No. 508.
Mr. Foster
to Mr. Frelinghuysen.
Madrid, November 13, 1883. (Received December 3.)
Sir: There has been in session in this city for some days past an assembly termed the Spanish Mercantile and Colonial Congress of Geography, in which some of the leading public men,”political economists and statisticians participated, and which was closed on yesterday by a discourse from Señor Canovas del Castillo, one of the most prominent and able of Spanish statesmen.
A considerable portion of the deliberations of this congress was devoted to the commercial and industrial condition of the Spanish colonies, in which Cuba received the most attention. The unfavorable state of its affairs in these respects was recognized on all sides, and one of the most necessary measures suggested to restore the island to its former prosperity and wealth was the improvement of its commercial relations with the United States, and before the adjournment the congress adopted a resolution recommending the negotiation by the Spanish Government of a treaty of commerce with the United States with special reference to Cuba and Porto Rico.
It may be noted in this connection that the Cuban deputies in the Spanish Cortes have frequently advocated this measure in that body, and have urged it upon the King’s cabinets. It is believed by them that the present ministry is more favorably disposed to the project than its predecessors.
I am, &c.,