The Minister of Foreign Affairs to the French Minister at Washington.
Marquis: News from the United States shows us the particular importance attached to confederate emigration to Mexico in that country, and how much the public mind is now occupied with the pretended territorial or mining grants that the government of the Emperor seeks to claim.
The fall of the southern confederacy has hastened the time for the Mexican government to open relations of good fellowship with the cabinet at Washington. The very delicate question of confederate emigration is, in my opinion, the first step towards an alliance, if it be frankly and openly considered. It could not then fail to attract the attention of the emperor Maximilian. From what our minister in Mexico writes me, his Majesty intends to welcome emigrants to his territory under the following conditions: If they are armed and organized, they must lay down their arms at the frontier; they must take an oath of obedience to the Mexican government, with a promise not to engage in any attempt against a friendly or neighboring government. If they wish to settle as planters, they shall repair to designated localities, and not establish themselves upon the frontier of the United States, [Page 694] nor upon the isthmus of Tehuantepec. Generals Almonte and Robles are to be sent to the United States by the emperor to ask for the acceptance of these conditions.
According to my information, they will express themselves about in these terms at Washington: “We have,” they will say to the federal government, “neither created nor desired the situation imposed upon us. Remnants of confederate armies or exiled citizens ask an asylum of us; the consequence for us is various obligations which we do not wish to avoid. We wish to fulfil the duties of humanity towards the conquered that the fate of war has compelled to quit their country. We wish to take advantage of this for ourselves and make Mexico profit by the activity and energy of men who come to seek a new country among us; in fine, we do not wish to quarrel with our neighbors, but our hope, on the contrary, is to form and keep up good and profitable relations with the American Union. To reconcile these different necessities, we will welcome the confederates; but we propose to disarm them on their arrival into Mexican territory, if they come with arms; to remove them from the frontier into the interior of the country, where we will give them lands and facilitate their definitive settlement according to their capabilities.”
We can but approve of this conduct in general. It has suggested to me, however, one observation. If it is necessary to remove the Americans from the territory of the Union, it would not seem to me wise to interdict every American emigrant the faculty of establishing himself in the mining districts, and I do not think that the federal government, in case it did happen, should be offended at it. No matter about the details of the emperor Maximilian’s plans; this seems to us the proper time to carry them out. Such language, clear, plain, practical, I think would be heard and understood at Washington.
As to the recent report, newly propagated in the United States, attributing to us the project of seeking territorial acquisitions or privileges for working mining districts, you know they have absolutely no foundation. You know better than anybody else what are our intentions in that particular, for it was to you I communicated them on the 30th of November last, and you gave notice of them to the Mexican government. The views of the government of the Emperor have not varied since that time. It is firmly resolved not to accept the cession of any portion of Mexican territory, and to decline all proposals for concession of mines in Sonora. You must say this openly everywhere, so as to leave no doubt in minds, and to remove every pretext for similar allegations.
Accept, &c.,