APPENDIX.
(A). Page 121.
LETTER OF MR. SEWARD TO MR. SUMNER.
Department of State, Washington, June 21, 1862.
Sir,—I duly received your letter of the 3d instant, accompanied by a copy of the resolution of the Senate of the 2d instant, referring to the consideration of the Committee on Foreign Relations of that part of the President’s Annual Message to Congress, of December last, which adverts to the difference between the amount stipulated to be paid by China in satisfaction of claims of United States citizens and the gross amount of the awards of the Commissioners appointed pursuant to the Act of Congress of the 3d of March, 1859.
In compliance with your request for information and suggestion upon the subject, I have the honor to communicate a copy of the Convention, a copy of the Act to carry it into effect, a copy of all the correspondence on record or on file in the Department touching the matter, and all the original papers relating to the proceedings of the Commissioners. It is desirable that great care should be taken of these last, and that they should be returned to the Department as soon as the subject shall have been disposed of.
The circumstance of the complaints against the Chinese, which it was the purpose of the convention to adjust, having arisen in a peculiar region and among a singular people, probably suggested the appointment of Commissioners resident on the spot, who were familiar with the scene of their duties. It is understood, therefore, that, upon the recommendation of Mr. Reed, the Minister who concluded the convention, Mr. Charles W. Bradley, who was United States Consul at Ning-po, and Mr. Oliver E. Roberts, who had acted in a similar capacity elsewhere in China, and both of whom had long resided in that country, were appointed Commissioners. The business-like manner in which they discharged their trust is manifest from the records of the Commission.
With regard to the disposition of the surplus in question, three methods suggest themselves.
1. The refunding of the whole amount to the Chinese.
2. Appropriating the whole or a part of it in payment of claims supposed to have been unjustly rejected by the Commissioners, and of others in which the amounts allowed may not have been satisfactory to the claimants.
3. Retaining the whole surplus in the Treasury of the United States, or causing it to be invested toward indemnifying citizens who may hereafter be injured by the Chinese authorities.
I will abstain from any remarks on the first head.
There is but one claim, that of Messrs. Nott & Co., disallowed by the Commissioners,—in which case application has been made for a part of the surplus referred to. The claimants allege that their agents in China were too far from Macao, the place where the Commissioners met, to allow them to appeal to the Minister in season. The Committee will be enabled to judge of the sufficiency of this reason for considering the claim in that case an open one.
The award in the Caldera case is the only one complained of as having been inadequate. As all the facts and arguments in the case are embraced in the accompanying papers, the Committee can form their own opinion upon this point.
The Minister who concluded the convention pursued a judicious course in requiring from the Chinese a sum in gross adequate to meet the sums claimed in the several cases. This, however, can hardly be allowed to imply, that, even in his opinion, the claimants in those cases ought to receive the amounts which severally they might expect.
Congress made it the duty of the Commissioners, by an investigation judicial in its character, to ascertain the amounts justly due; and if the claimants should be dissatisfied with the decisions of the Commissioners, an appeal to the Minister was allowed, whose decision was expected to be final.
The expediency of sanctioning a review of decisions of the Commissioners or arbiter may be deemed questionable. They were all of high character, peculiarly qualified for the trust conferred upon them. It is for Congress to consider the conveniences and inconveniences of such a precedent, when the Government, in all its branches, may be considered to have already fulfilled its duty to the claimants, collectively and individually.
The whole subject is one of a purely legislative character, affecting a fund which, although it came into the Treasury in a peculiar manner, seems to me to belong to the United States. This Department has no authority to inquire whether there are equities existing on the part of any of our citizens which Congress ought to consult in directing the disposition of the fund. If Congress should impose any inquiry of that nature upon the Department, it would undertake the performance of it cheerfully and with a purpose only to consult justice and the public advantage. But the Department sees no ground for recommending such a measure in the present case.
I have the honor to be, Sir, your very obedient servant,
William H. Seward.
Hon. Charles Sumner,
Chairman of the Committee on Foreign Relations,
United States Senate.
(B). Page 454.
CLAIMS SINCE THE AWARD.
It remains to speak of claims which have been brought forward or renewed since the awards were made.
One of these is that of Matthew Rooney, master of the bark Caldera, which had been presented to the Commissioners, but was not considered by them, in the absence of proof of citizenship. In 1864 his representatives produced to Mr. Burlingame evidence on this head, and the latter directed that he should be paid in the same manner and proportion as other persons interested in the same class of claims had been paid by order of Mr. Ward, our Minister at Peking.[139]
Mr. Burlingame says, in his dispatch reporting the action which he had taken in this matter: “There is no other demand that can ever come up for payment out of this Indemnity Fund, which has not been examined and decided.”[140]
Other claims have, however, been brought to notice. Some of these are known as the Caldera claims; another is the Neva or Nott & Co.’s claim.
The Caldera was a Chilian bark. On the 5th October, 1854, she sailed from Hong-Kong for San Francisco. During the ensuing night she encountered a storm, by which she was so injured as to be obliged to seek an anchorage. This she found, on the 7th October, between islands lying off the Chinese coast. Here she was attacked and plundered by successive piratical bands. The captain escaped and made his way to Hong-Kong, when, upon his information, steps were taken to recover the property and punish the pirates. A small portion of the cargo was found, and summary justice was inflicted upon such of the pirates as were captured.
The master of the Caldera was an American. An American firm were shippers by her, and various American insurance offices had taken risks upon the hull of the vessel and the larger portion of her cargo. These all appealed to Mr. McLane, then the chief diplomatic officer of the United States in China, with a view to secure indemnity. Mr. McLane declined to take action, declaring that our treaty offered “no basis whatever on which to make a claim against the Chinese Government,”[141] and referred the subject to Mr. Marcy, then Secretary of State. The latter responded, under date of October 5, 1855, “that the parties injured were entitled to indemnification from the Government of China, if not specially by treaty, at least by general principles of international right and obligation.”[142] The same matter forms the subject of a dispatch from Mr. Cass, Secretary of State, to Mr. Ward, dated May 5, 1859, in which, after declaring that “the decision of the case will rest with the Commissioners and yourself,” and detailing certain allegations made to him by the claimants, who appear to have been very active, he says: “If facts of such a nature be proved, the responsibility of the Chinese Government and its duty to make indemnity would seem to be fixed, according to the treaty, as well as according to the Law of Nations.”[143]
The matter was brought before the Commissioners in 1859, and a patient hearing seems to have been given by them, the result of which was a disagreement between them. Both rendered elaborate opinions: one adjudging that no portion of the claims should be allowed; the other, an opposite view, and he proceeded to assess the damages sustained by the claimants. These he estimated at forty per cent. of their claim, holding that the vessel and her cargo had been injured by the storm to the extent of sixty per cent. of their value. The case then went before Mr. Ward, whose conclusion was expressed in the following words:—
“Under the instructions of Mr. Marcy, thus reaffirmed by Mr. Cass, my duty may be discharged by ascertaining, as far as possible, what have been ‘the actual losses of our citizens.’ Satisfied with the award of Mr. Roberts on this point, I have approved the same, and ordered the amounts awarded by him to be paid to the respective claimants.”[144]
The amounts so paid exceeded $54,000 in coin. This was received by the several claimants, and it does not appear that they protested against the awards. Some of them were, however, dissatisfied, and in 1863 addressed Mr. Burlingame, setting forth their views, and asking him to favor their purpose for a rehearing. Mr. Burlingame, as will be seen on reference to his dispatch of October 5, 1863,[145] entered on a thorough examination of their statements, and arrived at the conclusion that the awards ought not to be disturbed, using strong language in this sense.
The Neva was a British schooner. Messrs. Nott & Co. were American merchants, residing at Hong-Kong. On the 16th October, 1857, they shipped by the Neva, then bound for the port of Foo-chow, five packages containing twenty thousand Mexican dollars. The vessel sailed at 3 o’clock P.M. of the 17th, and the same evening, while at anchor a short distance beyond the limits of the port of Hong-Kong, five Chinese came alongside and requested passage to Foo-chow, which was granted. At 11 o’clock that night these Chinese and the Chinese members of the crew took possession of the vessel; and having murdered the master and some of the crew and secured the rest, they broke into the hold, seized four of the packages of silver and removed them to the shore. The efforts of Messrs. Nott & Co. to recover the treasure were unsuccessful; and finally, the firm having ceased to exist, the agent representing their interests placed the claim before the Commissioners, who rejected it. Correspondence with the State Department ensued, and in 1869 the representatives of the firm appeared before Congress, declaring that their agent was absent from the South of China, where the Commissioners held their sittings, at the time when the awards were made, and that they had then, innocently, been deprived of their right to appeal from them to the Minister. The Attorney-General was directed by Congress to examine their claim, and, if in his judgment it was valid, he was empowered to award its payment out of the Indemnity Fund. The Attorney-General decided in favor of the claimants, and directed payment of a certain sum in gold. Mr. Washburne, then Secretary of State, held that he was not authorized to make the payment in any other than current funds of the United States. From this ruling the claimants have lately appealed to the Court of Claims, which has decided that the award of the Attorney-General should be complied with. This will make a small deduction from the fund.
TAX ON BOOKS.
Remarks in the Senate, June 30, 1870.
A bill “to reduce internal taxes and for other purposes” being under consideration, Mr. Sumner moved to add to the free list of imports “books in foreign or dead languages, of which no editions are printed in the United States.” In conclusion of a running debate relative to the application of this amendment, Mr. Sumner said:—
Senators seem to argue that this is applicable exclusively, or almost exclusively, to school-books; but we are all aware that outside of school-books there are works of literature, of instruction generally, of travels, of romance if you please, interesting in families, and which thousands who are familiar, for instance, with the German language, would be glad to have. For example, here is the large German population of our country,—is it not right that they should have the means of adding to those innocent recreations that are found in reading? We shall be doing a real service to them, if we enable them to import books that they lack, cheap,—not merely school-books, but I mean the large class of books outside of school-books. I see no possible objection to this provision, while I see much in its favor.
I have alluded to the large German population. There is also a very considerable Italian population. Some one told me the other day, who professed to know, that there are three hundred thousand Italians in our country. That seemed to me very large; but it was an estimate made by an Italian. Now should not those Italians be enabled under our tariff law to import books from their own country, of literature or of science, without paying a tax? It seems to me that we owe that gratification to them, when they come here to join their fortunes to ours. And so you may go through the whole list of European nations. Take Spaniards; take Swedes; take Danes: I know not why their books should be taxed, when they come to them from across the sea. It seems to me that the tax is inhospitable; it is churlish; and of course it is a tax on knowledge.
The amendment was rejected.
Mr. Sumner then moved to add,—“Also books with illustrations relating to the sciences and the arts,”—saying:—
On that I wish to read a remark of an intelligent person not belonging to the class that the Senator from Ohio characterized as rich men who import books, but one who imports books because he needs them. Remarking on the works of science and the arts, including books on architecture and the fine arts, which now pay very heavily at the custom-house, he says:—
“Books of this kind are too costly, and the sale of them is too limited, for them to be reprinted. To add to their cost by a heavy duty is an outrage, for it is depriving men of small means of the tools whereby they live. It is a queer kind of protection of home industry which seeks to keep out of the country by taxation the knowledge which makes industry valuable.”
Now I put it to Senators whether any injurious consequence can result from allowing these books to come in free. The duty that you receive from them is small; it is very little for you to give up; but in giving facilities to the importation of such books you contribute to knowledge. I am sure of it. I have no motive in making this motion, or this succession of motions, except my anxiety for the extension of knowledge in this Republic. I am for free schools; I am for free knowledge everywhere; and I wish to beat down all the obstructions possible, and one of these is the tax which we impose in our tariff. I hope there can be no question on that amendment.
The vote being taken by yeas and nays resulted, Yeas 14, Nays 26; so this amendment was likewise rejected.
NATURALIZATION LAWS: NO DISCRIMINATION ON ACCOUNT OF COLOR.
Remarks in the Senate, July 2 and 4, 1870.
July 2, 1870, the Senate having under consideration a bill “to amend the Naturalization Laws and to punish crimes against the same,” which had been reported from the Committee on the Judiciary as a substitute for one from the House,—the particular object of both bills being the prevention of the election frauds perpetrated through the instrumentality of unnaturalized or illegally naturalized aliens,—Mr. Sumner moved to add, as a new section, a bill previously introduced by himself, and reported favorably from the same Committee, providing—
“That all Acts of Congress relating to naturalization be, and the same are hereby, amended by striking out the word ‘white’ wherever it occurs, so that in naturalization there shall be no distinction of race or color.”
The motion was strenuously resisted, as ill-timed and out of place,—Mr. Edmunds, of the Judiciary Committee, remarking, that, although he reported the bill in question, and believed in it so far as he now understood, yet, under existing circumstances, he should vote against it as an amendment to the pending bill.
Mr. Sumner briefly responded:—
MR. PRESIDENT,—The remark of the Senator from Vermont [Mr. Edmunds] renders it necessary for me to make a brief statement. Some time during the last Congress I had the honor of introducing a bill to strike the word “white” from our Naturalization Laws. I tried to have it put on its passage. I was resisted then by the Senator from Vermont, who moved its reference to the Committee on the Judiciary. There it remained until near the expiration of that Congress, and was then reported adversely, too late for further action. During the third week of the present Congress, now more than a year ago, I introduced the same bill again. It remained in the room of the Judiciary Committee from March, 1869, until very recently, when it was reported favorably.
Such, Sir, have been my efforts to bring the Senate to a vote on this question. Never till this moment has it been in my power to have a vote on a question which I deem of vital importance. I have here on my table letters from different States,—from California, from Florida, from Virginia,—all showing a considerable number of colored persons—shall I say of African blood?—aliens under our laws, who cannot be naturalized on account of that word “white.”
Now, Sir, here is a practical grievance which needs a remedy. This is the first time that I have been able to obtain a vote upon it; and I should be unworthy of my seat here, if, because Senators rise and say they will vote it down on the ground that it is out of place, I should hesitate to persevere. Senators will vote as they please; I shall vote for it. The Senator from Illinois [Mr. Trumbull] properly says it is in place. Never was there a bill to which it was more germane. You are now revising the naturalization system, and I propose to strike out from that system a requirement disgraceful to this country and to this age. I propose to bring our system into harmony with the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution of the United States. The word “white” cannot be found in either of these two great title-deeds of this Republic. How can you place it in your statutes?
The motion was lost,—Yeas 22, Nays 23.
Subsequently, on the same day, the pending bill was itself defeated, the original bill being preferred,—and the latter now coming up, Mr. Sumner renewed his amendment, remarking,—
Now I have to say that that is worth all the rest of the bill put together. That is a section that is pure gold. It will do more for the character and honor and good name of this Republic than all the rest of the bill. I am for the rest of the bill, but this is better than all the rest. Now I ask for the yeas and nays.
After further debate the amendment prevailed,—Yeas 27, Nays 22; whereupon Mr. Williams, of Oregon, moved the following addition:—
“Provided, That nothing in this Act shall be construed to authorize the naturalization of persons born in the Chinese Empire.”
July 4th, the debate on the House bill being resumed, Mr. Conkling, of New York, criticized sharply the course of Mr. Sumner in pressing his amendment, to the peril of the bill,—denominating it “an act of self-will in defeating the purpose of a great majority of this body to consummate a simple, practical, and urgent measure.” Mr. Sumner replied as follows:—
Mr. President,—The Senator from New York has chosen to make an assault on me to-day, because, in the discharge of my duties, I do not see my duty as he sees his duty,—because on this Fourth day of July I choose to stand by the Declaration of our fathers. For that I am impeached by the Senator from New York.
He presses me to postpone this proposition until to-morrow. When, Sir, will that to-morrow come? Can the Senator tell? Is he adept enough to indicate the day, or even the week, when a vote can be had on it? The Senator knows, he must know, that, if not voted on now, it will fail during the present session. The Senator shakes his head; but he knows too much of the business now before the Senate not to see that I am right. What chance is there of getting before the Senate the original bill containing this proposition? Why, Sir, the bill was introduced first on the 19th of July, 1867, now three years ago. I tried then to put it on its passage, deeming it so simple that there was no need of a reference to any committee. The Senator from Vermont [Mr. Edmunds] prevailed against me by insisting that it should be referred to the Committee on the Judiciary. It was referred, and there it slumbered until that Congress was about to close, thus sleeping the long sleep.
On the 22d of March, 1869, which was in the next Congress, I introduced the same bill again,—I have it before me,—and again it slumbered in the hands of the Judiciary Committee until a few weeks ago, when at last it was reported to the Senate. Then it took its place on the Calendar, with the numerous other bills there, important and unimportant, some very important, all in competition with it.
What chance have I had for a vote upon it? From the 19th of July, 1867, down to this hour, Saturday was the first day I was able to have a vote upon it; and now to-day Senators insist that I shall withdraw it, and postpone the whole question to some “to-morrow,” some indefinite, unknown to-morrow.
“To-morrow, and to-morrow, and to-morrow
Creeps in this petty pace from day to day,
To the last syllable of recorded time;
And all our yesterdays have lighted fools
The way to dusty death.”
Sir, I am not one of those “fools.” I will not postpone this question to any “to-morrow.” The Senate will do as they please; but, God willing, they shall have an opportunity to vote on it. Vote as you please, Sir, but the time has come for a vote.
Mr. President, this is not the only bill on the Calendar which concerns the rights of colored persons. There are two on the Calendar, and one now before the Judiciary Committee. The first on the Calendar was reported by me from the Committee on the District of Columbia as long ago as February 8, 1870, and is entitled “A bill to repeal the charter of the Medical Society of the District of Columbia.” That society has been guilty of an act which I have no hesitation, on all the testimony before us, in declaring to be one of infamy, for which they deserve the promptest judgment of Congress, which shall take from them the power to inflict indignity on their fellow-man. Enjoying a charter from Congress which dedicates them and sets them apart to the cultivation of medical science, they have undertaken to exclude persons otherwise competent simply on account of color. They have set up a test of membership founded on color. The evidence is irrefutable; and yet I have been unable to bring the Senate to a vote on that bill; and meanwhile colored physicians in this District are subjected to the indignity of exclusion from the Society, and thus are shut out from opportunities of medical instruction.
There is another bill, which I reported from the Committee on the District of Columbia May 6, 1870, entitled “A bill to secure equal rights in the public schools of Washington and Georgetown.” That, also, I have tried in vain to press upon the Senate. There is, then, another bill, which I had the honor of introducing May 13, 1870, entitled “A bill supplementary to an Act entitled ‘An Act to protect all citizens of the United States in their civil rights, and to furnish the means for their vindication,’ passed April 9, 1866.” This important bill was duly referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, but I have heard nothing from it since. It slumbers on the table of the Committee.
Of all these measures which concern equal rights, the only one which I have been able to bring before the Senate is that under consideration; and I am now pressed to withdraw it so as to avoid a vote. Why, Sir, again and again in other years have I been pressed in the same way; again and again in other years have Senators spoken to me and of me as the Senator from New York was advised to speak to-day: but it has not been my habit to yield; nor have I been alone, Sir, in such determination. One of the most beautiful instances in parliamentary history, familiar, doubtless, to the Chamber, is that motion of Mr. Buxton in the House of Commons, in 1832, which determined Emancipation. The Ministry professed to be against Slavery; a large number of the House of Commons made the same profession; but they were against declaring it; and when Mr. Buxton gave notice of a motion in favor of immediate emancipation, Ministry, members of the House, and personal friends came to him entreating that he would not press his motion, especially that he would not divide the House. One of his family records in his Memoirs, which I have in my hands, says:—
“He was cruelly beset, and acutely alive to the pain of refusing them, and, as they said, of embarrassing all their measures, and giving their enemies a handle at this tottering moment.”[146]
Then it is recorded of his friends in the House:—
“‘They hated,’ they said, ‘dividing against him when their hearts were all for him; it was merely a nominal difference; why should he split hairs? He was sure to be beaten; where was the use of bringing them all into difficulty, and making them vote against him?’ He told us that he thought he had a hundred applications of this kind in the course of the evening; in short, nearly every friend he had in the House came to him, and by all considerations of reason and friendship besought him to give way.”[147]
On that occasion he wrote to the leader of the House of Commons, Lord Althorp, under date of May 22, 1832, as follows:—
“Allow me, moreover, to remind you, that, however insignificant in myself, I am the representative, on this question, of no mean body in this country, who would be, to an extent of which I believe you have no idea, disappointed and chagrined at the suspension of the question.”[148]
Sir, in a humble way I may adopt this language. I, too, am the representative, on this question, of no mean body in this country, who I know would be disappointed and chagrined at the suspension of the question. The English Emancipationist refused to yield; he insisted, according to the language of Parliament, on dividing the House. He was left in a minority, but that vote determined Emancipation; and the Ministry and those personal friends who had advised against his course complimented him upon that firmness which had at last assured the victory.
I doubt if Senators are aware of the practical bearing of this proposition on the Atlantic seaboard, and even in California. I said on Saturday that I had letters from various parts of the country attesting that there are colored aliens shut out from equal rights by that word “white” in our Naturalization Laws. I did not then read the letters; but as this debate now promises to extend, I deem it my duty to lay some of them before the Senate.
Mr. Sumner here read four letters,—two from Florida, one from California, and another from Virginia.[149]
Such, Sir, is the personal testimony with regard to the importance, I would say the necessity, of this measure. Here are Africans in our country shut out from rights which justly belong to them, simply because Congress continues the word “white” in the Naturalization Laws. These men are humble, but they are none the less worthy of protection. Ay, Sir, it is your duty to protect them. Even if few, you cannot afford to let them suffer wrong; but they are numerous,—in Florida counted by the hundred, and even the thousand.
Strong as this measure is, as an act of justice, whether to many or few, it has another title. Its highest importance is found in its conformity to the requirement of the Declaration of Independence. Sir, this is the Fourth of July, when our fathers together solemnly declared as follows:—
“We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness; that to secure these rights governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed.”
The great, the mighty words of this clause are, that these self-evident, unalienable rights belong to “all men.” It is “all men,” and not a race or color, that are placed under protection of the Declaration; and such was the voice of our fathers on the fourth day of July, 1776. Sir, such was the baptismal vow of this nation. According to this vow, all men are created equal and endowed with unalienable rights. But the statutes of the land assert the contrary,—they declaring that only all white men are created equal.
Now, Sir, what better thing can you do on this anniversary than to expunge from the statutes that unworthy limitation which dishonors and defiles the original Declaration? It is in your power to make the day more than ever sacred.
How can you hesitate? There are the words. Does any one question the text? Will any one move to amend the text? Will any one insist that hereafter, as these great words are read on our great anniversary, the word “white” shall be inserted to qualify this sublime Declaration? No one will venture such a suggestion. There they are; there they will remain as long as this Republic endures. But if you are not ready to change the original text, you must then change your statutes and bring them into harmony with the text. The word “white,” wherever it occurs as a limitation of rights, must disappear. Only in this way can you be consistent with the Declaration.
Senators undertake to disturb us in this judgment by reminding us of the possibility of large numbers swarming from China; but the answer to all this is very obvious and very simple. If the Chinese come here, they will come for citizenship or merely for labor. If they come for citizenship, then in this desire do they give a pledge of loyalty to our institutions; and where is the peril in such vows? They are peaceful and industrious; how can their citizenship be the occasion of solicitude?
We are told that they are Imperialists; but before they can be citizens they must renounce Imperialism. We are told that they are foreigners in heart; but before they can take part with us they must renounce their foreign character. Therefore do I say, if they come for citizenship, there is no peril,—while, if they come merely for labor, then is all this discussion and all this anxiety superfluous.
Why introduce the topic into debate? Is there a Senator on this floor who will say that from anything done or said by Chinese at this moment there is any reason to fear peril to this Republic? Sir, the greatest peril to this Republic is from disloyalty to its great ideas. Only in this way can peril come. Let us surrender ourselves freely and fearlessly to the principles originally declared. Such is the way of safety. How grand, how beautiful, how sublime is that road to travel! How mean, how dark, how muddy is that other road which has found counsellors to-day! Listening to the speech of the Senator from Nevada [Mr. Stewart], more than once, nay, thrice over, denying the Declaration of Independence, I was reminded of an incident in the Gospels. I have the book from the desk of the Secretary, and now read the pertinent passage: it is in Matthew, chapter twenty-six:—
“Now Peter sat without in the palace: and a damsel came unto him, saying, Thou also wast with Jesus of Galilee.
“But he denied before them all, saying, I know not what thou sayest.
“And when he was gone out into the porch another maid saw him, and said unto them that were there, This fellow was also with Jesus of Nazareth.
“And again he denied with an oath, I do not know the man.
“And after a while came unto him they that stood by, and said to Peter, Surely thou also art one of them; for thy speech bewrayeth thee.
“Then began he to curse and to swear, saying, I know not the man. And immediately the cock crew.
“And Peter remembered the words of Jesus, which said unto him, Before the cock crow thou shalt deny me thrice. And he went out, and wept bitterly.”
Sir, thrice has a Senator on this floor denied these great principles of the Declaration of Independence. The time may come when he will weep bitterly.
On a subsequent motion by Mr. Conkling for the reconsideration of the vote on Mr. Sumner’s amendment, in consequence of the debate ensuing upon Mr. Williams’s proviso, Mr. Sumner said:—
The Senator from Oregon [Mr. Williams], who spoke with earnestness and with argumentative force this morning, before the motion to reconsider was made, has given us reasons why we should not admit the Chinese into the promised fellowship of the Declaration of Independence. I took down some of his precious words,—not many.
He says that my proposition gives to millions of heathens and pagans power to control our institutions. How and when have I made any such proposition? I wish the Senator were here, that I might ask him to explain this unjustifiable exaggeration. How and when? I make no proposition that I do not find in the institutions of my country. I simply ask you to stand by the Declaration of your fathers. I say nothing about millions of heathens and pagans. I do not ask to give them power or control. Full well do I know that there are no millions of heathens or pagans, and no other millions on this earth, that can control the institutions of this Republic. I know that we stand too firm to suffer from any such contact. Fearlessly we may go forward and welcome all comers, for there can be no harm here; the heathens and pagans do not exist whose coming can disturb our Republic. Worse than any heathen or pagan abroad are those in our midst who are false to our institutions. Millions of heathens and pagans! Whence are they to come? From China? But if they come for citizenship, then, as I said this morning, do they give the pledge of loyalty to the Republic; and how can you fear them, if they enter your courts and with oaths and witnesses ask to be incorporated with our citizenship?
Mr. Stewart. Allow me to ask the Senator if he knows any way in which they can give a pledge that they would understand as binding on them?
Mr. Sumner. Precisely as an Englishman, a Scotchman, an Irishman, a Frenchman, a German, a Swede, a Dane, a Russian, or an African may give a pledge; precisely as the Senator may give a pledge. I have seen the Senator go up to that table and take the oath. The Senator is able. He knows that I know that; but does the Senator suppose that he surpasses in ability many of the Chinese who might come here? Does the Senator suppose that he feels more keenly the oath which he took at that desk than a Chinese might feel it? I am not speaking of those who may come over here in enforced labor: I join with the Senator in effort to stop that. But I am speaking of the intelligent Chinese, so well and satisfactorily described by the Senator from Missouri [Mr. Schurz] this morning, who come voluntarily to join their fortunes with ours. Suppose they come, where is the peril? Sir, it is against common sense to imagine peril from such a source.
The Senator from Missouri has shown you how slowly they must come, according to the natural order of things,—how many decades of years it must take before there will be a million of them, while meantime our population is swelling by unknown millions, so that when we have a solitary million of Chinese we shall have one hundred millions of intelligent Americans treading this continent. And yet the Senator from Nevada is afraid. “What! a soldier, and afraid!” What! a Senator of the United States anxious about a million of Chinese twenty-five or thirty years from now absorbed in that mighty one hundred millions which will then compose our population! The Senator is not in earnest; he cannot be. He was certainly excited in speech, if I may judge from manner; but I really believe, that, in quiet thought reviewing this whole question, he will see that he has hastily taken counsel of fear rather than of reason. Let the Senator put trust in the Republic, and those ideas which are its strength and glory.
The Senator from Oregon wound up another passage by charging me and those who voted with me, particularly myself, with an intention, or with conduct calculated,—I quote now his own words,—“to put the destinies of this nation into the hands of Joss-worshippers.” Sir, that is a strong, pungent phrase; but is it true? Who here proposes any such thing? How can Joss-worshippers obtain control of the destinies of this nation? Will any Senator be good enough to tell me? By what hocus-pocus, by what necromancy, by what heathen magic will these Joss-worshippers obtain the great ascendency? Why, Sir, it is to disparage this Republic of ours, it is to belittle it, when you imagine any such thing. The peril exists only in imagination; it is an illusion, not a reality.
Then the Senator proceeded to denounce the Chinese as Imperialists and Pagans. Pagans perhaps,—though Senators who have ever looked into those books which have done so much for the Chinese mind will hesitate before they use harsh language in speaking of their belief. Has any Senator read the system of Confucius, uttered before that of the Saviour, and yet containing truths marvellously in harmony with those which fell from his lips? Throughout this great, populous empire the truths of Confucius have been ever regarded as we regard our Scriptures. They are the lesson for the young and the old, and the rule for government and for rulers; they are full of teachings of virtue. And yet the Chinese are called Pagans! Imperialists they may be while they remain in China, for their ruler is an Emperor. But what are Frenchmen? Are they not Imperialists? What are Russians? Are they not Imperialists? And yet will any Senator rise here and say that a Frenchman, that a Russian, shall not be admitted to naturalization? I take it not. Of course the Frenchman, the Russian, and the Chinese will begin by renouncing Imperialism. Therefore it is perfectly idle to say that he is an Imperialist.
The Senator then blazed forth with a fulmination: “Let the people of Massachusetts know that her Senator is willing that Chinese should come to Massachusetts.” Those were his words. Well, Sir, I think the people of Massachusetts know their Senator well enough to be assured that he is willing to have justice on this earth. Let the gates of Massachusetts be open always. God forbid that any system of exclusion should find place there, such as I have heard vindicated by the Senator from Oregon to-day! Be just to all men, and all will be safe. The people of Massachusetts are intelligent, generous, truthful; and they long to see the great ideas of the Republic established beyond change. They desire to see the Declaration of Independence no longer a promise, but a living letter. Therefore it is perfectly vain for the Senator to flash to Massachusetts that her Senator here is in favor of justice to the Chinese.
The Senator says again that I am inviting their competition. I make no invitation. That is not my office. What am I, Sir? I have no power, as I have no disposition, to speak any such invitation. My office is entirely different. I stand here on the ancient ways,—those ways that were laid down by the Fathers of the Republic, and where I wish forevermore to keep the Republic sure. I stand by the Declaration of Independence. Sir, these are no ideas of mine; I am speaking nothing from myself; I am only speaking from the history of my country, and from the great Declaration of the Fathers. That is all. I insist that at this day, at this stage of our history, the statutes of the land shall be brought into harmony with the Constitution of the United States and the Declaration of Independence.
Now, Sir, I say that in those two great title-deeds of the Republic,—and that is the term by which I shall always designate them,—one interpreting the other, there is no single word which can sanction any exclusion on account of race or color.
Here allow me to mention an incident. You may remember, some of you, that during the Rebellion the question occurred, whether a colored officer of the Army was entitled to pay. The question came before President Lincoln, and, at my suggestion, was by him referred to the Attorney-General, at that time Mr. Bates, of Missouri. At the request of President Lincoln, I called on Mr. Bates, to confer with him on his opinion. I did not know then how strongly he inclined to what I will call the side of justice. So I began my conversation interrogatively, when he turned upon me, saying, “Will you allow me to ask you a question?” “Certainly,” said I. Said he, “Mr. Senator, is there anything in the Constitution of the United States to prevent a negro from being President?” The question took me by surprise, coming from the Attorney-General. I replied, promptly, “Of course, Mr. Attorney, there is nothing.” “Well, you are right; of course there is nothing in the Constitution to prevent a negro from being President; how, then, can there be anything to prevent a negro from being an officer, and receiving his pay as such?” I replied at once to the Attorney-General, that I thought he needed no suggestion from me on that question. I left him; and you may remember the opinion which followed shortly after, in which he affirmed that colored officers were entitled to pay in the Army of the United States.[150]
Sir, there is nothing in the Constitution of the United States to prevent a negro from being President. On the contrary, that Constitution, interpreted as it must be by the Declaration of Independence, opens the way to all men without distinction of race or color. No, Sir, I am not the author of that doctrine. I had nothing to do with it. I find it, and now simply present it to the Senate. But, presenting it to the Senate, I insist that you shall see to it that the existing statutes are brought into conformity with the text of the Constitution, and with the Declaration of Independence: that is all. Strike out the word “white,” which nowhere appears in the Constitution, and which is positively prohibited by the Declaration of Independence. That is what you are to do. So doing, you will complete the work of harmony.
The Senator from Kansas [Mr. Pomeroy], in that speech, this evening, which to my mind was in many respects exquisite with most beautiful thought and with unanswerable argument, has taught the Senate, what I have said again and again in debates in this Chamber and in other places, that nothing can be settled which is not right. And so this question will never be settled until it is settled according to the great principles of justice. Vainly you try, you cannot succeed. And now, Sir, I do entreat Senators,—I hope they will pardon me; I mean to say only what it belongs to a Senator to say,—I do entreat Senators not to lose this precious opportunity of completing the harmony of the statutes of the land with the Constitution of the United States and the Declaration of Independence. Only in this way can you have peace. Let us have peace. Sir, I tell you how you may have it. Adopt the amendment which I have proposed, strike out the word “white,” and the harmony will begin. The country will straightway accept the result. But reject that amendment, and you open at once the floodgates of controversy. From this time the debate will proceed, and what is said here will find its echoes and reverberations throughout the whole land and be returned to us from the Pacific coast, never to die out until the good cause prevails and all the promises of the Fathers are fulfilled.
Why, Sir, the words of the Declaration of Independence were not uttered in vain. Do you suppose them idle? Do you suppose them mere phrase or generality? No such thing. They are living words, by which this country is solemnly bound, and from which it can never escape until they are all fulfilled. Your statutes cannot contain any limitation which inflicts an indignity upon any portion of the human family.
Therefore do I entreat you, Senators, do not lose this precious opportunity. It comes to you now unexpectedly, perhaps; but what is there in life more golden than opportunity, whether to country, to community, or to individuals? It is what each of us covets, as he treads along the highway of the world. It is what we covet for our country. Here, Sir, you have golden opportunity. Use it. Use it wisely; use it bravely; use it so that you will secure peace, harmony, and reconciliation. Beautiful words! All these are within your power, if you now let it be known that you will stand by the Declaration to the end. You cannot suffer, there can be no peril, no harm from any such dedication,—nothing but gain. All our institutions will be assured in proportion as you respect these great principles. Reconstruction will have new strength, when you show this homage to human nature.
And yet in the face of all this we are now asked to retreat,—to retrace the steps already taken,—to reconsider the vote that has been adopted,—and to confirm in the statutes those words which are there without any sanction in the Constitution, and in defiance of the Declaration of Independence. Sir, I will not believe that the Senate will do any such thing until the vote is recorded. But whatever may be the result, I give notice that I shall not cease my effort,—I shall continue it to the end. I am a soldier for the war; and until I see this great Declaration a living letter, I shall never intermit my endeavors. I shall go forward, and on every possible occasion I shall press the Senate to another vote. But I trust the Senate will not reconsider what they have done, but that they will settle this great question so that it shall never again disturb our debates.
Something I might say here on the “practical.” Some Senator to-day has said something about being practical, taking to himself great credit on this account. Of course I who make this effort am not practical! I simply strive to bring the statutes into harmony with the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence; but that is not practical! Our fathers were not practical, when they put forth the great Declaration! Our fathers were not practical, when they established the Constitution without the word “white”! Of course I am not practical, because I humbly strive to imitate the Fathers! Now, Sir, which is the more practical,—to allow this word to remain, breeding debate, controversy, strife, or at once to strike it out and complete our great work of Reconstruction? This is something to do. Tell me not that it is not practical. Is there anything in the bill that is equally practical? There are provisions, as I said this morning, for the safeguard of naturalization, which I value much; but how small in value, compared with the establishment of that great principle which fixes forevermore the fundamental idea of the Republic! Is not that practical? Why, Sir, the two cannot be compared. Both are important; but the first belongs to the class of policies or expedients, and not of principles. Adopt it, and you will help the machinery of naturalization, which I desire to do. But strike out the word “white” from your statutes, and you will do an act of justice whose influence will be immeasurable. The Republic will be exalted, and all our institutions will have new strength and security.
The motion for reconsideration prevailed,—Yeas 27, Nays 13.
The question now recurring on the adoption of the amendment, Mr. Sumner rose to speak again,—whereupon a debate sprang up as to his right to do so under the rules, finally terminated by the withdrawal of an appeal which had been taken from a decision of the President pro tempore affirming such right, when he was allowed to proceed. Beginning with some remarks upon this episode, Mr. Sumner said:—
The appeal is withdrawn; but I believe I have the floor on the question. We have pending before us the Tax Bill, and during a day perhaps a dozen or twenty propositions are moved on that bill. According to the suggestion of the Senator from New York [Mr. Conkling], one who had spoken on two of those propositions would be debarred from speaking on any of the others during that day. As a Senator suggests to me, if a Senator had spoken about salt or tea, then he could not speak on sugar, or the income question, or anything else. I believe the rule of the Senate will not compel us to any such absurdity.
I do not like to take up the time of the Senate; and I should not speak now, except for my desire to bring home to the Senate once more the gravity of the question, and to introduce a new authority, which I had on my table, but which I forgot to use, when I was up before,—I mean the late Abraham Lincoln. He, too, had a great controversy in Illinois with a distinguished representative of the Democratic party (Mr. Douglas) on the Declaration of Independence. Let Mr. Douglas state his position in his own words. He said:—
“I believe that this Government of ours was founded on the white basis. I believe that it was established by white men, by men of European birth, or descended of European races, for the benefit of white men and their posterity in all time to come. I do not believe that it was the design or intention of the signers of the Declaration of Independence or the framers of the Constitution to include negroes, Indians, or other inferior races, with white men, as citizens.”[151]
Then, again, in another place, Mr. Douglas said:—
“The Declaration of Independence only included the white people of the United States.”[152]
How like what we have heard in this Chamber on Saturday and to-day! Senators have been unconsciously repeating these exploded arguments of the late Mr. Douglas.
How did Abraham Lincoln answer? In a speech at Springfield, while admitting that negroes are “not our equals in color,” this eminent citizen, afterward President, thus spoke for the comprehensive humanity of the Declaration:—
“I adhere to the Declaration of Independence. If Judge Douglas and his friends are not willing to stand by it, let them come up and amend it. Let them make it read that all men are created equal except negroes. Let us have it decided whether the Declaration of Independence in this blessed year of 1858 shall be thus amended. In his construction of the Declaration last year, he said it only meant that Americans in America were equal to Englishmen in England. Then, when I pointed out to him that by that rule he excludes the Germans, the Irish, the Portuguese, and all the other people who have come amongst us since the Revolution, he reconstructs his construction. In his last speech he tells us it meant Europeans. I press him a little further, and ask if it meant to include the Russians in Asia; or does he mean to exclude that vast population from the principles of our Declaration of Independence? I expect ere long he will introduce another amendment to his definition. He is not at all particular. He is satisfied with anything which does not endanger the nationalizing of negro slavery. It may draw white men down, but it must not lift negroes up.”[153]
Then, again, in another speech, made at Alton, the future President renewed his testimony as follows:—
“I assert that Judge Douglas and all his friends may search the whole records of the country, and it will be a matter of great astonishment to me if they shall be able to find that one human being three years ago had ever uttered the astounding sentiment that the term ‘all men’ in the Declaration did not include the negro. Do not let me be misunderstood. I know that more than three years ago there were men who, finding this assertion constantly in the way of their schemes to bring about the ascendency and perpetuation of Slavery, denied the truth of it. I know that Mr. Calhoun, and all the politicians of his school, denied the truth of the Declaration. I know that it ran along in the mouth of some Southern men for a period of years, ending at last in that shameful, though rather forcible, declaration of Pettit, of Indiana, upon the floor of the United States Senate, that the Declaration of Independence was in that respect ‘a self-evident lie,’ rather than a self-evident truth. But I say, with a perfect knowledge of all this hawking at the Declaration without directly attacking it, that three years ago there never had lived a man who had ventured to assail it in the sneaking way”—
That is not my language; it is the language of Abraham Lincoln—
“of pretending to believe it and then asserting it did not include the negro.”[154]
Lifted by the great cause in which he was engaged, he appealed to his fellow-countrymen in tones of pathetic eloquence:—
“Think nothing of me,”—
said he, afterward martyr,—
“take no thought for the political fate of any man whomsoever, but come back to the truths that are in the Declaration of Independence. You may do anything with me you choose, if you will but heed these sacred principles. You may not only defeat me for the Senate, but you may take me and put me to death. While pretending no indifference to earthly honors, I do claim to be actuated in this contest by something higher than an anxiety for office. I charge you to drop every paltry and insignificant thought for any man’s success. It is nothing, I am nothing, Judge Douglas is nothing; but do not destroy that immortal emblem of humanity, the Declaration of American Independence.”[155]
How apt are these words now! “Do not destroy that immortal emblem of humanity, the Declaration of American Independence.”
Then, again, as he was on his way to Washington, stopping at Philadelphia to raise the flag of his country over the Hall of Independence, he uttered these pathetic, though unpremeditated words:—
“All the political sentiments I entertain have been drawn, so far as I have been able to draw them, from the sentiments which originated in, and were given to the world from, this Hall. I have never had a feeling, politically, that did not spring from the sentiments embodied in the Declaration of Independence.
…
“Now, my friends, can this country be saved upon that basis? If it can, I shall consider myself one of the happiest men in the world, if I can help to save it.… But if this country cannot be saved without giving up that principle, I was about to say I would rather be assassinated on this spot than surrender it.”[156]
And yet that is the principle which the Senate is now about to give up,—that principle which Abraham Lincoln said, rather than give up he would be assassinated on the spot.
Then, after adding that he had not expected to say a word, he repeated the consecration of his life, exclaiming,—
“I have said nothing but what I am willing to live by, and, if it be the pleasure of Almighty God, to die by.”[157]
Sir, that is enough.
Mr. Sumner’s amendment was rejected,—Yeas 14, Nays 30. At a later stage of the proceedings he renewed it, when it was again rejected,—Yeas 12, Nays 26.
At the same stages, an amendment in the following words, offered by Mr. Warner, of Alabama,—
“And be it further enacted, That the Naturalization Laws are hereby extended to aliens of African nativity and to persons of African descent,”—
prevailed, first by Yeas 21, Nays 20, and then by Yeas 20, Nays 17, and was adopted. A subsequent amendment, by Mr. Trumbull, of Illinois, further extending these laws “to persons born in the Chinese Empire,” was defeated, by Yeas 9, Nays 31. The bill as amended was thereupon passed,—Yeas 33, Nays 8,—Mr. Sumner voting in the affirmative.
THE REPUBLICAN PARTY: ITS PAST AND FUTURE WORK.
Speech at a Ratification Meeting in Faneuil Hall, October 15, 1870.
October 15, 1870, the Republicans of Boston met in Faneuil Hall, to ratify the nomination of candidates for State offices. The Hall was filled to its utmost capacity, and Mr. Sumner was announced as President of the meeting. In its report of the proceedings, the “Journal” newspaper of the next day stated that Mr. Sumner, on taking the chair, “was greeted with almost indescribable enthusiasm, and it was some minutes before the audience permitted him to speak.” He spoke as follows:—
FELLOW-CITIZENS,—In opening this meeting to-night I am impressed by one thought, which I would, if I could, have uppermost in the minds of the people, so that they could not forget it at the coming election. It is the necessity of constant, incessant, persevering activity in support of Republican principles, and of the party which maintains them. [Applause.]
And here let me say that I know no way in which Republican principles can be adequately supported, without supporting the Republican party. [Applause.] There is no local issue justifying opposition to the Republican party, which, if it fails to do all that good men desire, yet does more than can be accomplished through any other political organization. Therefore do I say, Stand by the Republican party. Make it united and vigorous. There must be no hesitation, or listlessness, or desertion. [Applause.]
Our majorities in Massachusetts are large, but so are our responsibilities. From the historic character of the Commonwealth, from the position it has occupied in the warfare with Slavery, and from its fame as the home of ideas, we cannot afford to be sluggish or indifferent; nor can we break up into disjointed squads. It is not enough, if we give a majority sufficient to elect our candidates; we must make the majority commanding, controlling, so as to be an example and a power in the land. Massachusetts ideas and interests are to be maintained and advanced, not merely here at home, but in the nation. Besides State officers, we choose at this election members of Congress, and a Legislature which will elect a Senator of the United States. Therefore must we regard our duties to the nation, the first of which is to make Massachusetts the bulwark of the national cause.
I know no good reason why Governor Claflin [cheers] should not be reëlected unanimously, or at least without opposition outside the Democratic party, which is against him more from force of habit, I take it, than anything else. As for others, who do not assume the name of Democrats, they can find no excuse of habit in voting against him. Then come the Republican candidates for Congress, who, like the Governor, are entitled to your best support. Faneuil Hall is now thronged with the constituents of Mr. Hooper and Mr. Twichell, [renewed cheers,] who know their services, so that my testimony is not needed. I will only say, Fortunate the districts with Representatives having the character, ability, and business capacity of these gentlemen. In choosing a Legislature you will not forget my colleague, [Mr. Wilson,] with his lifelong devotion to the slave, his hard work against the Rebellion, and his practical labors everywhere. [Loud and prolonged applause.]
I would add one further word in reply to those who insist that the Republican party has done its work, and therefore may die. Nothing more absurd. It has done a great and ever-memorable work; but much remains to be done. It has put down a terrible Rebellion waged by Slavery; it has secured equal rights at the ballot-box and in courts without distinction of color; and it has reconstructed the Rebel States on the solid foundation of the Declaration of Independence. [Applause.] Besides these heroic achievements, which cannot be forgotten so long as men throb in sympathy with human rights, the Republican party has provided homesteads for the needy; it has built a Pacific Railroad, binding two oceans together; it has by honest payment reduced the enormous national debt entailed by the Rebellion, and at the same time it has reduced taxation. [Applause.] If a political party is to be judged by what it has done, then may the Republican party fearlessly ask your votes.
But there is another reason for your continued support. The whole work of Reconstruction and the establishment of Equal Rights is still disputed and assailed by the Democratic party. I might quote resolutions and words of orators showing how they still hold out. Repudiators of the National Debt, they would repudiate all that has been done for the National Union, and for that Equality before the Law which is one of our greatest triumphs and safeguards. [Cheers.] This is enough. Until this new form of Repudiation is extinguished, there is need of the Republican party. So long as anybody assails the Declaration of Independence, the Republican party cannot cease its patriotic labors.
It is foolish to imagine that this great party, consecrated to Human Rights, can die. It will live as long as people cherish those sublime truths declared by our fathers, of which it is the representative and guardian. Its special work will be always to stand by the nation in its unity, and by the people in their rights. [Applause.] For such a party there can be no decay. Men whom I now address may grow old, but the Republican party will be ever young. [Applause.]
In conclusion, Mr. Sumner introduced General Hawley in the following terms:—
Let me introduce to your notice at this time General Hawley, (or Governor Hawley, if you would rather, for both titles belong to him,) of Connecticut, who has stood by his principles both at home and on the battle-field. [Applause.] And now, in introducing him, I am going to ask him to pardon me for a revelation which I believe will not be painful to the audience. I want to give you a passage from a letter addressed to myself by Mr. Hawley, at a time when he was much younger than he is now, bearing date Hartford, May, 1854. It was written on receipt of intelligence by telegraph that the life of a Senator was threatened at Washington by mobs. Mr. Hawley addressed a letter to that Senator, in which, after setting forth the telegram, he said: “Please write to me at once, and say if you need any defenders; if you do, I will be on the spot early.”[158] [Tremendous applause.] This was written, Fellow-Citizens, so long ago as 1854; it was seven years before the war; yet General Hawley was then ready to meet the foe. [Applause.] Gentlemen, I have the honor of introducing him to you.
THE DUEL BETWEEN FRANCE AND GERMANY,
WITH ITS LESSON TO CIVILIZATION.
Lecture in the Music Hall, Boston, October 26, 1870.
“When kings make war,
No law betwixt two sovereigns can decide,
But that of arms, where Fortune is the judge,
Soldiers the lawyers, and the Bar the field.”
Dryden, Love Triumphant, Act I. Sc. 1.