No. 124. Señor Dardon to Mr. Fish. [Translation.] LEGATION OF GUATEMALA IN THE UNITED STATES, November 22, 1873. (Received Nov. 26.) The undersigned, minister of Guatemala and Salvador, has the honor to inform the honorable Secretary of State of the United States that the steamer Colon, which arrived in this port on the 17th instant, from Aspinwall, brought two hundred and fifty-eight cases of arms and munitions of war, sent by Don Enrique Palacios, the leader of the filtbustering expedition against the republics of Guatemala, Salvador, and Honduras, and consigned to Messrs. Ribon & Muñoz, of this city, to be kept subject to his order. These arms and munitions were removed from on board of the steamer General Sherman when the authorities of the republic of Colombia were about to embargo them at the request of the consul of Guatemala at Aspinwall, and Mr. Palacios, having no other means of preventing them from being embargoed, has sent them to this city, in order to have them ready for a fresh expedition against those republics. As Messrs. Ribon & Muñoz, however, are unwilling to receive this consignment, the articles have been left at the custom-house, subject to the order of the sender, as those gentlemen have informed the undersigned. Palacios is a citizen of Guatemala, who, a few months since, in conjunction with other Central Americans, organized a filibustering expe dition, with the design of subverting public order in Guatemala, Salvador, and Honduras, as the undersigned has had on a previous occasion the honor to inform the honorable Secretary of State. The filibusters, having been defeated by the government of Guatemala, re-embarked on board of the steamer General Sherman, and returned to Aspinwall, for the purpose of procuring means to continue in their illegal enterprise. Palacios, however, not thinking that the arms which he had brought from Central America were safe there, has shipped them to this city, and the undersigned, desiring to prevent these arms and munitions of war, which are now stored in the New York custom-house, from being removed therefrom before it shall have been shown before a competent court that they are a lawful prize, begs the honorable Secretary of State to be pleased to give the necessary orders, to the end that the customhouse of this city may hold the articles aforesaid until the competent authorities shall have rendered a decision. The undersigned has, &c., VICENTE DARDON. No. 125. Mr. Fish to Señor Dardon. DEPARTMENT OF STATE, Washington, January 15, 1874. The undersigned, Secretary of State of the United States, has the honor to state that the note of Mr. Dardon, minister of Guatemala and Salvador, of the 22d of November last, reached here in due season, but having accidentally been mislaid, this alone has occasioned the delay of an acknowledgment of its receipt. That paper represents that the steamer Colon, which arrived at New York on the 17th of November, brought a number of cases of arms and munitions of war, sent by Don Enrique Palacios, and that, as their consignees declined to receive them, they remain at the custom-house, subject, as is supposed, to the order of the sender. Mr. Dardon consequently requests that the articles referred to may be detained until a competent court shall determine that they are a lawful prize. In reply, the undersigned has the honor to state that, without questioning the antecedents which Mr. Dardon mentions in regard to the articles adverted to, it is presumed they were imported into the United States in the same manner and subject to the same conditions as other merchandise of a similar character. If the requirements of the law shall have been fulfilled in regard to them, there is no executive authority which can properly interfere with the claim of the rightful owner. They cannot be detained contrary to his pleasure, except by order of a court of justice, and during the pendency of any suit which may be brought in respect to them, if such order should so require. The undersigned avails, &c., No. 126. HAMILTON FISH. Señor E. Benard to Mr. Fish. [Translation.] LEGATION OF NICARAGUA IN THE U. S. OF AMERICA, Hon. Mr. SECRETARY OF STATE: In the mission which I have held in the United States, I have been particularly charged to represent the noble aspirations of the government and people of Nicaragua that their isthmus should be adopted for the canal which ought to unite the two oceans. My government, in previous times, has heard with regret that it was considered by the press of this country as rather unwilling to enter into the progressive movement of the age, perhaps because it defended its rights against the unfounded pretensions of canal or transit companies; and therefore, on perceiving that this Government took an interest in the realization of the work, mine not only received with approbation its exploring commissions, but established a legation with the primordial object of insuring that concern which on several occasions it has manifested in favor of the undertaking. The honor which has been conferred upon me by my being designated to transmit these sentiments is due solely to the known enthusiasm with which I have ever regarded the projected work. Since I had the honor to be officially received, I have manifested, by speech and by writing, the earnest wish of my government, and I doubt not that his Excellency the President, his honorable Cabinet, and the whole nation, will have been impregnated with the desideratum of my country; not because I may have been able to express it, but because from the clear-sightedness of this Government and this people cannot be hidden the consequences which are logically inferable from the facts. Thus it is, that, having discharged my principal duty, I might have retired, but I was desirous first of hearing the opinion of the high commission in regard to the practicability of the work, and, if it was favorable to Nicaragua, to carry to her this present which she awaits so anxiously. With pleasure I have waited here for that opinion, announced for the beginning of October; but now I know with certainty that Professor Peirce, member of the commission, will not arrive at this capital before even November, supposing that there are no unforeseen delays, such as before have occurred to prevent the termination of this affair, which may thus be postponed until the winter. The honorable Secretary of State is not unaware that, through considerations of health, I cannot remain here until then, and, it being already impossible for me to carry with me that opinion, I think that I ought to absent myself for the present, in order to make report to my government and ask of it new instructions; or, if it holds that my mission is terminated, that it may send in form the proper letter of recall. But not satisfied with all I have said in private conferences to his Excellency the President, as well as to the honorable Secretary of State, I have the honor to reiterate to them now that whenever it shall wish that the isthmus of Nicaragua be designated as the preferable route, this Government ought to rely on it that mine will yield to the most lib. eral negotiations which the work demands and which may be in its power to concede. I take the liberty of sending to the honorable Secretary of State the inclosed pamphlet relative to the projected interoceanic canal, entreating him to be pleased to have it sent to the office of the commission charged with the examination of the isthumuses of America. Any communication which the honorable Secretary of State may wish to send me, he will please direct to the care of Mr. Alexander Cotheal, consul-general of Nicaragua, at New York, 62 West Thirty-sixth street. I avail, &c., E. BENARD. [Inclosure.] A few considerations respecting the Nicaragua ship-canal. The discovery of the New World, and the project of cutting a canal through it to facilitate communication between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, are coetaneous. Bat the elaboration of those deeds which mark an epoch is slow. Great events often need centuries to be executed, and the previous discussions to which they from time to time give rise are only the forerunners of their future realization. While the various countries of America were still colonies, the canal was not forgotten, it is true, although no adequate efforts were made to secure its construction. The commerce of those days did not demand such an auxiliary. When, however, the entire continent began to share that liberty which was first secured and proclaimed by the United States; when it found itself the arbiter of its own destinies, every section that possessed an isthmus became enthusiastic for the construction of the great work, thinking that the time for its accomplishment had arrived. Such was the feeling in Central America, and especially in Nicaragua, when that country became a sovereign nation, for Nicaragua thinks that the canal will be the most speedy and efficacious means to promote her prosperity, and that its construction is only a question of time. Entertaining this conviction, the Nicaraguan government has always received Proposals for the construction of the work with enthusiasm. It may be confidently asserted that so great joy never prevailed in that republic as when the California 2 mines were discovered, because it was thought that, by reason of the impetus i would thus be given to emigration and to the commerce of all nations, the bgl-for moment was at hand. Overbaste, resulting from the conviction above referred to, has at various times la a source of disappointment to the republic, negotiations having been entered into with parties who were powerless to fulfill their engagements. These disap pointments, however, have not discouraged her; she has remained unshaken in her belief that the interest of the world at large will one day cause the powerful hand to be uplifted which is to open communication between the two oceans. The United States, that enterprising nation which has the gift of accomplishing what it designs, and which has the genius and the power to thrust aside all obstacles that stand in the way of great things, have doubtless inspired the men who control their destinies, and who will, beyond a doubt, satisfy their noble aspirations. This Government has sent various exploring expeditions to examine the routes by which the work was considered practicable. This shows the lively interest with which this matter is regarded at the present time, and furnishes evidence that it will hereafter receive the consideration that it deserves. In view of the many facts now in possession of the public, which it is unnecessary to repeat here, the expeditions which have visited Nicaragua are satisfied that they have found the route marked out by nature. If Nicaragua would be gratified to see the canal constructed through the territory of any nation on this continent, inasmuch as they are all her sisters, and the benefits accruing from such a work would be enjoyed more or less by all, her gratification would of course be greater should the territory selected be her own. The engineers who have examined the Nicaraguan isthmus have seen that there are no serious obstacles in the way of the enterprise, and although their observations were confined to the line of the canal, they nevertheless gained a clear idea of the elements of wealth in which that favored region abounds; still, a short description will not be superfluous, for the benefit of those who have not visited the country and of those who may have become or who may desire to become directly interested in the matter. I.—The healthfulness of the Nicaraguan coast, on either ocean, could not be greater than it is. It is exceptional, because the coasts of tropical countries on this continent are for the most part sickly. At San Juan del Norte, Cape Gracias, Corinto, and San Juan del Sur, families, both native and foreign, have been living for many years, and have never found it necessary to emigrate on account of diseases prevailing in those places. When the journey to California was made via Nicaragua, hundreds of thousands of persons crossed that isthmus, and, notwithstanding the delays rendered necessary by a defective transit, the health of travelers was never known to suffer from epidemics. This statement will be vouched for by the various exploring expeditions which this Government has recently sent to Nicaragua. The many persons composing the same have had a good opportunity to appreciate, during the performance of the long and painful tasks allotted to them, the incomparable salubrity of that delightful climate, which is cooled and purified by a constant breeze. Along the river San Juan this salubrity is to be wondered at when we consider that its banks are covered with the most luxuriant vegetation. Hundreds of huleros, or rubber-hunters, penetrate those dense thickets, being engaged the whole year round in extracting that gum, the trade in which, such is its abundance, keeps many persons, both natives and foreigners, at San Juan del Norte, there being not a few who with this one article have amassed considerable fortunes. These intrepid developers of the country's wealth, whose life is passed in the midst of privations and hardships, enjoy the most perfect health. It would be superfluous to speak of the interior of the country, where the climate is the most delightful that can be desired. Americans and Europeans who live there can best testify to the truth of this statement. However little knowledge one may have of that region, the excellence and variety of its climate will be readily perceived, the northeast wind blowing there during the entire year, and the country extending from the fertile plains of the Pacific to the elevated table-lands which overlook the Atlantic on the north. II. The Central American states, like almost the whole of America, are very mountainous, and the various mountain-chains and their branches intersect each other in every direction. Nicaragua alone is there an exception in this respect. Four of its departments, Rivas, Granada, Leon, and Chinandega, the principal ones as regards the development of their agriculture, commerce, and manufactures, are level, especially the one first named, which comprises the isthmus proper, and which has always been considered as the most suitable locality for the canal. The Andes range of mountains, so lofty throughout its whole extent, is broken in Nicaragua, as if Nature had designed to remove this great obstacle, leaving the rest of the work only to be accomplished by the skill and labor of man. III. The materials which would be required for the construction of the work are found in inexhaustible quantities in the departments referred to. The white and brown lime found in the numerous pits which they contain, is of so excellent a quality that mortar made from it is not inferior to Roman cement. Commander Edward P. Lull, U. S. N., and Mr. Aniceto G. Menocal, civil engineer, both distinguished explorers of that isthmus, were surprised at the solidity of sundry very old edifices built with this material, and have brought specimens of it to this country for the purpose of submitting them to scientific examinations. Immense quarries, containing stone in every variety, are found in the immediate vicinity of the proposed line of the canal. Moreover, that none of the requisites for mason-work may be wanting, clay of a superior quality, suitable for the manufacture of brick, abounds in the same locality. The abundance of timber which would be available for the enterprise, from San Juan del Norte to Brito, or any other point on the Pacific which might be selected as one of the termini of the canal, is still more prodigious, and not only is timber found suitable for the construction of buildings, vessels, or other preparatory works which might be required, but also of a quality which is remarkable on account of its durability when placed under ground or under water. The engineers of the expeditions which have explored the isthmus, were frequently struck with astonishment at the lavish bounty with which nature had provided, along the entire route examined by them, all the materials that would be required. The prodigality of nature, however, did not end there. She also designed to facilitate the conveyance of these materials, and formed that wonderful chain of lakes, which extends from north to south throughout the center of almost the entire republic, thus creating a natural and permanent means of communication which leaves nothing to be desired. She also formed the plains which lie between the lakes and the Pacific, and which are now intersected by wagon-roads in every direction. IV.—While Nicaragua has in abundance the materials required for the work, she also has a population which understands its meaning; which desires it, and which will give it a decisive impulse by furnishing its quota of mechanics, and of intelligent, docile laborers who are inured to every kind of toil. The wages of such persons, which are so high in other countries on account of the heavy cost of living, are in Nicaragua one dollar per diem for the class first mentioned, and fifty cents for the latter. The population of the republic being three hundred thousand, it could easily furnish from three to five thousand men for the work in question, without prejudice to its agriculture and other branches of industry. The Nicaraguan laborer, moreover, must be considered as the most perfect model of what is required for work of this kind; having a thorough knowledge of the country, through his fondness for traveling, not being affected by the heat of the tropics, accustomed to labor, unmindful of the inclemency of the weather, frugal in his mode of life, of a cheerful disposition, and faithful to his employer, he seems to possess every condition needed in order to render his assistance valuable in the highest degree. Not only Nicaragua, however, will furnish men to aid in the accomplishment of the great project. Her sisters and neighbors, the republics of Central America, containing a population of two millions, will lend their powerful aid. It may be said that the laboring class of Guatemala, Salvador, Honduras, and Costa Rica is as well adapted to perform the labor which this work will require, and to support the hardships incident thereto, as is that of Nicaragua. Besides, the feeling which prevails among the people of those countries and the friendly disposition of their governments are a guarantee of their hearty co-operation. The inhabitants of all those countries justly consider the Nicaragua canal as a national work, and as the most effective step which can be taken, in the way of peaceful measures, toward the establishment of a Central American Enion. The official communications which have recently been addressed to Nicaragua by those governments, and which will be found at the end of this pamphlet, furnish reliable evidence of these generous sentiments. V.-Now that I have spoken, although very briefly, of the favorable conditions presented by that portion of the republic which extends along the Pacific, and of the peculiar facilities which it offers for agriculture, it will not be out of place to make some reference to the almost untouched wealth of the broad strip of land which borders on the Atlantic on the east. The departments of Segovia, Matagalpa, Chontales, and the Mosquito territory, which are situated in that region, could not have been more munificently endowed by nature. Favored as they are by the variety of climate resulting from the elevation of their mountains and the depth of their valleys, watered by innumerable rivers and rean 8, motive power and wealth of soil present themselves there at every step to the industry of man. Medicinal and fragrant plants, such as sarsaparilla, ginger, and vanilla, are everywhere met with; vast forests are found, consisting of logwood, moranwood, mahogany, ebony, and various other kinds of wood used in dyeing and fine cabiBet-work; gums and balsams, such as copaiba, caoutchouc, balsamum nigrum, and gatta-perchia, abound. The richest deposits of gold, silver, quicksilver, copper, and other minerals are found at the very surface of the earth. Who does not know that Chontales is called the gold region? And what shall we of the animal kingdom? So many are the varieties of which it is composed that it would be necessary to write many pages in order merely to give an idea of them. In those departments we find, succeeding each other in admirable harmony, extensive Pts of natural pasture, where vast herds of neat-cattle and horses graze; fertile table-lands, at a considerable height above the level of the sea, where wheat grows by the side of the sugar-cane; and, on the lofty and cold mountain-tops, wild silk and |