



