e any visitation, molestation, or detention
of such vessel by force, or by the exhibition of force, on the part
of a foreign power is in derogation of the sovereignty of the United
States.

In accordance with this principle, the restoration of the _Virginius_
and the surrender of the survivors of her passengers and crew, and a due
reparation to the flag, and the punishment of the authorities who had
been guilty of the illegal acts of violence, were demanded. The Spanish
Government has recognized the justice of the demand, and has arranged
for the immediate delivery of the vessel, and for the surrender of the
survivors of the passengers and crew, and for a salute to the flag, and
for proceedings looking to the punishment of those who may be proved to
have been guilty of illegal acts of violence toward citizens of the
United States, and also toward indemnifying those who may be shown to be
entitled to indemnity. A copy of a protocol of a conference between the
Secretary of State and the Spanish minister, in which the terms of this
arrangement were agreed to, is transmitted herewith.

The correspondence on this subject with the legation of the United
States in Madrid was conducted in cipher and by cable, and needs the
verification of the actual text of the correspondence. It has seemed
to me to be due to the importance of the case not to submit this
correspondence until the accurate text can be received by mail. It is
expected shortly, and will be submitted when received.

In taking leave of this subject for the present I wish to renew the
expression of my conviction that the existence of African slavery in
Cuba is a principal cause of the lamentable condition of the island.
I do not doubt that Congress shares with me the hope that it will
soon be made to disappear, and that peace and prosperity may follow
its abolition.

The embargoing of American estates in Cuba, cruelty to American citizens
detected in no act of hostility to the Spanish Government, the murdering
of prisoners taken with arms in their hands, and, finally, the capture
upon the high seas of a vessel sailing under the United States flag
and bearing a United States registry have culminated in an outburst
of indignation that has seemed for a time to threaten war. Pending
negotiations between the United States and the Government of Spain on
the subject of this capture, I have authorized the Secretary of the
Navy to put our Navy on a war footing, to