Newspapers / Hornets’ Nest and True … / June 8, 1850, edition 1 / Page 1
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r i ir i r ii . i I I'l . ...ill T inn v.. I 1 . I I I. ..... i . I.. I II ' I "' 1 ' ' """ '" ' I , ,mm-'r ' " "' '!mmmt- '"" '"."'"""""" - . i i - - i ' 1 . , " - . , - . . i i i , ' t , i 1 1 ,1 - . . 1 : t . - "i . - - - - -." . -.. ! ' . - -I . ." : i -it ; 'U5- :: ; - ;.-. - -. - . fi t " ?, ' ' ' j ' " ' " ' . 1 "' ' ' j I - . 1 ;-. , I i. . i . I "i - ; . (: ; mil "Bwm'iji'iKW m.im iLumni ' 1 ' 'l'h it.; I i I ! . , . ; 1 i , I i ' l ' - trr-Tt- ft ri J. L BADGER, Editor ana Proprietor. A FAMILY PAPER-DEVOTED JO'POLfTICS, LITERATUn". AMICULTUaE MANUFACTURES MINING, AND PRICE $2 ER TEAR In Advance. VOt: Ir vHAltliOTTE, N. C:, SAT0RIAY : MORNING JUNE 8, 1850. :- ' .. , : , .f. i ,h- i .i . -I i , - r.- i - ,u : " ' : . i . ' J 1 I i i -. :f i. -.- -i '.. . - i -1 i - ! l : f. : r i iingrajiljirai . $kiU). E N E R 1 L I.: f LOPEZ: PATRIOT!! THE C1JBAIV t Within the nnst vear nn.l o.k,lr tkA j VeneraI E2 Pf Cuba. M been familiar to the press and people of the jUnited States, as the pro- . Jr-. llK;i or a reyoiinionary movement con ', jemplated in that island, which was to have bro , ut 'n the summeij of 1848, but which was s rusisaicj by the discovery on the part of the gov ern ment. Many arrests were saddenly made, and himself, after beinjj informed that his principal Crientfs ha been arrestei (to tluf number of two .randred, as the account was first brought to him, though it proved afterwards to have been greatly exaggerated.) had time tO CSCano nn hnnrrl y bound for Bristol, R. I., (Rhode Island, not Round , Inland ;) feeling himself reluctanilv .take that step, to save his ; friends from being shot, : a; fate whldl j would certainly have awaited them x ; !m 2 days . if.hc had at thaVmoment, with premature : ; .siiddenness, raised the standard ot the revolution. 1 - r : Having obtained from the friends of General j . Jiopez some interesu'ng particulars of hh life and career, we propose to employ them as materials far a brief biographical sketch, which will serve to make known to our readers the brilliant career and noble character ot 'a man whose name is pro Lab,y destined at no distant day to occupy no small space in the history of our times so far at Ipnst j that history has to deal (with the -political condition -- -e "'"vnwiu siuc ui me iviianiic. . IT I v t . Jlis father was a wealth v uuut-U DrODrieiOr. OWIlUIOrt larfro netn foo n k fanos pr plains, swarming Wjith cattle, horses, &c. His mother, who us still j hying, ris one of those omen ot rare elevation of moral dignity combined v ritft mental strength, wfiose children, imbued with ?.no4t inheritance hi nature, are stamped ? vjtrnerai xarcisco L.opeatis now a little over fifty j years of age, having been born in Venezuela," in uie year I ys. or 'V. I 1 from the outset as .bcrnj for! command. i General : -.; Jpoz was, their only, son that lived bevond child- iiXKi,though of daughfers liis parents had some four teen or fifteen ; .ami, acj:bj-ding'to the habitual life ot lUiWiiios, passed almost from the crddle to the saddle; orj rather, we mityi perhaps sav, to the ,J" '" n nu iiorse wimout any saddle -a trauf- .... .uciiiaitu . lay me lounaauon ot that c-h.icacfcr and habit of fearless hardihood, eneiW ! l-ii! 1 . ... ... -TV .nut rc-MJiuiion, wnicn na been illustrated by his itib'Hiuent military careef.i ! Though o successful as-a soldier, and thou-rh' ! tltat success was achieved only by the display of t extraordinary capacity as IwaI 'ar n . singular that General L.6pez has never been fond , of the military profession and life. He did noi ',' rnter it from choice, butr simply as a resource of ' , desperation, under circumstances forced upon him, ' at the ago of fifteen by the civil war then desola ting all the Spanish South jAmerican provinces. His father had been stripped of nearly all his pro ' pcrty, or had seen it rendered w holly unproduc : live, tfir;ugh the operatioh jof that cause, and with , such means as he was abl6 to realize had entered into, commercial life at Caraccas, assisted i)y his son.' who, boy as he wasJ was able to"tear the . . burden of a large share of ts ; responsibilities. At The town of Valencia, iii the' interior, he had the charge of a branch of his father's main establish- ineni at .araccas, ai ineipertpu oi me sanguinary. . ami lor me nine aecisivc, inattie oi la ruerta, in . : 1814, in which Bolivar, atj the .head of the insur - : gent troops, was lefeaiedj hy the -Spanish army i under Genen Boves. . Bolivar, though routed, seet orders tojthe garrison f Valencia to maintain j the place, which was done with heroism to the last 1 moment, so long as resistance was possible ; the .- j inhabitants who knew thatj massacre and plunder ' '. .would immediately ensue on the entrancee ot the J- " t victorious army, uniting in the defense with the - ; lew soldiers of the garrison. The"' town being an open onc,?ihis consisted; simply in defending the npproaches to the 'plaza lor square into which were hastily collected all the property and effects air active part in the defense at that point, and be j Rro long found himselfjrecognised by those col t' IccteiJ at that point, soldfers find citizens, without selecting it himself, as theif leader de facto. His father, however, who was in Valencia at the time, but a man of dilferent mould from the boy who then made his maiden tqai m arms, topk no part in it. The 'resistance wa's prolonged three weeks, but nm relief came from Bolivar, who meanwhile abandoned J indeed all that! part of the country which he had thus compromised, and made his way along tle coast towards Barcelona. The in- 1 r-i Which it was considered tndst important to protect. t j IIV3 no.use oi jjopez s iatner iiappeneu to De suua S'tfd atone corner of the square, and the boy took j habitants of Valencia felt bitterly resentful at this " J treatment by the Patriot leader, who had sacrificed C ihcm for the escape of thle routed fragments of his f ! :, " j? .r .t L j twn lorce, u y uirecimg uicik inane rtstsiatiut: tnly justifiable on the idea of his coming to their I relief; while it could no fail to provoke a redou bled degree of the usual ferocity with which, in '. that terrible civil struggle,th$ conquering-party was I in the liabit of treating any town falling into their i possession, j Massacre of the men was the general . rule r-aJ rule often enough made to include a pro--;. ix rtiori bf women and children. V After the surren Nirr of the place, Lopezj was separated from his fhth'er, being turned off as a1 child, while his father was herded with 'the menj supposed, in spite of the capitulation, to be reserved for massacre that i:'ghl. The boy himself,!indeed, escaped that fate very narrowly. With some other companions he hoi joined a couple of negroes, slaves of his fami ly.'among a grea jiumber more who Jiad huddled . together! in one spot for safety! thal class notbe 'iag usually included in the massacres of such oc casions j' but during the toight,' he fortunately is 4 sued forth with his two servants, in the hope of be ing able to do something for his father,' or to hear . something of . him. In this hope indeed he was mistaken, though his father, as he afterwards karned, did succeed in effecting his own escape, ; but the next morning ori returning to the place which they had left for that purpose, they found , the ghastly spectade of leighty-seven bodies with I th ir throats cut like sheep. After hiding about 1 for somb time, feeling himself constantly liable to ! to the same fate, and reduced to a condition of ervire desperation! he determine i to seek safety in the only situation in which it was to 5c found, by I enlistment as a soldier in the army ; and selected l I . CP " 1 1 I, - . ' an opponunny oi onering nimseu to a sergeant oi more encouraging countenance than the others, by whom, not without some entreaty, he was ac cepted as a recruit, the sergeant little suspect ing that the boy of fifteen, and small in stature at that,-whom he at first told to be otf and play, was hereafter to become one of the most distinguished officers in the service. The former did not indeed live to see:it, for this good-natured sergeant fell shortly afterwards, it having been Ixipez's lot to to convey to him , amongst others, the order for the service which was his last. j .' Such were the circumstances which threw Lo pez into the military career, aud which threw him into it on the Spanish side of the civil war of that wretched period. L He was a mere boy, and it was the only chance for life : while at the same time .there was probably thea.no inhabiiant of Valen cia who would have hesitated co shoot Bolivar, the 'irr.t-r. . i.. - cniei oi me rainot side, as the j bitterest of ene mies, had they had the opportunity. Spain was then moreover under the republican Constitution of 1812, so that, in the civil war at that period, the cause of liberty did not appear , to be solely on the Patriot side. The battle oft La Puerta was deemed then to have completely crushed the re bellion in that region, though in fact the struggle was renewed and protracted, withj various success till . the final evacuation of Caraccas.by the Span ish army in 1832. t ' ' I ! At the end of the war Lopez, who had thus eii-i tered in ihe ranks, found himself a; colonel having attained thatj rank at the age of twenty-three through the brilliancy dnd daring of his services 1 tie first occasion that attracted his attention to; him was shortly after his enlistment, durimz an attack upon a certain place which was defended: by field-works, there being two bastions connected together by a curiam of about fifty yards in length. The Spanish force being divided into two portions, engaged in attacking the two bastions, the ammu nition of the one portion gave out J and signal be ing made to the other to that effect, the commander called for volunteers to lead three mules, loaded with ammunition from the one end to the other, a service requiring a passage along the line of fire of the enemy stationed ? behind the curtain con necting the two. Lopez was. the only one who volunteered, and he set out with the three mules in a string according to the custom of the country, the head of each fastened by a conl to., the tail of the one before it. j At about half the distance across, .one of the mules foil dead. The mule killed being unluckily the fniddle one, it was ne- sessary to untie the cord, and rerfasten the first and third together, all under a severe fire which was anxiously watched by both parties. He suc ceeded, however, iri'reaching his destination un wounded, though Ui gun was broken by one ball, h&-nantaV" out Jv .l- JL Yr-' by a tuiru, witn the other mules wounded, but not to-death; and the place was taken. (The next day inquiry was made, in a general order, for the volunteer who had offered for this decisive service, wjth a view to his receiving an officer's commis sion.. The commission, however, he declined, considering himself not entitled to be thus raised over the heads of many men both grown and bet ter qualified, for an act which had proceeded more from the despair and recklessness of his situation than from-any other spirit; and, in truth,still hoping for escape from that situation, and from the service, to which he was still strongly averse ; and the only reward he accepted vas that of exemp tion from the druggeries of a soldier's work, and of being mounted instead of marching on foot, to which he had never been accustomed. Still, once in the service, the genious of the soldier," and the spirit and emulation ot military honor, prevailed over his own aversion to ihe career ; and, at nineteen, he found himself commander of a squadron of horsei a select force, designed for critical occa sions to decide pending contests, a corps into which none but picked men were admitted, and with which it was a point of honor never to turn the back ; and at the age of twenty-three, a highly es teemed colonel of a regiment of cavalry. Besides other distinctions, he received during this war the raremilitary honor of the cross of San Fernando of the second(the most distinguished) degree ; a reward not bestowed at pleasure, but which is-to be obtained only on a public demand by the person claiming it, and on the institution of a formal process for and against his right, every body being free to interpose an objection, or to de preciate the merit of fhe act for which it is demand ed. In the wliole army there was' hut ono other individual who possessed this cross. Lopez; not attaching much importance to the act for which he was urged to apply for it, and moreover caring little for the honor itself, wa3 only induced to de mand it by the Commander-in-Chief, Morillo, who taunted him with being afraid of a rejection of the demand, and who directed his Secretary to draw up the application, almost forcing the reluctant young officer to sign it. - ' ; j i " ' : In the negotiations for the withdrawal of the Spanish army, he "contributed much to cause the Spanish General (who could have protracted the contest much longer; though with no hope of even tual success) to relieve the" country from the fur ther pressure of the evils of war, by his influence exerted in every manner consistent with military honor; and it is no small proof of what must have been the appreciation of all his character, conduct and motives, entertained even by those against whom he had thus served, having been thrown by the circumstances above explained on the Spanish side in the civil contest thus terminated, that on the conclusion of hostilities he was invited by the' Patriot government to enter its service, in the same rank held by him in the Spanish army. He de clined the offer, not considering that that honor which had kept him in the service permitted him to accept ; and he retired with the evacuating ar my to Cuba, in the year 1823. Since that date he has been a Cuban, having married and. established himself in the Island. The re-establishment of absolutions in Spain, by the aid of the French intervention overthrowing for the second time tne Constitution of 1812, whol ly prevented his resumption of service, .though re taining his nominal rank. The system then adopt- I ;This was on the occasion of the first battle of Matutin, when the Spanish General, Morales, who was defeated, made good his retreat only by sacrificing a column which he ordered to de fend a certain position, a service which was certain death, in a war in which prisoners expected no quarter and were not dis appointed. Exactly three months afterwards, a second battl was fought near the same spot, in which Morales was victori ous, and they found the bodies of the column in question, that is to say r their bleached skeletons, to the numberof six hun dred, laid out on the ground in regular arrtv, by the Patriots iu rank and fiic, a though hy a mockery of discipline in death. was to require a "purification" from all the cers of the army, especially those suspected of too much liberalism j a ; process , consisting in the abdu ration of such sentiments and in an oath of devotion, and support to the new orderof things. Always not only liberal but democraticin heart as well as in principles, he would never consent to compromise with his conscience in that respect ; and he accordingly remained in retirement until. on theeath of the old King, Ferdinand VII., the long smothered liberal party broke forth from un der the despotic incubus which had pressed it down. and assumed the ascendant in the government of the country. . .Maria Cristina, the brilliant, bold hut unprincipled widow of the old King, after ha vi ing caused the latter by his! will to devise the crown to her infant daughter Isabel, mf disregard of the Salic law which had heretofore.reruIated the sue cession to the throne of Spain,' and therefore lothe' exclusion of the rights of Don Carlos, the King's brother and next male heir, threw, herself on the Liberal. party for support, and even resucitated from .its grave the Constitution of 1811. The ab solutist or royalist party soon prepared to xise for the maintenance of the right of Don Carlos, whose character and views made him moreover their na tural head. Cristina, in anticipation? pf the severe- civil struggle which all knew to be about to ensue, adopted the vigorous measure of disarming at a blow the w;hoie royalist party throughout the king dom, so far as it was practicable; a service which the people were summoned,' and came forward ea gerly enough to perform, with the a id of the troops that could be counted upon by the Government. This movement, beginning at Madrid, was at each important point the work of a day, and by its sud denness so successful, that throughput the kingdom six hundred thousand stands of arms were wrest ed from hands in which they would otherwise have soon been employed for the re-establishment, of Don Carlo!?, the priests, and absolutism,' It'was" in the midst of the tumult of this memorable day "tit Madrid, that Colonel Lopez, (who happened to oeai ine capital witn nis wue, to reclaim a large sum of money arbitrarily seized from the family of the latter by the Government in Cuba,) re-appeared on the scene,! signally distiriguishiibg him self by the activity and boldness which he exhibit ed, in heading bodies of the peoples in this opera tion of disarming the royalists. Always a thor ough republican in heart and conviction, , he was one of the most enthusiastic to welcome the revi val of, the old Constitution and the constitutional-, ist party, and his joy took j the natural form of a zealous daring in the performance of '.this practi cal service to the cause of his principles ; a ser- vice which was not all one-sided, a considerab e part of the National Guard and som6 of the troops being royalists, and Jseveral attempts being made by the latter party to rally and make a stand an3 raged aroun3 them, and finally overbore all resistance. More than once in the course of the day Lopez was seen driving before him singly with his sword, considerable bodies of the royalists, armed with their guns, to.the principal guard-housej to deliver up their arms, treating them with little ceremony, and making them acquainted with the flat of his sword, and indeed cowing them into obe dience to-: his command their own officer." t as though he had been ."The consequence of this day was, that he was speedily despatched to join the army,as first Aid-de-Camp to the Commander-in-Chief,Gen. Valdez; and after taking a most active part in the war, be ing usually selected for the mostdaring military work, he foun'd himself at its clos a iGeneral, and covered with military decorations among which were ihe highly distinguished ones pf the grand crosses of St. llcrmcvpildo and Mabel la Ca'oli ca. Between himself and Valdei j(who was af tewards Captain-General of Cuba) a devoted friendship arose, which has never sustained any diminution. The only pure and u right Captain General sent to Cuba within the m :rriory of man, and therefore necessarily too good to be long left by the Government in that j post, aldez has ai rways been regarded by Lopez as. the most virtu ous man breathing. . ; ' In his political sentiments, Gene ra Lopez never wavered from his fidelity to the democratic party, known jin Spain as the libc ml exaUado party. As a knownj and reliable member of that party, he ivas appointed Cdmmander-in-Chiejf of the Nation al Guard ofthe kingdom, a post created for him at a critical period. .He at different periods filled the posts of Commander-in-Chief of various pro vinces.! Though excessively caressed by the Queen Mother Cristina,he early learned to despise and dis trust her, and her false, selfish, intriguing politics. ; i On the occasion of the popular insurrection a t Madrid which resulted in the expulsion of Cristi na from the Regency, Gen. Lopez whs earnestly solicited by the people to assume the command of the '-capital,; ras "Governor of Madrid, which, when he found it incumbent on him as a duty of human ity at a' difficult and critical moment, he consented to do. j The city being threatened by the army, he made the most energetic preparations for its defense1 ; but happily the withdrawal of the obnox ious Queen Mother to Paris j averted the -necessity ofthe struggle, for which he had braced the nerves of the people by the firmness of his resolution and the vigor of his measures. I EsparterP, :pn whom the government then devolved, and who was soon after appointed Regent by the Cortes, was anxious to induce Lopez to retain the post of Governor of Madrid ; but the latter would not remain, beyond the period of emergency for which he had been called upon by the people themsleves, in a situa tion fti which it might become his duty to act against the people for the repression of tumults, and three' times pressed upon the Regent his resignation ;; which was only accepted when be positively re fused to take a negatfve answer, and had relieved Espartero from the difficulty of filling his place,by himself recommend! ng a competent successor. : Anterior to this period he had been Appointed a Senator of the Kingdom, by the Liberal city of Seville. Authorized, by the constitution to nomi nate three persons for the Senate. front whom the crown had to select one, Seville took effectual means to make good its desire toibe represented hy Lopez, by naming as his. colleagues, in the nomination, two candidates whom -it was impos sible for the court to adopt, the one bring the Ihj fahte Don Francisco de Paula, the uncle of the tEven Carlist historians speak with high praise of tbeir own most formidable enemy, Lopez; relating, ammg other acts, the manner in which he saved the army and the honnrpf General Caxondelet. who, almost beaten, by a supprise, allowed Lopez, though only a colonel, to rally the flying troops. as3ume the en tire command, virtually supersede the general, and to a great extent retrieve the disaster of the day ," i i I " young Queen and brother of Don Carlos, i and the ;"uS -cvww.. 1 -7 -' i otber eing a distinguished Carlist (Bishop His office, of Senator afforded General Lopiez; an opporiitoity of studying the politics of Spain; the spirit and action of its government, especially in reference to its America; l Colonies, (Cuba, his country y adoption and marriage, leing the prin cipal one1.): which amidst , t he clash and spl endojr pf arms, he had never before possessed ; and he willirigly,for a while, forgot the latter, glorious as they hao been to him, to avail himself of the i advantageous I facilities x)f his position for the fo'ri mer. DisffUBt and indiarnation were the first fruits: I resolution tote the Liberator ot Cuba, the next! i ne repuiseiof the uuoan deputies irom tneir seats in the luortesl a Cortes exjsting by virtue of a con stitutifn which gave to those deputies the same Tights with thbse whose votes .repulsed them had alrtrady awakened a dp feelin'r of Iresentment m his breast, as in , that of alt his Puban compatriots (Though a soldier from childhood, he had never had other than , an American heart; and he soon learned to regard with self-reproach his own glory acquired in the Spanish service, and to despise we gutter ot nis own unitorm as a mere iiyeryj ho more honorable in his eyes than that which be pizened a rich man s nejn-o catcsero in his t own country. : Such a thought in the breast of a man so fionest in conviction,1, so . resolute in will, and sd 4curiess ju execunon .was no Darren seiiiirneiu and he deliberately determined to devote the rest pf his life to the libera uon bf his country and the; recovei y of his own dignity, -measuring the lat ter by a far higher standard than the vulgar one pf rank, military distinction, power; or court fa-? tpr. . Resigning his seat as a Senator, he insist-r eu wnn r-jspaiero oxi oeing anowq to return to; Havana ; a permission which1 he did not obtain without extreme difficulty, Inor . till after long 're sistance on the part of the Regent, Jit being con trary to the jealous policy c f Spain, in the govern ment of her rich coloiw, the Queen of the Antilles, to allow any American born officer pf rank bri im portance to go there An. intimate friendship with Espartero, the gressist party noble head of the Liberal or. Pro- in Spain, alone made practicable the importunity with which General Lopezirisisted on his demand, which he even enforced by mar king it the alternative to a -esignatiob of his comf rftission ; and it cannot be denied that his own determined purpose in going, and the consequences which have resulted from itj,: prove clparly : "enough the policy of that rule, on the part of the Spanish Qovemraent, to-which he thus, aucceeded in cau sing himself to; be made the fatal exception I "General Valdez was at this time the -Captain- general of Cuba, to which post he had been short ly before appointed, to a great extent through the influence ol liopez, who had urged it .strongly; as niost intimate and devoted friend, solicited permis sion that Lopez should accc mpany him, but with out success; and it was not till sever ii months af terwards thaf lie finally effected his object,: as be fore remarked,! partly through his throat of resign ing his commission and paitly .from the Regent's personal .attachment; -, ,!. " . .- T -;'. " .-' j It wasJ wo! believe, in 18I5D, that he returned to Uuba. ' During that period of the Captain-Gene-a ship of Valdez, honor, friendship and gratitde combined, to require him to postpone any steps towards the accomplishmehi; of the geat purpose which never slept Within his breast. The down fall of Espartero, land the ' restoration pf Maria Cristina to power, supporter! by Narvaez and the army, by causing the recall of the yirtuous Val dez, (who was succeeded by O'Donnell, the pre decessor ofthe present, Rone ali,) releaised him from the personal oougations by Which at hrst he had Jelt fettered ; and his friends in Havana were sur prised at; thG evident content and cheerfulness with which he received a cfc ange of parties 'neces sarily depriving him of the posts which he held in the military government of the Island'. 1 Under Valdez, he was Governor, of Trinidad and Commander-in-Chief pf the Central Department, as Well as President of the Military iCommissinIe gladly laid down these posfti on the aiwvtiMpfi the pprod of opportunity- and reedom for which he hkd impaltiently waited ; SaridereaUng aprtext for returning to the Central Department ih retirement,-(retaining of course his position as Gen eral, though not oh duty,) by undertaking the yorking ol an abandoned copper mine, he devoted Himself mainlyj to' his object of organizing prepa rations for his intended risir gjof the people against their oppressors; an object j which, it iSiScarpely needed to say, required extreme caution and tact a!s well as boldness, though he well knew that; fhe general sentimentof the people was aliieady strpng ly predisposed to a movement for independence Vifh t his v ie w he i exerted limse I f i nj many ways to establish a personal popularity and persona) re lations, as extensively as possible with the country people of all the surrounding region, tjie guajiros ; every one of whom is more accustomed to the sad tile than to any other seat, jso that they may be be billed a population of cavalry, wh(m a very lit tle training under the inspi ration of such a. leader ould make a jnounted force inferior to none in the world, j He employed .every mode in his pow er to make himself personally familiar with them, tb win their confidence and jto attach them by ser vices and favors ; an operation in whichi always lavish and careless of money, he spent with an unreserved hand, ! j ! j j Another mode adopted b' him of J.bringing the country people together and mingling with them, Was by making matches for cock-fighting at yari (sus points.l This favorite popular, amusement ad been forbidden by j tle Govern jnent, fb the purpose of preventing jsuch gatherings of the cpun try people ; but having contrived to extort a li cense from O'Donnell for the occasion ofthe roy al fiestas or holidays, though the latter had refused hany other applications, he not only got up, With a few of his friends, a grand exhibition which brought together half the country, but he managed o keep it . up for the year jround at many diner ent places, without beipg Interfered with by the jocal authorities, using the shade of some broad tree for the place for meeting. Mingling thus familiarly among the guajiros., in their own cos tume, and as one of themselves, he thus prepared hem to be in readiness for the approaching day. Lopea'B secret wishes and viewa. early adooted. had made him an obiect of at least so much susoicion. in reference to Cu- Havana, and from Tacon, then jCaptain-General, he had been subjected to a formal trial on the pharge of conspmng fp? the independence Of that colony, and of having, at a dinner; 'pro- posea as a toast a sentiment to that enect. Me succeeded, now- iever, in baming his enemies, and was aequutrd 1 Aided by the respect doe to his rank, the brilliancy ui uis uniiiiti y repuiauyn as ine weii-Known oravest arid boldest officer of Cuba, his oenerositv and character for humanity and good nature.he thus es tablished an influence such,that he has always been confident that region would rise at his voice, whenever he should summon the people to rally round the flag ot; liberty hnd independence, j i Having determined early, in i848, that the proper time had arrived,! he 'was only iii4uced.bv some friends to post pone his intended rising, for a short time, in" order to await the results of some communications which had pro ceeded from a highly distinguished American officer in Mexico, who knew the state of public feeling in the Is land. 1 ms delay led, througn an accidental cause, to the discovery of his plan by the j Government, and to the sud den arrest of hrs friends, and the consequent necessity, as explained' at the beginning of this; sketch, of his own precipitate embarkation fo this country, Horn whose friendly scores he hoped soon to be able to return. ' His plan for Cuba hasta-Ways ben ln4pendcnre nd Amjfi ation to the to the American Union. After his escape, he was condemned' to death! Against the persons who had been arrested, (some of them perhaps with reason' and some without,) no evidence existed, and he greater part were released- some being sent jout of the country. The rest of General Lopez's life has to be written by a future biographer. LTo the sligh outline we liave here given,we will only add a few anecdotes illustrative of that enterprising fearlessness to whichi'iinited. with a quick and keen perception, fertilityof resources, knowledge Jof men and gift of of command, aire tob ascribed the rapid and brilliant honorp of his military Career ; respecting which, tne most extraordinary circumstance is, that whileit was commenced perforce, and! as the only chance for his life,! his heart has never beeninj it, i and he has nev-f er desired better than an opportunity of withdrawing al together from the mUitary pjrofessoin jitself. ; . . - On one occasion in South America, landing with an ex pedition, somewhat a la Cotez, in a wild and unexplored region, occupied, by a; highly (warlike tribe of wild Indians (Indios bratos) who never had, nor fever have been tamed, and with whom they had a severe engagement on land ing, the whole party came well nigh perishing for want of water. Striking into the interior in -quest of water, after marching in a tropical climate fori a whole day with out finding stream or spring, they weie at last (approach ed, at about sunset, by an Indian warrior mounted on a magnificent horse, cream-colored, witjh'blackmane and feet." Lopez was in advance with a small column when the commander ; summoned him to consultation. The, vessels from which they had landecfthe afternoon before had sailed, so that they had no return. A number had already died of exhaustion and thirsti, . They (contrived to make the; Indian -understand their want, and he in turn conveyed t6 them that he could conduct them to Water which t theyl could reach by day-break) But here (arose the Oerblexitv. how, far he vvas to be trusted. I His! pur pose might be to decoy them away from the relief which tney mignt otnerwise pernaps nnu in peaireciion mey were pursuing, and to . lead them off astray to. a certain and horrible fate. In the midst of this. anxious uncer tainty Lopez solved the difficulty in a jmode little likely to occur to another, by proposing to mount himself be hind the Indian, on the powerful land fresh hoiise of the latter, and to go at the utmost speed in quest pf the wa ter, to verify ..what was understood frorn the signs of the Indian ; telling the commander that if he returned all would of course be i well, I while 'if he did not return it J would prove, that he was killed, that the Indian Was play ing false, and that therefore they should in that case in- ler. frtv that. Kyi numbing AQ in ith ed. and nis companMSns remained on were going, I result, all the bands of discipline being jmeanw LITC vTtloi l ly relaxed. As it resulted,; the Indian conducTea mm truly,- though of ctrnrse Lopez had to plunge into the depths ofthe forest and of the night, mounted behind a guide who might leaa nim oniyinxo inei miasi 01 enenues. lie reached the. water, returned, .and by conducting them to it saved the Jies !of thf wlhole lexpejlition. It proved ithat the Indian was of: a tbe hostil to those against (whose territory the expedition was proceeding. I Some of his wives had been -carried off on a foray, and he was in (pursuit of them whep he came upon th-strangers whom (Ihe supposed Of course the j enemies of 1 his enemies, and. (therefore his friends. The Indian Orpheus was rewarded mot only by the recovery of his two or three Jost ury ilices, ut by. liberal presents!, a serviceable guide. I indl he afterwards proved The occasion ' on i which fie reqeiv iived the cross of San fFernando, above allu(fcdto,Hvas as follows. Morillo, at the head of a force of seven or eight thousand men, w- i?ht thousaTia men. was mi renin r tViA Patriot armv of Paez. numbenneabout 3.000 over the llanos or pjaiins jti V enezuclar, trying in Ivain to bring the latter to an engagement. This the lat ter had of course no dinicuity inayDiding, his whole "force consisting of first-rate cavalry, while the Spanish iarmy was maraly infanrjry Lopez was at this period, fas has beenj above mentioned, at; -the) head of! a picked squadron, reseryiil'tor. decisi ve moments, with which Jt i Was a point of honor never to turn their backs j He had lost half of it in a severe engagement that morning, arid with the rest, thirty-eight in number, iwas marching on the extreme, flank' of the iarmy, when he received an order-ffonj the General to gallop forward' and harrass the rear of Paezl's retreating army. Morillo had not recog inised, at the distance, the fragment which remained of Lopez's squadron ; which he would never otherwise have (sent on such a service especially after the morning's jwork. Rash as the order was, it .was Of course obeyed. On fhe perfectly level prairie which was the scene ofthe ioperation, what ensued was : n view ofjboth armies. j Pa iez, provoked at the insolence of this little squadron, halt fed, and put; himself in person at fhe head of a splendid borpss of about 300 men, his guard, the well-known flower of his army, in scarlet uniforms, and every man superbly mounted ; and. this corps was seen to jletach itself from jthe main body and rdpidly apjjroacli thejlitle band, whose aestructiott' seemed inevitable before fhe swoop of that force. Lopez asked his men if they would stand or turn. The reply was that they would do as he should. His an swer was to fling hiimself from his-horse, and command them to do the same, thus- burning his ship ; andthn fO form his men. in line, to sfand their ground as long as they could with the lances and carbines which were their krms. lie thus repulsed the charge! of Paez and his gua rd efusirig to surrender; ahd maintaining himself till Mo-, illo .could hasten up his cavalry to their support, and till" he able Paez, withjwhom hi retreat was of .much more importance than the annihilation pf this handful oJj gal lant fellows, w'horh none admired more than himself, withdrew his guardand left Lopez, .with' what remained ofhi3 dismounted squadron h"to ffeceive the cordial eril praces .'of his General, and the plaudits of the whole ar my, Who had witnessed the scene!. j ; jy"- J ' U ; ( In all the acts of herdic daring on the part of Lopez which are familiarly .current among the Spanish soldiers, arid which, together with his humani ty, kindness', and freedom the arrogant! pride habitual to the Spanish officers, have made him so popular with them, it is to be remarked, that the boldness is never reckless jess, but is always elicited, hy a worthy occasion, and combined with that Iquick and acute 'calculation of the possibility which is the essence of military genius. 1 . We are unwilling: to omitj an incident in the! military life of General Lopez, in. which our readers will not fail to recognize; the " high Roman fashion." Together with i large numper of others, he was at one time a! prisoner in the hands of the Carlists, lit a place named Cantavieja, a fortified place in the depths of the mountains of Arra gon, which was supposed a safe place of custody. There were about seven hundred prisoners (collected there.--. Lopez was the highest in pnitlfi among the prisoners, and was confined in' a small room -apart from the rest, with four other superior ofacers.j The governor of jthe place ?as a brutal and bloody wretch, who lost no Oppportunily of outraging pis prisoners. He greatly enraged when a Cristino army under General San Miguel, now one of the. most respectable officers in Spain," began '''to approach the place to beseige it, overcoming,by extreme exertions, the difficulties which had been supposed to make it inac cessible; :'-. 'Tke governor 'thereupon declared that the first gun fired agasnst : the place (should be (the signal, fr the death of all the prisoners in it, from General Lopez 4own, an i "act perfectly in accordaiiee with the system df war 6 Cabrera, who commanded for Don Carlos in that quar ter;) and offered Lopez permission to Write to Saa Among his papers, seized by j uje government, 'was a la ter to he queens resigning hi commission, Which was to hav been sent to the Captain-General a day or two before his rising. This has been described by a friend who harf seen it, as a very noh'e and beautiful prod uc uon, finely reconclmg jthe duty oi miitary honor wKh that of pctriotisui. guel to that effect in the, belief, of course, that he woii'l dissuade him front the enterprise. j ! Lopez .according" wrote, maeeu, nimpiy meji;iung me itici wnicn ne m been requested by the goferhor to oommunicBtfyVut d: dinjg, that Qenerat Sari Miguel Would of course cafry oui his own plans, without regard to this rircmnsUnce, which Wa,"morepver,-a proof thkt the governor was afraid Uujt liie iwould npt be able to maintain the place against ,U,w apprehended seige!. San Miguel at llength made hi p peairance before Cantavieji, apd iegaik1 to throw ,up ht- seize works. The governor then went -to the roo'u which Lopez was -confined, and fold jiim that he dffj.ly.. 'dleped tfie necessity mnder fwhich he was now placed, pf brderinj; the eiecutiori of the pr isoners, but, oflT-d them another'c haiice, by skyinjg that (Jenernl Lojiez might go i)ut to San Migii,elfs camp, o explain in erso th state of things, so as to iwfuce the latter to wit hdtnw ; giving his word df honor j thai he wduld return 'inWnedi ately . Lopez accepted trie offer, an presenting hinisHf to San .Miguel andj offireri, who welcmed him as a fa vorite frierid, sat doWii to icheerful breakfast, at Whirh m explained the exralid on which' he hadbeen sHit. : Jle'ex-' eevted it, ihoweyr; in " niP own wy,1y, cdvising San Miruel of the lest nrodeof at'ta'ckinzlhe toWaVy Morni. , giving hijjjrfthe benefito the; observations he htt bt'ii . abl to mate of its defenses inside ; and it .was agrd that the attack should be Jmade the next day.' The pri Ahelrs had contrived toobtain the promise if soin forty inuikets frorrv some of fhe Navarrese soldiers in the place 4it;h which they would fiake at leat sotnf 1Peijtaiii'e to the amiable purpose jpf the governor ; a resistahrt Whsch might thus afford a useful diversion during Ihe al- tack. This beinsall discussed, together v& he brfak- Lopei rbse to depart!, which he was riot jsutferf d 1. j till i (ia h.id wernawVret ihe ehnrus n f orhWsi,tion Hie fii- J riKuhtereil. lb v'thei 'declaration of his inflexible resolution, JV1 t), "the governor confessed himself very much Astonishitl Ui I see hirp back. I he ! town, was; vigorously attacked tu' next day, and taken by assault ; the; prisoners escaping the impending fate, (whih, by-theiway, a-certaiii Mf, oir priestWas one Of the principal jFjWtixt officers lin th garrison, was the most eager tp inflliit,) by theiispidi.lv of tie operation, "and the terror withj Which; the garri.s..u were impressed. lThey haj! no tirhe, and they m if of reprisals, that was all,f'h was General Xopez's modest cpmmeritary, on alrecent'occasipn when" the inquiries ul" semejfriends (whoi happened. to obserf4 on histahl' a' let-, ter directed to General San "Mijgue'j at Madrid) elicittfd the particulars of this 6tpryvinl which' we see at least a ray ofthe classic glory of Kegulus, (though! hehiniseif was, the only one who safv nothing in (it remsYkaple. IjWe will mention but one other incident tn the career of rhu extraordinary and noble! man, for the pprpoRO ot exhibitiiig hi practical aptitude for' the direction Pf ihe popular masses,' wi II as for the militaiy command. Before Ithe cxpvlaion ofMana Cristina (torn i the Regency! when ( the Liberal Ejalrad'iniiy had become indignant at the course and indications of. the Go. . vernrnent, (it being belipved that nlngotijitjons were On Ajot tor a coalition between her and l0ii ('arlos, tlnpiih the rtmans Ot a marriage of the young quieen with hey -son) and whe n; ih people were especially exaHjcrau d at the fei'l'k-m bs witli whu'U ; tfrewar Was conductfd pnjthe.part of u' Mtdtrado 'goveiti. nuent, Lopez (happened tO'be pasng through Valencia, uccotn panied by a single friend. On his way to. the army in Catn'on a, to which he had beeti Ordered. )t wss,.ot aiwriod hrit h Carlist General, Cabrera, was laging tirougli that reiilpu. !. pez was a to al strangerj ip ValeiiCia, whepv 4ie had riii a In r personal acquaintance thnn!thct'aptaini-Getieral, Meudca Vij.'". , Spending the pvenfng at tie thcitrej ktj.lj' ard in UiU plu'ff vano ; reports of sue coihitiqtfon aihoitg the joopli'iol wtfuli tli Cantain-Geneial, to vhoni he sppke about it. made light.! Alter a short time, jhowewr,1 fht latter rbe 1 and -Jef t ;Jiis box. 'JVu minutes had riot elapsep tiejbre an aideide-camp carme ip, pale -and excited and whiajjcring," as hd passed, to Lopez, that llw Captain-General had been killed by, the j opulace, hastctitd.to to escort tho Vv iro oi tli laiier, ivnoraiit o, tier lius miiu Viati , , t .jja sivernoicut palace. -'-(General Ixl placed niinsMTa e' c e n e raT t a mm oi rh out- bt t-ak was the populnrj licor!icni with the ueiiliriitiaijd lcncia! ;, litis iinmcdiate CSusej, the i.c-f it btittl.c- ita acents in Yalencisj : lira nnmedinte etuseL the n-tt-nt Lutcl, ry ot sixty vafencian patriots oy vsorera ui.a hoitiwo inuiiir, aftd the refutsal of the iut)ioritits in tpniniand to make rcpn-. sals on the Cailint priiwncrsj in the goaljjn tiir citadel, or lo m i' with energy in. the proi ecution of the "war. JThe iintiinal unai d . constituted tii!p bulk of the!inBurents, (whawi numbers by ihc. next morning were Baid to haveiswellcu to thirty or forty t'hotA , eatid infuriatea m n. who tnreak hed to nttbek the c,t drl. d- - . jnaiidiiiL', as the fif'st concession to their vepgeance, the hi tub r . ' .i L i- -l - i' , i i . I.. - -....i . oi two or inrec o ine priuciuiu hhu iiot uiiiiuaiuvis uuiuyi aad the lives pf the Carlist prisonersi arid tlicn active meBsgrri against Cabrera. On learning that ;Geperal Lopez wns ip the ciridel, whom they well know by -reputation though he hn r.cv er before bien' in the place, pe leaders Of the populsce cxprcn- ( ed themselves willing that everything should be. placed in his - i - i. i- 'in... .a ut: ...v.....'.- . nanus ana unuer nis cummmiu i nc ircinuium uuiwihico i u treated him to comply! with tlii (leinnnnt flrKl to nssu , tli:u lo nswijnu i uk ii-- ;Ureri auuwwy oi tu ievMi.eaciiy,to wmcn ne si icngjo pm- lorth alone, in consequence, he soon touna nimseu in inerrmiM bf a crowd ratrmg nnd shouting aroiifidj hin in rlrafcning and uttefly unmanageable contusion, insietitig tim orj jhe hend of the victims.. .A den full of hungry howling lions! sflbtds a fee- pie idea of a ValenCian mob on such ar occasion, a i.J on thai ' occasion. A sign of jfalterjng would have Ujen total) , fi riould only at jast by dint of oaths, violence, and -venhlows, clear a Butfic ent space around him for intelhgiWe conferebn with the leaders; and hctlert insisKtd ttat l would assuniMlhu command and government or ihe city ol. ly'tti tihtion of -' plicit obedience to all his direction thetirBt of which wac.thiit every man should iminediaiely-retire to his fhpniij ; that if h y were to govern him, instead of his i goveniiiig them." lie would return to the citadel, or theV 'might i. kill lilni on the stjot, an thev had done the CnfitaiivGeneral. i He ph vailed. and Order , fr"'." - " t- rzr .. v was restored--'thoutrh he lins often reniarketlthat, active as hiw been M military seryice, this was the ior jnteiiieriis,iUHt . .ofthe government he! jcontfived feet Out of thej way Jnd in v most anxious moment.ot ; his lite, l tip owioxipu uiu,t.jui , regard to the oriHoners tie nrocuieuliroiii tne auuionnes uiu i.ann of all the malefactors, n'ndel scntent ol '-death, of ' M-hout tu-m y happened to bP a large nurtilier, fburteert, ulresdy dixuned f" . . fate which was only lanticipaied n little byiexecMliug them m rjarhst prisoners, po as to apfitaw uionr iiur.i v "v ftliieir vengeance ;,nnd he, ihen lujiied thei atteniioii iittthe channel of .vigorouri preparation lot the reeeptiou ul t 'uln ia, ' who was near and tlneatePing th eity I . I A nohjer lauirel stiD, tlmh that of any of his militaiy honor-, is due to General Lopezj IjNUc well Rnouii chanieu r h bu Ii nttnrliMl' tn hiih in. ISiIbiJ !'2 ui'W: id'wlioiiiia tale, of wrony r oppression was never told; j ithout tlie'certa3niy of finding , hi:u willing to hear,,' quick to nViiipathize,!afid never b(f:Kwii'irt m e erijions to redress. VVhi p "V'ald'-z wnt Cnpiair ..General, he w the channel for! inofitoftliiw petuiHmaiid cotniiaints.cf all kitwh which ascended frond the !irtfbrtimitte arxl the or, r'o the mi -prcme power. I On one .oc4ai!6rV, with 0,linl"s YaWtzVm . cessbr, when by persist ruicf, he ljad indueed ihe())ism-t'f iri -rul ter revoke an oppreKsivfe ;-' decision which he had jut mul ,. in the case pf 4worold wjdow spplyiiiij' U . t,3.1 him ttinf rn'IV.nn,.ir, tmivt lu ar with huiiu for that llll'' d4 his predecessor, Jie had many a tjirnlr twe"uty-fiye c-i!ii a day, in which he hail to urge Uie tii!ions or wie ioor, nu miihj--.hrin their advocafe,nd he produced 'M -atwlipg h"t f ineitiov randa ot cases which he hid then been licifed to prevn', .,Nt. unfrequntlV ha lie! beenfknmvn to irtake-Joiirneys froiil ht! inferior ithe Central Department) to Ilnvaiivyfar! the , sole pu-. poee of tlaiming justice lot a ht pvajiro, improperly iinpr.i--oned or otherwise wronged. And -in; the errny the coniiiiun soldier always knew General Ja Z 'a a Bute triei.d, to w (ion he would never have to Mk in vain fotfjustife or lh:i.hi tty. -'Die truth is, tliat. cbtnbinliig read lyhvitfi ajvery kindly il -- . sftiori, his democratic principles have j natutsljy 'gi-perstej an ... haibitual sympathy' with the mr and fhe, opr-ielwwh!ri kti earnest and resolute enerby of chn iiuiur hi pier uridu ir , , make, praciical and activf. C or oain, Vi lien reptvi d by the C"aptainieneral; Valdez, for 3eHcendjhg, from ths ttia n . , ty of his rank, in ;apja rink as lire dfiertdcr'i.jf ri ifirdii'f ol. hcier, before n court-marfal e.Hnp-p! of liitrolcrs of fofr-H-ptjnding prodeJhieVeply wa", 44 that Buy couiititetwe ntit jjl law and the dienitv of -jukieci.wiw li-rf sUvIb h r ny rh it .military rank Jiandl! moreover, that i : pfreiftlV f-.h was to forbid his defending "the eatf of tf.e hn-U' s'-r-'dirr whom he believed' to be wroBSf d.he vM ll row it otr, rf j . fer toielwrn to th rank 6f lieiitermui a fl-h' wh'eh ,V d-. -afterwards sckjiowW iohve brtnilitJsrd.io.l'S's ja:U ; still h;gher the attachment Mid re."pect in wh eh he liucj always held General' Ljopez." , ; f .. v -j . f'. '1 "- - ' : t flTiip is the rrtan who (not wnliont ;tlir a a pt nw v. hu m, trloU in civil Ifi; somo of whose nsnw me x'. tlw world. 1 iUU-l prebend there rkre lew who will not wish mo nw isa truth faiail ario us through manjr scciibiu d i f lw whn wt rj A t'w finiM nd irriimsfaniie tn d. r ut H h brave beauties of Mntanvis daed inke iin'-''''D eiin C,,. J Ia 'a ntm tll'tlll a 11 jil IT.' W ' U its d content- a so well rfcnuwn. addtfl t.sTii ''. h iKt;wfi wirh the coirntrv nftui.l'. iineeflil V t the country peoi-U', e.pfe Pv U the tittf, s Maml, will nrph..bli "t1' 'he "iiioyMM-rtr a. .IwheneA fifrra bin. ;it Tf Departmenxpf (the rapid and easy one to make a voyaLe to Ciiba ; f .r.Jeed tie at iki ? j - a voyage, at some ft ture day, when, i ui ider dm.rm loM svmpaihetic with wrerjr o :-rrp':t"-', f. h.r. ' rrt the Nwv of th JJni'rd Shs arrlil ol Uie bhckad ol our own v.ho;ts. otliers,' hot Jess werliy, beirw? necessarily iepereu,M uiih taken the notwe mo or emaiiO'paiHig im H jJ ai d the abomination of SuanV-h tyranny w 1 1 vkw to 1 ".7 ' fiance inio our Uuion. No th and nouili. emi ai d wet, vn t C.7 U- S f.i ll. If any one conkf ttovbt it, the one mtite taq, iti" wy "r ( dy attended the (urts lirth.nila haltf injthe ' t Ms -t , zas, last October, (arid that.-; lady thew,ie ofan ; fR.V ? .. nurtice to nrovd th" 'unarfiroitv 1 f the public n'n nt, : i I V . . 1 i i i ; ! ' fh :, . ' ! .-;: t I V - i I"-.'.: r ! '. i vi - . , ' U- i r r i - -
Hornets’ Nest and True Southron. (Charlotte, N.C.)
Standardized title groups preceding, succeeding, and alternate titles together.
June 8, 1850, edition 1
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