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The Green Bag.

course they were to pursue cannot be doubt a war which had been called a War of Inter ed. They had seen the clemency accorded vention." Jefferson Davis by the United States only a Secondly, that Maximilian had assumed to year or two before, and the respect with himself the supreme power without any other which the victorious French republic had title than that which the armed force of the treated Charles X. in 1830. The gravity ol French government gave him, and a few the situation, as outlined in the letter of votes which he pretended to call the national Señor Romero, required a grave considera will, "notwithstanding that such pretended expression of the national will is false in form tion. That the Mexican government having decided what it was in their opinion impera and substance, since the Mexican Republic tive they should do, should seek to put their being established as it is on the fundamental purpose into execution through the medium charter of 1857, the only legitimate expres sion of the will of the people is that which is of a trial by court of law, and the invocation of established precedents of constitutional defined in the charter and regulated by the electoral law as laid down in the same." and international law is one of those curious Thirdly, that the Archduke Maximilian instances in which men try to hide a painful necessity under the cloak of imperative jushad accepted voluntarily the responsibilities i of an usurper of the sovereignty of a people tire. constituted as a nation free and independent; Maximilian was officially charged by the and, fourthly, with having, with an armed government and brought to trial for havine. force, disposed of the lives, rights and in as was set forth in the original document, terests of the Mexican people. "offered himself as the principal instrument Fifthly, with having made war in many of the French government to carry out cer cases under the direction of the commandertain plans of intervention, which were to dis in-chief of the French army in Mexico, and turb the peace of Mexico, by means of a war, of having consented to innumerable atro unjust in its origin, illegal in its form, dis cities. Of having, in his own name engaged loyal and barbarous in its execution; and of in a filibustering war, inviting and enlisting arousing in Mexico the political faction that foreigners of all nations to join him. Of has sacrificed the national rights and inter having published and carried into effect bar ests in order to satisfy their particular inter barous decrees authorizing the execution of est: and which faction was already reduced all prisoners of war upon the spot : of hav and unable to offer further resistance without ing assumed that the person at the head of the assistance of foreign arms; in order to destroy the constitutional government of the . the Constitutional Republican Government had abandoned the Mexican Territory; of nation established by the people, who were having attempted to sustain his false title in the exercise of all its powers, and recog of Emperor of Mexico after the French nized by foreign nations, and even by the army had withdrawn from Mexico. very powers which brought on the interven Tenthly, with having abdicated the false tion; in order to transform the Republic into title of Emperor, so that it should not take a monarchy, which would favor the policy effect until he was conquered; of pretending of Napoleon III., in opposing American de to be entitled to the consideration due to a mocracy, and favor the base interests of the sovereign conquered in war, when for the French government" and its agents who had Mexican nation he had not been such. And, no other object in view than that "of obtain finally, with having failed to recognize the competency of the national Council of War, ing so base and iniquitous advantages from