Thomas O. Osborn to By the President: Hamilton Fish, October 13, 1874

No. 6. Mr. Osborn to Mr. Fish.

Sir: I have the honor to inform your excellency that at half-past one yesterday, Dr. Don Avellaneda was inaugurated President of the Argentine Republic, taking the oath of office in the presence of both houses of Congress.

The plazas and adjacent streets were filled with troops; there was no outbreak or disturbance, as apprehended by some, but, on the contrary, the city was remarkably quiet.

I received this morning, from the foreign office, a copy of a decree of the President, announcing his cabinet. On comparison, I find that the Standard has printed the names of the different gentlemen who compose the President’s cabinet correctly, hence I inclose the printed list:

The New Cabinet.—President Avellaneda has formed his cabinet of the following gentlemen: Interior—D. Simon Iriondo, senator for Santa Fé, and formerly governor of that province, a lawyer by profession, and said to be of active business habits. Foreign Affairs—D. Felix Fries, at present Argentine plenipotentiary at Santiago, and engaged for some years back in the negotiations with Chili about Patagonia. He is a native of Buenos Ayres, of high family and respectable talents. Finance—Dr. Santiago Cortines, native of San Juan, who has held the same portfolio since the appointment of D. Luis Dominguez as envoy to Peru. He was formerly accountant-general, and is generally esteemed. Justice—Dr. Onesimo Leguizamon, deputy to Congress, native of Entre Rios, for some time editor of the Nacional, a very fluent speaker and writer. War—Dr. Adolfo Alsina, late vice-president of the Republic, previously governor of Buenos Ayres, author of the Oficina de Cam bios, son of Dr. Valentine Alsina, who made the rural code. He fought under General Mitre at Cepeda, and is the only one of the new cabinet who has visited Europe.

I also inclose a printed copy of the farewell address of President Sarmiento, (marked 1,) and a copy of the address of President Avellaneda, (marked 2,) and a copy of the manifesto of General Mitre, (marked 3,) putting himself at the head of the revolution.

There has been some skirmishing in the upper provinces, but nothing serious. It is reported this morning that General Rivas has advanced with a column of about four thousand troops toward this city as far as Villa Mercades, and that General Alsina (appointed secretary of war) is marching at the head of about six thousand national guards to meet him.

The armies are said to be only about ten miles apart, and the first battle may be expected any hour.

I am, &c.,

the new presidency—speech of president avellaneda.

Business was suspended yesterday partly on account of the rumors of revolution, most of the, shops being closed, and partly by reason of numerous brokers, merchants, &c., going to see the ceremonial at Congress, of President Sarmiento handing over the reins of power to Dr. Avellaneda.

Soldiers on foot, gunners, cavalry, national guards, and extramuros, besides contingents from Entre Rios and Santa Fé, kept the streets in animation from an early hour, giving a military aspect to our usually peaceful city. At noon the display of horse and foot in the Plazas Victoria and 25 de Mayo was quite imposing. The national guards occupied the south and west sides of the Plaza Victoria, the Entre Riano or Santa Fé cavalry forming in parade along the front of the cathedral and bishop’s palace, while general officers, attended by brilliant staffs, all in a blaze of gold lace and splendid accouterments, galloped up and down by the Arch of Triumph of the Recoba Vieja, facing the obelisk of independence and Mr. Coghlan’s fountains.

The Plaza Mayo was still more decorative. The artillery were stationed near the angle of the Hotel Argentino; the escolta, in Hungarian hussar uniforms, formed a line between General Belgrana’s statue and the government-house; a double file of national guards connected the two plazas, and the infantry of the line were drawn up from the doors of the Congress-hall, in front of the custom-house and the new post-office, as far as the site of the old gate of San Esteban, (occupied by the English in 1859) recently removed to make way for the new post-office.

The number of spectators in both plazas hardly numbered 500, but the balconies were pretty crowded. The state-coach of the President was at the entrance of the government-house facing Paseo Julio, waiting to convey Don Domingo Sarmiento for the last time, and to receive its new occupant as soon as the Congress ceremony was over. The windows of the government-house were open, showing inside a variety of grand uniforms and gentlemen in black, but we could not see any of the foreign ministers or consuls. Some of the consulates had their flags flying in honor of the occasion; the public offices also displayed the Argentine flag of blue and white. General officers and others might be seen proceeding from the government-house to Congress, but there was no cheering or disturbance, and the guards were motionless as statues around the entrance of the Congress-hall.

At 2 p.m. the grand cortege left the government-house, and in proceeding to the Congress-hall, Dr. Avellaneda wore a cheerful appearance, as if there was no civil war or the least trouble to damp his spirits. At the same moment an imperial salute of 101 guns was fired from the Plaza 25 battery, the troops presenting arms, the bands playing the national hymn, the members of Congress rising in their seats; and as soon as Dr. Nicolas Avellaneda was sworn in as the new President, he made the following speech:

“Messrs. Senators and Deputies, I have come on the day appointed by the law to take the usual oaths as incoming President of the republic. I have just taken these oaths in this place, whence for the last twelve years have emanated the laws that govern the republic. This is sufficient proof that the predictions of anarchy and treason were false, that subversive efforts were powerless, because in spite of the disturbances which make the occasion doubly grave and solemn, our constitutional system is not interrupted, but the reins of power are transmitted, and a new Presidency commenced according to law.

“On the 12th of June the electors of the fourteen Argentine provinces met and elected the new President and vice-president; friends and strangers and all the provinces watching with intense anxiety the upshot of the great electoral struggle which had so much agitated the country.

“When the contest was over, the result of the scrutiny decided the question irrevocably. Our institutions had sustained a rude shock and come out victorious. Quiet began to settle down on the minds of all, and that generous expansion took new life, which is a national virtue of ours, tending so powerfully to still past dissensions, and re-establishing the soft reign of harmony and good feeling in all our social relations.

“Suddenly a fraction of the beaten party persists in prolonging the struggle, calling in question the result already notorious. This was surprising, although it might be explained by the preceding agitation. Nor had the congress yet solemnly proclaimed the issue. It was only prudent to use toleration, although the shouts became of a menacing character. Moreover, the case was so plain, that we rationally supposed that the weight of conviction would at last quiet the agitators.

“At last the scrutiny by congress took place in legal form; the result of the presidential election was announced to the world, and so great was the disparity between the votes for the rival candidates that, even granting all the concessions called for by the opponents, there was still a considerable majority for the candidate declared by congress as duly elected president of the republic for the next constitutional period.

“But the excited passions did not cool down before the declaration of the law. We had, on the contrary, a spectacle never before witnessed in well-governed countries—the revolutionary emissaries spread themselves over the republic, generals perfidiously allied themselves with treason, conspiracy was carried on in broad daylight, and the press day by day indicated the course to be followed by the conspirators. All this was tolerated, although the party which had won was exercising power throughout the provinces.

“A revolution was hinted, but nobody believed in such a folly. The republic was making such progress and enjoying such liberty, that it was impossible to imagine any attempt would be made to snatch from its the blessings so dearly purchased after 60 years. We did not wish to use repressive measures to irritate the angry or to stir up bad passions, hoping that a sense of patriotism and duty would make them stop short of their sinister designs.

“We were, however, mistaken. The revolt began with the capture of two vessels and two wicked mutinies in the forces placed to defend the frontier from Indian forays. The assassin’s dagger laid low two noble martyrs. The intention was to strike terror by means of crime, and at once the enthusiasm of the provinces rose up against it. Already we see Buenos Ayres, Santa Fe, Corrientes, Entre Rios, and Cordoba in arms. The rebel Arredondo traverses ninety leagues without being joined by a single man; while Colonel Roca, who escaped from the treason with barely 200 men, is able in six days to place himself at the head of a powerful army. His march is one of triumph, while the rebels disband or take to flight. It is a civic victory over a barrack mutiny. The revolt continues weak, relying no longer on its own elements, but on the flotsam and jetsam of twenty years of revolution. The institutions will be victorious our republican system is safe, and we shall again show, as we have so often done before, that fundamental liberties are only obtained by blood and sweat.

“Messrs. Senators and Deputies, you will come next year to resume your sessions without anxiety for the present or alarm for the future; and it will be my pleasing duty to assure you ‘that we form at last a real republic, ruled by the majority; that all Argentines are in the equal enjoyment of liberties and suffrages; that we have suppressed the last conspiracy of an oligarchy which was blinded by the long possession of power, and wished to raise its pride or its folly above the will of the people.

“But let us pass from the present circumstances, from a criminal episode produced by morbid or strange causes, and which will speedily disappear. The present advanced condition of the Argentine provinces is neither the work of men nor the effect of transitory occurrences. It springs from the public enlightenment, social advancement, wealth, trade, and industry of our actual state. Before long we shall resume the ordinary course of business, completing our lines of telegraph, pushing forward railways, and increasing the number of schools, consolidating and reforming our institutions, not altering the text of existing laws, but carrying out their real letter arid spirit in all the provinces of the republic.

“I had intended to speak to you of many different subjects, but they would be of little interest to-day. A president of the Argentine republic can happily form his programme in a few words. His programme is his oath, and he has only to say that he has sworn it with religious sincerity, and will fulfill it with loyalty, perseverance, and patriotism.

“A famous historian, commenting on the progress of the nineteenth century, says that we do not go forward by a chance, but following fixed routes and landmarks. We see at present some of the oldest nations of the world checked in their march, uncertain which way to go, because they seek to solve all political and social questions by dogmatic or partisan rules, often contradictory, representing either the exploded theories of a remote antiquity or the suggestions of a wild utopia, that appears harmless in the abstract, but proves of a most sanguinary and cruel character.

“We have many of the faults of a young country; but we know what we are in search of, and what remedies we must apply to existing evils. Our political organization is clearly defined in our constitution, which may be more luminously explained by the constitutional history of the United States. Our social dogma is contained in the definition of certain rights and certain principles that are acknowledged by all our public men, and bear upon them the seal of common consent. The intentions of government are equally clear, because they simply imply the development of the country according to the wisest manner. For example, everybody knows that when immigration flows’ in upon our shores we have to foment and increase it, to turn it to good account, by dictating suitable laws, instead of allowing an accumulation of immigrants in a confined area, and thus causing an apparent blessing to become the source of new calamities.

“The increase of population, the gradual reduction of Indians, and their disposition to become civilized, are sufficient to point out the expediency of a new frontier law, such as the executive will think conformable to public opinion. The same may be said of other matters affecting our internal administration on which public opinion has already expressed itself.

“As regards internal policy, my programme is this: I consider the sole legitimate tradition that which overturned Rosas, suppressed arbitrary government, founded the present constitutional system, and sealed the unity of the republic. I do not, however, think that a government founded by liberal parties should be monopolized by a religious caste, as in India, but that office should be open to every honorable man who accepts the existing facts and principles and has enough talent to serve his country.

“A policy of reparation and tolerance is what we most require, for the more we overlook past dissensions the more we efface their recollection or causes, giving to our government a more administrative character, and tending more preferently to the advancement of the interests of public economy.

“As regards our foreign relations, it is unnecessary to say that I shall cultivate them by following the same course of loyalty and justice observed by my predecessor. This is now a national tradition, and America knows that we spare no consideration to be faithful to our international contracts.

“Nevertheless, I must observe that it is high time to settle questions of limits with some of our neighbors. These questions have been luminously discussed for some years back, and the ground is thus prepared for some definitive solution. I believe the same feeling is shared by the governments of the neighboring countries, because a prolongation of such controversies is apt to keep alive sentiments of jealousy, antipathy, and distrust in our mutual relations, thus weakening or endangering the fraternal harmony that has hitherto bound us together by reason of our common origin, language, and religion, and our common glories in the emancipation of this continent, which harmony can never be disturbed unless an aggressive, obstinate, or narrow-minded policy stir up artificial antagonisms among the various countries.

“Messrs. Senators and Deputies, I begin my presidency surrounded by difficulties, but I come by the straight path, bearing in my hands the credentials of the majority of the republic, which will lighten on my shoulders the task of government that I have just assumed. Relying on my own conscience and the support of my fellow-citizens, guided by your wise resolutions, I dare assure you that the credit of the nation will not decline under my administration, and that no act of mine shall sully its honor. All of us, Argentines, learn from our cradle that the banner of the country must be kept pure and spotless, like the sun emblazoned on its colors of white and blue. In placing myself in so elevated a position, I am mindful that my countrymen now view me in the chair where Rivadavia and Sarmiento have sat before me.

“Nations have at times to learn bitter lessons. We have learned in the present instance that the means of repression placed in the hands of government can never be abandoned without putting society in danger, that we may allow public opinion to erect pulpits or found newspapers, but that we can never allow sedition and mutiny to be preached in broad day; because a free people admits discussion and free suffrage, but is bound to shut the door on deeds of violence and arms.

“Messrs. Senators and Deputies, we shall soon have to witness a new spectacle, namely, the resumption of our normal routine of progress, each day marking a new step forward. We shall continue to count the miles of railway made, the steamers arriving, and the thousands of immigrants entering port. We shall push forward our telegraph-wires to the farthest frontiers, where barrack-mutinies have now taken place because we forgot to connect them with Buenos Ayres by wire. The learned men in the national employment will prosecute their scientific inquiries in our territories and our skies, and tell the world, as Dr. Gould has just done in the Athens of North America, the wonders of our unexplored regions; and, when next you meet in this congress hall, it will be to devise, with lofty feelings of patriotism, the most suitable means to restore tranquillity and order to our populations, so long agitated by the electoral struggle and the occurrences of the present hour.

“Messrs. Senators and Deputies, may the Almighty endow you with the wisdom that becomes your office, and give me the firmness and prudence to enforce the constitution and the laws. May the All-wise Providence send our country assistance under tribulations like the present, with which He sometimes visits nations, to draw from passing afflictions a positive and lasting good.”

manifesto of general mitre.

Fellow-Citizens: As a public man of known antecedents, and candidate for president at the last election, and also as a citizen who accepts his moral responsibility before the people, I owe you a word of explanation as regards the attitude I have deliberately assumed in presence of the grave circumstances in which the republic now finds itself.

Permit me, in the first place, to remind you that, when I was the favorite of fortune and liberty, or when honored by the unanimous and unfettered vote of the provinces, I never made use of either victory or power but for the public welfare; that when my time was up I handed over the reins of power to the elect of the nation, leaving the republic, for the first time, united as one people, in the enjoyment of peace and liberty, triumphant abroad and prosperous at home. I retired into private life, free from animosity or ambition, and only came forward when the people and the government summoned me, either for advice or assistance, thinking that I had always corresponded to their confidence on similar occasions. Nor do I believe that the sincerity of my word was ever called in question even by my enemies.

With such antecedents, I neither thought nor wished to be a candidate for the presidency, as I publicly declared when I heard that my name was put forward during my absence from Buenos Ayres. Nevertheless I accepted the honor in the name of freedom of election, which I saw was at stake, my only desire being that the people’s choice should prevail. Nor did I take any part, direct or indirect, in the electoral struggle, as I had made up my mind to bow to the will of the majority.

Notwithstanding the iniquitous tactics adopted and the coercion exercised by the governors of provinces, as well as the notorious frauds connived at by the public authorities, and the violent action of the troops on the day of voting, I discouraged and disarmed those who had voted for me, and wished to appeal to arms by declaring publicly, for the sake of patriotism, “that the worst of legal elections was better than the best of revolutions.”

This conciliatory declaration, as accepting the ostensible result of the presidential election, even with all its faults, was intended to insure present and future tranquillity, and to leave the solution of all questions to the pacific action of public opinion in a constitutional manner; but it was not accepted.

Those who declared themselves victors aspired not merely to the immediate triumph, but also to a perpetuation in power by the same fraudulent means they had used during the election.

In effect, the public authorities, being parties’ to the plot, winked at the fraud, shutting out the real representatives of the people, and accepting in their room the representatives of a daring forgery, which nobody denied and everybody openly confessed. The false returns which deprived the majority of the citizens of the right of suffrage were confirmed.

From that moment was, de facto, suppressed the right of suffrage, which is the source of all law and authority in democratic communities. The renewal of the public authorities no longer depended on the tranquil action of the vote of the majority, but on forged electoral returns, fraud, repression, and connivance of the government, all leagued in a regular system.

This was the annihilation of the first of our public liberties, from which flow all the rest. It was shutting out a great part of the, people from all share, direct or indirect, in public affairs. It was the erection of an official oligarchy without even a majority, consisting of unscrupulous partisans who regarded power as their prerogative, and declared ail means legal to this end, in spite of the “vox populi!”

This was trampling on the free-born rights of man, upsetting our republican system, violating the constitution in its fundamental art, shutting out, by a wicked usurpation, all legal means for a peaceful solution of questions affecting the commonwealth, and preventing even the hope of an appeal through an imperfect legal election.

The questions that should have been settled by public opinion and voting were thus placed in the ground of action, since there was no other means of recovering the usurped rights or the civil liberties that had been suppressed.

From that moment the revolution, hitherto checked by patriotism, became a necessity, and filled the hearts of all, without anybody having to become a conspirator.

Called, as I was, not only by my own supporters, but even by those who had opposed my candidature, to put myself at the head of the revolutionary movement, I refused point-blank; but I said that the revolution was a right, a duty, a necessity, and that, whether it was supported by few or many, we were bound to protest with arms in our hands, unless we submitted to the infamy of being unworthy or unable to guard or to deserve the liberties we had lost. I further declared that if a revolution were made I would put myself at the head of it throughout the republic, to give it national force and cohesion.

One only condition I laid down, namely, that my candidature should not be revived, and that as soon as the liberties of the Argentine people were once vindicated, I should be allowed to retire forever from public life.

From that moment, the elements of revolution condensed spontaneously. It was already in the minds of all, irresistible and irrevocable. Everybody knew it, except the government authorities, leagued with their partisans; a proof of their isolation and of the popular feeling in favor of the revolution.

The event has come, and true to my engagements and the voice of my conscience, as well as to the fulfillment of the sacred duties I imposed on myself, I now accept and assume the responsibility of the revolution, declaring, as I have hitherto done, that, under existing circumstances, it was a right, a duty, and a necessity, while I deplore that things were driven to such a pass that de facto authorities had to be met by de facto proceedings.

So it has also been understood by the people, who have responded to the anonymous invitation of the first who took up arms, valorously to defend the constitution and the rights that had been trampled under foot.

Even the majority of the army, which the Government counted on to oppress the people, have put their arms at the service of the revolution. Although it has not yet declared itself among the national guard throughout the republic, it germinates in every heart, even in the prison-cells, where men are now confined for being suspected of loving the integrity of our institutions, the liberty of suffrage, and of aspiring to overturn governments that manipulate elections, de facto authorities which owe their origin to fraud in the ballot-boxes.

In presence of this great and manly movement of public opinion, I feel bound also to declare that if, instead of being triumphant and overwhelming as it is, it had been only a weak and isolated movement, I would have embraced it in the same manner, with all its consequences, if only as a protest in defense of our dignity as a free people, since I am resolved to accompany to the end the last man that carries a banner in this cause.

If, as I feel assured, the Argentine people now vindicate their usurped rights, I trust that my fellow-citizens will allow me to declare that my career as a public man has come to a close, which will be fulfilling the sole condition that I demanded when lending my name to the revolution, and accepting its responsibility before friends and strangers.

Your countryman,