Lopez planned to begin the uprising for the freedom of Cuba on June 24,
1848. He had enlisted the sympathy and secret cooperation of many men in
the United States, chiefly in the southern part of that country, and
looked to them to provide him with the needed arms and ammunition. There
was no lack of readiness on their part to respond to his needs in this
respect, but there was much difficulty in transporting such supplies
from the United States to Cuba. Whatever the personal sentiments of the
officers of the American government, they were required publicly to do
all in their power to prevent illicit traffic; while of course the
Spanish officials in Cuba were vigilant to prevent the landing of any
such cargoes. The result was that sufficient supplies did not reach Cuba
in time for an uprising on the appointed date.
The delay was fatal. It afforded opportunity for betrayal. Among the
followers of Lopez in Cuba was one Jose Sanchez Yznaga, a mere lad of
tender years. He could not resist the temptation to boast to his mother
of the great enterprise in which he was to take part, and she, drawing
from him all the details of the conspiracy, repeated the story to her
husband. Forthwith he gave information of it to the authorities;
reputedly in order to prevent his son from getting into mischief. Lopez,
unconscious of what had happened, was "invited" by the Governor of
Cienfuegos to call upon him, on a matter of important business, and was
actually on his way to keep the engagement when he learned of the
betrayal. Instantly he changed his course, and instead of going to
Cienfuegos he took train for Cardenas and thence a coasting vessel for
Matanzas. At the latter port he was so fortunate as to find the steamer
_Neptune_ just starting for New York. She had room for another passenger
and he got aboard without detection by the Spanish officers who were in
quest of him. The boy Yznaga also escaped arrest. Apparently the names
of the other conspirators were not disclosed, or else there was no
convincing evidence against them. At any rate, none of them were
imprisoned or punished in any way. But Lopez himself was tried _in
absentia_ and was condemned to death, on March 2, 1849; and Yznaga, also
absent, was condemned to six years' imprisonment.
It was in July, 1848, that Narciso Lopez reached New York, a fugitive
from Spanish wrath. There he found that various Cuban Juntas had been
formed in the United States, and that a well-organized campaign for the
annexation of Cuba was being pushed. This movement was not, of course,
approved officially by the United States government; but neither were
any extraordinary efforts made to suppress or to discourage it. Several
Senators of the United States did not hesitate to make speeches in the
Senate in favor of annexation; some of them advocating its forcible
achievement if Spain declined to make the cession peacefully. Several of
the foremost newspapers also openly espoused the cause. Improving the
opportunity presented to him by these circumstances, Lopez sought some
prominent American, politician or soldier, who would identify himself
with the Cuban revolution and would place himself at its head. Some of
his first and strongest efforts were directed toward getting Jefferson
Davis, then a Senator and afterward President of the Confederate States,
to take command of the expedition which he purposed to fit out; and he
offered to place the sum of $100,000 in a New York bank to the credit
of Mrs. Davis as an inducement. Davis considered the offer and then
declined it; sending Lopez, however, to Major Robert Edward Lee, of the
United States army, afterward of the Confederate army, as a more likely
candidate. Lee, however, also refused the invitation, for reasons which
Jefferson Davis afterward set forth as follows:
"He came from Mexico crowned with honors, covered by brevets and
recognized, young as he was, as one of the ablest of his country's
soldiers, and to prove that he was estimated then as such, I may mention
that when he was a Captain of engineers, stationed at Baltimore, the
Cuban Junta in New York selected him to be their leader in the
revolutionary effort on that island. They were anxious to secure his
services, and offered him every temptation that ambition could desire,
and pecuniary emoluments far beyond any which he could hope otherwise to
acquire. He thought the matter over, and, I remember, came to Washington
to consult me as to what he should do. After a brief discussion of the
complex character of the military problem which was presented he turned
from the consideration of that view of the question by stating that the
point on which he wished particularly to consult me, was as to the
propriety of entertaining the proposition which had been made to him. He
had been educated in the service of the United States, and felt it wrong
to accept place in the army of a foreign power while he held a
commission."
Contributions to the amount of $70,000 were made in the United States to
help to finance the expedition, and $30,000 more was sent from Cuba.
Lopez had long interviews with many men who stood high in American
affairs, and he was assured by them that if the semblance of a real
revolution was created, the United States might be expected to
intervene and to annex the island. Recruiting was quietly going on in
several parts of the United States. There was little concealment about
the methods or plans, and Spanish spies who were closely following the
leaders in the movement were able to report very accurately to the
Captain-General in Cuba and to the Spanish minister at Washington, Senor
Calderon de la Barca, exactly what was going on. These two gentlemen
organized a small counter movement and expended large sums of money
extracted from the Cuban treasury to balk the plans of the
revolutionists. Promises of generous pay, however, lured large numbers
of adventurers into the ranks of Lopez's party. Those who enlisted were
promised $1,000, and five acres of land, if the expedition was
triumphant, and pay equal to that of a private in the United States army
in any event.
Headquarters for the recruits were established at Cat Island, but the
little army was dispersed by the United States authorities, and then the
gathering place was changed to Round Island, near the city of New
Orleans, where Col. G. W. White, a veteran of the Mexican war, was in
charge. The number of men who were assembled under Col. White, ready to
sail for Cuba, was reported to be from 550 to 800.
While all these preparations were going on, there was an incident in
Havana which threatened seriously to embroil Spain with the United
States. The prison at Havana was holding two men, Villaverde, who was
under arrest for sedition against Spain, and Fernandez, who had been
condemned to imprisonment for fraudulent acts in connection with a
bankruptcy proceeding. One of the jailors was Juan Francisco Garcia Rey,
an American citizen, and he aided these prisoners to escape, Villaverde
going to Savannah, while Fernandez went with Rey to New Orleans. Rey
was soon trailed by Spanish spies and he was either tricked into going
on board a Spanish sailing vessel or else he was forced to do so, and
hurried off to Cuba with no property but the clothes which he wore. When
the vessel reached Cuba, the United States consul went on board, but the
men who were guarding Rey forced him to state that he had arrived in
Cuba voluntarily. The vessel was held in quarantine for some time, and
immediately after it was released, Rey was placed in solitary
confinement; from which however he managed to get a letter through to
the American consul, which read as follows:
"My name is Juan Garcia Rey; I was forced by the Spanish consul to leave
New Orleans. I demand the protection of the American flag and I desire
to return to the United States.
"P.S. I came here by force, the Spanish consul having seized me under a
supposed order of the Second Municipality and having had me carried by
main force on board a ship at nine in the evening.
"P.S.--I did not speak frankly to you because the Captain of the port
was present."
The request which the American consul promptly made for an interview
with Rey was denied, and at this point the United States government
interested itself in the case and made an official demand for the return
of Rey. Relations between the United States and Spain were growing very
much strained and it looked as if the United States were soon to have an
excuse to fight Spain and to annex Cuba, when the Spanish government
suddenly suffered a change of heart, and Rey was pardoned and released.
Meanwhile the plans for the invasion of Cuba were being carried out so
openly that the Spanish minister protested, and Zachary Taylor, then
President of the United States, being unwilling openly to affront
Spain, through his Secretary of State, John M. Clayton, issued on August
11, 1849, a proclamation which ran as follows:
"There is reason to believe that an armed expedition is about to be
fitted out in the United States with an intention to invade the Island
of Cuba, or some of the provinces of Mexico. The best information which
the executive has been able to obtain, points to the Island of Cuba as
the object of this expedition. It is the duty of this government to
observe the faith of treaties, and to prevent any aggression by our
citizens upon the territories of friendly nations. I have, therefore,
thought it necessary and proper to issue this proclamation, to warn all
citizens of the United States who shall connect themselves with an
enterprise so grossly in violation of our laws and treaty obligations,
that they will thereby subject themselves to the heavy penalties
denounced against them by our Acts of Congress, and will forfeit their
claim to the protection of their country. No such persons must expect
the interference of this government in any form on their behalf, no
matter to what extremities they may be reduced in consequence of their
conduct. An enterprise to invade the territories of a friendly nation,
set on foot and prosecuted within the limits of the United States, is in
the highest degree criminal, as tending to endanger the peace and
compromise the honor of this nation, and therefore I exhort all good
citizens, as they regard our national reputation, as they respect their
own laws and the laws of nations, as they value the blessings of peace
and the welfare of their country, to discountenance and prevent, by all
lawful means, any such enterprise; and I call upon every officer of this
government, civil or military, to use all efforts in his power to arrest
for trial and punishment every such offender against the laws providing
for the performance of our sacred obligations to friendly powers."
This proclamation did not find favor in the Southern States, where
sentiment was strongly in favor of the annexation of Cuba as a bar
against the freeing of the slaves. All the while the United States
government was officially discountenancing the expedition, private
citizens were aiding it, and again Spain protested and the American
government dispatched the steamer _Albany_ with officers to investigate
the state of matters at Round Island, to see that no supplies reached
the island, and to prevent the expedition from starting. Two ships, the
_Sea Gull_ and the _New Orleans_, had been purchased in New York to take
the expedition to Cuba, and these were promptly seized, but the fifty
men on one of them were not prosecuted, and while warrants were issued
for the five leaders they were never apprehended, and the ships were
simply returned to their owners. Public opinion was too much in favor of
aid for Cuba to make it feasible for the United States government to
place itself in the position of being inimical to Cuban interests, while
on the other hand that Government felt that it could not afford openly
to antagonize Spain.
The Cuban organization in New York presently showed signs of
discouragement and disintegration, and Lopez in consequence transferred
his operations to the south, principally to New Orleans, where sentiment
was warmly in favor of his plans. There the next year he renewed his
efforts to organize an expedition to Cuba. Even more generous offers of
bounty were made than in the previous case. Recruits were promised
$4,000, and when they had served a year they were to be rewarded by a
grant of land in Cuba; this in addition to their regular pay. Those who
should attain the rank of officers were promised up to $10,000, and also
high rank in the new government which the revolutionists were to
organize in Cuba. Lopez was always conscious of the advantage of having
men of prominence connected with his enterprises, and he endeavored to
persuade Governor Quitman of Mississippi to take command, but that
gentleman expressed himself as believing that only an internal
revolution could be effective in Cuba and that any invasion from without
must fail, and, accordingly, he declined the invitation.
Numerous recruits were obtained in various parts of the United States.
While interest in it was strongest in the South, many men in the North
and West were ready, for one reason or another, to cast in their lot
with Lopez. An important rallying point was Cincinnati, Ohio, and from
that city a party of 120 men started southward on April 4, 1850, on the
river steamer _Martha Washington_, which had been chartered for the
purpose. A stop was made at a point on the Kentucky shore, and more men
were there taken aboard. The trip down to New Orleans consumed a week,
which time was spent by the men in card-playing, carousing and indeed
almost everything save serious reflection upon the momentous undertaking
before them. There were a few among them of earnest purpose; and when
the expedition was completed at New Orleans it comprised a number of men
of high character and standing, members of some of the foremost families
of that part of the United States. But the majority of the recruits were
adventurers of the type familiar in most such undertakings. To them the
enterprise meant not so much the freeing of Cuba from Spanish oppression
as it meant getting "easy money," the fun of seeing a new country, good
food, and if the worst happened ... it was on the knees of the gods.
It was April 11 when the boat reached Freeport, a town a few miles up
the river from New Orleans, where the men were hidden; or supposed to be
hidden, for little secrecy was attained, Spanish spies and United States
citizens being equally aware of their presence. There were two hundred
and fifty men in the party, and on April 25 they set sail for Cuba on
the Steamer _Georgiana_, with a supply of muskets and 10,000 rounds of
ammunition, which however did not come on board until after the mouth of
the Mississippi was passed. Lopez himself was not with this company, for
his work of organization was not completed, and he remained behind to
join them later.
A second company of about 160 men was organized in New Orleans, and set
sail on May 2, on the _Susan Loud_, and a third company was to follow on
the _Creole_. On May 6 the _Susan Loud_ reached the place where she was
to meet the _Creole_, and she raised the new flag of Cuba for the first
time on the Gulf of Mexico. Here she was joined the next day by the
_Creole_ and another day was taken up in transferring the men from one
vessel to the other, the _Creole_ being much the faster of the two; the
idea being that the slower boat could follow at leisure. On the _Creole_
there were only 130, making 290 men in this portion of the expedition.
The newcomers on the _Creole_ were for the first time introduced to
their commander, Lopez, and it is recorded that he promptly won all
hearts by his pleasing personality.
A light-hearted spirit of adventure at first prevailed among the crews
and the men, until a storm arose on May 12, and the company began to be
less cheerful; many were sick, and the wind and clouds had a depressing
effect on the others. To add to the general dismay and discomfort, a gun
was accidentally discharged, and one of the company was killed. An
unpleasant foreboding began to cast a blight over the gay company. Evil
days had also attended the _Georgiana_. She met with foul weather, and
had great difficulty in reaching the island of Contoy, about ten miles
off the coast of Yucatan. This island was uninhabited and without
vegetation, a blank waste of sand, with no water for drinking purposes.
The men were discontented and mutiny seemed imminent. An unsuccessful
attempt was made to reach Mujeres, and then mutiny in earnest broke out,
led by Captain Benson, one of the leaders of the company. He instigated
the circulation of a petition for a return to New Orleans, and between
fifty and sixty signatures were obtained. Fortunately Lopez had one
faithful follower in the company, an eloquent and brave man. This was
Colonel Theodore O'Hara, a veteran of the Mexican War and author of the
classic poem, "The Bivouac of the Dead." He assembled the men and asked
them to agree to wait eight days longer, and spoke so feelingly that
finally the promise was given with cheers for Lopez, for Cuba, and for
the annexation of the island. Before further trouble could come to pass,
the _Creole_ was sighted. When she reached the island it was thought
best that she should proceed to Mujeres, obtain water, and return the
next day. This was done, and when he returned, Lopez issued the
following proclamation to his men:
"Soldiers of the liberating expedition of Cuba! Our first act on
arriving shall be the establishment of a provisional constitution,
founded on American principles, and adopted to the emergencies of the
occasion. This constitution you will unite with your brethren of Cuba in
swearing to support in its principles as well as on the field of battle.
You have been chosen by your officers as men individually worthy of so
honorable an undertaking. I rely implicitly on your presenting Cuba to
the world, a signal example of all the virtues, as well as the valor of
the American citizen soldiers; and I cannot be deceived in my confidence
that by our discipline, good order, moderation in victory, and sacred
respect for all private rights, you will put to shame every insolent
calumny of your enemies. And when the hour arrives for repose on the
laurels which await your grasp, you will all, I trust, establish
permanent and happy homes in the beautiful soil of the island you go to
free, and there long enjoy the gratitude which Cuba will never fail
generously to bestow on those to whom she will owe the sacred and
immeasurable debt of her liberty."
Now the _Creole_ was not a new vessel, and was sadly in need of repairs.
When the nearly six hundred men from the three boats were all on board
her--for the plan was that only one ship should be actively engaged in
the invasion--she took water, and some of the men were afraid. There
were desertions at Mujeres and Contoy which reduced the force to five
hundred and twenty-one. The men were packed in all parts of the ship, on
deck, in the cabin, in the hold, in every available corner. It was
impossible to keep discipline, to say nothing of holding drill practice.
The _Creole_ was fortunate enough to be driven by adverse winds far
north of the course which she had planned, because she thus escaped two
Spanish war ships which had been sent out to apprehend and sink her.
Thus from near the shore of Yucatan the adventurers sailed over
practically the same course which in the days of Cortez had been
traversed by the Spanish treasure ships from Mexico to Cuba and to
Spain. The plan was to land at Cardenas, and march at once to Matanzas,
thirty miles distant, which it was believed could be reached in 24 hours
and where the railroad was to be seized. It was here that it was
expected that the recruiting would be heaviest, for Lopez believed that
the Cubans would recognize them as liberators, welcome them with
rejoicing, and at once enlist under the new banner of freedom. One
hundred picked men would promptly be despatched to blow up an important
bridge, nine miles from Havana, and meanwhile Lopez expected his force
of five hundred to be swelled to five thousand. Indeed he dreamed of
attacking the city of Havana with an armed force of 30,000. He had
plenty of ammunition and guns and he anticipated no difficulty in
enlisting an army from among the Cubans who desired freedom from Spain.