1858-December-02: Assistant Secretary of State John Appleton responded to Elliot’s reports, noting that the account of Raybaud’s “effort” to unify the island…

1858-December-02: Assistant Secretary of State John Appleton responded to Elliot’s reports, noting that the account of Raybaud’s “effort” to unify the island had been “read with interest.” Despite Elliot’s urgent recommendation that this period of instability offered a “favorable opportunity” for the United States to negotiate a formal commercial treaty with the Dominican Republic, the State Department appeared to have lost significant interest in the project. The Buchanan administration remained hesitant to engage deeply in Caribbean diplomacy that might provoke further domestic sectional conflict or complicate relations with the major European powers.