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diff --git a/20109-0.txt b/20109-0.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..be97e53 --- /dev/null +++ b/20109-0.txt @@ -0,0 +1,11015 @@ +*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 20109 *** + + + + +Transcriber's note: + + Footnotes are at the end of the chapter. + + A few commas have been moved or added for clarity. + + Obsolete spellings of place names have been retained; personal names + and obvious typographical errors have been corrected. + + +REMINISCENCES +OF +SIXTY YEARS IN PUBLIC AFFAIRS +VOLUME II + + +Reminiscences of +Sixty Years +in Public Affairs +by George S. Boutwell +Governor of Massachusetts, 1851-1852 +Representative in Congress, 1863-1869 +Secretary of the Treasury, 1869-1873 +Senator from Massachusetts, 1873-1877 +etc., etc., + +Volume Two + +New York +McClure, Phillips & Co. +Mcmii + + +_Copyright, 1902, by_ +McClure, Phillips & Co. + +_Published May, 1902. N._ + + +CONTENTS + + XXVIII Service in Congress + XXIX Incidents in the Civil War + XXX The Amendments to the Constitution + XXXI Investigations Following the Civil War + XXXII Impeachment of Andrew Johnson + XXXIII The Treasury Department in 1869 + XXXIV The Mint Bill and the "Crime of 1873" + XXXV Black Friday--September 24, 1869 + XXXVI An Historic Sale of United States Bonds in England + XXXVII General Grant's Administration +XXXVIII General Grant as a Statesman + XXXIX Reminiscences of Public Men + XL Blaine and Conkling and the Republican Convention of 1880 + XLI From 1875 to 1895 + XLII The Last of the Ocean Slave Traders + XLIII Mr. Lincoln as an Historical Personage + XLIV Speech on Columbus + XLV Imperialism as a Public Policy + INDEX + + +REMINISCENCES +OF +SIXTY YEARS IN PUBLIC AFFAIRS +VOLUME II + + +XXVIII +SERVICE IN CONGRESS + +My election to Congress in 1862 was contested by Judge Benjamin F. +Thomas, who was then a Republican member from the Norfolk district. +The re-districting of the State brought Thomas and Train into the same +district. I was nominated by the Republican Convention, and Thomas +then became the candidate of the "People's Party," and at the election +he was supported by the Democrats. His course in the Thirty-seventh +Congress on the various projects for compromise had alienated many +Republicans, and it had brought to him the support of many Democrats. +My active radicalism had alienated the conservative Republicans. As a +consequence, my majority reached only about 1,400 while in the +subsequent elections, 1864-'66-'68 the majorities ranged from five to +seven thousand. + + +Among the new members who were elected to the Thirty-eighth Congress +and who attained distinction subsequently, were Garfield, Blaine and +Allison. Wilson, of Iowa, had been in the Thirty-seventh Congress and +Henry Winter Davis had been a member at an earlier period. Mr. +Conkling was a member of the Thirty-seventh Congress, but he was +defeated by his townsman Francis Kernan under the influence of the +reactionary wave which moved over the North in 1862. At that time Mr. +Lincoln had lost ground with the people. The war had not been +prosecuted successfully, the expenses were enormous, taxes were heavy, +multitudes of families were in grief, and the prospects of peace +through victory were very dim. The Democrats in the House became +confident and aggressive. + +Alexander Long, of Ohio, made a speech so tainted with sympathy for +the rebels that Speaker Colfax came down from the chair and moved a +resolution of censure. Harris, of Maryland, in the debate upon the +resolution, made a speech much more offensive than that of Long. As a +consequence, the censure was applied to both gentlemen and as a further +consequence, the friends of the South became more guarded in +expressions of sympathy. It is true also, that there were many +Democrats who did not sympathize with Harris, Long, and Pendleton. +Voorhees of Indiana was also an active sympathizer with the South. I +recollect that in the Thirty-eighth or Thirty-ninth Congress he made a +violent attack upon Mr. Lincoln, and the Republican Party. The House +was in committee, and I was in the chair. Consequently I listened +attentively to the speech. It was carefully prepared and modeled +apparently upon Junius and Burke--a model which time has destroyed. + +Of the members of the House during the war period, Henry Winter Davis +was the most accomplished speaker. Mr. Davis' head was a study. In +front it was not only intellectual, it was classical--a model for an +artist. The back of his head was that of a prize fighter, and he +combined the scholar and gentleman with the pugilist. His courage was +constitutional and he was ready to make good his position whether by +argument or by blows. His speeches in the delivery were very +attractive. His best speech, as I recall his efforts, was a speech in +defense of Admiral Dupont. That speech involved an attack upon the +Navy Department. Alexander H. Rice, of Massachusetts, was the chairman +of the Naval Committee. He appeared for the Navy Department in an able +defence. Mr. Rice's abilities were not of the highest order, but his +style was polished, and he was thoroughly equipped for the defence. He +had the Navy Department behind him, and a department usually has a +plausible reason or excuse for anything that it does. + +An estimate of Mr. Davis' style as a writer and his quality as an +orator may be gained from a speech entitled:--"Reasons for Refusing to +Part Company with the South," which he delivered in February, 1861, +and in which he set forth the condition of the country as it then +appeared to him. These extracts give some support to the opinion +entertained by many that Mr. Davis was the leading political orator +of the Civil War period: + +"We are at the end of the insane revel of partisan license, which, for +thirty years, has, in the United States, worn the mask of government. +We are about to close the masquerade by the dance of death. The +nations of the world look anxiously to see if the people, ere they +tread that measure, will come to themselves. + +"Yet in the early youth of our national life we are already exhausted +by premature excesses. The corruption of our political maxims has +relaxed the tone of public morals and degraded the public authorities +from terror to the accomplices of evil-doers. Platforms for fools-- +plunder for thieves--offices for service--power for ambition--unity in +these essentials--diversity in the immaterial matters of policy and +legislation--charity for every frailty--the voice of the people is the +voice of God--these maxims have sunk into the public mind; have +presided at the administration of public affairs, have almost effaced +the very idea of public duty. The Government under their disastrous +influence has gradually ceased to fertilize the fields of domestic and +useful legislation, and pours itself, like an impetuous torrent, along +the barren ravine of party and sectional strife. It has been shorn of +every prerogative that wore the austere aspect of authority and power. + +"The consequence of this demoralization is that States, without regard +to the Federal Government, assume to stand face to face and wage their +own quarrels, to adjust their own difficulties, to impute to each +other every wrong, to insist that individual States shall remedy every +grievance, and they denounce failure to do so as cause of civil war +between States; and as if the Constitution were silent and dead and +the power of the Union utterly inadequate to keep the peace between +them, unconstitutional commissioners flit from State to State, or +assemble at the national capital to counsel peace or instigate war. +Sir, these are the causes which lie at the bottom of the present +dangers. These causes which have rendered them possible and made them +serious, must be removed before they can ever be permanently cured. +They shake the fabric of our National Government. It is to this +fearful demoralization of the Government and the people that we must +ascribe the disastrous defections which now perplex us with the fear of +change in all that constituted our greatness. The operation of the +Government has been withdrawn from the great public interests, in order +that competing parties might not be embarrassed in the struggle for +power by diversities of opinion upon questions of policy; and the +public mind, in that struggle, has been exclusively turned on the +slavery question, which no interest required to be touched by any +department of this Government. On that subject there are widely +marked diversities of opinion and interest in the different portions of +the Confederacy, with few mediating influences to soften the +collision. In the struggle for party power, the two great regions of +the country have been brought face to face upon the most dangerous of +all subjects of agitation. The authority of the Government was relaxed +just when its power was about to be assailed; and the people, +emancipated from every control and their passions inflamed by the +fierce struggle for the Presidency, were the easy prey of revolutionary +audacity. + +"Within two months after a formal, peaceful, regular election of the +chief magistrate of the United States, in which the whole body of the +people of every State competed with zeal for the prize, without any new +event intervening, without any new grievances alleged, without any new +measures having been made, we have seen, in the short course of one +month, a small proportion of the population of six States transcend the +bounds at a single leap at once of the State and the national +constitutions; usurp the extraordinary prerogative of repealing the +supreme law of the land; exclude the great mass of their fellow- +citizens from the protection of the Constitution; declare themselves +emancipated from the obligations which the Constitution pronounces to +be supreme over them and over their laws; arrogate to themselves all +the prerogatives of independent power; rescind the acts of cession of +the public property; occupy the public offices; seize the fortresses +of the United States confided to the faith of the people among whom +they were placed; embezzle the public arms concentrated there for the +defence of the United States; array thousands of men in arms against +the United States; and actually wage war on the Union by besieging +two of their fortresses and firing on a vessel bearing, under the flag +of the United States, reinforcements and provisions for one of them. +The very boundaries of right and wrong seem obliterated when we see a +Cabinet minister engaged for months in deliberately changing the +distribution of public arms to places in the hands of those about to +resist our public authority, so as to place within their grasp means +of waging war against the United States greater than they ever used +against a foreign foe; and another Cabinet minister, still holding his +commission under the authority of the United States, still a +confidential adviser of the President, and bound by his oath to +support the Constitution of the United States, himself a commissioner +from his own State to another of the United States for the purpose of +organizing and extending another part of the same great scheme of +rebellion; and the doom of the Republic seems sealed when the +President, surrounded by such ministers, permits, without rebuke, the +Government to be betrayed, neglects the solemn warning of the first +solider of the age, till almost every fort is a prey to domestic +treason, and accepts assurances of peace in his time at the expense of +leaving the national honor unguarded. His message gives aid and +comfort to the enemies of the Union, by avowing his inability to +maintain its integrity; and, paralyzed and stupefied, he stands amid +the crash of the falling Republic, still muttering, 'Not in my time, +not in my time; after me the deluge!'" + +Soon after Mr. Colfax's election as speaker of the Thirty-eighth +Congress, I met him in a restaurant. He expressed surprise that he had +not heard from me in regard to a place upon a committee. I said that +the subject did not occupy my thoughts--that I had work enough whether +I was upon a committee or not. He expressed himself as disturbed by +the fact that he could not give me as good a place as he wished to +give me. I tried to relieve his mind upon that point. In all my +legislative experience I never made any suggestion as to committee +work. Mr. Colfax placed me upon the Judiciary Committee, which, in the +end, was the best place to which I could have been assigned. + +Mr. Colfax was made of consequence in the country by the newspapers, +and he was ruined by his timidity. If he had admitted that he was an +owner of stock in the Credit Mobilier Company, not much could have +been made against him. His denials and explanations, which were either +false or disingenuous, and his final admission of a fact which implied +that he had been in the receipt of a quarterly payment from a post- +office contractor, completed his ruin. There was a time when the +country over-estimated his ability. He was a genial, kindly man, with +social qualities and an abundance of information in reference to men +in the United States and to recent and passing politics. He had +newspaper knowledge and aptitude for gathering what may be called +information as distinguished from learning. He was a victim to two +passions or purposes in life, that are in a degree inconsistent--public +life and money-making. Instances there have been of success, but I +have never known a case where a public man has not suffered in +reputation by the knowledge that he had accumulated a fortune while he +was engaged in the public service. As a speaker of the House, Colfax +was agreeable and popular, but he lacked in discipline. His rule was +lax, and there can be no doubt that from the commencement of his +administration there had been a decline in what may be termed the +morale of the House. Something of its reputation for dignity and +decorum had been lost. + +A young man from New York, Mr. Chanler, made a speech in the Thirty- +eighth or Thirty-ninth Congress, which seemed to favor the +Confederacy. This phase of his speech was due to the fact that he +was a transcendental State Rights advocate. He did not believe in +secession, as a wise and proper policy, but he did believe in the +right of a State to consult itself as to its continuance in the Union. +Chanler was not a strong man and he owed his election, probably, to his +connection with the Astor family. He failed to make the political +distinction clear to the mind of the House and he was followed by +General Schenck in a severe speech. Chanler explained and asserted +that he was not secessionist--that he was for the Union--that he had +served with the New York Seventh--and that he had made a tender to +General Dix of service on his staff, but that he had not received a +reply from General Dix. + +Thereupon S. S. Cox, who then represented a district in Ohio, made a +jocose reply to Schenck and a like defence of Chanler and ended with +the remark that he hoped his "colleague regretted having been guilty +of a groundless attack upon a solider of the Republic." I went over to +Cox to congratulate him upon his defence of Chanler, and in reply Cox +said: "The funniest part of it is that Chanler took it all in earnest +and came to my seat and thanked me for my speech." + +Cox had no malice in his nature and there was always a doubt whether he +had any sincerity in his politics. He had no sympathy with the +rebellion, and, generally, he voted appropriations for the army and +the navy. He was sincere in his personal friendships, and his +friendships were not upon party lines. In his political action he +seemed more anxious to annoy his opponents than to extinguish them. +His speeches were short, pointed, and entertaining. He was a favorite +with the House, but his influence upon its action was very slight. +Those who acquire and retain power are the earnest and persistent men. +When Cox had made his speech and expended his jokes he was content. +The fate of a measure did not much disturb or even concern him. + +Cox was party to an affair in the House which illustrated the +characteristics of Thaddeus Stevens, or "Old Thad," as he was called. +Late in the war, or soon after its close, Mr. Stevens introduced a +bill to appropriate $800,000 to reimburse the State of Pennsylvania for +expenses incurred in repelling invasions and suppressing insurrections. +The bill was referred to the Committee on Appropriations, of which +Stevens was chairman. Without much delay and before the holidays, +Stevens reported the bill. There was some debate, in which my +colleague, Mr. Dawes, took part against the bill. Finally the House +postponed the bill till after the holidays. During the recess I +examined the question by making inquiries at the War and Treasury +departments, where I found that authority existed for reimbursing +States for all expenditures actually made and for the payment of all +troops that had been mustered into the service. Thus the real purpose +of the bill was apparent. During the Antietam and Gettysburg campaigns +bodies of troops had been organized for defence and expenses had been +incurred by towns and counties, but no actual service had been +performed. It was intended by the appropriation to provide for the +payment of these expenses. I prepared a brief and gave it to Mr. +Dawes, who used it in the debate. When it became apparent that the +bill would be lost, Cox rose and moved to insert after the word +Pennsylvania, the words Maryland, West Virginia, Ohio, Indiana, +Kentucky, Illinois, Missouri, Kansas and the Territory of New Mexico. +Also to strike out $800,000 and insert ten million dollars. These +amendments brought to the support of the measure the members from all +those States, and the bill was passed. The Senate never acted upon +it. I was indignant at the action of the House, and I said to Stevens, +whose seat was near to mine: _"This is the most outrageous thing that +I have seen on the floor of the House."_ Stevens doubled his fist but +not in anger, shook it in my face and said: "You rascal, if you had +allowed me to have my rights I should not have been compelled to make +a corrupt bargain in order to get them." Thus he admitted his +arrangement with Cox and the character of it, and laid the +responsibility upon me. + +Mr. Stevens was a tyrant in his rule as leader of the House. He was at +once able, bold and unscrupulous. He was an anti-slavery man, a friend +to temperance and an earnest supporter of the public school system, and +he would not have hesitated to promote those objects by arrangements +with friends or enemies. He was unselfish in personal matters, but his +public policy regarded the State of Pennsylvania, and the Republican +Party. The more experienced members of the House avoided controversy +with Stevens. First and last many a new member was extinguished by his +sarcastic thrusts. As for himself no one could terrorize him. I +recall an occasion near the close of a session, when, as it was +important to get a bill out of the Committee of the Whole, he remained +upon his feet or upon his one foot and assailed every member who +proposed an amendment. Sometimes his remarks were personal and +sometimes they were aimed at the member's State. In a few minutes he +cowed the House, and secured the adoption of his motion for the +committee to rise and report the bill to the House. + +He must have been a very good lawyer. The impeachment article which +received the best support was from his pen. He possessed wit, +sarcasm and irony in every form. In public all these weapons were +poisoned, but in private he was usually genial. On one occasion +Judge Olin of New York was speaking and in his excitement he walked +down and up the aisle passing Stevens' seat. At length Stevens said: +"Olin, do you expect to get mileage for this speech?" + +During the controversy with Andrew Johnson, Thayer, of Pennsylvania, +became excited upon a matter of no consequence, denounced the report of +a committee, and in the course of his remarks said: "They ask us to +go it blind." Judge Hale, of New York, with an innocent expression, +said he would like to have the gentleman from Pennsylvania inform the +House as to the meaning of the phrase "go it blind." Stevens said at +once: "It means following Raymond." The pertinency of the hit was in +the circumstance that Raymond was supporting Johnson, and that Hale was +following Raymond, not from conviction but for the reason that they +had been classmates in college. + +Robert S. Hale was a man of large ability and a successful lawyer. +During his term in Congress he was a prominent candidate for a seat +upon the bench of the Court of Appeals of the State of New York. At +a critical moment he appeared in the House in the role of a reformer +and proceeded to arraign members for their action in regard to the +measure known as the "salary grab." The debate showed that Hale was +involved in the business to such an extent that he lost his standing +in the House and imperiled his chance of obtaining a seat upon the +bench of the Court of Appeals. + +The bill for the increase of the salaries of public officers was a +proper bill with the single exception that it should have been +prospective as to the members of Congress. It added $2,500 to the +annual salary of the Congressman or $5,000 for a term. The temptation +to give the benefit of the increase to the members of the then +existing House was too strong for their judgment and virtue. When, +however, the indignation of the people was manifested, more than a +majority of the members of each House sought refuge in a variety of +subterfuges. Some neglected to collect the increase, others who had +received the added sum, returned it to the Treasury upon a variety of +pretexts. Some endowed schools or libraries, and a minority received +what the laws allowed them and upon an assertion of their right to +receive it. Outside of the criminal classes there has but seldom been +a more melancholy exhibition of the weakness of human nature. The +members seemed not to realize that the wrong was in the votes for +which those members were alone responsible who had sustained the bill, +and that the acceptance of the salary which the law allowed was not +only a right but a duty. At the end those members who took the +salary and defended their acts enjoyed the larger share of public +respect. Indeed, not one of the shufflers gained anything by the +course that he had pursued. The public reasoned, and reasoned justly, +that they would have kept the money if they had dared to do so. + +Similar conduct ruined many of the members of Congress who were +beneficiaries of the Credit Mobilier scheme. Mr. Samuel Hooper was a +large holder of the stock, but being a man of fortune the public +accepted that fact as a defence against the suggestion that the stock +had been placed in his hands for the purpose of influencing his +action as a member of Congress. With others the case was different. +Many were poor men. They had paid no money for the stock. Mr. Ames +made the subscriptions, carried the stocks, and turned over the profits +to those who had paid nothing and risked nothing. When the +investigation was threatened, many of those who were involved ran to +shelter under a variety of excuses and some of them hoped to escape by +the aid of falsehood which ripened into perjury when the investigation +was made. A few admitted ownership and asserted their right to +ownership. Those men escaped with but little loss of prestige. Of the +others, some retained their hold upon public office and some were +advanced to higher places, but they carried always the smell of the +smoke of corruption upon their garments. + +Judge Hale defended Mr. Colfax, but at the end his condition was worse +than at the beginning. + +There is something of error in our public policy. With a few +exceptions, the salaries of public officers are too low--in many cases +they are meager. This fact furnishes a pretext for efforts to make +money while in the public service. All these efforts are adverse to +the public interests and often the proceedings are tainted with +corruption. A member of Congress ought to receive $7,500 and a +Cabinet officer cannot live in a manner corresponding to his station +upon less than $15,000. Adequate salaries would not prevent +speculation on the part of public officers, but they could not offer +as an excuse for their acts the meager salaries allowed by the +government. From the "salary grab" bill there were two good results. +The President's salary was increased to $50,000 and the justices of +the Supreme Court received $10,000 instead of $6,000 per annum. It has +not been any part of my purpose in what I have said in favor of an +increase of salaries to furnish means for campaign expenses by +candidates either before or after nominations have been made. + +If the statements are trustworthy that have been made publicly in +recent years the conclusion cannot be avoided that money is used +in elections for corrupt purposes--sometimes to secure nominations +and sometimes to secure elections, when nominations have been made. +There are proper uses for money in political contests, but candidates +should not be required to make contributions in return for support. +If the statements now made frequently and boldly, are truthful +statements, then we are moving towards a condition of affairs when the +offices of government will be divided between rich men and men who +seek office for the purpose of becoming rich. A general condition +cannot be proved by the experiences of individuals, but the +experiences of individuals may indicate a general condition. I cannot +doubt that an unwholesome change in the use of money in elections has +taken place in the last fifty years. A gentleman now living (1901), +who was a member of the National Committee of the Democratic Party in +the year 1856 is my authority for the statement that the total sum of +money at the command of the committee in the campaign for Mr. +Buchanan was less than twenty-five thousand dollars. + +I mention my own experience and in the belief that it was not +exceptional. From 1840 to 1850 I was the candidate of the Democratic +Party of Groton for representative of the town in the general court. +The party in the town met its moderate expenses by voluntary +contributions. I contributed with others, but never upon the ground +that I was a candidate. We paid our local expenses. We paid nothing +for expenses elsewhere, and we did not receive anything from outside +sources. In 1844-'46 and 1848 I was the candidate of the Democratic +Party for the National House of Representatives. I canvassed the +district at my own charge. I did not make any contribution to any one +for any purpose, and I did not receive financial aid from any source. +The subject was never mentioned to me or by me in conversation or +correspondence with any one. Again, I may say the subject was not +mentioned in my canvass for the office of Governor in the years 1849- +1850 and 1851. + +In 1862 I became the candidate of the Republican Party for a seat in +Congress. After my nomination the District Committee asked me for a +contribution of one hundred dollars. I met their request. The request +was repeated and answered in 1864, 1866 and 1868. On one occasion I +received a return of forty-two dollars with a statement that the full +amount of my contribution had not been expended. + +While General Butler was in the army, Mr. James Brooks, a member from +the city of New York, charged him, in an elaborate speech, with having +taken about fifty thousand dollars from a bank in New Orleans, and +appropriated the same to his own use. General Butler was then at +Willard's Hotel. That evening I called upon Butler, and said to him +that if he had any answer to the charge, I would reply the next day. +I had secured the floor through Mr. Stevens, who moved the adjournment +upon a private understanding that he would yield to me in case I +wished to reply. As Butler lived in my district and as I was ignorant +of the facts, I avoided taking the floor lest an expectation should be +created which I could not meet. However, I found Butler entirely +prepared for the contest. From his letter books he read to me the +correspondence with the Treasury Department, from which it appeared +that the money had been turned over to the department, for which +Butler had the proper receipts. The money had been seized upon the +ground that it was the property of the Confederacy and was in the bank +awaiting an opportunity to be transferred. The morning following, I +called upon Butler and obtained copies of the correspondence that had +been prepared the preceding night. I rode to the Capitol with Butler +and on the way we prepared the letters in chronological order. Having +obtained the floor through Mr. Stevens I made the answer which +consisted chiefly of the letters. It was so conclusive that the +subject was never again mentioned in the House of Representatives. On +that occasion Butler's habit of making and keeping a full record of his +doings served to release him from very serious charges, and so speedily +that the charges did not obtain a lodgment in the public mind. + +Upon another occasion Brooks made an attack upon Secretary Chase and +charged various offences upon S. M. Clark, then the chief of the +Bureau of Engraving and Printing. Some of the charges were personal, +and some of them official. I called upon the Secretary at his house, +as I was on my way home from the Capitol, and gave him a statement of +the charges made by Brooks. He seemed ignorant of the whole matter, +and upon my suggestion that he should ask Clark for his explanation or +defence he hesitated, and then asked me to call upon Clark for his +answer. This I declined and there the matter ended. There never was +any reply to Brooks. In the end it may have been as well, for the +charges are forgotten, and they are not likely to be brought out of the +musty volumes of debates. Mr. Chase's lack of resolution gave me an +unfavorable impression of his ability for administrative affairs. + +Samuel J. Randall first entered Congress in 1862. Mr. Randall's +resources were limited. He was not bred to any profession, and he was +not a man of learning in any direction. I cannot imagine that he had +a taste for study at any kind of investigation aside from politics. +By long experience he became familiar with parliamentary proceedings, +and from the same source he acquired a knowledge of the business of +the Government. He had one essential quality of leadership--a strong +will. Moreover, he was destitute, apparently, of moral perceptions in +public affairs. Not that he was corrupt, but as between the Government +and its citizens the demands of what is called justice seemed to have +no effect upon him. He did not hesitate to delay the payment of a just +claim in order that the appropriation might be kept within the limits +that he had fixed. This, not on the ground that the claim ought not be +paid, but for the reason that the payment at the time would disarrange +the balance sheet. A striking instance of his policy was exhibited in +his treatment of the land-owners whose lands were condemned and taken +for the reservoir at the end of Seventh Street, Washington, D. C. The +values were fixed by a commission and by juries under the law, and when +the time for an appropriation came, Mr. Randall provided for fifty per +cent. and carried the remainder over to the next year. The claimants +were entitled to full payment, but one half was withheld for twelve +months without interest and that while dead funds were lying in the +Treasury. + + +XXIX +INCIDENTS IN THE CIVIL WAR + +THE PROCLAMATION OF EMANCIPATION + +When the Proclamation of Emancipation, of January 1, 1863, was issued, +the closing sentence attracted universal attention, and in every part +of the world encomiums were pronounced upon it. The words are these: +"And upon this act, sincerely believed to be an act of justice, +warranted by the Constitution upon military necessity, I invoke the +considerate judgment of mankind and the gracious favor of Almighty +God." Following the appearance of the Proclamation, and stimulated, +possibly, by the reception given to the sentence quoted, there appeared +claimants for the verbal authorship of the passage, or for suggestions +which led to its writing by Mr. Lincoln. + +A claim for exact authorship was set up for Mr. Chase, and claims for +suggestions in the nature of exact authorship were made in behalf of +Mr. Seward and in behalf of Mr. Sumner. + +The sentence quoted was furnished by Mr. Chase, after a very material +alteration by the President. He introduced the words, _"warranted by +the Constitution upon military necessity,"_ in place of the phrase, +_"and of duty demanded by the circumstances of the country,"_ as +written by Mr. Chase. + +The main credit for the introduction of the fortunate phrase is due to +Secretary Chase. President Lincoln placed the act upon a legal basis, +justifying it in law and in history. The sentence is what we might +have expected from the head and heart of the man who wrote the final +sentence of the first inaugural address: "The mystic chords of +memory, stretching from every battlefield and patriot grave to every +living heart and hearthstone, all over this broad land, will yet +swell the chorus of the Union, when again touched, as surely they will +be, by the better angels of our nature." Mr. Lincoln had genius for +the work of composition, and the poetic quality was strong and it was +often exhibited in his speeches and writings. The omission of the +sentence in question would so mar the Proclamation that it would cease +to represent Mr. Lincoln. Thus he became under great obligations to +Mr. Chase. + +It was not in the nature of Mr. Lincoln to close a state paper, which +he could not but have realized was to take a place by the side of the +Declaration of Independence, with a bald statement that the freedmen +would be received "into the armed service of the United States to +garrison forts, positions, stations, and other places, and to man +vessels of all sorts in said service." + +In the month of October, 1863, the ladies of Chicago made a request of +Mr. Lincoln for "the original" of his "proclamation of freedom," the +same to be disposed of "for the benefit of the soldiers." The letter +in their behalf was written by Mr. Arnold, who was then a member of +Congress. Improvidently, I think we may say, Mr. Lincoln yielded to +their request for the original draft of the Proclamation to be sold +for the benefit of the fair. Its transmission was accompanied by a +letter, written by Mr. Lincoln. + +"EXECUTIVE MANSION, +"WASHINGTON, +"_October_ 26, 1863. + +_"Ladies having in charge The North Western Fair for the Sanitary + Commission, Chicago, Ill._ + +"According to the request made in your behalf, the original draft of +the Emancipation Proclamation is herewith enclosed. The formal words +at the top and at the conclusion, except the signature, you perceive, +are not in my handwriting. They were written at the State Department, +by whom I know not. The printed part was cut from a copy of the +preliminary Proclamation and pasted on merely to save writing. + +"I have some desire to retain the paper, but if it shall contribute +to the relief of the soldiers, that would be better. + +"Your obt. servt., +"A. LINCOLN." + +In technical strictness the original Proclamation was of the archives +of the Department of State when the signature of the President and +Secretary of State had been affixed thereto, and its transfer by Mr. +Lincoln was an act not within his competency as President, or as the +author of the Proclamation. + +This point, however, is wholly speculative, but the country and +posterity will be interested in the fate of the original of a document +which is as immortal as the Declaration of Independence. The +Proclamation was sold to the Honorable Thomas B. Bryan of Chicago for +the sum of three thousand dollars and it was then presented by him to +the Soldiers' Home of Chicago, of which he was then President. That +position he still retains. The document was deposited in the rooms of +the Chicago Historical Society, where it was destroyed in the great +fire of 1871. + +Fortunately the managers of the fair had secured the preparation of +_fac simile_ copies of the Proclamation. These were sold in large +numbers, and thus many thousands of dollars were added to the receipts +of the fair. + +The managers of the Soldiers' Home were offered twenty-five thousand +dollars for the original Proclamation.* The offer came from a +showman who expected to reimburse himself by the exhibition of the +paper. + +The original now on the files of the State Department is not in the +handwriting of Mr. Lincoln and it has therefore no value derived from +Mr. Lincoln's personality. + +When I entered upon this inquiry, which has resulted in the preparation +of this paper, I was ignorant of the fact that the original +Proclamation had been destroyed, and it was my purpose to secure its +return to the archives of the Department of State. That is now +impossible. Its destruction has given value to the _fac simile_ +copies. Many thousands of them are in the possession of citizens of +the United States, and they will be preserved and transmitted as +souvenirs of the greatest act of the most illustrious American of this +century. + +In the early autumn of 1864 a meeting was held in Faneuil Hall in +honor of the capture of Atlanta by the army under General Sherman, and +the battle in Mobile Bay under the lead of Admiral Farragut. Strange +as the fact may now appear, those historical events were not accepted +with satisfaction by all the citizens of Boston. The leading +Democratic papers gave that kind of advice that may be found, usually, +in the columns of hostile journals, when passing events are unfriendly, +or when there is an adverse trend of public opinion. Hard words should +not be used and nothing should be said of a partisan character. Such +was the advice, and a large body of men assembled who were opposed to +partisan speeches. They were known as the McClellan Club of the +North End of Boston and they were sufficient in numbers, when standing, +to fill the main floor in front of the rostrum, which at that time was +not provided with seats. The meeting was called by Republicans and it +was conducted under the auspices of Republicans. Governor Andrew was +to preside and Governor Everett, with others, had been invited to +speak. Governor Andrew was not blessed with a commanding voice and it +was drowned or smothered by the hisses, cheers and cat-call cries of +the hostile audience in front of him. The efforts of the sympathetic +audience in the galleries were of no avail. Mr. Everett's letter was +then read, but not a sentence of it was understood by any person in the +assembly. Next came Mr. Sennott, an Irishman, a lawyer, and a man of +large learning in knowledge and attainments not adapted to general use. +He had then but recently abandoned the Democratic Party, but there was +a stain upon his reputation, traceable to the fact that in the year +1859 he had volunteered to aid in the legal defence of John Brown at +Harper's Ferry. The city of Boston could not have offered a person +less acceptable to the crowd in front of the speaker. Mr. Sennott's +voice was weak and of the art of using what power he possessed he had +no knowledge. His speech was not heard by anyone in the assembly. +By the arrangement I was to follow Mr. Sennott. I had had some +experience with hostile audiences, and in the year 1862 I had been +interrupted in a country town of Massachusetts by stones thrown +through the windows of a hall in which I was speaking upon the war and +the administration. + +As I sat upon the platform I studied my audience and I resolved upon my +course. I had one fixed resolution--I should get a hearing or I should +spend the night in the hall. Something of the character of my +reception and the results reached may be gained from the report of the +Boston _Journal_, and I copy the report without alteration, premising +however that some minutes passed before I secured a quiet hearing. + +SPEECH ON THE CHICAGO RESOLUTION + +_Fellow Citizens:_ It depends very much upon what we believe as to the +future of this country and the rights of the people, whether we rejoice +or mourn in consequence of the events in Mobile Bay and before Atlanta. +If it was true on the 30th day of last month that the people of this +country ought to take immediate efforts for the cessation of +hostilities, then, gentlemen, we have cause to mourn rather than to +rejoice. I understand that there were some people in this country, +who, before the 30th of August, since this was opened, had not, as an +aggregate body of men, expressed their opinions in reference to this +war, who then declared that it ought to cease. (A voice--"They're +few.") I observed in a newspaper published in this city two +observations within the last two days. One was that they were afraid +hard names would be used; and the other was that there was some +apprehension that this meeting to-night would have some political +aspect or influence. (Voices--"No! No!") I thought it likely +enough that it would (laughter and applause) because I observed in the +newspapers that it was called to express congratulations over the +events which had taken place in Mobile Bay and before Atlanta, and I +thought that I had observed that those events had rather a political +effect. (Renewed laughter.) Therefore I did not see exactly how it +was possible that men should assemble together to rejoice over events +having a political aspect without the meeting and the rejoicing having +a political aspect also. Well, now, gentlemen, I haven't come here +with any design that, so far as I am concerned, it shall have anything +but a political aspect. ("Good" and applause.) These times are too +serious for the acceptance of any suggestion that hard names are not +to be called if hard names are deserved. (Voices--"That is it!") The +question is not whether the meeting shall have a political influence, +but whether it is necessary to the salvation of the country that it +shall have a political influence. (Applause.) Well, gentlemen, I +observed while the person who last occupied the platform was speaking +certain indications, which I thought were a slight deviation from the +much talked-of right of free speech. (Laughter, and a voice--"Hit 'em +again.") Now, then, I am going to read a resolution adopted at +Chicago. I am going to make two propositions in reference to it. I am +then going to ask whether this assembly assents to or rejects those +propositions. If there is any man in this assembly who denies or +doubts those propositions, if I have the consent of the honored +chairman of this meeting to ten minutes of time in which I can engage +the ear of the assembly, I surrender it to that man, that he may have +the opportunity upon this platform to refute, if he can, the +propositions which I lay down. (Applause.) Now the second resolution +of this platform is in these words-- + +(At this point there was considerable disturbance in the rear of the +hall, created by one individual, and several voices cried out--"Free +speech!" "Out with him!") + +Mr. Boutwell continued: He will be more useful to the country if he +remain here. If he goes away there is no chance for his conversion to +the truth: if he remain here he may be saved. (Laughter.) "The vilest +sinner may return, While the lamp holds out to burn." (Renewed laughter +and applause.) I hope gentlemen who favor free speech will listen +attentively to this resolution: + +_"Resolved,_ That this convention does explicitly declare as the sense +of the American people, that after four years of failure to restore +the Union by the experiment of war, during which under pretence of +military necessity, or war power higher than the Constitution, the +Constitution has been disregarded in every part and public liberty and +private rights alike trodden down, and the material prosperity of the +country essentially impaired, justice, humanity, liberty and the public +welfare demand that immediate efforts be made for a cessation of +hostilities with a view to an ultimate convention of all the States, or +other peaceable means, to the end that at the earliest practicable +moment peace may be restored on the basis of a Federal Union of the +States." + +(The resolution was greeted with a feeble clapping of hands, a slight +attempt at cheers in the rear of the hall, and a storm of hisses. Mr. +Boutwell continued:) + +If there are any gentlemen here who approve this resolution, I hope +they will have the opportunity to cheer. (About half a dozen persons +commenced to cheer, but abandoned it on hearing their own voices, +when a voice exclaiming "These are the Copperheads," caused loud +laughter. The speaker proceeded:) + +Now then, gentlemen, the two propositions I lay down are these, and if +any one of those gentlemen who indulged in the luxury of a cheer just +now chooses to come upon this platform, I fulfill my pledge: The first +is that this resolution, so far as known, meets the approval of the +rebels in arms against this government. (Voices--"That's so," and +cheers.) The second is that this resolution meets the approval of all +the men in the North who sympathize with the cause of this rebellion +and desire its success. (Repeated cheers and "That's it.") Now, then, +if there is any one who would deny the truth of these propositions, let +him, with the leave of the chair, take ten minutes upon this platform. +(Some confusion ensued, several voices shouting "Make room for George +Lunt," "Where's Lunt?" etc., etc., etc. No one appearing, Mr. Boutwell +continued:) If there is nobody to refute these propositions, I take it +for granted that they meet the general assent of this vast assembly. +(cries of "Good" and cheers); and, if so, isn't this the time, when a +great convention professing to represent a portion of the American +people in time of war, not having spoken since hostilities commenced, +frame a leading resolution so as to meet the assent and approval of +the enemies of the Republic--isn't this the time, when such things are +done, for men who have a faith in the country and a belief in its right +to exist, to declare the reasons of that belief? (Voices--"Yes.") Now +I propose to discuss that resolution in some degree. First, it +proposes a cessation of hostilities. I have heard the word armistice +mentioned to-night. The declaration of that resolution is not for an +armistice. An armistice, according to its general acceptation and +use, implies a suspension of hostilities upon the expectation and +condition that they are to be resumed; and if hostilities are not to +be resumed then a cessation of hostilities is an abandonment of the +Government. It is treason. (Voices--"That's so," and loud and +continued cheers.) I declare here that the proposition for a +cessation of hostilities is moral and political treason (voices-- +"Good"); and, further, every man who knowingly and after investigation, +and upon his judgment favors a cessation of hostilities, is a traitor. +(Loud cheers.) The issue, gentlemen, is no longer upon the tented +field. No danger there to the cause of the Union. The soldiers are +true to the flag and they will fight on and march on until the last +rebel has fallen to the dust or laid down his arms. The soldiers are +true, but the cause of the Union is in peril at home (voices--"That's +where it is"), where secret organizations are mustering their forces +and gathering in material of war for which there can be no possible use +except to revolutionize this country through the fearful experience of +civil war. (A voice--"Shame on them.") O how I long for some +knowledge of the English language so that I may select a word or a +phrase which shall fully express the enormity of this treason! (Voices +--"Hang them." "String them up.") + +The rebels of the South have some cause. They believe in the +institution of slavery,--they have been educated under its influence. +They thought it in peril. They made war with some pretence on their +part for a reason for war, but what excuse, what palliation is there +for those men in the North, who, regardless of liberty, of justice, and +of humanity, ally themselves, openly some and secretly others, with the +enemies of the Republic? Spare, spare, your anathemas, gentlemen. Do +not longer employ the harsh language which you can command in +denunciation of Southern traitors. They of the North who give aid and +comfort to the enemy deserve to monopolize in the application all the +harsh words and phrases of the English language. (Applause.) +Cessation of hostilities--what follows? Dissolution of the Union +inevitably. Will not Jefferson Davis and his associates understand +that when we have ceased to make war, when our armies become +demoralized, public sentiment relaxed, when they have had opportunity +to gather up the materials for prosecuting this contest, that we +cannot renew the contest with any reasonable hope of success. +Therefore, if you abandon this contest now, it is separation--that is +what is meant, and nothing else can follow. But suppose that what +some gentlemen desire could be accomplished,--a reconstruction of the +Union by diplomatic relations inaugurated between this Government and +Jefferson Davis'--suppose the South should return--what follows? When +you have permitted Jefferson Davis and his associates to come back and +take their places in the government of this country, do you not see +that with the help of a small number of representatives from the North +whose services they are sure to command, they will assume the war debt +of the South. When you have assumed that debt, and taken the +obligation to pay it, these men of the South will treat the obligation +lightly, and upon the first pretext will renew secession and will +march straight out of the Union, and you, with your embarrassed +finance, will find yourselves unable to institute military proceedings +for their subjugation. Therefore I say that by the reconstruction +some men desire you render secession certain, bankruptcy throughout +the North certain. The repudiation of the Public Debt is not a matter +of expectation or fear, it is a matter of certainty, if you assent to +any reconstruction of this Union through the instrumentality of +Jefferson Davis and his associates. You must either drive them into +exile or exterminate them. Break down the military power of the +people, and exterminate or exile their leaders, and bring up men at +the South in favor of the Union--there is no other way of security to +yourselves. (Cheers.) Now, then, are you prepared to cease +hostilities with the expectation of negotiations with Jefferson Davis +for the dissolution of the Union or for its restoration? (Voices-- +"No!") Either course is alike fatal to you, for the war must go on +until peace is conquered. (Loud cheers and voices--"That's so.") On +the one side they offer you as negotiators Franklin Pierce, perhaps, +and A. H. Stephens; on the other, possibly one of the Seymours, either +of Connecticut or New York, Wise of Virginia, Vallandingham of Ohio, +and Soule of Louisiana. The only negotiators, gentlemen, to be +trusted as long as the war continued or there is a rebel in arms--the +only negotiators are Grant upon one line and Sherman upon the other. +(Tremendous cheers.) + +A Voice--"You have left out Mr. Harris of Maryland." + +Mr. Boutwell--"According to the reports, etc., we have had from +Chicago, he conducts negotiations upon his own account." + +Voice--"How are you, Mr. Harris?" + +Mr. Boutwell--"What does the cessation of hostilities mean? It means +that the blockade is to be removed, and the South be allowed to +furnish itself with materials and munitions of war. What does that +mean on the land? What does it mean on the sea? That you are to furl +your flag at Fortress Monroe on the Petersburg line; that you are to +remove your gunboats from the Mississippi River; that you are to +abandon Fort Jackson and Fort St. Philip at its mouth; that you are to +undo the work which the gallant Farragut has already done in Mobile +Bay, and so along the coast and upon the line from the Atlantic beyond +the Mississippi River. You, people of the North, who have been +victorious upon the whole through three years of war--you are to +disgrace your ancestry--you are to render yourselves infamous in all +future time, by furling your flag and submitting anew to rebel +authority upon this continent. Are you prepared for it? (Voices-- +"No!" "never!") I ask these men here, who cheered the resolution +adopted at Chicago, whether they, men of Massachusetts, and in Faneuil +Hall, will say, one of them, with his face to the patriots of the +Revolution--will say that he asks for peace through any craven spirit +that is within him? Is there a man among them all, from whatsoever +quarter of this city, renowned in history--is there a man of them all +who will stand here and say he is for the cessation of hostilities? If +so, let him speak, and let him, if he dare, come upon this platform and +face his patriotic fellow-citizens. (A call was made for cheers for +McClellan in the rear of the hall, but nobody seemed disposed to +respond. The speaker continued.) I am willing a cheer should be given +for any man who has been in the service of the country, however little +he may have done. Is there any man in Faneuil Hall for peace? (Voices +--"No!") I intended, so far as was in my power, to give to this +meeting a political aspect (voices--"Good!") in favor of the country +and against traitors. (Cheers.) If there are no peace men in this +assembly, then that object, as far as we are concerned, is +accomplished. (Prolonged cheering.) + +MR. CHASE AND THE CHIEF JUSTICESHIP + +Upon the death of Chief Justice Taney the general public favored the +appointment of Mr. Chase as his successor. In that view I concurred, +but I had heard Mr. Chase make so many unjust criticisms upon Mr. +Lincoln that I resolved to say nothing. I was willing to have Mr. +Chase appointed, but I was not willing to ask the President to confer +so great a place upon a man who had been so unjust to him. When the +nomination had been made, I said to Mr. Lincoln that I was very glad +that he had decided to appoint Mr. Chase. He then said: "There are +three reasons in favor of his appointment, and one very strong reason +against it. First, he occupies the largest place in the public mind +in connection with the office, then we wish for a Chief Justice who +will sustain what has been done in regard to emancipation and the legal +tenders. We cannot ask a man what he will do, and if we should and he +should answer us, we should despise him for it. Therefore we must take +a man whose opinions are known. But there is one very strong reason +against his appointment. He is a candidate for the Presidency, and if +he does not give up that idea it will be very bad for him and very bad +for me." At that time Mr. Lincoln had been re-elected to the +Presidency. + +Mr. Chase continued to be a candidate for the Presidency. He abandoned +the Republican Party in 1868 and as Chief Justice he abandoned his own +policy or the policy that he had adopted in regard to the legal tender +currency. + +It was said that Mr. Sumner, who was very earnest for Chase's +appointment, gave strong pledges to Mr. Lincoln that Mr. Chase would +abandon his ambition for the Presidency. + +RIGHTS OF STATES + +In 1864 I introduced a series of resolutions in the House of +Representatives in the form of a Declaration of Opinion in regard to +the legal status of the States in rebellion. At that time the country +and Congress had no doubt of our ability to crush the rebellion, and +the public mind was occupied with various theories of reconstruction. + +The resolutions had been already adopted by the National Union League. +I prepared them at the instance of Governor Claflin and their +adoption by the League had made the policy known to a large body of +active Republicans. I did not seek to secure their adoption by the +House of Representatives. The resolutions were in this form: + +_"Resolved,_ That the Committee on the Rebellious States be instructed +to consider and report upon the expediency of recommending to this +House the adoption of the following + +_Declaration of Opinions:_ + +"In view of the present condition of the country, and especially in +regard to the recent signal successes of the national arms promising +a speedy overthrow of the rebellion, this House makes the following +declaration of opinion concerning the institution of slavery in the +States and parts of States engaged in the rebellion, and embraced in +the proclamation of emancipation issued by the President on the first +day of January, A. D. 1863: and also concerning the relations now +subsisting between the people of such States and parts of States on +the one side, and the American Union on the other. + +_"It is therefore declared_ (as the opinion of the House of +Representatives), that the institution of slavery was the cause of the +present rebellion, and that the destruction of slavery in the +rebellious States is an efficient means of weakening the power of the +rebels; that the President's proclamation whereby all persons +heretofore held as slaves in such States and parts of States have been +declared free, has had the effect to increase the power of the Union, +and to diminish the power of its enemies; that the freedom of such +persons was desirable and just in itself, and an efficient means by +which the Government was to be maintained, and its authority re- +established in all the territory and over all the people within the +legal jurisdiction of the United States; that it is the duty of the +Government and of loyal men everywhere to do what may be practicable +for the enforcement of the proclamation, in order to secure in fact, +as well as by the forms of law, the extinction of slavery in such +States and parts of States; and, finally, that it is the paramount +duty of the Government and of all loyal men to labor for the +restoration of the American Union upon the basis of freedom. + +_"And this House does further declare,_ That a State can exist or cease +to exist only by the will of the people within its limits, and that it +cannot be created or destroyed by the external force or opinion of +other States, or even by the judgment or action of the nation itself; +that a State, when created by the will of its people, can become a +member of the American Union only by its own organized action and the +concurrent action of the existing National Government, that, when a +State has been admitted to the Union, no vote, resolution, ordinance, +or proceeding on its part, however formal in character or vigorously +sustained, can deprive the National Government of the legal +jurisdiction and sovereignty over the territory and people of such +State which existed previous to the act of admission, or which were +acquired thereby; that the effect of the so-called acts, resolutions +and ordinances of secession adopted by the eleven States engaged in +the present rebellion is, and can only be, to destroy those political +organizations as States, while the legal and constitutional +jurisdiction and authority of the National Government over the people +and territory remain unimpaired; that these several communities can be +organized into States only by the will of the loyal people, expressed +freely and in the absence of all coercion; that States so organized can +become States of the American Union only when they shall have applied +for admission, and their admission shall have been authorized by the +existing National Government; that, when a people have organized a +State upon basis of allegiance to the Union and applied for admission, +the character of the institutions of such proposed State may constitute +a sufficient justification for granting or rejecting such application; +and, inasmuch as experience has shown that the existence of human +slavery is incompatible with a republican form of government, in the +several States or in the United States, and inconsistent with the +peace, prosperity and unity of the nation, it is the duty of the people +and of all men in authority, to resist the admission of slave States +wherever organized within the jurisdiction of the National Government." + +The logical consequence of these positions was that upon the conquest +of the States engaged in the rebellion the National Government could +govern the people as seemed expedient and readmit them into the Union +at such times and upon such terms as the Government should dictate. +They antagonized the doctrine then accepted by many Republicans-- +"Once a State always a State"--a doctrine that would have transferred +the government at once into the hands of the men who had been engaged +in an effort to destroy it. + +Mr. Sumner was wiser in this respect. His theory that the +rebellious States should be reduced to a Territorial condition was in +harmony with the views that were embodied in the resolutions. At the +time, however, they did not receive the support of all the members of +the Republican Party. + +Mr. Stevens maintained the doctrine that the rebel States were +conquered States and wholly subject to the power of the conqueror. +In his view their previous condition as States in the Union had no +value. But Mr. Stevens was never troubled by the absence of logic or +argument. In the case of the rebel States he intended to assert power +enough to meet the exigency and he was free of all fear as to the +judgement of posterity. When he had formed a purpose he looked only +to the end. If he could command the adequate means he left all +questions of logic and ethics to other minds and to future times. + +Others maintained that the theory that the States were in a Territorial +condition or that they had ceased to exist as States, was an admission +of the doctrine of secession. Mr. Lincoln in his last public address +cut clear of all theories and resolved the situation into a simple +statement of a fact to which all were compelled to assent: "We all +agree, that the seceded States so-called, are out of their proper +practical relations with the Union." On this basis Congress finally +acted, but during the process and progress of reconstruction the +military authority was absolute, and local and individual powers were +completely subordinated to the authority of the General Government. + +COUNTING THE ELECTORAL VOTES + +In 1865 and 1869, questions were raised when the electoral votes were +counted, that gave rise to debates in the House of Representatives and +on one occasion subsequently in the Senate. In the House, Francis +Thomas of Maryland and Samuel Shellabarger of Ohio took part. Both +were able men. Thomas had the qualities of an orator but he spoke so +infrequently that his power was not generally appreciated. On that +occasion he spoke exceedingly well, but the attendance was small, an +evening session having been assigned for debate upon that subject. +Mr. Shellabarger was logical and effective but he was destitute of +imagination utterly. At the bar since his retirement from politics he +has enjoyed a large practice, but, unfortunately, as it appears to me, +he has preserved the style of speaking which he acquired upon the +stump and in Congress. A skillful speaker must adapt himself to the +circumstance and to his audience. A stump speech, a speech in the +House of Representatives, a speech in the Senate, an argument to a +court, an argument to a jury, should each be framed on a model of its +own. Neither style will answer for any other. The degree of variance +may not be considerable and with a well disciplined person the change +may not be apparent. Mr. Webster adapted himself to every audience, +but the changes were slight. Yet there were changes. He was not over +solemn in the Supreme Court, and he was never boisterous when he +addressed the multitude. + +As far as I recollect my positions and arguments in the debates upon +the counting of the electoral votes, I now discard all I said then. +My present conclusion is that upon a reasonable construction of the +Constitution there is no occasion for legislation or for an amendment +to the fundamental law. The Vice-President or the President of the +Senate is the president of the convention. He carries into the chair +the ordinary powers of a presiding officer. He rules upon all +questions that arise. He may and should rule upon the various +certificates that are sent up by the several States. If, in any case, +his ruling is objected to, the two Houses separate, and each House +votes upon the question:--"Shall the ruling of the Chair stand, etc." +If the Houses divide, the ruling is sustained. The president and one +House are a majority. The decision is in accordance with our system of +government. The suggestion that the president or that the Houses may +act under the influence of personal or political prejudice, may, with +equal force, be urged against any scheme that can be devised. The +counting of the electoral votes must be left in the hands of men, and +the Constitution has given us all the security that can be had that the +decision will be honestly made. The president of the convention and +the members of the Houses are bound by oath as solemnly as are the +judicial tribunals of the country. A judge is only a man, and he is +subject to like infirmities with other men. It is a wise feature of +our system that the courts have no voice in the political department +of our Government. The presidential office should never be in the +control of the judicial branch of the Government. + +[* Letter of the Honorable Thomas B. Bryan.] + + +XXX +THE AMENDMENTS TO THE CONSTITUTION + +I had no part in the preparation of the Thirteenth Amendment to the +Constitution, nor any part in its passage through the House other than +to give my vote in its favor. The Amendment resolution was passed by +the Thirty-eighth Congress at its last session and by the aid of +Democrats. The elections of 1864 had resulted in a two-thirds majority +and it was therefore certain that the resolution would be agreed to by +the next House. Hence there was less inducement for the Democrats to +resist its passage by the Thirty-eighth Congress. A small number of +Democrats favored the measure. English of Connecticut and Ganson of +New York were of the number. There were others also whose names I do +not recall. At the time of the contest a rumor was abroad that James +M. Ashley, of Ohio, was engaged in making arrangements with certain +Democrats to absent themselves from the House when the vote was taken. +Several were absent--some were reported in ill health. Mr. Ashley was +deeply interested in the passage of the resolution and it was believed +that he made pledges which no one but the President could keep. Such +was the exigency for the passage of the resolution that the means were +not subjected to any rigid rule of ethics. + +The Fourteenth Amendment had its origin in a joint committee of fifteen +of which Mr. Fessenden of Maine was chairman. A record of its +proceedings was kept which was printed recently by order of the +Senate. From that report it appears that I proposed an amendment for +conferring the right to vote upon the freedmen of the State of +Tennessee. As far as I know that was the first time the proposition +was made in connection with the proceedings of Congress. The +committee did not concur in the proposition. Indeed the time had not +come for decisive action in that direction. The motion was made in +the committee the 19th day of February, 1866, when the admission of +the State of Tennessee into the Union was under consideration. The +motion was in these words: "Said State shall make no distinction in +the exercise of the elective franchise on account of race or color." +The motion was lost by the following vote: + +Yeas: Howard, Stevens, Washburne, Morrill, Boutwell. +Nays: Harris, Williams, Grider, Bingham, Conkling, Rogers. +Absent: Fessenden, Grimes, Johnson, Blow. + +The 16th day of April Senator Stewart, of Nevada, came before the +committee in support of a similar proposition that he had introduced +in the Senate April 7. + +In January, 1866, a bill was under discussion in the House of +Representatives for the establishment of a government in the District +of Columbia. Mr. Hale of New York moved amendments by which the right +of suffrage by negroes would be limited to those who could read and +write, to those who had performed service in the army or navy or who +possessed property qualifications. The amendment was defeated. My +views were thus stated in one of the very small number of my speeches +that have had immediate influence upon an audience or an assembly: + +"I am opposed to the instructions moved by the gentleman from New +York, because I see in them no advantage to anybody, and I apprehend +from their adoption much evil to the country. It should be borne in +mind, that, when we emancipated the black people we not only relieved +ourselves from the institution of slavery, we not only conferred upon +them their freedom, but we did more; we recognized their manhood, +which, by the old Constitution and the general policy and usage of the +country, had been, from the organization of the Government until the +Emancipation Proclamation, denied to all the enslaved colored people. +As a consequence of the recognition of their manhood, certain results +follow, in accordance with the principles of the Government; and they +who believe in this Government are, by necessity, forced to accept +those results as a consequence of the policy of emancipation which they +have inaugurated, and for which they are responsible. + +"But to say now, having given freedom to the blacks, that they shall +not enjoy the essential rights and privileges of men, is to abandon +the principle of the Proclamation of Emancipation, and tacitly to admit +that the whole emancipation policy is erroneous. + +* * * "What are the qualifications suggested? They are three. First +and most attractive, service in the army or navy of the United States. +I shall have occasion to say, if I discuss, as I hope to discuss, the +nature and origin of the right of voting, that there is not the least +possible connection between service in the army and navy and the +exercise of the elective franchise,--none whatever. These men have +performed service, and I am for dealing justly with them because they +have performed service. But I am more anxious to deal justly by them +because they are men. And when it is remembered, that, for months and +almost for years after the opening of the rebellion, we refused to +accept the services of colored persons in the armies of the country, +it is with ill grace that we now decline to allow the vote of any man +because he has not performed that service. + +"The second is the property qualification. I hope it is not necessary +in this day and this hour of the Republic to argue anywhere that a +property qualification is not only unjust in itself, but that it is +odious to the people of the country to a degree which cannot be +expressed. Everywhere, I believe, for half a century, it has been +repudiated by the people. Does anybody contemplate such a +qualification to the elective franchise, in the case of black people +or white? + +"And next, reading and writing, or reading as a qualification, is +demanded; and an appeal is made to the example of Massachusetts. I +wish gentlemen who now appeal to Massachusetts would often appeal to +her in other matters where I can more conscientiously approve her +policy. But it is a different proposition in Massachusetts as a +practical measure. + +"When, ten years ago, this qualification was imposed upon the citizens +of Massachusetts, it excluded no person who was then a voter. For two +centuries, we have had in Massachusetts a system of public instruction, +open to the children of the whole people without money and without +price. Therefore all the people there had had opportunities for +education. Why should the example of such a State be quoted to +justify refusing suffrage to men who have been denied the privilege +of education, and whom it has been a crime to teach? + +* * * "The negro has everywhere the same right to vote as the white +man, and I maintain still further, that, when you proceed one step +from this line, you admit that your government is a failure. What is +the essential quality of monarchical and aristocratic governments? +Simply that by conventionalities, by arrangements of conventions, some +persons have been deprived of the right of voting. We have attempted +to set up and maintain a government upon the doctrine of the equality +of men, the universal right of all men, to participate in the +government. In accordance with that theory, we must accept the ballot +upon the principle of equality. It is enjoyed by the learned and un- +learned, the wise and the ignorant, the virtuous and the vicious. + +"The great experiment is going on. If, before the war, any man in +this country was disposed to undervalue a government thus conducted, he +should have learned by this time the wisdom and strength of a +government which embraces and embodies the judgment and the will of the +whole people. If the negroes of the South, four million strong, had +been endowed with the elective franchise, and had united with the +white people of that region in the work of rebellion, your armies would +have been powerless to subdue that rebellion, and you would to-day have +seen your territory limited by the Potomac and the Ohio. + +* * * "We are to answer for our treatment of the colored people of this +country; and it will prove in the end impracticable to secure to men +of color civil rights, unless the persons who claim those rights are +fortified by the political right of voting. With the right of voting, +everything that a man ought to have or enjoy of civil rights comes to +him. Without the right to vote he is secure in nothing. I cannot +consent, after all the guards and safeguards which may be prepared for +the defence of the colored men in the enjoyment of their rights,--I +cannot consent that they shall be deprived of the right to protect +themselves. One hundred and eighty-six thousand of them have been in +the army of the United States. They have stood in the places of our +sons and brothers and friends. Many of them have fallen in the defence +of the country. They have earned the right to share in the government; +and, if you deny them the elective franchise, I know not how they are +to be protected. Otherwise you furnish the protection which is given +to the lamb when he is commended to the wolf. + +"There is an ancient history that a sparrow pursued by a hawk took +refuge in the chief Assembly of Athens, in the bosom of a member of +that illustrious body, and that the senator in anger hurled it +violently from him. It fell to the ground dead; and such was the +horror and indignation of that ancient but not Christianized body,-- +men living in the light of nature, of reason,--that they immediately +expelled the brutal Areopagite from his seat, and from the association +of humane legislators. + +"What will be said of us, not by Christian, but by heathen nations +even, if, after accepting the blood and sacrifices of these men, we +hurl them from us, and allow them to become the victims of those who +have tyrannized over them for centuries? I know of no crime that +exceeds this; I know of none that is its parallel; and, if this country +is true to itself, it will rise in the majesty of its strength, and +maintain a policy, here and everywhere, by which the right of the +colored people shall be secure through their own power,--in peace, +the ballot; in war, the bayonet. + +"It is a maxim of another language, which we may well apply to +ourselves, that, where the voting-register ends, the military roster of +rebellion begins; and, if you leave these four million people to the +care and custody of the men who have inaugurated and carried on this +rebellion, then you treasure up, for untold years, the elements of +social and civil war, which must not only desolate and paralyze the +South, but shake this government to its very foundation." + + +It was impossible in 1866 to go farther than the provisions of the +Fourteenth Amendment. That amendment was prepared in form by Senators +Conkling and Williams and myself. We were a select committee on +Tennessee. The propositions were not ours, but we gave form to the +amendment. The part relating to "privileges and immunities" came from +Mr. Bingham of Ohio. Its euphony and indefiniteness of meaning were +a charm to him. When the measure came before the Senate Mr. Sumner +opposed its passage and alleged that we proposed to barter the right +of the negroes to vote for diminished representation on the part of +the old slave States in the House and in the electoral college; while +in truth the loss of representation was imposed as a penalty upon any +State that should deprive any class of its adult male citizens of the +right to vote. Upon this allegation of Mr. Sumner the resolution was +defeated in the Senate. There were then in that body a number of +Republicans from the old slave States and over them Mr. Sumner had +large influence. The defeat of the amendment was followed by bitter +criticisms by the Republican press and by Republicans. These +criticisms affected Mr. Sumner deeply and he then devoted himself to +the preparation of an amendment which he could approve. While he was +engaged in that work I called upon him and he read seventeen drafts of +a proposition not one of which was entirely satisfactory to himself, +and not one of which would have been accepted by Congress or the +country. The difficulty was in the situation. Upon the return of the +seceded States their representation would be increased nearly forty +votes in the House and in the electoral colleges while the voting force +would remain in the white population. The injustice of such a +condition was apparent, and there were only two possible remedies. +One was to extend the franchise to the blacks. The country--the loyal +States--were not then ready for the measure. The alternative was to +cut off the representation from States that denied the elective +franchise to any class of adult male citizens. Finally Mr. Sumner was +compelled to accept the alternative. Some change of phraseology was +made, and Mr. Sumner gave a reluctant vote for the resolution. + +Aside from the debates on the constitutional amendment there were +serious difficulties among Republicans in regard to the exercise of the +right of suffrage by the negroes. + +Previous to the year 1868 there was a majority of Republicans who would +have imposed a qualification, some of service in the army or navy, +some of property and some of education. It was with great difficulty +that the scheme of limitation was resisted in regard to the District +of Columbia. As to the Democrats they could always be counted upon to +aid in any measure which tended to keep the negroes in a subordinate +condition. This of the majority--there was always a minority, usually +a small one, who were ready to aid in the elevation of the negro when +his emancipation had been accomplished. I do not recall the name of +one man who favored emancipation as a policy and adhered to the +Democratic Party. When a man reached the conclusion that the negroes +should be free, he could not do otherwise than join the Republican +Party. At the time of the admission of Tennessee, July, 1866, there +were only twelve men in the House of Representatives who insisted upon +securing to the negro the right to vote. A larger number favored the +scheme, but they yielded to the claim of that State to be admitted +without conditions. At that time the power of the President was not +impaired seriously, and his wishes were heeded by many. There was +also an understanding that the State would concede the right upon terms +not unreasonable. + +Next to the restoration of the Union and the abolition of slavery the +recognition of universal suffrage is the most important result of the +war. It has its evils but they are incidental, and their influence is +limited to times and places, while the advantages are universal and +enduring. Universal suffrage is security for universal education. It +is security against chronic hostility to the Government and security +against the manifestation of a revolutionary spirit among the people. +They realize that with frequent elections, the evils of administration +may be corrected speedily. By a similar though slower process the +fundamental law may be changed. Hence it is in this country until +recently there was no difference of opinion as to the wisdom of the +system of government under which we are living. The existing diversity +of opinion will soon disappear. If suffrage were limited there would +be a body of discontented people ready to seize upon any pretext that +promised a change. In the present condition of our system the only +danger is due to the forcible or fraudulent withholding of the right +from those who are entitled to enjoy it. This condition of things +must soon end. The safety of a state is yet further secured by +frequent elections. The project to extend the Presidential term is +full of danger. If the term were six or ten years the presence of an +offensive or dangerous man in the office would provoke a revolution, or +cause disturbances only less disastrous to business and to social and +domestic comfort. In the little republic of Hayti there have been not +less than seventeen revolutions in the hundred years of its existence +and they were due in a large degree to the fact that the Presidential +term is seven years. + +The various propositions submitted to the House of Representatives for +securing the right to vote to all the male adult citizens of the United +States were referred to the Judiciary Committee of which I was a +member. Among them was one submitted by myself. In the committee they +were referred to a sub-committee consisting of myself, Mr. Churchill +of New York, and Mr. Eldridge of Wisconsin. Mr. Eldridge as a +Democrat was opposed to the measure, and he took no interest in +preparing the form of an amendment. Churchill and myself were fellow- +boarders and we prepared and agreed to an amendment in substance that +which was adopted finally and which in form was almost the same. When +I reported the amendment to the committee not one word was said either +in criticism or commendation, nor was there a call for a second +reading. After a moment's delay Mr. Wilson, the chairman, said:--"If +there is no objection Mr. Boutwell will report the amendment to the +House." There was no objection and at the earliest opportunity I made +the report--that is, I reported the resolution for amending the +Constitution. Mr. Wilson made a speech which I have not since read, +but which made an impression upon my mind that he was opposed to the +measure, or at least had doubts about the wisdom of urging the +amendment upon Congress and the country. + +The resolution passed the House as it was reported by the committee. +When it was taken up in the Senate Mr. Sumner, who was opposed to the +resolution, assailed it with an amendment that would have been fatal if +his lead had been followed by the two Houses. He proposed to insert +after the words "to vote" the words "or hold office." At that time he +was a recognized leader upon all matters relating to the negro race, +and his standing with that race was such that the Republican senators +from the slave States were obedient to his wishes. His amendment was +adopted by the Senate. In presence of the fact that Mr. Sumner was +opposed to any amendment of the Constitution upon the subject and he +proposed to rely upon a statute, it is difficult to explain his conduct +upon any other theory than that he intended to defeat the measure +either in Congress or in the States. He had claimed when the +Fourteenth Amendment was pending that a joint resolution would furnish +an adequate remedy and protection. His proposition was in these +words: "There shall be no oligarchy, aristocracy, caste or monopoly +invested with peculiar privileges and powers and there shall be no +denial of rights, civil or political, on account of color or race +anywhere within the limits of the United States or the jurisdiction +thereof: but all persons therein shall be equal before the law, whether +in the court room or at the ballot-box. And this statute made in +pursuance of the Constitution shall be the supreme law of the land, +anything in the constitution or laws of any State notwithstanding." +This resolution is a sad impeachment of Mr. Sumner's quality as a +lawyer and it is an equally sad impeachment of his sense or of his +integrity as a man that he was willing to risk the rights of five +million persons upon a statute whose language was rhetorical and +indefinite, a statute which might be repealed and which was quite +certain to be pronounced unconstitutional by the Supreme Court. + +Upon the return of the resolution and amendment to the House, my own +position was an embarrassing one. I was counted as a radical and in +favor of securing to the negro race every right to which the white race +was entitled. My opposition to the Senate amendment seemed to place +me in a light inconsistent with my former professions. However, I met +the difficulty by an argument in which I maintained that the right +to vote carried with it the right to hold office. That in the United +States there were only a few exceptions, and those were exceptions +under the Constitution. + +Finally, the House, by a reduced vote refused to concur with the +amendment of the Senate. It was at this crisis that Wendell Phillips +wrote an article in the _Anti-Slavery Standard_ over his own name in +which he said in substance and in words, that the House proposition was +adequate and that it ought to be accepted by the Senate. His name and +opinion settled the controversy. The Southern Republicans deserted +Mr. Sumner feeling that the opinion of Phillips was a sufficient +shield. A slight change of phraseology was made and the proposition of +the House became the Fifteenth Amendment to the Constitution of the +United States. + +I wrote a letter of acknowledgment to Mr. Phillips in the opinion +that he had saved the amendment. At that time the prejudice against +negroes for office was very strong in Ohio, Indiana, Illinois and in +varying degrees the prejudice extended over the whole North. + +The enjoyment of the right to vote has not been fully secured to the +negro race, but no one has appeared to deny his right to hold office. +Indeed, the Democratic Party as well as the Republican Party has +placed him in office, both by election and appointment. Thus has +experience shown the folly of Mr. Sumner's amendment. + +That Mr. Sumner should have been willing to risk the rights of the +whole negro race upon a statute whose constitutionality would have +been questioned upon good ground, and which might have been repealed, +is a marvel which no one not acquainted with Mr. Sumner can +comprehend. First of all, though he was learned, he was not a lawyer. +He was impractical in the affairs of government to a degree that is +incomprehensible even to those who knew him. He was in the Senate +twenty-three years and the only mark that he left upon the statutes is +an amendment to the law relating to naturalization by which Mongolians +are excluded from citizenship. The object of his amendment was to +save negroes from the exclusive features of the statute which was +designed to apply only to the Chinese. His amendment made plain what +the committee had designed to secure. He was a great figure in the +war against slavery and as a great figure in that war he should ever +remain. + +The Fourteenth Amendment saved the country from a series of calamities +that might have been more disastrous even than the Civil War. The +South might, under the Fourteenth Amendment, grant to the negroes the +right to vote but upon conditions wholly impracticable and thus have +secured their full representation in Congress at the same time that the +voting power was retained in the hands of the white race. Or they +might have denied to the negro race the right to vote and submitted to +a loss of representation. Such a policy would have given the whole +country over to contention and possibly in the end, to civil war. The +discontented and oppressed negroes, increasing in numbers and wealth, +would have demanded their rights ultimately, even by the threat of +force, or by the use of force they would have secured their rights. In +the North there would have been a large body of the people, only less +than the whole body, who would have sympathized with the negroes and +who, in an exigency would have rendered them material aid. The Dorr +War in Rhode Island and the struggles in Kansas, are instances of the +danger of attempting to found society or to maintain social order upon +an unjust or an unequal system for the distribution of political power. +It is true that at this time (1901) the operation of the Fifteenth +Amendment has been defeated and consequently the governments of States +and the Government of the United States have become usurpations, in +that they have been in the hands of a minority of men. Nevertheless +the influence of the amendment is felt by all, and the time is not +distant when it will be accepted by all. Thus our Government will be +made to rest upon the wisest and safest foundation yet devised by +man: The Equality of Men in the States, and the Equality of States in +the Union. + +Mr. Sumner opposed the amendment and he declined to vote upon the +passage of the resolution. Wendell Phillips saved it in the Senate. +General Grant, more than anyone else secured its ratification by the +people. I append a copy of my letter to Mr. Phillips: + +WASHINGTON, _March_ 13, 1870. +MY DEAR SIR:-- + +This letter will recall to your mind the circumstance that when the +Fifteenth Amendment was suspended between the two houses you published +an editorial in the _Standard_ in favor of the House proposition. Can +you send me that article? It may not be known to you that that article +saved the amendment. A little of the secret history was thus. Various +propositions were offered in the House--among them one of my own--and +all were referred to the Judiciary Committee. + +In the Judiciary Committee, upon my motion the various resolutions for +amending the Constitution in that particular were referred to a sub- +committee consisting of myself, Churchill of New York and Eldridge of +Wisconsin. Churchill and myself were living at the same house and +conferred together several times. Eldridge took no interest in the +matter and never joined us--perhaps he was not invited. After an +examination of all the plans I wrote that proposed amendment which was +passed by the House and is in substance and almost in language the +amendment as adopted. + +With the concurrence of Mr. Churchill I reported it to the committee +and without one word of criticism and as far as I could judge without +any particular consideration I was directed to report it to the House. +In the House it encountered considerable opposition and Mr. Wilson, +Chairman of the Judiciary Committee, made a speech which was a great +surprise to me, though directed chiefly to the bill which I had also +reported by direction of the Judiciary Committee giving at once the +right of suffrage to negroes in all national elections and for members +of the Legislature. This I thought necessary to secure the passage of +the amendment through the State Legislatures. However, the resolution +was finally passed by the House. In the Senate it met with great +opposition because it omitted to secure in terms the right to hold +office. This point had been raised in the House where I had +successfully met the proposition by the statement and an argument in +support of the statement that the right to vote as a matter of fact and +in law carries with it the right to hold office. In the Senate, Mr. +Sumner, supported by all the Southern Republicans and a part of the +Northern Republicans succeeded in substituting a new resolution +securing in terms the right to hold office. Upon the return of the +Resolution to the House I was obliged to take what appeared a +conservative position and resist the proposition to concur with the +Senate upon the ground that the change was unnecessary and that its +adoption threatened the loss of the measure in doubtful States as Ohio, +Indiana, West Virginia and others. The House adhered to its position, +yet with such weakness of purpose on the part of many who sustained me, +as indicated that they would not withstand another assault. The +struggle was then renewed in the Senate and with every indication that +the Senate would insist upon its amendment. It was then that your +article appeared. Its influence was immediate and potential. Men +thought that if you the extremest radical could accept the House +proposition they might safely do the same. Had the Senate adhered one +of two things would have happened, either the House would have seceded +or the amendment would have failed. + +Had the House concurred I fear we should have failed to carry several +States which have since ratified it. + +Upon reflection I think as at the time I thought that your voice saved +the Fifteenth Amendment. + +I am very truly, +GEO. S. BOUTWELL. + +WENDELL PHILLIPS, ESQ. +Boston. + +P. S. This letter is not for the public use in so far as names are +mentioned, and of course, not for publication. +G. S. B. + +The article of Mr. Phillips became so important in its influence upon +the final action of the Senate that I reproduce it in justice to Mr. +Phillips and as a further record of an historical event. + +"We see the action of the Senate touching the Constitutional +Amendment with great anxiety. The House had passed a simple measure, +one covering all the ground that people are ready to occupy. It +answered completely the lesson of the war. Its simplicity gave it all +the chance that exists for any form of amendment being ratified. + +"Why was it not left in that shape? Leaving out of sight the manifest +risk of attempting too much, the very fact of the little time left +before the session closes, was warning enough to clutch at anything +satisfactory and to run no risk of possible disagreement between the +Houses. We wait further knowledge before indulging any conjectures as +to the motive for this strange course of the Senate; before even +suspecting that it grew out of any concealed hate toward the whole +measure and was indeed a trick to defeat it. Whoever, in either House, +gratifies some personal whim to the extent of defeating or even +postponing this measure will incur the gravest responsibility. We +exhort every man who professes himself a friend of liberty to drop all +undue attachment to any form of words and to co-operate, heartily, +earnestly, with the great body of the members in carrying through as +promptly as possible, any form which included the substance of a +constitutional protection to the votes and right to office of the +colored race. That is the work of the hour. That is the lesson the +war has burned in on the brain and conscience of the Nation. + +"To include with this, 'Nationality, education, creed,' etc., is utter +lack of common sense. Such a total forgetfulness of the commonest +political prudence as makes it hard to credit the good intentions of +the proposers. + +"Our disappointment is the greater because we had reason to believe +that the Senators who have this matter in charge, would be the last +men to forget themselves at such a crisis. They have been timidly +'practical,' ludicrously tied up to precedents, when, in times past we +have urged them to some act which seemed likely to jeopard party. Then +Sir Oracle was never more sententious, more full of 'wise saws and +modern instances,' than they. The inch they were willing to move ahead +was hardly visible to the naked eye. How they lectured us on the 'too +fast' and 'too far' policy! Now in an emergency which calls for the +most delicate handling, they tear up not one admitted abuse, but +include in the grasp half a dozen obstinate prejudices, which no logic +of events has loosened. For the first time in our lives we beseech +them to be a little more _politicians_--and a little less _reformers_-- +as those functions are usually understood." + +Under the date of March 18, 1869, I received from Mr. Phillips a letter +in acknowledgment of my letter of thanks and commendation, in these +words: + +"DEAR SIR:-- + +"Thank you for the intimation in your letter. I am glad if any words +of mine helped get rid of the too prompt action at that time. I +think it was of the greatest importance to act at once." + +The public mind seems to be misled in regard to the scope and legal +value of the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments. The amendments were +in the nature of grants of power to the National Government, and in a +corresponding degree they were limitations of the powers of the States, +but the grants of power to the nation were also subject to limitations. +Until the ratification of the amendments the States had full power to +extend the right of suffrage, or to restrict its enjoyment with the +freedom that they possessed when the Treaty of Peace of 1783 had been +signed, and when the Constitution had not been framed and ratified. + +All limitations of the right of suffrage by male inhabitants of +twenty-one years of age, must fall under the control of the Fourteenth +or Fifteenth Amendments. + +If in any State the right to vote shall be "denied or abridged on +account of race, color or previous condition of servitude," the +statutes may be annulled by a decision of the Supreme Court. Neither +the people of the United States in their political sovereignty, nor +the political branch of the Government in its representative capacity +can exert any direct influence upon the decision of the questions that +may arise. The questions that may arise will be judicial questions, +and they will fall under the decision of the judicial tribunals. Hence +there has never been a time when it was the duty or when it was in the +power or within the scope of the duty of the executive branch of the +National Government to take official notice of the legislation in some +of the former slave States, which is designed manifestly to limit the +voting power of the negro population in those States. + +If such legislation does not fall under the Fifteenth Amendment it will +be subject to the penalty imposed by the Fourteenth Amendment,--a +proportionate loss of representative power in the House of +Representatives and in the Electoral Colleges. + +As one of the three remaining members of the Committee on the +Judiciary, and as one of the three remaining members of the Committee +on Reconstruction, I wish to say, without any reservation whatever, +that the amendments are accomplishing and are destined to accomplish +all that was expected by the committees that were charged with the +duty of providing for the protection of the rights of the freedmen. + +They were relived from the disparaging distinctions that came into +existence with the system of slavery. They were placed upon an +equality with other citizens and in the forms of law all +discriminations affecting unfavorably the right of suffrage must +apply equally to all citizens. The injustice and unwisdom of the +restrictive legislation in which the Southern States are indulging, +are subject of concern for the whole country, but the negro populations +have no ground for the complaint that their rights have been neglected +by the General Government. + +This, however, is true: The negro population, in common with all +others, has ground for just and continuing complaint against the +legislation of Congress by which a portion of the inhabitants of the +Hawaiian Islands have been denationalized on account of race or color, +or on account of a condition of mental or physical inferiority. + +The process of reasoning by which the legislation of the States of the +South is condemned, by those who uphold the legislation in regard to +Hawaii involves a question in political ethics which for the moment I +am not able to answer in a manner satisfactory to myself. + + +XXXI +INVESTIGATIONS FOLLOWING THE CIVIL WAR + +In the years 1865, '66 and '67 three important subjects of inquiry were +placed in the hands of committees of which I was a member. + +The Committee on the Judiciary of the House of Representatives by +resolutions adopted respectively the 9th and 30th days of April, 1866, +was directed "to inquire into the nature of the evidence implicating +Jefferson Davis and others in the assassination of Mr. Lincoln." + +James M. Ashley of Ohio introduced a resolution for the impeachment of +President Johnson, and on the 7th day of January, 1867, the House +authorized the Committee on the Judiciary "to inquire into the official +conduct of Andrew Johnson, Vice-President of the United States, +discharging the powers and duties of President of the United States," +etc. + +By a resolution of the two Houses of Congress passed the 12th and 13th +of December, 1865, a joint committee was created under instructions to +"inquire into the condition of the States which formed the so-called +Confederate States of America and report whether they or any of them +are entitled to be represented in either House of Congress." + +William Pitt Fessenden was chairman on the part of the Senate and +Thaddeus Stevens was chairman of the part of the House. Upon the +death of Mr. Stevens I succeeded to his place. The testimony taken +in these cases fills three huge volumes. No inconsiderable part of the +testimony was taken by myself, and I was but seldom absent from the +meetings of the committees. + +JOHN WILKES BOOTH + +In no other situation in life is the character of a man more fully and +truthfully brought into view than when he is placed upon the witness- +stand and subjected to an examination by counsel or others who aim to +support opposite opinions and to reach adverse results. The committees +that conducted the investigations were composed of men who entertained +opposite views in regard to the reconstruction of the government and in +regard to the impeachment of President Johnson. There was also a +difference of opinion upon the question of the responsibility of the +Confederate authorities for the assassination of Mr. Lincoln. As a +consequence of this diversity of opinion the witnesses were subjected +to the equivalent of a cross-examination in a court of justice. Some +of the impressions of men that I received in the many hearings, and +some of the opinions I formed, are recorded here. + +In each branch of these comprehensive inquiries there may be found +something in the nature of evidence that may appear to have a bearing +upon the assassination of Mr. Lincoln. It is my purpose in these +paragraphs to bring in to view the testimony which relates directly to +John Wilkes Booth, the most conspicuous and without question the chief +criminal in the tragedy of the assassination of President Lincoln, and +the attempt upon the life of Mr. Seward. + +The first step in the proceedings which culminated in the murder was +the deposit at Surrattsville (a place about five miles from Washington, +and owned by the Surratt family) of a carbine, two bottles of whiskey, +a small coil of rope, a field glass, a monkey wrench, and some other +articles. + +The house was kept by a man named Lloyd, and neither the character of +the house nor that of the keeper could bear a rigid test in ethics. +The deposit was made about the first of March by John H. Surratt, +Atzerodt and David E. Herold, all of whom were afterwards implicated +in the crime. The articles were received and secreted by Lloyd, but +only after objections by him, as appears from his testimony. Lloyd +connected Mrs. Surratt with the crime by these facts as related by +him. She called upon Lloyd the Tuesday preceding the fatal Friday +and gave him this message: "She told me to have them ready (speaking +of the shooting-iron) that they would be called for or wanted soon, +I have forgotten which." + +Mrs. Surratt made a second call the afternoon preceding the murder, +when this conversation took place, as stated by Lloyd: "When I drove +up in my buggy to the back yard Mrs. Surratt came out to meet me. She +handed me a package, and told me as well as I remember to get the guns +or those things--I really forget now which, though my impression is +that guns was the expression she made use of--and a couple of bottles +of whisky and give them to whoever should call for them that night." + +That night, after the murder, Booth and Herold called, and took the +carbine and drank of the whisky. In these facts there is a basis for +a reasonable theory. The theory is this. Previous to the fall of +Richmond and the surrender of Lee's army the Confederate authorities +set on foot a scheme for the capture and abduction of Mr. Lincoln. +The articles deposited, including the rope and the monkey wrench, +might be useful had Mr. Lincoln been abducted, but when the crime +became murder the rope and wrench were neglected. + +This view derives support from two directions. In Booth's diary is +this entry. "April 13-14 Friday. The Ides. Until to-day nothing was +ever thought of sacrificing to our country's wrongs. For six months +we had worked to capture. But our cause being almost lost something +decisive and great must be done. But its failure was owing to others +who did not strike for their country with a heart." + +Colonel Baker, a detective, testified that when he was in Canada, +engaged in negotiations for the purchase of letters that had passed +between the Confederate authorities at Richmond and Clay, Tucker, +Thompson and others, he read a letter from Jefferson Davis to Jacob +Thompson dated March 8, 1865, in which was this expression: "The +consummation of the act that would have done more to have ended this +terrible strife, being delayed, has probably ruined our cause." + +The scheme for the abduction of Mr. Lincoln was a wild scheme, born of +desperation, and its success would have worked only evil to the +Confederacy. The purpose of the North would have been strengthened, +the public feeling would have been embittered and the friendship of +England and of the Continental states would have been suppressed. +When Lee had surrendered, when Davis was fleeing from Richmond, when +Benjamin was preparing to leave the country, the leaders of the +Confederacy could not have entertained a project for the capture of +Mr. Lincoln, nor of any injury to him whatever. Their opposition to +Mr. Lincoln was not tainted with personal hostility. One fact remains; +the persons who had knowledge of the project to abduct Mr. Lincoln and +who were engaged in it at Washington, were implicated in the final +crime. + +If Booth's diary can be accepted as a faithful representation of his +mental condition it will appear that he had on that fatal Friday +submitted himself to the influence of three strong passions. He had +accepted the South as his country, and he had come to look upon Mr. +Lincoln as a tyrant and as its enemy. Hence he was influenced with +hatred for Mr. Lincoln. Finally he had become maddened by an ambition +to rival, or to excel Brutus. The influence of his possession is to +be seen in the entries in his diary in the days following the 14th of +April: + +"I can never repent it, though we hated to kill. Our country owed all +our troubles to him, and God simply made me the instrument of his +punishment. + +"The country is not what it was. This forced union is not what I have +loved. I have not desired to outlive my country. . . . After being +hunted like a dog through swamps, woods, and last night being chased +by gunboats till I was forced to return wet, cold, and starving with +every man's hand against me, I am here in despair. And why? For doing +what Brutus was honored for--what made Tell a hero. And yet I for +striking down a greater tyrant than they ever knew, am looked upon as +a common cut-throat. My action was purer than either of theirs. One +hoped to be great. The other had not only his country's, but his own +wrongs to avenge. I knew no private wrong. I struck for my country +and that alone. A country that groaned beneath this tyranny, and +prayed for the end, and yet now behold the cold hand they extend to me. + +"God cannot pardon me if I have done wrong, yet I cannot see my wrong +except in serving a degenerate people. The little, the very little I +left behind to clear my name, the Government will not allow to be +printed. So ends all. For my country I have given up all that makes +life sweet and holy, brought misery upon my family, and am sure there +is no pardon for me in Heaven since man so condemns me. + +"I do not repent of the blow I struck. I may before my God but not to +man. I think I have done well. Thought I am abandoned with the curse +of Cain upon me, when if the world knew my heart that one blow would +have made me great, though I did desire no greatness." + +Finally, he writes: + +"I bless the entire world. Have never hated or wronged anyone. This +last was not a wrong unless God deems it so; and it is with him to +damn or bless me." + +These extracts from Booth's diary reveal the influences that controlled +him in the great tragedy in which he became the principal actor. + + +The death of Booth was only a lesser tragedy than the death of Mr. +Lincoln. + +Following the murder and escape of Booth a small military force was +organized hastily under the direction and command of Colonel Lafayette +C. Baker, a detective in the service of the War Department. The force +consisted of about thirty men chiefly convalescents from the army +hospitals in Washington. Colonel Everton G. Conger was in command of +the expedition, and his testimony contains a clear account of what +transpired at Garrett's Farm, where Booth was captured and shot. +Conger reached Garrett's Farm on the night of the 25th of April, or the +early morning of the 26th. The men were posted around the tobacco shed +in which Booth and Herold were secreted and their surrender was +demanded by Conger. Booth refused to surrender and tendered, as a +counter proposition, a personal contest with the entire force. Herold +surrendered. Upon Booth's persistent refusal to surrender, a fire was +lighted in a corner of the building. Booth then came forward with his +carbine in his hand and engaged in a conversation with Lieut. L. Byron +Baker. While so engaged a musket was fired from the opposite side of +the shed and Booth fell, wounded fatally in the neck, at or near the +spot where Mr. Lincoln had been struck. Conger had given orders to the +men not to shoot under any circumstances. The examination disclosed +the fact that the shot was fired by a sergeant, named Boston Corbett. +When Colonel Conger asked Corbett why he shot without orders Corbett +saluted the colonel and said: "Colonel, Providence directed me." +Thus the parallel runs. Booth claimed that he was the instrument of +the Almighty in the assassination of Lincoln, and Boston Corbett +claimed that he acted under the direction of Providence when he shot +Booth. + +Booth was shot at about three o'clock in the morning of April 26, and +he died at fifteen minutes past seven. During that time he was +conscious for about three fourths of an hour. He asked whether a +person called Jett had betrayed him. His only other intelligible +remark was this: + +"Tell my mother I died for my country." + +During the afternoon preceding the assassination of Mr. Lincoln, Booth +met John Matthews a brother actor, and requested him to hand a letter +to Mr. Coyle, of the _National Intelligencer,_ the next morning. +Mathews had a part in the play at Ford's Theater. When the shot was +fired and Mathews was changing his dress to leave the theater, he +discovered the letter, which for the time he had forgotten. When he +reached his rooms he opened the letter. It contained an avowal of +Booth's purpose to murder the President, and he named three of his +associates. Booth referred to a plan that had failed, and he then +added: "The moment has at length arrived when my plans must be +changed." These statements were made by Mathews from recollection. +Mathews destroyed the letter under the influence of the apprehension +that its possession would work his ruin. + +The records seem to warrant certain conclusions: + +1. That the Confederate authorities at Richmond made a plan for the +capture of Mr. Lincoln, and that Booth, Mrs. Surratt and others--who +were implicated finally in the murder--were concerned in the project +to abduct the President and to hold him a hostage. + +2. That the undertaking failed. + +3. That following Lee's surrender and the downfall of the Confederacy, +Booth originated the plan to murder the President, under the influence +of the motives and reasons that are set forth in his diary and in the +letter to Mr. Coyle. + +4. His influence over the persons who were involved in the conspiracy +to abduct Mr. Lincoln, was so great that he was able to command their +aid in the commission of the final crime. + +When the investigations were concluded there remained in the possession +of the Committee on the Judiciary a quantity of papers, affidavits, +letters and memoranda of no value as evidence. These were placed +within a sealed package. The package was deposited with the clerk of +the House of Representatives. The preservation of the papers may have +been an error. They should have been destroyed by the committee. Some +doubts were expressed however as to the authority of the committee. +Further investigations were suggested as not impossible. I am the only +person living who has knowledge of the papers. They are now in the +possession of the House of Representatives. It is not in the public +interest that the papers should become the possession of the public. + +MR. LINCOLN AND THE ATTACK ON FORT SUMTER + +The testimony of John Minor Botts of Virginia, given before the Joint +Committee on Reconstruction, February 18, 1866, presents Mr. Lincoln as +a diplomatist at the outset of his experience as President. + +Mr. Botts had been a leading member of the Whig Party and he was a +Union man from the beginning of the contest to the end of the war. As +the work of secession was advancing in the Gulf States Mr. Lincoln +became anxious for the fate of the border States and especially for +Virginia and Kentucky, which promised to serve as barriers to the +aggressive movements of the South in case of war. Mr. Botts came to +Washington at the request of Mr. Lincoln in the early days of April, +1861, and they were together and in private conversation during the +evening of the 7th of April from seven to eleven o'clock. In the +conversation of that evening the President gave Mr. Botts an account +of the steps that he had taken to prevent a collision in the harbor +of Charleston. + +Mr. Summers and Mr. Baldwin of Virginia had been delegates in the Peace +Congress and they had been counted among the Union men of the State. +Soon after the inauguration the President was informed that the small +garrison in Fort Sumter was nearly destitute of provisions and that +an attempt to add to the supply would be resisted. The President, +Mr. Summers and Mr. Botts had served together as Whigs in the Thirtieth +Congress and the President invited Mr. Summers by letter and by special +messenger to a conference in Washington. To this invitation no +answer was given by Mr. Summers until the 5th of April, when Mr. +Baldwin appeared and said that he had come upon the request of Mr. +Summers. Mr. Lincoln said at once: "Ah! Mr. Baldwin, why did you +not come sooner? I have been expecting you gentlemen to come to me +for more than a week past. I had a most important proposition to make +to you. I am afraid you have come too late. However, I will make the +proposition now. We have in Fort Sumter with Major Anderson about +eighty men and I learn from Major Anderson that his provisions are +nearly exhausted . . . I have not only written to Governor Pickens, but +I have sent a special messenger to say that if he will allow Major +Anderson to obtain his marketing at the Charleston market, or, if he +objects to allowing our people to land at Charleston, if he will have +it sent to him, then I will make no effort to provision the fort, but, +that if he does not do that, I will not permit these people to starve, +and that I shall send provisions down,--and that if fires on that +vessel he will fire upon an unarmed vessel, loaded with nothing but +bread but I shall at the same time send a fleet along with her, with +instructions not to enter the harbor of Charleston unless the vessel +is fired into; and if she is, then the fleet is to enter the harbor +and protect her. Now, Mr. Baldwin, that fleet is now lying in the +harbor of New York and will be ready to sail this afternoon at five +o'clock, and although I fear it is almost too late, yet I will submit +anyway the proposition which I intended for Mr. Summers. Your +convention in Richmond, Mr. Baldwin, has been sitting now nearly two +months and all they have done has been to shake the rod over my head. +You have recently taken a vote in the Virginia Convention, on the right +of secession, which was rejected by ninety to forty-five, a majority +of two thirds, showing the strength of the Union Party in that +convention; and, if you will go back to Richmond and get that Union +majority to adjourn and go home without passing the ordinance of +secession, so anxious am I for the preservation of the peace of this +country and to save Virginia and the other States from going out, that +I will take the responsibility of evacuating Fort Sumter, and take the +chance of negotiating with the cotton States, which have already gone +out." + +This quotation is from the testimony of Mr. Botts and there cannot be +better evidence of the facts existing in the first days of April, nor +a more trustworthy statement of the position of Mr. Lincoln in regard +to the secession movement. At that time the Virginia Convention had +rejected a proposed ordinance of secession by a vote of ninety to +forty-five, and there can be no doubt that Mr. Lincoln had hopes that +his proposition might calm the temper and change the purposes of the +secessionists in that State if he did not change the schemes of +Governor Pickens, of which, indeed, the prospect was only slight. + +In his Inaugural Address, and in all his other public utterances, Mr. +Lincoln sought to place the responsibility of war upon the seceding +States. At a later day Mr. Lincoln, in a conversation with Senator +Sumner and myself, expressed regret that he had neglected to station +troops in Virginia in advance of the occupation of the vicinity of +Alexandria by the Confederates, a course of action to which he had +been urged by Mr. Chase and others. + +Mr. Lincoln's proposition for the relief of Fort Sumter was rejected +by Mr. Baldwin, as was the proposition for the adjournment of the +convention, _sine die_. + +When Mr. Botts appeared the time had passed when arrangements could +have been made for the relief of Sumter and the adjournment of the +convention. Although the situation may not have been realized at the +time it was not the less true that Mr. Botts and the small number +of Union men in Virginia were powerless in presence of the movement +in favor of secession under the lead of Tyler, Seddon and others. + +The political side of Mr. Lincoln's character is seen in the fact that +he enjoined secrecy upon Mr. Botts. He may have been unwilling to +allow his supporters in the North to know how far he had gone in the +line of conciliation. In the conversation with Mr. Baldwin, Mr. +Lincoln had given an assurance that upon the acceptance of his two +propositions he would evacuate Fort Sumter. When Mr. Lincoln made +these facts known to Mr. Botts at the evening interview, Mr. Botts +said; "Will you authorize me to make that proposition to the Union +men of the convention? I will take a steamboat to-morrow morning, +and have a meeting of the Union men to-morrow night, I will guarantee +with my head, that they will adopt your proposition." In reply, Mr. +Lincoln said: "It is too late. The fleet has sailed." In truth it +was too late for the acceptance of the propositions in Virginia. The +Union men were powerless, and the secessionists were dominant in +affairs and already vindictive. The charge that Mr. Seward gave a +promise that Sumter would be abandoned, may or it may not have been +true, but there can be no ground for doubting the statement made by +Mr. Botts in regard to the terms tendered by Mr. Lincoln, and which +were rejected by Mr. Baldwin. + +Mr. Baldwin admitted the interview with Mr. Lincoln, and the nature of +it as herein given, to Mr. John F. Lewis, who was a Union man and a +member of the convention that adopted the Ordinance of Secession by +a vote of eighty-eight to fifty-five. + +Of the three witnesses, Baldwin, Botts and Lewis, Mr. Baldwin was the +first witness who was examined by the Committee on Reconstruction. +At that time the committee had no knowledge of the conversation +between Mr. Baldwin and President Lincoln. Speaking, apparently, under +the influence of the criticisms of Botts and Lewis of his rejection of +Mr. Lincoln's propositions, Baldwin introduced the subject with the +remark: "I had a good deal of interesting conversation with him (that +is with Mr. Lincoln) that evening. I was about to state that I have +reason to believe that Mr. Lincoln himself had given an account of +this conversation which has been understood--but I am sure +_mis_understood--by the persons with whom he talked, as giving the +representation of it, that he had offered to me, that if the Virginia +Convention would adjourn _sine die_ he would withdraw the troops from +Sumner and _Pickens_." As there was no occasion in the conversation +between Lincoln and Baldwin for a reference to Fort Pickens, and as the +President did not mention _Fort Pickens_ in the account of the +conversation that he gave to Mr. Botts, the denial of Mr. Baldwin may +fall under one of the forms of falsehood mentioned by Shakespeare. + +The evidence is conclusive to this point: That at an interview at the +Executive Mansion, April 5, 1861, between President Lincoln and Colonel +John B. Baldwin, then a member of the Virginia Convention that finally +adopted the Ordinance of Secession, President Lincoln assured Mr. +Baldwin that he would evacuate Fort Sumter if the fort could be +provisioned and the Virginia Convention would adjourn _sine die_. + +Colonel Baldwin's voluntary and qualified denial is of no value in +presence of President Lincoln's report of the interview as given by +Mr. Botts and in presence of the testimony that Mr. Baldwin did not +deny the truthfulness of Mr. Botts' limited statement, when it was +asserted by Mr. Botts in the presence of Lewis. + +ALEXANDER H. STEPHENS AND HIS STATE-RIGHTS DOCTRINES + +Upon the death of Mr. Calhoun the task of maintaining the extreme +doctrine of State Rights, as that doctrine had been taught by Mr. +Calhoun fell upon Jefferson Davis and Alexander H. Stephens. That +doctrine was carried to its practical results in the ordinances of +secession as they were adopted by the respective States under the lead +of Mr. Davis. + +If Mr. Stephens advised against secession, the advice given was not due +to any doubt of the right of a State to secede from the Union, but to +doubts of the wisdom of the undertaking. + +In form of proceedings Mr. Stephens was examined by the Committee on +the Judiciary, the 11th and 12th days of April, 1866, but in fact I was +the only member of the committee who was present, and I conducted the +examination in my own way, and without help or hindrance from others. + +It was the opinion of Governor Clifford of Massachusetts, that the +examination of Mr. Stephens gave the best exposition of the doctrine +of State Rights that had been made. I was then ignorant of the fact, +that in the convention of 1787 the form of the Preamble to the +Constitution was so changed as to justify the opinion, if not to +warrant the conclusion that the State-Rights doctrines had been +considered and abandoned. In two plans of a constitution, one +submitted by Mr. Randolph, and one by Mr. Charles Pinckney, and in +the original draft of the Constitution as reported by Mr. Rutledge, +the source of authority was laid in the respective States, which were +named. This form was adhered to in the Rutledge report, which was made +August 6, 1787. On the 12th of September the Committee on Style +reported the Preamble which opens thus: _"We the people of the United +States, etc."_ This change seems not to have been known to Mr. +Webster, nor have I noticed a reference to it in any of the speeches +that were made in the period of the active controversy on the +doctrine of State Rights. + +Mr. Stephens was a clear-headed and uncompromising expositor and +defender of the doctrine of State Rights as the doctrine was accepted +by General Lee and by the inhabitants generally of the slave States. + +Mr. Stephens did not disguise his opinions: "When the State seceded +against my judgment and vote, I thought my ultimate allegiance was due +to her, and I prepared to cast my fortunes and destinies with hers and +her people rather than take any other course, even though it might +lead to my sacrifice and her ruin." + +When he was asked for his reason for accepting the office of vice- +president in the Confederacy, he said: "My sole object was to do all +the good I could in preserving and perpetuating the principles of +liberty as established under the Constitution of the United States." +Mr. Stephens advanced to his position by conclusively logical +processes. Standing upon the ground of Mr. Lincoln and the Republican +Party, he assumed that, inasmuch as the States in rebellion had never +been out of the Union, they had had the opportunity at all times during +the war of withdrawing from the contest and resuming their places in +the Senate and House as though nothing had occurred of which the +existing government could take notice. + +If, however, there were to be terms of adjustment, then those terms +must have a "continental basis founded upon the principles of mutual +convenience and reciprocal advantage, and the recognition of the +separate sovereignty of the States." He was ready for a conference or +convention of all the States, but he did not admit the right of the +successful party to dictate terms to the States that had been in +rebellion. He expressed the personal, individual opinion, that tax +laws passed in the absence of representatives from the seceded States +would be unconstitutional. It was the opinion of Mr. Stephens that +the people of Georgia by a large majority thought that the State was +entitled to representation in the national Congress and without any +conditions. + +When he was invited to consider the alternative of universal suffrage +or a loss of representation as a condition precedent to the +restoration of the State, he said with confidence that neither branch +of the alternative would be accepted. "If Georgia is a State in the +Union her people feel that she is entitled to representation without +conditions imposed by Congress; and if she is not a State in the Union +then she could not be admitted as an equal with the others if her +admission were trammeled with conditions that did not apply to all the +rest alike." + +It had been his expectation, and in his opinion such had been the +expectation of the people generally that the State would assume its +place in the Union whenever the cause of the Confederacy should be +abandoned. + +Such were the results of the State-Rights doctrines as announced by +the most intellectual of the Southern leaders in the war of the +Rebellion. In the opinion of Mr. Stephens a State could retire from +the Union either for purposes of peace or of war and return at will, +and all without loss of place or power. + +At the close of his examination he made this declaration: "My +convictions on the original abstract question have undergone no change." + +As a sequel to the doctrines of Mr. Stephens, I mention the history of +Andrew J. Lewis. When the Legislature of Massachusetts assembled in +January, 1851, Lewis took a seat in the House as the Democratic member +from the town of Sandisfield. He acted with the Coalitionists, and he +voted for Mr. Sumner as United States Senator. Lewis was returned for +the year 1852, and in General Pierce's administration he held an office +in the Boston Customs House. + +Upon the fall of Port Hudson I received a letter from General Banks. +In that letter he mentioned the fact that Lewis was among the +prisoners, holding the office of captain in a South Carolina regiment. +His account of himself was this: "I was born in South Carolina. When +my State seceded I thought I must go too, and so I left Massachusetts +and returned to South Carolina." + +GENERAL ULYSSES S. GRANT + +General Grant's examination during the investigation embraced a variety +of topics and the report is a volume of not less than twenty thousand +words. His testimony is marked by the qualities for which he was known +both on the civil and military side of his career. These qualities +were clearness of thought, accuracy and readiness of memory, directness +of expression and the absence of remarks in the nature of exaggeration +or embellishment. The character of the man and the history of events +may gain something from an examination of his testimony upon three +important points to which it related: the opinion of President Lincoln +in regard to the reconstruction of the government; the opinion of +President Johnson upon the same subject, and his own view of the +rights of General Lee and of the army under his command that had +surrendered at Appomattox. + +When President Johnson entered upon the work of reconstructing the +government of North Carolina it was claimed that he was giving form +and effect to the plan which President Lincoln had accepted as a wise +policy. + +There was some foundation for the claim as appears from the testimony +of General Grant, Mr. Seward, Mr. Stanton, and others, but there is no +ground for the claim that Mr. Lincoln had matured a plan or had +accepted any scheme of reconstruction at the hands of any one. In an +exigency, as in the case of the resignation of General Hooker, he +could act immediately, but time and thought, and discussion with +others were accepted as valuable aids, whenever there was not a +pressure for instant action. + +General Grant was examined in July, 1867, and the opening was conducted +by Mr. Eldridge of Wisconsin. It related to the parole granted to +General Lee and his army. The nature of the questions led General +Grant to make this remark: "I will state here, that I am not quite +certain whether I am being tried, or who is being tried, by the +questions asked." + +General Grant may have thought that Mr. Eldridge was endeavoring to +secure from him an admission that he had exceeded his authority in the +terms of the parole granted to General Lee. General Grant was able to +state the terms with exactness and within his powers as commander of +the conquering army. He claimed that General Lee surrendered his +army "in consideration of the fact that they were to be exempt from +trial so long as they conformed to the obligations which they had +taken." President Johnson claimed that the leaders should be tried. +This position he abandoned previous to July, 1867. Of an interview +with President Johnson, General Grant made this statement: + +"He insisted on it that the leaders must be punished, and wanted to +know, when the time would come when those persons could be tried. I +told him when they violated their parole." In the opinion of General +Grant the terms of the parole did not include Jefferson Davis, as he +had been captured. + +In the early part of the controversy President Johnson insisted that +General Lee should be tried for treason. That purpose on the part of +the President was resisted by General Grant. His position, in his own +language, was this: + +"I insisted on it that General Lee would not have surrendered his army +and given up all their arms if he had supposed that after surrender, he +was going to be tried for treason and hanged. I thought we got a very +good equivalent for the lives of a few leaders in getting all those +arms and getting themselves under control bound by the oaths to obey +the laws. That was the consideration, which I insisted upon, we had +received." + +General Grant added: + +"Afterwards he got to agreeing with me on that subject." + +On the question of political rights as involved in the surrender and in +the parole, General Grant said: + +"I never claimed that the parole gave those prisoners any political +right whatever. I thought that that was a matter entirely with +Congress, over which I had no control, that simply as general-in-chief +commanding the army, I had a right to stipulate for the surrender on +terms which protected their lives. The parole gave them protection and +exemption from punishment for all offences not in violation of the +rules of civilized warfare." + +The point of difference between General Grant and President Johnson in +regard to the parole is very clear from General Grant's answers to +questions by Mr. Thomas and Mr. Eldridge. + +"You have stated your opinion as to the rights and privileges of +General Lee and his soldiers; do you mean that to include any political +rights?" + +"I have explained that I did not." + +"Was there any difference of opinion on that point between yourself and +President Johnson at any time?" + +"On that point there was no difference of opinion; but there was as to +whether the parole gave them any privileges or rights . . . He claiming +that the time must come when they would be tried and punished, and I +claiming that that time could not come except by a violation of their +parole." + +Grant claimed also that the army that had surrendered to Sherman came +under the same rules. + +These quotations give General Grant's standing as an interpreter of +public law and as a leader capable of applying the rules and principles +of public law to practical affairs. His training at West Point may +have given him a knowledge of principles and his good sense enabled him +to apply the principles in the terms that he dictated at Appomattox. + +General Grant's natural qualities were such that with training he might +have succeeded in great causes involving principles, but he was not +adapted to the ordinary business of a county-court lawyer. + +It is quite certain from the testimony of General Grant that Mr. +Lincoln had had in mind a scheme for the organization of the States +that had been in rebellion and that Mr. Johnson's proclamation for the +government of North Carolina was not a wide departure from that +scheme. + +General Grant was present at two meetings of the Cabinet in Mr. +Lincoln's time, when a proclamation was read and considered. In the +language of General Grant, "after the assassination it continued right +along and I was there with Mr. Johnson." General Grant's interest was +directed to two points: First, that civil government should be set up +but subject to the final action of Congress, and second, that the +parole should not be infringed. He states his position thus: + +"I was always ready to originate matters pertaining to the army, but I +was never willing to originate matters pertaining to the civil +government of the United States. When I was asked my opinion about +what had been done I was willing to give it. I originated no plans and +suggested no plans for civil government." + +The examination by Mr. Eldridge was in the nature of cross-examination +and for the purpose of gaining an admission from General Grant that he +had advised or sanctioned President Johnson's plan of reconstruction. +Hence General Grant's declarations that his part was limited to the +military side of the measure and that in his view the entire plan was +subject to Congressional action. + +General Grant's testimony is explicit upon these points: He advised +President Johnson to grant a pardon to General Lee and a pardon to +General Johnston. He was especially urgent in favor of a pardon to +General Johnston in consideration of his speech to his army at the time +of the surrender. He advised against the proclamation of amnesty upon +the ground that the act was then premature. + +General Grant's testimony adds strength to the statement that President +Johnson contemplated the recognition of a Congress composed of +Democratic members from the North and of the representatives from the +States that had been organized under the President's proclamation. + +"I have heard him say--and I think I have heard him say it twice in his +speeches--that if the North carried the election by members enough to +give them, with the Southern members, a majority why would they not be +the Congress of the United States?" + +In answer to this question: "Have you heard him make a remark +kindred to that elsewhere?" General Grant said: + +"Yes, I have heard him say that aside from his speeches, in +conversation. I cannot say just when." + +The North Carolina proclamation was read at an informal meeting at +which only Grant and Stanton were with the President. General Grant +did not criticise the paper. He said of it: "It was a civil matter +and although I was anxious to have something done I did not intend to +dictate any plan. I looked upon it simply as a temporary measure to +establish a sort of government until Congress should meet and settle +the whole question and that it did not make much difference how it was +done so there was a form of government there. . . . I don't suppose +that there were any persons engaged in that consultation who thought +of what was being done at that time as being lasting--any longer than +Congress would meet and either ratify that or establish some other +form of government." + +General Grant understood that the North Carolina proclamation was in +substance the paper which had been considered by Mr. Lincoln, but +General Grant said also, that Mr. Lincoln's plan was "temporary, to be +either confirmed, or a new government set up by Congress." + +General Grant's testimony upon one point is supported by the testimony +of Mr. Seward and the testimony of Mr. Stanton. They agree that Mr. +Johnson's plan of reconstruction was in substance the plan that Mr. +Lincoln had had under consideration. Mr. Stanton regarded the plan as +temporary. + +If President Johnson intended to enforce the plan upon the country he +concealed his purpose when the North Carolina proclamation was under +consideration. + +In the month of October, 1866, the police commissioners of the city of +Baltimore were engaged in the work of registering voters for the +November elections, and the authorities were engaged in the work of +registering the voters in all parts of the State of Maryland. It was +claimed that many thousands who had been engaged in the rebellion and +who were excluded under a provision of the Constitution had been +registered by the connivance of the authorities and especially by the +police commissioners of Baltimore. There were rumors of secret, +hostile organizations, there were threats of disturbance, and Governor +Swann became alarmed. + +President Johnson became alarmed also and under date of October 25 he +wrote a letter to General Grant in which these paragraphs may be found: + +"From recent development serious troubles are apprehended from a +conflict of authority between the executive of the State of Maryland +and the police commissioners of the city of Baltimore." . . . "I +therefore request that you inform me of the number of Federal troops at +present stationed in the city of Baltimore and vicinity." + +General Grant informed the President on the 27th, that the number of +available and efficient troops was 1,550. Thereupon, on the first day +of November the President issued the following instruction to Secretary +Stanton: + +"In view of the prevalence in various portions of the country of a +revolutionary and turbulent disposition which might at any moment +assume insurrectionary proportions and lead to serious disorders, and +of the duty of the government to be at all times prepared to act with +decision and effect this force is not deemed adequate for the +protection and security of the seat of government." + +Secretary Stanton referred the President's letter to General Grant with +instructions "to take such measures as in his judgment are proper and +within his power to carry into operation the within directions of the +President." + +Under this order six or eight companies in New York and on the way to +join regiments in the South were detained at Fort McHenry, and a +regiment in Washington was under orders to be ready to move upon notice. + +On the second day of November the President qualified his demands in a +letter to Secretary Stanton and limited the expression of anxiety to +the city of Baltimore. It is certain that General Grant and Secretary +Stanton did not share the President's apprehensions and the day of +election passed without serious disturbance. + +In the Philadelphia _Ledger_ of October 12, 1866, there appeared a +series of questions which were accompanied by the statement or the +suggestion that the President had submitted them to the Attorney- +General for an official opinion. The questions related to the +constitutional validity of the Thirty-ninth Congress, and upon the +ground that all the States were not represented although hostilities +had ceased. + +From the testimony of Henry M. Flint, a newspaper correspondent, it +appears that the President had no knowledge of the questions until +after the publications in the _Ledger_. Flint's account of the affair +may be thus summarized. For himself and without conference with the +President, he reached the conclusion that the Thirty-ninth Congress was +an illegal body and he had reached the conclusion also that the +President entertained the same opinion. Thereupon he assumed that the +President would take the opinion of the Attorney-General. Having +advanced thus far, he next proceeded to write the questions that he +imagined the President would prepare and submit to the Attorney-General. + +These questions he transmitted to a brother correspondent in New York +--Mr. F. A. Abbott--under cover of a letter which was not produced. +Flint gave the substance of his letter to Abbott in these words: + +"These questions are supposed or believed to have submitted by the +President to the Attorney-General." Speaking of Abbott, Flint said: +"I knew he was connected with several newspapers and I had no doubt +when I sent these questions that they would appear in some paper in +some shape. . . . The object I had in view in writing these questions +and in sending them to Mr. Abbott was that they might appear before the +public, and that the public mind might be directed to that point, and +that the newspapers particularly might be led to express their +sentiments upon the questions involved in it." + +When the publication "had given rise to considerable discussion" in the +language of Flint, "I thought," he says, "I ought to go the President +and tell him what part of the despatch was mine and what connection I +had had with the publication of it." + +Of his interview with the President, he gives this report: "He showed +me an article, which I think, appeared the day after the questions were +published, in the _Daily News_ of Philadelphia, which took pretty +nearly the same ground my questions would indicate. . . . He spoke of +it rather approvingly." + +Flint adds: "I had remarked to him: 'Mr. Johnson, it seemed to me +that it would be by no means remarkable that you should prepare such +questions as bear upon a subject which I know must have occupied your +mind as it has the public mind.' I forget what reply he made; it was +a sort of affirmative response or assent." + +Whatever may have been the origin of Flint's questions, their +appearance in the manner indicated is an instance of volunteer service +not often paralleled in the rough contests of life. Without any +effort on his own part the President gained knowledge of a public +sentiment upon the question of the legality of the Thirty-ninth +Congress--a question in which he had much interest in the autumn of +1866. + +The project to increase the army around Washington and the project +to proclaim the Thirty-ninth Congress an illegal body may have had an +intimate connection with the project to send General Grant on a mission +to Mexico and to place General Sherman in command at Washington, a +project of which I have spoken in another place. + +GENERAL ROBERT E. LEE + +General Robert E. Lee was examined by the Committee on Reconstruction +the 17th day of February, 1866. + +The inquiries related to the state of public sentiment in the South, +and especially in Virginia with regard to secession, to the treatment +of the negroes, to the public debts of the United States, and of the +Confederacy, and to the treatment of Northern soldiers in Southern +prisons. + +General Lee was then in good health and in personal appearance he +commended himself without delay. He was large in frame, compactly +built, and he was furnished with all the flesh and muscle that could be +useful to a man who was passing the middle period of life. The +elasticity of spirits, the vigor of mind and body that are the wealth +of a successful man at sixty were wanting in General Lee. His +appearance commanded respect and it excited the sympathy even of those +who had condemned his abandonment of the Union in 1861. + +The examination gave evidence of integrity and of entire freedom from +duplicity. Freedom from duplicity was a controlling feature in General +Grant's character and in that attribute of greatness Grant and Lee may +have been equals. + +General Lee was free to disclose his own opinions, but he was cautious +in his statements when questioned as to the opinions and purposes of +the men and States that had been in the Rebellion. He was careful to +say at the beginning of the examination that he had no communication +with politicians and that he did not read the papers. What he said of +the South assumed that the people were in poverty and were so dejected +that they had no plans for the future, nor any hopes of restoration to +wealth, happiness and power in the affairs of the country. His +testimony as a whole might justify the opinion that there would be no +serious resistance to any form of government that might be set up. He +favored the governments which President Johnson had organized and he +expressed the opinion that they were acceptable to the people +generally. A comprehensive statement was this: + +"I do not know of a single person who either feels or contemplates +any resistance to the government of the United States, or, indeed any +opposition to it." He gave this assurance to the committee: "The +people entirely acquiesce in the government of the United States and +are for co-operating with President Johnson in his policy." + +The payment of the public debt had not been a topic of discussion in +his presence, but the people were disposed to pay such taxes as were +imposed and they were struggling to get money for that purpose. + +He was of the opinion that the people made no distinction between the +Confederate debt and the debt of the United States--that they were +disposed to pay both debts, and would pay both if they had the power. +For himself, however, he had no expectation that the indebtedness of +the Confederacy would ever be paid. + +General Lee manifested a kindly spirit for the freedmen, but he was +unwilling to accept them as citizens endowed with the right of +suffrage. Of the feeling in Virginia, General Lee said: "Every one +with whom I associate expresses kind feelings toward the freedmen. +They wish to see them get on in the world, and especially to take up +some occupation for a living." + +He rejected the suggestion that there was anywhere within the State +any combinations having in view, "the disturbance of the peace, or any +improper or unlawful acts." He characterized the negroes as "an +amiable, social race, who look more to the present than to their +future condition." + +In answer to the question whether the South would support the +government in case of a war with France or England, General Lee was +distinctly reserved: "I cannot speak with any certainty on that +point. I do not know how far they might be actuated by their feelings. +I have nothing whatever to base an opinion upon. So far as I know +they contemplate nothing of the kind now. What may happen in the +future I cannot say." He then added this remark: "Those people in +Virginia with whom I associate express a hope that the country may not +be led into war." + +As to an alliance during the war he said that he knew nothing of the +policy of the Confederate government: "I had no hand or part of it," +was his remark. It was his opinion during the war that an alliance +with a foreign country was desirable, and he had assumed that the +authorities were of the same opinion. His ideas were those of +General Grant, and he avoided responsibility for the measures of the +government on the civil side. + +With kind feelings for the colored people of Virginia General Lee +favored the substitution of a white class of laborers, if an exchange +could be made, of which however, he had neither plan nor hope. Nor +could he give any assurance that Northern men would be received upon +terms of equality and friendship, if they avowed the opinions that +then prevailed generally in the North: "The manner in which they +would be received would depend entirely upon the individuals themselves +--they might make themselves obnoxious, as you can understand," was the +statement of General Lee. His testimony as a whole indicated an +opinion that it was more important to secure capital for business, than +it was to rid the State of the negro laborer. In his opinion, most of +the blacks were willing to work for their former masters, but they were +unwilling to make engagements for a year, a form of engagement which +the farmers and planters preferred, that they might be sure of help +when it would be most needed. The negroes may have been influenced by +one or both of two reasons. Their unthrifty habits--the outcome of +slavery--or an apprehension that a formal engagement for a year was a +kind of bondage that might lead to a renewal of the old system. + +When General Lee was pressed by Senator Howard as to the feeling in the +South in regard to the National Government, he said: "I believe that +they will perform all the duties that they are required to perform. I +think that is the general feeling. . . . I do not know that there is +any deep-seated dislike. I think it is probable that there may be +some animosity still existing among some of the people of the South. +. . . They were disappointed at the result of the war." + +General Lee was of the opinion that a Southern jury would not find an +accused guilty of treason for participation in the war. Indeed his +doctrine of State Rights excused the citizen and placed the sole +responsibility on the State. Of the common sentiment in the South he +said: "So far as I know, they will look upon the action of the State, +in withdrawing itself from the government of the United States, as +carrying the individuals of the State along with it; that the State +was responsible for the act, not the individual." This was the +framework of his own defence. Speaking of the advocates of secession, +he said: "The ordinance of secession, or those acts of a State which +recognized a condition of war between the State and the General +Government, stood as their justification for their bearing arms against +the Government of the United States. They considered the act of the +State as legitimate. That they were merely using the reserved right, +which they had a right to do." + +From these views General Lee was led to a specific statement of his +own position: + +Question: "State, if you please, what your own personal views on that +question were?" + +Answer: "That was my view; that the act of Virginia in withdrawing +herself from the United States carried me along as a citizen of +Virginia, and that her laws and her acts were binding on me.' + +Question: "And that you felt to be your justification in taking the +course you did?" + +Answer: "Yes, sir." + +In the course of the examination General Lee expressed the opinion that +the "trouble was brought about by the politicians of the country." + +General Lee disclaimed all responsibility for the care and treatment of +prisoners of war. He had always favored a free exchange of prisoners, +knowing that the proper means for the care and comfort of prisoners +could not be furnished in the Confederacy. He thought that the +hardships and neglects had been exaggerated. As to himself, he had +never had any control over prisoners, except as they were captured on +the field of battle. He sent his prisoners to Richmond where they came +under the command of the provost-marshal-general. His orders to +surgeons on the field were to treat all the wounded alike. + +In the examinations that were made by the committee I read a large +number of reports of surgeons connected with the prisons and hospitals +and I may say that in all cases they exhibited humanity and in many +cases specific means of relief for the sufferings of the soldiers were +recommended. Their reports were forwarded from officer to officer, but +in a large majority of cases the reports were neglected. + +In a letter written by General Lee to his sister a few days before he +abandoned the service of the United States, he expressed the opinion +that there was no sufficient cause for the rebellion. This opinion, in +connection with his opinion that the rebellion was the work of +politicians demonstrates the power which the doctrine of State Rights +had obtained over a man of experience and of admitted ability. Upon +his own admission, he subordinated his conduct to the action of his +State, and in disregard of his personal obligation through his oath of +office. If he had followed his own judgment as to what was wise and +proper he would have remained in his place as an officer in the army of +the United States. + +If in 1861 an officer of the army had entertained the opinion that the +North was in the wrong and that the South was in the right, it could be +claimed, fairly, that that officer might forswear his obligations to +the old Government and accept service in the Confederacy. + +Moral obliquity is not to be assumed in the case of General Lee. His +pecuniary and professional interests must have invited him to remain +in the army. General Scott, a Virginian, was at the head of the army, +and General Scott was his friend. His promotion was certain, and +important commands were probable. His large estates in the vicinity of +the city of Washington were exposed to the ravages of war if not to +confiscation. These sacrifices, some certain, and others probable were +present when he left Washington and entered into the service of the +Confederacy under the superior authority of the State of Virginia in +disregard of his own opinion, and in disregard, not to say violation, +of his oath as a soldier who had sworn to support the Constitution of +the United States. General Lee was unable to say whether he had +taken an oath to support the Confederate States. He could not recall +the fact of taking the oath, but he said he should have taken the oath +if it had been tendered to him. + +The full report of the testimony of General Lee should appear in any +complete biography of the man. It reveals his character, explains the +leading influences to which he was subjected, and it sheds light upon +the state of public opinion in the South at the end of the contest in +arms. + +General Scott and General George H. Thomas were Virginians, but they +acted in defiance of the State-Rights doctrines of the South. In +April, 1861, General Scott gave me an account of the efforts that had +been made to induce him to follow the fortunes of Virginia, and he +spoke with a voice of emotion of his veneration for the flag, and of +his attachment to the Union. + +GENERAL GEORGE H. THOMAS + +Of the soldiers of the Northern army in the war of the Rebellion, +General George H. Thomas takes rank next after the first three--Grant, +Sherman and Sheridan. When Grant became President and Sherman was +general of the army the President was unwilling to appear to neglect +either Sheridan or Thomas. With high appreciation of Thomas as a +soldier, the President gave higher rank to Sheridan. He said to me +that he placed Sheridan above every other officer of the war. He gave +Sheridan credit for two supreme qualities--great care in his plans and +great vigor in execution. + +Yet, although the President acted upon a sound basis of opinion, the +choice left a painful impression upon his memory. + +General Thomas and General Lee were alike in personal appearance, and +they resembled each other in their mental characteristics. In one +important particular they differed--General Thomas had no respect for +State-Rights doctrines. He was a native of Virginia, but there was no +indication in his testimony, nor were there rumors, that he had ever +hesitated in his course when the rebellion opened. + +General Thomas was examined by the Committee on Reconstruction January +29, and February 2, 1866. He was then in command of the Military +Division of the Tennessee which included the States of Kentucky, +Tennessee, Georgia, Alabama and Mississippi. It was the main object of +the committee to obtain information as to the public sentiment touching +the treatment of the negroes and the re-establishment of civil +government in the States that had been in rebellion. The Union +sentiment was stronger in Tennessee than in any other State of the +Confederacy. The inhabitants of the mountainous districts of eastern +and middle Tennessee had been loyal from the opening of the contest in +1860 and 1860. Yet in 1866 General Thomas advised the committee that +it would "not be safe to remove the national troops from Tennessee, or +to withdraw martial law; or to restore the writ of habeas corpus to +its full extent." At that time the peace of eastern Tennessee was +disturbed by family feuds and personal quarrels, the outcome of +political differences. In west Tennessee and in portions of middle +Tennessee there was a deep seated hostility to Union men, and +especially to Southern men who had served in the Union army. + +General Thomas said of them: "They are more unfriendly to Union men +natives of the State of Tennessee or of the South, who have been in +the Union army, than they are to men of Northern birth." + +At that time the contract system of labor had been introduced, and the +contracts were regarded as binding both by whites and blacks. + +General Thomas advised the admission of Tennessee into the Union as a +State, and his advice was acted upon favorably by its admission in the +summer of that year. His recommendations were based upon the facts +that Tennessee had "repudiated the rebel debt, had abolished slavery, +had adopted the Constitutional amendment upon that subject, had passed +a franchise law prohibiting from voting every man who had been +engaged in the rebellion" and had "passed a law allowing negroes to +testify." + +His opinion of the four other States of his command was not as +favorable. "I have received communications from various persons in the +South that there was an understanding among the rebels and perhaps +organizations formed or forming, for the purpose of gaining as many +advantages for themselves as possible; and I have heard it also +intimated that these men are very anxious and would do all in their +power to involve the United States in a foreign war, so that if a +favorable opportunity should occur, they might then again turn against +the United States." + +At the end of his first examination he gave this opinion as the result +of his experience: + +Question: "In what could those advantages consist in breaking up the +government?" + +Answer: "They would wish to be recognized as citizens of the United +States, with the same rights they had before the war." + +Question: "How can they do that? By wishing us in a war with England +or France, in which they would take part against us?" + +Answer: "In that event their desire is to establish the Southern +Confederacy. They have not yet given up their desire for a separate +government, and if they have an opportunity to strike for it again they +will do so." + +When asked what he knew of secret organizations he said that he had +received several communications to that effect but the parties were +unwilling to have their names made public. He added: "The persons +communicating with me are reliable and truthful and I believe their +statements are correct in the main. + +"The nature and object of the organizations," he said, "are the +embarrassment of the Government of the United States in the proper +administration of the affairs of the county, and if possible, to +repudiate the national debt, or to gain such an ascendency in Congress +as to make provision for the assumption by Congress of the debt +incurred by the rebel government; also, in case the United States +Government can be involved in a foreign war to watch their opportunity +and take advantage of the first that comes to strike for the +independence of the States lately in rebellion." + +These extracts from the testimony of General Thomas are a fair +exposition of the condition of public sentiment in the Confederate +States with the exception in a degree of the border States. It is +apparent also that General Thomas had not the degree of confidence in +the good purposes of those who had been in the rebellion that was +entertained by Northern officers including Grant, Sherman and Sheridan. + +As the loyal men of the South were greater sufferers from the war, +their hostility was more intense against those who were responsible +for the war. + +If we cannot say that Thomas was a great soldier in the large use of +the phrase, it can be said that he was a good soldier and that without +qualifying words. He should live in history as a true patriot and a +man of the highest integrity. + +SECRETARY STANTON + +Of the men who occupied places in Mr. Lincoln's Cabinet, no one was +more free from just criticism affecting unfavorably the value of his +public services than Secretary Stanton. + +Of those who were nearest to him, no one ever received the impression +from his acts or his conversation that he thought of the Presidency +as a possibility under any circumstances. Seward, Chase and Bates had +been candidates at Chicago in 1860, and whatever may have been the +fact in regard to Seward and Bates, it is quite certain that ambition +for the Presidency never lost its hold upon Mr. Chase, even when he +became Chief Justice of the United States. + +Coupled with the absence of ambition, or perhaps in a degree incident +to the absence of ambition, Mr. Stanton was the possessor of courage +for all the emergencies of the place that he occupied--a courage that +was always available, whether in its exercise the wishes of individuals +or the fortunes of the country were involved. + +It was understood by those who frequented the War Office in the gloomy +days of 1862 and '63 that a card signed "A. L." would not always +command full respect from Secretary Stanton. He was a believer in the +rigid principles of the army, and although he was a humane man he +smothered or subdued his sympathy for heart-broken mothers whose sons +had deserted the cause of the country, in his determination to save +the country through the strictest enforcement of the rules and +regulations of the army. Mr. Lincoln, in his abounding good nature, +could not resist the appeals of disconsolate wives and heart-stricken +mothers, and it was often Mr. Stanton's fortune to resist such appeals +even when supported by the President's card in the form of a request +which in ordinary times and upon ordinary men would be treated as an +order. + +Hence there may have been a foundation for the report that an +unsuccessful user of one of the President's cards returned to the +President for a reinforcement of the order. The President insisted +upon a full report of the Secretary's answer. The applicant repeated +the Secretary's remark, which was not complimentary to the President's +good sense. The President hesitated, and then declined to renew the +order, saying: "Stanton is generally right." + +Mr. Stanton's testimony was taken February 11, 1867, and on subsequent +days. The record of the text and the accompanying documents cover more +than two hundred printed pages. The evidence was taken by the +Committee on the Judiciary, and it had special reference to the charges +that had been made against President Johnson. At that time, the +separation between Mr. Stanton and the President had become +irreconcilable, but there are no indications of hostility in the +answers given by the Secretary. Indeed, he assumed, without reserve, +full responsibility for acts that had been charged on the President by +others. + +During the war the railroads that fell within our lines were +appropriated to the use of the United States, and heavy outlays had +been made upon some of them for repairs and improvements. In many +cases expenses had been incurred, that in the hands of the corporation +would not have been chargeable to a construction account. In a +majority of cases, if not in all, the roads had been surrendered +without compensation, and the rolling stock had been transferred for +very slight consideration. + +Mr. Stanton assumed the responsibility of the policy, upon the ground +that it was important to the South and to the country that the channels +of commerce should be made available without delay and that the army +could not be used wisely in commercial traffic. As the President was +interested in one of the railroads that received a large benefit by the +restoration of its property much improved, he was relieved of all +responsibility for a policy that had been much condemned. + +Through the testimony of Secretary Stanton the committee was enabled +to find the origin and to trace with a degree of accuracy the history +of President Johnson's plan of reconstruction. At a time not many days +prior to Mr. Lincoln's death, Secretary Stanton prepared an order which +contained a _projet_ for the government of the States that had been in +rebellion. The paper was submitted to President Lincoln and it was +considered by him in a cabinet meeting that was held during the day +preceding the night of the assassination. + +As this paper became the basis for the proclamations for the government +of the States that had been in rebellion, its history, as given by +Mr. Stanton, is worthy of exact report in his own words: + +"On the last day of Mr. Lincoln's life, there was a Cabinet meeting, at +which General Grant, and all the members of the Cabinet, except Mr. +Seward, were present. General Grant at that time made a report of the +condition of the country, as he conceived it to be, and as it would be +on the surrender of Johnston's army, which was regarded as absolutely +certain. The subject of reconstruction was talked of at considerable +length. Shortly previous to that time I had myself, with a view of +putting into a practicable form the means of overcoming what seemed to +be a difficulty in the mind of Mr. Lincoln, as to the mode of +reconstruction, prepared a rough draft of a form or mode by which the +authority and laws of the United States should be re-established, and +governments reorganized in the rebel States under the Federal +authority, without any necessity whatever for the intervention of +rebel organizations or rebel aid. + +In the course of that consultation Mr. Lincoln alluded to the paper, +went into his room, brought it out, and asked me to read it, which I +did, and explained my ideas in regard to it. There was one point which +I had left open; that was as to who should constitute the electors in +the respective States . . . I left a blank upon that subject to be +considered. There was at that time nothing adopted about it, and no +opinions expressed; it was only a _projet_." + +At the request of Mr. Lincoln and the Cabinet, the order was printed +and a copy was given to each member, and a copy was given to Mr. +Johnson when he had become President. + +The plan was further considered in Mr. Johnson's Cabinet, and some +alterations were made. The point of chief difference related to the +elective franchise--whether it should be extended to the negro race. + +Mr. Stanton said: "There was a difference of opinion upon that +subject. The President expressed his views very clearly and +distinctly. I expressed my views, and other members of the Cabinet +expressed their views. The objection of the President to throwing +the franchise open to the colored people appeared to be fixed, and I +think every member of the Cabinet assented to the arrangement as it +was specified in the proclamation relative to North Carolina. After +that I do not remember that the subject was ever again discussed in +the Cabinet." + +Thus from Mr. Stanton's testimony we gather the important facts as to +the origin of a measure which became the subject of bitter controversy +between President Johnson and the Republican Party. The framework of +the North Carolina proclamation was furnished by Mr. Stanton. When +alterations had been made the proclamation was agreed to by the +Cabinet but without a declaration or even an understanding upon the +point which, without much delay, became the vital point: was the +policy of government that was announced in the proclamation a permanent +policy or was it a temporary expedient, a substitute for military +government, and subject to the approval or disapproval of Congress? + +General Grant was of the opinion that the organizations which the +President set up in the States were temporary and that they were +subject to the action of Congress. + +Mr. Stanton's opinion is expressed carefully, in his own words: "My +opinion is, that the whole subject of reconstruction and the relation +of the State to the Federal Government is subject to the controlling +power of Congress; and while I believe that the President and his +Cabinet were not violating any law, but were faithfully performing +their duty in endeavoring to organize provisional governments in +those States, I supposed then, and still suppose, that the final +validity of such organizations would rest with the law-making power of +the government." + +In an official letter, dated January 8, 1866, Secretary Stanton gave +his reasons for the payment of the salaries of the provisional +governors: "The payments were made from the appropriation of army +contingencies because the duties performed by the parties were regarded +of a temporary character ancillary to the withdrawal of military force, +and to take the place of the armed forces in the respective States." + +On the other hand the President chose to treat the governments that had +been set up as permanent governments and beyond the control of +Congress. On this point, the contest between President Johnson and the +Republican Party was made up. It ended in an appeal to the people, who +rendered a judgment against _the President_ by a two-thirds majority. +The testimony of Secretary Seward, and official papers that were issued +by the Department of State in the year 1865, may warrant the conclusion +that President Johnson was not then prepared to treat the new state +organizations as final and binding upon Congress and the country. + +Under date of July 8, 1865, Secretary Seward said, in an official +letter to Governor Holden of North Carolina: "It is understood here +that besides cotton which has been taken by the Secretary of the +Treasury under Act of Congress there were quantities of resin, and +other articles, as well as funds, lying about in different places in +the State and not reduced into possession by United States officers as +insurgent property. The President is of the opinion that you can +appropriate these for the inevitable and indispensable expenses of the +civil government of the State during the continuance of the provisional +government." + +On the 14th day of November, 1865, Mr. McCulloch authorized Mr. Worth, +acting as treasurer in North Carolina, to use the fragments of rebel +property that might be gathered to defray the expenses of the +provisional government of the State. + +In answer to a question put to Secretary Seward, he said: "I do not +remember that any provisional governor held a military office, except +Mr. Johnson." + +In the further examination of Mr. Seward, May 16, 1867, he indicated +his concurrence with President Johnson in this remark: "The object was +to proceed with the work of the restoration of the Union as speedily +and effectively and wisely as possible, having no reference as to +whether Congress would be in session or not." + +This question was put to Mr. Seward: + +"Did not he (the President) urge these parties to be prepared to be at +the doors of Congress by the time of its next meeting?" + +The answer was: "Very likely he did. I do not know of the fact. I +know that I was very anxious that these States should be represented +in Congress, and that he was equally so, that they should be provided +with representatives who could be admitted." + +The policy of the administration, July 24, 1865, is set forth in a +despatch from Secretary Seward to Governor Sharkey, of Mississippi (he +is addressed as Provisional Governor): "The President sees no occasion +to interfere with General Slocum's proceedings. The government of the +State will be provisional only until the civil authorities shall be +restored with the approval of Congress." + +Upon the united testimony of General Grant, Secretary Stanton and +Secretary Seward, it may be claimed fairly that the governments that +were set up under proclamations of the President were treated in the +beginning as provisional governments and subject to the final judgment +of Congress. + +In 1866, when the rupture between Congress and the President had taken +form, the President with the support of Mr. Seward announced the +doctrine that the governments which had been set up were valid +governments, and that claimants for seats in Congress from those who +could prove their loyalty were entitled to admission. + +Thus was a foundation laid for the impeachment of President Johnson by +the House of Representatives, and his trial by the Senate. + + +XXXII +IMPEACHMENT OF ANDREW JOHNSON + +The nomination of Andrew Johnson to the Vice-Presidency in 1864, by the +Republican Party, was a repetition of the error committed by the Whig +Party in 1840, in the nomination of John Tyler for the same office. + +In each case the nomination was due to an attempt to secure the support +of a body of men who were not in accord in all essential particulars +with the party making the nomination. + +John Tyler was opposed to the administration of Mr. Van Buren, but he +was opposed also to a national bank, which was then an accepted idea +and an assured public policy of the Whig Party. Hence, it happened +that when Mr. Tyler came to the Presidency, he resisted the attempt of +Congress to establish a national bank, and by the exercise of the veto- +power, on two occasions, he defeated the measure. This controversy +caused the overthrow of the Whig Party, and it ended the contest in +behalf of a United States bank. + +In the case of John Tyler and in the case of Andrew Johnson there was +an application, in dangerous excess, of a policy that prevails in all +national conventions. When the nomination of a candidate for the +Presidency has been secured, the dominant wing of the party turns to +the minority with a tender of the Vice-Presidency. In 1880, when the +nomination of General Garfield had been made, the selection of a +candidate for the Vice-Presidency was tendered to the supporters of +General Grant, and it was declined by more than one person. + +Mr. Johnson never identified himself with the Republican Party; and +neither in June, 1864, nor at any other period of his life, had the +Republican Party a right to treat him as an associate member. He was, +in fact, what he often proclaimed himself to be--a Jacksonian Democrat. +He was a Southern Union Democrat. He was an opponent, and a bitter +opponent, of the project for the dissolution of the Union, and a +vindictive enemy of those who threatened its destruction. + +His speeches in the Senate in the Thirty-sixth and the Thirty-seventh +Congress were read and much approved throughout the North, and they +prepared the way for the acceptance of his nomination as a candidate +of the Republican Party in 1864. + +Mr. Johnson was an earnest supporter of the Crittenden Compromise. +That measure originated in the House of Representatives. It was +defeated in the Senate by seven votes and six votes of the seven came +from the South. The provisions of the bill were far away from the +ideals of Republicans generally, although the measure was sustained +by members of the party. By that scheme the Fugitive Slave Law was +made less offensive in two particulars, but the United States was to +pay for fugitives from slavery whenever a marshal failed to perform his +duty. As an important limitation of the powers of Congress, the +abolition of slavery in the District of Columbia was to be dependent +upon the consent of the States of Maryland and Virginia. + +Mr. Johnson gave voice to his indignation when he spoke of the Southern +men whose votes contributed to the defeat of the Crittenden Compromise. +"Who, then," said he, "has brought these evils upon the country? Whose +fault is it? Who is responsible for it? With the help we had from the +other side of the chamber, if all those on this side had been true to +the Constitution and faithful to their constituents, and had acted with +fidelity to the country, the amendment of the Senator from New +Hampshire could have been voted down. Whose fault was it? Who did it? +Southern traitors, as was said in the speech of the Senator from +California. They did it. They wanted no compromise." + +These extracts show the style of speech in which Mr. Johnson indulged, +and they prove beyond question that in the winter of 1861 he had no +sympathy with the Republican Party of 1856 and 1860. These facts +explain, and in some measure they palliate, the peculiarities of his +career, which provoked criticism and an adverse popular judgment when +he came to the Presidency. Nor is there evidence within my knowledge +that he ever denied the right of secession. However that may have +been, he disapproved of the exercise of the right at all stages of the +contest. + +In the Thirty-sixth Congress Mr. Johnson proposed amendments to the +Constitution which gave him consideration in the North. By his +proposition the Fugitive Slave Law was to be repealed, and in its place +the respective States were to return fugitives or to pay the value of +those that might be retained. + +Slavery was to be abolished in the District of Columbia with the +consent of Maryland and upon payment of the full value of the slaves +emancipated. The Territories were to be divided between freedom and +slavery. His scheme contemplated other changes not connected +necessarily with the system of slavery. Of these I mention the +election of President, Vice-President, Senators, and Judges of the +Supreme Court by the people, coupled with a limitation of the terms of +judges to twelve years. + +The Crittenden Resolution contained these declarations of facts and +policy: + +1. The present deplorable war has been forced upon the country by the +disunionists of the Southern States. + +2. Congress has no purpose of conquest or subjugation, nor purpose of +overthrowing or interfering with the established rights of those States. + +Upon a motion to include disunionists in the North under the first +charge, Mr. Johnson voted in the negative with Sumner, Wilson, Wade, +and other Republicans. + +This brief survey of Mr. Johnson's Congressional career at the opening +of the war may indicate the characteristics of his mind in controversy +and debate, and furnish means for comprehending his actions in the +troublous period of his administration. + +Some conclusions are deducible from this survey. First of all it is +to be said that he never assumed to be a member of the Republican +Party. Next, I do not find evidence which will justify the statement +that he was a disbeliever in the right of a State to secede from the +Union. It is manifest that he was not an advocate of the doctrine of +political equality as it came to be taught by the leaders of the +Republican Party. When he became President, he was an opponent of +negro suffrage. + +This record, though not concealed, was not understood by the members +of the convention that placed him in nomination for the second office +in the country. + +This analysis prepares the way for an extract from the testimony of Mr. +Stanley Matthews, who was afterwards a justice of the Supreme Court, +and who was examined by the Judiciary Committee of the House of +Representatives when engaged in investigating the doings of the +President previous to his impeachment. Mr. Johnson was appointed +Military Governor of Tennessee the third day of March, 1862. Colonel +Matthews was provost-marshal at Nashville, where Johnson resided during +his term as Governor. In that term Matthews and Johnson became +acquainted. When Johnson was on his way to Washington to take the oath +of office, he stopped at the Burnet House in Cincinnati. Matthews +called upon him. Matthews had been a Democrat until the troubles in +Kansas. In the conversation at the Burnet House Mr. Johnson made these +remarks, after some personal matters had been disposed of. I quote +from the testimony of Judge Matthews: + +"I inquired as to the state of public feeling on political matters in +Tennessee at that time. He remarked that very great changes had +taken place since I had been there, that many of those who at first +were the best Union men had turned to be the worst rebels, and that +many of those who had originally been the worst rebels were now the +best Union men. I expressed surprise and regret at what he said in +reference to the matter. + +"We were sitting near each other on the sofa. He then turned to me and +said, 'You and I were old Democrats.' I said, 'Yes.' He then said, +_'I will tell you what it is, if the country is ever to be saved, it is +to be done through the old Democratic Party.'_ + +"I do not know whether I made any reply to that, or, if I did, what it +was; and immediately afterwards I took my leave." + +The larger part of this quotation is only important as leading up to +the phrase that is emphasized, and which may throw light upon Mr. +Johnson's policy and conduct when he came to the Presidency. + +This conversation occurred in the month of February, 1865, and it must +be accepted as evidence, quite conclusive, that Mr. Johnson was then +opposed to the policy of the Republican Party, whose honors he had +accepted. In a party sense Mr. Johnson was not a Republican: he was a +Union Democrat. He was opposed to the dissolution of the Union, but +not necessarily upon the ground that the Union had a supreme right to +exist in defiance of what is called "State sovereignty." This with +the Republican Party was a fundamental principle. Under the influence +of the principles of the old Democratic Party Mr. Johnson advanced to +the Vice-Presidency, and while under the influence of the same idea he +became President. + +When the Republican Party came to power, the State of Maryland, that +portion of Virginia now known as West Virginia, the State of Kentucky, +and the State of Missouri were largely under the influence of +sympathizers with the eleven seceding States of the South. It was +necessary in Maryland, Kentucky, and Missouri to maintain the +ascendency of the National Government by the exhibition of physical +force, and in some instances by its actual exercise. Mr. Lincoln's +policy in regard to the question of slavery was controlled, up to the +month of July, 1862, by the purpose to conciliate Union slave-holders +in the States mentioned. Of his measures I refer to the proposition +to transfer the free negroes to Central America, for which an +appropriation of $25,000 was made by Congress. Next, Congress passed +an act for the abolition of slavery in the District of Columbia upon +the payment of three hundred dollars for each slave emancipated. + +Without representing in his history or in his person the slave-holding +interests of the South, Mr. Johnson was yet a Southern man with Union +sentiments. The impression was received therefrom that his influence +would be considerable in restraining, if not in conciliating slave- +holders in what were called the "border States." These facts tended +to his nomination for the Vice-Presidency. I have no means for +forming an opinion that is trustworthy as to the position of Mr. +Lincoln in reference to the nomination of Mr. Johnson. His nomination +may justify the impression that the Republican Party was in doubt as to +its ability to re-elect Mr. Lincoln in 1864. From the month of July, +1862, to the nomination in 1864, I had frequent interviews with Mr. +Lincoln, and I can only say that, during the period when the result of +the election was a subject of thought, he gave no intimation in the +conversations that I had with him that the element of doubt as to the +result existed in his mind. + +From what has been said, the inference may be drawn that Mr. Johnson +came to the Vice-Presidency in the absence of any considerable degree +of confidence on the part of the Republican Party, although there were +no manifestations of serious doubt as to his fitness for the place, or +as to his fidelity to the principles of the party. + +The incidents of the inauguration of Mr. Johnson in the Senate Chamber, +and especially his speech on the occasion, which was directed, +apparently, to the diplomatic corps, excited apprehensions in those +who were present, and the confidence of the country was diminished +materially concerning his qualifications for the office to which he had +been elected. Without delay these apprehensions circulated widely, and +they were deepened in the public mind by the assassination of Mr. +Lincoln and the elevation of Mr. Johnson to the Presidency. + +The public confidence received a further serious shock by his +proclamation of May 29, 1865, for the organization of a State +government in North Carolina. That proclamation contained provisions +in harmony with what has been set forth in this paper concerning the +political principles of Mr. Johnson. First of all, he limited the +franchise to persons "qualified as prescribed by the constitution and +laws of the State of North Carolina in force immediately before the +20th day of May, 1861, the date of the so-called Ordinance of +Secession." This provision was a limitation of the suffrage, and it +excluded necessarily the negro population of the State. It was also a +recognition of the right of the State to reappear as a State in the +Union. It was, indeed, an early assertion of the phrase which +afterwards became controlling with many persons--"Once a State, always +a State." He further recognized the right of the State to reappear as +a State in the organization and powers of the convention which was to +be called under the proclamation. As to that he said: "The convention +when convened, or the legislature which may be thereafter assembled, +will prescribe the qualification of electors and the eligibility of +persons to hold office under the constitution and laws of the State, +a power the people of the several States composing the Union have +rightfully exercised from the origin of the Government to the present +time." There were further instructions given in the proclamation as to +the duties of various officers of the United States to aid Governor +Holden, who, by the same proclamation, was appointed "Provisional +Governor of the State of North Carolina." + +Upon the publication of this proclamation I was so much disturbed that +I proceeded at once to Washington, but without any definite idea as to +what could be done to arrest the step which seemed to me a dangerous +step towards the re-organization of the Government upon an unsound +basis. At that time I had had no conversation with Mr. Johnson, either +before or after he came to the Presidency, upon any subject whatever. +The interview which I secured upon that visit was the sole personal +interview that ever occurred between us. I called upon Senator Morrill +of Vermont, and together we made a visit to the President. I spoke of +the features of the proclamation that seemed to be objectionable. He +said that "the measure was tentative" only, and that until the +experiment had been tried no other proclamation would be issued. Upon +that I said in substance that the Republican Party might accept the +proclamation as an experiment, but that it was contrary to the ideas +of the party, and that a continuance of the policy would work a +disruption of the party. He assured us that nothing further would be +done until the experiment had been tested. With that assurance we left +the Executive Mansion. + +On the 13th day of June, 1865, a similar proclamation was issued in +reference to the State of Mississippi, and on the 17th of June, +corresponding proclamations were issued in reference to the States of +Georgia, Texas, Alabama, South Carolina, and Florida. In each State a +person was named as Provisional Governor. This action led to a +division of the party and to its subsequent reorganization against the +President's policy. + +In his letter of acceptance of the nomination made by the Union +Convention, Mr. Johnson endorsed, without reserve, the platform that +had been adopted. The declarations of the platform did not contain a +reference to the reorganization of the Government in the event of the +success of the Union arms. The declarations were enumerated in this +order: the Union was to be maintained; the war was to be prosecuted +upon the basis of an unconditional surrender of the rebels; and +slavery, as the cause of the war, was to be abolished. The added +resolutions related to the services of the soldiers and sailors, and to +the policy of Abraham Lincoln as President. It was further declared +that the public credit should be maintained, that there should be a +vigorous and just system of taxes, and that the people would view with +"extreme jealousy," and as enemies to the peace and independence of +the country, the efforts of any power to obtain new footholds for +monarchical government on this continent. Such being the character of +the platform, it cannot be said that Mr. Johnson challenged its +declarations in the policy on which he entered for the reorganization +of the Government. In Mr. Johnson's letter of acceptance he preserved +his relations to the Democrats by the use of this phrase: "I cannot +forego the opportunity of saying to my old friends of the Democratic +Party proper, with whom I have so long and pleasantly been associated, +that the hour has come when that great party can justly indicate its +devotion to the Democratic policy in measures of expediency." + +The controversy with Mr. Johnson had its origin in the difference of +opinion as to the nature of the Government. That difference led him to +the conclusion that the rebellion had not worked any change in the +legal relations of the seceding States to the National Government. His +motto was this: "Once a State, always a State," whatever might be its +conduct either of peace or war. There were, however, differences of +opinion among those who adhered to the Republican Party. Mr. Stevens, +who was a recognized, if not the recognized, leader of the Republican +Party, advocated the doctrine that the eleven States were to be treated +as enemy's territory, and to be governed upon whatever system might be +acceptable to the States that had remained true to the Union. Mr. +Sumner maintained the doctrine that the eleven States were Territories, +and that they were to be subject to the General Government until +Congress should admit the several Territories as State organizations. +The fourth day of May, 1864, I presented a series of resolutions in +the House of Representatives, in which I asserted this doctrine: The +communities that have been in rebellion can be organized into States +only by the will of the loyal people expressed freely and in the +absence of all coercion; that States so organized can become States of +the American Union only when they shall have applied for admission and +their admission shall have been authorized by the existing National +Government. A small number of persons who were identified with the +Republican Party sustained the policy of Mr. Johnson. Others were of +the opinion that the eleven States were out of their proper relation to +the Union, as was declared by Mr. Lincoln in his last speech, and that +they could become members of the American Union only by the organized +action of each, and the concurrent action of the existing National +Government. The Government was reorganized without any distinct +declaration upon the question whether the States that had been in +rebellion were to be treated as enemy's territory, or as Territories +according to the usage of former times. The difference of opinion was +a vital one with Mr. Johnson. Whatever view may be taken of his moral +qualities, it is to be said that he was not deficient in intellectual +ability, that his courage passed far beyond the line of obstinacy, and +that from the first to last he was prepared to resist the claims of +the large majority of the Republican Party. The issue began with his +proclamation of May, 1865, and the contest continued to the end of his +term. The nature of the issue explains the character and violence of +his speeches, especially that of the twenty-second day of February, +1866, when he spoke of Congress as a "body hanging on the verge of the +Government." + +In the many speeches which he delivered in his trip through the West, +he made distinct charges against Congress. He was accompanied by Mr. +Seward, General Grant, Admiral Farragut, and some others. In a speech +at Cleveland, Ohio, he said, among other things, "I have called upon +your Congress, which has tried to break up the Government." Again, in +the same speech he said, "I tell you my countrymen, that although the +powers of Thad Stevens and his gang were by, they could not turn me +from my purpose. There is no power that can turn me, except you and +the God who put me into existence." He charged, also, that Congress +had taken great pains to poison their constituents against him. "What +had Congress done? Had they done anything to restore the Union in +those States? No; on the contrary, they had done everything to prevent +it." + +In a speech made at St. Louis, Missouri, September 8, 1866, Mr. Johnson +discussed the riot at New Orleans.* In that speech he said, "If you +will take up the riot in New Orleans, and trace it back to its source, +or its immediate cause, you will find out who was responsible for the +blood that was shed there. If you will take up the riot at New +Orleans and trace it back to the radical Congress, you will find that +the riot at New Orleans was substantially planned." After some +further observations, he says: "Yes, you will find that another +rebellion was commenced, having its origin in the radical Congress." + +These extracts from Mr. Johnson's speeches should be considered in +connection with his proclamations of May, June, and July, 1865. They +are conclusive to this point: that he had determined to reconstruct +the Government upon the basis of the return of the States that had been +engaged in the rebellion without the imposition of any conditions +whatsoever, except such as he had imposed upon them in his +proclamations. In fine, that the Government was to be re-established +without the authority or even the assent of the Congress of the United +States. In his proclamations he made provision for the framing of +constitutions in the respective States, their ratification by the +people, excluding all those who were not voters in April, 1861, and for +the election of Senators and Representatives to the Congress of the +United States without the assent of the Representatives of the existing +States. + +When I arrived in Washington to attend the meeting of Congress at the +December session, 1866, I received a note from Mr. Stanton asking me to +meet him at the War Office with as little delay as might be +practicable. When I called at the War Office, he beckoned me to retire +to his private room, where he soon met me. He then said that he had +been more disturbed by the condition of affairs in the preceding weeks +and months than he had been at any time during the war. He gave me to +understand that orders had been issued to the army of which neither he +nor General Grant had any knowledge. He further gave me to understand +also that he apprehended an attempt by the President to re-organize the +Government by the assembling of a Congress in which the members from +the seceding States and the Democratic members from the North might +obtain control through the aid of the Executive. He then said that he +thought it necessary that some act should be passed by which the power +of the President might be limited. Under his dictation, and after such +consultation as seemed to be required, I drafted amendments to the +Appropriation Bill for the Support of the Army, which contained the +following provisions: The headquarters of the General of the Army were +fixed at Washington, where he was to remain unless transferred to duty +elsewhere by his own consent or by the consent of the Senate. Next, it +was made a misdemeanor for the President to transmit orders to any +officer of the army except through the General of the Army. It was +also made a misdemeanor for any officer to obey orders issued in any +other way than through the General of the Army, knowing that the same +had been so issued. These provisions were taken by me to Mr. Stevens, +the chairman of the Committee on Appropriations. After some +explanation, the measure was accepted by the committee and incorporated +in the Army Appropriation Bill. The bill was approved by the President +the second day of March, 1867. His approval was accompanied by a +protest on his part that the provision was unconstitutional, and by the +statement that he approved the bill only because it was necessary for +the support of the army. + +At the time of my interview with Mr. Stanton, I was not informed fully +as to the events that had transpired in the preceding months, nor can +I say now that everything which had transpired of importance was then +known to Mr. Stanton. The statement that I am now to make was derived +from conversations with General Grant. At a time previous to the +December session of 1866, the President said to General Grant, "I may +wish to send you on a mission to Mexico." General Grant replied, "It +may not be convenient for me to go to Mexico." Little, if anything, +further was said between the President and General Grant. At a +subsequent time General Grant was invited to a Cabinet meeting. At +that meeting Mr. Seward read a paper of instruction to General Grant +as Minister of some degree to Mexico. The contents of the paper did +not impress General Grant very seriously, for in the communication that +he made to me he said that "the instructions came out very near where +they went in." At the end of the reading General Grant said, "You +recollect, Mr. President, I said it would not be convenient for me to +go to Mexico." Upon that a conversation followed, when the President +became heated, and rising from his seat, and striking the table with +some force, he said "Is there an officer of the army who will not +obey my instructions?" General Grant took his hat in his hand, and +said, "I am an officer of the army, but I am a citizen also; and this +is a civil service that you require of me. I decline it." He then +left the meeting. It happened also that previous to this conversation +the President had ordered General Sherman, who was in command at Fort +Leavenworth, to report at Washington. General Sherman obeyed the +order, came to Washington, and had a conference with General Grant +before he reported to the President. In that situation of affairs +General Sherman was sent to Mexico upon the mission which had been +prepared for General Grant. + +The suggestion that Mr. Johnson contemplated the re-organization of the +Government by the admission of the States that had been in rebellion, +and by the recognition of Senators and Representatives that might be +assigned from those States, received support from the testimony given +by Major-General William H. Emory, and also from the testimony of +General Grant. In the latter part of the year 1867 and the first part +of the year 1868, General Emory was in command of the Department of +Washington. When he entered upon the command, he called upon the +President. A conversation, apparently not very important, occurred +between them, as to the military forces then in that department. In +February, 1868, the President directed his secretary to ask General +Emory to call upon him as early as practicable. In obedience to that +request General Emory called on the twenty-second day of February. The +President referred to the former conversation, and then inquired +whether any changes had been made, and especially within the recent +days, in the military forces under Emory's command. In the course of +the conversation growing out of these requests for information, General +Emory referred to an order which had then been recently issued which +embodied the provisions of the act of March, 1867, in regard to the +command of the army and the transmission of orders. The President +then said to Emory: + +"What order do you refer to?" + +In reply Emory said: "Order No. 17 of the Series of 1867." + +The order was produced and read by the President, who said: + +"This is not in conformity with the Constitution of the United States, +that makes me commander-in-chief, or with the terms of your commission." + +General Emory said: "That is the order which you have approved and +issued to the army for our government." + +The President then said: "Am I to understand that the President of the +United States cannot give an order except through the head of the army, +or General Grant?" + +In the course of the conversation, General Emory informed the President +that eminent lawyers had been consulted, that he had consulted Robert +J. Walker, and that all of the lawyers consulted had expressed the +opinion that the officers of the army were bound by the order whether +the statute was constitutional or unconstitutional. + +When General Grant was before the Judiciary Committee of the House of +Representatives during the impeachment investigation, this question +was put to him: + +"Have you at any time heard the President make any remark in regard +to the admission of members of Congress from rebel States in either +House?" + +"I cannot say positively what I have heard him say. I have heard him +say as much in his public speeches as anywhere else. I have heard him +say twice in his speeches that if the North carried the election by +members enough to give them, with the Southern members, the majority, +why should they not be the Congress of the United States? I have +heard him say that several times." + +That answer was followed by this question: + +"When you say the North, you mean the Democratic Party of the North, +or, in other words, the party advocating his policy?" + +General Grant replied: + +"I meant if the North carried enough members in favor of the admission +of the South. I did not hear him say that he would recognize them as +the Congress, I merely heard him ask the question, 'Why would they not +be the Congress?'" + +At this point, and without further discussion of the purpose of Mr. +Johnson in regard to the reorganization of the Government, I think it +may be stated without injustice to him, that while he was opposed to +secession at the time the Confederate Government was organized, and +thenceforward and always without change of opinion, yet he was also +of opinion that the act of secession by the several States had not +disturbed their legal relations to the National Government. Acting +upon that opinion, he proceeded to reorganize the State governments, +and with the purpose of securing the admission of their Senators and +Representatives without seeking or accepting the judgment of Congress +upon the questions involved in the proceeding. On one vital point he +erred seriously and fundamentally as to the authority of the President +in the matter. From the nature of our Government there could be no +escape in a legal point of view from the conclusion that, whatever the +relations were of the seceding States to the General Government, the +method of restoration was to be ascertained and determined by Congress, +and not by the President acting as the chief executive authority of the +nation. In a legal and constitutional view, that act on his part, +although resting upon opinions which he had long entertained, and which +were entertained by many others, must be treated as an act of usurpation. + +The facts embodied in the charges on which Mr. Johnson was impeached +by the House and arraigned before the Senate were not open to doubt, +but legal proof was wanting in regard to the exact language of his +speeches. The charges were in substance these: That he had attacked +the integrity and the lawful authority of the Congress of the United +States in public speeches made in the presence of the country. The +second charge was that he had attempted the removal of Mr. Stanton +from the office of Secretary of War, and that, without the concurrence +of the Senate, he had so removed him, contrary to the act of Congress, +known as the Tenure of Office Act. In the first investigation into +the conduct of Andrew Johnson, he was described in the resolution as +"Vice-President of the United States, discharging at present the duties +of President of the United States." The resolution was adopted by the +House of Representatives the seventh day of March, 1867. A large +amount of testimony was taken, and the report of the committee, in +three parts, by the different members, was submitted to the House the +fourth day of the following December. The majority of the committee, +consisting of George S. Boutwell, Francis Thomas, Thomas Williams, +William Lawrence, and John C. Churchill, reported a resolution +providing for the impeachment of the President of the United States, +in these words: "Resolved, that Andrew Johnson, President of the +United States, be impeached of high crimes and misdemeanors." It will +be observed that in the resolution for his impeachment he is described +as "President of the United States," while in the resolution +authorizing the inquiry into his conduct he is described as "Vice- +President, discharging at present the duties of the President of the +United States." This question received very careful consideration by +the committee, and the conclusion was reached that he was the President +of the United States, although he had been elected only to the office +of Vice-President. As that question was not raised at the trial by +demurrer or motion, it may now be accepted as the established doctrine +that the Vice-President, when he enters upon the duties of President, +becomes President of the United States. The extended report that was +made by the majority of the committee was written by Mr. Williams. +The summary, which was in the nature of charges, was written by myself. +That summary set forth twenty-eight specifications of misconduct on the +part of the President, many of which, however, where abandoned when the +articles of impeachment were prepared in February, 1868. + +In the discussion of the committee there were serious differences of +opinion upon provisions of law. The minority of the committee, +consisting of James F. Wilson, who was chairman of the Judiciary +Committee, Frederick E. Woodbridge, S. S. Marshall, and Charles R. +Eldridge, maintained the doctrine that a civil officer under the +Constitution of the United States was not liable to impeachment except +for the commission of an indictable offence. This doctrine had very +large support in the legal profession, resting on remarks found in +Blackstone. On the other hand, Chancellor Kent, in his Commentaries, +had given support to the doctrine that a civil officer was liable to +impeachment who misdemeaned himself in office. The provision of the +Constitution is in these words: + +"The President, Vice-President, and all Civil Officers of the United +States shall be removed from office on impeachment for, and conviction +of, treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors." + +The majority of the Judiciary Committee, in the controversy which +arose in the committee and in the House of Representatives, maintained +that the word "misdemeanors" was used in a political sense, and not in +the sense in which it is used in criminal law. In support of this +view attention was called to the fact that the party convicted was +liable only to removal from office, and therefore that the object of +the process of impeachment was the purification and preservation of the +civil service. In the opinion of the majority, it was the necessity of +the situation that the power of impeachment should extend to acts and +offences that were not indictable by statute nor at common law. The +report of the Judiciary Committee, made the twenty-fifth day of +November, was rejected by the House of Representatives. + +The attempt of the President to remove Mr. Stanton from the office of +Secretary for the Department of War revived the question of +impeachment, and on Monday, the twenty-fourth day of February, 1868, +the House of Representatives "resolved to impeach Andrew Johnson, +President of the United States, of high crimes and misdemeanors." The +articles of impeachment were acted on by the House of Representatives +the second day of March, and on the fourth day of March they were +presented to the Senate through Mr. Bingham, chairman of the managers, +who was designated for that duty. + +The articles were directed to the following points, namely: That the +President, by his speeches, had attempted "to set aside the rightful +authority and powers of Congress"; that he had attempted "to bring +into disgrace, ridicule, hatred, contempt, and reproach the Congress of +the United States and the several branches thereof"; and "that he had +attempted to incite the odium and resentment of all the good people of +the United States against Congress and the laws by them duly and +constitutionally enacted." Further, it was alleged that he had +declared in speeches that the "Thirty-ninth Congress of the United +States was not a Congress of the United States authorized by the +Constitution of the United States to exercise legislative power in the +same." + +A further charge, and on which greater reliance was placed, was set +forth in these words: "That he had denied and intended to deny the +power of the Thirty-ninth Congress to propose amendments to the +Constitution of the United States." These articles were in substance +the articles that had been rejected by the House of Representatives in +1867. Finally, as the most important averment of all, the President +was charged with an "attempt to prevent the execution of the act +entitled 'An Act Regulating the Tenure of Certain Civil Offices,' +passed March 2, 1867, by unlawfully devising and contriving and +attempting to contrive means by which he could prevent Edwin M. Stanton +from forthwith resuming the function of the office of the Secretary for +the Department of War, notwithstanding the refusal of the Senate to +concur in the suspension theretofore made by said Andrew Johnson of the +said Edwin M. Stanton from said office of Secretary for the Department +of War." In various forms of language these several charges were set +forth in the different articles of impeachment--eleven in all. The +eleventh article, which was prepared by Mr. Stevens, embodied the +summary of all the charges mentioned. It is to be observed that in the +eleventh article there is no allegation that the President had +committed an offence that was indictable under any statute of the +United States or that would have been indictable at common law. It +may be assumed, I think, that for this country, at least, the question +that was raised at the beginning and argued with great force, and by +which possibly the House of Representatives may have been influenced +in the year 1867, has been settled in accord with the report of the +majority of the Judiciary Committee. The House decided that the +President was impeachable for misdemeanors in office. With stronger +reason it may be said that every other civil officer is bound to +behave himself well in his office. He cannot do any act which impairs +his standing in the place which he holds, or which may bring discredit +upon the public, and especially he may not do any act in disregard of +his oath to obey the laws and to support the Constitution of the +country. The eleventh article was the chief article that was +submitted to a vote in the Senate. The question raised by that article +is this in substance: Is the President of the United States guilty in +manner and form as set forth in this article? On that question thirty- +five Senators voted that he was guilty, and nineteen Senators voted +that he was not guilty. Under the Constitution the President was found +not guilty of the offences charged, but the majority given may be +accepted, and probably will be accepted, as the judgment of the Senate +that the President of the United States is liable to impeachment and +removal from office for acts and conduct that do not subject him to the +process of indictment and trial in the criminal courts. At this point +I express the opinion that something has been gained, indeed that much +has been gained, by the decision of the House of Representatives, +supported by the opinions of a large majority in the Senate. + +The answer of the respondent, considered in connection with the +arguments that were made by his counsel, sets forth the ground upon +which the Republican members of the Senate may have voted that the +President was not guilty of the two principal offences charged, viz: +that in his speeches he had denounced and brought into contempt, +intentionally, the Congress of the United States; and, second, that his +attempted removal of Edwin M. Stanton was a violation of the Tenure +of Office Act. In the President's answer to article ten, which +contained the allegation that in his speech at St. Louis, in the year +1866, he had used certain language in derogation of the authority of +the Congress of the United States, it was averred that the extracts did +not present his speech or address accurately. Further than that, it +was claimed that the allegation under that article was not "cognizable +by the court as a high misdemeanor in office." Finally, it was claimed +that proof should be made of the "actual" speech and address of the +President on that occasion. The managers were not able to meet the +demand for proof in a technical sense. The speech was reported in the +ordinary way, and the proof was limited to the good faith of the +reporters and the general accuracy of the printed report in the +newspapers. In this situation as to the charges and the answer, it is +not difficult to reach the conclusion that members of the Senate had +ground for the vote of not guilty upon the several charges in regard +to the speeches that were imputed to the President. + +Judge Curtis, in his opening argument, furnished a technical answer to +the article in which the President was charged with the violation of +the Tenure of Office Act, in his attempt to remove Mr. Stanton from the +office of Secretary of the Department of War. Judge Curtis gave to the +proviso to that statute an interpretation corresponding to the +interpretation given to criminal statutes. Mr. Stanton was appointed +to the office in the first term of Mr. Lincoln's administration. The +proviso of the statute was in these words: "Provided that the +Secretaries of State, of the Treasury, of War, etc., shall hold their +offices for and during the term of the President by whom they may have +been appointed, and for one month thereafter, subject to their removal +by and with the advice of the Senate." The proviso contained +exceptions to the body of the statute, by which all civil officers who +held appointments by and with the advice and consent of the Senate +were secure in their places unless the Senate should assent to their +removal. It was the object of the proviso to relieve an incoming +President of Secretaries who had been appointed by his predecessor. +The construction of the proviso, as given by Judge Curtis, was fatal +to the position taken by the managers. It was claimed by the managers +that the sole object of the proviso was the relief of an incoming +President from the continuance of a Secretary in office beyond thirty +days after the commencement of his term, and that it had no reference +whatever to the right of the President to remove a Secretary during +his term. + +There were incidents in the course of the proceedings that possess +historical value. By the Constitution the Chief Justice of the +Supreme Court is made the presiding officer in the Senate when the +President is put upon trial on articles of impeachment. Chief Justice +Chase claimed that he was to be addressed as "Chief Justice." That +claim was recognized by the counsel for the President and by some +members of the Senate. The managers claimed that he was there as the +presiding officer, and not in his judiciary capacity. He was addressed +by the managers and some of the Senators as "Mr. President." + +There was a difference of opinion in the Senate, and a difference +between the managers and the counsel for the respondent, as to the +right of the presiding officer to rule upon questions of law and +evidence arising in the course of the trial. Under the rule of the +Senate as adopted, the rulings of the President were to stand unless a +Senator should ask for the judgment of the Senate. + +Other instances occurred which do not possess historical value, but +were incidents unusual in judicial proceedings. When the Judiciary +Committee of the House was entering upon the investigation of the +conduct of President Johnson, General Butler expressed the opinion that +upon the adoption of articles of impeachment by the House the President +would be suspended in his office until the verdict of the Senate. As +this view was not accepted by the committee, I made these remarks in +my opening speech to the House after a review of the arguments for and +against the proposition: + +"I cannot doubt the soundness of the opinion that the President, even +when impeached by the House, is entitled to his office until he has +been convicted by the Senate." + +This view was accepted. + +At the first meeting of the managers I was elected chairman by the +votes of Mr. Stevens, General Logan, and General Butler. Mr. Bingham +received the votes of Mr. Wilson and Mr. Williams. Upon the +announcement of the vote, Mr. Bingham made remarks indicating serious +disappointment and a purpose to retire from the Board of Managers. I +accepted the election, and acted as chairman at the meeting. At the +next meeting, and without consultation with my associates, I resigned +the place and nominated Mr. Bingham. The nomination was not objected +to, and Mr. Bingham took the chair without comment by himself, nor was +there any comment by any other person. The gentlemen who had given +me their votes and support criticized my conduct with considerable +freedom, and were by no means reconciled by the statement which I made +to them. Having reference to the nature of the contest and the +condition of public sentiment, I thought it important that the +managers should avoid any controversy before the public, especially as +to a matter of premiership in the conduct of the trial. It seemed to +be important that the entire force of the House of Representatives +should be directed to one object, the conviction of the accused. +Beyond this, Mr. Bingham and Mr. Wilson had been opposed to the +impeachment of Mr. Johnson when the attempt was first made in the +House of Representatives. I thought it important to combine the +strength that they represented in support of the proceeding in which +we were then engaged. If Mr. Stevens had been in good health, he +would have received my support and the support of General Butler and +General Logan. At that time his health was much impaired, but his +intellectual faculties were free from any cloud. + +Another incident occurred which does not require explanation, and which +may not be open to any explanation. After the report of the Judiciary +Committee, and its rejection by the House of Representatives, I was +surprised to receive an invitation from the President to dine with him +at what is known as a State dinner. I assumed that arrangements had +been made for a series of such dinners, and that the invitation had +been sent out by a clerk upon a prearranged plan as to the order of +invitations. When the matter had passed out of my mind, but before +the day named for the dinner, I received a call on the floor of the +House from Mr. Cooper, son-in-law of the President and secretary in +the Executive Mansion. He asked me if I had received an invitation to +dine with the President. I said I had. Next he said, "Have you +answered it?" I said, "No, I have not." That was followed by the +further question, "Will you answer it?" I said, "No, I shall not." +That ended the conversation. + +After the decision in the Senate had been made, the managers proceeded +under the order of the House to investigate the truthfulness of rumors +that were afloat, that money and other valuable considerations had been +used to secure the acquittal of the President. That investigation +established the fact that money had been in the possession of persons +who had been engaged in efforts to secure the acquittal of the +President. Those persons, with perhaps a single exception, were +persons who had no official connection with the Government, and none +of them were connected with the Government at Washington. As to most +of them, it appeared that they had no reasons, indeed no good cause, +why they should have taken part either for the conviction of the +President or in behalf of his acquittal. The sources from which funds +were obtained did not appear, nor was there evidence indicating the +amount that had been used, nor the objects to which the money had +been applied. It should be said as to Senators, that there was no +evidence implicating them in the receipt of money or other valuable +considerations. One very important fact not then known to the managers +appeared afterwards in the report of the Treasury Department, showing +a very large loss by the Government during the last eighteen months of +Mr. Johnson's administration. In that period the total receipts from +the duties on spirits amounted to $41,678,684.34. During the first +eighteen months of General Grant's administration, when the rates of +duties and taxation remained the same, the total receipts of revenue +from spirits amounted to $82,417,419.85, showing a difference of +$40,738,735.51. It is not easy to explain in full this money loss in +one branch of the public service. Something may be attributed to the +fact that persons obtained nominations for office by representations to +the President that they were his friends and supporters, and would +continue to be so, under all circumstances. When their nominations +came to the Senate, they made representations of an opposite character. +When they had received their appointments, they very naturally allied +themselves with the President's policy, inasmuch as they could not be +easily removed except upon an initiative taken by him. This deficiency +occurred in the states and districts in which the money should have +been collected and through the agents employed there. It other words, +no part of the deficiency ever passed into the Treasury of the United +States. + +It is not improbable that a majority of the people now entertain the +opinion that the action of the House of Representatives in the attempt +that was made to impeach President Johnson was an error. + +It is not for me to engage in a discussion on that point. I end by +the expression of the opinion that the vote of the House and the vote +of the Senate, by which the doctrine was established that a civil +officer is liable to impeachment for misdemeanor in office, is a gain +to the public that is full compensation for the undertaking, and that +these proceedings against Mr. Johnson were free from any element or +quality of injustice. + +Johnson's case ought to be borne in mind in all agitation for a longer +Presidential term. Whenever the country is engaged in a Presidential +contest there are complains by business men accompanied by a demand for +an extension of the term of office to six or in some instances to ten +years. The disturbance of business is due to the importance of the +election, and the importance of an election is due to the amount of +power that is to be secured by the successful party. An extension of +the term would add to the importance of the election, and a term of +six or ten years would intensify the contest and the injury to business +would be intensified, proportionately. It is doubtful whether in a +period of twenty or fifty years any appreciable relief to business +would be furnished by an extension of the term of the Presidential +office. + +It is by no means certain that the total of business is not as great +as it would be in the same four years if the term were ten years +instead of four. The total of production and consumption cannot be +affected seriously by a political controversy that does not extend +usually, over a period of more than three months. If business is +diminished during those months there will be a corresponding gain in +the months that are to follow. + +In a popular government there must be elections, and in all such +governments business interests must be subordinated to the general +welfare. The changes that have taken place since the Government was +organized would justify the shortening rather than the lengthening +of the Presidential term. The means of communication are such that +two years may give the mass of the people better means for judging +men and measures than could be had in four years at the opening of this +century. + +There is no form of education that more fully justifies its cost than +the education that is gained in a Presidential canvass. The +newspapers, the magazines, and more than all the speakers--"stump +orators" as they are called--communicate information and stimulate +thought. The voters are converted into a great jury, and after full +allowance is made for weakness, corruption and coercion, they are +advanced at each quadrennial contest in their knowledge of men, in +their ability to deal with measures of policy, and in comprehension +of the principles of government. If the losses in business were as +great as is ever represented, the educational advantages of a +Presidential canvass are an adequate set-off. The people have an +opportunity to see and hear the men who are engaged in public affairs +and questions are discussed upon their intrinsic merits. In the sixty +years of my experience there has been a great advance in the quality +of the speeches to which the people have listened. The speeches of +1840 would not be tolerated in 1900. + +When great questions are under debate appeals are made to the +principles of government and proportionately the education of the +people is of a higher grade. + +A serious objection to a long term in the Presidential office is the +fact that a spirit of discontent, that always exists, will develop into +insubordination or even revolution. We have an example in the history +of the Republic of Hayti. The term is seven years and in many cases +the President has been superseded by the leader of a revolutionary +party. The most recent instance was the overthrow of President +Legitime and the instalment of Hyppolite. The peace and prosperity of +Hayti would be promoted by reducing the term of the Presidential office +to two years. The contests that are sure to arise among a mercurial +people would thus be transferred from the battle-field to the ballot- +box. Who could have answered for the peace of the United States in +1868 if President Johnson's term had been six years instead of eight +months? + +[* This was a race riot, which occurred July 30, 1866, and in which +many negroes were killed.--EDITOR.] + + +XXXIII +THE TREASURY DEPARTMENT IN 1869 + +In March, 1869, I was appointed Secretary of the Treasury by President +Grant. Soon after my appointment Mr. McCulloch, the retiring +Secretary, said to me that I should find the department in excellent +order, and that in his opinion the financial difficulties of the +Government had been overcome. The first of these statements was true +in part, and in part it was very erroneous. + +The accounting branch of the service was properly administered +practically, but there were about one hundred persons on the pay rolls +who had no desks in the department, and who performed but little work +at their homes, where some of them ostensibly were employed in +copying. + +Several heads of bureaus were notoriously intemperate. This condition +of things was due in part to the war and to the exigencies of the +department consequent upon the war; and in part it was due to the +constitutional infirmities of Mr. Chase and Mr. McCulloch. In some +respects they resembled each other. They were phlegmatic in +temperament, lacking in versatility, and lacking in facility for labor +and business. + +Mr. McCulloch was diligent, industrious and conscientiously devoted to +his duties. He had been crippled in his administration by the conflict +between Congress and the President. The head of the Treasury needs +the confidence of the President, and the confidence and the support of +Congress. The latter Mr. McCulloch did not enjoy, and there were +indications that in some respects he differed with the President. He +was hampered by the fact that any change in the personnel of his +department would be followed by inquiries from one party or the other, +coupled oftentimes with complaints and criticisms. + +Great evils existed in the revenue system. The controversy between +Congress and the President led to many removals of collectors of +customs and of internal revenue. Their places were supplied by persons +who could accommodate themselves to both parties. The President was +made to believe that the applicants were his friends, but that their +relations with Republican Senators were such that they could secure +confirmation. When nominated these men represented themselves as good +Republicans and friendly to the Congressional policy. From such +persons an honest performance of duty could not have been expected. +Hence gross frauds upon the revenue were perpetrated and in most +instances by the connivance of those in office. + +The returns for the last year of Johnson's administration, and the +first years of Grant's administration, showed that the loss on whisky +in the first named period was not less than thirty million dollars. + +That there were other great losses was proved by the facts that the +payments on the public debt were less than thirty million dollars +during the last year of Johnson's administration and that the payments +were one hundred million dollars during the first year of Grant's +administration, and that without any additional sources of revenue. + +If Mr. McCulloch's first statement had been true in the most important +particulars, his second claim would not have been open to debate. It +was true that the department had passed the point where there was any +exigency for money. The Government was no longer a borrower. Payments +on the public debt had been made, but otherwise nothing had been done +to relieve the country of the interest account, nor was the credit of +the Government such that any practicable movement in that direction +could have been made. + +The six per cent bonds were worth only 83 or 84, and no step had been +taken to redeem the pledge of the Government in regard to the Sinking +Fund made in the act of February 25, 1862. The interest account +exceeded two hundred and thirty-three million dollars. + +Mr. S. M. Clark was the chief of the Bureau of Printing and Engraving +and everything was confided to him. It is to be said after the lapse +of thirty years for examination, that not a tittle of evidence has +been found warranting any imputation upon his integrity. It is true +that in one instance a dishonest plate printer took an impression of +a bond upon a sheet of lead for use in counterfeiting. The possibility +of such an act was due to a lack of system and not to any want of +fidelity in Mr. Clark. One of my first acts was to remove Mr. Clark, +and then to open a new set of books. The printing of the old issues +was suspended permanently, and new plates were prepared. Mr. Clark had +had control of the manufacture of the paper, the control of the +engravers, the control of the plates, the control of the printers, of +the counters, and he had had the custody of the red seal. The postal +currency was printed under his direction. The pieces were not +numbered, they were due bills only. At the end of twenty years the +books showed an issue of about fifteen million dollars in excess of the +redemptions. + +His power was unlimited as there were no checks upon him. He once said +to me when a committee of Congress was investigating his bureau, during +Mr. McCulloch's administration: + +"They will never find a five cent piece out of the way." + +After the discharge of Clark, I ordered an account of stock to be +taken. I appointed a custodian of the plates after a full inventory +had been made, whose duty it was to deliver the plates each morning +to the printers, to charge them to the printers, to receive them at the +close of the day, and to settle the account of each man. A special +paper was designated and public notice was given under the statute by +which it was made a crime for any person to make, use or have in his +possession any paper so designated. The paper was manufactured under +the supervision of an agent of the department, who was authorized to +count and receive all the paper at the mills and to answer the orders +for its delivery to the printers. The paper making machine was +equipped with a register which numbered the sheets of paper. That +record was compared daily with the number of sheets received by the +agent, and thus the Government was protected against any fraudulent or +erroneous issue of paper. Registers were also placed upon each +printing press. Each morning one thousand sheets of paper were +delivered to each plate printer, and at the close of work his printed +sheets were counted and the number compared with the register before +the printer was allowed to leave the office. In like manner there was +an accounting with each counter. The same system was extended to the +managers of the machines used for numbering bonds and bank notes. The +registering machine was made by an employee, under my direction, and +at the cost of the Government. + +Books of account were opened upon the new system. During my +administration, as far as I know, there was never the loss of a sheet +of paper nor was there a fraud committed in connection with the +business of the bureau. For further security, I made arrangements by +which two bank note companies in the City of New York prepared sets +of plates for a single printing on each security, the red seal being +imprinted in the Treasury Bureau. By this arrangement collusion was +impossible. The expense of printing was increased by this arrangement, +but it seemed to be more important to attain absolute security against +fraud than to save money. My successors have thought otherwise and the +printing is now done in the Treasury. + +During my term I ascertained that a man in New York who had once been +employed to print certain securities, had in his possession the plates +which he had used and which he claimed as his property. The printing +had been done in Mr. Chase's administration and there was no agreement +that the plates were to be delivered to the Government. The plates +were obtained, finally, by the payment of a sum of money. The person +who had the plates was an old man, and there was danger that they might +fall into the hands of dishonest parties. + +When I was in charge of the Treasury I had an understanding with +Colonel Whiteley, the Chief of the Secret Service that I should have an +interview with any expert professional criminals who might fall into +his hands. I recall an interview with one such criminal. A man of +forty years and a gentleman in appearance, and a professional +gentleman, as well as a criminal by profession. + +Upon the suggestion of Colonel Whiteley I gave the prisoner a fresh +one dollar green-back note. He took a phial of liquid from his +pocket, wet one half of the paper with the liquid and in my presence +the colors disappeared from the paper. Time and exposure have given +a dark tinge to the paper which was a pure white when the experiment +was ended. By the use of the liquid the counterfeiter was able to +obtain a piece of fibre paper on which a bill of large denomination +might be printed, given only the engraving. + +The revenue marine service was impaired by the incompetency of many of +the officers, and its efficiency was also impaired by the size and +quality of the ships. Some of them were sailing vessels, most of them +were of wood, and the modern ones were unnecessarily large in size. I +created a commission and all the officers except a few who were too old +for active service were subjected to an examination and those who were +found incompetent were discharged from the service. Their places were +filled by young, active and well qualified men. + +A commission was appointed to consider and report upon the size of the +vessels that were best adapted to the service. Three reports from +successive commissions were made before a satisfactory result was +reached. Finally, a report was made by Captain Carlisle Patterson, +that was approved by me and by a committee of Congress. The +recommendations of that report have been followed, as far as I know. + +At that time the Mint Service was without organization. Each mint and +assay office was in charge of an officer called superintendent, but +there was no head unless the Secretary of the Treasury could be so +considered, as all the business came to him. Upon my recommendation +Congress authorized the appointment of a Director of the Mint, and +upon my recommendation the President appointed Dr. Linderman, a +Philadelphia Democrat, but a gentleman familiar with the service. +Under him the service was organized and made systematic. + +When I took charge of the Treasury Department there was no system of +bookkeeping and accounting, that was uniform in the various customs +houses of the country. Each port had a plan or mode of its own, and +there was no one that was so perfect that it could be accepted as a +model in all the ports. The books and forms were made and prepared at +the several ports and often at inordinate rates of cost. + +I appointed a commission of Treasury experts to prepare forms and books +for every branch of business. Their report was accepted and since that +time the modes of accounting have been the same at all the ports. The +stationery prepared is furnished through the Government printing +office, at a considerable saving in cost, and clerks in the accounting +branch of the Treasury are relieved of much labor in the preparation +of statements. + +Upon the transfer of Mr. Columbus Delano from the office of +commissioner of Internal Revenue to the Secretaryship of the Interior +Department, the question of the appointment of a successor was +considered. The President named General Alfred Pleasanton, who was +then a collector of internal revenue in the city of New York. He had +been a good cavalry officer, a graduate of West Point, and the +President was attached to him. My acquaintance with Pleasanton was +limited, but I was quite doubtful of his fitness for the place. My +opposition gave rise to some delay, but at the end the appointment +was made, the President saying in reply to my doubts that if he did +not succeed he had only to say so to the General and he would leave +at once. The appointment of Pleasanton was urged by Mr. Delano and +General Horace Porter as I understood, both of whom were very near +the President. + +Pleasanton had been informed of my position, and although I was his +immediate superior he did not call upon me, nor did he ever, except +upon one occasion, come into my office, unless I sent for him. On +my part I resolved to avoid any criticism upon his official conduct +unless compelled to do so. He entered upon his duties the first of +January, 1871, and although in several instances I had occasion to +control his purposes in regard to contracts and to the refund of +taxes, I did not feel called upon to mention the facts to the +President. In May the President said: + +"I have come to the conclusion that Pleasanton is not succeeding in +his office." + +I replied: "That is so." + +The President then said: "I will try to find some other place for him, +and I will then ask him to resign." + +The President went to Long Branch for the summer and nothing was done. +I had very early discovered that Samuel Ward was exercising a good +deal of influence over the commissioner. It was his policy to secure +influence by giving dinners and entertainments, and, as far as +possible, he obtained the attendance of influential members of Congress +and of the chief officers in the executive departments. He once said: + +"I do not introduce my measures at these entertainments, but I put +myself upon terms with persons who have power." + +On a time I received a report on the subject of refunding a cotton +tax amounting to about $600,000. It bore two endorsements--one by the +solicitor "Examined and disallowed, Chesley," and one by the +commissioner "Allowed, Pleasanton." + +I placed the report in my private drawer with the purpose of delaying +action until I should ascertain where the propelling force existed. +Having occasion to go to Massachusetts I was absent about two weeks. +Upon my return Mr. Ward came into my office and inquired whether I had +received the report. I replied that I had received it. "Had I acted +upon it?" I said that I had not. He then proceeded to say that the +claim was a good one,--that Mr. Delano had examined it, and had +concluded to pass it, but as he left the office rather suddenly he had +neglected to act upon it. Finally, he expressed the hope that I would +act without delay. I had already decided the case adversely upon the +ground that the allowance was unauthorized. Therefore I had only to +endorse the word "disallowed" with my signature and to return the +report to the commissioner. I learned that the commissioner was +engaged through the agency of Ward in making a contract with a +Connecticut firm that was in my opinion at once improvident and +irregular. This act led me to determine to end the difficulty at once. +I went to the Executive Mansion and asked General Babcock to go to +Long Branch and say to the President that the business of the Internal +Revenue Office was in such a condition that immediate action was +necessary. As a result the President returned that night and early +the next morning he sent for me. I stated the facts, and he said he +would send for General Pleasanton and ask him to resign. At the +interview Pleasanton asked for the reasons. The President said: "The +Secretary is not satisfied with your administration." Pleasanton +replied: "I think I can make everything satisfactory to the +Secretary." The President replied, naturally: "If you can, I am +content." Then for the first time Pleasanton came to my office +without a request from me. I invited him into my private room, and +when he had related his interview with the President, I said: +"General, if this were a personal matter we might come to an +understanding, but your administration of the office has been a +failure from the first and you must resign." This ended the interview. +He refused to resign and the President removed him. He appealed to +the Senate in a lengthy communication, but without effect. Pleasanton +may have been, and probably was, a good military officer, but he did +not possess the qualities that are essential in the discharge of +important civil trusts. + +Neither from my experience in Congress nor in the Treasury Department +can I deduce much support for the doctrines of the class of politicians +called Civil Service Reformers. From their statements it would appear +that every member of Congress was the recipient of an amount of +patronage in the nature of clerkships that he could and did control. +I can say for myself that as a member I never asserted any such right +and as the head of the Treasury I can say that no such claim was ever +made upon me by any member of Congress. The nearest approach to it was +by George W. Julian. During one of his canvasses for re-nomination, +a clerk named Smith, and a correspondent of a journal in Mr. Julian's +district, had advocated the nomination of Mr. Wilson (Jeremiah). When +Mr. Julian secured the nomination, Smith gave him his support. +Nevertheless when Julian returned to Washington he demanded Smith's +removal. After hearing all the facts I declined to act. Julian was +very indignant, and afterwards from the Astor House, New York, wrote me +a violent, I think I might say unreasonable letter. + +The public mind has been much misled by the statements in regard to +removals and appointments. The employees in a department are of two +sorts. There is a class who are trained men in the places that they +occupy. They have been in the service for a long period. They are +familiar with the laws relating to their duties, and to the decisions +of the courts thereon, and they are the possessors of the traditions +of the offices. They are as nearly indispensable as one man can be +to another, or to the safe management of business. The head of a +department cannot dispense with the services of such men. All thought +of political opinions disappears. The responsibility of a change in +such a case is very great. No prudent administrator of a public trust +will venture upon such experiments. There is another class of clerks +who are employed in copying, in making computations in simple +arithmetic, in writing letters under dictation, and in other ordinary +clerical work. + +The public interest is not very large in the retention of such persons. +The ordinary graduates of the high schools of the country are competent +for all those duties. But the clerks of this class are not removed in +mass, and they never will be, under any administration. Even a fresh +man at the head of a department will soon find that the fancied +political advantages are no adequate compensation for the trouble that +he assumes and the risk of error and fraud that he runs when he takes +new and untried persons in the place of those who have been tested. +As late as 1870 about thirty per cent. of the employees of the +Treasury in 1860 were in office, and this notwithstanding that the +Treasury furnished recruits for both armies. During my time and for +years afterward, the post of Assistant Secretary was held by Mr. +Hartley, a Democrat from the days of Pierce and Buchanan. He was +experienced, diligent and entirely trustworthy. + +Of the first class of employees it is to be said that there is no +occasion to embalm them in their offices, and if their pay is adequate +there is no ground for placing them upon the pension rolls. Their +duties are not as exacting as the duties and labors of men in +corresponding stations in private life. As to the second class, their +relations to the public are such that no public obligation arises +except to pay them the stipulated salaries. + +It is essential to a proper administration that the Secretary or the +President should have the power of removal, and it should never be +coupled with the duty of making a statement of the cause. Not +infrequently a statement would be the occasion of scandal and of +suffering by innocent parties. The power may be abused as every +power may be, in the hands of dishonest or corrupt men. This is one +of the perils to the public, a peril from which no government can +escape. With us a change of rulers is a remedy for political wrongs +that do not belong to the catalogue of crimes. It may be said, +however, that this power of removal gives to a dishonest administrator +of a department the opportunity to secure the appointment of his +political friends in the place of political opponents removed, and this +whatever may be the method of appointment. The candidates may pass +the competitive examination, and they may enter upon their duties, but +their chief in thirty or sixty days may find them lacking in practical +aptitude, and so on, until those of the true faith shall be sent +forward by the examining board. + +Honest administrators of official duties are embarrassed by the system +and dishonest ones evade it. The system may become the enemy of +honesty and the shield of hypocrisy. Only this is needed. When the +appointing power has designated a person for an office, let that person +be examined by an independent board with reference to character and +those qualifications which seem to be a fit preparation for the +practical duties of the place. Whenever the power of appointment and +removal is abused the public has a remedy in a change of +administration. And herein is one reason why the Presidential term +should not be extended. There may be many evils of administration +which are not so flagrant as to warrant proceedings for impeachment. +Such evils may be borne for brief periods, when if the term of the +President were extended to six or eight years the dissatisfied elements +of society might be tempted to engage in revolutionary movements. Nor +is there wisdom in limiting the Presidential office to a single term in +the same person. The thought that one has a future is a great stimulus +to careful and energetic action in the performance of public duties. +For a President there is no future except a re-election, which is in +fact an approval by the country of his administration. A wise man will +strive to so conduct affairs as to merit that approval. A House of +Representatives already condemned by a popular verdict is but a poor +guardian of the rights of the people; and a defeated administration +performs its duties in the most indifferent manner. After a defeat +appointments will be made and acts done that would not have been +hazarded pending an election. It is true, probably, of every +administration, not excepting that of General Washington, that the +second term was less acceptable to the country than the first. Mr. +Lincoln had no second term, and it is useless to speculate upon its +probable character, if he had lived to perform its duties. + +It was my habit to be at the Treasury every morning at nine o'clock, +and I usually sent immediately for one or more heads of division or +chiefs of bureau for conference upon some matter connected with their +duties. By frequent interviews I acquired such knowledge of their +duties and of pending questions that I always had a reason for those +interviews. By this course I maintained relations of familiarity with +the officers who constituted the department for administrative +purposes, and I also established a system of punctuality in the matter +of attendance. When the head of a division is tardy, the clerks soon +venture to follow his example, and if he is prompt they are ashamed +to be dilatory unless they have an adequate excuse. The same relation +exists between the bureau officers and the head of a department. + +One of my first acts in the nature of a financial policy was to +establish the Sinking Fund, agreeably to the act of February 25, 1862. +Seven years had passed since the passage of the law and four years +since the end of the war and yet nothing had been done to provide for +the redemption of the public debt agreeably to the promise that had +been made when the Government was a large borrower of money and when +its credit was depreciated, seriously, in all the markets of the +world. In my first annual report, December, 1869, I advised Congress +of my action and I recommended the application of the bonds that I had +then purchased, amounting to about fifty-four million dollars, to the +Sinking Fund, until the deficiency then existing had been met. The +step that I then took was taken in obedience to the law, and not +from any great faith in the wisdom of the Sinking Fund policy, nor was +it from any fear that the Government could not pay its debts whether +a Sinking Fund was or was not created. + +The faith of the Government had been pledged to a particular policy and +I thought that the observance of that policy was both wise and just. A +government cannot afford to disregard the terms of its undertakings +even if a violation or neglect does not work harm to anyone. The +payments to the Sinking Fund were made regularly during General Grant's +administration, and the credit of the Government was thereby somewhat +strengthened. The chief element of strength was in the fact that the +payments were such as to astonish the heavily taxed and debt burdened +States of Europe. In my four years of service as the head of the +Treasury the payments on the debt reached the enormous sum of three +hundred and sixty-four million dollars. No one of my successors has +paid an equal amount, nor has an equal amount been paid in any other +equal period of time by the United States or by any other government. + +At the time I entered the Treasury the price of gold was at about +forty per cent premium and when I left the Treasury it was at about +twelve per cent premium. In the summer of 1869 I entered upon the +policy of selling gold and buying bonds. The sales and purchases +were made by the Assistant Treasurer in New York, but the bids were +reported to me and by me accepted or rejected. A leading criticism was +this: It was claimed that the simple method was to buy bonds in gold +and thus to secure the bonds by one transaction. + +This policy would have limited the number of purchasers of gold to +those who could command bonds. By the policy pursued the sales of gold +were open to anyone who had money. The gold was sold for currency, and +the bonds were purchased with currency. When the Treasury announced +its purpose to purchase bonds the price advanced in the market. The +President remarked to me jocularly that he had suffered by not knowing +what the department was about to do, inasmuch as he had sold bonds a +few days too early and at a price below their then present value. +During my service as Secretary of the Treasury I carried two +questions only to the Cabinet discussions--and I have forgotten one +of the questions, but it had some political significance. The other +arose in this manner: My method of negotiating the sale of new bonds +under the Funding Act of July, 1870, had been severely criticized. +The Government was compelled to give ninety days' notice of its +purpose to redeem five-twenty bonds, and as we could not with safety +make a call until we had the funds, and as our chief source was the +proceeds of new bonds we could not call until a sale was made. As a +consequence the Government was a loser of interest on all called bonds +for the period of ninety days. I arranged with the subscribers for +new bonds, that they should have the interest for the ninety days +upon a deposit of old bonds as security for the new ones subscribed +and taken. The Government lost nothing, and the subscribers were +benefitted greatly, and thus the subscriptions were increased. + +During the campaign of 1872 I had an opportunity to negotiate a new +loan upon the same basis. Knowing that the proceeding would renew +criticism, I thought it proper to lay the case before the President +and Cabinet. Upon their advice the negotiations were suspended. + +Governor Fish on more than one occasion complained that the Cabinet +were as ignorant of the proceedings and purposes of the Treasury as +was the outside world. His complaints were well founded. Much of the +business aside from routine matters was secret. For example my orders +for the sale of gold and the purchase of bonds were never issued at +any other time than Sunday evening, and then always by myself. The +orders were sent to the Sub-Treasurer at New York, and given to the +Associated Press at the same time. Consequently, on Monday morning +all the country was informed, and under such circumstances that the +chance of some to speculate upon the ignorance of others were reduced +to the minimum. Moreover, the members of the Cabinet might divide. I +should then be compelled to act upon my own judgment, and against the +views of some of my associates. Again, if I had the support of the +President and Cabinet, I could not have used the fact as an excuse for +myself. The public knew no one but the Secretary. I chose to act upon +my own judgment knowing that there was no one else to share the +responsibility in case of failure. + +In my report to Congress, in December, 1869, I set forth a system for +refunding the Public Debt. I had unfolded the scheme in a speech in +the House of Representatives, July 1868. I had already taken two +steps preparatory to the undertaking. First, in May, 1869, I +established the Sinking Fund under the Act of February 25, 1862. +Second, by the purchase of bonds the world had assurance that the debt +would be paid. The effect of these two measures was seen in the +increasing market value of the bonds. In other words the credit of the +country was improving. When the President was preparing his message of +December, 1869, he called upon me for my views in regard to the +Treasury, and I furnished him with a synopsis of my plan which he +embodied in his message. I retained a copy of the synopsis and that +copy is in the hands of my daughter. Simultaneously I prepared a bill +upon the basis of the report and caused the same to be printed upon the +Treasury press. Upon an examination of the papers on file in the +archives of the Senate I find that cuttings from my printed bill form +a part of the bill which was printed by the Finance Committee of the +Senate of which Senator Sherman was chairman. The bill was changed in +details but not in principle. The loan was in three parts as my bill +was prepared. A portion at 5 per cent, a portion at 4½ per cent, +and a third portion at 4 per cent. The division was retained in the +statute, but the amount of the loan at each of the several rates was +changed. By my bill the interest could be made payable in Europe. +This feature was stricken out by the committees in the House or the +Senate. This change I overcame or avoided ultimately by a rule of the +department by which interest on registered bonds could be made payable +in checks of the Treasurer. These checks are now sent to all parts of +the world and through the banking facilities they are everywhere as +good as gold, subject only to the natural rates of exchange between +different countries. Since that time railroad companies and other +business corporations have accepted the system. My plan of making the +interest on the bonds payable in Europe was rejected under the lead of +gentlemen who thought it involved some sort of national degradation. +My object was to make the loan more negotiable in Europe and thus to +extend the demand, and consequently, to increase the value of our +securities. + +The records of the Treasury Department show that on the 23rd day of +December, 1869, I sent to General Schenck of the House, a draught of a +bill for refunding the Public Debt. The same records show that on the +19th of January, 1870, I sent to Senator Sherman eight copies of a +bill. These bills were framed in conformity to the plan marked out in +my report of December, 1869. Previous to the preparation of that +report I had not any conference with any member of Congress nor with +any other person in regard to the details of the scheme. + +On the 12th of July, 1870, Mr. Sumner introduced a bill for refunding +the Pubic Debt (Sen. S. 80). As might have been expected it was not +a practical measure, and on the 3rd day of the following February Mr. +Sherman reported the bill of Mr. Sumner in a new draught. A single +copy of that bill is on file in the office of the secretary of the +Senate, and no other copy can be found. + +This bill conforms to my report, and upon my recollection it is the +bill as prepared by me. The division of the loan conforms to my +recommendation in the report, and it provides that the interest may be +made payable abroad. Subsequently these provisions were changed. +General Schenck had then recently returned from Europe and he was of +the opinion that the loan could all be negotiated at four or four and +one half per cent and it was this opinion on his part which led to +delays. The bill was not passed till July, 1870, at the very moment +when the Franco-Prussian War opened. Had the bill been passed in +March, quite large negotiations could have been made in April of that +year. But the sale of the new five per cent bonds was an undertaking +of great difficulty. It is now impossible to realize that a six per +cent bond was not worth par in 1869-'70. At that time the leading +bankers of the world were unwilling to engage in the undertaking. The +Rothschilds and Barings stood aloof. The Amsterdam bankers wrote +letters of inquiry, but they did nothing more. Mr. Morton, of the firm +of Morton, Bliss & Co., New York, was inclined to engage in the +business, but his partner, Mr. Bliss was doubtful of the success of +the scheme, and they therefore stood aside when the first negotiations +were attempted. Finally an arrangement was made with Jay Cooke & Co., +by which they advertised what was called a popular loan, asking for a +subscription to the five per cent bonds. + +Subsequently I advised Congress to issue four per cent fifty year bonds +as a basis of the banking system, coupled with an offer to the existing +banks of a preference, but in case any bank should refuse to exchange +the bonds then held by such bank, its charter after one year should be +annulled and its banking privileges should be open to any other +association that would purchase the four per cent bonds. This +proposition aroused the hostility of the national banks and forthwith +the city was invaded by bank officers and agents who succeeded in +defeating the bill. + +I had early foreseen that the Public Debt could be paid without much +delay, and without a system of oppressive taxation. In July, 1863, in +the introduction to my volume on the tax system of the country, I had +predicted that the revenues would be equal to the payment of interest +on a debt twice as large as the Public Debt then was, together with +large annual payments of principal. I predicted also that these +payments would menace the national banking system. My scheme looked +for the perpetuation of that system for fifty years at least. The +banks looked upon the scheme as a hostile project and they were +therefore led to defeat a measure which in fact was liberal in the +extreme. At that time the capital of all the national banks was +limited to three hundred million dollars. Thus did the banks defeat a +measure which was designed to secure their perpetuity and calculated +to promote their financial interests. They acted upon the idea that +the credit of the country could never be so far advanced that a four +per cent bond would be worth par. + +The success of the five per cent loan of 1871, of which I give a full +account elsewhere, should have ended the contest in regard to the +credit of the United States. A five per cent bond had been sold at par +in the London market. The principal of the Public Debt was undergoing +a monthly reduction and the gain in the interest account was sufficient +to guarantee the payment of the principal in half a century. From that +time forward, the leading bankers of Europe and American were ready to +co-operate in placing the remaining five per cents, and then the four +and a half and four per cents. + +From that time forward the credit of the Government has been improving +constantly. It was no longer difficult to borrow money at the rate of +five per cent, and with the adjustment of our controversy with Great +Britain there remained no reason to question the rapid progress of the +United States in wealth and population. Indeed, it was then entirely +feasible for the Government to have resumed specie payments, as any +demand upon the Treasury for gold could have been met with proceeds of +bonds sold in Europe. It was my opinion, however, that it would be +wiser to delay resumption until the balance of trade should be so much +in our favor that specie payments could be maintained by our own +resources. And this was accomplished in less than six years. It is +with a state as it is with an individual. With an established credit, +or with a credit improving constantly and an income in excess of +expenditures, there is no difficulty in meeting all liabilities as +they mature. Such was the condition of the Treasury when I left it in +March, 1873. In March, 1869, the Government was paying interest, +measured at the gold value of its securities at the rate of seven per +cent. In 1873 the rate was five per cent or less. In that time the +net Public Debt had been reduced in the sum of three hundred and sixty- +four million dollars, and the interest account had been reduced about +thirty million dollars. + +When I was engaged in placing bonds in Europe, a discussion arose among +bankers in regard to the conflict of statements as to the amount of the +Public Debt. By the reports of the Treasurer, which were the basis of +the monthly statements, the debt was represented by the securities +actually issued after deducting those which had been redeemed. By the +report from the Registrar's Office which once each year corresponded +in time to the monthly report, the balance was widely different. These +facts impaired our standing financially. Upon the register's books the +Government was charged with every issue that passed out of his office, +and it was days, usually, and not infrequently it was weeks, before the +securities passed from the Treasury into the hands of creditors or +purchasers of securities. On the other hand the Treasurer would be +entitled to credit for redemptions made days or weeks before the +evidence of such payments would appear on the register's books. An +analogous fact exists in the discrepancy between a depositor's account +with his bank and the account at the bank as long as there are +outstanding checks. The books would not agree and yet each might be +accurate. As it was a necessity of the situation that the business +of the Treasury should proceed day by day without interruption and it +was difficult to explain the discrepancy to the many inquirers, I +ordered Mr. Allison, the register, to accept for his annual reports the +statement of the Treasurer, as his statements conformed to the existing +facts on the days when the statements were made. The register +protested that the order was not justified by the law, and that was +the truth although there was no law forbidding such an act. The +transaction, including my order, was brought before a committee of the +House of Representatives, but as far as I know, the question of the +legality of the proceedings, was not canvassed, or if attention was +directed to the subject the committee may have treated it as an act in +the public interest and from which no injury had arisen. Upon these +facts, Senator Henry G. Davis, of West Virginia, made the charge that +the books of the Treasury had been altered by my direction and that it +was possible that some great fraud had been perpetrated which might be +discovered if a committee were appointed to investigate the Treasury. +A committee was granted, of which Senator Davis was a member. The +investigation was a failure from his standpoint. Indeed, the +alteration of the books of the Treasury would required the collusive +co-operation of many persons, and evidence of the fact of the +alteration would, of necessity, become known to hundreds of clerks. + +Mr. Davis and some other Democrats implicated me in an analogous matter +which they tried to understand but did not. The Loan Accounts of the +Treasury Department showed that the payments on the Public Debt +exceeded the receipts from loans in the enormous sum of one hundred and +sixteen million dollars. I appointed a committee of clerks to examine +the account in detail for the purpose of ascertaining whether the +discrepancy was real or only apparent. The fact of the discrepancy was +reported to Congress and the progress made in the investigation was +noted in the appendix to the Annual Reports. It is probable, however, +that these reports were never seen by Mr. Davis, and hence his +suspicion that an investigation into the accuracy of the Treasury +accounts would show an alteration of Treasury books, and of course, for +some improper purpose. + +The error began in Mr. Hamilton's time, and in consequence of the +assumption of the State debts. Bonds were issued for those debts but +there were no receipts paid into the Treasury, and consequently the +debit side of the account was a blank. When the bonds were paid the +payment became a credit on the loan account. In after times bonds were +issued and sold below par. The account was charged with the receipts +and upon payment the loan account was credited with the full amount +paid. In some cases the discrepancy was augmented by the purchase of +bonds and the payment of a premium, as was done in the second term of +General Jackson. The investigation showed that the discrepancy was +only apparent, and the criticisms and complaints ceased. + +During my administration of the Treasury Department, the government of +the Territory of Alaska was in my hands. The legislation of Congress +was brief and indefinite and the only officers were collectors of +customs, treasury agents and the revenue cutter officials. The +principal topics of thought were the exclusion of liquors and firearms +and the protection of the fur seal fishery. During the session of the +Forty-first Congress a bill was passed which required the Secretary to +lease the seal fishery to the best bidder, with a preference to the +company which was then engaged in the fishery. On the question of the +nature of the preference I took the opinion of the Attorney-General in +advance of the contract. At that time I was opposed to any system of +leasing and I so advised the House of Representatives in a report upon +the subject. Congress, however, adopted the system of leasing and upon +experience that system was shown to be more advantageous to the +country. The value of the fur seal fishery depends upon the market for +the dressed furs, and the value of the dressed furs depends upon the +fashions, and the fashions are manipulated by the producers of the +varied competing goods. The Government could never engage in the +business of promoting fashions and training the markets. Fur seal +skins have only a moderate commercial value when the fashion is not +with them. + +The question of the claim on Behring Sea was not then much considered. +By the law of nations it is difficult to maintain the position that +that vast body of salt water can be treated as a closed sea, but there +are peculiarities which distinguish it from other bodies of water as +the Mediterranean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico, which are partially +enclosed. + +Russia for a long time was the possessor of the adjacent mainland and +of the islands which mark the limits and in a degree enclose the sea. +That country claimed jurisdiction over the water. That claim was +known and its validity was not disputed seriously. By the treaty +Russia ceded about one half of the sea to the United States. Russia +and the United States are the countries directly interested. England +has no territorial rights and therefore she has no interest that is +not common to other nations. The United States and Russia are +interested in the seal fishery which can be preserved only by the +protection of the animals in Behring Sea. It may be claimed fairly +that Russia and the United State have property in these animals due to +the fact that they gather upon the territory of the countries at +certain seasons of the year. At other seasons they roam over the water +as other animals roam over the land. They are, at least, partially +domesticated. They are accustomed to the presence of the inhabitants +of the islands which they occupy as breeding grounds and which they +visit annually. Moreover, England has an interest in the preservation +of the fishery. The skins are dressed in London, and thus far no one +has been found, either in Europe or in the United States, who can +compete with the London workmen. For the purpose of protecting and +preserving the seal fishery, Behring Sea ought to be treated as a +closed sea. For general commercial purposes it may be used as other +parts of the ocean are used. + +At a time, while I was Secretary of the Treasury, when I was detained +at my lodgings by a slight illness, I received a visit from William E. +Dodge a New York merchant and an importer of tin, whom I had known some +years before when I was a member of Congress. He said that he had +called to see me in regard to charges against his house preferred by +the revenue officers relating to the importation of tin. I said, what +was true, that I had not heard of the charges and that I had never +suspected his house of any wrong-doing in their business. His +statement in reply was a great surprise to me. He said that if there +was anything which appeared to be wrong, or that was in fact a +violation of law, the error or wrong was unintentional--that he and his +partners intended to act always in good faith. He then stated that +the claim amounted to more than two hundred thousand dollars, and he +proposed then and there to pay the amount claimed, coupled, however, +with the condition that the payment should be kept secret. I replied +that I could not take the money upon such terms and that secrecy was +impossible. Upon his statement there were three persons besides +ourselves who had knowledge of the existence of the charges and the +payment of money must come to the knowledge of the Treasury officials. +I then said: + +"Mr. Dodge, you cannot afford to pay this money. If you are innocent +you should contest the matter in the courts, and if you convince the +judge, even if you are technically wrong, that there was no intent to +defraud the Government the Secretary can remit all the penalty, leaving +you to pay the duty." His counsel, if they were competent, must have +given him similar advice and yet he paid voluntarily, about two hundred +and seventy-six thousand dollars to the officials in New York, of +which he and his friends proceeded to complain. There was a suit, but +it was the duty of the firm to contest the claim of the Government, +if they had a defence. And if they had had a defence they were in no +danger even if they had violated the law ignorantly, for no Secretary +would have allowed honest men to suffer for an ignorant violation of +the revenue laws. Senator Edmunds placed upon the records of the +Senate a full statement of the case. + + +XXXIV +THE MINT BILL AND THE "CRIME OF 1873" + +Of the many measures of my administration of the Treasury Department, +the Mint Bill of 1873 is the only one which has been made a party +issue, and which has entered permanently into the policy of the +country. + +In the month of March, in the year 1869, I came to the head of the +Treasury Department. At an early day my attention was directed to +the disordered condition of the mint service, which was then, as it +ever had been, without a responsible head. The proceedings at the +mints were unsystematic, and I resolved upon an attempt to codify the +laws and to place the administration in the hands of a recognized, +responsible officer. President Grant appointed John Jay Knox +comptroller of the currency. For many years Mr. Knox had held the +office of deputy comptroller. He had been a careful, constant student, +and he was already a recognized authority in financial matters. + +I appointed Mr. Knox commissioner to codify the mint laws and to +suggest alterations. He was assisted by Dr. Linderman, then an eminent +expert in the theory and practice of coinage, by Mr. Patterson, +superintendent of the mint at Philadelphia, and by others. + +When the codification of the laws relating to the mint service had been +completed the statute, as passed, contained seventy-one sections, +including a number of new provisions. The political and personal +controversy of twenty years and more was directed to a single section, +which was in these words: "No coins, either of gold, silver, or minor +coinage, shall hereafter be issued from the mints other than those of +the denominations, standards and weights herein set forth." The +coinage of the silver dollar piece was discontinued in the bill as +prepared by the commissioners and the purpose to discontinue its +coinage was thus announced in the report that was made to Congress: + +"The coinage of the silver dollar piece, the history of which is here +given, is discontinued in the proposed bill. . . . The present gold +dollar piece is made the dollar unit in the proposed bill, and the +silver piece is discontinued." + +In 1873 I had come to believe that it was wise for every nation to +recognize, establish, and maintain the gold standard. I was of the +opinion then, as I am of the opinion now, that nations cannot escape +from the gold standard in all inter-state transactions. The value of +every article is resolved finally by the ascertainment of its value +in gold. Silver or paper may be used for domestic purposes, but the +value of that silver or paper is determined by its value in gold. + +In America, as in England, all the attempts to fix a ratio between +gold and silver coins and to maintain that ratio in business had +failed, and hence it was that I determined to abandon the idea of a +double standard, reserving in mind, however, the possibility that an +agreement by commercial countries might overcome the difficulty. That +possibility has now disappeared. The history of the United States is +an instructive history. The coin ratio between gold and silver was +fixed in Mr. Hamilton's time and with the concurrence of Mr. Jefferson. + +In 1870 silver was at a premium upon the legal ratio between gold and +silver coins, and such had been the fact from the year 1837, and +probably from the year 1792. Indeed, there has never been a day, +from the organization of the government, when the actual standard was +silver. Until the act of 1878 was passed, silver coins had had no +appreciable influence upon the volume of currency or the business of +the country. The total coinage of silver dollars had been 8,000,000 +pieces only. The coinage was suspended in 1805 or 1806, and the silver +dollars had been exported or they had disappeared in melting pots. +Such was the commercial demand for American silver coins that in 1853 +Congress authorized the debasement of the subsidiary silver coins as +the only means of securing their circulation. + +It is quite doubtful whether in the year 1860 there was a person living +who had seen an American silver dollar doing duty in the channels of +trade. From 1806 to 1873 the business standard of the country was the +gold standard. Silver had been recognized in the Coinage Act, but +practically it had not played any part in the financial policy or +fortunes of the country. + +The choice of gold as the standard was not due to hostility to silver +or to the silver mining interests, but to the well grounded opinion +that gold was a universal currency, while in some countries, as in +England and Germany, silver coins were not a debt-paying currency. + +These--within the limits of a statement--are the reasons for the +demonetization of the silver dollar and the adoption of the single gold +standard. The measure was in accord with my policy, and it was in +accord with the unbiased judgment of the commission. + +It is a singular instance in legislative proceedings that a measure +that had no active support and that was free from opposition at its +enactment should be assailed vigorously after the lapse of years and +through a long period of time. The measure was soon followed by the +depreciation of silver and coincident with that change came the +attacks upon the Mint Bill, and the denunciation of the "Crime of 1873." + +The charges were two: + +First: The authors of the change had been corrupted by English gold +through one Ernest Seyd, a writer on economic topics. It was alleged +that Seyd came to this country at the time when the measure was under +consideration. Seyd was not living when the charges were made, but the +fact of a visit to this country was denied by his son. Hon. Samuel +Hooper was chairman of the Committee on Coinage. In the search for +information Mr. Hooper invited Mr. Seyd to give him his opinion. Seyd +was a writer, a man of good reputation, and a bimetallist. In a letter +to Mr. Hooper, which is still in existence, and which is printed in the +_Congressional Record,_ Seyd condemned the demonetization of the silver +dollar. His letter was dated at London, February 17, 1872. + +The second charge was secrecy. The answer to this charge was to be +found in historical facts. + +The evidence is this: Mr. Knox's report contained two specific +statements that it was a purpose of the bill to prohibit the coinage +of the silver dollar; the report of the Secretary of the Treasury for +the year 1872 made a specific recommendation to that effect; the bill +was printed six times; it was considered in each House during the +Forty-first and Forty-second Congresses; the precise question in +controversy was the subject of discussion, and two years and ten months +were given to the consideration of the bill. + +The bill was discussed in the House of Representatives. Mr. Reed has +stated that the report of the debate covers one hundred and ninety-six +columns of the _Congressional Record_. Senator Jones, in his report +of 1876, as chairman of the Silver Commission, refers to the debate in +these words: "In the brief discussion on the bill in the House of +Representatives, the principal reason assigned in favor of those +sections which interdicted the future coinage of the silver dollar was +that its value was three per cent greater than the value of the gold +dollar." Thus Senator Jones admits that the debate in the House of +Representatives was upon the question of the abolition of the silver +dollar, and he recognizes his knowledge of the fact of the debate. + +Finally the bill passed the Senate without one dissenting vote. + +The downfall of silver has not been due to any legislation in America +or Europe, nor to any decrees or despotic policy in Asia, but to the +inventive faculties of one Charles Burleigh, of Fitchburg, +Massachusetts, the inventor of the power drill. + +If through him many silver mines have been rendered valueless, so it +is to him that the world is indebted for a new application of force by +which mountains are penetrated and mining in all its forms is carried +on at one fourth part of the former cost. Every step in civilization, +every advance movement that we call progress, is a peril to many and a +ruin to some. By one stroke of genius, and limiting our thoughts to +one only of its many consequences we may say that Burleigh has made +gold so abundant and cheap that all substitutes for a currency from +wampum to silver must soon disappear. + +There is historical evidence tending to show that the representatives +of the silver mining interest had sufficient and worthy reasons for +assenting to the suspension of the silver dollar. In 1872 silver was +at a slight premium as compared with gold. Therefore the privilege of +coinage of the dollar was of no advantage to the owners of bullion. + +The Mint Bill had a new and attractive feature. It provided for the +coinage of a dollar that was to contain 420 grains of standard silver, +and was to be known as the trade dollar. + +This passage may be found in my report to Congress for the year 1872: + +"Therefore, in renewing the recommendations heretofore made for the +passage of the Mint Bill, I suggest such alterations as will prohibit +the coinage of silver for circulation in this country, but that +authority be given for the coinage of a silver dollar that shall be as +valuable as the Mexican dollar and to be furnished at its actual cost." + +The dollar was coined and it was known as the Trade Dollar. It +contained 420 grains of standard silver. + +The Mexican dollar which contained about 416 grains, was then sold at +a premium, and it was used extensively in the China and India trade. + +It was my expectation and the expectation of all concerned, that the +trade dollar, from its added value, would take the place of the Mexican +dollar in the immense trade of the East. My own confidence was great. +Indeed, the thought of failure never occurred to me. Unfortunately, +the stolidity of the Chinese and the force of habit among that people +were not considered by us. From long use they had become accustomed +to the Mexican dollar. They refused our trade dollar, notwithstanding +its greater weight. + +We coined and put into circulation, at home and abroad, about +36,000,000 pieces, many of which were afterwards recoined as legal +tender dollars under a special act of Congress. + +With the failure of that undertaking came the crusade against the act +of 1873. Whether the two events sustained to each other the relation +of cause and effect, I cannot say. + +The suggestion that Senator Stewart of Nevada was assenting to the +demonetization of the silver dollar derives support from the fact that, +in the month of February, 1874, he indorsed the gold standard in two +speeches, delivered, respectively, on the 11th and 20th days of that +month. On the 11th he said: "I want the standard gold, and no paper +money not redeemable in gold." On the 20th he added: "Gold is the +universal standard of the world. Everybody knows what a dollar in gold +is worth." + +It is certain that in the month of February, 1874, when the contents +of the Mint Bill were in the public statutes, the demonetization of the +silver dollar, and the recognition of the gold dollar as the unit of +value, had not affected the judgment nor disturbed the sensibilities of +the advocates of silver. + +I dismiss this branch of the subject with the observation that the act +of 1873 placed the United States in a commanding position in regard to +the use of silver. If that metal had continued to maintain its +supremacy upon the ratio then established between gold and silver coin, +there could have arisen no demand for the coinage of silver. If, on +the other hand, silver should depreciate, the government might, at +its pleasure, use, or it might decline to use, that metal as coin. + +I now pass to a part of the history of the controversy not heretofore +considered in public discussions, from which it will appear that the +trusted representatives of the silver interest put aside the most +inviting opportunity, if not the only opportunity, for the adoption of +the bimetallic system by the commercial nations of the world. + +The act of 1873 prepared the way for the use of silver by the +commercial nations of the world, upon an agreed ratio with gold, if +indeed, the possibility of such an arrangement ever existed. We were +upon a gold basis; the balance of trade, by groups of years, was in our +favor; we had a gold revenue from customs of about $200,000,000, and +the excess of Treasury receipts over expenditures was nearly +$100,000,000 a year. + +If we had chosen to accumulate gold and postpone payments upon the +Public Debt, we could have brought the nations of the earth to our feet. + +It was under circumstances thus favorable for negotiations for the use +of silver that the Silver Commission of 1876 was constituted, and +authorized, among other things, to inquire "into the policy of the +restoration of the double standard in this country, and if restored, +what the legal relation between the two coins of silver and gold, +should be." + +This authority opened a way for the introduction of a policy on the +part of the United States looking to an arrangement for the use of +silver by the states of Europe, and on that authority the commission +dealt with the project of an international bimetallic system. + +The commission consisted of eight persons. Senator Jones was the +chairman, and Mr. Bland, of Missouri, was an influential member. It +was my fortune to be of the commission and it was my fortune also to +be alone in opinion upon the main questions that were treated in the +reports. + +The majority of the commission consisted of Messrs. Jones, Bogy, +Willard, Bland and Groesbeck. They favored the remonetization of the +silver dollar, and that without delay. + +Of the points made in their report, I mention these. They said: "The +supply of gold is diminishing, being now but little more than one half +what it was in 1852, and is always so fitful and irregular from the +method of its production that it is ill-suited to be a sole measure of +value." + +This statement as a statement of an existing fact was wide of the +truth, and as a prophecy it was as fallacious as are the prophecies +which predict the destruction of the world. From 1851 to 1855 the +annual gold product of the world was 6,410,324 ounces. From 1876 to +1880 the annual gold product of the world was 5,543,110 ounces. The +gold product of the latter period was eighty-six per cent of the gold +product of the former period. + +Far wide of the truth were the predictions of the majority in regard +to the future product of gold. For the year 1894 the product was +8,737,788 ounces, or about thirty-seven per cent over the product of +1851-'55. + +They, the majority, said: "No increase in the yield of silver in the +immediate future seems upon the whole to be probable." The commission +said further: "The exchanges of the world, and especially of this +country, are continually and largely increasing; while the supplies of +both the precious metals, taken together, if not diminishing, are at +least stationary, and the supply of gold, taken by itself, is falling +off." + +Each of these two statements in regard to the precious metals was a +serious error, and in their controlling influence upon the judgment of +the commission they were fatal errors. + +The gold product of the world in 1876 was 5,016,488 ounces. In 1894 +the product had risen to 8,737,788 ounces, a gain of more than +seventy-four per cent in the short period of eighteen years. + +In 1876 the product of silver was 67,753,125 ounces, and in 1894 it +was 167,752,561 ounces, a gain of about 147 per cent in eighteen years. + +Upon these errors the majority of the commission based a policy by +which the only opportunity that the country ever had for the +establishment of a bimetallic system which should include the +commercial nations of Europe, was put aside and forever lost. + +If, in 1876, I had anticipated the immense increase in the product of +silver, I might have hesitated, but in the view that I was then able +to command I had great confidence that a bimetallic arrangement might +be secured. + +The majority of the commission favored bimetallism but they demanded, +first, the remonetization of the silver dollar. On the other hand, +I claimed that all thought of the further use of silver should be +postponed until the attempt to secure the co-operation of other +countries had been tried faithfully. + +The policy of the majority of the commission prevailed, and it was +consummated by the Statute of 1878, which was passed over the veto of +President Hayes, and which authorized the coinage of the silver dollar. + +When we had accepted silver, when we had abandoned the vantage ground +that we had occupied, it was in vain that we solicited the co-operation +of England, France and Germany. The adoption by the United States of +a silver-using policy led the statesmen of those countries to +anticipate the more extended and continuous use of silver leaving to +them a monopoly of gold, while we should sink financially to the level +of the degraded states of the world. That catastrophe we have escaped +after an experience of twenty-five years, and then only by the +combined efforts of the two great political parties. + +I submit brief extracts from the report of the majority of the +commission and from my individual report of 1876, that our relative +positions may be understood. + +The commission said: "We believe that the remonetization of silver in +this country will have a powerful influence in preventing, and probably +will prevent, the demonetization of silver in France and in other +European countries in which the double standard is still legally and +theoretically maintained." + +Again the majority said: "It may be added that a legislative +remonetization on the relation to gold of 15.5 to 1 accomplishes +without delay all the objects of the proposition for an international +conference, which is urged from various quarters." + +That I may place myself where I stood in 1876 I present brief extracts +from my report of that year. + +First I said: "There can be but one standard of value in any country +at the same time, and a successful use of gold and silver +simultaneously can be effected only by their consolidation upon an +agreed ratio of value, and by the concurrence of the commercial nations +of the world. + +"The undersigned is also of opinion that it is expedient for this +Government to extend an invitation to the commercial nations of the +world to join in convention for the purpose of considering whether it +is wise to provide by treaties and concurrent legislation for the use +of both silver and gold in all such nations upon a fixed relative +valuation of the two metals; and, finally, that until such an +agreement between this Government and other commercial nations can be +effected, the United States should pursue the existing policy in regard +to the resumption of specie payments." + +Further I said: "It is to be apprehended that the remonetization of +silver by the United States at the present time would be followed by +such a depreciation in its value as to furnish a reason against the +adoption of the plan by the rest of the world, and that an independent +movement on our part would increase the difficulties rather than +diminish them." + +These extracts shall suffice. I now repeat the assertion with which I +introduced this topic, viz.: That in 1876 the majority of the Silver +Commission put aside the most favorable opportunity, indeed the only +opportunity, that the country has ever had for the organization of a +universal system of bimetallism. + +Of that majority, Senator Jones of Nevada, and Representative Bland, of +Missouri, were the leading members. If in defence or in extenuation +of the policy of the majority it shall be said that the United States +has not remonetized silver, and that, therefore, the policy of the +majority has not been tested, a partial rejoinder, if not, indeed, a +satisfactory reply, may be deduced from the facts that between the +years 1878 and the year 1893 the Government coined more than +400,000,000 silver dollars, and yet, in that period of time, silver +bullion fell from 1.15 plus per ounce to .65 plus per ounce. + +It is worthy of notice that the product of silver in the United States +has increased with the demand for silver. Upon the passage of the +Sherman Bill the product advanced from 45,000,000 ounces in 1888 to an +average of 55,000,000 ounces from 1889 to 1893, inclusive. Upon the +repeal of that act the product fell to 49,000,000 ounces in 1894. + +It is not only probable, it is certain, that with every increasing +demand for silver there will be an added supply. Consider what has +happened since the appearance of the inventions of which I have spoken. + +The world's annual product of silver from 1493 to 1865, inclusive, was +16,887,157 ounces. The largest annual product was from 1861 to 1865, +when it reached 35,401,972 ounces. From 1866 to 1894 inclusive, the +annual average product was 114,326,397 ounces. In 1894 the product was +167,752,561 ounces, which, as will be observed, was about nine times +the annual product from 1493 to 1865. + +From 1876 to 1894 the business of silver mining was increased 147 per +cent. Can any one name any other business or pursuit in which there +was a like increase? And is not the inference justified that the +profits have been large and tempting, notwithstanding the +demonetization of silver in some countries and the suspension of +coinage in other countries? + +I turn now to the future, and first as to the possibility of the +further use of silver as currency. + +I assume that in countries where the standard is gold there may be a +considerable use of silver, as in the United States to-day. + +An international bimetallic system, binding nations to each other for +a definite term of years, is a proposition involving large +responsibilities. + +If in 1885 it was not practicable to secure the adoption of the +bimetallic system, when silver was worth eighty-four cents per ounce, +what is the prospect of its adoption when silver is worth only sixty- +four cents per ounce, with an annually increasing product and a +diminishing price? + +What remains? This, possibly: That the nations may agree to purchase +each a per cent of a fixed amount of silver as the product of each +year. This scheme might prove, and probably it would prove, to be only +a temporary expedient. + +The enormous increase in the business of silver mining is evidence that +the profits are far in excess of the profits that are gained in other +pursuits. The increase in product is likely to be followed by a fall +in price. Such are the resources of the earth that an increase in the +demand for silver will be followed by an increase in the supply. + +Gold mining is obedient to the same law. From 1876 to 1894 the product +increased 74 per cent. That ratio of increase is likely to continue. +The world is not in peril of a gold famine. Gold as a currency, +passing from hand to hand, will be used less and less. Substitutes, +for which gold can be obtained, will be preferred. The volume of +currency in a country is not limited by the amount of gold that a +country may possess. It may increase the amount of subsidiary coin +very largely, and it may add to the sum of paper money, provided that +that paper money is always redeemable in gold. + +Nor does the quantity of gold in a country determine the price of +commodities, except as that gold is a part of the total volume of the +currency of the country. The volume of currency as a whole is the +force by which the salable value of commodities is affected. + +In truth, gold plays a small part only in actual business. It is a +regulator of business rather than an active instrument for the +transaction of business. It is not an exaggeration to say that the +use of gold in business is limited to a small fraction of one per cent +of the aggregate transactions in countries where gold is the standard. + +It is not improbable that in the near future the world is to meet a +surfeit of gold, as it is now meeting a surfeit of silver. Yet even +then its capacity as a standard will not be affected. History does +not carry us to a time when gold was not the recognized standard for +the measurement of every other kind of property, and that not by one +tribe or people only, but by mankind in every clime and in every stage +of savageness or of civilization. + +As the Mint Bill and the demonetization of silver have occupied the +attention of the country for a third of a century, and as there may be +a revival of the controversy at a time in the future I have thought it +wise for me to make a record of the facts in the most enduring form at +my command. + +At the end this is my claim for the Mint Bill of 1873: It established +the gold standard for the United States for all time. All the +subsequent legislation has rested upon the fact that the Statute of +1873 made the gold dollar the standard of value in the United States. + + +XXXV +BLACK FRIDAY--SEPTEMBER 24, 1869 + +So much time has passed since September 24, 1869, that there may be a +large public who may become interested in a review of the events of the +spring and summer of that year which culminated in Wall Street, New +York, in the transactions and experiences of the day known as "Black +Friday." + +When the Forty-first Congress assembled in December of that year, the +House of Representatives directed the Committee on Banking and +Currency "to investigate the causes that led to the unusual and +extraordinary fluctuations of gold in the city of New York, from the +21st to the 27th of September, 1869." The committee made a report +which was printed under date of March 1, 1870, and which may be found +in a volume entitled "Garfield's Report on the Gold Panic +Investigation." From that report it appears that certain persons in +the city of New York entered into an arrangement, or understanding, or +combination, as early as the month of April, 1869, for the purpose of +forcing the price of gold artificially to a rate far beyond what might +be called the natural price. The committee, of which General Garfield +was chairman, characterized the combination as a conspiracy. +Technically and in a legal point of view the parties concerned could +not be treated properly as conspirators. It does not appear that they +contemplated the violation of any law, but only a policy by which gold +might be advanced from time to time, and out of which advance large +sums of money might be realized by those who were holders of gold. +Upon that theory Jay Gould and James Fisk, Jr., who were the leaders +and organizers of the combination, with their associates, made large +purchases of gold at prices varying from thirty to thirty-five per +cent premium. At the close of the month of April, the price of gold, +not then, as far as known, under the influence of any speculative +movement, was at a premium of about thirty-four per cent. The +indications were that, during the months of May and June, the parties +interested in the combination made large purchases. By the 20th of +May the price had reached a premium of forty-four per cent. From +that time onward, until the last of July, the premium diminished, and +at that date the rate was thirty-six per cent. + +When I entered the Treasury Department in March, there had not been +sales of gold nor purchases of bonds by the Treasury Department as a +policy, and but few transactions on either side had been made by my +predecessors in office. As early as the 12th day of May I commenced +the purchase of bonds for the sinking fund and for the reduction of the +interest-bearing public debt. The total purchases during the year +1869 amounted to something more than $88,000,000, for which there was +paid in currency $102,000,000 and a margin over. At that time, the +customs receipts were in gold exclusively, and the purchase of bonds +could only be made by a sale of gold or by a direct purchase of bonds +to be paid for in gold. Suggestions were made by bankers and others +in the city of New York, and perhaps elsewhere, that the purchase of +bonds should be made in gold. This suggestion was not acceptable to +me, and upon the ground that the sale of gold would be limited to those +who had bonds, or who could procure bonds, for the payment of gold. +From the 29th of April, when the first sale of gold was made, until the +31st day of December, the sales amounted to something more than +$53,000,000, and the proceeds to something over $70,000,000. The +difference in the amount realized from the sale of gold and the amount +paid for bonds purchased was met by the excess of receipts over the +expenditures of the Government during that period. + +As having some connection, and perhaps an important connection, with +what is to be said hereafter touching General Grant's action in the +days of September, when the speculation was going on, I think it proper +to make a statement of my relations to the President. I had declined +the office of Secretary of the Treasury, and on the morning of my +nomination to the Senate I wrote a letter to Mr. Washburne, through +whom the invitation of the President that I should accept the office +was made, requesting him and urging him to say to the President that +I was unwilling to accept the place. My nomination was sent to the +Senate and confirmed, and as there seemed to be no alternative for me, +I entered upon the duties of the office. Due in part to these +circumstances, as I think, the President accepted the idea that the +management of the Treasury Department was in my hands, and from first +to last, during the four years that I was in his Cabinet, his acts and +his conversation proceeded upon that idea. Moreover, he was influenced +by a military view that an officer who was charged with the conduct of +a business, or of a undertaking, should be left free to act, that he +should be made responsible, and that, in case of failure, the +consequences should rest upon him. It happened, and as a plan on my +part, that neither the President nor the Cabinet was made responsible +for what was done in the Treasury Department. Hence it was that I +presented to the Cabinet but two questions. One of these was of no +considerable consequence. The other related to the political effect +that might follow a loan that I contemplated making upon certain terms +in the year 1872, when the Presidential contest was pending. In the +line of these views, it happened that I announced my purpose to +purchase bonds in May, 1869, without conference either with the +Cabinet or with the President. When the announcement was made, there +was a slight advance in bonds. In order that the business interests +of the country might not be influenced by an apprehension that changes +might take place in the policy of the Department, I announced (as +stated in Chapter XXXIII) at the beginning of each month the sales of +gold and the purchases of bonds that were to be made during the coming +month. Those announcements were sent out on the evening of Sunday, +either the last Sunday of the closing month or the first Sunday of the +opening month. The despatches were written by myself Sunday evening, +and sent to the Assistant Treasurer at New York. A copy was given to +the agent of the Associated Press, that the public might be informed +in the morning of the policy for the ensuing month, and that there +should be no opportunity for speculation by persons who might obtain +information in advance of the general public. Unhappily, this policy +was made the basis of the proceedings in New York which culminated in +"Black Friday." The parties interested--I do not call them +conspirators--assumed that for thirty days the policy of the department +as to the sale of gold and the purchase of bonds would remain +unchanged, and on that basis they proceeded to make arrangements for +the advance in gold. Not satisfied with that policy, which was +designed to save the business community from unnecessary apprehensions, +an attempt was made to induce me to make an announcement for two or +three months. Such suggestions were made in letters that I received +from interested parties in the city of New York. + +Speculation in gold was not all on one side. There were speculators +who were anxious to break down the price of gold, and between the lines +I could read the condition of the respective parties from whom I +received letters. Under date of September 23, I received a letter +from a prominent house in New York in which the writer said: "I am +actuated to again portray to you the state of financial affairs as they +now exist in this city. The speculative advance in gold has brought +legitimate business almost to a standstill, owing to the apprehension +of a corner, which from appearances may appear at any moment." + +It did not follow that the writer of the letter was "short on gold," as +the phrase is. I had, however, in my possession at the time a list of +persons in New York who were supposed to be contestants, some for an +advance in gold and others for a fall. The writer of the letter was +among those whose names had been given to me as speculators for a fall +in gold. In this connection I may say that it was no part of my policy +to regulate affairs in Wall Street or State Street or Lombard Street. +Until it became apparent that the operations in New York affected +largely and seriously the business interests of the country, and until +it became apparent that the Treasury receipts were diminished by the +panic that had taken possession of the public, I refrained from any +interference with those who were engaged either in forcing up or +forcing down the price of gold. + +Under date of the 24th day of September, I received a letter from my +special and trusted correspondent in the city of New York in which I +find this statement: "This has been the most dreadful day I have ever +seen in this city. While gold was jumping from forty-three to sixty- +one the excitement was painful. Old, conservative merchants looked +aghast, nobody was in their offices, and the agony depicted on the +faces of men who crowded the streets made one feel as if Gettysburg +had been lost and that the rebels were marching down Broadway. Friends +of the Administration openly stated that the President or yourself must +have given these men to feel that you would not interfere with them or +they would never dare to rush gold up so rapidly. In truth, many +parties of real responsibility and friends of the Government openly +declared that somebody in Washington must be in this combination." + +The last sentence in this quotation unfolds the policy which had guided +Gould and Fisk and their associates from April to the culmination of +their undertaking, the 24th day of September. As far as I know, the +effort had been directed chiefly to the support of a false theory that +the President was opposed to the sale of gold, especially during the +autumn months, when a large amount of currency is required, or in those +days was supposed to be required, for "the moving," as it was called, +of the produce of the West to the sea coast for shipment to Europe. +They even went so far as to allege that the President had ordered the +Secretary of the Treasury to suspend the sale of gold during the +month of September, for which there was no foundation whatever. +Indeed, up to the 22d of September, when I introduced the subject of +the price of gold to the President, he had neither said nor done +anything, except to write a letter from New York City under date of +September 12, 1869, in the following words: + +NEW YORK CITY, _September_ 12, 1869. + +DEAR SIR: I leave here for western Pennsylvania to-morrow morning and +will not reach Washington before the middle or last of next week. Had +I known before making my arrangements for starting that you would be in +this city early this week, I would have remained to meet you. I am +satisfied that on your arrival you will be met by the bulls and bears +of Wall Street, and probably by merchants, too, to induce you to sell +gold, or pay the November interest in advance, on the one side, and to +hold fast on the other. The fact is, a desperate struggle is now +taking place, and each party wants the Government to help him out. I +write this letter to advise you of what I think you may expect, to put +you on your guard. + +I think, from the lights before me, I would move on without change +until the present struggle is over. If you want to write me this week, +my address will be Washington, Pennsylvania. I would like to hear +your experience with the factions, at all events, if they give you time +to write. No doubt you will have a better chance to judge than I, +for I have avoided general discussion on the subject. + +Yours truly, +U. S. GRANT. + +Hon. GEORGE S. BOUTWELL, + _Secretary of Treasury_. + +At a meeting, which was accidental, as far as the President was +concerned, on board one of Fisk and Gould's Fall River steamers, when +he was on his way to Boston, in June of that year, to attend the Peace +Jubilee, an attempt was made to commit General Grant to the policy of +holding gold. I was present on the trip with the President. What +happened on the boat may be best given in the language of Mr. Fisk and +Mr. Gould. Mr. Fisk, in his testimony before the committee, said: + +"On our passage over to Boston with General Grant, we endeavored to +ascertain what his position in regard to the finances was. We went +down to supper about nine o'clock, intending while we were there to +have this thing pretty thoroughly talked up, and, if possible, to +relieve him from any idea of putting the price of gold down." + +Mr. Gould's account before the committee was as follows: + +"At this supper the question came up about the state of the country, +the crops, prospects ahead, etc. The President was a listener; the +other gentlemen were discussing. Some were in favor of Boutwell's +selling gold, and some were opposed to it. After they had all +interchanged their views, some one asked the President what his view +was. He remarked that he thought there was a certain amount of +fictitiousness about the prosperity of the country, and that the +bubble might as well be tapped in one way as another. . . . We +supposed from that conversation that the President was a +contractionist. His remark struck across us like a wet blanket." + +The error of Fisk and Gould and their associates, from the beginning to +the end of the contest, was in the supposition that the President was +taking any part in the operations of the Treasury concerning the price +of gold. If he expressed any opinions outside in conversation, there +were no acts on his part in harmony with or in antagonism to the views +he entertained. As a matter of fact, with the exception of the letter +from the city of New York, he had no conference or correspondence with +me up to the 22d day of September, when I called upon him, and gave +him a statement of the price of gold in the city of New York, and of +the nature and character of the combination that existed there, as far +as it was understood by me. Their policy was directed to two points: +first, to influence the President, if possible, to interfere in a way +to advance the price of gold; and, second, to satisfy their adherents +and opponents that the President either had so interfered or would so +interfere. + +Even Fisk and Gould may at a period of time have rested in the belief +that the President either had interfered or that he would interfere. +Their confidence was in Mr. A. R. Corbin, a brother-in-law of the +President, who, under the influence of various considerations, which +appear to have been personal and pecuniary to a very large extent, lent +himself to the task of influencing the President. As a matter of fact, +his attempts were very feeble and misdirected and of no consequence +whatever. Indeed, such is my opinion of the President, and such my +belief as to his opinion concerning Mr. Corbin, that nothing which Mr. +Corbin did say, or could have said, did have or could have had the +least influence upon the President's opinion or conduct. It is, +however, also true that Fisk and Gould employed Corbin and gave him +consideration in their undertakings out of which he realized some +money. I received information, also, which may not have been true, +that they suggested to him that he might become president of the Tenth +National Bank, which had a very conspicuous part in the events which +culminated in Black Friday. + +An attempt to strengthen the impression that it was the purpose of the +President to prevent the sale of gold was made through an article +prepared by Mr. Corbin, probably under the direction of Mr. Gould and +others, which appeared finally, with some alterations and omissions, in +the New York _Times_ of the 25th of August. It appears to have been +the purpose of the parties interested to mislead the _Times_ as to the +authorship of the article, and they secured the agency of Mr. James +McHenry, a prominent English capitalist, who called at the _Times_ +office, and presented the article to Mr. Bigelow, the editor, as the +opinion of a person in the intimate confidence of the President. The +article was put in type and double leaded. When so prepared, +suspicions were aroused, and the financial editor, Mr. Norvell, made +very important corrections, taking care to omit sentences and +paragraphs that contained explicit statements as to the purposes of the +President. Some of the phrases omitted were in these words: "It may +be that further purchases of bonds will be made directly with gold." +"As gold accumulates, the less would be the premium upon it. High +prices for gold before the sale of our products would cause lower +prices of gold after the sale of products." + +Among the statements made which were preserved in the article as +printed finally were these: "The President evidently intends to pay +off the 5-20s as rapidly as he may in gold"; "So far as current +movements of the Treasury are concerned, until crops are moved it is +not likely Treasury gold will be sold for currency to be locked up." + +Following the appearance of this article, I received a letter from Mr. +Gould, dated the 30th of August, in which this sentence appears: "If +the New York _Times_ correctly reflects your financial policy during +the next three or four months; namely, to unloose the currency balance +at the Treasury or keep it at the lowest possible figure, and also to +refrain during the same period from selling or putting gold on the +market, thus preventing a depression of the premium at a season of the +year when the bulk of our agricultural products have to be marketed, +then I think the country peculiarly fortunate in having a financial +head who can take a broad view of the situation, and who realizes the +importance of settling the large balance of debt against us by the +export of our agricultural and mining products instead of bonds and +gold." + +Of my reply to that letter, the committee say: "The brief and formal +reply of the Secretary gave Gould no clew to the purpose of the +Government." + +Under date of September 20, I received a letter from Gould to which I +made no reply. Aside from the topics to which he directed my attention +in the letter, it is the unavoidable inference from the context as a +whole that Gould had then no faith in the statements given to the +public that the President was in any manner pledged to interfere and +prevent the sale of gold. The following extracts from the letter of +September 20 are a full exposition of his policy and of the means on +which he relied to advance the price of gold during the month of +September: + +"On the subject of the price of gold and its effect upon the producing +interests of the West, permit me to say that during the months of +September of the past two years the price has averaged about forty- +five. Gold must range this year at about that premium to enable the +export of the surplus crops of wheat and corn. We have to compete with +the grain-producing countries bordering on the Black and Mediterranean +seas, and it requires a premium of over forty per cent on gold to +equalize our high-priced labor and long rail transportation to the +seaboard. + +"My theory is to let gold go to a price that we can export our surplus +products to pay our foreign debts, and the moment we turn the balance +of trade in our favor gold will decline from natural causes. In my +judgment, the Government cannot afford to sell gold during the next +three months while the crops are being marketed, and if such a policy +were announced, it would immediately cause a high export of bread- +stuffs and an active fall trade. + +"P. S. In addition to the above, if gold were put upon the market, +government bonds would decline to at least fifteen, leaving the +purchases made by the Government in the past few months open to +criticism as showing a loss." + +As early as the 20th of September, I had evidence satisfactory to me +that the Tenth National Bank in the city of New York was a party to the +speculation in gold, and that its assistance was rendered largely +through the certification of checks drawn by the brokers, and largely +in excess of the balances due them upon the books of the bank when the +certifications were made. It appeared from the evidence submitted +that these certifications of checks in excess of the balances due to +brokers amounted to about $18,000,000 on the 22d and 23d of September, +when the speculation was at its height. + +For the purpose of arresting that process and checking the speculation +in gold, I detained the comptroller of the currency and three competent +clerks after the close of business on the 22d of September. The clerks +received commissions as bank examiners, and were instructed to go to +New York that night and to take possession of the Tenth National Bank, +at the opening of business in the morning, and to give directions that +the habit of certifying checks in excess of the balances due must be +suspended. It was my expectation that the enforcement of that rule +would, or might, end the speculation, inasmuch as the purchasers of +gold would be unable to meet their obligations, and therefore it would +be out of their power to create them. This expectation was not +realized. Whether the certification went on at the Tenth National +Bak in defiance of the order, or whether other banks were so +connected with the speculation that checks were certified elsewhere, +was not known to me. + +I called upon the President after business on the 23d of September, +and made a statement of the condition of the gold market in the city +of New York, as far as it had been communicated to me during the day. +I then said that a sale of gold should be made for the purpose of +breaking the market and ending the excitement. He asked me what sum +I proposed to sell. I said: "Three million dollars will be sufficient +to break the combination." + +He said in reply: "I think you had better make it $5,000,000." + +Without assenting to his proposition or dissenting from it, I returned +to the department, and sent an order for the sale of $4,000,000 of gold +the next day. The order was to the assistant treasurer in these +words: "Sell $4,000,000 gold to-morrow, and buy $4,000,000 bonds." +The message was not in cipher, and there was no attempt to keep it +secret. It was duplicated and sent by each of the rival telegraph +lines to New York. Within the space of fifteen minutes after the +receipt of the despatch, the price of gold fell from 160 to 133, and +in the language of one of the witnesses, "half of Wall Street was +involved in ruin." + +For the moment, the condition of Wall Street and the Gold Exchange +seemed to justify the statement of the person whose language has just +been quoted. As a matter of fact, however, many of the people involved +recovered from the panic, and were able to meet their obligations. +Some were gainers, probably, by the proceedings of the month of +September, and some were losers. As I have already said, I had no +purpose to help anybody or to hurt anybody, and I interfered in Wall +Street only when the operations that were going on there involved +innocent parties who were engaged in legitimate business, and also +imposed upon the Government a sacrifice in the loss of revenue. + +Following the downfall of the combination, there appeared in the +newspapers statements and imputations which reflected upon the +President and his family as to their relations to the gold operations. +All these statements were without foundation. Mr. Corbin's connection +was established beyond controversy, but the evidence which established +his relations to the parties engaged in the gold speculation was also +conclusive as to the fact that the President had no connection with it, +and that he was not in any way interested in any policy calculated to +advance the interests of the combination. + +The apprehensions that were entertained on the evening of the 24th and +on the 25th of September as to the extent of the disaster to business +and to individuals engaged in gold speculation were not realized in +full. My special correspondent in New York said in a letter dated +September 25: "Many of the houses hurt and reported failed yesterday +are likely to recover." Again he said: "The demoralization in the +street was never equaled, and it must take several days at least +before matters get fairly straightened. There is a wholesome dread +against making any obligations. Smith, Gould and Martin are just +reported as paying in full." + +In a letter dated September 27 at 6:30 P. M., the assistant treasurer +at New York wrote me: "From the best evidence to be gathered in the +excitement here, it is safe to infer that the Gold Exchange Bank will +suffer losses to the extent of its capital and surplus at least, and +perhaps more." To the contrary of that prediction, it is to be said +that the Gold Exchange Bank was able to meet all its obligations. + +In a letter written by Mr. Grinnell, then collector of the port of New +York, under date of September 24, after the announcement of the sale of +gold had been made, I find this statement: "Had you not taken the +course which you did, I believe a large proportion of our most reliable +merchants and bankers would have been obliged to suspend before three +o'clock to-day, as confidence was entirely gone and the panic was +becoming universal." + +Following the break in the price of gold, there were persons who became +apprehensive that the rate would fall to a point which would affect +their interests unfavorably, and I received a letter, dated after +business hours on the 24th, in which the writer said: "It is not +impossible that, in view of the largeness of the amount of gold to be +sold to-morrow, there may be a combination to procure it at a low +price, and you will therefore excuse a suggestion that, as the effect +of your intervention has already been realized, it might be well to +protect the Government by making it known that you will reject all +unacceptable bids." + +These extracts from letters received previous to and during the crisis +may lead to the conclusion that it is not safe to trust to persons +engaged in large business and commercial transactions as guides for the +administration of the Government in financial matters. Indeed, one may +go still further, and say that it is not safe to trust the guidance of +the Government in financial affairs to men whose life business it has +been to convert information into gold. + +The most unpleasant incident of the gold speculation of 1869 was the +fact that General Butterfield, the assistant treasurer in the city of +New York, was so far involved as to lead the President to ask for his +resignation. That request did not arise from any evidence that General +Butterfield was in any way concerned in the movement or combination, +which led to the advance in gold. Indeed, the evidence was conclusive +to the contrary. This fact, however, did appear--that during the +period of the excitement he had made some purchases and sales of gold +and bonds. The suspicions that existed in the city of New York as to +his connection with the gold movement were largely exaggerations of +the actual facts. There was no evidence which impeached his official +or personal integrity in business. His resignation was requested upon +the ground that it was essential to the proper administration of the +office that the person holding the important place of assistant +treasurer in the city of New York, should not be engaged in business +transactions which might give rise to the conjecture that he had +advantages over others in consequence of his connection with the +Government. + +It ought to be said the Mr. Gould, in his testimony before the +committee, which was given at great length and with singular clearness +of statement, denied expressly the existence of any combination. In +fine, he claimed, what may have been the truth, and upon the whole +probably was the truth, that it was not part of his purpose to carry +the price of gold above forty or forty-five per cent premium. He +attributed the excessive and rapid advance of the price of gold to the +persons who had sold short and who, becoming alarmed, attempted to +cover their sales by making purchases, and by bidding against each +other carried the price from about 140 to 160. + +The same statement was made by Mr. Fisk as to the cause of the +excessive rise in the price of gold. He said: "It went up to sixty, +for the reason that there were in that market a hundred men short of +gold. There were banking houses which had stood for fifty years, and +who did not know but what they were ruined. They rushed into the +market to cover their shorts. I think it went from forty-five to +sixty without the purchase of more than $600,000 or $700,000 of gold. +It went there in consequence of the frightened bear interests. There +was a feeling that there was no gold in the market and that the +Government would not let any gold go out." + +At the time of the gold panic, Gould and Fisk were interested in the +business of railway transportation from the West to the seaboard, and +Mr. Fisk made a statement which sets forth the theory on which he and +Gould professed to act. Fisk said: "The whole movement was based +upon a desire on our part to employ our men and work our power getting +surplus crops moved East and receiving for ourselves that portion of +the transportation properly belonging to our road. That was the +beginning of the movement, and the further operations were based upon +the promise of what Corbin said the Government would do." + +From the testimony of Jay Gould and James Fisk, Jr., as it appeared +in the printed report, we are able to comprehend the characteristics +of the two men. Gould was cool and collected from beginning to end, +with no indication in his statements that the events of the 24th of +September had in any particular disturbed him in temper or nerve or +confidence in his ability to meet the exigencies of the situation. +On the other hand, the testimony of Fisk indicated the absence of the +qualities ascribed to Gould, and during his examination he failed to +maintain even ordinary equanimity of temper. He interfered with the +proceedings, and delivered this address to the committee: "I must +state that I must ask you gentlemen to summon witnesses whose names I +shall give you. My men are starving. When the newspapers told you +we were keeping away from this committee, I say to you that there is +no man in this country who wants to come before you as bad as Jim Fisk, +Jr. I have thirty or forty thousand wives and children to feed with +the money disbursed from our office. We have no money to pay them, and +I know what has brought them to this condition." + +Another extract from Fisk's testimony gives a graphic view of his +condition when the crash came: "I went down to the neighborhood of +Wall Street Friday morning. When I got back to our office you can +imagine I was in no enviable state of mind, and the moment I got up +street that afternoon I started right round to old Corbin's to rake him +out. I went into the room, and sent word that Mr. Fisk wanted to see +him in the dining-room. I was too mad to say anything civil, and when +he came into the room, said I, 'Do you know what you have done here, +you and your people?' He began to wring his hands, and 'Oh,' he says, +'this is a horrible position. Are you ruined?' I said I didn't know +whether I was or not; and I asked him again if he knew what had +happened. He had been crying, and said he had just heard; that he had +been sure everything was all right; but that something had occurred +entirely different from what he had anticipated. Said I, 'That don't +amount to anything. We know that gold ought not to be at thirty-one, +and that it would not be but for such performances as you have had this +last week; you know ---- well it would not if you had not failed.' I +knew that somebody had run a saw right into us, and said I, 'This whole +---- thing has turned out just as I told you it would.' I considered +the whole party a pack of cowards; and I expected that, when we came +to clear our hands, they would sock it right into us. I said to him, +'I don't know whether you have lied or not, and I don't know what ought +to be done with you.' + +"He was on the other side of the table, weeping and wailing, and I was +gnashing my teeth. 'Now,' he says, 'you must quiet yourself.' I told +him I didn't want to be quiet; I had no desire to ever be quiet again. +He says, 'But, my dear sir, you will lose your reason.' Says I, +'Speyers has already lost his reason; reason has gone out of everybody +but me.'" + +My part and my interest in the events of Black Friday came to an end +with an effort to ascertain the authorship of an anonymous +communication, written in red ink, that I received the 6th day of +October. It was postmarked at New York, the 5th of October, 1869. +(A reduced facsimile of the communication is shown below.) An attempt +was made through the police and the secret service system to trace the +authorship of the superscription. The attempt was ineffectual. + +[Facsimile] +If gold does not sell at 150 within 15 days I am a ruined man. You +will be the cause of my ruin! Your life will be in danger. + Wilkes Booth. + + +It appears in the review that Mr. Gould originated the scheme of +advancing the price of gold and that Mr. Fisk was his principal +coadjutor. It also appears that Mr. Fisk entered into the arrangement +upon the basis of friendship for Mr. Gould, and not in consequence of +an opinion on his part that the scheme was a wise one. Mr. Gould had +two main purposes in view: first, the profit that he might realize +from an advance in gold; and, second, the advantage that might accrue +to the railroad with which he was connected through an increase of its +business in the transportation of products from the West. As set forth +in Mr. Gould's letter, he entertained the opinion, which rested upon +satisfactory business grounds, that an advance in the price of gold +would stimulate the sale of Western products, increase the business +of transportation over the railways, and aid us in the payment of +liabilities abroad. If the price of gold had not been advanced beyond +a premium of forty or perhaps forty-five per cent, all these results +might have been realized, without detriment to the public, while Mr. +Gould and his associates would have realized large profits. When the +price had advanced to forty or forty-five per cent, Mr. Gould or his +associates made calls upon those who were under contracts to deliver +gold to make their margins good or else to produce the gold. These +demands created a panic, and the parties who had agreed to deliver gold +entered the market, and bidding against each other, they carried the +price beyond the point that Mr. Gould had contemplated. + + +XXXVI +AN HISTORIC SALE OF UNITED STATES BONDS IN ENGLAND + +If there should be any considerable interest in the history of the +funding system of the United States, the interest would be due to a +sale of bonds some thirty years ago and certain incidents which could +not have been anticipated, which arose from the execution of the trust. + +In the month of July, 1868, a bill for funding the national debt which +had passed the Senate of the United States was reported, without +amendments, to the House of Representatives by the Committee on Ways +and Means. + +When the bill was under consideration in the House, I proposed a +substitute. In the debate of July 21 I made a statement of the nature +of my substitute, and I reproduce an extract which sets forth the +first step in a policy which culminated in the Act for Funding the +Public Debt, and which was approved by President Grant July 14, 1870: + +"The amendment to which I wish to call the attention of the House +provides for the funding of $1,200,000,000 of the public debt +$400,000,000 payable in fifteen years @ 5 per cent interest, +$400,000,000 payable in twenty years @ 4½ per cent interest, and +$400,000,000 payable in twenty-five years @ 3.65 per cent interest, +the latter sum of $400,000,000 payable, principal and interest, at the +option of the takers, either in the United States, or in London, Paris, +or Frankfort." + +At that time I had not entertained the thought that I might come to be +the head of the Treasury Department. Indeed, I had no other purpose in +public life than to remain in the House of Representatives. + +I had had experience on the executive side of the Government and also +on the legislative side, and I had a fixed opinion in favor of the +latter form of service. + +As Secretary of the Treasury, I proposed a bill in 1869 in the line of +the substitute for the bill of the Committee on Ways and Means which I +had challenged in July, 1868. The bill proposed an issue of three +classes of bonds, each of four hundred million dollars, which were to +mature at different dates, and to bear interest at the rates of 5, 4½, +and 4 per cent. It was further provided that the principal and +interest of the bonds bearing the lowest rate should be made payable +either in the United States, or at Frankfort, Paris, or London, as the +takers might prefer. The provision was rejected through the influence +of General Schenck, who had then returned recently from Europe, and +with the opinion that the concession involved an impairment of national +honor. As a substitute for the feature so rejected, I originated a +plan for the issue of registered bonds, upon the condition that the +interest could be paid in checks to be forwarded by the mails to the +holders of bonds at the places designated by them in any part of the +world. This plan is far superior to the first suggestion, as it is +susceptible of a much wider application. + +I have received from Mr. Roberts, the Treasurer of the United States, +the following letter and statement: + +STATEMENT SHOWING THE PROPORTION OF UNITED STATES BONDS OUTSTANDING +JANUARY 25, 1900, ON WHICH INTEREST IS PAID BY CHECK. + +TITLE OF LOAN. Total issue. Registered Percentage + bonds on of bonds on + which interest which interest + is paid by is paid by + check. check. + +Funded loan of 1891 continued at 2 per cent + . . . . . . . . .$ 25,364,500 $ 25,364,500 100.00 +Four per cent funded loan of 1907 + . . . . . . . . . 545,342,950 478,195,600 87.69 +Five per cent loan of 1904 + . . . . . . . . . 95,009,700 64,615,650 68.01 +Four per cent loan of 1925 + . . . . . . . . . 162,315,400 117,997,200 72.70 +Three per cent ten-twenties of 1898 + . . . . . . . . . 168,679,000 109,450,060 55.09 + +Totals . . . . . . . . $996,711,550 $795,623,030 77.49 + +TREASURY DEPARTMENT. +OFFICE OF THE TREASURER, +WASHINGTON, D. C. +_January_ 25, 1900. + +HONORABLE GEORGE S. BOUTWELL, + Boston, Massachusetts. + +_My Dear Mr. Secretary:_ It gives me pleasure to enclose to you a +table showing by classes of bonds the percentage of interest paid by +checks. The interest on all registered bonds is now so paid. Only +the coupon bonds, by their nature, are differently treated. + +Your plan has worked admirably, and the drift is slowly from the coupon +to the registered form, and so to an increase of the payment of +interest by checks. + +With kind regards, Yours very truly, +(Signed) ELLIS H. ROBERTS, + _Treasurer of the United States._ + +The plan has been adopted by corporations that are borrowers of large +sums of money upon an issue of bonds, and the use of the system is +very general in the United States. + +In my report to Congress in December, 1869, I made recommendation of +the Funding Bill, and I placed copies of the bill that I had prepared +in the hands of the Finance Committee of the Senate, and in the hands +of the Committee of Ways and Means of the House of Representatives. + +When the bill became a law, the authorized issue of five per cent +bonds was limited to two hundred million dollars, and the issue of four +per cent was raised to twelve hundred million. Simultaneously with the +passage of the Funding Bill of July, 1870, the war between France and +Prussia opened, and the opportunity for negotiations was postponed +until the early months of the year 1871. In these later years, when +bonds of the United States have been sold upon the basis of their par +value at two per cent income, it is difficult to realize that in 1869 +the six per cent bonds of the United States were worth in gold only +83-5/10 cents to the dollar. The first attempt to dispose of the five +per cent bonds was made by the Treasury Department through an +invitation to the public to subscribe for the bonds, payment to be +made in the currency of the country, or by an exchange of outstanding +five-twenty bonds which bore interest at the rate of six per cent. +The subscriptions reached the sum of sixty-six million dollars, of +which the national banks were subscribers to the amount of sixty-four +million, leaving two million only as the loan to the general public. +A portion of the amount taken by the banks was for the account of +patrons and clients. This experience justified the opinion that future +efforts with the general public would be unsuccessful, while the credit +of the country was not established and placed beyond the influence of +cavilers and doubters. + +It was under such circumstances that the aid of banks and bankers +became important for the furtherance of subscriptions, in view of the +fact that they could give personal service of a nature not possible in +the case of salaried officers of the Government, nor compatible with +their daily duties. + +It is not easy, in this age of comparative freedom and power in +financial affairs, to comprehend that in the year 1871 the long +established bankers of New York, Amsterdam, and London, either declined +or neglected the opportunity to negotiate the five per cent coin bonds +of the United States upon the basis of their par value. It may not be +out of place for me to mention Mr. Morton, of the house of Morton, +Bliss & Co., as an exception, to the bankers of Europe and the United +States. + +It was in the same months of 1871 that I recommended the issue of a +four per cent fifty-year bond as the basis of the currency to be issued +by the national banks. This proposition, which would have been +advantageous to the banks, in an increasing ratio as the value of money +diminished, was defeated by the organized opposition of the banks +through an effective lobby that was assembled in the city of +Washington. Such was the public sentiment in the year 1871, even in +the presence of these important facts, that in the month of December +I was able to say in my annual report that the debt had been diminished +during the next preceding year in the sum of ninety-four million +dollars, and that the total decrease from March 1, 1869 to December 1, +1871, was over two hundred and seventy-seven million dollars. + +It was in this situation of affairs that Messrs. Jay Cooke & Co. +proposed to undertake the sale in London, by subscription, of one +hundred and thirty-four million five per cent bonds then unsold. +Authority was given to Cooke & Co. to proceed with the undertaking, +and when the books were closed, September 1, I was informed that the +loan had been taken in full. By the terms prescribed by Cooke & Co., +the subscribers deposited five per cent as security for the validity +of their subscriptions. The bonds were to be delivered the first day +of December. + +Upon the receipt of the information that the undertaking had been a +success, the bonds were prepared, and the Hon. William A. Richardson, +then an assistant secretary of the Treasury, was designated as the +agent of the department for the delivery of the bonds. The bonds were +placed in safes, on each of which there were three locks. The clerks +were sent over in different vessels, and the keys were so distributed +among them, that there were not keys in any one vessel by which any +one of the safes could be opened. + +The success of the subscription gave rise to an unexpected difficulty. + +At that time there were outstanding one hundred and ninety-four million +ten-forty United States bonds that carried interest at the rate of +five per cent. + +It was a singular coincidence, and a coincidence probably not due to +natural causes, that some five per cent bonds, having fifteen years to +run, should be at par, and that other five per cent bonds that might +run thirty years should fall below par in the same market. In the +three months from August to December, these ten-forties were quoted +as low as ninety-seven, or even for a time at ninety-six. Cooke became +anxious, if not alarmed, lest the rate should fall below ninety-five, +and consequently lest the subscribers should refuse to meet their +obligations. Early on the morning of the first Monday in December, I +received the information that the bonds were taken as soon as the +offices were open. I may mention in passing that Cooke & Co. paid for +the bonds as they were delivered, either in coin or in five-twenty +bonds. + +As bonds were taken, and as payments were made, a difficulty appeared +which had been anticipated, but not in its fullness. The proceeds from +the sales of the five per cent bonds were pledged to the redemption of +the six per cent five-twenty bonds, reckoned at their par value. + +It was provided by the statute that whenever five-twenty bonds were +called, a notice of ninety days should be given, when interest would +cease. Thus it happened that whenever a bond was called it was worth +par and interest to the end of the ninety days. Of the called bonds +some were in America, and the owners did not choose to present them in +London in exchange for five per cent bonds, nor for coin. Hence it +happened that the total proceeds of the five per cent bonds, about +twenty million dollars were paid in gold coin by Cooke & Co. This +coin was deposited in the Bank of England, but upon such terms as +were imposed by the governors: + +(1) The deposits must be made in the name of William A. Richardson. +This was done, but a statement was made by Judge Richardson that the +deposit was the property of the United States. + +(2) The gold was not to be taken out of the country. This stipulation +was in the line of our policy, which was to invest the entire sum in +five-twenty bonds, whenever they could be bought at par. The +opportunity came in a manner that was not anticipated. The documents +referred to are of historical value, and they are therefore inserted +as follows: + +_(a)_ A declaration of trust by William A. Richardson, Assistant +Secretary of the Treasury, dated at London, December 28, 1871. + +_(b)_ Letter of William A. Richardson, Assistant Secretary of the +Treasury, to John P. Bigelow, Chief of the Loan Division of the +Treasury, dated also at London, December 28, 1871. + +_(c)_ Letter of George Forbes, Chief Cashier of the Bank of England, +to Judge Richardson, dated January 4, 1872. + +_(d)_ Letter of Judge Richardson to George Lyall, Governor of the +Bank of England, dated January 15, 1872. + +_(e)_ Reply to the same by George Forbes, Chief Cashier, dated +January 17, 1872. + +_(f)_ William A. Richardson's report of January 25, 1872. + + +_(a)_ DECLARATION BY WILLIAM A. RICHARDSON + +Whereas, I have this day deposited in my name, as Assistant Secretary +of the Treasury, U. S. A., in the Bank of England, two million five +hundred and fifty thousand pounds sterling, and shall probably +hereafter make further deposits on the same account: + +Now I hereby declare that said amount and deposits, present and future, +are official and belong to the Government of the United States, and not +to me personally that the moneys so deposited are the proceeds of the +sale of five per cent bonds of the "Funded Loan"; that whatever money +I may at any time have in said Bank under said account, will be the +property of the United States Government, held by me officially as +Assistant Secretary of the Treasury, acting under orders from the +Secretary; that the same is, and will continue to be subject to the +draft, order, and control of the Secretary of the Treasury, +independently of, and superior to my authority, whenever he so elects, +and that upon his assuming control thereof, my power over the same +will wholly cease. In case of my decease before said account is +closed, the money on deposit will not belong to my estate, but to the +Government of the United States. + +Witness my hand and seal, +(Signed) WILLIAM A. RICHARDSON, +_Assistant Secretary of the Treasury, U. S. A._ +LONDON, ENGLAND, _December_ 28, 1871. + +_Witnesses:_ +JNO. P. BIGELOW, E. W. BOWEN, GEO. L. WARREN. + + +_(b)_ JUDGE RICHARDSON TO JOHN P. BIGELOW + +41 LOMBARD ST., LONDON, ENGLAND, + _December_ 28, 1871. + +_To_ JOHN P. BIGELOW, _Chief of the Loan Division, Secretary's Office, +Treasury Department, U. S. A._ + +I have this day deposited in the Bank of England, in my name as +Assistant Secretary of the Treasury, two million five hundred and fifty +thousand pounds sterling money, belonging to the United States, +received in payment of five per cent bonds of the Funded Loan delivered +here in London. + +All money hereafter received for future delivery of bonds will be +deposited to the same account. + +Herewith I hand you a declaration of trust signed by me declaring that +said account and moneys belong to the United States, and not to me +personally, also the Deposit Book and a book of blank checks numbered +from 35,101 to 35,150, both inclusive, received from said Bank, all of +which you will take into your custody and carefully keep in one of the +iron safes sent here from the department in the same manner as the +books are kept. + +This money, and all the money deposited in said bank on the account +aforesaid, will be drawn and used only in accordance with the orders of +the Secretary of the Treasury to redeem or purchase five-twenty bonds +and matured coupons, or such other and further orders as he may make +in relation thereto. + +When money is to be drawn to pay for bonds or coupons, it must be drawn +only by filling up a check from the book of checks above referred to, +and you will open an account in which you will enter the amount of all +deposits, the number and amount of each check drawn, specifying also to +whom the same is made payable and on what account it is drawn. + +The checks will be filled up by Mr. Prentiss of the Register's Office, +who will place his check mark on the upper left corner, and will enter +the same in the book. You will then carefully examine the check, see +that it is correctly drawn for the amount actually payable for bonds or +coupons received and properly recorded, and you will, when found +correct, place your check mark on the right hand upper corner before +the same is signed by me. All checks will be signed by me with my +full name as Assistant Secretary of the Treasury, as this is signed. + +(Signed) WILLIAM A. RICHARDSON, + _Assistant Secretary of the Treasury, U. S. A._ + + +_(c)_ MR. FORBES TO JUDGE RICHARDSON + +BANK OF ENGLAND, E. C., + _January_ 4, 1872. + +HON. W. A. RICHARDSON, _Assistant Secretary of the Treasury of the + United States_, 41, _Lombard Street_. + +_Sir:_ To preclude any possible misunderstanding hereafter as to the +character of the drawing account opened in your name, I am instructed +by the Governors to communicate to you in writing that, in conformity +with the rule of the Bank, the account is considered a personal one; +that the Governors have admitted the words appended to your name merely +as an honorary designation; and the bank take no cognizance of, or +responsibility with reference to the real ownership, or intended +application of the sums deposited to the credit of the account. + +I am, sir, + Your obedient servant, +(Signed) GEORGE FORBES, + _Chief Cashier_. + + +_(d)_ JUDGE RICHARDSON TO MR. LYALL + +41 LOMBARD STREET, LONDON, ENGLAND, + _January_ 15, 1872. + +GEORGE LYALL, ESQ., + _Governor of the Bank of England._ + +_Dear Sir:_ Referring to the several conversations which I have had +with you, and with your principal cashier, Mr. Forbes, relative to the +manner and form of keeping the account which I desire to have in the +bank, I beg leave to renew in writing my request heretofore made +orally, that the account of money deposited by me may stand in the +name of Hon. George S. Boutwell, Secretary of the Treasury, U. S. A., +and myself, Assistant Secretary, jointly and severally, so as to be +subject to a several draft of either, and of the survivor, in the +case of death of either one. + +I suppose I must regard the letter of Mr. Forbes to me, dated January +4, 1872, and written under instructions from the Governors of the Bank +as expressing your final conclusion that the account in whatever form +it may be kept, must be considered a personal one. + +You know my anxiety to have by deposits received by the Bank, and +entered in such way that in case of my death the balance may be drawn +at once by the Secretary of the Treasury or some other officer of the +Government, and although you are unwilling to regard the account as an +official one, I hope that on further consideration you will allow it +to be opened in the name of Mr. Boutwell and myself jointly and +severally as above stated. I am, sir, + Your obedient servant, +(Signed) WILLIAM A. RICHARDSON, +_Assistant Secretary of the United States Treasury Department._ + + +_(e)_ MR. FORBES TO JUDGE RICHARDSON + +BANK OF ENGLAND, E. C. + _January_ 17, 1872. + +HON. W. A. RICHARDSON, + _Assistant Secretary of the Treasury + of the United States_, 41, _Lombard St._ +_Sir:_ I am directed by the Governor to acknowledge the receipt of +your letter of the 15th inst., requesting that the account of money +deposited by you in the Bank may stand in the name of the Hon. George +S. Boutwell, Secretary of the Treasury, U. S. A., and yourself, the +Assistant Secretary, jointly and severally, so as to be subject to +the several draft of either, and of the survivor in case of death of +either one. + +I am to inform you that the Bank is prepared to open an account in this +form, as a personal account; but it is essential that Mr. Boutwell +should join in the request and concur in the conditions proposed before +each party can in that case draw upon the account. I am, sir, + Your obedient servant, +(Signed) GEORGE FORBES, + _Chief Cashier._ + + +_(f)_ JUDGE RICHARDSON'S REPORT + +41, LOMBARD STREET, LONDON, + _January_ 25, 1872. + +HON. GEORGE S. BOUTWELL, + _Secretary of the Treasury._ + +_Dear Sir:_ It is my purpose in this letter to give you an account of +the way in which I have kept the money arising from the sale of the +Funded Loan, and the manner in which it has been drawn from time to +time to pay for bonds purchased and redeemed. + +Immediately after the first of December, 1871, the money began to +accumulate very rapidly. Up to the first of December no money whatever +had been received, all bonds delivered having been paid for by the +called bonds and coupons or secured by deposit of other bonds; but on +the second day of that month nearly two and a half millions of dollars +cash were paid to me; then on the fourth, nearly five millions of +dollars more; and on the fifth, above three millions, and so on in +different sums till the present time. + +Of course it was wholly impracticable to receive, handle, count and +keep on hand such large amounts of gold coin, weighing between a ton +and three quarters and two tons to each million of dollars. At one +time my account showed more than sixteen millions of dollars on hand, +and to have withdrawn from circulation that amount of coin would have +produced a panic in the London market; and the risk in having it +hoarded in any place within my reach would have been immense, +especially as it would have soon been known where it was. + +I ascertained that there would be some difficulty in keeping an +official Government account in the Bank of England, and I did not feel +authorized, or justified in my own judgment, in entrusting so much +money to any other banking institution in this city. I found, also, +that the Bank of England never issues certificates of deposit, as do +our banks in the United States. But it issues "post notes," which are +very nearly like its ordinary demand notes, but _payable to order,_ and +on seven days' time, thus differing only in the matter of time from +certificates of deposit. Availing myself of this custom of the Bank +of England, I put all the money into post notes, and locked them up in +one of the safes from which the bonds had been taken. This I regarded +as a safe method of keeping the funds, and I anticipated no further +difficulty. + +But when the Bank made its next monthly or weekly return of its +condition, and published it in all of the newspapers as usual, the +attention of all the financial agents, bankers, and financial writers +of the daily money articles in the journals was immediately attracted +to the sudden increase of the "post notes" outstanding, and the +unusually large amount of them, so many times greater than had ever +been known before. They were immensely alarmed lest the notes should +come in for redemption in a few days, and the coin therefor should be +withdrawn from London and taken to a foreign country; and lest there +should be a panic on account thereof. Some of the financial writers +said they belonged to Germany, and that they represented coin which +must soon be transmitted to Berlin. The Bank officers themselves, +although they knew very well that these notes belonged to the United +States, were not less alarmed because they feared that I would +withdraw the money to send it to New York, which they knew would make +trouble in the London Exchange. Money, which for a short time before +had been at the high rate of interest, for this place, of five per +cent, had become abundant, and the people were demanding of the Bank +a reduction in the rate; but so timid were they about these post +notes that they did not change the rate until I took measures to +allay their fears. This I did because I thought it would be injurious +and prejudicial to the Funded Loan to have a panic in London, in which +the market price of the new loan would drop considerably below par +just at a time when its price and popularity were gradually rising, +and just as it was coming into great favor with a new class of +investors in England, the immensely rich but timid conservatives. + +I determined to open a deposit account with the Bank of England, and in +doing so experienced the difficulties which I anticipated. I assured +the officers that the money was Government (U. S.) money, which I did +not intend, and was not instructed to take home with me; but which I +should use in London in redeeming bonds and coupons, and should leave +in the bank on deposit unless by the peculiarity of their rules, I +should be obliged to withdraw it. They objected to taking the money +as a Government deposit, or as an official deposit in my name, having +some vague idea that if they took it and opened an official Government +account they should be liable for the appropriation of the money unless +documents from the United States were filed with them taking away +that liability, but they could not tell me exactly what documents +they wanted nor from whom they must come. They did, however, agree to +open an account with me, and that was the best I could do. In signing +my name to their book, I added my official title, and when, some time +after, I came to drawing checks, I signed in the same way. This +brought from the officers a letter which I annex hereto, saying that +my deposit would be regarded as a private and personal one. + +What I was most anxious to provide for was the power in some United +States officer to draw the money in case of my death (knowing the +uncertainty of life), without the delay, expense, and trouble which +must necessarily arise, if it stood wholly to my personal credit. I +asked the officers to allow it to stand in your name as Secretary and +mine as Assistant Secretary, jointly and severally, so as to be drawn +upon the several check of either, and by the survivor in case of the +death of either one. I suggested other arrangements which would have +had the same result, but they said their rules prevented their +agreeing to my requests, that they were conservative and did not like +to introduce anything new into their customs. + +On the 15th day of January, 1872, I renewed my request in writing, +after having had several conversations with the officers on the +subject, and received an answer which, with the letter of request, is +hereto annexed. + +In this, their most recent communication, they express a willingness +to enter the account in our joint names as I suggested, regarding it, +however, as a "personal account" and requiring that you should "join +in the request and concur in the conditions proposed before either +party can in that case draw upon the account." + +As I must now almost daily draw from the account for money with which +to pay bonds, I cannot join your name therein until you have sent me +a written compliance with the conditions which they set forth, because +to do so would shut me out from the account altogether for several +weeks. + +Besides, having no instruction from you on the subject, I don't know +that you would care to give written directions as to the deposit. I +know very well that, in case of my sudden decease, you would be glad +enough to find that you could at once avail yourself of the whole +amount of money here on deposit, and so I should have joined your name +as I have stated. Now you can do as you please. I have taken every +possible precaution within my power, and have no fear that the +arrangements are insufficient to protect the Government in any +contingency whatever. With the correspondence which has passed between +the officers of the Bank and myself, and our conversation together, the +account is sufficiently well known to them as a U. S. Government +deposit, and is fully enough stamped with that character, as I intended +it should be, however much they may ignore it now. + +But for still greater caution, I made the written declaration of trust +on the very day of the first deposit, signed and sealed by me, +declaring the money and account as belonging to our Government, and not +to me, a copy of which is hereto annexed. + +I also gave written instruction to Messrs. Bigelow and Prentiss to +draw all the checks, and how to draw them and keep an account thereof. +As I make all my purchases through Jay Cooke, McCullough & Co., every +check is in fact payable to that house, so that the account is easily +kept, and the transactions cannot be mingled with others, for there +are no others. I annex a copy of these instructions. + +This, I believe, will give you a pretty correct idea of the +difficulties which have been presented to me in the matter of taking, +keeping, and paying out the money arising from the sale of the bonds, +and the manner in which I have met them. + +I may add that when the officers of the Bank were satisfied that I was +not to withdraw the money and take it to New York, they reduced the +rate of interest and there has been an easy market ever since. + +There are now on deposit more than twelve million dollars; but I hope +it will be reduced very fast next month. Had you not sent over the +last ten million of bonds, we should have been able to close up very +soon. I hope now that you will make another call of twenty million at +least, because I think it would enable us to purchase more rapidly. + +I annex: +(1) Copy of declaration of trust. +(2) Copy of instructions for drawing checks. +(3) Copy of letter from Cashier of Bank of England, stating that the +account would be considered personal. +(4) Copy of my letter to the Governor of the Bank, asking that your +name might be joined. +(5) Copy of reply to last mentioned letter. + +I am, very respectfully, + Your obedient servant, +(Signed) WILLIAM A. RICHARDSON. + + +When Cooke & Co. had completed their undertaking, the deposits in the +Bank of England exceeded fifteen million dollars, and for three months +they were for the most part unavailable, as the five-twenty bonds which +had not matured under the calls that had been made were above par in +the market. It was a condition of the loan that the five-twenty bonds +redeemed should equal the 5 per cent bonds that had been issued, both +issued to be reckoned at their par value. + +In the month of April, 1872, the Commissioners who had been designated +under the Treaty of Washington of 1871 to ascertain and determine the +character and magnitude of the claims that had been preferred by the +United States against Great Britain, growing out of the depredations +committed by the "Alabama" and her associate cruisers, were about to +meet at Geneva for the discharge of their duties. + +The administration had appointed the Hon. J. C. Bancroft Davis, the +most accomplished diplomatist of the country, as the agent of the +United States, and the preparation of "the Case of the United States" +was placed in his hands. + +The British Ministry discovered--or they fancied that there was +concealed in covert language--a claim for damages, known as +"consequential or indirect damages"--in other words, a claim to +compensation for the value of American shipping that had been driven +from the ocean and made worthless through fear of the cruisers that had +been fitted out in British ports. + +This claim, in the extreme form in which it had been presented by Mr. +Sumner, had been relinquished by the Administration, and a present +reading of "the Case of the United States" may not justify the +construction that was put upon it by the British Ministry. + +Nevertheless, the Administration received notice that Great Britain +would not be represented at the Geneva Conference. + +The subject was considered by the President and Cabinet on three +consecutive days at called sessions. At the final meeting I handed +a memorandum to the President, which he passed to the Secretary of +State. The memorandum was not read to the Cabinet. + +Mr. Adams, the Commissioner for the United States, had not then left +the country. By a despatch from the Secretary of State Mr. Adams +was asked to meet me at the Parker House in Boston, on the second day +after the day of the date of the despatch. + +What occurred at the meeting may be best given through an extract from +the diary of Mr. Adams, which has been placed in my hands by Mr. +Charles Francis Adams, Jr., with the privilege of its full and free +use by me. + +The first entry is under date of Saturday, April 20, 1872, and is in +these words: "Charles brought me a telegram from Governor Fish, +desiring me to meet Mr. Boutwell, who will be at the Parker House +at eleven o'clock on Monday." The second entry is under date of +"Monday, 22d of April." + +"At eleven o'clock called on Mr. Boutwell, the Secretary of the +Treasury, at Parker's Hotel, according to agreement. Found him +alone in his minute bedroom. He soon opened his subject--handed over +to me a packet from Governor Fish, and said that it was the desire of +the Government, it I could find it consistent with what they +understood to be my views of the question of indirect damages, that I +would make such intimation of them to persons of authority in London +as might relieve them of the difficulty which had been occasioned by +them. I told them of my conversation held with the Marquis of Ripon, +in which I had assumed the heavy responsibility of assuring him that +the Government would not press them. I was glad now to find that I +had not been mistaken. I should cheerfully do all in my power to +confirm the impressions consistently with my own position." + +Thus, through Mr. Adams, the claim for "indirect damages" was +relinquished. When the fact of the disturbed relations between the +United States and Great Britain became public there was a panic in +the London stock market, and in the brief period of eight and forty +hours our deposit of twelve million or more in the Bank of England was +converted into five-twenty United States 6 per cent bonds, purchased +at par. + +In my annual report for December, 1872, I was able to make this statement: + +"Since my last annual report the business of negotiating two hundred +million of 5 per cent bonds, and the redemption of two hundred million +6 per cent five-twenty bonds has been completed and the accounts have +been settled by the accounting officers of the Treasury. + +"Further negotiations of 5 per cent bonds can now be made on the basis +of the former negotiation." + + +XXXVII +GENERAL GRANT'S ADMINISTRATION + +The greatness of General Grant in war, in civil affairs, and in +personal qualities which at once excite our admiration and deserve our +commendation, was not fully appreciated by the generation to which he +belonged, nor can it be appreciated by the generations that can know +of him only as his life and character may appear upon the written +record. He had weaknesses, and of some of them I may speak; but they +do not qualify in any essential manner his claim to greatness in the +particulars named. He was not fortunate in the circumstances incident +to the appointment of his Cabinet. The appointment of Mr. Washburne +as Secretary of State for the brief period of one or two weeks was not +a wise opening of the administration, if the arrangement was designed, +and was a misfortune, if the brief term was due to events not +anticipated. The selection of Mr. Fish compensated, and more than +compensated, for the errors which preceded his appointment. The +country can never expect an administration of the affairs of the +Department of State more worthy of approval and eulogy than the +administration of Mr. Fish. Apparently we were then on the verge of +war with Great Britain, and demands were made in very responsible +quarters which offered no alternative but war. The treaty of 1871, +which was the outcome of Mr. Fish's diplomacy, re-established our +relations of friendship with Great Britain, and the treaty was then +accepted as a step in the direction of general peace. + +In the month of February, 1869, I received an invitation from General +Grant to call upon him on an evening named and at an hour specified. +At the interview General Grant asked me to take the office of Secretary +of the Interior. As reasons for declining the place, I said that my +duties and position in the House were agreeable to me and that my +services there might be as valuable to the Administration as my +services in the Cabinet. General Grant then said that he intended to +give a place to Massachusetts, and it might be the Secretary of the +Interior or the Attorney-Generalship. He then asked for my advice as +to persons, and said that if he named an Attorney-General from +Massachusetts, he had in mind Governor Clifford, whom he had met. +Governor Clifford was my personal friend, he had been the Attorney- +General of the State during my term as Governor, he was a gentleman of +great urbanity of manner, a well-equipped lawyer, and as an advocate he +had secured and maintained a good standing in the profession and through +many years. He had come into the Republican Party from the Webster +wing of the Whig Party. To me he was a conservative, and I was +apprehensive that his views upon questions arising, or that might +arise, from our plan of reconstruction might not be in harmony with the +policy of the party. Upon this ground, which I stated to General +Grant, I advised against his appointment. I named Judge Hoar for +Attorney-General and Governor Claflin for the Interior Department. I +wrote the full address of Judge Hoar upon a card, which I gave to +General Grant. Judge Hoar was nominated and confirmed. + +At the same time, Alexander T. Stewart, of New York, was nominated +and confirmed as Secretary of the Treasury. It was soon discovered +that Mr. Stewart, being an importer, was ineligible for the office. +Mr. Conkling said there were nine statutes in his way. A more +effectual bar was in the reason on which the statutes rested, namely, +that no man should be put in a situation to be a judge in his own +cause. The President made a vain effort to secure legislation for the +removal of the bar. Next, Judge Hilton, then Mr. Stewart's attorney, +submitted a deed of trust by which Mr. Stewart relinquished his +interest in the business during his term of office. The President +submitted that paper to Chief Justice Cartter of the Supreme Court of +the District of Columbia. The Chief Justice gave a brief, adverse, +oral opinion, and in language not quotable upon a printed page. + +We have no means of forming an opinion of Mr. Stewart's capacity for +administrative work, and I do not indulge in any conjectures. His +nomination was acceptable to the leading business interests of the +country, and in the city of New York it was supported generally. He +was a successful man of business and an accumulator of wealth, and at +that time General Grant placed a high estimate upon the presence of +talents by which men acquire wealth. + +Following these events, there were early indications that Mr. Stewart's +interest in the President had been diminished, and gradually he took +on a dislike to me. When I knew of his nomination, or when I knew it +was to be made, I met him in Washington and assured him of my +disposition to give my support to his administration. On two occasions +when I was in New York I made calls of civility upon him, but, as he +made no recognition in return, my efforts in that direction came to an +end. + +At a dinner given by merchants and bankers in the early part of +September, 1869, at which I was a guest, Mr. Stewart made a speech in +which he criticized my administration of the Treasury. In the canvass +of 1872 the rumor went abroad that Mr. Stewart had given $25,000 to +the Greeley campaign fund. In the month of October of that year, the +twenty-eighth day, perhaps, I spoke at the Cooper Union. Upon my +arrival in New York, I received a call from a friend who came with a +message from Mr. Stewart. Mr. Stewart would not be at the meeting, +although except for the false rumor in regard to his subscription to +the Greeley fund, he should have taken pleasure in being present. As +General Grant was to be elected, his attendance at the meeting might +be treated by the public as an attempt to curry favor with General +Grant and the incoming Administration. + +As I was passing to the hall, a paper was placed into my hands by a +person who gave no other means of recognizing his presence. When I +reached the hall and opened the paper, I found that it was a summons +to appear as a defendant in an action brought by a man named Galvin, +who claimed damages in the sum of $3,000,000. At the close of the +meeting and when the fact became known one gentleman said to me: "I +do not see how you could have spoken after such a summons." + +I said in reply: "If the suit had been for $3,000 only, it might have +given me some uneasiness, as a recovery would have involved payment. +A judgment of $3,000,000 implies impossibility of payment." + +I had no knowledge of Galvin, but his letters of advice were found on +the files of the Treasury. Even after the suit, I did not examine them +for the purpose of forming an opinion of their value or want of value. +Galvin alleged in his declaration that he had furnished the financial +policy that I had adopted, that it had benefitted the country to the +amount of $300,000,000 and more, and that a claim of $3,000,000 was a +moderate claim. Under the statute, the Department of Justice assumed +the defence. The case lingered, Galvin died, and the case followed. + +At the election of 1872, I voted at Groton in the morning, and in the +afternoon I went to New York, to find that General Grant had been +re-elected by a sufficient majority. On the morning of the next day, I +left the hotel with time for a call upon General Dix, who had been +elected Governor, and for a call upon Thurlow Weed. General Dix was +not at home. Notwithstanding the criticisms of Thurlow Weed as a +manager of political affairs in the State of New York and in the +country, I had reasons for regarding him with favor, although I had +never favored the aspirations of Mr. Seward, his chief. When I was +organizing the Internal Revenue Office in 1862-1863, Mr. Weed gave me +information in regard to candidates for office in the State of New +York, including their relations to the factions that existed--usually +Seward and anti-Seward--and with as much fairness as he could have +commanded if he had had no relation to either faction. + +As I had time remaining at the end of my call upon Mr. Weed, and as I +had in mind Mr. Stewart's message at the Cooper Union meeting, I drove +to his down-town store, where I found him. He received me with +cordiality, but in respect to his health he seemed to be already a +doomed man. He was anxious chiefly to give me an opportunity to +comprehend the nature and magnitude of his business. As I was about +to leave, he took hold of my coat button and said: "When you see the +President, you give my love to him, and say to him that I am for him +and that I always have been for him." Still holding me by the button, +he said: "Who buys the carpets for the Treasury?" + +I said: "Mr. Saville is the chief clerk, and he buys the carpets." + +Mr. Stewart said: "Tell him to come to me; I will sell him carpets +as cheap as anybody." + +When I repeated Mr. Stewart's message to the President he made no +reply, and he gave no indication that he was hearing what I was saying. + +In regard to Judge Hoar's relations to President Grant, the public has +been invited to accept several errors, the appointment to the bench of +the Supreme Court of Justices Bradley and Strong, by whose votes the +first decision of the court in the Legal Tender cases was overruled, +and the circumstances which led to the retirement of Judge Hoar from +the Cabinet. First of all I may say that President Grant was attached +to Judge Hoar, and, as far as I know, his attachment never underwent +any abatement. Whatever bond there may be in the smoking habit, it +was formed without delay at the beginning of their acquaintance. While +General Grant was not a teller of stories, he enjoyed listening to good +ones, and of these Judge Hoar had a large stock always at command. +General Grant enjoyed the society of intellectual men, and Judge Hoar +was far up in that class. General Grant had regrets for the retirement +of Judge Hoar from his Cabinet, and for the circumstances which led to +his retirement. His appointment of Judge Hoar upon the Joint High +Commission and the nomination of Judge Hoar to a seat upon the bench of +the Supreme Court may be accepted as evidence of General Grant's +continuing friendship, and of his disposition to recognize it, +notwithstanding the break in official relations. + +Judge Hoar's professional life had been passed in Massachusetts, and +he had no personal acquaintance with the lawyers of the circuit from +which Justices Strong and Bradley were appointed. Strong and Bradley +were at the head of the profession in the States of New Jersey and +Pennsylvania, and in truth there was no debate as to the fitness of +their appointment. Judge Hoar was not responsible for their +appointment, and I am of the opinion that the nomination would have +been made even against his advice, which assuredly was not so given. +Judge Strong, as Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, +had sustained the constitutionality of the Legal Tender Act, and it +was understood that Bradley was of the same opinion. As the President +and Cabinet were of a like opinion, it may be said that there could +have been no "packing" of the Supreme Court except by the exclusion +of the two most prominent lawyers in the circuit and the appointment +of men whose opinions upon a vital question were not in harmony with +the opinion of the person making the appointment. + +As to myself, I had never accepted the original decision as sound law +under the Constitution, nor as a wise public policy, if there had +been no Constitution. By the decision the Government was shorn of a +part of its financial means of defence in an exigency. When the +Supreme Court had reached a conclusion, Chief Justice Chase called +upon me and informed me of that fact, about two weeks in advance of +the delivery of the opinion. He gave as a reason his apprehension of +serious financial difficulties due to a demand for gold by the +creditor class. Not sharing in that apprehension, I said: "The +business men are all debtors as well as creditors, and they cannot +engage in a struggle over gold payments, and the small class of +creditors who are not also debtors will not venture upon a policy in +which they must suffer ultimately." The decision did not cause a +ripple in the finances of the country. + +Pursuing the conversation, I asked the Chief Justice where he found +authority in the Constitution for the issue of non-legal-tender +currency. He answered in the power to borrow money and in the power +given to Congress to provide for the "general welfare of the United +States." I then said, having in mind the opinion in the case of +MacCulloch and Maryland, in which the court held that where a power +was given to Congress, its exercise was a matter of discretion unless +a limitation could be found in the Constitution: "Where do you find +a limitation to the power to borrow money by any means that to Congress +may appear wise?" The Chief Justice was unable to specify a +limitation, and the question remains unanswered to this day. + +When the case of Hepburn and Griswold was overruled in the Legal Tender +cases, the Chief Justice was very much disturbed, and with the +exhibition of considerable feeling, he said: "Why did you consent to +the appointment of judges to overrule me?" I assured him that there +was no personal feeling on the part of the President, and that as to +my own unimportant part in the business, he had known from the time of +our interview in regard to the former action of the court that I +entertained the opinion that the decision operated as a limitation of +the constitutional powers of Congress and that its full and final +recognition might prove injurious to the country whenever all its +resources should be required. At the time of the reversal, the Chief +Justice did not conceal his dissatisfaction with his life and labors +on the bench, and at the interview last mentioned he said that he +should be glad to exchange positions with me, if it were possible to +make the exchange. + +Various reasons have been assigned for the step which was taken by +President Grant in asking Judge Hoar to retire from the Cabinet. Some +have assumed that the President was no longer willing to tolerate the +presence of two members from the same State. That consideration had +been passed upon by the President at the outset, and he had overruled +it or set it aside. In my interview with Mr. Washburne the Sunday +before my nomination, I had said to him that Judge Hoar and I were not +only from the same State, but that we were residents of the same +county, and within twenty miles of each other. Moreover, any public +dissatisfaction which had existed at the beginning had disappeared. +In the meantime the President had become attached to Judge Hoar. Nor +is there any justifying foundation for the conjecture that a vacancy +was created for the purpose of giving a place in the Cabinet to another +person, or to another section of the country. General Grant's +attachment to his friends was near to a weakness, and the suggestion +that he sacrificed Judge Hoar to the low purpose of giving a place to +some other person is far away from any true view of his character. + +Judge Hoar had had no administrative experience on the political side +of the government, and he underestimated the claims, and he undervalued +the rights, of members of Congress. As individuals the members of +Congress are of the Government, and in a final test the two Houses may +become the Government. More than elsewhere the seat of power is in the +Senate, and the Senate and Senators are careful to exact a recognition +of their rights. They claim, what from the beginning they have +enjoyed, the right to be heard by the President and the heads of +departments in their respective States. They do not claim to speak +authoritatively, but as members of the Government having a right to +advise, and under a certain responsibility to the people for what may +be done. + +It was claimed by Senators that the Attorney-General seemed not to +admit their right to speak in regard to appointments, and that +appointments were made of which they had no knowledge, and of which +neither they nor their constituents could approve. These differences +reached a crisis when Senators (I use the word in the plural) notified +the President that they should not visit the Department of Justice +while Judge Hoar was Attorney-General. Thus was a disagreeable +alternative presented to the President, and a first impression would +lead to the conclusion that he ought to have sustained the Attorney- +General. Assuming that the complaints were well founded, it followed +that the Attorney-General was denying to Senators the consideration +which the President himself was recognizing daily. + +President Grant looked upon members of his Cabinet as his family for +the management of civil affairs, as he had looked upon his staff as +his military family for the conduct of the army, and he regarded a +recommendation for a Cabinet appointment as an interference. His +first Cabinet was organized upon that theory somewhat modified by a +reference to locality. Mr. Borie who became Secretary of the Navy +was a most excellent man, but he had had no preparation either by +training or experience for the duties of a department. Of this he +was quite conscious, and he never attempted to conceal the fact. He +often said: + +"The department is managed by Admiral Porter, I am only a figure-head." + +In a few months he resigned. His associates were much attached to him. +He was a benevolent, genial, well informed man. His successor, Mr. +Robeson, was a man of singular ability, lacking only the habit of +careful, continuous industry. This failing contributed to his +misfortunes in administration and consequently he was the subject of +many attacks in the newspapers and in Congress. After his retirement +he became a member of the House of Representatives, and it was a +noticeable fact, that from that day the attacks in Congress ceased. +As a debater he was well equipped, and in reference to his +administration of the Navy Department, he was always prepared with an +answer or an explanation in every exigency. + +The appointment of Governor Fish to the Department of State, gave rise +to considerable adverse comment. The chief grounds of complaint were +that he was no longer young and that recently he had not been active +in political contests. He had been a Whig when there was a Whig Party, +and he became a Republican when the Republican Party was formed. As a +Whig he had been a member of the House of Representatives and of the +Senate of the United States, but he had not held office as a +Republican, nor was he known generally as a speaker or writer in +support of the policies or principles of the party. His age, then +about sixty, was urged as a reason against his appointment. His +selection as Secretary was extremely fortunate for General Grant and +his administration. Governor Fish was painstaking in his office, +exacting in his demands upon subordinates, without being harsh or +unjust, diligent in his duties, and fully informed as to the traditions +and usages of his department. Beyond these administrative qualities +he had the capacity to place every question of a diplomatic character +upon a foundation at once reasonable and legal. If the failure of Mr. +Stewart led to the appointment of Governor Fish the change was +fortunate for General Grant and the country. After the failure of Mr. +Stewart, Mr. Washburne spoke of his appointment to the State +Department, as only temporary, but for a few days he acted as though +he expected to remain permanently. If his transfer to France was an +afterthought, he and the President very carefully concealed that fact. +It is not probable that the President at the outset designed to take +the Secretary of State and the Secretary of the Treasury from New York +City. Hence I infer that the failure of Mr. Stewart worked a change +in the headship of the State Department, and hence I am of the opinion +that the failure of Mr. Stewart was of great advantage to the +administration and to the country, and that without considering whether +there was a gain or loss in the Treasury Department. There can be no +doubt that Governor Fish was a much wiser man than Mr. Washburne for +the management of foreign affairs and there can be as little doubt that +Mr. Washburne could not have been excelled as Minister to Paris in the +troublous period of the years 1870 and 1871. + +Mr. Fish had no ambitions beyond the proper and successful +administration of his own department. He did not aspire to the +Presidency, and he remained in the State Department during General +Grant's second term, at the special request of the President. + +Mr. Sumner's removal from the chairmanship of the Committee on Foreign +Relations was due to the fact that a time came when he did not +recognize the President, and when he declined to have any intercourse +with the Secretary of State outside of official business. Such a +condition of affairs is always a hindrance in the way of good +government, and it may become an obstacle to success. Good government +can be secured only through conferences with those who are responsible, +by conciliation, and not infrequently by concessions to the holders of +adverse opinions. The time came when such a condition was no longer +possible between Mr. Sumner and the Secretary of State. + +The President and his Cabinet were in accord in regard to the +controversy with Great Britain as to the Alabama Claims. Mr. Sumner +advocated a more exacting policy. Mr. Motley appeared to be following +Mr. Sumner's lead, and the opposition to Mr. Sumner extended to Mr. +Motley. It had happened that the President had taken on a prejudice +to Mr. Motley at their first interview. This I learned when I said +something to the President in the line of conciliation. The President +said: "Such was my impression of Motley when I saw him that I should +have withheld his appointment if I had not made a promise to Sumner." +My acquaintance with Mr. Motley began in the year 1849, when we were +members of the Massachusetts House of Representatives, and I had a +high regard for him, although it had been charged that I had had some +part in driving him from politics into literature. + +When we consider the natures and the training of the two men, it is +not easy to imagine agreeable co-operation in public affairs by Mr. +Sumner and General Grant. Mr. Sumner never believed in General Grant's +fitness for the office of President, and General Grant did not +recognize in Mr. Sumner a wise and safe leader in the business of +government. General Grant's notion of Mr. Sumner, on one side of his +character, may be inferred from his answer when, being asked if he +had heard Mr. Sumner converse, he said: "No, but I have heard him +lecture." + +As I am to speak of Mr. Sumner in our personal relations, which for +thirteen years before his death were intimate, I shall use some words +of preface. Never on more than two occasions did we have differences +that caused any feeling on either side. Mr. Sumner was chairman in the +Senate of the Committee on the Freedmen's Bureau, and Mr. Eliot was +chairman of the Committee of the House. A report was made in each +House, and each bill contained not less than twenty sections. Each +House passed its own bill. A committee of conference was appointed. +Its report was rejected. I was appointed a member of the second +committee. + +I examined the bills, and I marked out every section that was not +essential to the working of the measure. Four sections remained. +I then added a section which provided for the lease and ultimate sale +of the confiscated lands to the freedmen and refugees. President +Johnson's restoration of those lands made that section non-operative. +The committee, upon the motion of General Schenck, transferred the +jurisdiction of the Bureau from the Treasury to the War Department. +The bill was accepted by the committee, and passed by the two Houses. + +When within a few days I was in the Senate Chamber, Mr. Sumner came to +me, and said in substance: "The Freedmen's Bureau Bill as it passed is +of no value. I have spent six months upon the bill, and my work has +gone for nothing. You and General Schenck cannot pretend to know as +much as I know about the measure." + +With some feeling, which was not justifiable, I said: "I have not +spent six hours upon the measure, but after what you have said I will +say that the fifth section is of more value than all the sections which +you have written." I did not wait for a reply. The subject was not +again mentioned; our friendly relations were not disturbed, and it is +to Mr. Sumner's credit on the score of toleration that he passed over +my rough remarks, even though he had given some reason for a retort. + +My next difference from Mr. Sumner was a more serious difference, but +it passed without any break in our relations. He had not acquired the +church-going habit, or he had renounced it, and my church-going was +spasmodic rather than systematic. Thus it became possible and +agreeable for me to spend some small portion of each Sunday in his +rooms. The controversy over Mr. Motley and his removal from the post +of minister to Great Britain excited Mr. Sumner to a point far beyond +any excitement to which he yielded, arising from his own troubles or +from the misfortunes of the country. To him it was the topic of +conversation at all times and in all places. That habit I accepted at +his house with as much complacency as I could command. Indeed, I was +not much disturbed by what he said to me in private, and certainly not +by what he said in his own house, where I went from choice, and without +any obligation to remain resting upon me. In all his conversation he +made General Grant responsible for the removal of Motley, accompanied, +usually, with language of censure and condemnation. On two occasions +that were in a measure public, one of which was at a dinner given to me +by Mr. Franklin Haven, a personal friend of twenty years' standing, +when he insisted upon holding the Motley incident as the topic of +conversation. On one of these occasions, and in excitement, he turned +to me and said: "Boutwell, you ought to have resigned when Motley +was removed." + +I said only in reply: "I am the custodian of my own duty." + +This was the only personal remark that I ever made to Mr. Sumner in +connection with the removal of Motley. The removal was the only +reasonable solution of the difficulty in which Motley was involved; +but I sympathized with him in the disaster which had overtaken him, +and I was not disposed to discuss the subject. The incident at the +dinner led me to make a resolution. I called upon Mr. Sumner, and +without accepting a seat, I said: "Senator, if you ever mention +General Grant's name in my presence, I will never again cross your +threshold." + +Without the delay of half a minute he said: "Agreed." + +There the matter ended, and the promise was kept. In 1872, and not +many days before he left for Europe, he said: "I want to ask you a +question about General Grant." + +I said: "You know that that is a forbidden topic." + +"Yes, but I am not going to speak controversially." + +I said: "Say on." + +He said: "What do you think of Grant's election?" + +I said: "I think he will be elected." + +He held up his hands, and in a tone of grief said: "You and Wilson +are the only ones who tell me that he has any chance." + +Upon his return from Europe it was apparent that his feelings in +regard to the Republican Party, and especially in regard to General +Grant, had undergone a great change. Our conversations concerning +General Grant were resumed free from all restrictions, and without +any disturbance of feeling on my part. Not many months before his +death Mr. Sumner made a speech in executive session that was +conciliatory and just in a marked degree. I urged him to repeat it +in public session. He seemed to regard the suggestion with favor, but +the speech was not made. + +For many years Mr. Sumner had been borne down under the resolutions of +censure passed by the State of Massachusetts in disapproval of his +position in regard to the return of Confederate flags. That resolution +was rescinded at the winter session of 1874. The act brought to Mr. +Sumner the highest degree of satisfaction that it was possible for him +to realize. Above all things else of a public nature, he cherished +the good name of the commonwealth, and for himself there was nothing +more precious than her approval. The blow was unexpected, its weight +was great, and its weight was never lessened until it was wholly +removed. The rescinding resolutions came to me the Saturday next +preceding the Wednesday when Mr. Sumner died. I was then in ill +health, so ill that my attendance at the Senate did not exceed one +half of each day's session through many weeks. Mr. Sumner called upon +me to inquire, and anxious to know, whether I could attend the session +of Monday and present the resolutions. I gave him the best assurance +that my condition permitted. When the resolutions had been presented, +and when I was leaving the chamber, Mr. Sumner came to me, and, putting +his arm over my shoulder, he walked with me into the lobby, where, +after many thanks by him, and with good wishes for my health, we +parted, without a thought by me that he had not before him many years +of rugged life. For several years previous to 1874, Mr. Sumner had +been accustomed to speak of himself as an old man, and on more than one +occasion he spoke of life as a burden. To these utterances I gave but +little heed. + +The chief assurance for any considerable well-doing in the world is to +be found in good purposes and in fixedness of purpose when a purpose +has been formed. These characteristics were Mr. Sumner's possession, +but in him they were subject to very important limitations as powers in +practical affairs. He did not exhibit respect or deference for the +opinions of others even when the parties were upon a plane of equality, +as is the usual situation in legislative bodies. He could not concede +small points for the sake of a great result. Hence it was that +measures in which he had an interest took on a form at the end that +was not agreeable to him. Hence it is that he has left only one piece +of legislation that is distinctly the work of his hand. When the bill +was under consideration which denied to colored persons the privilege +of naturalization in the United States, he secured an amendment by +which the exclusion was limited to the Mongolian race. His +declaration as to the status of the States that had been in rebellion +was not far away from the policy that was adopted finally, but he did +not accept as wise and necessary measures the amendments to the +Constitution which were designed to make that policy permanent. +Indeed, it was his opinion, at one period of the controversy over the +question of negro suffrage, that a legislative declaration would be +sufficient. The field of his success is to be found in the +argumentative power that he possessed and in its use for the overthrow +of slavery. Of the anti-slavery advocates who entered the Senate +previous to the opening of the war, he was the best equipped in +learning, and his influence in the country was not surpassed by the +influence of any one of his associates. In his knowledge of diplomacy, +he had the first rank in the Senate for the larger part of his career. +His influence in the Senate was measured, however, by his influence in +the country. His speeches, especially in the period of national +controversy, were addressed _to_ the country. He relied upon +authorities and precedents. His powers as a debater were limited, and +it followed inevitably that in purely parliamentary contests he was +not a match for such masters as Fessenden and Conkling, who in learning +were his inferiors. + +My means for information are so limited that I do not express an +opinion upon the question whether Mr. Sumner's ambitions in public life +were or were not gratified. On one or two occasions he let fall +remarks which indicated a willingness to be transferred to the +Department of State. Major Ben. Perley Poore had received the +impression that there was a time when Mr. Sumner looked to the +Presidency as a possibility. At an accidental meeting with Major +Poore, he said to me: "I have dined with Sumner, and he gave me an +account of the conversation he had with you this morning, in which you +consoled him for not gaining the Presidency." + +I recalled the conversation. It was a Sunday-morning talk, and there +was no special purpose on my part, however my remarks may have been +received by Mr. Sumner. He spoke of the opportunity furnished to Mr. +Jefferson for the exposition of his views in his first inaugural +address. I then proceeded to say that, omitting the incumbent of the +office, of whom nothing could then be said, not more than three or four +men had gained in standing by their elevation to the Presidency, beyond +the fact that their names were upon the roll. The exceptions were, +first of all, Lincoln, who had gained most. Then Jackson, who had +gained something--indeed, a good deal by his defence of the Union when +compared with what he might have lost by neglect of duty in the days of +nullification. Washington had gained much by demonstrating his +capacity for civil affairs, by the legacy of his farewell address, +and by the shaping of the new government under the Constitution in a +manner calculated to strengthen the quality of perpetuity. At the end, +I claimed that the other occupants of the Presidential office had not +gained appreciably by their promotion. + +In two important particulars, Samuel Adams and Charles Sumner are +parallel characters in American history. Mr. Adams was a leader in +the contest that the colonies carried on against Great Britain. Our +legal standing in the controversy with the mother country has never +elsewhere been presented as forcibly and logically as it was stated by +Mr. Adams in his letters to the royal governors in the name of the +Massachusetts House of Representatives, between the years 1764 and +1775. When the contest of words and of arms was over he was not +only not an aid in the organization of the new Government, but he was +an obstacle to its success. He accepted the Constitution with +hesitation and under constraint. After the overthrow of slavery and +the ratification of the Thirteenth Amendment to the Constitution, Mr. +Sumner gave no wise aid to the work of reconstructing the government +upon the basis of the new conditions that had been created by the war +and by the abolition of slavery. As every guarantee for freedom +contains some element of enslavement over or against some who are not +within the guarantee, men sometimes hesitate as to the wisdom of +accepting guarantees of rights in one direction which work a limitation +of rights or privileges in other directions. The Constitution of the +United States, while it gave power to the body of States and guaranteed +security to each yet deprived the individual States of many of the +privileges and powers that they had enjoyed as colonies. Every +amendment to the Constitution, from the first to the last, has limited +the application of the doctrine of home rule in government. + +Upon the election of Mr. Wilson to the office of Vice-President, I was +chosen by the Legislature of Massachusetts as his successor in the +Senate. I left the Treasury and General Grant's Cabinet with +reluctance, but my experience in both branches of the government had +led me to prefer the legislative branch, where there is at least more +freedom of action than can be had in the executive department. This +opinion is in no sense due to the nature of my relations with General +Grant. His military habits led him to put responsibility upon +subordinates and this habit he carried into civil affairs. + +Moreover, in my own case, he recognized that fact that I had accepted +the place upon his urgent request, command indeed, and not to gratify +any ambition of my own. And further, I think I may assume, that his +confidence was such that he was content to leave the department in my +hands. During my time he put only one person--General Pleasanton-- +into the department, and he never commanded or required the removal of +any one. On a few occasions he named persons whom he said he would be +glad to have employed if places could be found. They were always +soldiers, or widows or children of soldiers, and he never forgot his +suggestions, nor allowed the passage of time to diminish his interest +in such cases. + +The important places in New York, Chicago, St. Louis, Cincinnati, New +Orleans and Philadelphia were filled by him, usually upon consultation, +but upon his judgment. He gave very little attention to others beyond +signing the commissions. I often called his attention to the more +important ones, but it was his practice to send applicants and their +friends to me with the remark that the business was in my hands. + +By this course the President avoided much labor, and escaped some +responsibility. The disappointed ones charged their misfortunes to +the Secretary, and the President was able to say that he knew nothing +of the case, etc., etc. + +I have reason to believe that the President did not exhibit equal +confidence in my successors, especially in Mr. Bristow. The President +received the impression very early, that Bristow was engaged in a +scheme to secure the nomination by an alliance with the enemies of +General Grant. In my time three Secretaries of the Treasury attempted +in turn to secure a nomination for the Presidency through the influence +and patronage of that department. All were failures, and failures well +deserved. + +Such a policy breeds corruption inevitably. Venal men aspiring to +place, avow themselves the friends of the Secretary, and if through +such avowals they secure appointments, the offices will be used for +improper purposes. + +My successor, Judge Richardson, had been Assistant Secretary for three +years and more, and no one could have surpassed him in industry, +fidelity and knowledge of the business. I recommended his appointment. +The President hesitated, but he finally nominated him to the Senate, +and the nomination was confirmed. + +CORRESPONDENCE WITH GENERAL GRANT UPON MY RESIGNATION OF THE OFFICE OF +SECRETARY OF THE TREASURY + +WASHINGTON, + _March_ 17, 1873. + +SIR: +Having been elected to the Senate of the United States by the +Legislature of Massachusetts, I tender my resignation of the office of +Secretary of the Treasury. + +In severing my official relations with you it is a great satisfaction +to me that on all occasions you have given me full confidence and +support in the discharge of my public duties. + +In these four years my earlier acquaintance with you has ripened into +earnest personal friendship, which, I am confident, will remain +unbroken. I am + Yours very truly, + GEO. S. BOUTWELL. +TO THE PRESIDENT. + + +EXECUTIVE MANSION, +WASHINGTON, _March_ 17, 1873. + +HON. GEO. S. BOUTWELL, +_Dear Sir:_-- +In accepting your resignation of the office of Secretary of the +Treasury, an office which you have filled for four years with such +satisfaction to the country, allow me to express the regret I feel at +severing official relations which have been at all times so agreeable +to me, and,--as I am assured by your letter of resignation,--to you +also. Your administration of the important trust confided to you +four years since, has been so admirably conducted as to give the +greatest satisfaction to me because as I read public judgment and +opinion it has been satisfactory to the country. The policy pursued in +the office of Secretary of the Treasury by your successor I hope may +be as successful as yours has been, and that no departure from it +will be made except such as experience and change of circumstances +may make necessary. + +Among your new official associates I trust you will find the same warm +friends and co-workers that you leave in the Executive branch of the +government. + +You take with you my most sincere well wishes for your success as a +legislator and as a citizen, and the assurance of my desire to continue +the warm personal relations that have existed between us during the +whole of our official connection. + Very truly yours, + U. S. GRANT. + + +XXXVIII +GENERAL GRANT AS A STATESMAN* + +General Grant's father was a Whig and an admirer and supporter of Mr. +Clay. The public policy of Mr. Clay embraced three great measures: +First, a national bank, or a fiscal agency as an aid to the Treasury +in the collection and disbursement of the public revenues; secondly, +a system of internal improvements to be created at the public expense +and controlled by the National Government; and, thirdly, a tariff +system which should protect the American laborer against the active +competition of the laborers of other countries who were compelled to +work for smaller compensation. + +From the year 1834 to the year 1836 the country was engaged in an +active controversy over the policy of the Whig Party, of which Mr. +Clay was then the recognized head. Indeed, the controversy began as +early as the year 1824, and it contributed, more than all other causes, +to the new organization of parties under the leadership, respectively, +of Mr. Clay and General Jackson. + +General Grant was educated under these influences, and in the belief +that the policy of the Whig Party would best promote the prosperity +of the country. Those early impressions ripened into opinions, which +he held and on which he acted during his public life. It happened +by the force of circumstances that the Republican Party was compelled +to adopt the policy of Mr. Clay--not in measures, but in the ideas on +which his policy was based. It is not now necessary to inquire +whether the weight of argument was with Mr. Clay or with his opponents. +The war made inevitable the adoption of a policy which Mr. Clay had +advocated as expedient and wise. + +The Pacific Railways were built by the aid of the Government and under +the pressure of a general public opinion that the East must be brought +into a more intimate connection with our possessions on the Pacific +Ocean, for mutual support and for the common defence. + +The national banking system was established for the purpose of securing +the aid of the banks as purchasers and negotiators of the bonds of the +Government, at a time when the public credit was so impaired that it +seemed impossible to command the funds necessary for the prosecution +of the war. + +The same exigency compelled Congress to enact, and the country to +accept, a tariff system more protective in its provisions than any +scheme ever suggested by Mr. Clay. The necessities of the times +compelled free-traders, even, to accept the revenue system with its +protective features; but General Grant accepted it as a system in +harmony alike with his early impressions and with his matured opinions. + +It has happened, by the force of events, that the policy of the old +Whig Party has been revived in the national banking system, while the +Independent Treasury, the leading measure of the old Democratic Party, +has been preserved in all its features as the guide of the Treasury +Department in its financial operations. + +When General Grant became President, these three measures had been +incorporated into the policy of the Republican Party. Their full +acceptance by him did not require any change of opinion on his part. +It was true that he had voted for Mr. Buchanan in 1856; but his vote +was given in obedience to an impression that he had received touching +the qualifications of General Fremont. The fact that he had voted +for Mr. Buchanan excited suspicions in the minds of some Republicans, +and it engendered hopes in the bosoms of some Democrats that he might +act in harmony with the Democratic Party. The suspicions and the +hopes were alike groundless. + +As early as the month of August, 1863, in a letter to Mr. E. B. +Washburne, he said: "It became patent to my mind early in the +rebellion that the North and South could never live at peace with +each other except as one nation, and that without slavery. As anxious +as I am to see peace established, I would not, therefore, be willing +to see any settlement until this question is forever settled." + +Thus was General Grant, at an early moment, and upon his own judgment, +brought into full accord with the Republican Party upon the two +debatable and most earnestly debated questions during Mr. Lincoln's +administration--the prosecution of the war and the abolition of +slavery. + +And thus it is apparent that in 1868 he was in a condition, as to all +matters of opinion, to accept a nomination at the hands of the +Republican Party; and it is equally apparent that he was separated +from the Democratic Party by a chasm wide, deep, and impassable. It +is, however, true that General Grant's feelings were not intense, and +in the expression of his opinions his tone was mild and his manner +gentle. It often happened, also, that he did not undertake to +controvert opinions and expressions with which he had no sympathy. +This peculiarity may at times have led to a misunderstanding, or to +a misinterpretation of his views. Upon this basis of his early +impressions, and matured opinions his administrative policy was +constructed. + +When he became President, there was a body of American citizens, not +inconsiderable in numbers, who doubted the ability of the Government +to pay the war debt; there were others who advocated payment in +greenbacks, or the substitution of a note not bearing interest for a +bond that bore interest; and there were yet others who denied the +validity of the existing obligations. All these classes, whether they +were dishonest or only misled, were alike rebuked in his inaugural +address. These were his words: "A great debt has been contracted +in securing to us and to our posterity the Union. The payment of this +debt, principal and interest, as well as the return to a specie basis, +as soon as it can be accomplished without material detriment to the +debtor class, or to the country at large, must be provided for. . . . +To protect the national honor, every dollar of Government indebtedness +should be paid in gold, unless otherwise expressly stipulated in the +contract. . . . + +"Let it be understood that no repudiator of one farthing of our public +debt will be trusted in public place, and it will go far toward +strengthening a credit which ought to be the best in the world, and +will ultimately enable us to replace the debt with bonds bearing less +interest than we now pay." + +In the same address he asserted the ability of the country to pay the +debt within the period of twenty-five years, and he also declared his +purpose to secure a faithful collection of the public revenues. At +the close of his administration of eight years one fifth part of the +public debt had been paid, and if the system of taxation that existed +in 1869 had been continued the debt would have been extinguished in +less than a quarter of a century from the year 1869. In his +administration, however, the crisis was passed. The ability and the +disposition of the country were made so conspicuous that all honest +doubts were removed, and the repudiators were shamed into silence. +The redemption of the debt by the purchase of bonds in the open market +strengthened the public credit, and laid a foundation for the +resumption of specie payments. + +General Grant's inaugural address was followed by the passage of the +act of March 18, 1869, entitled "An act to strengthen the public +credit." This act was a pledge to the world that the debts of the +United States, unless there were in the obligations express +stipulations to the contrary, would be paid in coin. + +In accordance with the report of the Secretary of the Treasury, +President Grant, in his annual message of December, 1869, recommended +the passage of an act authorizing the funding of the public debt at a +lower rate of interest. + +Following this recommendation, the bill for refunding the public debt, +prepared by the Secretary of the Treasury, was enacted and approved +July 14, 1870. + +By this act the Secretary of the Treasury was authorized to issue bonds +to the amount of $200,000,000 bearing interest at the rate of 5 per +cent, $300,000,000 bearing interest at the rate of 4½ per cent, and +$1,000,000,000 bearing interest at the rate of 4 per cent. + +Under this act, and the amendments thereto, the debt has been refunded +from time to time until the average rate of interest does not now +exceed 3½ per cent. Although these two important measures of +administration were not prepared by General Grant, they were but the +execution of his policy set forth in his inaugural address. + +In respect to the rights of the negro race, General Grant must be +ranked with the advanced portion of the Republican Party. Upon the +capture of Fort Donelson, a number of slaves fell into the hands of the +Union army. General Grant issued an order, dated Feb. 26, 1862, in +which he authorized their employment for the benefit of the Government, +and at the close he said that under no circumstances would he permit +their return to their masters. + +In his inaugural address he urged the States to ratify the Fifteenth +Amendment, and its ratification was due, probably, to his advice. At +that moment his influence was very great. It may well be doubted +whether any other President ever enjoyed the confidence of the country +in as high a degree. He gave to that measure the weight of his opinion +and the official influence of his administration. The amendment was +opposed by the Democratic Party generally, and a considerable body of +Republicans questioned its wisdom. General Grant was responsible for +the ratification of the amendment. Had he advised its rejection, or +had he been indifferent to its fate, the amendment would have failed, +and the country would have been left to a succession of bitter +controversies arising from the application of the second section of the +Fourteenth Amendment, which provided that the representation of a State +should be based upon the number of male citizens over twenty-one years +of age entitled to vote. + +General Grant accepted the plan of Congress in regard to the +reconstruction of the Union. There were three opinions that had +obtained a lodgment in the public mind. President Johnson and his +supporters claimed that the President held the power by virtue of his +office to convene the people of the respective States, and that under +his direction constitutions might be framed, and that Senators and +Representatives might be chosen who would be entitled to seats in +Congress, as though they represented States that had not been engaged +in secession and war. Others maintained that neither by the ordinances +of secession nor by the war had the States of the Confederacy been +disturbed in their legal relations to the Union. + +It was the theory of the Republican Party in Congress that the eleven +States by their own acts had destroyed their legal relations to the +Union; that the jurisdiction of the National Government over the +territory of the seceding States was full and complete; and that, as +a result of the war, the National Government could hold them in a +Territorial condition and subject to military rule. Upon this theory +the re-appearance of a seceded State as a member of the Union was made +to depend upon the assent of Congress, with the approval of the +President, or upon an act of Congress by a two-thirds vote over a +Presidential veto. + +General Grant sustained the policy of Congress during the long and +bitter contest with President Johnson, and when he became President +he accepted that policy without reserve in the case of the restoration +of the States of Virginia, Georgia, Texas, and Mississippi. Upon this +statement it appears that General Grant was a Republican, and that he +became a Republican by processes that preclude the suggestion that his +nomination for the Presidency wrought any change in his position upon +questions of principle or policy in the affairs of government. Indeed, +his nomination in 1868 was distasteful to him, as he then preferred to +remain at the head of the army. It was in the nature of things, +however, that he should have wished for re-election. He was re- +elected, and at the end of his second term he accepted a return to +private life as a relief from the cares and duties of office. The +support which he received for the nomination in 1880 was not due to +any effort on his part. Not even to his warmest supporters did he +express a wish, or dictate or advise an act. His only utterance was +a message to four of his friends at the Chicago Convention, that +whatever they might do in the premises would be acceptable to him. +His political career was marked by the same abstention from personal +effort for personal advancement that distinguished him as an officer +of the army. But he did not bring into civil affairs the habits of +command that were the necessity of military life. Although by virtue +of his position he was the recognized head of the Republican Party, +he made no effort to control its action. Wherever he placed power, +there he reposed trust. + +There was not in General Grant's nature any element of suspicion, and +his confidence in his friends was free and full. Hence it happened +that he had many occasions for regret. + +On no man in public life in this generation were there more frequent +charges and insinuations of wrong-doing, and in this generation there +has been no man in public life who was freer from all occasion for +such insinuations and charges. + +When he heard that the Treasury Department was purchasing bullion of +a company in which he was a stockholder, he sold his shares without +delay, and without reference to the market price or to their real value. + +General Grant had no disposition to usurp power. He had no policy to +impose upon the country against the popular will. This was shown in +the treatment of the Santo Domingo question. General Grant was not +indisposed to see the territories of the Republic extended, but his +love of justice and fair dealing was such that he would have used +only honorable means in his intercourse with other nations. Santo +Domingo was a free offering, and he thought that its possession would +be advantageous to the country. + +Yet he never made it an issue, even in his Cabinet, where, as he well +knew, very serious doubts existed as to the expediency of the measure. +He was deeply pained by the unjust attacks and groundless criticism +of which he was the subject, but he accepted the adverse judgment of +the Senate as a constitutional binding decision of the question, and +of that decision he never complained. + +In a message to the Senate of the 31st of May, 1870, he urged the +annexation of Santo Domingo. He said, "I feel an unusual anxiety for +the ratification of this treaty, because I believe it will redound +greatly to the glory of the two countries interested, to civilization, +and to the extirpation of the institution of slavery." He claimed for +the scheme great commercial advantages, that it was in harmony with the +Monroe doctrine, and that the consummation of the measure would be +notice to the states of Europe that no acquisitions of territory on +this continent would be permitted. In his second inaugural address +General Grant referred to the subject in these words: "In the first +year of the past administration the proposition came up for the +admission of Santo Domingo as a Territory of the Union. . . . I believe +now, as I did then, that it was for the best interests of this country, +for the people of Santo Domingo, and all concerned, that the +proposition should be received favorably. It was, however, rejected +constitutionally, and therefore the subject was never brought up +again by me." General Grant considered the failure of the treaty as +a national misfortune, but he never criticised the action of its +opponents. + +General Grant's firmness was shown in his veto of the Senate currency +bill of 1874. It is known that unusual effort was made to convince +him that the measure was wise in a financial view, and highly expedient +upon political grounds. The President wrote a message in explanation +of his act of approval, but upon its completion he was so much +dissatisfied with his own argument that he resolved to veto the bill. +Hence the veto message of April 22, 1874. + +In foreign policy, the principal measure of General Grant's +administration was the treaty with Great Britain of May, 1871. The +specific and leading purpose of the negotiations was the adjustment +of the claim made by the United States that Great Britain was liable +in damages for the destruction of American vessels, and the consequent +loss of commercial power and prestige, by the depredations of +Confederate cruisers that were fitted out or had obtained supplies in +British ports. Neither the treaty of peace of 1783, nor the subsequent +treaties with Great Britain, made a full and final settlement of the +fishery question or of our northern boundary-line at its junction +with the Pacific Ocean. These outlying questions were considered in +the negotiations, and they were adjusted by the terms of the treaty. +The jurisdiction of the island of San Juan on the Pacific coast, then +in controversy, was referred to the Emperor of Germany as arbitrator, +with full and final power in the premises. By his award the claim of +the United States was sustained. + +The fishery question was referred to arbitrators, but it was a +misfortune that the award was not satisfactory to the United States, +and the dispute is reopened with capacity to vex the two governments +for an indefinite period of time. + +The claims against Great Britain growing out of the operations of the +Confederate cruisers, known as the Alabama claims, were referred to +arbitrators, by whose award the Government of the United States +received the sum of $15,500,000. But the value of the treaty of 1871 +was not in the award made. The people of the United States were +embittered against the Government of Great Britain, and had General +Grant chosen to seek redress by arms he would have been sustained +throughout the North with substantial unanimity. But General Grant +was destitute of the war spirit, and he chose to exhaust all the powers +of negotiation before he would advise a resort to force. A passage +in his inaugural address may have had an influence upon the policy of +the British Government: "In regard to foreign policy, I would deal +with nations as equitable law requires individuals to deal with each +other. . . . I would respect the rights of all nations, demanding +equal respect for our own. _If others depart from this rule in their +dealings with us, we may be compelled to follow their precedent."_ + +The reference of the question at issue to the tribunal at Geneva was +a conspicuous instance of the adjustment of a grave international +dispute by peaceful methods. + +By the sixth article of the treaty of 1871, three new rules were made +for the government of neutral nations. These rules are binding upon +the United States and Great Britain, and the contracting parties +agreed to bring them to the knowledge of other maritime powers, and +to invite such powers to accede to the rules. + +In those rules it is stipulated that a neutral nation should not +permit a belligerent to fit out, arm, or equip in its ports any vessel +which it has reasonable ground to believe is intended to cruise or +carry on war against a power with which it is at peace. It was further +agreed, as between the parties to the treaty, that neither would +suffer a belligerent to make use of its ports or waters as a base of +operations against the other. Finally, the parties agreed to use due +diligence to prevent any infraction of the rules so established. + +Mr. Fish was then Secretary of State, and to him was General Grant and +the country largely indebted for the settlement of the Alabama +controversy; but the settlement was in harmony with General Grant's +inaugural address. + +Before the final adjustment of the controversy, by the decision of the +tribunal at Geneva, General Grant had occasion to consider whether +the allegation against Great Britain, growing out of her recognition, +in May, 1861, of the belligerent character of the Confederacy, could +be maintained upon the principles of public law. Upon his own judgment +he reached the conclusion that the act was an act of sovereignty within +the discretion of the ruler, for which a claim in money could not be +made. This opinion was accepted, finally, by his advisers, by the +negotiators, and by the country. + +General Grant was not a trained statesman. His methods of action were +direct and clear. His conduct was free from duplicity, and artifice of +every sort was foreign to his nature. In the first years of his +administration he relied upon his Cabinet in all minor matters relating +to the departments. Acting upon military ideas, he held the head of a +department to his full responsibility, and he waited, consequently, +until his opinion was sought or his instructions were solicited. + +In his conferences with the members of his Cabinet he expressed his +opinions with the greatest freedom, and, upon discussion, he often +yielded to the suggestions or arguments of others. He was so great +that it was not a humiliation to acknowledge a change in opinion, or +to admit an error in policy or purpose. + +In his intercourse with members of Congress upon the business of the +Government, he gave his opinions without reserve when he had reached +definite conclusions, but he often remained a silent listener to the +discussion of topics which he had not considered maturely. + +His politics were not narrow nor exclusive. He believed in the growth +of the country, and in the power of republican ideas. He was free from +race prejudice, and free from national jealousy, but he believed in the +enlargement of our territory by peaceful means, in the spread of +republican institutions, and in the predominance of the English- +speaking race in the affairs of the world. + +The spirit of philanthropy animated his politics, and the doctrines of +peace controlled his public policy. + +[* This article was printed in Appleton's Cyclopedia for the year 1885. +Copyright, 1886, by D. Appleton & Co.] + + +XXXIX +REMINISCENCES OF PUBLIC MEN + +GENERAL BANKS + +Of the men whom I have known in public affairs, General Banks was in +his personality one of a small number who were always agreeable and +permanently attractive. He was the possessor of an elastic spirit; +he was always hopeful of the future and in adversity he saw or fancied +that he saw, days of prosperity for himself, for his party, for the +commonwealth and for the country. His interest in the fortunes of the +laboring classes was a permanent interest, and they are largely +indebted to him for the passage of the eight-hour law by the Congress +of the United States. Not infrequently his thoughts and schemes were +too vast for realization. While the contest in Kansas was going on, +he suggested an organization of capitalists for the purchase of the +low-priced lands in Delaware, then a sale to Northern farmers and the +conversion of Delaware into a free State. + +His studies in law had been fragmentary and superficial, and nature had +not endowed him with all the qualities that are essential to the +successful lawyer. His reading on the literary side was considerable, +especially in the Spanish language. Early in life he accepted the idea +that our relations with the Spanish race were to be intimate in a not +far off future. He was a careful observer of character, and of +conditions in affairs, and in a free debate he was never in peril of +being overmatched. Of a mutual friend and an associate in politics +he said: "He has no serious side to his character--a defect that has +been the bane of many otherwise able men." + +When the coalition came into power Banks was made speaker of the +Massachusetts House of Representatives. Wilson was president of the +Senate and I was in the office of Governor. In an evening stroll with +Banks around Boston Common, engaged in a survey of public affairs, +he changed the conversation suddenly with the remark: "It's almighty +queer that the people of this commonwealth have put their government +into the hands of men who have no last and usual place of abode." The +pertinency of this remark is to be found in the facts to which it was +applicable. There were some men of wealth in the Coalition Party but +the three places that I have named were held by men who were destitute +of even the means of well-to-do mechanics and tradespeople. + +Mr. Banks had power in repartee which made him a formidable adversary +in parliamentary debate. When he was a mechanic at Waltham he took +an active part in temperance meetings. At one of the meetings a +Unitarian clergyman of conservative leanings, made a speech in which he +criticized the speeches and said finally: "I do not attend the +meetings because I cannot approve of what I hear said." He then +referred to Mr. Banks as a young man who was guilty of indiscretions +in speech. He had seen him once only at his church. He had made +inquiries of his brethren and he could not learn that Mr. Banks was a +regular attendant at any church. Banks in reply admitted that he had +been in the church of the reverend gentleman but once, and that he was +not a regular attendant at any church. Said he: "I do not go to +church because I hear things said there which I do not approve." The +reverend gentleman was forced to join in the general laugh which was +raised at his expense. + +Two extracts from General Banks' letters, written to me during the war +may give an idea of his characteristics in his maturer years. + +HEADQUARTERS, CAMP AT DAMSTOWN, MD. +_October_ 15, 1861. + +MY DEAR SIR:-- +I received your letter of the 8th inst . . . and also one of an earlier +date. + +I am very glad to hear from you. I see few people and hear little news +from home. Newspapers I have little relish for and scarcely time to +read them, if I had. + +I am glad to know that you contemplate the army for a pursuit. Our +people will in the end surrender all business except that of the war, +and that which pertains to the war. Our country is in a sad condition. +It is already clear that the influence of France and England is against +us. How sadly all our anticipations in regard to the war have failed +us,--the insurrection of the blacks, the material deficiencies of the +South, their want of men, and worst of all the friendship or the +indifference of England. We have now, or shall have by and by to do +what we should have done at the start, rely upon ourselves and prepare +for our work upon a scale proportionate to its magnitude. It would +amuse you to know how far the highest civil authority is subordinated +to military direction. I do not doubt in the slightest degree the +success of the Government in the end, but it grieves me to see how +slow we have been and still are in comprehension and preparation. + +This continent is just as important to England and France as it is to +us. It is hardly to be doubted that they will postpone all +international questions, and secure what has never before been offered +to them--a controlling foothold here. How many times I have spoken to +you in the old Executive Chamber of the importance to the whole world +of the possession of Mexico--and of the power it would infallibly give +to this continent, as in Europe to those who possessed it. And now +Spain, France, and England are there. "Birnam Wood _has_ to great +Dunsinane come." There is but one remedy for us. Every male creature +born and unborn must become a soldier. Soldiers do not criticize, so +you must consider this _Private_. And believe me very truly yours, +etc. + N. P. BANKS. + + +HEADQUARTERS, DEPARTMENT OF THE GULF. + _New Orleans, 27 Decr._ 1863. + +MY DEAR SIR:-- +I have written to the President upon the subject of a free State +organization in Louisiana. It appears quite certain to me that the +course pursued here by the officers to whom the matter is entrusted +will not lead to an early or a certain result. It will not be +accomplished sooner than August or September, and then will be involved +in the struggles of the Presidential contest, and very likely share +the fate of that struggle. It certainly ought not to be dependent upon +that issue, and settled, not only independent of it, but before it +opens. It can be easily done, in March. A Free State government upon +the basis of immediate emancipation can be acquired as early as March +with the general consent of the People, and without any material +opposition, in such a manner as to draw after it _all_ the Southern +States, on the same basis, and by the same general consent. But it +cannot be done in the manner now proposed here. It is upon this subject +that I have written the President. Three months ago I wrote him upon +the same idea but did not send my letter. Subsequent reflection and +inquiry have made the theory so clear to mind that I felt impelled +to put my views before him. I write this as from the request of my +previous letter you may have spoken to him upon the subject of the +Depart't and the reorganization of the State. The election of next +year does not seem as clear to me as it appears to you. I fancy it to +be a struggle between the Democratic Party, backed by the entire power +of the regular army and the People. It will be a contest of great +violence. + +* * * * * * * * +The report of General Halleck is singularly incorrect, in its references +to the Department--so much so that it is impossible to attribute them +to anything else but misapprehension of facts. I refer to that which +relates to Galveston, and the movement against Port Hudson in April. +If it were not so palpable, I shd think the Department hostile & shd be +very glad to know if you see or hear anything to indicate such feeling +towards me. General Wilson would probably know the facts. + +The Austrian Consul here, said to me the other day that he was confident +that Maximilian would not go to Mexico. He is a sensible and well +informed man, and I have confidence in his opinion. I shall send you +by Satds mail _three_ despatches from Europe of recent date. + +Very truly yours, + N. P. BANKS. + M. G. C. +HON. GEO. S. BOUTWELL. + + +As the conclusion of my remarks upon General Banks, I refer to my final +and unexaggerated estimate of General Banks as given in the chapter on +the Legislature of 1849 (Chapter XIV). + +GENERAL SHERMAN, GENERAL SHERIDAN AND GENERAL GRANT. + +The death of General Sherman removed the last member of the triumvirate +of soldiers who achieved the highest distinction in the Civil War. In +the Senate one speaker gave him the highest place, but on the contrary +I cannot rank him above either Grant or Sheridan. When we consider the +vastness of the command with which Grant was entrusted through a period +of more than a year, the magnitude and success of his operations, and +the tenacity with which he prosecuted all his varied undertakings, it +must appear that neither Sherman nor Sheridan was entitled to the +position of a rival. As to Sherman, I can say from a long and intimate +acquaintance with him, and under circumstances when his real feeling +would have been disclosed, that he never assumed an equality with Grant. + +As between Sherman and Sheridan it is not easy to settle the question +of pre-eminence. For myself the test would be this: Assume that Grant +had disappeared during the Battle of the Wilderness, would the fortunes +of the country have been best promoted, probably, by the appointment of +Sherman or Sheridan? I cannot now say what my opinion would have been +in 1864, but I should now have pronounced for Sheridan. He was more +cool and careful in regard to the plan of operations and equally bold +and vigorous in execution. General Grant expressed the opinion to me +in conversation that Sheridan was the best officer in the army. He +spoke of his care and coolness in the preparation of his plans and his +celerity in execution. Of "the younger set of officers" he placed Ames +(Adelbert) as the most promising. + +In one of my last conversations with Sheridan he expressed the opinion +that the improvement in the material of war was so great that nations +could not make war, such would be the destruction of human life. + +Upon his return from Germany at the end of the Franco-Prussian War, he +spoke very disparagingly of the military movements and among several +things he said that the French forces were placed where the Germans +would have dictated had they had the power. He added the either of +our armies at the close of the war could have marched over the country +in defiance of both the French and German forces combined. This was a +rash remark, probably; a remark which he could not justify upon the +facts. Without intending to betray any confidence, the remark, as +coming through me, got into the newspapers. Sheridan with a skill +superior to that of politicians caused the announcement to be made +that General Sheridan had never had any conversation with Governor +Boutwell in regard to the Franco-Prussian war. + +At the end it may be claimed justly, that they were three great +soldiers--that they served the country with equal fidelity--that they +lived and acted without the manifestation in either of a feeling of +rivalry, and that they earned the public gratitude. + +The death of General Sherman was followed to two contradictory +statements from his sons. The younger, Tecumseh, is reported as saying +that his father was never a Catholic, while the older, Thomas, who is +a priest of the Order of Jesuits, had stated over his signature that +his father was baptized as a Catholic, was married as a Catholic, and +that he had heard him say often, "that if there was any true religion +it was the Catholic." + +All this may be true and yet General Sherman may not have been a +Catholic. His baptism may have been without his consent or knowledge, +his marriage by the Catholic Church may have been in deference to his +wife's wishes, and because he was wholly indifferent to the matter, +and the remark may have been made in the impression that there was no +true religion, and that the Catholic was as likely, or even more likely +to be true, than any other. + +The statement made by Thomas puts an imputation upon General Sherman +that he ought not to bear. Of the thousands that one may meet in a +lifetime, General Sherman was among the freest from anything in the +nature of hypocrisy or dissimulation. Of those who knew him intimately +after the close of the war there are but few, probably, who did not +hear him speak with hostility and bitterness of the Catholic Church. +For myself I can say that I heard him speak in terms of contempt of +the church. On one occasion with reference to fasts and abstinence +from meat of Friday, he said: + +"I know better than these priests what I want to eat." + +General Sherman was not a friend to the Catholic Church in the last +years of his life and there is no honor in the attempt to enroll his +name among its devotees now that he is dead and cannot speak for himself. + +SECRETARY WINDOM + +Funeral services were performed February 2, 1891, at the Church of the +Covenant in Washington in honor of Mr. Windom, late Secretary of the +Treasury. He made a good record, if not a distinguished one. As a +member of the House of Representatives and of the Senate he was noted +for fairness, for freedom from bitterness of opinion upon party +questions, and for good sense in action. + +He was indisposed to take responsibility and he went no farther than +the case in hand seemed to require. As the head of the Treasury he was +anxious to gather opinions upon matters of general public interest, and +it was in his nature to strive to accommodate his action to the public +opinion, if he could do so without serious consequences. He worked +within narrow limits, the limits set by business and politics. Of +enemies he had but few--of warm friends but few--the many had confidence +in his integrity in the affairs of government, and in his ability to +guide those affairs in ordinary times. + +JAMES RUSSELL LOWELL + +In a number of the _Edinburgh Review_ is an article on James Russell +Lowell in which the writer errs widely in two particulars as to the +effect of the "Biglow Papers." The writer's name is not given, but +he is not an American and he is ignorant, probably, of America as it +was from 1830 to 1850. When the "Biglow Papers" appeared, I was a +Democrat, and I am quite sure that the publication produced no effect, +not even the least, upon the opinions of Democrats or the action of +the Democratic Party. Upon my knowledge of the Democratic Party I can +say with confidence that the writer is in error when he says: "He +(Lowell) converted many bigoted Northern Democrats to a course of +action in conflict with their old party relations and apparent +interests." + +For this broad statement there is no evidence. The first break came +in 1848 and it was due to rivalries in the Democratic Party. If the +"Biglow Papers" played any part it was too unimportant to produce an +appreciable result. They were treated as a fortunate _jeu d'esprit_ +that everybody enjoyed, but the Democratic Party did not change its +policy nor did it lose adherents. The Mexican War was prosecuted +and bigotry political and religious continued to flourish. They may +have contributed though, insensibly, to a public opinion that became +formidable in the end but the effect was not as perceptible as was +the effect of Garrison's legend that slavery was a covenant with hell +and a league with death, which had its place at the head of the +_Liberator_ through successive years. Nor do I believe that "it +revolutionized the tone of Northern society." Indeed, there is a +"tone" of Northern society that has not been revolutionized to this +day. The South is still the land of gentle birth. The slave-holder +still lives as a man of breeding and the owner of estates. The negro +is still of an inferior caste and in some circles the days of slavery +were the great days of the Republic. When the "Biglow Papers" appeared +Mr. Lowell had not achieved distinction. Society did not know him to +follow him. It cared nothing for what he thought, and it was only +amused by what he said. The Lowell of 1840 was not the Lowell of 1890. +Nor can any series of statements be more untruthful and absurd than +the statements of the writer that "thenceforth it became creditable to +advocate abolition in drawing rooms, and to preach it from fashionable +city pulpits to congregations paying fancy prices for their pews. In +the workshops, the barrooms and other popular resorts the laugh was +turned against the slave-owners; the ground was prepared for the popular +enthusiasm which recruited the armies that exhausted the South, and +Lowell must share with Lincoln and Grant the glory of the crowning +victories." + +If any work of romance contains more fiction in the same space, it is +my fortune not to have seen that work. The circulation of the _Boston +Courier_ in which the papers were printed was very limited. It did not +go into barrooms nor into workshops. It was read chiefly by the +converted and semi-converted abolitionists. As to fashionable pulpits +thenceforth preaching abolition it is to be said that there was only +one leading pulpit, Theodore Parker's pulpit, in which abolitionism was +tolerated until years after the appearance of the "Biglow Papers." As +to society, it is to be said that in the Fifties Charles Sumner, a +Senator, was ostracized for his opinions upon slavery. + +It is nearer the truth to say that what passes for society in New +England never tolerated abolitionists nor encouraged abolitionism. + +The one writing which in an historical point of view contributed most +largely to recruit the armies of the Republic during the Rebellion was +Webster's speech in reply to Hayne. The closing paragraph of the +speech was in the schoolbooks of the free States, and it had been +declaimed from many a schoolhouse stage. + +Lowell deserves credit for what he did. He chose his place early and +firmly on the anti-slavery side, but it is absurd and false to say that +thenceforward and therefor abolitionism became popular and abolitionists +the sought for or the accepted by society. Mr. Lowell was the son of a +Boston Unitarian clergyman. In the Forties he had not gained standing +ground for himself, to omit all thought of his ability to carry an +unpopular cause. + +Indeed, up to the time of the repeal of the Missouri Compromise the +whole array of anti-slavery writers and speakers had not accomplished +the results which the reviewer attributes to the "Biglow Papers." + +Indeed, should there be a signal reform in the fashion and cost of +ladies' dresses it might with equal propriety be attributed to Butler's +poem "Nothing to Wear." + +GENERAL GARFIELD AND GENERAL ROSECRANS + +The statement is revived that General Garfield, when chief of the staff +of General Rosecrans in the campaign which ended at Chickamauga was +false to Rosecrans. The allegation and the fact are that he wrote to +Mr. Chase, then in Mr. Lincoln's Cabinet, that Rosecrans was incompetent +to the command. Garfield's statements, as I recall the letters, were +free from malice and the professional and ethical question is, "Was +Garfield justified as a citizen and soldier, in giving his opinion to +the Administration?" His view of Rosecrans was confirmed by events, and +it may be assumed that the opinion was free from any improper influence +when the letters were written. On this assured basis of facts I cannot +doubt that Garfield did only what was his duty. Neither the President +nor the War Department could obtain specific knowledge of the officers +in command except through associates and subordinates unless they +trusted to newspapers and casual visitors to the army. The struggle +was a desperate one and the volunteer army was composed of men who were +citizens before they were soldiers and they remained citizens when they +became soldiers. Garfield was of the citizen soldiery and to him and +to the country the etiquette of the army and the etiquette of society +were subordinate to the fortunes of the nation. Of General Rosecrans' +unfitness for any important command there can be no doubt. After the +disaster of Chickamauga, Rosecrans was relieved and General Thomas was +put in command and General Grant was ordered to the field. He met +Rosecrans at Nashville where they had an interview. From General Grant +I received the statement that Rosecrans had sound views as to the means +of relieving the army; "And," said General Grant, "my wonder was that +he had not put them in execution." + +This one fact expresses enough of the weak side of Rosecrans as a +military leader to warrant the opinion given to Chase by Garfield, +and that opinion having been formed upon a knowledge of facts and of +Rosecrans as a military man and not from prejudice or rivalry, Garfield +should be honored for his course, rather than condemned. + +GEORGE BANCROFT + +The death of Mr. Bancroft at the age of more than ninety years removes +one of the few men in private life who can be ranked as personages. He +was, perhaps, the only person in private life whose death would have +received a semi-public recognition from any of the rulers of Europe. +Such a recognition was accorded by the Emperor of Germany, and chiefly, +as it is understood, on account of the friendship which existed between +Mr. Bancroft and the grandfather of the present Emperor. + +Mr. Bancroft's long and successful career as a writer and diplomatist +would seem to be evidence of the presence of qualities of a high order, +and yet no one who was near him accepted that opinion. His +conversation was not instructive, certainly not in later years, nor was +he an original thinker upon any subject. He was an enthusiast in +politics in early and middle life, and while his mental faculties +remained unimpaired his interest in political movements was great--and +usually it was in sympathy with the Democratic Party. He was an +adhesive man in politics, capable of appearing to be reconciled to the +success of his opponents and ready to accept favors from them in the +way of office and honors and yet without in fact committing himself +to their policy. + +He was a laborious student, and he had access to standard and in many +particulars to original authorities. At the commencement of his history +he erred in denying with much confidence the claim of the visits of the +Northmen to this continent in the ninth and tenth centuries. + +That early claim seems to be supported by evidence which is nearly, if +not absolutely, conclusive. Of all his chapters that on Washington +was most attractive to me and it is quite the equal of Mr. Everett's +oration, that yielded a large sum of money, that the orator applied to +the purchase of Mount Vernon. Mr. Bancroft aimed to illustrate his +history by an exhibition of philosophy. This feat in literature can +be accomplished successfully only by a great mind. First the events, +then the reasons for or sources of, then the consequences, then the +wisdom or unwisdom of the human agencies that have had part in weaving +the web, are all to be considered. Examples are Gibbon and Buckle. + +GENERAL GRANT AS A MAN AND A FRIEND + +The simplicity of General Grant's nature, his frankness in all his +intercourse with his fellow men, his freedom from duplicity were not +touched unfavorably in any degree by his rapid advancement from the +ordinary pursuits of ordinary men to the highest places in military +and civil life. There was never in his career any ostentatious display +of power, never any exercise of wanton or unnecessary authority. + +He disliked controversy even in conversation, and his reticence when +not in the company of habitual companions and trusted friends was due +in part to his rule of life on this subject. + +From the many years of my acquaintance with General Grant I cannot +recall an instance of a reference to theological opinions upon +controverted topics of faith. + +The humanitarian side of his nature was strong, but it was not +ostentatiously exhibited--indeed it was concealed rather than +proclaimed. It was made known to me by his interest and by his lack of +interest in appointments in the Treasury Department. + +Of salaried places he controlled the appointment of General Pleasanton +as commissioner of internal revenue, and of that only. + +On several occasions he suggested the designation of a person named for +employment in some menial and non-salaried service. The person named +was in every instance the widow or daughter of some soldier of the war. +At intervals, not widely separated, he would bring the subject to my +notice. Thus, without a command, I was forced to follow his suggestion. + +The purity of his conversation might have been a worthy example for the +most carefully trained person in etiquette and morals. My intercourse +with General Grant was intimate through many years, and never on any +occasion did he repeat a story or a phrase that contained a profane +remark or carried a vulgar allusion. He had a relish for untainted wit +and for genial humor, and for humor he had some capacity. He was not +an admirer of Mr. Sumner and a trace of irony may be found in a remark +attributed to him: When some one said: "Mr. Sumner does not believe +in the Bible," General Grant said: "No, I suppose not, he didn't write +it." + +General Grant was attracted by a horse driven by a butcher. He +purchased the animal at the cost of five hundred dollars. He invited +Senator Conkling to a drive behind the new horse. The Senator +criticised the animal, and said: "I think I should prefer the five +hundred dollars to the horse." "That is what the butcher thought," +said General Grant. + +He was sincere and devoted in his friendships, but when he discovered +that his confidence had been misplaced, a reconciliation became +impossible. With him there could be no genuine forgiveness, and his +nature could not tolerate any degree of hypocrisy. All voluntary +intercourse on his part had come to an end. + +There was a time when a demand for my removal from office was made by +some Republican Senators and by the New York _Herald_, to which he gave +no attention. + +The imperturbability of spirit which was indicated in his conversation +and movements was deep-seated in his nature. I was with him in a +night trip to New York; when the train was derailed in part. As the +wheels of the car struck the sleepers, he grasped the back of the seat +in front of him and remained motionless, while many of the passengers +added to their peril by abandoning their seats. + +On a time General Grant received a pair of large roan horses from his +farm in Missouri. He invited me to take one of the horses and join him +in a ride on the saddle. I declined the invitation. I was then invited +to take a seat with him in an open wagon. When we were descending a +slight declivity one of the horses laid his weight on the pole and +broke it, although the parts did not separate. General Grant placed +his foot upon the wheel, thus making a brake and saving us from a +disaster. General Grant's faculties were at command on the instant +and under all circumstances. + +When the Ku Klux organizations were active in the South, the President +gave members of Congress to understand that he would send a message +with a recommendation for punitive legislation. Upon reflection he +came to doubt the wisdom of the measure, especially as the use of the +military forces at New Orleans and elsewhere had been criticised in the +country. While the subject was thus undisposed of, I received a +message from the President which ended with a request that I should +accompany him to the Capitol. On the way he informed me that he +doubted the wisdom of a message and that he intended to so inform those +to whom he had given encouragement. At the interview which followed +several members who were present urged adherence to the original policy. +While the discussion was going on, the President returned to his +original opinion and wrote a message which was transmitted to the +Congress after one or two verbal changes that may have been suggested by +Secretary Fish or Secretary Robeson. + +General Grant's sense of justice was exact and he did not spare himself +in his criticism. He said to me in conversation, what is indicated in +his Memoirs, that he assumed some responsibility upon himself for the +removal of General Warren at Five Forks. He had known that General +Warren was disqualified by natural defects from command in the field, +and hence that it was an error on his part that he had not assigned +Warren to duty at a station. + +Again he said to me that his final campaign against Vicksburg was the +only one of his campaigns that he could not criticise adversely when +tested by reflection and experience. + +During my term of service an appointment of some importance was made by +the collector of New York. The appointment was approved by me. In the +meantime some opponents of the appointee approached the President. Upon +his suggestion the appointment was suspended. After a delay I received +a letter from the President dated June 28th, 1869, in which he says: +"If it should still be the pleasure of Mr. Grinnell to confer the +appointment before tendered, let it be so, so far as I am concerned. +I am not willing knowingly to do anyone injustice as I now am led to +believe I may have done in the case of General Egan." + +In the month of December, 1884, there were paragraphs in the newspapers +which justified the apprehension that General Grant was suffering from +a cancer. In the late days of the month, I called upon him at his +house in New York. He was then in good health, apparently. I found +him in his library engaged in the preparation of articles for the +_Century Magazine_. In the days of our more intimate acquaintance he +had said to me that it was his purpose to leave the history of his +campaigns to others. He referred to that remark and said that his +financial embarrassments had forced him to change his purpose. As I +was about to leave, he referred to a difficulty in his throat that he +had noticed for about six months. He expressed the fear that he had +neglected it too long. I avoided any serious remark in reply. Soon +after my return to Groton my daughter received a letter from him, which, +in photographic copy, I here give. It contains his parting words to +me and my family. It is a precious souvenir of my acquaintance and +service with a man who was great and good above any estimate that the +world has placed upon him. + +I called upon him in the month of June. He rose to receive me. His +power of speech was much impaired, and our interview was brief. The +final parting was a sad event to me. + +[Facsimile] +New York City, +January 3d, 1884; + +My dear Miss Boutwell: + +Many thanks for your New Year welcome, just received. There is no +family that I have ever known whose friendship I prize more highly than +that of your father. I wish for him and his family many returns of +new years, and that all of them may find him and his in the enjoyment +of good health and peace of mind. + +Very truly yours, +U. S. Grant + + +GRANT AS A SOLDIER* + +When General Grant came before the public, and into a position that +compelled notice, he was called to meet a difficulty that his +predecessor in the office of President had encountered and overcome +successfully. + +An opinion existed in the cultivated classes, an opinion that was +especially local in the East, that a great place could not be filled +wisely and honorably, unless the occupant had had the benefit of a +university training. + +Of such training Mr. Lincoln was destitute, utterly, and the training +which General Grant had received at West Point, where it was his +fortune to attain only to advanced standing in the lower half of his +class, was at the best the training thought to be necessary for the +vocation of a soldier. That minority of critics overlooked the fact +that the world had set the seal of its favorable judgment upon +Cromwell, Washington, Franklin, Napoleon, Hamilton and others who had +not the advantages of university training. Napoleon in a military +school and Hamilton in Columbia College for the term of a year, more +or less, did not rank among university men. + +That minority of critics did not realize the fact that colleges and +universities cannot make great men. Great men are independent of +colleges and universities. In truth, a really great man is supreme +over college and universities. + +Lincoln was such a man in speech, in power of argument, in practical +wisdom, by which he was enabled to act fearlessly and with success in +the great affairs of administration. + +Such a man was General Grant on the military side of his career. With +great military capacity, he was destitute of the military spirit. +During the period of his retirement from the army after the close of +the Mexican War he gave no attention to military affairs. When he came +to Washington in 1865 as General of the Army, he was not the owner of a +work on war nor on the military art or science. + +His military capacity was an endowment. It might have been impaired or +crippled by the training of a university; but it is doubtful whether it +could have been improved thereby, and it is certain that it was, in +its quality, quite outside of the possibilities of university training. + +As General Grant approached the end of his career the voice of the +critics, who judged men by the testimony of college catalogues and the +decorations of learned societies, was heard less frequently; and his +death, followed by the publication of his memoirs, written when the +hand of death was upon him, silenced the literary critics at once and +forever. + +Since the month of July, 1885, there has appeared on the other side of +the Atlantic a set of military critics, of whom General Wolseley, +Commander of the British Army, must be treated as the chief, who deny +to General Grant the possession of superior military qualities, and who +assert that General Lee was his superior in the contest which they +carried on from February, 1864, to April, 1865. On this side of the +Atlantic there is toleration, if not active and open support of General +Wolseley's opinion. + +General Wolseley is entitled to an opinion and to the expression of his +opinion; but his authority cannot be admitted. On the practical side +of military affairs his experience is a limited experience only. + +It is not known that General Wolseley ever, in any capacity, engaged in +any battle that can be named in comparison with the battles of the +Wilderness, with Spottsylvania, with Cold Harbor, or the battle of Five +Forks; and it is certain that it was never his fortune to put one +hundred thousand men, or even fifty thousand men, into the wage of +battle and thus assume the responsibility of the contest. + +It was never the necessity of the situation that General Lee should +assume the offensive, and in the two instances where he did assume the +offensive his campaigns were failures; and can any one doubt that if +General Grant had been in command either at Antietam or Gettysburg, the +war would than have come to an end of the left bank of the Potomac +River by the capture of Lee's army? If this be so, then Lee's +undertaking was a hazard for which there could have been no justifying +reason, and his escape from destruction was due to the inadequacy of the +men in command of the Northern armies. Following this remark I ought to +say that General Meade was a brave and patriotic officer, but he lacked +the qualities which enable a man to act promptly and wisely in great +exigencies. While General Lee was acting on the defensive did he +engage in and successfully execute any strategic movement that can be +compared with Grant's campaign of May, 1863, through Mississippi and to +the rear of Vicksburg? Or can General Wolseley cite an instance of +individual genius and power more conspicuous than the relief of our +besieged army at Chattanooga, the capture of six thousand prisoners, +forty pieces of artillery, seven thousand stands of small arms and +large quantities of other material of war? + +During the period of reconstruction Alexander H. Stephens was examined +by the Committee on the Judiciary of the House of Representatives as to +the condition and purposes of the South. When the examination was over +I asked him when he came to the conclusion that the South was to be +defeated. He said: "In the year 1862." I then said: "In that year +you had your successes. What were the grounds of your conclusions?" +In reply he said: "It was then that I first realized that the North +was putting its whole force into the contest, and I knew that in such +a contest we were to be destroyed." + +If I were to imagine a reason, or to suggest an excuse for General Lee's +two unsuccessful aggressive campaigns, I should assume that, +simultaneously with Mr. Stephens, he had reached the conclusion that +time was on the side of the North, and that the Fabian policy must fail +in the end. + +In an aggressive movement there was one chance of success. A victory +and capture of Philadelphia, Baltimore and Washington might lead to an +arrangement by which the Confederacy would be recognized, or a +restoration of the Union secured upon a basis acceptable to the South. +A desperate undertaking, no doubt, but it is difficult to suggest a +more adequate reason for the conduct of General Lee. + +I cannot, as a civilian, assume to give a judgment which shall be +accepted by any one, upon the relative standing of military men; but I +cannot accept, without question, the decision of a military man who +never won a great victory in a great battle, upon a chieftain who +fought many great battles and never lost one. + +I end my observations upon General Grant as a soldier by the relation +of an incident in my acquaintance with General Sherman, which was +intimate during the four years that I was at the head of the Treasury +Department. + +It was my custom in those years to spend evenings at General Sherman's, +where we indulged ourselves in conversation and in the enjoyment of the +game of billiards. Our conversations were chiefly upon the war. In +those conversations General Grant's name and doings were the topics +often. General Sherman never instituted a comparison between General +Grant and any one else, nor did he ever express an opinion of General +Grant as a military leader; but his conversation always assumed that +General Grant was superior to every other officer, himself, General +Sherman, included. + +In concurrence with the opinion of General Sherman the friends of +General Grant may call an array of witnesses who, both from numbers and +character, are entitled to large confidence. + +During the four years of the Civil War more than two million men served +in the Northern Army. Many of them, more than a majority of them, +probably, served for at least three years each. With an unanimity that +was never disturbed by an audible voice of dissent, the two million +veterans gave to General Grant supremacy over all the other officers +under whom they had served. With like unanimity the chief officers of +the army assigned the first place to General Grant, and never in any +other war of modern times has there been equal opportunity for the +applications of a satisfactory test to leaders. In all the wars which +England has been engaged since the fall of Napoleon, except, possibly, +the Crimean War, the opposing forces have been composed of inferior +races of men. The fields of contest have been in India, Egypt and South +Africa. From such contests no satisfactory opinion can be formed as to +the qualities of the leaders of the victorious forces. + +In our Civil War the men and the officers were of the same race in the +main, and the educated officers had been alike trained at West Point. +Except in numbers, the armies of the North and the South were upon an +equality, and in all the great contests, the numbers engaged were +equal substantially. The quality of the man and officers may be gauged +and measured with accuracy from the fact that at Shiloh, in the +Wilderness and at Gettysburg the same fields were contested for two +and three continuous days. It has been said of Mr. Adams that when an +English sympathizer with the South lauded the bravery of the Southern +Army, Mr. Adams replied: "Yes, they are brave men; they are my country- +men." + +The Southern Army was composed of brave men and its officers were +qualified by training and experience to command any army and to contest +for supremacy on any field. + +My readers should not assume that I have avoided a discussion of the +characteristics of General Grant in his personality and as a civil +magistrate. + +The voice of those who in 1872 denied his ability and questioned his +integrity is no longer heard; but there are those at home and abroad +who either teach or accept the notion that General Grant has become +great historically by having been the favorite of fortune. + +[* From the New York _Independent_.] + + +XL +BLAINE AND CONKLING AND THE REPUBLICAN CONVENTION OF 1880 + +The controversy between Mr. Blaine and Mr. Conkling on the floor of the +House of Representatives in the Thirty-ninth Congress was fraught with +serious consequences to the contestants, and it may have changed the +fortunes of the Republican Party. + +Mr. Conkling was a member of the Thirty-seventh Congress, but he was +defeated as a candidate for the Thirty-eighth. He was returned for the +Thirty-ninth Congress. During the term of the Thirty-eighth Congress +he was commissioned by the Department of War as judge-advocate, and +assigned for duty to the prosecution of Major Haddock and the trial of +certain soldiers known as "bounty jumpers." That duty he performed. + +When the army bill was before the House in April, 1866, Mr. Conkling +moved to strike out the section which made an appropriation for the +support of the provost-marshal general. General Grant, then in +command of the army, had given an opinion, in a letter dated March 19, +1866, that that office in the War Department was an unnecessary office. +Mr. Conkling supported his motion in a speech in which he said: "My +objection to this section is that is creates an unnecessary office for +an undeserving public servant; it fastens, as an incubus upon the +country, a hateful instrument of war, which deserves no place in a free +government in a time of peace." + +Thus Mr. Conkling not only assailed the office, he assailed the officer, +and in a manner calculated to kindle resentment, especially in an +officer of high rank. General James B. Fry was provost-marshal-general. +He was able to command the friendship of Mr. Blaine, and on the +thirtieth day of April, Mr. Blaine read from his seat in the House a +letter from General Fry addressed to himself. Thus Mr. Blaine endorsed +the contents of the letter. + +In that letter General Fry made three specific charges against Mr. +Conkling, but he made no answer to the arraignment that Mr. Conkling +had made of him and his office. Thus he avoided the issue that Mr. +Conkling had raised. His charges were these: + +1. That Mr. Conkling had received a fee for the prosecution of Major +Haddock, and that the same had been received improperly, if not +illegally. + +2. That in the discharge of his duties he had not acted in good faith, +and that he had been zealous in preventing the prosecution of deserters +at Utica. + +3. That he had notified the War Department that the Provost-Marshal in +Western New York needed legal advice, and that thereupon he received +an appointment. + +The fourth charge was an inference, and it fell with the allegation. + +Upon the reading of the letter a debate arose which fell below any +recognized standard of Congressional controversy and which rendered a +reconciliation impossible. + +At that time my relations to Mr. Conkling were not intimate, and I am +now puzzled when I ask myself the question: "Why did Mr. Conkling +invite my opinion as to his further action in the matter?" That he did, +however; and I advised him to ask for a committee. A committee of five +was appointed, three Republicans and two Democrats. Mr. Shellabarger +was chairman, and Mr. Windom was a member. + +The report was a unanimous report. The committee criticised the +practice of reading letters in the House, which reflected upon the +House, or upon the acts or speeches of any member. + +At considerable length of statement and remarks, the committee +exonerated Mr. Conkling from each and every one of the charges, and, +with emphasis, the proceedings on the part of General Fry were +condemned. The most important of the resolutions reported by the +committee was in these words: + +_Resolved,_ That all the statements contained in the letter of General +James B. Fry to Hon. James G. Blaine, a member of this House, bearing +date the 27th of April, A. D. 1866, and which was read in this House +the 30th day of April, A. D. 1866, in so far as such statements impute +to the Hon. Roscoe Conkling, a member of this House, any criminal, +illegal, unpatriotic, or otherwise improper conduct, or motives, either +as to the matter of his procuring himself to be employed by the +Government of the United States in the prosecution of military offences +in the State of New York, in the management of such prosecutions, in +taking compensation therefor, or in any other charge, are wholly without +foundation truth, and for their publication there were, in the judgment +of the House, no facts connected with said prosecutions furnishing +either a palliative or an excuse. + + +The controversy thus opened came to an end only with Mr. Conkling's +death. It is not known to me that Mr. Conkling and Mr. Blaine were +unfriendly previous to the encounter of April, 1866. That they could +have lived on terms of intimacy, or even of ordinary friendship, is not +probable. Yet it may not be easy to assign a reason for such an +estrangement unless it may be found in the word incompatibility. My +relations with Mr. Blaine were friendly, reserved, and as to his +aspirations for the Presidency, it was well understood by him that I +could not be counted among his original supporters. + +Only on one occasion was the subject ever mentioned. About two weeks +before the Republican Convention of 1884, I met Mr. Blaine in Lafayette +Square. He beckoned me to a seat on a bench. He opened the +conversation by saying that he was glad to have some votes in the +convention, but that he did not wish for the nomination. He expressed +a wish to defeat the nomination of President Arthur, and he then said +the ticket should be General Sherman and Robert Lincoln. Most +assuredly the nomination of that ticket would have been followed by an +election. To me General Sherman had one answer to the suggestion: +"I am not a statesman; my brother John is. If any Sherman is to be +nominated, he is the man." + +I did not then question, nor do I now question, the sincerity of the +statement that Mr. Blaine then made. My acquaintance with Mr. Blaine +began with our election to the Thirty-eighth Congress, and it continued +on terms of reserved friendship to the end of his life. That reserve +was not due to any defect in his character of which I had knowledge, +nor to the statements concerning him that were made by others, but to +an opinion that he was not a person whose candidacy I was willing to +espouse in advance of his nomination. I ought to say that in my +intercourse with Mr. Blaine he was frank and free from dissimulation. + +I was on terms of intimacy with Mr. Conkling from the disastrous April, +1866, to the end of his life. Hence it was that I ventured upon an +experiment which a less well-assured friend would have avoided. I +assumed that Mr. Blaine would close the controversy at the first +opportunity. It may be said of Mr. Blaine that, while he had great +facility for getting into difficulties, he had also a strong desire to +get out of difficulties, and great capacity for the accomplishment of +his purposes in that direction. + +On a time, and years previous to 1880, I put the matter before Mr. +Conkling, briefly, upon personal grounds, and upon public grounds in +a party sense. He received the suggestion without any manifestation +of feeling, and with great candor he said: "That attack was made +without any provocation by me as against Mr. Blaine, and when I was +suffering more from other causes than I ever suffered at any other time, +and I shall never overlook it." + +General Grant's strength was so overmastering in 1868 and 1872 that +the controversy between Blaine and Conkling was of no importance to the +Republican Party. The disappearance of the political influence of +General Grant in 1876 revived the controversy within the Republican +Party, and made the nomination of either Blaine or Conkling an +impossibility. Its evil influence extended to the election, and it put +in jeopardy the success of General Hayes. At the end, Mr. Conkling +did not accept the judgment of the Electoral Commission as a just +judgment, and he declined to vote for its affirmation. + +I urged Mr. Conkling to sustain the action of the commission, and upon +the ground that we had taken full responsibility when we agreed to the +reference and that there was then no alternative open to us. I did not +attempt to solve the problem of the election of 1876 either upon ethical +or political grounds. The evidence was more conclusive than +satisfactory that there had been wrong-doing in New York, in Oregon, +in New Orleans, and not unlikely in many other places. As a measure of +peace, when ascertained justice had become an impossibility, I was +ready to accept the report of the commission, whether it gave the +Presidency to General Hayes or to Mr. Tilden. The circumstances were +such that success before the commission did not promise any +advantage to the successful party. + +For the moment, I pass by the Convention of 1880 and the events of the +following year. In the year 1884 Mr. Conkling was in the practice of +his profession and enjoying therefrom larger emoluments, through a +series of years, than ever were enjoyed by any other member of the +American bar. He once said to me: "My father would denounce me if +he knew what charges I am making." That conjecture may have been well +founded, for the father would not have been the outcome of the period +in which the son was living. The father was an austere county judge, +largely destitute of the rich equipment for the profession for which +the son was distinguished. After the year 1881, when Mr. Conkling +gave himself wholly to the profession, Mr. Justice Miller made this +remark to me: "For the discussion of the law and the facts of a case +Mr. Conkling is the best lawyer who comes into our court." + +If this estimate was trustworthy, then Mr. Conkling's misgivings as to +his charges may have been groundless. If a rich man, whose property is +put in peril, whose liberty is assailed, or whose reputation is +threatened, will seek the advice and aid of the leading advocate of the +city, state, or country, shall not the compensation be commensurate +with the stake that has been set up? Is it to be measured by the +_per diem_ time pay of ordinary men? + +Whatever may have been Mr. Conkling's pecuniary interests or +professional engagements in the year 1884, he found time to take a quiet +part in the contest of that year, and to contribute to Mr. Blaine's +defeat. + +In the month of November, and after the election, I had occasion to pass +a Sunday in New York. It happened, and by accident, that I met Mr. +Conkling on Fifth Avenue. After the formalities, he invited me to call +with him upon Mr. William K. Vanderbilt. Mr. Vanderbilt was absent +when we called. Upon his return, the election was the topic of +conversation. Mr. Vanderbilt said that he voted for Garfield in 1880, +but that he had not voted for Blaine. Mr. Conkling expressed his +regret that Mr. Blaine had come so near a success, and he attributed it +to the fact that he had not anticipated the support which had been +given to Blaine by the Democratic Party. + +On a time in the conversation Mr. Conkling said: "Mr. Vanderbilt, why +did you sell Maud S.?" + +Mr. Vanderbilt proceeded to give reasons. He had received letters from +strangers inquiring about her pedigree, care, age, treatment, etc., +which he could not answer without more labor than he was willing to +perform. As a final reason, he said: "When I drive up Broadway, people +do not say, 'There goes Vanderbilt,' but they say, 'There goes Maud S.'" + +When General Grant was on his journey around the world I wrote him a +letter occasionally, and occasionally I received a letter in reply. In +two of my letters I mentioned as a fact what I then thought to be the +truth, that there was a very considerable public opinion in favor of +his nomination for President in 1880, and that upon his return to the +country some definite action on his part might be required. Upon a +recent examination of his letters, I find that they are free from any +reference to the Presidency. If Mr. Conkling, General Logan, Mr. +Cameron, and myself came to be considered the special representatives +of General Grant at the Chicago Convention of 1880, the circumstance was +not due to any designation by him prior to the Galena letter, of which +I am to speak and which was written while the convention was in session, +and when the contest between the contending parties was far advanced. + +Our title was derived from the constant support that we had given him +through many years and from his constant friendship for us through the +same many years. We were of the opinion then, and in that belief we +never faltered, that the nomination and election of General Grant were +the best security that could be had for the peace and prosperity of +the country. That opinion was supported by an expressed public +sentiment in the conventions of New York, Pennsylvania, and Illinois, +and in other parts of the country there were evidences of a disposition +in the body of the people to support General Grant in numbers far in +excess of the strength of the Republican Party. + +The mass of the people were not disturbed by the thought that General +Grant might become President a third time. They did not accept the +absurd notion that experience, successful experience, disqualified a +man for further service. Nor did that apprehension influence any +considerable number of the leaders. They demanded a transfer of power +into new hands. This, unquestionably, was their right, and as a +majority of the convention, as the convention was constituted finally, +they were able to assert and to maintain their supremacy. + +It is too late for complaints, and complaints were vain when the causes +were transpiring, but there were delegates who appeared in the +convention as opponents of General Grant who had been elected upon the +understanding that they were his friends. Upon this fact I hang a +single observation. If there is a trust in human affairs that should be +treated as a sacred trust it is to be found in the duty that arises +from the acceptance of a representative office in matters of government. +When a public opinion has been formed, either in regard to men or to +measures, whoever undertakes to represent that opinion should do so in +good faith. + +To this rule there were many exceptions in the Republican Convention of +1880, and it was no slight evidence of devotion to the party and to the +country when General Grant and Mr. Conkling entered actively into the +contest after the fortunes of the party had been prostrated, apparently, +by the disaster in the State of Maine. + +Of the many incidents of the convention no one is more worthy of notice +than the speech of Mr. Conkling when he placed General Grant in +nomination. Whatever he said that was in support of his cause, +affirmatively, was of the highest order of dramatic eloquence. When he +dealt with his opponents, his speech was not advanced in quality and its +influence was diminished. His reference in his opening sentence to his +associates who had deserted General Grant: "In obedience to +instructions which I should never dare to disregard," was tolerated even +by his enemies; but his allusion to Mr. Blaine in these words: "without +patronage, without emissaries, without committees, without bureaus, +without telegraph wires running from his house to this convention, or +running from his house anywhere," intensified the opposition to General +Grant. + +In many particulars his speech is an unequaled analysis of General +Grant's character and career, presented in a most attractive form. An +extract may be tolerated from a speech that can be read with interest +even by those who are ignorant of the doings, or it may be, by those +who have no knowledge of the existence, of the convention: + +"Standing on the highest eminence of human distinction, modest, firm, +simple, and self-poised, having filled all lands with his renown, he +has seen not only the high-born and the titled, but the poor and the +lowly, in the uttermost ends of the earth, rise and uncover before him." + +Mr. Conkling was the recognized leader of the three hundred and six who +constituted the compact body of the supporters of General Grant. + +Suggestions were made that the substitution of Mr. Conkling's name for +General Grant's name would give the nomination to Mr. Conkling, and +there was a moment of time when General Garfield anticipated or +apprehended such a result. There was, however, never a moment of time +when such a result was possible. The three hundred and six would never +have consented to the use of any name in place of General Grant's name +unless General Grant's name were first withdrawn by his authority. + +A firmer obstacle even would have been found in Mr. Conkling's sturdy +refusal to allow the use of his name under such circumstances. Among +the friends of General Grant the thought of such a proceeding was never +entertained, although the suggestion was made, but without authority, +probably, from those charged with the management of the organizations +engaged in the struggle. + +After many years had passed, and the proceedings of the convention were +well-nigh forgotten, Mr. John Russell Young printed a letter in which he +made the charge that Conkling, Cameron, Boutwell, and Lincoln had +concealed the contents of a letter from General Grant in which he +directed them as his representatives to withdraw his name from the +convention. Mr. Young was in error in two particulars. Lincoln was not +named in the letter. General Logan was the fourth person to whom the +letter was addressed. + +Young brought the letter from Galena, where Grant then was, and he +claims that the letter was addressed to himself. General Frederick D. +Grant, who was then at Chicago, claims that the letter was addressed to +him, and that, after reading it, he handed it to Mr. Conkling. + +As late as the first half of the year 1897, Mr. Conkling's papers had +not been examined carefully. The contents of the letter are important, +and for the present the evidence is circumstantial; but to me it is +conclusive against Mr. Young's statement that Conkling, Cameron, Logan, +and Boutwell were directed by General Grant to withdraw his name from +the convention. I cannot now say that I read the letter, but of its +receipt and the contents I had full knowledge, and I referred to it +in these words in a letter to my daughter dated May 31, 1880: + +"Grant sent for Young to visit him at Galena. Young returned to-day, +and says that Grant directed him to say to Cameron, Logan, Conkling, +and Boutwell that he should be satisfied with whatever they may do." + +Without any special recollection upon the point, the conclusion of +reason is that my letter was written from a conversation with Young, +and before I had knowledge of the contents of Grant's letter. I may +add, however, that his letter produced no change in my opinion as to +our authority and duty in regard to Grant's candidacy. My mind never +departed for a moment from the idea that we were free, entirely free, +to continue the contest in behalf of General Grant upon our own judgment. + +Upon the views and facts already presented and with even greater +certainty upon the correspondence with General Frederick D. Grant, +I submit as the necessary conclusion of the whole matter that the letter +of General Grant of May, 1880, did not contain any specific +instructions, and especially that it did not contain instructions for +the withdrawal of his name from the convention; in fine, that the +further conduct of the contest was left to the discretion and judgment +of the four men whom he had recognized as his representatives. + +I annex the correspondence with General Frederick D. Grant: + +BOSTON, MASS., _May_ 28, 1897. +COL. FRED. D. GRANT, NEW YORK, N. Y. + +_Dear Sir:_ You will of course recall the fact that John Russell Young, +some months ago, made a public statement in which he declared that he +brought from Galena to Chicago, during the session of the Republican +Convention of 1880, a letter from General Grant in which he gave +specific directions to Conkling, Cameron, and Boutwell to withdraw his +name as a candidate from the convention. Some months ago I had some +correspondence with A. R. Conkling, and also with yourself, in regard +to the contents of the letter written by General Grant. Mr. A. R. +Conkling sent me a copy of a portion of a letter which, as he advised +me, he had received from you. A copy of that extract I herewith +enclose. As one of the friends of General Grant and as one of the +persons to whom bad faith was imputed by Mr. Young, it is my purpose to +place the matter before the public with such evidence as I can +command, for the purpose of showing the character of the letter. + +I wish to obtain from you such a statement as you are willing to make, +with the understanding that whenever the case shall be presented to the +public your letter may be used. + +Aside from actual evidence tending to show that Young's statement is +erroneous, I cannot believe that General Grant would have recognized +as a friend either one of the persons named, if his explicit +instructions for the withdrawal of his name had been made by him and +disregarded by them. + +Yours very truly, + GEO S. BOUTWELL. + + +25 EAST 62D STREET, +NEW YORK, _May_ 30, 1897. + +_My Dear Senator:_ I received yesterday your letter of May 28th, in +which you asked me what I remember about a letter which my father, +General Grant, wrote to his four leading friends during the session of +the Republican National Convention at Chicago in 1880. + +With reference to this matter my recollection is, that Mr. John Russell +Young, who had been visiting father in Galena, brought from him a +large sealed envelope, which he delivered to me at my home in Chicago, +with directions from my father that I should read the letter contained +therein, and then see that it was received safely by his four friends, +Senators Conkling, Boutwell, Cameron, and Logan. + +The substance of General Grant's letter was, that the personal feelings +of partisans of the leading candidates had grown to be so bitter, that +it might become advisable for the good of the Republican Party to +select as their candidate some one whose name had not yet been +prominently before the convention, and that he therefore wrote to say +to those who represented his interest in the convention, that it would +be quite satisfactory to him if they would confer with those who +represented the interests of Mr. Blaine and decided to have both his +name and Mr. Blaine's withdrawn from before the convention. + +I delivered in person this letter from my father, to Senator Conkling-- +I do not know what disposition he made of it. + +With highest regards, my dear Senator, for your family and yourself, +believe me, as ever, + +Faithfully yours, +FREDERICK D. GRANT. + + +Following the visit of General Grant and Mr. Conkling to Mentor in the +autumn of 1880, I was informed by Mr. Conkling that he had not been +alone one minute with General Garfield, intending by that care-taking +to avoid the suggestion that his visit was designed to afford an +opportunity for any personal or party arrangement. Further, it was the +wish of General Grant, as it was his wish, that the effort which they +were then making should be treated as a service due to the party and to +the country, and that General Garfield should be left free from any +obligation to them whatsoever. + +After the election and after Mr. Blaine became Secretary of State, he +volunteered to speak of the situation of the party in New York and of +Mr. Conkling's standing in the State. Among other things, he said that +Mr. Conkling was the only man who had had three elections to the Senate, +and that Mr. Conkling and his friends would be considered fairly in +the appointments that might be made in that State. + +When in a conversation with Conkling, I mentioned Blaine's remark, he +said, "Do you believe one word of that?" + +I said, "Yes, I believe Mr. Blaine." + +He said with emphasis, "I don't." + +Subsequent events strengthened Mr. Conkling in his opinion, but those +events did not change my opinion of Mr. Blaine's integrity of purpose +in the conversations of which I have spoken. + +My knowledge of the events, not important in themselves, but which +seem to have the relation of a prelude to the great tragedy, was +derived from three persons, Mr. Conkling, Mr. Blaine, and Mr. Marshall +Jewell. At the request of the President, Mr. Conkling called upon him +the Sunday preceding the day of catastrophe. The President gave Mr. +Conkling the names of persons that he was considering favorably for +certain places. To several of these Mr. Conkling made objections, and +in some cases other persons were named. As Mr. Conkling was leaving +he said, "Mr. President, what do you propose about the collectorship +of New York?" The President said, "We will leave that for another +time." These statements I received from Mr. Conkling. + +From Mr. Jewell I received the following statement as coming from the +President: When the New York nominations were sent to the Senate, the +President was forthwith in the receipt of letters and despatches in +protest, coupled with the suggestion that everything had been +surrendered to Conkling. Without delay and without consultation with +any one, the President nominated Judge Robertson to the office of +collector of New York. Further, the President said, as reported by Mr. +Jewell, Mr. Blaine heard of the nomination, and he came in very pale +and much astonished. + +From Mr. Blaine I received the specific statement that he had no +knowledge of the nomination of Judge Robertson until it had been made. + +These statements are reconcilable with each other, and they place the +responsibility for the sudden and fatal rupture of the relations +between Mr. Conkling and the President upon the President. Mr. Conkling +could not fail to regard the nomination of Robertson as a wilful and +premeditated violation of the pledge given at the Sunday conference. +It was, however, only an instance of General Garfield's impulsive and +unreasoning submission to an expression of public opinion, without +waiting for evidence of the nature and value of that opinion. That +weakness had been observed by his associates in the House of +Representatives, and on that weakness his administration was wrecked. + +Mr. Conkling was much misrepresented and of course he was much +misunderstood. As a Senator from New York he claimed a right to be +consulted in regard to the principal appointments in the State. His +recommendations were few and they were made with great care. He +confined himself to the chief appointments. It was quite difficult +to secure his name or his favorable word in behalf of applicants for +the subordinate places. + +In my experience with him, which was considerable in the Internal +Revenue Office and in the Treasury, I found him ready to concede to +the opinions of the Executive Department. He was one of those who +held to the opinion that it was the duty of Representatives and Senators +to give advice in regard to appointments and to give it upon their +responsibility as members of the Government. Senators and +Representatives are not officers of the Government, they are members +of the Government, and the duty of giving aid to the administration +rests upon them. + +When a man is chosen to represent a State or a district, a presumption +should arise that he will act for the good of the country to the best +of his ability. Advice in regard to appointments is a part of his +duty, and in the main the Senators and Representatives are worthy of +confidence. The present Civil Service system rests upon the theory that +they are not to be trusted and that three men without a constituency +are safer custodians of power. + +Upon the death of Garfield and the accession of Arthur, Mr. Conkling +looked for one thing, and one thing only--the removal of Robertson. +When this was not done he separated from Arthur. I have no knowledge +of the reasons which governed the President, but I think his career +would have been more agreeable to himself if he had so far vindicated +his own course and the course of his friends as to have removed from +office the man who had contributed so largely to the defeat of the wing +of the Republican Party with which Mr. Arthur was identified. + +When General Garfield died, the Republican Party was broken, and it +seemed to be without hope. President Arthur's conciliatory policy did +much to restore harmony of all the elements except the wing represented +by Mr. Conkling. + +It is probable, however, that a better result might have been secured by +the early removal of Robertson. That course of action would have been +satisfactory to Conkling, and given strength to the party in New York, +where strength was most needed. With Mr. Conkling's aid in 1884, Mr. +Arthur might have been nominated, and if nominated it is probable that +he might have been elected with Mr. Conkling's aid. Arthur's error was +that he offended two important factions of the party. By retaining +Robertson he alienated Conkling, and by the removal of Blaine he +alienated him and his friends. Hence in 1884 two elements of the party +that were bitterly opposed to each other harmonized in their opposition +to Arthur. + + +XLI +FROM 1875 TO 1895 + +THE HAWAIIAN TREATY AND RECIPROCITY + +In January, 1875, Mr. Fish negotiated a treaty with the representatives +of the Hawaiian Islands by which there was to be a free exchange of +specified products and manufactures. + +By the fourth article the King agreed not to dispose of any port or +harbor in his dominions or create a lien thereon in favor of any other +government. When the treaty came to the Senate it had no original +friends, and it met with determined opposition, especially from Sherman +of Ohio, and Morrill and Edmunds of Vermont. The reciprocity feature +annoyed them, they fearing that it might be used as a precedent for +reciprocity with Canada. + +I was early impressed with the importance of securing a foothold in the +islands and I considered the exclusion of other nations as a step in +the right direction. The trustworthy estimates showed that the +reciprocity feature would work a loss to the Treasury of the United +States of more than half a million dollars a year. This the supporters +of the treaty were compelled to admit, but after argument the requisite +majority ratified the treaty and upon the theory that the political, +naval and commercial advantages were an adequate compensation. Upon the +renewal of the treaty the King ceded Pearl River Harbor to the United +States. After the expiration of the fixed period of seven years during +which the two nations were bound mutually, there was a class of men who +were anxious to abrogate the treaty, and at each session of Congress +for several years a proposition was introduced for that purpose. By +something of argument and something of art, the scheme was defeated. +The opposition, led usually by Holman, of Indiana, consisted largely of +Democrats. Their reason was loss of revenue. That fact was always +admitted by the friends of the treaty. It was claimed also that there +was no advantage gained by the country from the introduction of rice +and sugar from the islands duty-free. It was asserted by the +combinations the prices were as high on the Pacific Coast as on the +Atlantic. On the other hand the Louisiana sugar planters opposed the +treaty on the ground that they were unfavorably affected. As the +importations from the islands never exceeded four per cent of the +consumption of the country, the treaty had no perceptible effect upon +prices. The sugar and rice interests were reinforced by the delegations +from Michigan, Ohio and Vermont, who opposed the treaty under an +apprehension that it would operate as a precedent for a revival of the +system of reciprocity with Canada. + +The fact of the annexation of Canada to the United States, whether the +event shall occur in a time near or be postponed to a time remote, +depends probably on our action upon the subject of reciprocity. + +Canada needs our markets and our facilities for ocean transportation, +and, as long as these advantages are denied to her, she can never attain +to a high degree of prosperity. England may furnish capital for +railways, but railways are profitable only where there is business and +production on the one hand, and markets on the other. The system of +qualified intercourse tends to make the Canadian farmer dissatisfied +with his condition, and as long as there are cheap lands in the United +States he will find relief in emigration. + +The time, however, is not far distant, when the Canadian farmer will be +unable to sell his lands in the Dominion and with the proceeds purchase +a home in the States. When that time arrives he will favor annexation +as a means of raising his own possessions to a value corresponding to +the value of land in the States. The body of farmers, laborers, and +trading people will favor annexation, ultimately, should the policy of +non-intercourse be adhered to on our part, and they will outnumber the +office-holding class, and thus the union of the two countries will be +secured. It is apparent also that a policy of free intercourse would +postpone annexation for a long time, if not indefinitely. Give to the +Canadian farmer and fisherman free access to our markets and there will +remain only a political motive in favor of annexation. The English +government is pursuing a liberal policy in its dealings with the +Dominion, and there is no reason for anticipating a retrograde course +of conduct on the part of the home government. + +THE MISSISSIPPI ELECTION OF 1875 + +In 1876 I was made chairman of a committee of the Senate charged with +the duty of investigating the election of 1875 in the State of +Mississippi. My associates were Cameron of Wisconsin, McMillan of +Missouri, Bayard of Delaware, and McDonald of Missouri. + +By the election of 1875 the Republican Party had been overthrown and +the power of the Democratic Party established upon a basis which has +continued firm, until the present time. The question for investigation +was this: Was the election of 1875 an honest election? There was an +agreement of opinion that there were riots, shootings and massacres. +On the side of the Democrats it was contended that these outrages had +no political significance, that they were due to personal quarrels, +and to uprisings of negroes for the purpose of murdering the whites. +The testimony was of the same character and the conclusions of the two +branches of the committee followed the lead of these conflicting +theories and statements. For myself I had no doubt that the election +of 1875 was carried by the Democrats by a preconcerted plan of riots +and assassinations. To me the evidence seemed conclusive. + +The town of Aberdeen was the scene of murderous intimidation on the +day of election, and at about eleven o'clock the Republicans left the +polling place and abandoned the contest. + +One of the principal witnesses for the Democrats was General Reuben +Davis, a cousin of Jefferson Davis. He had been a member of the +Thirty-sixth Congress, and he had resigned his seat to take part in the +Rebellion. He was a Brigadier-General in the service, but without +distinction. He explained and excused all the transactions at +Aberdeen and with emphasis and adroitness he laid the responsibility +upon the Republicans. Of certain things there was uncontradicted +testimony. 1. That the Democrats placed a cannon near the voting-place +and trained it upon the window where the Republicans, mostly negroes, +were to vote, and that there was a caisson at the same place. 2. That +there was a company of mounted men and armed cavalry upon the ground. +3. That guns were discharged in the vicinity of the voting place. +4. That at about eleven o'clock the sheriff of the county, a white man +and a Republican, who had been a colonel in the rebel army, made a +brief address to the Republican voters in which he said that there could +be no election and advised them to go to their homes. This they did +without delay. The sheriff locked himself in the jail where he remained +until the events of the day were ended. General Davis insisted that +all these demonstrations of apparent hostility had no significance-- +that the artillery men had no ammunition--that the cavalry men were +assembled for sport only--and that the discharge of muskets was made by +boys and lawless persons, but without malice. + +In many parts of the State the canvass previous to the election was +characterized by assassinations and midnight murders. But all were +explained upon non-political grounds. + +In 1878 General Davis offered himself to the electors as a Democratic +candidate for Congress. The convention nominated another person. He +then entered the field as an independent candidate. He was defeated, +or rather the Democrat was declared to have been elected. The +Republicans had voted for Davis, and when the contest was decided by +the returning board Davis published a letter in which he charged upon +the Democratic leaders the conduct which in 1876, he had explained and +defended. After the election of General Harrison in 1888, General Davis +appeared at Indianapolis as a Republican, and as such he had an +interview with the President-elect. + +While I was conducting the investigation at Jackson, a stout negro from +the plantation sought an interview with me after he had been examined +by the committee. He was a mulatto of unusual sense, but he was under +a strong feeling in regard to the outrages that had been perpetrated +upon the negro race. + +Finally he said: "Had we not better take off the leaders? We can do it +in a night." + +I said: "No. It would end in the sacrifice of the black population. +It would be as wrong on your part as is their conduct towards you. +Moreover, we intend to protect you, and in the end you will be placed +on good ground." + +There is, however, a lesson and a warning in what that negro said. If +the wrongs continue, some "John Brown" black or white, may appear in +Mississippi or South Carolina or in several states at once, and engage +in a vain attempt to regain the rights of the negro race by brutal +crimes. The negroes are seven million to-day, and they are increasing +in numbers and gaining in wealth and intelligence. The South, and +indeed the whole country were not more blind to impending perils in the +days of slavery than we now are to the perils of the usurpation in +which the South is engaged. With such examples as this country +furnishes and with the traditions under whose influence all classes are +living, there will always be peril as long as large bodies of citizens +are deprived of their legal rights. + +Should such a contest arise, there will be wide spread sympathy in the +North, which might convert a servile or social war into a sectional +civil war. + +COURTESY OF THE SENATE--SENATORIAL ELECTION OF 1887 + +One of my last acts as Secretary was to advise the President to nominate +a Mr. Hitchcock for collector of the port of San Diego, California. +Hitchcock was a lawyer by profession, a graduate of Harvard and a man of +good standing in San Diego. Mr. Houghton, the member for the San Diego +district, had recommended a man who was a saloon-keeper and a Democrat +in politics, but he had supported Houghton in the canvass. Houghton's +request was supported by Senator Sargent. Upon the facts as then +understood the President nominated Hitchcock and one of the first +questions of interest to me was the action of the Senate upon the +nomination of Hitchcock which I supported. + +Sargent appealed to what was known as the courtesy of the Senate a rule +or custom which required Senators of the same party to follow the lead +of Senators in the matter of nominations from the respective States. To +this rule I objected. I refused to recognize it, and I said that I +would never appeal to the "courtesy" of the Senate in any matter +concerning the State of Massachusetts. Hitchcock was rejected. The +President nominated Houghton's candidate. + +This action on my part was followed by consequences which may have +prevented my re-election to the Senate. When Judge Russell, who was +collector of the port of Boston, was about to resign, General Butler, +who had early knowledge of the purpose of Russell, secured from General +Grant the nomination of his friend William A. Simmons. Simmons had been +in the army, he had had experience in the Internal Revenue Service and +his record was good. He was, however, Butler's intimate friend, and +all the hostility in the State against Butler, which was large, was +directed against the confirmation. I was not personally opposed to +Simmons, but I thought that his appointment was unwise in the extreme, +and therefore I opposed his confirmation. There were fair offers of +compromise on men who were free from objections, all of which were +refused by Butler. The President declined to withdraw the nomination +unless it could be made to appear that Simmons was an unfit man. This +could not be done. I was upon the Committee on Commerce to which the +nomination was referred, and upon my motion the report was adverse to +the nomination. Butler came to my room and denounced my action, +saying that he would spend half a million dollars to defeat my re- +election. I said in reply:-- + +"You can do that if you choose, but you cannot control my action now." + +In the Senate I opposed the confirmation on the ground that a majority +of the Republican Party were dissatisfied, that it was an unnecessary +act of violence to their feelings, that there were men who were +acceptable who could be considered, and that the means by which the +nomination was secured could not be defended. I was then challenged to +say whether I appealed to the courtesy of the Senate. I said: + +"No, I do not. I ask for the rejection of Simmons upon the ground that +the nomination ought not to have been made." + +Sumner appealed to the courtesy of the Senate, but he had then wandered +so far from the Republican Party that his appeal was disregarded. +Simmons was confirmed. + +Enough of the proceedings were made public to enable my opponents to +allege that I might have defeated Simmons, and that my action was +insincere. As a result I had no further political intercourse with +Butler, and when the contest came in 1877 his action aided Mr. Hoar in +securing the seat in the Senate. I presume, however, that Butler +preferred my election, but he had hopes for himself, or at least that +the election would go to a third party. A day or two before the +election he sent me a friendly despatch urging me to go to Boston. I +had already determined to avoid any personal participation in the +contest. That non-interference I have never regretted. + +THE ELECTORAL COMMISSION + +As I now view the subject (1900) the Electoral Commission was an +indefensible necessity. In the division of parties it seemed +impossible, and probably it was impossible, to secure a result with +peace to the country, except by a resort to extraordinary means. + +When the bill passed the two houses the chances were with the Democrats. +Judge Davis was in the list of judges from the Supreme Court. His +sympathies, and perhaps his opinions, were with the Democratic Party, +and there was reason to apprehend that he might incline to act with the +Democratic members of the commission. After the passage of the bill +Judge Davis was chosen Senator from Illinois, and Judge Strong became +a member. Upon the pivotal questions the members acted upon their +political opinions, or, most certainly in accordance with them. + +I voted for the bill upon the understanding that there was no specific +authority for such a proceeding. Indeed, the questions might have been +referred to the mayors of New York and Brooklyn, upon grounds equally +defensible in a legal point of view, although the tribunal selected was +much better qualified for the duty. Having agreed to the use of an +unconstitutional tribunal, or to an extra constitutional tribunal, I +had no qualms about accepting the result. Nor was I especially +gratified by the action of the commission. My connections with Mr. +Conkling led me to think that he had great doubts about the propriety +of the decision in the case of Louisiana, and that doubt may have led +him to avoid the vote in the Senate. + +REVISION OF THE STATUTES OF THE UNITED STATES, 1878 + +As chairman of the Committee on the Revision of the Statutes, I framed +and reported the amendments to the Revised Statutes, which were +afterwards incorporated in the edition of 1878, which I prepared by +the appointment of President Hayes after my term in the Senate expired, +which was made probably, upon the recommendation of Attorney-General +Devens and without any solicitation on my part, or by any of my friends, +as far as I know. + +The edition of 1878 contains references to every decision of the Supreme +Court down to and including volume 194. It contains a reference to the +decisions of the Supreme Court, all arranged and classified under the +various sections, articles and paragraphs of that instrument. In doing +this work I was compelled to read all the opinions of the Court from +the beginning of the Government, so far, at least, as to understand +the character of each opinion. + +The preparation of the index was the work of months. Its value is great +and the credit is due to Chief Justice Richardson who not only aided me, +but he devised the plan and gave direction to the work as it went on. +It was our rule to index every provision under at least three heads, +and in many cases there is a sub-classification under the general +designation. We avoided an error into which many writers fall--we +never indexed under the lead of an adjective, article or participle. + +FRENCH AND AMERICAN CLAIM COMMISSION, 1880 + +In 1880, Mr. Evarts, the Secretary of State, invited me to act as +counsel for the Government in defence of the claims of French citizens +for losses sustained during the Civil War. There were more than +seven hundred cases and the claims amounted to more than thirty-five +million dollars including interest. The recoveries fell below six +hundred and thirty thousand dollars. The printed record covered sixty +thousand pages, and my printed arguments filled about two thousand +pages. The discussion and decisions involved many important questions +of international law, citizenship, the construction of treaties, and +the laws of war. + +The chairman was Baron de Arinos. He was a man of unassuming manners, +of great intelligence, and of extensive acquaintance with diplomatic +subjects. He was reserved, usually, but he was never lacking in ability +when a subject had received full consideration at his hands. As far as +I recall his decisions, when he had to dispose of cases on which the +French and American commissioners differed, I cannot name one which +appeared to be unjust. + +The insignificant sum awarded was due to many circumstances. Of those, +who as French citizens had suffered losses during the war, many had +become American citizens by naturalization. Again others were natives +of Alsace and Lorraine, and the commission held that they were not +entitled to the protection of France in 1880 when the treaty was made. +But the losses were chiefly due to the absence of adequate evidence as +to the ownership of the property for which claims were made, and to the +enormous exaggerations as to values in which the claimants indulged. + +COURTS-MARTIAL + +Between the year 1880 and the year 1895 there were five general courts- +martial held in the city of Washington and I appeared for the defendants +in four of them. + +I was also retained for the investigation of two cases of officers of +the Navy who had been convicted by courts-martial, one of them held in +the waters of China and the other on the coast of Brazil. The latter, +the case of Reed, which may be found in volume 100 of the United States +Reports, became important as the first attempt by the Supreme Court to +define and limit the jurisdiction of the civil tribunals over the +proceedings of courts-martial. + +The courts consist of thirteen officers of the service to which the +accused may belong, and by a majority in number they are his seniors in +rank, if the condition of the service will permit such a selection. + +A court thus constituted is an imposing tribunal, and in dignity of +appearance not inferior to the Supreme Court of the United States. The +members are well instructed in the requirements of the service, but +their knowledge of the science of law, especially in its technicalities, +is limited. It is the theory of the system that the judge-advocate +will be an impartial adviser of the court and that he will protect the +accused against any irregular proceeding and especially protect him +against the admission of any testimony that would be excluded in an +ordinary court of law. + +In fact, however, the judge advocate becomes the attorney of the +Government, especially when the accused has the aid of counsel. His +advice to the court becomes the rule of the court. Questions of +testimony are important usually, and the line between what is competent +and that which should be excluded is often a very delicate line. The +judge should be a disinterested person. It is too much to assume that +an advocate can in a moment transform himself into an impartial judge. + +In the case of Reed, which was an application by a _habeas corpus_ +proceeding for the discharge of Reed from prison, the Supreme Court +held that it could not examine the proceedings of the court-martial +further than to inquire whether the act charged was an offence under +the rules of the service, and, second, whether the punishment was one +which the court had power to impose. + +Thus it follows, that intermediate errors and wrongs whether by the +exclusion or admission of testimony, or by corruption even, cannot be +remedied by judicial tribunals on the civil side. + +A partial remedy for possible evils may be found through the appointment +of a judge from the civil courts, or of an experienced lawyer who should +become the adviser of the court-martial, in place of the judge-advocate +--thus leaving to him the duties of an attorney in behalf of the +Government. + + +XLII +LAST OF THE OCEAN SLAVE-TRADERS* + +In the month of April, 1861, a bark, registering 215 tons, anchored in +the bay of Port Liberté, a place of no considerable importance, on the +northerly coast of the island of Hayti, about twenty miles from the +boundary of Santo Domingo. The vessel carried the flag of France, and +the captain called himself Jules Letellier. The name of the vessel +was not painted upon the stern, as is required by our law; but the +captain gave her name as _Guillaume Tell_, bound from Havana to Havre. +He stated that he had suffered a disaster at the island of Guadaloupe, +and that he had been compelled to throw a part of his cargo overboard. +He said also that his object in putting into the port was to obtain +assistance for the recovery of his cargo; and for that purpose he +solicited recruits. The authorities became suspicious of the craft, and +an arrest was made of the vessel, her officers and men. After some +delay the vessel was sent to Port au Prince, where she was condemned +and confiscated upon the charge of being engaged "in piracy and slave- +trading on the coast of Hayti." + +Upon investigation it appeared that the true name of the vessel was +_William_, and that the name of the captain was Antonio Pelletier. +Pelletier was tried according to the laws of Hayti, convicted and +sentenced to death. The sentence was commuted to imprisonment for a +term of years. The facts of his arrest and of the sentence pronounced +upon him were published in the New York _Herald;_ and thereupon, as it +appeared in the investigation that was afterward made, his wife +married and, taking Pelletier's two children, left the country. +Pelletier was kept in prison for about two years, when he escaped, +probably with the connivance of the authorities. He returned to the +United States. Previous to his escape he gained the confidence of +the commissioner of the United States at Port au Prince, who made a +report in his behalf and upon the ground that he had been arrested, +tried and convicted for an offense of which he was not guilty. + +That report was made to the Department of State, when Mr. Seward was +Secretary of State. Mr. Seward declined to act, upon two grounds-- +first, it was not proved that Pelletier was a citizen of the United +States; and second, the course of Hayti seemed justified by the facts +as they then appeared. Pelletier presented a statement of his claim, +amounting in all to about $2,500,000. He placed the value of the bark +_William_ and her cargo, with some money which he claimed was on her, +at about $92,000. He claimed also that he had been subjected to many +losses in business transactions, which he had been unable to consummate +owing to his arrest in Hayti. These amounted to about $750,000. The +most extraordinary claim was the claim for damages to his person, in +the matter of his arrest and captivity, and the loss of his wife, +children and home, for all of which he charged $300,000. + +The claimant pressed his claim persistently to the State Department; +and in the year 1884, when Mr. Frelinghuysen was Secretary of State, +a protocol was entered into between him and Mr. Preston, then minister +plenipotentiary of the republic of Hayti, by which this claim, with +another large claim in behalf of A. H. Lazare against the republic of +Hayti, was submitted to an international arbitrator,--the Hon. William +Strong, formerly a justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. +The republic of Hayti retained Charles A. de Chambrun and myself as +counsel for the defence. This hearing occupied one year of time, and +the documents and the testimony taken covered two thousand printed +pages. The investigation showed that Pelletier was born at +Fontainebleau in France in the year 1819. At the age of fourteen he +ran away from his home and country and came to the United States, where +he found employment on board a ship, which was owned and navigated +by one Blanchard of the State of Maine. From about the year 1835 to +the year 1850, Pelletier was employed upon shipboard in various menial +capacities, until finally he became master of several small vessels, +which were employed on short voyages in the Caribbean Sea and on the +coast of South America. About the year 1850 he appeared in the city +of New York, and between that time and 1859 he was in the city of +Chicago, where on one occasion and as the representative of some local +party he was a candidate for alderman. He was also engaged for a time +in the manufacture of boots and shoes at Troy, New York. + +In the autumn of 1860 there appeared a statement in the newspapers that +a bark called the _William_ had been arrested and condemned at Key West +upon the charge of having been fitted out for the slave trade. Guided +by that notice, Pelletier went to Havana, and employed an agent to go +to Key West and to purchase the bark. The purchase was made at a cost +of $1,504. In Pelletier's statement of his claim, he asserted that he +paid something over $10,000 for the vessel. From Key West the vessel +was sent to Mobile in charge of a man named Thomas Collar, who became +Pelletier's mate, but who was known on the vessel as Samuel Gerdon. At +Mobile the _William_ was fitted out for the voyage under the direction +and apparent ownership of a firm in that city known as Delauney, Rice +& Co., of which Pelletier claimed to be a member and proprietor to the +extent of $50,000, the patrimony which he had received upon the death +of his father. The vessel was freighted with lumber, and was cleared +for Carthagena, New Granada, in October. She arrived at that port +late in November. The investigation showed that a portion of the lumber +was placed upon the deck when there was space below where it might have +been stored. It appeared also that the vessel contained a large number +of water casks, some twenty or twenty-five, about twenty pairs of +manacles, a quantity of ammunition, and that the number of sailors was +considerably in excess of the number required for the navigation of +the vessel. + +At Carthagena Pelletier made a contract with a colored man named Cortes, +to carry him with his wife and children and servant to a point on the +coast east of Carthagena, known as Rio de Hache. This contract he +never performed. The original object of the voyage, as he alleged, +was to obtain a cargo of guano, at an island which he named Buida. As +a matter of fact, there is no such island, or at any rate none could +be found on the maps, nor was its existence known to the officers of +our Government who had been engaged in taking soundings in the Caribbean +Sea. + +While the _William_ was at Carthagena, one of the men deserted and +notified the commander of a British man-of-war that the object of the +voyage of the bark _William_ was a cargo of negroes to be carried to +the United States and sold as slaves. Following the desertion of this +man, Pelletier left Carthagena and, instead of proceeding to Rio de +Hache, which was understood to be the destination of the British man-of- +war, he took a northerly course toward the island of Grand Inagua. +Upon this change of the course of the vessel, Cortes became alarmed for +his safety, and he urged Pelletier to put him ashore, and especially +for the reason that the shades of maternity were falling on his wife. +After a delay of ten days, Pelletier consented to land him, which he +did at Grand Inagua, and secured in payment the goods and effects which +Cortes had on board the vessel, and which were understood to be of the +value of $500 or more. + +In the month of January, 1861, Pelletier arrived in the harbor of Port- +au-Prince, Hayti, where he was accused of being engaged in a slave- +trading expedition by five of his men whom he had landed and caused to +be put in prison on the charge of insubordination. The authorities were +so well convinced of the unlawful character of the expedition that they +ordered Pelletier to leave without delay. He was conveyed out of the +harbor by an armed vessel, and upon the understanding that he was to +sail for New Orleans. As a matter of fact, however, he employed the +months following, until April, in expeditions among the islands of the +Caribbean Sea. In the course of the investigation, Pelletier appeared +on the stand as a witness. In a series of questions which I put to +him, I asked for the names of the vessels which he had commanded, +previous to the voyage of the _William_. Among others he mentioned the +_Ardennes_, which was an American ship, registered. It turned out upon +further investigation that that ship was fitted out by him at +Jacksonville in the year 1859, and cleared for the Canary Islands. Her +cargo consisted of rum, sugar, cigars and tobacco. From the admission +of Pelletier it appeared that he never reached the Canary Islands, but +made the coast of Africa, near the mouth of the Congo River. Upon +being pressed for a reason for the change, he stated that he had been +driven there by a storm. We were able to cause an examination to be +made of the records of the _Pluto_, a British man-of-war, that +discovered the _Ardennes_ near Magna Grand in April, 1859. The officers +of the _Pluto_ boarded the _Ardennes_, and made such an examination as +they thought proper. The captain made this entry after an examination +of the vessel's papers and register, namely: "Which, though not +appearing to be correct, I did not detain or molest them." The +_Ardennes_ lingered in the vicinity of the mouth of the Congo, where she +was arrested by the officers of the United States ship _Marion_, under +command of Captain Brent. The results of the examination which he +made and the circumstances of which he obtained knowledge were such that +he took possession of the vessel and sent her to New York upon the +charge of being engaged in the slave trade. The evidence produced at +New York was not sufficient to lead the court to condemn her, but the +judge gave a certificate that there was probable cause for her arrest. + +The real character of the voyage of the _William_ from Mobile was +finally established beyond all controversy. In the year 1880, a treaty +was made between the United States and France, by which an international +commission was created for the purpose of determining the validity of +claims made by citizens of the United States against France and of +claims made by citizens of France against the United States. Among +the claimants against the United States were two Frenchmen by the name +of Le More, residents of New Orleans. At the time of the capture of +New Orleans in the year 1862, these men had in their possession a large +sum of money belonging to the Confederate government. By the +proclamation of General Butler, made immediately upon the capture of +the city, all intercourse with the Confederate authorities by residents +of New Orleans was interdicted. Notwithstanding the proclamation, the +Le Mores contrived to convey the funds in their possession across the +line, and to procure their delivery to the Confederate authorities. +General Butler, having obtained knowledge of this transaction, had the +Le Mores brought before him. He then questioned them, and upon his +own judgment and without trial he sent them as prisoners to Ship +Island, where they were confined for a time with an attachment of a +ball and chain. Each of these men presented a claim to the commission, +and, there being no defence, an award of $20,000 was made to each. If +General Butler had convened a military court or commission, as he should +have done, and had obtained a conviction, as he would have obtained one, +he would not have subjected the United States to the judgments which +were rendered finally. + +In that hearing, De Chambrun represented the Government of France and I +represented the Government of the United States. Thus having knowledge +of the Le Mores, who were yet in New Orleans, we applied to them for +the purpose of ascertaining the character of Delauney, Rice & Co., and +also whether there was any person living who had knowledge of the +fitting out of the bark _William_. They found a man by the name of +Louis Moses, who had been a resident of New Orleans since the year +1852, and who was well acquainted with the house of Delauney, Rice & +Co., having transacted business for it, and who was himself concerned +in the fitting out of the bark _William_. He had indeed invested, in +one form or another, the sum of $15,000 in the enterprise, of which he +had evidence in writing. He stated that the object of the voyage was +to obtain a cargo of negroes in some of the islands of the Caribbean +Sea, and to bring them to a desert island on the west bank of the +Mississippi, near the mainland of Louisiana; in fine, that there was +no purpose to obtain a cargo of guano. + +When the hearing commenced, in the year 1884, Pelletier came before the +arbitrator in perfect health and with the appearance of a man of ability +and of fortune. After an acquaintance of about a year I was able to use +this language in my final arguments: "It is a singular circumstance +that Captain Pelletier has not produced an original paper or document +in support of his claim. He is sixty years of age or more. He is a +man not deficient in intellectual capacity, whatever else may be said +of him. He is endowed by nature with ability for large and honest +undertakings. He claims to have had an extensive business experience; +to have been the possessor of large wealth; to have been trusted in +fiduciary ways; and he comes here and claims compensation for a great +outrage, as he alleges, upon his person and his rights; and yet he has +not produced a paper that has the signature of any being, living or +dead, by which he can sustain the claim he makes. What is his answer +in regard to the absence of papers? It is that they were on board the +bark _William_. According to the best information we can obtain, that +bark was not less than twelve or fifteen years of age. We know that it +did not much exceed two hundred tons burden. It was bound on a voyage +into tempestuous seas; and, leaving behind him wealth, as he says, to +be measured by the million, he embarks on that vessel with all his +papers, including title deeds, articles of copartnership, powers of +attorney, and preliminary accounts relating to unsettled affairs. He +is a member of the house of Delauney, Rice & Co., in which he had +deposited his patrimony to the extent of fifty thousand dollars; and +he carries away on that frail bark all evidence of his investment in +that firm. He had, he said, a partnership agreement; he had accounts +of profits that had been rendered from time to time,--and all are gone. +He had a dear wife and two children, for whose loss he now demands large +compensation; and yet he carried away the evidence of which their right +to his estate would have depended, in case of his death. The statement +may be true, but in the nature of things it is not probable. That we +may believe a statement of that sort, evidence is required, not from +one man unknown, not from one man impeached, but from many men of +reputable standing in society. It is not to be believed that a man +who had been engaged in transactions measured by hundreds of thousands +of dollars, through a period of ten years, should take every evidence +of those transactions on board a vessel of hardly more than two +hundred tons burden, manned by a crew composed of highbinders, as he +has described them, and sail to foreign lands, over tempestuous seas, +upon the poor pretext of procuring guano for the plantations of +Louisiana,--and this, as he says, when war was imminent." + +In my argument to the arbitrator I attempted to trace the voyage of the +_Ardennes_ and the voyage of the _William_ with as much minuteness as +seemed to me to be wise under the circumstances, and for the sole +purpose of establishing the charge that Pelletier was engaged in the +slave trade. The character of the voyage of the _Ardennes_ was +important in view of the rule of law that, in the trial of a person +charged with the crime of slave-trading, evidence is admissible which +tends to prove that the accused had been engaged in similar +undertakings at about the same time. + +My argument occupied the business hours of two sessions of the court. +At the opening of the court Pelletier appeared, took a seat, and +remained during the first thirty or forty minutes of my argument, +when he disappeared. The New York _Herald_, on the morning of the +third day after Pelletier's last appearance, contained the announcement +that Antonio Pelletier had died suddenly at the Astor House in the city +of New York. The hearing proceeded, and on the 30th day of June, 1885, +Mr. Justice Strong filed his opinion in the Department of State. In +that opinion, he says: + +"I can hardly escape from the conviction that the voyage of the bark +_William_ was an illegal voyage; that its paramount purpose was to +obtain a cargo of negroes, either by purchase or kidnaping, and bring +them into slavery in the State of Louisiana; and that the load of +lumber, and the profession of a purpose to go for a cargo of guano +were mere covers to conceal the true character of the enterprise." He +states also "that Pelletier had applied to a Haytian to obtain fifty +men and some women, blacks, of course, to assist him in obtaining +guano." The arbitrator found, however, that by the law of nations the +courts of Hayti had no jurisdiction of the case. "It is undeniable," +said Justice Strong, "that none of them were piratical in view of the +law of nations." + +By the _act d'accusation_ Pelletier was charged with piracy and slave- +trading on the coast of Hayti. The arbitrator found that he was not +guilty of piracy and that the act of slave-trading was never committed, +although the design and purpose of the voyage were perfectly clear. +The claims as presented were all rejected by the arbitrator, except the +claim for injury to Pelletier personally by his confinement in prison. +For that injury the arbitrator allowed Pelletier the sum of $25 a day +during his confinement, and the interest thereon up to the time the +judgment was rendered, amounting in all to $57,250. + +When the judgment had been rendered, the counsel for Hayti presented +a memorial to the State Department, setting forth the impropriety and +bad policy of a presentation by the Government of the United States of +a judgment rendered in favor of a claimant who had been found guilty of +fitting out a slave-trading expedition within the limits of the United +States, and using the flag of the United States as a protection in the +prosecution of his illegal undertaking. Mr. Bayard was then Secretary +of State, and Mr. Cleveland was President. That view of the counsel +of Hayti was accepted by the Secretary of State and by the President, +and the government of Hayti was relieved from the payment of the claim. +I ought to add that Mr. Justice Strong concurred with the counsel for +Hayti, and made a representation to the Department of State urging +the remission of the penalty in the judgment he had rendered. + +The decision of Mr. Justice Strong raises a question of very serious +character--that is to say, whether an international tribunal can take +notice of proceedings in the judicial tribunals of a foreign state, +further than to ascertain whether the proceedings were according to +"due process of law" in the state where the proceedings were had. +Justice Strong went so far as to hold that the courts of Hayti had erred +upon the question of their own jurisdiction. Such a ruling, if applied +to cases of public importance, might lead to very serious results. + +[* Printed in the _New England Magazine_. Copyright, 1900, by Warren +F. Kellogg.] + + +XLIII +MR. LINCOLN AS AN HISTORICAL PERSONAGE. + +A SPEECH DELIVERED BEFORE THE LA SALLE CLUB, CHICAGO, FEBRUARY 12, 1889 + +The services and fame of Mr. Lincoln are so identified with the +organization, doings and character of the Republican Party, that +something of the history of that party is the necessary incident of +every attempt to set forth the services and the fame of Mr. Lincoln. + +In a very important sense Mr. Lincoln may be regarded as the founder of +the Republican Party. He was its leader in the first successful +national contest, and it was during his administration as President +that the policy of the party was developed and its capacity for the +business of government established. The Republican Party gave to Mr. +Lincoln the opportunity for the services on which his fame rests, and +the fame of Mr. Lincoln is the inheritance of the Republican Party. +His eulogy is its encomium, and therefore when we set forth the +character and services of Mr. Lincoln we set forth as well the claims +of the Republican Party to the gratitude and confidence of the country, +and the favorable opinion of mankind. + +If it could be assumed that for the Republican Party the Book of Life +is already closed, it is yet true that that party is an historical +party and Mr. Lincoln is an historical personage, not less so than +Cromwell, Napoleon, or Washington, and all without the glamor that +rests upon the brows of successful military chieftains. + +Of Mr. Lincoln's predecessors in the Presidential office, two only, +Washington and Jefferson, can be regarded as historical persons in a +large view of history. The author of the Declaration of Independence +is so identified with the history of the country that that history +cannot outlast his name and fame. + +As the author of that Declaration and as the exponent of new and +advanced ideas of government, Jefferson was elected to the Presidency, +but his administrations, excepting only the acquisition of Louisiana, +were not marked by distinguished ability, nor were they attended or +followed by results which have commanded the favorable opinion of +succeeding generations. + +Washington had no competitors. The gratitude of his countrymen rebuked +all rivalries. He was borne to the Presidency by a vote quite +unanimous, and he was supported in the discharge of his duties by a +confidence not limited by the boundaries of the Republic. + +It is only a moderate exaggeration to say that when Mr. Lincoln was +nominated for the Presidency, he was an unknown man; he had performed +no important public service; his election was not due to personal +popularity, nor to the strength of the party that he represented; but +to the divisions among his opponents. + +In 1862, when eleven hostile States were not represented in the +Government, the weakness of the administration was such that only a +bare majority of the House of Representatives was secured after a +vigorous and aggressive campaign on the part of the Republican Party. +Thus do the circumstances and incidents of the formative period in +Mr. Lincoln's career illustrate and adorn the events that distinguished +the man, the party and the country. + +I am quite conscious that in our attempt to give Mr. Lincoln a +conspicuous place in the ranks of historical personages, we are to +encounter a large and intelligent public opinion which claims that +distance in time and even distance in space are the necessary conditions +of a wise and permanent decision. + +The representatives of that opinion maintain that contemporaries are too +near the object of vision, that to them a comprehensive view is +impossible, and that the successive generations of one's countrymen +may be influenced by inherited passions, or by transmitted traditions. + +Some of us were Mr. Lincoln's contemporaries, and one and all we are +his countrymen, and in advance we accept joyfully any qualifications +of our opinions that may be made in other lands or by other ages, if +qualifying facts shall be disclosed hereafter. But nearness of +observation, and a knowledge of the events with which Mr. Lincoln's +public life was identified, may have given to his associates and +co-workers opportunities for a sound judgment that were not possessed +by contemporary critics and historians of other lands, and that the +students of future times will be unable to command. + +The recent practical improvements in the art of printing, the telegraph +and the railway, have furnished to mankind the means of reaching safe +conclusions in all matters of importance, including biography and +history, with a celerity and certainty which to former ages were +unknown. In these five and twenty years, since the death of Mr. +Lincoln, there has been a wonderful exposition of the events and +circumstances of the stupendous contest in which he was the leading +figure, and all that knowledge is now consummated on the pages of +Nicolay and Hay's complete and trustworthy history. Of the minor +incidents of Mr. Lincoln's career, time and research will disclose +many facts not now known, which may lend coloring to a character whose +main features, however, cannot be changed by time nor criticism. The +nature of Mr. Lincoln's services we can comprehend, but their value +will be more clearly realized and more highly appreciated by posterity. +As to the nature of those services the judgment of his own generation +is final--it can never be reversed. Indeed, it may be asserted of +historical personages generally, that the judgment of contemporaries is +never reversed. Attempts have been made to reverse the judgment of +contemporaries, in the cases of Judas Iscariot, of Henry the Eighth, +and of Shakespeare, and I venture the assertion that all these attempts +have failed, most signally. In our own country there have been no +reversals. Modifications of opinions there have been--growth in some +cases, decrease in others, but absolute change in none. The country +has grown towards Hamilton and away from Jefferson. They are, however, +as they were at the beginning of the last century, the representatives +of antagonistic ideas in government, but their common patriotism is +as yet unchallenged. It is the fate of those who take an active part +in public affairs, to be misjudged during their lives, but death +softens the asperities of political and religious controversies and +tempers the judgment of those who survive. Franklin, Washington, +Jackson, Clay and Webster, are to this generation what they were to the +survivors of the respective generations to which they belonged. Mr. +Calhoun has suffered by the attempt to make a practical application of +his ideas of government, but the nature and dangerous character of those +ideas were as fully understood at the time of his death as they are at +the present moment. + +I pass over as unworthy of serious consideration the detractions and +attacks, sometimes thoughtless, and sometimes malicious, to which Mr. +Lincoln was subject during his administration. He made explanations +and replied to these detractions and attacks only when they seemed to +put in peril the fortunes of the country; but when he made replies, +there were none found, either among his political friends or his +political enemies who were capable of making an adequate answer. +Consult, as we may consult, his correspondence in regard to the +transit of troops through Maryland, in regard to the invasion of +Virginia, in case the city of Washington should be attacked or +menaced from the right bank of the Potomac, in regard to the suspension +of the privilege of the writ of _habeas corpus_, in regard to the arrest +of Vallandingham, in regard to our foreign relations, and, finally, +consult his numerous papers in regard to the objects for which the +war should be prosecuted, and the means, as well, by which it could be +prosecuted. Consider, also, that this work was done by a man called to +the head of an administration that had no predecessor, to the management +of the affairs of a government distracted by civil war, its navy +scattered, its treasury bankrupted, its foreign relations disturbed by +a traditional and almost universal hostility to republican institutions, +and all while he was threatened constantly by an adverse public +judgment in that section of the country in which his hopes rested +exclusively. And consider, also, that Mr. Lincoln had had little or +no experience on the statesmanship side of his political career, that +as an attorney and advocate he had dealt only with local and municipal +laws; that he was separated by circumstances from a practical +acquaintance with maritime and international jurisprudence, and yet +consider further with what masterful force he rebuked timid or +untrustworthy friends who would have abandoned the contest and consented +to the independence of the seceding States, in the vain hope that time +might aid in the recovery of that which by pusillanimity had been lost; +with what serenity of manner he put aside the suggestion of Mr. Seward +that war should be declared against France and Spain as a means of +quieting domestic difficulties which were even then represented by +contending armies; with what calmness of mind he laid aside Mr. +Greeley's letter of despair and self-reproach of July 29, 1861, and +proceeded with the preparation of his programme of military operations +from every base line of the armies of the Republic; with what skill and +statesmanlike foresight he corrected Mr. Seward's letter to Mr. Adams +in regard to the recognition by Great Britain of the belligerent +character of the Confederate States; and, finally, consider with what +firmness and wisdom he annulled the proclamations of Fremont and +Hunter, and assumed to himself exclusively the right and the power to +deal with the subject of slavery in the rebellious States. In what +other time, to what other ruler have questions of such importance been +presented, and under circumstances so difficult? And to what other +ruler can we assign the ability to have met and to have managed +successfully all the difficult problems of the Civil War? It cannot be +claimed for Mr. Lincoln that he had had any instructive military +experience, or that he had any technical knowledge of the military +art; but it may be said with truth that his correspondence with the +generals of the army, and his memoranda touching military operations +indicate the presence of a military quality or facility, which in +actual service might have been developed into talent or even genius. +His letter to General McClellan, of October 13, 1862, is at once a +memorable evidence and a striking illustration of his faculty on the +military side of his official career. He sets forth specifically, and +in the alternative, two plans of operation, and with skill and caustic +severity he contrasts the inactivity and delays of General McClellan, +with the vigor of policy and activity of movement which characterized +the campaign on the part of the enemy. He brings in review the facts +that General McClellan's army was superior in numbers, in equipment, +and in all the material of war. The President in conclusion said: +"this letter is not to be considered as an order," and yet it is +difficult to reconcile the continued inactivity of General McClellan +with the claim of his friends that he was a patriotic, not to say an +active, supporter of the cause of the Union. With that letter in hand +a patriotic and sensitive commander would have acted at once upon one +of the alternatives presented by the President, or he would have formed +a plan of campaign for himself and ordered a movement without delay, or +he would have asked the President to relieve him from duty. No one of +these courses was adopted, and the policy of inactivity was continued +until Lee regained the vantage ground which he abandoned when he +crossed the Potomac into Maryland. It is at this point, and in this +juncture of affairs that the policy of Mr. Lincoln requires the +explanation of a friendly critic. The historian of the future may +wonder at the procrastination of the President. He may criticize his +conduct in neglecting to relieve McClellan when it was apparent that he +would not avail himself of the advantages that were presented by the +victory at Antietam. The explanation or apology, is this, in substance: +The Army of the Potomac had been created under the eye of McClellan and +the officers and men were devoted to him as their leader and chief. +They had had no opportunity for instituting comparisons between him and +other military men. After Pope's defeat, the army had been unanimous, +substantially, in the opinion that McClellan should be again placed in +command. The President had yielded to that opinion against his own +judgment, and against the unanimous opinion of his Cabinet. Having +thus yielded, it was wise to test McClellan until the confidence of the +army and the country should be impaired, or, as the President hoped +would be the result, until McClellan should satisfy the Administration +and the army, that he was equal to the duty imposed upon him. Hence +the delay until the 5th of November, when McClellan was relieved, +finally, from the military service of the country. + +It was known to those who were near President Lincoln, that he was a +careful student of the war maps and that he had daily knowledge of the +position and strength of our armies. I recall the incident of meeting +President Lincoln on the steps of the Executive Mansion at about eleven +o'clock in the evening of the day when the news had but just reached +Washington that Grant had crossed the Black River and that the army was +in the rear of Vicksburg. The President was returning from the War +Office with a copy of the despatch in his hand. I said:-- + +"Mr. President, have you any news?" He said in reply: + +"Come in, and I will tell you." + +After reading the despatch, the President turned to his maps and traced +the line of Grant's movements as he then understood and comprehended +those movements. That night the President became cheerful, his voice +took on a new tone--a tone of relief, of exhilaration--and it was +evident that his faith in our ultimate success had been changed into +absolute confidence. In the dark days of 1862 he had never despaired +of the Republic, when others faltered, he was undismayed. He put aside +the suggestion of Mr. Seward that he should surrender the chief +prerogative of his office; he rebuked the suggestion of General Hooker +that he should declare himself dictator; and he treated with silent +contempt the advice of General McClellan, from Harrison's Landing, in +July, 1862, that the President should put himself at the head of the +army with a general in command, on whom he could rely, and thus assume +the dictatorship of the Republic. He asserted for himself every +prerogative that the laws and the Constitution conferred upon him, and +he declined to assume any power not warranted by the title of office +which he held. He was resolute in his purpose to perform every duty +that devolved upon him, but he declared that the responsibility of +preserving the Government rested upon the people. + +Of the officers who successively were at the head of the Army of the +Potomac, none ever possessed his entire confidence, until General +Grant assumed that command, in person. His letter to General Grant +when he entered upon the Campaign of the Wilderness contains conclusive +evidence that his confidence was given to that officer, without +reservation. + +Turning again to the civil side of his administration, consider the +steps by which he led the country up to the point where it was willing +to accept the abolition of slavery in the States engaged in the +rebellion. History must soon address itself to generations of +Americans who will have had no knowledge of the institution of slavery +as an existing fact. Indeed, at the present moment, more than two +thirds of the population of the United States have no memory of the +time when slavery was the dominating force in the politics of the +country, when it was interwoven in the daily domestic life of the +inhabitants of fifteen States; when it muzzled the press, perverted +the Scriptures, compelled the pulpit to become its apologist, and when +successive generations of statesmen were brought down on an "equality +of servitude" before an irresponsible and untitled oligarchy. + +As early as 1839, Mr. Clay estimated the value of the slaves at +$1,200,000,000, and upon the same basis, their value in 1860, exceeded +$2,000,000,000. This estimate conveys only an inadequate idea of the +power of slavery and it presents only an imperfect view of the +difficulties which confronted Mr. Lincoln in 1861 and 1862. Delaware, +Maryland, West Virginia, Kentucky and Missouri were slave States, and +all of them, with the exception of Delaware, were hesitating between +secession and the cause of the Union. They were in favor of the Union, +if slavery could be saved with the Union, but it was doubtful in all +the year 1861, whether those States could be held, to the "Lincoln +Government" as it was derisively called, if the abolition of slavery +were a recognized part of our public policy. Nor is this even yet a +full statement of the difficulties which confronted Mr. Lincoln. With +varying degrees of intensity, the Democratic Party of the North +sympathized with the South in its attempts to dissolve the Union. +During the entire period of the war, New York, Ohio and Indiana were +divided States, and Indiana was only kept in line by the active and +desperate fidelity of Oliver P. Morton. In the presence of these +difficulties Mr. Lincoln recommended the purchase of all the slaves in +the States not in rebellion; then he suggested the deportation of the +manumitted slaves and the free blacks, to Central America, and for this +purpose an appropriation was made; then came the proposition to give +pecuniary aid to States that might voluntarily make provision for the +abolition of slavery, and then came, finally, the statute of July, +1862, by which slaves captured, and the slaves of all persons engaged +in the rebellion were declared to be free. It is not probable that Mr. +Lincoln entertained the opinion that these measures, one or all, would +secure the complete abolition of slavery, but they gave to the slave- +holders of the border States an opportunity to obtain compensation +for the loss of their slaves, and the pendency of these propositions +occupied the attention of the country while the formative processes were +going on, which matured finally in the opinion that slavery and the +Union could no longer co-exist. In the same time the country arrived at +the conclusion that separation and continuous peace were impossible. +The alternative was this: Slavery, a division of territory, and a +condition of permanent hostility on the one side; and on the other, a +union of States, domestic peace, a government of imperial power, with +equality of citizenship in the States and an equality of States in the +Union. Thus his measures, which were at once measures of expediency and +of delay, prepared the public mind to receive his monitory Proclamation +of September 1862. In that time the border States had come to realize +the fact that the negroes were no longer valuable as property, and they +therefore accepted emancipation as a means of ending the controversy. +To the Republicans of the North, the Proclamation was a welcome message; +to the Democrats it was a result which they had predicted, and against +which they had in vain protested. But the controversy would not have +ended with the war. Slavery existed in the States that had not +participated in the rebellion, and the legality of the Emancipation +Proclamation might be drawn in question in the courts. One thing more +was wanted, an amendment to the Constitution abolishing slavery +everywhere within the jurisdiction of the Government. This was secured +after a protracted struggle, and the result was due in a pre-eminent +degree to the personal and official influence of Mr. Lincoln. In one +phrase it may be said that every power of his office was exerted to +secure the passage, in the Thirty-eighth Congress, of the resolution, +by which the proposed amendment was submitted to the States. Mr. +Lincoln did not live to see the consummation of his great undertaking, +in the cause of Freedom, but the work of ratification by the States +was accelerated by his death, and on the 18th day of December, 1865, +Mr. Seward, then Secretary of State of the United States, made +proclamation that the amendment had been ratified by twenty-seven of the +thirty-six States then composing the Union, and that slavery and +involuntary servitude were from that time and forever forth impossible +within our limits. Such was then the universal opinion in all America. +It was our example that wrought the abolition of slavery in Brazil, and +in colonies of Spain and Portugal; it has led to the extermination of +the trans-Atlantic slave trade, and it was an inspiration to the nations +of Europe in their effort to destroy the traffic in human beings on the +continent of Africa. + +There is an aspect of Mr. Lincoln's career, which must attract general +attention and command universal sympathy. His loneliness in his office +and in the performance of his duties is deeply pathetic. It is true +that Congress accepted and endorsed his measures as they were presented +from time to time, but there were bitter complaints on account of his +delays on the slavery question, and not infrequently doubts were +expressed as to the sincerity of his avowed opinions. There were +little intrigues in Congress, and personal aspirations in the Cabinet +in regard to the succession. Of the commanders of the Army of the +Potomac from McDowell to Meade, each and all had failed to win +victories, or they had failed to secure the reasonable advantages of +victories won. There were divisions in the Cabinet which were +aggravated by personal rivalries. On one occasion, leading Republican +members of Congress engaged in a movement for a change in the Cabinet; +a movement which was without a precedent and wholly destitute of +justification under our system of government. + +His want of faith in his Cabinet was shown in his preliminary statement +when he proceeded to read the Proclamation of Emancipation. Mr. Lincoln +was then about to take the most important step ever taken by a President +of the United States and yet he informed the men, the only men whose +opinions he could command by virtue of his office that the main +question was not open for discussion; that the question had been by him +already decided, and that suggestions from them would be received only +in reference to the formalities of the document. + +It may be the truth, and our estimation of Mr. Lincoln would not be +lowered, if, indeed, it were shown to be the truth, that he chose to +act upon his own judgment in a matter of the supremest gravity, and +in which, from the nature of the case, the sole responsibility was +upon him. On the great question of the abolition of slavery his mind +reached a definite conclusion, a conclusion on which he could act, but +neither too early nor too late. The Proclamation was issued at a +moment when the exigencies of the war justified its issue as a military +necessity, and when, as a concurrent fact, the public mind was first +prepared to receive it, and to give to the measure the requisite support. + +Mr. Lincoln prepared the way for the reorganization of the government. +Under him the old order of things was overthrown and the introduction +of a new order became possible. Through his agency the Constitution +of the United States has been brought into harmony with the Declaration +of Independence. The system of slavery has perished, the institutions +of the country have been reconciled to the principles of freedom, and +in these changes we have additional guarantees for the perpetuity of +the Union. + +A just eulogy of Mr. Lincoln is a continuing encomium of the Republican +Party. By the election of 1860 he became the head of that party and +during the four years and more of his official life he never claimed +to be better nor wiser than the party with which he was identified. +From first to last he had the full confidence of the army and of the +masses of the voters in the Republican Party, and of that confidence +Mr. Lincoln was always assured. Hence he was able to meet the +aspirations of rivals and the censures of the disappointed with a good +degree of composure. To the honor of the masses of the Republican +Party it can be said that they never faltered in their devotion to the +President and in that devotion and in the fidelity of the President to +the principles of the party were the foundations laid on which the +greatness of the country rests. + +The measure of gratitude due to Mr. Lincoln and to the Republican Party +may be estimated by a comparison of the condition of the country when he +accepted power in March, 1861, with its condition in 1885, and in 1893, +when we yielded the administration to the successors of the men who had +well-nigh wrecked the Government in a former generation. + +The Republican Party found the Union a mass of sand; it left it a +structure of granite. It found the Union a by-word among the nations +of the earth, it left it illustrious and envied, for the exhibition of +warlike powers, for the development of our industrial and financial +resources in times of peace, for the unwavering fidelity with which +every pecuniary obligation was met; for the generous treatment +measured out with an unstinted hand to the conquered foe; and, finally, +for the cheerful recognition of the duty resting upon the Republican +Party and upon the country to enfranchise, to raise up, to recreate +the millions that had been brought out of bondage. + +This work was not accomplished fully in Mr. Lincoln's time, but he was +the leader of ideas and policies which could have no other consummation. + + +At the end it must be said of Mr. Lincoln that he was a great man, in a +great place, burdened with great responsibilities, coupled with great +opportunities, which he used for the benefit of his country and for the +welfare of the human race. Among American statesmen he is conspicuously +alone. From Washington to Grant he is separated by the absence on his +part of military service and military renown. On the statesmanship side +of his career, there is no one from Washington along the entire line +who can be considered as the equal or the rival of Lincoln. + +And we may wisely commit to other ages and perhaps to other lands the +full discussion and final decision of the relative claims of +Washington and Lincoln to the first place in the list of American +statesmen. + + +XLIV +SPEECH ON COLUMBUS + +DELIVERED AT GROTON, MASS., OCTOBER 21, 1892 + +We celebrate this day as the anniversary of the discovery of the +American continent. + + "The hand that rounded Peter's dome. + And groined the aisles of Christian Rome, + Wrought in a sad sincerity; + Himself from God he could not free; + He builded better than he knew." + +Of these lines of Emerson, the last three are as true of Columbus, as of + + "The hand that rounded Peter's dome, + And groined the aisles of Christian Rome," + +for he, too, + + "Wrought in a sad sincerity; + Himself from God he could not free; + He builded better than he knew." + +And shall we therefore say that he is not worthy of praise, of tribute, +of memorials, of anniversary days, of centennial years, of national and +international gatherings and exhibitions, that in some degree mankind +may illustrate and dignify, if they will, the events that have followed +the opening of a new world to our advanced and advancing civilization? + +In great deeds, in great events, in great names, there is a sort of +immortality, an innate capacity for living, a tendency to growth, to +expansion, and thus what was but of little comment in the beginning is +seen, often after the lapse of years, possibly only after the lapse of +centuries, to have been freighted with consequences whose value can only +be measured by the yearly additions to the sum of human happiness. + +Franklin's experiments in electricity were followed at once by the +common lightning-rod, but a century passed before the electrical power +was utilized, and made subservient, in some degree, to the control of men. + +Every decade of three centuries has added to the greatness of that one +immortal name in the literature of the whole English speaking race. The +security for the world that the name of Shakespeare and the writings of +Shakespeare cannot die may be found in the selfishness, the intelligent +selfishness of mankind, which will struggle constantly to preserve and +to magnify a possession which if once lost, could never be regained. + +After four centuries of delay we have come to realize, with some degree +of accuracy, the magnitude of the event called the Discovery of America. +Identified with that event, and as its author, is the man Columbus. +Involved in controversies while living, the object of the base passions +of envy, hatred and jealousy, consigned finally to chains and to prison, +and in death ignorant of the magnitude of the discovery that he had +made, there seemed but slight basis for the conjecture that his name +was destined to become the one immortal name in the annals of modern +Italy and Spain. + +As if accident and fate and the paltry ambitions of men had combined to +rob Columbus of his just title to fame, the name of the double continent +that he discovered was given to another. To that other the name +remains, but the continent itself has become the continent of Columbus. +In connection with the event no other name is known, and so it will +ever be in all the centuries of the future. + +In these years we are inaugurating a series of centennial anniversary +celebrations in honor of Columbus, and in testimony of the importance +of the discovery that he made. This we do as the greatest of the states +that have arisen on the continent that he discovered, and I delay what +I have to say of Columbus and of the discovery that I may express my +regret and the reasons for my regret, that the celebration and the +ceremonies have not been made distinctively and exclusively national. +In this I do not disparage, on the other hand I exalt, the public +spirit, the capacity for large undertakings, the will and the courage +of the city and the citizens of Chicago in assuming burdens and +responsibilities from which any other city on this continent would have +shrunk. + +My point is this: If the people and Government of the United States +were of the opinion that the discovery of a continent--a continent in +which one of the great governments of the world has found an abiding +place--was worthy of a centennial celebration, then the conduct of the +celebration ought not to have been left to the care of any community +less than the whole. Nor is it an unworthy thought that something of +dignity would have been added to the celebration if the nations of the +earth could have been invited to the capital which bears the name of +the discoverer of the continent and the founder of the Republic. + +There are occasions which confer greatness upon an orator. Such are +revolutionary periods, the overthrow of states, radical changes in a +long-settled public policy, struggles for power, empire, dominion. +These and kindred exigencies in the affairs of men and states, seem to +create, or at least to furnish opportunity and scope for, statesmen, +orators, poets and soldiers. + +This peaceful ceremony in peaceful times, of which we now speak, will +not produce orators like Patrick Henry and James Otis at the opening +of our Revolutionary struggle, like Mirabeau in France, or Cicero in +Rome, pleading for a dying republic, or Demosthenes in Athens +contending hopelessly against the domination of one supreme will. + +An orator for this occasion was not to have been waited for, he was to +have been sought out and found if possible. + +If Webster were living and in the fullness of his powers, the country +might have looked to him for an oration that would have so linked itself +with the anniversary that it would have been recognized in every +succeeding centennial observance. + +Turning from this thought, which at best, can only serve as a standard +to which our hopes aspire, I venture the remark, that there is not one +of our countrymen who, by the studies of his life, by the philosophical +qualities of his mind, by the possession in some large measure of that +Miltonian power of imagination which Webster exhibited, is qualified for +the supreme task which I have thus imperfectly outlined. + +For one day the rumor was voiced that Castelar of Spain had been invited +to deliver the oration at the more formal opening of the exhibition in +May next. That rumor has not been affirmed nor denied, but from the +delay, we cannot hope that its verification is now possible. + +Historical knowledge, due to long and laborious studies, and the spirit +of historical inquiry, are not often found in the same person, combined +with argumentative power and the quality of imagination stimulated by +an emotional nature. From what we know of Emilio Castelar of Spain, it +may be said that he possesses this rare combination in a degree beyond +any other living man. + +In the year 1856 when he was only twenty-four years of age, he was +appointed, after a competitive contest, to the chair of philosophy and +history in the University of Madrid. During his professorship, in +addition to other work, he delivered lectures on the history of +civilization. + +The political disturbances, in which as a republican, he had taken an +active part, led to his exile for four years, but upon his return to +Spain he resumed his place in the University. In 1873 he was prime +minister during the brief existence of the republic. Of his published +works, the best known in this country is the volume entitled "Old Rome +and New Italy." At present he is a member of the Cortes, where he +gives support to the Government in its measures of administration +without yielding his political principles or indorsing the monarchical +system. If this country were to pass beyond its own limits in the +selection of an orator, then, without question Spain has the first, +and indeed, the only claim to consideration. Spain furnished the means +for the expedition and the world is indebted to her enlightened +patronage for the discovery. It may be assumed, reasonably, that +Castelar would have brought from the archives of Spain fresh information +in regard to the motives of Ferdinand and Isabella, trustworthy +statements as to the character and conduct of Pinzon, the ally of +Columbus, and at the end he might have been able to prove or disprove +the theory that Columbus had knowledge of the existence of this +continent, or that he had or had not reasons for believing that land +in the west had been visited by Scandinavian voyagers in the tenth +century. + +As I pass to some more direct observations upon Columbus and the voyage +of 1492, and to the expression of some thoughts as to the future of the +country, I wish to say that I limit my criticism to our representative +men, whose estimate of the importance of the anniversary was quite +inadequate. They failed to see its connection with the past, its +relations to what now is, and more important than all else they failed +to realize that this celebration is the first of a long line of +centennial celebrations, each one of which will mark the close of one +epoch, and the beginning of another. + +I cannot imagine that in a hundred years this anniversary, in its +organization and conduct, will be thought worthy of imitation. Let +us imagine, or rather indulge the hope that then all the States of the +south and the north, from the Arctic Seas to Patagonia, will be united +in a national and international celebration in recognition of an event +that has increased twofold the possibilities, comfort and happiness of +the human race. + +Passing from these criticisms, at once and finally, it is yet true that +in this centennial celebration the two Americas, Southern Europe and +the Catholic churches throughout the world are united as one people, +and for the moment differences in religion and diversities of race are +forgotten. Italy was the birth-place of Columbus; Spain, after long +years of doubt and vexatious delays lent its patronage to the scheme of +the "adventurer" as he was called; and the church, of which Columbus +was a devoted, and perhaps a devout disciple, bestowed its blessing +upon those who staked their lives or their fortunes in the undertaking. +It is not probable that Columbus looked to that posthumous fame of which +he is now the subject. His vision and his hopes extended not beyond the +possession of new lands where he might rule as a potentate and enjoy +power; where Spain might found an empire, and where the church might +establish its authority over millions of new converts. Spain gained +new empires, and maintained her rule over them for three centuries and +more; the church enlarged its power by the acquisition of half a +continent, in which its ecclesiastical authority remains, even to the +close of the nineteenth century. For a moment, and but for a moment +in the annals of time, Columbus was permitted to realize the dream of +his life. After a brief period, however, instead of place, power, +gratitude, wealth, he was subjected to chains, and consigned to prison. +Of the three great parties to the undertaking, Columbus alone, seemed +to have been unsuccessful, but at the end of four centuries he +reappears as the one personage to whom the gratitude of mankind is due +for the discovery of the new world. Nor do we enter into any inquiry +as to the manner of man that Columbus was on the moral side of his +character. We know that he was an enthusiast, that he was richly +endowed with the practical virtues of patience, of perseverance, of +continuing fortitude under difficulties, and we know that neither Spain, +nor the Church, nor Pinzon the ship-builder and capitalist, nor all of +them together would have made the discovery when it was made. To +Columbus they were essential, but without Columbus they were nothing. + +To the wide domain of history may be left the inquiry as to the truth +of his visit to Iceland in the preceding decade, his knowledge of the +expeditions of the Scandinavian voyagers to Greenland and the coasts +of New England in the tenth and eleventh centuries, and his theories +or beliefs concerning the spherical figure of the earth. + +Whatever might have happened previous to the voyage from Palos, and +whatever might have been the extent of Columbus' knowledge, the +discovery of America for the purposes of settlement and civilization, +was made by Columbus himself at eight o'clock in the evening of +October 11, O. S., when he saw the shimmer of fire on the Island of +San Salvador. That fact being established, the fact of the existence +of land near by was established also. The sight of land at three +o'clock next morning was not the discovery; it was evidence only of +the reality of the discovery made by Columbus the evening before. + +In these four hundred years the empires that Spain founded in the New +World have slipped from her grasp; the church has lost its temporal +power, but the fame of Columbus has spread more and more widely and his +claims to the gratitude of mankind have been recognized more generally. + +At the end of each coming century, and for many centuries, no one can +foresay how many, millions on millions in the Americas and in Europe +will unite in rendering tribute of praise to the enthusiast and +adventurer whose limited ambitions for himself were never realized, but +who opened to mankind the opportunity to found states freed from the +domination of the church and churches freed from the domination of the +state. + +We do not deceive ourselves, when we claim for the United States the +first place among the states on this continent. We are the first of +American states in population, in wealth, in our system of public +instruction, in our means of professional and technical education, in +the application of science to the practical purposes of life, and +finally, in experience and success in the business of government. + +It should not be forgotten by any of us, nor should the fact be +overlooked or neglected by the young that these results have been +gained by the labors and sacrifices of our ancestors, and we should +realize that the task of preserving what has been won, is the task that +is imposed upon the generations as they succeed each other in the great +drama of national life. Vain and useless are all conjectures as to +the future. The coming century must bring great changes--equal, +possibly, to those that have occurred since 1792. At that time our +territory did not extend beyond the Mississippi River, our population +was hardly four million, our national revenues were less than four +million dollars annually, manufacturing industries had not gained a +footing, for agricultural products there was no market, the trade in +slaves from Africa was guaranteed in the Constitution, the thirteen +States had not outgrown the disintegrating influence of the +Confederation, the Post-Office Department was not organized, and the +National Government was not respected for its power, justice or +beneficence, of which the mass of people knew nothing. + +In this century our territory has been enlarged fourfold, our +population is eighteen times as great as it was in 1792, our revenues +have been multiplied by a hundred, and the convertible wealth of the +people has been increased in a greater ratio even. The railway, the +telegraphic, the telephonic systems have been created. The dream of +Shakespeare has been realized--we have put a girdle round about the +Earth in forty minutes. + +More than all else, and as the culmination of all else, we have +demonstrated the practicability of a government of the people, by the +people, and for the people. All this has been made possible by and +through a system of universal public education--a system which taxes +the whole people, and educates the whole people in good learning, and +in the cardinal virtues which adorn, dignify and elevate the individual +man and furnish the only security for progressive, successful, +illustrious national life. + +This is the inheritance to which the generations before us are born. +A great inheritance--a great inheritance of opportunity, a great +inheritance of power, a great inheritance of responsibility, from which +the coming generations are not to shrink. + + +XLV +IMPERIALISM AS A PUBLIC POLICY + +This paper is introduced upon two grounds mainly. It sets forth with a +reasonable degree of fulness the views that I have entertained for +three years in regard to President McKinley's policy in the acquisition +and control of the islands in the Caribbean Sea and in the Pacific +Ocean, and it presents a history of my relations to political movements +through a long half century. + +SPEECH DELIVERED AT SALEM, MASS., OCTOBER 18, 1900, IN REPLY TO A SPEECH +MADE BY THE HONORABLE WILLIAM H. MOODY, M. C. + +A truthful statement that I have been inconsistent in the opinions that +I have held and advocated upon questions of public concern, would not +disturb me by day, nor consign me to sleepless nights. + +It is now sixty years since I first held public office by the votes of +my fellow-citizens. In that long period of time my opinions have +undergone many changes. When I have had occasion to address my fellow- +citizens upon public questions I have not reviewed my previous sayings +through fear that some critic might arraign me for inconsistency. + +I have considered only my present duty in relation to the questions +immediately before me. + +In the first ten or fifteen years of my manhood I accepted political +economy as a cosmopolitan science and free trade as a wise policy for +every country. My views in favor of free trade for the United States +are set forth in printed articles, which are now accessible. They are +at the service of the critics and of the advocates of free trade. +Consistency is not always a virtue, and inconsistency is not always a +vice. Even courts of justice change their rulings and holdings when +they find themselves in error. + +The Supreme Court of the United States has reversed its first decision +in the cases that have arisen under the confiscation acts of 1862, and +in other cases the court has qualified its opinions from time to time. +This authority is valuable as proving or as tending to prove, that +inconsistencies in opinion may be consistent with integrity of purpose. + +An attempt to change the issue while the trial is going on is not +infrequently the weak device of misguided advocates who happen to be +charged with the care of weak cases. + +It is now twenty years of more since I appeared before Judge Endicott +of your city in a cause between a trustee and the _cestui que_ trust. +The counsel for the trustee in an argument of considerable length, +proceeded to demonstrate the unwisdom, the incapacity, indeed, of my +administration of the Treasury Department. I made no attempt to meet +the new issue, and the Judge gave no opinion upon it. I made an effort +to satisfy the Judge that the trustee was withholding money that +belonged to my clients, and Judge Endicott so held. My opponent had an +opportunity to argue an issue that was not before the court, and his +client was doomed to lose his case. + +A cause is now pending before the American people. The issue is this: +Is it wise and just for us, as a nation, to make war for the seizure +and government of distant lands, occupied by millions of inhabitants, +who are alien to us in every aspect of life, except that we are +together members of the same human family? The seriousness of this +issue cannot be magnified by the art and skill of writers and speakers, +nor can it be dwarfed to the proportions of a personal controversy. +Nor does it follow from any possible construction of the Constitution +that it is wise and just for the American people to seize, through +war, and to govern by force, the hostile tribes and peoples of the +earth whether near to or remote. + +The advocates of weak causes have two methods of defence to which they +most frequently resort: epithets and a change of issues. + +It was in this city that Mr. Webster made a remark that is applicable +to the use of epithets and the avoidance of issues. Mr. Webster had +come to this city to aid the Attorney-General in the trial of Frank +and Joseph Knapp. His presence was disagreeable to the counsel for +the accused, and they more than intimated that he had been brought to +Salem to carry the court against the law, and to hurry the jury beyond +the evidence. In reply, Mr. Webster referred to the Goodridge trial, +in which he had appeared for the accused, and he said: "I remember +that the learned head of the Suffolk Bar, Mr. Prescott, came down in +aid of the officers of the government. This was regarded as neither +strange nor improper. The counsel for the prisoners, in that case, +contented themselves with answering his arguments, as far as they were +able, instead of carping at his presence." This is, in substance, the +demand that we make upon the supporters of the war in the Philippines. +Let them cease to denounce us as traitors; let them explain the facts +on which they are arraigned; and let them answer the arguments that we +offer in defence of the Republic. + +Causes may be lost by misinterpreting or misrepresenting the issues, or +by undervaluing the character and ability of opponents, but causes are +not often won by such expedients. The political issues in popular +governments are the outcome of measures and policies, and the issues +can be changed only by a change of policies and measures. President +McKinley's administration has been an administration of new policies and +new measures, and, consequently, it is an administration of new issues +--issues that will remain until the measures and policies, to which they +owe their origin, have been abandoned. Therefore, the struggle to +change the issues, however made, or by whomsoever made, is a vain +struggle. + +If, in this year 1900, it could be proved beyond controversy that in +the year 1859, I had maintained the doctrine that the Constitution of +the United States did not apply to the Territories, and that in the +year 1899 I had expressed the opposite opinion, would these facts, +including the change of opinion, and whether considered together or +considered separately, possess any value argumentative, or otherwise, +as a justification of President McKinley in seizing the Philippine +Islands through war, and in attempting to govern the inhabitants by +force? Is it of any consequence when this country is dealing with a +public policy of which war is the incident, and the continuing +inevitable incident, whether the opinions that one man may have +entertained one and forty years ago are acceptable opinions now that +the one and forty years have passed away? Yet, my fellow-citizens, this +is the argument which the representative of the ancient and honored +county of Essex offers to you and to the country in justification of +a policy of war degenerating at times into brutal massacres, carried on +against ten million people, inhabitants of a thousand islands, ten +thousand miles from our shores, and at a cost of four million dollars a +week, and at the sacrifice each year of thousands of the youth of +America, and the destruction of the health and happiness of tens of +thousands more. + +Such is the history of President McKinley's administration, and such is +the defence offered by the representative of the county of Essex. + +There may have been no sinister design in the attempt to demonstrate +my inconsistency upon a question of constitutional law. I do not +assume the existence of personal hostility. An end would be answered +if you and others could be induced to believe that in 1859 I had so +construed the Constitution as to justify President McKinley in governing +the Philippine Islands as though the Constitution of the United States +did not exist. Thus do my opinions receive more consideration from an +opponent than they could command at the hands of a friend. + +I am now to speak more directly in explanation of the opinion that I +gave in 1859, with something of the history of the circumstances +which led to the preparation of the paper of that year. It is an error +to assume that the question whether or not the Constitution extends to +the Territories, was a prominent question, in the period of the anti- +slavery controversy. That question was not publicly and seriously +discussed on either side. + +The controversy was conducted upon the theory that the Territories were +under the Constitution. The question was this: Can a slaveholder move +from a slave State to a Territory and be protected under the +Constitution in holding his slaves as property? + +It was the theory of the Missouri Compromise Measure of 1820 and it was +the theory of the compromise measures of 1850, that the Constitution +neither authorized slavery anywhere nor prohibited it anywhere. The +Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854 recognized, as an admitted fact, the +doctrine that the Constitution extended to the Territories, and it +asserted as a conclusion of law and as a public policy, the doctrine +that the Constitution "should have the same force and effect within the +Territory of Kansas as elsewhere within the United States." Thus it +was maintained by the friends of the compromise measures that the +Constitution neither authorized slavery in the Territories nor +prohibited it. This view of the Constitution was accepted by the +opponents of slavery. + +The Constitution did not authorize slavery in the States nor did it +prohibit slavery in the States. Until the Dred Scott Decision, the +controversy proceeded upon the idea that States and Territories were +alike under the Constitution, and that by the Constitution slavery was +neither authorized nor prohibited in any State, nor in any Territory of +the Union. + +Inasmuch as at that time slavery was not prohibited under the +Constitution, there was a general agreement in the proposition that +Congress might authorize slavery in the Territories and that Congress +might prohibit slavery in the Territories. One party contended for its +authorization, the other party demanded its prohibition. On this issue +the contest was made up. From first to last the contest proceeded upon +the theory, on all sides admitted to be a true theory, that the +Constitution of the United States, by its own force, applied to all the +Territories of the United States. In that opinion I concurred. + +When Mr. Douglas concluded to become a Presidential candidate, he +broached a theory of constitutional interpretation for which he may +have found some support in the Dred Scott Decision. + +His theory was this: The Constitution so applies to the Territories +that they must take places as States in the American Union, and the +Constitution also requires Congress to accept the Territories as States, +and with such institutions as the Territories, when on their way to +Statehood, might choose to establish. + +Hence it was, that in the article in reply to Mr. Douglas, I made this +statement: "But now under the new political dispensation, these +thirty million can have no opinion concerning the admission of States +which may have established Catholicism, Mohammadanism, Polygamy or +even Slavery." + +I interrupt the course of my remarks to say that already in the +Philippines we are tolerating and supporting slavery and polygamy, +and preparing the way for the organization of Catholic and Mohammedan +States, and their admission into the American Union. + +It was in 1859, and in the article now under debate, that I used this +language as a fair exposition of Mr. Douglas' plans: + +"The people of a Territory have all the rights of the people of a +State; and therefore there are no Territories belonging to the +American Union, but all are by the silent negative operations of the +Constitution of the United States, converted into independent sovereign +members of the North American Confederacy. We commend this system to +the advocates of popular sovereignty. It offers many advantages. It +will not be possible for the people or the Congress of the United States +to resist the admission of new States, inasmuch as their consent will +not be asked. It avoids all unpleasant issues. It provides for new +slave States; it disposes of Utah; it settles, in anticipation, all +questions that may grow out of the annexation of the Catholic Mexican +States; and it permits the immigrants from the Celestial Empire to +re-establish their institutions, and take their places as members of +this Imperial Republic." This statement of Mr. Douglas' policy in the +interest of slavery is not a far-away prophecy of the doings under +President McKinley's administration. + +I have reached a point in this discussion when this remark may be +justified: No impartial reader of my article of 1859 can fail to +discover that the discussion did not involve the question now raised. +The issue was this: Are the Territories bound by the Constitution +to become States in the American Union against the judgment of the +people, and are the existing States bound to accept a new State and +that without regard to its institutions? This was the theory of Mr. +Douglas, and it was a theory designed to provide a certain way for the +increase of slave States. My argument was aimed at that policy. + +At the end of my article there is a summary by propositions which +contains declarations that were outside of the controversy with Mr. +Douglas. + +One of these has been quoted, and quoted in error as evidence of my +inconsistency. I read the proposition: "The Constitution of the United +States may be extended over a Territory by the treaty of annexation, or +by a law of Congress, in which case it has only the authority of the +law; but the Constitution by the force of its own provisions is limited +to the people and the States of the American Union." + +In this general proposition there are several minor and distinct +propositions. + +1. The Constitution may be extended over a territory by a treaty of +annexation. This is now my distinct claim in regard to Porto Rico and +the Philippines, a position that I have uniformly maintained. + +2. The Constitution may be extended to a territory by law, _in which +case it has only the authority of law._ + +As to this statement I can only say I may have had in mind instances +of such legislation as may be found in the Kansas-Nebraska Act. + +When we say that the Constitution of its own force, applies to the +Territories, we refer to the parts that are applicable to the +Territories as distinguishable from the parts that relate to States +exclusively. It is a provision of the Constitution that + +"No State shall make any law impairing the obligation of contracts." + +In terms this limitation does not extend to Territories. Congress +might extend the limitation, but the Act of limitation would have only +the force of law. + +3. "The Constitution by the force of its own provisions is limited +to the _people_ and States of the American Union." This is only a +declaration that the Constitution does not apply to other states and +communities. The word _people_ includes the inhabitants of the +Territories as well as the inhabitants of the States. If there could +have been a doubt in 1859 of the validity of this interpretation, the +doubt has been removed by the Fourteenth Amendment. The inhabitants +of Territories are thereby made citizens of the United States, are +brought within the jurisdiction of the Constitution, and as citizens +they are put upon an equality with the citizens of the States. They +are of the _people_ of the American Union, and as such they are under +the Constitution of the United States. + +These are the opening words of the amendment:-- + +"All persons born or naturalized in the United States and subject to +the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of +the State wherein they reside." + +We have no subject classes in America excepting only such as have been +created, temporarily, as I trust, in Porto Rico and the Philippine +Islands, by the policy of President McKinley, and all in violation of +the Thirteenth Amendment to the Constitution, which reads thus: + +"Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for +crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist +within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction." + +President McKinley claimed jurisdiction over the Philippine Islands and +consequently the inhabitants are entitled to the benign protection of +this provision of the Constitution. There cannot be any form of +involuntary servitude imposed upon any American citizen without a +violation of this fundamental law. Hence it is that the administration +is forced to deny citizenship to the inhabitants of the Island and to +assert the claim that the President and Congress may govern the +inhabitants of territories acquired by purchase, as in the case of the +Philippine Islands, or by conquest, as in the case of Porto Rico, as +they might be governed if the Constitution did not exist. And this, +we are told by the President and his supporters, is not imperialism, but +a process of extending the blessings of liberty and civilization to +the inferior races of the earth. + +The claim of the President is the assertion of a right in Congress to +establish a system of peonage or even of slavery in Alaska, Hawaii, +and the rest. Your representative finds himself called to the defence +of this doctrine. Thus is the amendment to the Constitution made of +no effect in the Territories. + +The character of President McKinley's policy is set forth in his own +words and they justify the charge of imperialism. + +In his speech of acceptance he said:--"The Philippines are ours, and +American authority must be supreme throughout the Archipelago. There +will be amnesty, broad and liberal, but no abatement of our rights, no +abandonment of our duty; there must be no scuttle policy." What is +the meaning of this language? Is it not an assertion of absolute, +unconditional, permanent supremacy over the millions of the islands? + +Imperialism is not a word merely. It is a public policy. + +The President denounces imperialism, and with emphasis he declares that +we are all republicans in America. None of us are imperialists. + +Our answer is this: In the language that I have quoted the President +describes himself as an imperialist. The test of Republicanism is +the Thirteenth Amendment. The President is subjecting ten million +people to involuntary subserviency under his rule. This, by whatever +name called, is the imperialism that we denounce. + +We denounce it as a violation of a provision of our Constitution that +was gained at the cost of the lives of four hundred thousand men. + +We denounce it as a violation of the rights of ten million human beings +who owe no allegiance to us. Our title! you exclaim. I answer, What +is it? A title to rule an unwilling, revolutionary people, who, at the +time our title was acquired, were demanding of Spain the enjoyment of +the right of self-government. That right was well-nigh gained when we +accepted the place of substitute for Spain. Through twenty months of +war we have been engaged in a fruitless attempt to subjugate our +purchased victims, and we have been cajoled, continually, by the +declaration that the war was ended. + +If we accept the theory of the President that our title to Porto Rico +and the Philippines is a good title, then that title can be exercised +and enjoyed only in one of two ways under our Constitution and the +example that has been set in the case of Cuba. They should be held as +Territories, on the way to Statehood, or as possessions entitled to +self-government without delay by us. Mr. McKinley, Senator Lodge and +Mr. Moody say neither way is acceptable--the lands and the people are +ours. They have no rights under the Constitution. We will hold them +subject to our will until they accept our authority and recognize our +right to rule over them, and beyond that we will hold them until, in +our opinion, they are qualified to govern themselves. + +The doctrine of imperialism is again set forth in the President's +letter of acceptance of September 8. "The flag of the Republic now +floats over these islands as an emblem of rightful sovereignty. Will +the Republic stay and dispense to their inhabitants the blessings of +liberty, education and free institutions, or steal away, leaving them +to anarchy or imperialism?" + +Thus the President is engaged in dispensing liberty to conquered peoples +instead of allowing them to enjoy liberty as a birthright. He is +dispensing to them such education as he thinks they ought to have, +instead of allowing them to decide for themselves as to the education +which may be agreeable or useful for them. He dictates for them the +"free institutions" which in his opinion are best adapted to their +condition, instead of allowing them the freedom to choose their own +institutions. Thus the President assumes authority to furnish systems +of education and institutions of government by force, denying to the +people all freedom of action for themselves, and thereupon he declares +that "empire has been expelled from Porto Rico and the Philippines." + +Can the President show wherein his policy, in principle, differs from +the policy of Spain? + +Spain was engaged in war to compel the Filipinos to accept Spanish +institutions of education and liberty. We are attempting through war +to compel the Filipinos to accept American institutions of education and +liberty. It is not an answer to say, what may be true, that American +ideas and systems of education are superior to Spanish ideas and +systems. In each case there is compulsion. In each case there is a +denial of freedom. In each case, there is the same exercise of power. +In each case there is the same demand for a subservient class. In each +case there is gross undisguised imperialism. The difference is to the +advantage of Spain. Spain was consistent. Her policy was a policy of +imperialism;--a policy of centuries. + +America was a republic. Self-government was at the basis of all her +institutions. It was a prominent feature of her history. Our +accusation against President McKinley is this: He turned away from the +history of America, he disdained our traditions, and he reversed the +policy of a century. + +Mark the consequences of the change. In other days we sympathized with +Greece in its struggle for self-government; we denounced the suppression +of liberty in Hungary, and in the opening years of this century we +welcomed the provinces of Central and South America as they emerged, +one by one, from a condition of imperial vassalage, and took their +places in the galaxy of Republican States. + +If in this year 1900, America had sent forth one word of official cheer +to the States of South Africa, the act would have been an act of self- +abasement that would have invited the contempt of all mankind. + +When we charge imperialism upon the administration this question is put +exultingly: "Where is the crown?" I answer from history. England +waited a century, after the conquests by Clive and Hastings, for a +Beaconsfield to crown Britain's Queen "Empress of the Indies." The +crown is but a bauble. Empire means vast armies employed in ignominious +service, burdensome taxation at home, and ruthless maladministration of +affairs abroad. + +In two short years of imperialism, these evils have ceased to be +imaginative merely, and they have taken a place among the unwelcome +realities of our national life. + +Before I close this discourse I shall return to the subject that I have +now introduced to your attention, and for the purpose of asking you to +foster and preserve the quality of consistency in the history of the +county of Essex. + +Mr. Moody introduced two topics to the Essex Club of which I am to take +notice. They concern me personally, but there is an aspect of one of +them that may merit public attention. + +With a kindliness of spirit, that I could not have anticipated, Mr. +Moody attributes my failure to continue in the opinions that he claims +were entertained by me in 1859, to the infirmities incident to advancing +years. He thus raises a question that I am not competent to discuss. +I pass it by. + +I trust that Mr. Moody may live to the age of two and eighty years; that +his experience may be more fortunate than the fate that he attributes +to me, and that at that advanced period of his life his ability to +interpret the Constitution of his country will not be less than it now +is. + +The speech of Mr. Moody, as it appears in the _Transcript_ of August +30, closes with this sentence: "He at least might spare the epithets +to the party that has showered upon him every honor within its gift, +except the presidency." If I have applied any disparaging epithet to +the Republican Party, my error is due to my ignorance of the meaning of +the word. The quotations which Mr. Moody has made from my speech at the +Cooper Institute contain a declaration in two forms of expression, which +may have led Mr. Moody to charge me with the use of epithets. I find +nothing else on which this allegation can be founded. I reproduce the +quotations: + +"President McKinley and his imperialistic supporters through two steps +in an argument have deduced an erroneous conclusion from admitted +truths. + +"(1) Our government in common with other sovereignties has a right to +acquire territory. + +"(2) That right carries with it the right to govern territory so +acquired. + +"From these propositions they deduce the false conclusion that Congress +may indulge a full and free discretion in the government of the +territories so acquired. Herein is the error, and herein is the +usurpation." + +Again, "We have the right to acquire territory and we have the right to +govern all territory acquired, but we must govern it under the +Constitution, and in the exercise of those powers, and those only, which +have been conferred upon Congress by the Constitution. Any attempt +further is a criminal usurpation." + +In the first quotation I make the charge that President McKinley, in his +attempt to govern the Philippine Islands as though the Constitution did +not apply to them, was exercising powers not granted to him by virtue +of his office. + +The President is the creature of the Constitution, and his jurisdiction +is measured and limited by the jurisdiction of the Constitution. + +When the President asserts that the Philippine Islands are not under the +Constitution, he admits that the Philippine Islands are not within his +jurisdiction. If, on the other hand, the islands are within his +jurisdiction, it follows that his right of jurisdiction over them must +have come from the presence of the Constitution itself. + +Let there be no misunderstanding upon one point. I claim that the +Philippine Islands are under the Constitution and that the President +may exercise in and over the islands whatever powers the Constitution +and the laws may have placed in his hands. + +I claim further that as a right on the part of the Filipinos, and as a +policy of justice and wisdom on our part, we should relinquish our +title, whatever it may be, and allow the Filipinos to enter upon the +work of governing themselves. + +The President sets up the doctrine that the islands are not under the +Constitution and that they may be governed by him outside of all +constitutional restraints. This is the usurpation that I have charged +upon him, but not upon the Republican Party of former days. Upon the +basis specified the charge remains. It is not an epithet. Let the +charge be answered, or otherwise, let the President and the supporters +of his policy abandon the doctrine that we can seize, hold and govern +communities and peoples who are not within the jurisdiction of our +Constitution and, who, consequently, are not subject to our laws. + +I have said that the President and his supporters are imperialists. If +the word is descriptive of a policy then the word is not an epithet. + +In the passage that I have quoted from the speech of Mr. Moody he +charges me in fact, if not in form of words, with a violation of my +obligations to the Republican Party, and upon the ground that the party +"has showered upon me every honor in its gift except the Presidency." +The consideration that I have received from the Republican Party merits +acknowledgment, and that I accord without reserve, but it cannot exact +subserviency from me. + +On public grounds I ask this question: Are those who may hold office +under the leadership of a party, to be held by party discipline to the +support of measures and policies which they condemn? Freedom of opinion +and freedom of speech are of more value than public office. The +movement for the reform of the civil service is, in its best aspect, +but an attempt to rescue the body of office holders from the tyranny +and discipline of party and of party leaders. Thus much upon public +grounds, but, for myself, I shall not seek protection under a general +policy. + +Never for a moment from my early years did I entertain the thought that +I would enter public life, or that I would continue in public life, as +a pursuit or as a profession. Hence, it has happened that I have never +asked for personal support at the hands of any, and hence it has +happened that I have never solicited a nomination or an appointment from +or through the Republican Party or any member of it. + +In 1860, a majority of the delegates to the Congressional Convention in +my district, favored my nomination, but not through any effort by me. +I attended the Convention and placed in nomination Mr. Train, who had +been in Congress one term. + +Without any effort on my part I was nominated in 1862-'64-'66 and '68. +No aid in money or otherwise was given by the State Committee or the +National Committee. Following my nomination in each case the District +Committee asked me for a contribution of one hundred dollars. On one +occasion the committee sent me a return check of forty-two dollars and +some cents with a statement that the full amount had not been expended. +If contributions of money were made by others the fact was not +communicated to me. + +I became a candidate for the Senate upon a request signed by members of +the Legislature. When the second contest was on, in 1877, I declined +a call by a telegraphic message to visit Boston and confer with my +friends who were anxious for my election. I was a member of the Peace +Congress of 1861 and I received several other appointments from Governor +Andrew, but without solicitation by me. At his request I went to +Washington for a conference with Mr. Lincoln and General Scott. I +reached the city by the first train that passed over the road from +Annapolis. Again, at his request, I went to Washington the Monday +following the battle of Bull Run. + +I received two appointments from President Lincoln, when, in each case, +I had no knowledge that the place existed. + +From General Grant I received the offer of the Interior Department and +then of the Treasury Department, both of which I declined. When +General Grant had taken the responsibility of sending my name to the +Senate, I had no alternative as a member of the Republican Party and +as a friend to General Grant. + +Upon the death of Mr. Folger, President Arthur asked me to take the +office of Secretary of the Treasury. I was then concerned with the +affairs of another government and I declined the appointment. + +When General Garfield had been nominated at Chicago in 1880 the +nomination of a candidate for the Vice-Presidency was placed in the +hands of the friends of General Grant. That nomination was offered to +me. + +In the forty years from 1856 to 1896, I made speeches in behalf of the +Republican Party in Massachusetts, Maine, Vermont, New York, +Pennsylvania, Maryland, North Carolina, Mississippi, Missouri, Illinois, +Ohio and Indiana and in no instance did I receive compensation for my +services. When I spoke in Ohio my expenses were paid on all occasions +but one. That was a volunteer visit. My acquaintance with the +politicians of Ohio was agreeable from first to last. + +In my many trips through New York it was understood that my expenses +were to be paid. When General Arthur was at the head of the committee +his checks exceeded the expenses, perhaps by a hundred per cent. + +On one occasion the State Committee asked me to make six or eight +speeches upon their appointment. That service I performed; whether my +expenses were paid I cannot say. If they were paid it is the exception +in Massachusetts, unless local expenses may have been met where +addresses were made. + +If a mercantile account current could be written, it might appear that +my obligations to the Republican Party are not in excess of the +obligations of the Republican Party to me. + +From my experience as a member of the Republican Party I add an incident +to what I have said already. + +In the month of July, 1862, and at the request of President Lincoln and +Secretary Chase, I entered upon the work of organizing the Internal +Revenue Office. That work was continued without the interruption of +Sabbaths or evenings, with a few exceptions only, till March, 1863, +when, as was said by Mr. Chase, the office was larger than the entire +Treasury had been at any time previous to 1861. It was the largest +branch of government ever organized in historical times and set in +motion in a single year. The system remains undisturbed. Such changes +only have been made as were required by changes in the laws. In the +thirty-eight years of its existence the Government has received through +its agency the enormous sum of five thousand and five hundred million +dollars being twice the amount of all the revenues of the Government +previous to 1860. + +I have thus devoted many minutes of your time to the questions raised by +Mr. Moody. + +The nature and the extent of my obligations to the Republican Party +and the question of my consistency in the construction that I have +given to the Constitution of the United States, are not matters of +grave concern for you. They have come into the field of discussion +through the agency of Mr. Moody. + +I come now to ask your attention to a view of your relations to passing +events which concerns the county of Essex. + +Your county has a distinguished history--distinguished for its men and +for its part in public affairs. Shall the history that you are now +making be consistent with that which you have inherited and which you +cherish? I mention one name only among your great names and I bring +before your minds one event only. + +In the order of time and in the order of events, the second most +important paper in the annals of America is the "Ordinance for the +Government of the Territory of the United States Northwest of the +River Ohio." + +The chief value of that ordinance is in the sixth article which is in +these words: "There shall be neither slavery nor involuntary servitude +in the said Territory, otherwise than in the punishment of crime, +whereof the party shall have been duly convicted." + +By repeated decisions the Supreme Court has held that the stipulations +and terms of the ordinance remained in force after the adoption of the +Constitution, unless a conflict should appear, and in such a case the +ordinance would yield to the Constitution. As the article in regard +to slavery was not controlled by the Constitution, the exclusion of +slavery became the supreme and continuing law of the Territories and +States that were organized in the vast region covered by the Ordinance +of 1787, and it may be assumed, fairly, that the character and power of +those States made possible the extermination of the institution of +slavery in all parts of the country. The parties to the ordinance of +1787 may have builded better than they knew, but their work is one of +the four great acts or events in the history of the Republic--The +Declaration of Independence, the Ordinance of 1787, the Constitution, +and the amendment abolishing the institution of slavery. + +Nathan Dane of the county of Essex, was the author of the Ordinance of +1787; and he was a delegate in the Continental Congress from 1785 to +1788. Of all the eminent men that you have sent forth into the service +of the State and the country, he must be accounted the chief, when we +consider the value of his contribution, historically, and on the side of +freedom and civilization. His fame is in your hands and I have come to +ask you to consider whether the policy of President McKinley in the +Philippines is in harmony with the Ordinance of 1787 and the amendment +to the Constitution of 1865. + +By the Ordinance of 1787, freedom and full right to self-government +were made secure to the coming millions who were to occupy the States +northwest of the River Ohio. By the amendment of 1865 freedom and +equality in government were guaranteed to all and especially to the +negro race in America. + +Shall the avoidance of the Amendment in States of this Union be tendered +as a reason for a denial of equality and the right of self-government in +the Philippine Islands? If the negroes in America are entitled to +freedom from a state of subserviency, are not the colored races in the +Philippines entitled to freedom, and that whether they are under the +Constitution or beyond its jurisdiction? + +You are called to a choice between the doctrines of Nathan Dane and +Abraham Lincoln on one side and the doctrines and policy of President +McKinley and his supporters on the other side. The point I make is +this: The three propositions cannot stand together. Dane and Lincoln +are in harmony. They guaranteed equality and self-government to all. +President McKinley and his supporters demand subserviency of all who +are not within the lines of the American seas. + +They assert supreme authority over their fellow-men for an indefinite +period of time, and they promise therewith good government. Here are +the assertion of power and the promise of goodness that have attended +the origin and movement of every despotism that has risen to curse +mankind. + +That you may see, as in one view, the doctrines of Dane, Lincoln and +McKinley, I read again the records that they have made. + +"There shall be neither slavery "The Philippines are ours and +nor involuntary servitude in the American authority must be su- +said territory otherwise than in the preme throughout the Archipelago. +punishment of crimes whereof the There will be amnesty, broad and +party shall have been duly liberal, but no abatement of our +convicted."--NATHAN DANE. rights, no abandonment of our + duty. There must be no scuttle +"Neither slavery nor involuntary policy."--WILLIAM McKINLEY. +servitude, except as a punishment +for crime whereof the party shall "The flag of the Republic now +have been duly convicted, shall floats over these islands as an +exist within the United States, or emblem of rightful sovereignty. +any place subject to their Will the Republic stay and +jurisdiction."--ABRAHAM LINCOLN. dispense to their inhabitants the + blessings of liberty, education + and free institutions, or steal + away leaving them to anarchy or + imperialism?"--WILLIAM McKINLEY. + + "Any slave in the Archipelago of + Jolo shall have the right to pur- + chase freedom by paying to the + master the usual market price.-- + Article 10, of the McKinley treaty + with the Sultan of the Sulu Isles. + +I leave three questions with you. + +Is a vote for President McKinley and his policy in the Philippine +Islands a vote in harmony with the teachings and examples of Nathan +Dane and Abraham Lincoln? + +Is the policy of President McKinley consistent with the history of the +county of Essex? + +Shall your representative stand for Nathan Dane and Abraham Lincoln +and Freedom, or for William McKinley and Despotism? + + +THE END + + +INDEX [omitted] + + +*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 20109 *** |