04 



INTRODUCTION. 



his council of the Indies. They objected on the 

 same grounds, to the Spanish cortes which proposed 

 to act in the name of the captive king; and admitting 

 that it was regularly constituted, its authority could 

 not lawfully extend over any other than the European 

 part of the empire. There appears to be nothing 

 clearer than this reasoning. Spain had no right to as- 

 sume the sovereign's name for any other purpose, than 

 to provide for her own safetij, there being no connexion 

 between her and the Indies, but through the sovereign; 

 that connexion ceased the moment the sovereign was 

 in a situation where his acts were null, and the royal 

 authority for a tinie completely interrupted. The pe- 

 ninsula, as a component part of the empire, was enti- 

 tled from necessity to establish a cortes, for the pur- 

 pose of taking care of its own concerns; and each vice- 

 royalty of the Indies, had an equal right to erect it» 

 junta for the same purpose. Here is the foundation 

 of the dispute between Spain and the Indies; the con- 

 duct of the Spaniards in Europe, as well as those in 

 authority in America, justly created disgust. The 

 Europeans instead of resorting to the cortes in the 

 first instance, successively erected juntas in the pro- 

 vinces, which not only claimed sovereignty over the 

 rest of the peninsula, but likewise dver the Indies; 

 while the functionaries in America, more anxious for 

 the preservation of their offices than for any thing else, 

 openly avowed, that America ought to follow the con- 

 dition of Spain, whatever that might be, as in the 

 case of the war of the succession. The Americans 

 who had been roused to the most lively enthusiasm in 

 favor of Ferdinand — who amongst other extraordina- 

 ry proofs of loyalty^ had contributed nineteen millions 



