Mr. Asboth to Mr. Seward
Sir: In connection with my report No. 11 of the 2d of this month, I have the honor to inform you that I received, on the 5th instant, your despatch No. 16, dated Washington December 20, 1866, which contains the resolution adopted in the House of Representatives of the United State on the 17th of December [Page 132] last, recommending to the President that the friendly offices of the United States government be offered for the promotion of peace and harmony in South America, with your propositions to the several belligerents on the part of the United States, based upon that resolution.
In conformity with the above despatch I hastened to address, on the following day, a note to the Argentine minister for foreign affairs, the full contents of which I have the honor to submit, namely:
No. 5.]
Legation of the United States, Buenos Ayres, February 6, 1867.
Sir: It was only a few days ago that I deemed it my pleasing duty, in closing my official note No. 4, to assure your excellency that the Argentine Republic may always and under all emergencies continue to rely upon the sincere sympathy of the United States, and upon their ever regarding with sisterly affection the interests in general of the Argentine nation, and it is especially well known to the Argentine government that the war which is waging between Paraguay on the one side, and Brazil with the Argentine Republic and Uruguay on the other, is attended to with deep concern by the people and government of the United States.
On more than one occasion the President of the United States has called the attention of the belligerents to this fact, and tendered such good offices as seemed practicable with the view of bringing about a pacification.
As the representative of the United States near the Argentine government, I had myself the honor to treat upon this weighty question in my official notes Nos. 1 and 3, addressed to your excellency during the month of January last, under the strong belief that the friendly mediation of the United States in the present crisis of political affairs here would attain results deeply beneficial to the “La Plata republics.”
Your excellency has informed me in your note of the 29th ultimo that the government of the Argentine Republic would avail itself of the friendly offices of the United States government, should the occasion arrive for entering upon negotiations for peace.
Meanwhile a despatch from Washington, which reached me yesterday, contains the information that the House of Representatives of the United States, concurring with the sentiments of the President, and indorsing the public opinion of the nation at large, adopted on the 17th of December, ultimo, the following resolution:
“Whereas wars destructive of commerce and injurious and prejudicial to republican institutions have for some time been carried on between Spain and several of the South American states on the Pacific coast, and also between Paraguay and Brazil, Uruguay, and the Argentine Republic on the Atlantic coast: Now, therefore,
“Resolved, That it be and hereby is recommended to the executive department of the government that the friendly offices of this government, if practicable, be offered for the promotion of peace and harmony in South America.”
The President, thus called upon by the most numerous branch of the legislative department of the United States government to renew the efforts which he has heretofore made, deems it proper by a circular letter from the Department of State to submit to the several contentending parties the following propositions:
“1st. That a conference be held at the city of Washington, on such day, convenient to all the belligerent parties, as they shall appoint, to consist of plenipotentiaries of Paraguay, Brazil, the Argentine Republic and Uruguay, authorized to treat of all matters in difference between the belligerent parties, jointly and severally, and to consider and agree upon terms of a permanent peace which shall be equal, just, and honorable to all the belligerents.
“2d. That Paraguay shall appoint one of said plenipotentiaries, and each of the allied belligerent powers, before named, shall appoint one; but each of the said allied belligerents may, if it choose, confer its powers upon a plenipotentiary, who shall be named by any other of those belligerents, so that it shall be within the option of the allied states to appear either by one or more plenipotentiaries.
“3d. That each of the plenipotentiaries may act under the direction of the government or governments by which he is appointed; that no resolution of the conference shall be effected or obligatory for a determination or suspension of the war or the establishment of peace, unless agreed to by all the members of the conference, and to be afterwards sanctioned and ratified by the governments of each and all the belligerent parties; and that in any protocol or other paper which the conference may think it expedient to submit to their respective governments or to the President of the United States, the representative of Paraguay may act on her part, and a majority of the plenipotentiaries of the other belligerent powers on their part.
“4th. That the President of the United States will designate some person to attend and preside in such conference and use good offices in the forms of information and advice in facilitating the objects thereof, but he will have no power to vote therein, or to assume any obligation on the part of the United States.
“5th. The President of the United States will, in case of disagreement of the plenipotentiaries, designate some state or sovereign, not the United States, nor one of the belligerents, to be an umpire to decide all questions which shall be referred to him by the conference, and [Page 133] the decision of that umpire, he consenting to act as such, shall be made upon the protocol and other documents and proceedings of the conference, and shall be conclusive and binding upon all the parties.
“6th. The expenses of each plenipotentiary attending the conference will be defrayed by the state by which he is appointed. The conference will have accommodations, as to a place for transacting its business, furnished by the President of the United States.
“7th. An armistice shall take place so soon as all the belligerent states shall have communicated to the government of the United States their acceptance of these propositions, and shall continue until the termination of the conference.”
Your excellency will perceive that the whole tenor of these propositions means assuredly not that intervention, into which some of the organs of the daily press here, and in Montevideo, have unfairly attempted to distort the tender of good offices of the United States, but that it indicates most decidedly a friendly mediation, by which alone the United States desire to see good faith and harmony restored among the peoples of South America. And I venture to assume that the wise government to which the destinies of the Argentine people are confided, and of which your excellency forms so conspicuous a member, must be satisfied that the long protracted bloody strife, with its many victims and untold sacrifices, has sufficiently vindicated the honor of the Argentine Republic and its allies, and that it is peace which is now so urgently needed to enable the national government to secure the full benefit of its enlightened and progressive policy.
Your excellency’s extensive acquaintance with the past and experience of the present will have impressed upon you the great truth that in the life of nations, as well as in that of individuals, there are moments pregnant with the gravest consequences to their future. And I allow myself to indulge the confident hope, that the propositions of my government, embodying as they do the unanimous feeling of the people and the government of the United States, who are actuated in this instance not only by sincere good will, but also by the firm determination to uphold the dignity and interests of those who confide in them, will readily meet with the cordial assent of the Argentine government, and lead to an early armistice, the welcome precursor of lasting peace, equally honorable and beneficial to all republics of South America, who, belonging to the same race, speaking the same language, and professing the same religion, ought naturally to form one family whose members are emulous only to promote their mutual prosperity and happiness.
I have the honor to be, sir, with distinguished consideration, your obedient servant.
A. ASBOTH.
His Excellency Señor Dr. Don Rufino de Elizalde, Minister for Foreign Affairs.
A duplicate of this note I transmitted yesterday to Rear-Admiral S. W. Godon, United States navy, off Montevideo, with a request (copy of which I beg to enclose, marked A) that he would be pleased to place it in the hands of the Uruguay minister for foreign affairs for the information and friendly consideration of the government of the Uruguay republic. I deemed it prudent to do this because the government of the United States has no representative near Uruguay, and in order that that republic, forming as it does part of the triple alliance, and having been specially named both in the resolution of the House of Representatives and in the proposition of your department, should have no pretext to ignore either the proffered mediation of the United States or the terms thereof.
I confidently hope that my action in this delicate matter, dictated by the desire to obviate as much as possible unnecessary delay in the prosecution of this important negotiation, will meet with your approval, and that you will be pleased to advise me how to act in future with regard to the Uruguay republic.
I had the honor of forwarding in my report No. 11, enclosure B, extracts from the Montevideo press expressive of regret that no United States minister was at present accredited to the Uruguay republic, attributing this state of affairs to the departure of the government of that republic from the principles of government of the United States, which nevertheless they professed to adopt and follow, and giving utterance to the wish that the day may not be far distant when a remedy will be applied to the present unsatisfactory state of the relations between the two governments. Under these circumstances, and in view of the existing political complications, I should be wanting in my duty were I not respectfully to call your attention to the great desirability of naming some agent to negotiate with the government of Uruguay on behalf of the United [Page 134] States. Indeed I regard this as of such paramount importance at the present juncture, that I deem it right to add my opinion that it would be quite practicable, since Montevideo is so near to and connected with Buenos Ayres by an almost daily steam communication and by telegraph, to undertake for the time being, if such should be the pleasure of the government, the representation of the United States near the government of Uruguay in addition to my duties in Buenos Ayres. I flatter myself that in this suggestion you will recognize only my ardent desire to promote to the utmost of my poor ability the interests of my adopted country, and thus testify in some measure my high sense of the confidence already reposed in me.
Times are becoming more and more exciting here. In enclosure B I forward short memoranda of daily politcal events. The press informs us this moment that the national government prevented, in the course of last night, a revolutionary outbreak here pregnant with intended assassinations. Numerous arrests have been made to-day, and several prominent natives have on various pretexts applied to me for an asylum, which I of course declined, but I give full protection to all citizens of the United States.
In such a state of affairs it is probable that in the absence of the President as well as the Brazilian adviser, Señor Octaviano, the government will again delay its answer. Should this be so, and I remain still without news from our minister in Paraguay, the Hon. Mr. Washburn, I will request Admiral Godon to place a steamer at my disposal, and go up myself to exchange despatches, and confer with Mr. Washburn in person in order to further the carrying out as fully as possible your instructions, and the spirit of the resolution of the United States Congress in regard to the restoration of peace and harmony in the La Plata and Parana republics.
I have the honor to be, sir, very respectfully, your obedient servant,
Hon. William H. Seward Secretary of State, Washington, D. C.