EXECUTIVE MANSION, _December 5, 1898_.
_To the Senate and House of Representatives:_
Notwithstanding the added burdens rendered necessary by the war, our
people rejoice in a very satisfactory and steadily increasing degree of
prosperity, evidenced by the largest volume of business ever recorded.
Manufacture has been productive, agricultural pursuits have yielded
abundant returns, labor in all fields of industry is better rewarded,
revenue legislation passed by the present Congress has increased the
Treasury's receipts to the amount estimated by its authors, the finances
of the Government have been successfully administered and its credit
advanced to the first rank, while its currency has been maintained at
the world's highest standard. Military service under a common flag and
for a righteous cause has strengthened the national spirit and served to
cement more closely than ever the fraternal bonds between every section
of the country.
A review of the relation of the United States to other powers, always
appropriate, is this year of primary importance in view of the momentous
issues which have arisen, demanding in one instance the ultimate
determination by arms and involving far-reaching consequences which will
require the earnest attention of the Congress.
In my last annual message[12] very full consideration was given to the
question of the duty of the Government of the United States toward Spain
and the Cuban insurrection as being by far the most important problem
with which we were then called upon to deal. The considerations then
advanced and the exposition of the views therein expressed disclosed
my sense of the extreme gravity of the situation. Setting aside as
logically unfounded or practically inadmissible the recognition of the
Cuban insurgents as belligerents, the recognition of the independence
of Cuba, neutral intervention to end the war by imposing a rational
compromise between the contestants, intervention in favor of one or the
other party, and forcible annexation of the island, I concluded it was
honestly due to our friendly relations with Spain that she should be
given a reasonable chance to realize her expectations of reform to which
she had become irrevocably committed. Within a few weeks previously she
had announced comprehensive plans which it was confidently asserted
would be efficacious to remedy the evils so deeply affecting our own
country, so injurious to the true interests of the mother country as
well as to those of Cuba, and so repugnant to the universal sentiment
of humanity.
The ensuing month brought little sign of real progress toward the
pacification of Cuba. The autonomous administrations set up in the
capital and some of the principal cities appeared not to gain the favor
of the inhabitants nor to be able to extend their influence to the large
extent of territory held by the insurgents, while the military arm,
obviously unable to cope with the still active rebellion, continued many
of the most objectionable and offensive policies of the government that
had preceded it. No tangible relief was afforded the vast numbers of
unhappy reconcentrados, despite the reiterated professions made in that
regard and the amount appropriated by Spain to that end. The proffered
expedient of zones of cultivation proved illusory. Indeed no less
practical nor more delusive promises of succor could well have been
tendered to the exhausted and destitute people, stripped of all that
made life and home dear and herded in a strange region among
unsympathetic strangers hardly less necessitous than themselves.
By the end of December the mortality among them had frightfully
increased. Conservative estimates from Spanish sources placed the deaths
among these distressed people at over 40 per cent from the time General
Weyler's decree of reconcentration was enforced. With the acquiescence
of the Spanish authorities, a scheme was adopted for relief by
charitable contributions raised in this country and distributed, under
the direction of the consul-general and the several consuls, by noble
and earnest individual effort through the organized agencies of the
American Red Cross. Thousands of lives were thus saved, but many
thousands more were inaccessible to such forms of aid.
The war continued on the old footing, without comprehensive plan,
developing only the same spasmodic encounters, barren of strategic
result, that had marked the course of the earlier ten years' rebellion
as well as the present insurrection from its start. No alternative save
physical exhaustion of either combatant, and therewithal the practical
ruin of the island, lay in sight, but how far distant no one could
venture to conjecture.
At this juncture, on the 15th of February last, occurred the destruction
of the battle ship _Maine_ while rightfully lying in the harbor of
Havana on a mission of international courtesy and good will--a
catastrophe the suspicious nature and horror of which stirred the
nation's heart profoundly. It is a striking evidence of the poise and
sturdy good sense distinguishing our national character that this
shocking blow, falling upon a generous people already deeply touched by
preceding events in Cuba, did not move them to an instant desperate
resolve to tolerate no longer the existence of a condition of danger and
disorder at our doors that made possible such a deed, by whomsoever
wrought. Yet the instinct of justice prevailed, and the nation anxiously
awaited the result of the searching investigation at once set on foot.
The finding of the naval board of inquiry established that the origin of
the explosion was external, by a submarine mine, and only halted through
lack of positive testimony to fix the responsibility of its authorship.
All these things carried conviction to the most thoughtful, even before
the finding of the naval court, that a crisis in our relations with
Spain and toward Cuba was at hand. So strong was this belief that it
needed but a brief Executive suggestion to the Congress to receive
immediate answer to the duty of making instant provision for the
possible and perhaps speedily probable emergency of war, and the
remarkable, almost unique, spectacle was presented of a unanimous vote
of both Houses, on the 9th of March, appropriating $50,000,000 "for the
national defense and for each and every purpose connected therewith,
to be expended at the discretion of the President." That this act of
prevision came none too soon was disclosed when the application of the
fund was undertaken. Our coasts were practically undefended. Our Navy
needed large provision for increased ammunition and supplies, and even
numbers to cope with any sudden attack from the navy of Spain, which
comprised modern vessels of the highest type of continental perfection.
Our Army also required enlargement of men and munitions. The details
of the hurried preparation for the dreaded contingency are told in the
reports of the Secretaries of War and of the Navy, and need not be
repeated here. It is sufficient to say that the outbreak of war when
it did come found our nation not unprepared to meet the conflict.
Nor was the apprehension of coming strife confined to our own country.
It was felt by the continental powers, which on April 6, through their
ambassadors and envoys, addressed to the Executive an expression of hope
that humanity and moderation might mark the course of this Government
and people, and that further negotiations would lead to an agreement
which, while securing the maintenance of peace, would afford all
necessary guaranties for the reestablishment of order in Cuba. In
responding to that representation I said I shared the hope the envoys
had expressed that peace might be preserved in a manner to terminate the
chronic condition of disturbance in Cuba, so injurious and menacing to
our interests and tranquillity, as well as shocking to our sentiments
of humanity; and while appreciating the humanitarian and disinterested
character of the communication they had made on behalf of the powers,
I stated the confidence of this Government, for its part, that equal
appreciation would be shown for its own earnest and unselfish endeavors
to fulfill a duty to humanity by ending a situation the indefinite
prolongation of which had become insufferable.
Still animated by the hope of a peaceful solution and obeying the
dictates of duty, no effort was relaxed to bring about a speedy
ending of the Cuban struggle. Negotiations to this object continued
actively with the Government of Spain, looking to the immediate
conclusion of a six months' armistice in Cuba, with a view to effect
the recognition of her people's right to independence. Besides this,
the instant revocation of the order of reconcentration was asked,
so that the sufferers, returning to their homes and aided by united
American and Spanish effort, might be put in a way to support
themselves and, by orderly resumption of the well-nigh destroyed
productive energies of the island, contribute to the restoration of
its tranquillity and well-being. Negotiations continued for some little
time at Madrid, resulting in offers by the Spanish Government which
could not but be regarded as inadequate. It was proposed to confide the
preparation of peace to the insular parliament, yet to be convened under
the autonomous decrees of November, 1897, but without impairment in any
wise of the constitutional powers of the Madrid Government, which to
that end would grant an armistice, if solicited by the insurgents, for
such time as the general in chief might see fit to fix. How and with
what scope of discretionary powers the insular parliament was expected
to set about the "preparation" of peace did not appear. If it were to be
by negotiation with the insurgents, the issue seemed to rest on the one
side with a body chosen by a fraction of the electors in the districts
under Spanish control, and on the other with the insurgent population
holding the interior country, unrepresented in the so-called parliament
and defiant at the suggestion of suing for peace.
Grieved and disappointed at this barren outcome of my sincere endeavors
to reach a practicable solution, I felt it my duty to remit the whole
question to the Congress. In the message of April 11, 1898,[13] I
announced that with this last overture in the direction of immediate
peace in Cuba and its disappointing reception by Spain the effort of
the Executive was brought to an end. I again reviewed the alternative
courses of action which had been proposed, concluding that the only one
consonant with international policy and compatible with our firm-set
historical traditions was intervention as a neutral to stop the war and
check the hopeless sacrifice of life, even though that resort involved
"hostile constraint upon both the parties to the contest, as well to
enforce a truce as to guide the eventual settlement." The grounds
justifying that step were the interests of humanity, the duty to protect
the life and property of our citizens in Cuba, the right to check injury
to our commerce and people through the devastation of the island, and,
most important, the need of removing at once and forever the constant
menace and the burdens entailed upon our Government by the uncertainties
and perils of the situation caused by the unendurable disturbance in
Cuba. I said:
The long trial has proved that the object for which Spain has waged
the war can not be attained. The fire of insurrection may flame or may
smolder with varying seasons, but it has not been and it is plain that
it can not be extinguished by present methods. The only hope of relief
and repose from a condition which can no longer be endured is the
enforced pacification of Cuba. In the name of humanity, in the name of
civilization, in behalf of endangered American interests which give us
the right and the duty to speak and to act, the war in Cuba must stop.
In view of all this the Congress was asked to authorize and empower the
President to take measures to secure a full and final termination of
hostilities between Spain and the people of Cuba and to secure in the
island the establishment of a stable government, capable of maintaining
order and observing its international obligations, insuring peace and
tranquillity and the security of its citizens as well as our own, and
for the accomplishment of those ends to use the military and naval
forces of the United States as might be necessary, with added authority
to continue generous relief to the starving people of Cuba.
The response of the Congress, after nine days of earnest deliberation,
during which the almost unanimous sentiment of your body was developed
on every point save as to the expediency of coupling the proposed action
with a formal recognition of the Republic of Cuba as the true and lawful
government of that island--a proposition which failed of adoption--the
Congress, after conference, on the 19th of April, by a vote of 42 to 35
in the Senate and 311 to 6 in the House of Representatives, passed the
memorable joint resolution declaring--
First. That the people of the island of Cuba are, and of right ought
to be, free and independent.
Second. That it is the duty of the United States to demand, and the
Government of the United States does hereby demand, that the Government
of Spain at once relinquish its authority and government in the island
of Cuba and withdraw its land and naval forces from Cuba and Cuban
waters.
Third. That the President of the United States be, and he hereby is,
directed and empowered to use the entire land and naval forces of the
United States and to call into the actual service of the United States
the militia of the several States to such extent as may be necessary
to carry these resolutions into effect.
Fourth. That the United States hereby disclaims any disposition or
intention to exercise sovereignty, jurisdiction, or control over
said island except for the pacification thereof, and asserts its
determination when that is accomplished to leave the government and
control of the island to its people.
This resolution was approved by the Executive on the next day, April 20.
A copy was at once communicated to the Spanish minister at this capital,
who forthwith announced that his continuance in Washington had thereby
become impossible, and asked for his passports, which were given him.
He thereupon withdrew from Washington, leaving the protection of
Spanish interests in the United States to the French ambassador and the
Austro-Hungarian minister. Simultaneously with its communication to
the Spanish minister here, General Woodford, the American minister at
Madrid, was telegraphed confirmation of the text of the joint resolution
and directed to communicate it to the Government of Spain with the
formal demand that it at once relinquish its authority and government
in the island of Cuba and withdraw its forces therefrom, coupling this
demand with announcement of the intentions of this Government as to
the future of the island, in conformity with the fourth clause of the
resolution, and giving Spain until noon of April 23 to reply.
That demand, although, as above shown, officially made known to the
Spanish envoy here, was not delivered at Madrid. After the instruction
reached General Woodford on the morning of April 21, but before he could
present it, the Spanish minister of state notified him that upon the
President's approval of the joint resolution the Madrid Government,
regarding the act as "equivalent to an evident declaration of war," had
ordered its minister in Washington to withdraw, thereby breaking off
diplomatic relations between the two countries and ceasing all official
communication between their respective representatives. General Woodford
thereupon demanded his passports and quitted Madrid the same day.
Spain having thus denied the demand of the United States and initiated
that complete form of rupture of relations which attends a state of war,
the executive powers authorized by the resolution were at once used by
me to meet the enlarged contingency of actual war between sovereign
states. On April 22 I proclaimed a blockade of the north coast of Cuba,
including ports on said coast between Cardenas and Bahia Honda, and the
port of Cienfuegos, on the south coast of Cuba,[14] and on the 23d I
called for volunteers to execute the purpose of the resolution.[15] By
my message of April 25 the Congress was informed of the situation, and
I recommended formal declaration of the existence of a state of war
between the United States and Spain. [16] The Congress accordingly voted
on the same day the act approved April 25, 1898, declaring the existence
of such war from and including the 21st day of April,[17] and reenacted
the provision of the resolution of April 20 directing the President
to use all the armed forces of the nation to carry that act into
effect.[18] Due notification of the existence of war as aforesaid was
given April 25 by telegraph to all the governments with which the
United States maintain relations, in order that their neutrality
might be assured during the war. The various governments responded with
proclamations of neutrality, each after its own methods. It is not among
the least gratifying incidents of the struggle that the obligations of
neutrality were impartially discharged by all, often under delicate and
difficult circumstances.
In further fulfillment of international duty I issued, April 26, 1898, a
proclamation announcing the treatment proposed to be accorded to vessels
and their cargoes as to blockade, contraband, the exercise of the right
of search, and the immunity of neutral flags and neutral goods under
enemy's flag.[19] A similar proclamation was made by the Spanish
Government. In the conduct of hostilities the rules of the Declaration
of Paris, including abstention from resort to privateering, have
accordingly been observed by both belligerents, although neither was a
party to that declaration.
Our country thus, after an interval of half a century of peace with all
nations, found itself engaged in deadly conflict with a foreign enemy.
Every nerve was strained to meet the emergency. The response to the
initial call for 125,000 volunteers[20] was instant and complete, as was
also the result of the second call, of May 25, for 75,000 additional
volunteers.[21] The ranks of the Regular Army were increased to the
limits provided by the act of April 26, 1898.
The enlisted force of the Navy on the 15th day of August, when it
reached its maximum, numbered 24,123 men and apprentices. One hundred
and three vessels were added to the Navy by purchase, 1 was presented
to the Government, 1 leased, and the 4 vessels of the International
Navigation Company--the _St. Paul_, _St. Louis_, _New York_, and
_Paris_--were chartered. In addition to these the revenue cutters
and lighthouse tenders were turned over to the Navy Department and
became temporarily a part of the auxiliary Navy.
The maximum effective fighting force of the Navy during the war,
separated into classes, was as follows:
Four battle ships of the first class, 1 battle ship of the second
class, 2 armored cruisers, 6 coast-defense monitors, 1 armored ram,
12 protected cruisers, 3 unprotected cruisers, 18 gunboats, 1 dynamite
cruiser, 11 torpedo boats; vessels of the old Navy, including monitors,
14. Auxiliary Navy: 11 auxiliary cruisers, 28 converted yachts, 27
converted tugs, 19 converted colliers, 15 revenue cutters, 4 light-house
tenders, and 19 miscellaneous vessels.
Much alarm was felt along our entire Atlantic seaboard lest some attack
might be made by the enemy. Every precaution was taken to prevent
possible injury to our great cities lying along the coast. Temporary
garrisons were provided, drawn from the State militia; infantry and
light batteries were drawn from the volunteer force. About 12,000 troops
were thus employed. The coast signal service was established for
observing the approach of an enemy's ships to the coast of the United
States, and the Life-Saving and Light-House services cooperated, which
enabled the Navy Department to have all portions of the Atlantic coast,
from Maine to Texas, under observation.
The auxiliary Navy was created under the authority of Congress and was
officered and manned by the Naval Militia of the several States. This
organization patrolled the coast and performed the duty of a second line
of defense.
Under the direction of the Chief of Engineers submarine mines were
placed at the most exposed points. Before the outbreak of the war
permanent mining casemates and cable galleries had been constructed at
nearly all important harbors. Most of the torpedo material was not to be
found in the market, and had to be specially manufactured. Under date
of April 19 district officers were directed to take all preliminary
measures short of the actual attaching of the loaded mines to the
cables, and on April 22 telegraphic orders were issued to place the
loaded mines in position.
The aggregate number of mines placed was 1,535, at the principal harbors
from Maine to California. Preparations were also made for the planting
of mines at certain other harbors, but owing to the early destruction of
the Spanish fleet these mines were not placed.
The Signal Corps was promptly organized, and performed service of the
most difficult and important character. Its operations during the war
covered the electrical connection of all coast fortifications, the
establishment of telephonic and telegraphic facilities for the camps at
Manila, Santiago, and in Puerto Rico. There were constructed 300 miles
of line at ten great camps, thus facilitating military movements from
those points in a manner heretofore unknown in military administration.
Field telegraph lines were established and maintained under the enemy's
fire at Manila, and later the Manila-Hongkong cable was reopened.
In Puerto Rico cable communications were opened over a discontinued
route, and on land the headquarters of the commanding officer was kept
in telegraphic or telephonic communication with the division commanders
on four different lines of operations.
There was placed in Cuban waters a completely outfitted cable ship,
with war cables and cable gear, suitable both for the destruction of
communications belonging to the enemy and the establishment of our own.
Two ocean cables were destroyed under the enemy's batteries at Santiago.
The day previous to the landing of General Shafter's corps, at
Caimanera, within 20 miles of the landing place, cable communications
were established and a cable station opened giving direct communication
with the Government at Washington. This service was invaluable to the
Executive in directing the operations of the Army and Navy. With a total
force of over 1,300, the loss was by disease in camp and field, officers
and men included, only 5.
The national-defense fund of $50,000,000 was expended in large part
by the Army and Navy, and the objects for which it was used are fully
shown in the reports of the several Secretaries. It was a most timely
appropriation, enabling the Government to strengthen its defenses and
make preparations greatly needed in case of war.
This fund being inadequate to the requirements of equipment and for the
conduct of the war, the patriotism of the Congress provided the means in
the war-revenue act of June 13 by authorizing a 3 per cent popular loan
not to exceed $400,000,000 and by levying additional imposts and taxes.
Of the authorized loan $200,000,000 were offered and promptly taken, the
subscriptions so far exceeding the call as to cover it many times over,
while, preference being given to the smaller bids, no single allotment
exceeded $5,000. This was a most encouraging and significant result,
showing the vast resources of the nation and the determination of the
people to uphold their country's honor.
It is not within the province of this message to narrate the history of
the extraordinary war that followed the Spanish declaration of April 21,
but a brief recital of its more salient features is appropriate.
The first encounter of the war in point of date took place April 27,
when a detachment of the blockading squadron made a reconnoissance in
force at Matanzas, shelled the harbor forts, and demolished several new
works in construction.
The next engagement was destined to mark a memorable epoch in maritime
warfare. The Pacific fleet, under Commodore George Dewey, had lain for
some weeks at Hongkong. Upon the colonial proclamation of neutrality
being issued and the customary twenty-four hours' notice being given,
it repaired to Mirs Bay, near Hongkong, whence it proceeded to the
Philippine Islands under telegraphed orders to capture or destroy the
formidable Spanish fleet then assembled at Manila. At daybreak on the
1st of May the American force entered Manila Bay, and after a few
hours' engagement effected the total destruction of the Spanish fleet,
consisting of ten war ships and a transport, besides capturing the naval
station and forts at Cavite, thus annihilating the Spanish naval power
in the Pacific Ocean and completely controlling the bay of Manila, with
the ability to take the city at will. Not a life was lost on our ships,
the wounded only numbering seven, while not a vessel was materially
injured. For this gallant achievement the Congress, upon my
recommendation, fitly bestowed upon the actors preferment and
substantial reward.
The effect of this remarkable victory upon the spirit of our people and
upon the fortunes of the war was instant. A prestige of invincibility
thereby attached to our arms which continued throughout the struggle.
Reenforcements were hurried to Manila under the command of Major-General
Merritt and firmly established within sight of the capital, which lay
helpless before our guns.
On the 7th day of May the Government was advised officially of the
victory at Manila, and at once inquired of the commander of our fleet
what troops would be required. The information was received on the 15th
day of May, and the first army expedition sailed May 25 and arrived off
Manila June 30. Other expeditions soon followed, the total force
consisting of 641 officers and 15,058 enlisted men.
Only reluctance to cause needless loss of life and property prevented
the early storming and capture of the city, and therewith the absolute
military occupancy of the whole group. The insurgents meanwhile had
resumed the active hostilities suspended by the uncompleted truce of
December, 1897. Their forces invested Manila from the northern and
eastern sides, but were constrained by Admiral Dewey and General Merritt
from attempting an assault. It was fitting that whatever was to be done
in the way of decisive operations in that quarter should be accomplished
by the strong arm of the United States alone. Obeying the stern precept
of war which enjoins the overcoming of the adversary and the extinction
of his power wherever assailable as the speedy and sure means to win a
peace, divided victory was not permissible, for no partition of the
rights and responsibilities attending the enforcement of a just and
advantageous peace could be thought of.
Following the comprehensive scheme of general attack, powerful forces
were assembled at various points on our coast to invade Cuba and Puerto
Rico. Meanwhile naval demonstrations were made at several exposed
points. On May 11 the cruiser _Wilmington_ and torpedo boat
_Winslow_ were unsuccessful in an attempt to silence the batteries
at Cardenas, a gallant ensign, Worth Bagley, and four seamen falling.
These grievous fatalities were, strangely enough, among the very few
which occurred during our naval operations in this extraordinary
conflict.
Meanwhile the Spanish naval preparations had been pushed with great
vigor. A powerful squadron under Admiral Cervera, which had assembled at
the Cape Verde Islands before the outbreak of hostilities, had crossed
the ocean, and by its erratic movements in the Caribbean Sea delayed our
military plans while baffling the pursuit of our fleets. For a time
fears were felt lest the _Oregon_ and _Marietta_, then nearing
home after their long voyage from San Francisco of over 15,000 miles,
might be surprised by Admiral Cervera's fleet, but their fortunate
arrival dispelled these apprehensions and lent much-needed
reenforcement. Not until Admiral Cervera took refuge in the harbor of
Santiago de Cuba, about May 19, was it practicable to plan a systematic
naval and military attack upon the Antillean possessions of Spain.
Several demonstrations occurred on the coasts of Cuba and Puerto Rico in
preparation for the larger event. On May 13 the North Atlantic Squadron
shelled San Juan de Puerto Rico. On May 30 Commodore Schley's squadron
bombarded the forts guarding the mouth of Santiago Harbor. Neither
attack had any material result. It was evident that well-ordered land
operations were indispensable to achieve a decisive advantage.
The next act in the war thrilled not alone the hearts of our countrymen
but the world by its exceptional heroism. On the night of June 3
Lieutenant Hobson, aided by seven devoted volunteers, blocked the narrow
outlet from Santiago Harbor by sinking the collier _Merrimac_ in
the channel, under a fierce fire from the shore batteries, escaping with
their lives as by a miracle, but falling into the hands of the
Spaniards. It is a most gratifying incident of the war that the bravery
of this little band of heroes was cordially appreciated by the Spanish
admiral, who sent a flag of truce to notify Admiral Sampson of their
safety and to compliment them on their daring act. They were
subsequently exchanged July 7.
By June 7 the cutting of the last Cuban cable isolated the island.
Thereafter the invasion was vigorously prosecuted. On June 10, under a
heavy protecting fire, a landing of 600 marines from the _Oregon_,
_Marblehead_, and _Yankee_ was effected in Guantanamo Bay, where it had
been determined to establish a naval station.
This important and essential port was taken from the enemy, after severe
fighting, by the marines, who were the first organized force of the
United States to land in Cuba.
The position so won was held despite desperate attempts to dislodge
our forces. By June 16 additional forces were landed and strongly
intrenched. On June 22 the advance of the invading army under
Major-General Shafter landed at Daiquiri, about 15 miles east of
Santiago. This was accomplished under great difficulties, but with
marvelous dispatch. On June 23 the movement against Santiago was begun.
On the 24th the first serious engagement took place, in which the First
and Tenth Cavalry and the First United States Volunteer Cavalry, General
Young's brigade of General Wheeler's division, participated, losing
heavily. By nightfall, however, ground within 5 miles of Santiago was
won. The advantage was steadily increased. On July 1 a severe battle
took place, our forces gaining the outworks of Santiago; on the 2d El
Caney and San Juan were taken after a desperate charge, and the
investment of the city was completed. The Navy cooperated by shelling
the town and the coast forts.
On the day following this brilliant achievement of our land forces, the
3d of July, occurred the decisive naval combat of the war. The Spanish
fleet, attempting to leave the harbor, was met by the American squadron
under command of Commodore Sampson. In less than three hours all the
Spanish ships were destroyed, the two torpedo boats being sunk and the
_Maria Teresa_, _Almirante Oquendo_, _Vizcaya_, and _Cristóbal Colón_
driven ashore. The Spanish admiral and over 1,300 men were taken
prisoners. While the enemy's loss of life was deplorably large, some 600
perishing, on our side but one man was killed, on the _Brooklyn_, and
one man seriously wounded. Although our ships were repeatedly struck,
not one was seriously injured. Where all so conspicuously distinguished
themselves, from the commanders to the gunners and the unnamed heroes in
the boiler rooms, each and all contributing toward the achievement of
this astounding victory, for which neither ancient nor modern history
affords a parallel in the completeness of the event and the marvelous
disproportion of casualties, it would be invidious to single out any for
especial honor. Deserved promotion has rewarded the more conspicuous
actors. The nation's profoundest gratitude is due to all of these brave
men who by their skill and devotion in a few short hours crushed the sea
power of Spain and wrought a triumph whose decisiveness and far-reaching
consequences can scarcely be measured. Nor can we be unmindful of the
achievements of our builders, mechanics, and artisans for their skill in
the construction of our war ships.
With the catastrophe of Santiago Spain's effort upon the ocean virtually
ceased. A spasmodic effort toward the end of June to send her
Mediterranean fleet, under Admiral Camara, to relieve Manila was
abandoned, the expedition being recalled after it had passed through the
Suez Canal.
The capitulation of Santiago followed. The city was closely besieged by
land, while the entrance of our ships into the harbor cut off all relief
on that side. After a truce to allow of the removal of noncombatants
protracted negotiations continued from July 3 until July 15, when, under
menace of immediate assault, the preliminaries of surrender were agreed
upon. On the 17th General Shafter occupied the city. The capitulation
embraced the entire eastern end of Cuba. The number of Spanish soldiers
surrendering was 22,000, all of whom were subsequently conveyed to Spain
at the charge of the United States. The story of this successful
campaign is told in the report of the Secretary of War, which will be
laid before you. The individual valor of officers and soldiers was never
more strikingly shown than in the several engagements leading to the
surrender of Santiago, while the prompt movements and successive
victories won instant and universal applause. To those who gained this
complete triumph, which established the ascendency of the United States
upon land as the fight off Santiago had fixed our supremacy on the seas,
the earnest and lasting gratitude of the nation is unsparingly due. Nor
should we alone remember the gallantry of the living; the dead claim our
tears, and our losses by battle and disease must cloud any exultation at
the result and teach us to weigh the awful cost of war, however rightful
the cause or signal the victory.
With the fall of Santiago the occupation of Puerto Rico became the next
strategic necessity. General Miles had previously been assigned to
organize an expedition for that purpose. Fortunately he was already at
Santiago, where he had arrived on the 11th of July with reenforcements
for General Shafter's army.
With these troops, consisting of 3,415 infantry and artillery, two
companies of engineers, and one company of the Signal Corps, General
Miles left Guantanamo on July 21, having nine transports convoyed by the
fleet under Captain Higginson with the _Massachusetts_ (flagship), _Dixie_,
_Gloucester_, _Columbia_, and _Yale_, the two latter carrying troops.
The expedition landed at Guanica July 25, which port was entered with
little opposition. Here the fleet was joined by the _Annapolis_ and
the _Wasp_, while the _Puritan_ and _Amphitrite_ went to San Juan and
joined the _New Orleans_, which was engaged in blockading that port. The
Major-General Commanding was subsequently reenforced by General Schwan's
brigade of the Third Army Corps, by General Wilson with a part of his
division, and also by General Brooke with a part of his corps, numbering
in all 16,973 officers and men.
On July 27 he entered Ponce, one of the most important ports in the
island, from which he thereafter directed operations for the capture of
the island.
With the exception of encounters with the enemy at Guayama,
Hormigueros, Coarno, and Yauco and an attack on a force landed at Cape
San Juan, there was no serious resistance. The campaign was prosecuted
with great vigor, and by the 12th of August much of the island was in
our possession and the acquisition of the remainder was only a matter
of a short time. At most of the points in the island our troops were
enthusiastically welcomed. Protestations of loyalty to the flag and
gratitude for delivery from Spanish rule met our commanders at every
stage. As a potent influence toward peace the outcome of the Puerto
Rican expedition was of great consequence, and generous commendation
is due to those who participated in it.
The last scene of the war was enacted at Manila, its starting place. On
August 15, after a brief assault upon the works by the land forces, in
which the squadron assisted, the capital surrendered unconditionally.
The casualties were comparatively few. By this the conquest of the
Philippine Islands, virtually accomplished when the Spanish capacity for
resistance was destroyed by Admiral Dewey's victory of the 1st of May,
was formally sealed. To General Merritt, his officers and men, for their
uncomplaining and devoted service and for their gallantry in action, the
nation is sincerely grateful. Their long voyage was made with singular
success, and the soldierly conduct of the men, most of whom were without
previous experience in the military service, deserves unmeasured praise.
The total casualties in killed and wounded in the Army during the war
with Spain were: Officers killed, 23; enlisted men killed, 257; total,
280; officers wounded, 113; enlisted men wounded, 1,464; total, 1,577.
Of the Navy: Killed, 17; wounded, 67; died as result of wounds, 1;
invalided from service, 6; total, 91.
It will be observed that while our Navy was engaged in two great battles
and in numerous perilous undertakings in blockade and bombardment, and
more than 50,000 of our troops were transported to distant lands and
were engaged in assault and siege and battle and many skirmishes in
unfamiliar territory, we lost in both arms of the service a total of
1,668 killed and wounded; and in the entire campaign by land and sea we
did not lose a gun or a flag or a transport or a ship, and, with the
exception of the crew of the _Merrimac_, not a soldier or sailor
was taken prisoner.
On August 7, forty-six days from the date of the landing of General
Shafter's army in Cuba and twenty-one days from the surrender of
Santiago, the United States troops commenced embarkation for home, and
our entire force was returned to the United States as early as August
24. They were absent from the United States only two months.
It is fitting that I should bear testimony to the patriotism and
devotion of that large portion of our Army which, although eager to be
ordered to the post of greatest exposure, fortunately was not required
outside of the United States. They did their whole duty, and, like their
comrades at the front, have earned the gratitude of the nation. In like
manner, the officers and men of the Army and of the Navy who remained
in their departments and stations faithfully performing most important
duties connected with the war, and whose requests for assignment in the
field and at sea I was compelled to refuse because their services were
indispensable here, are entitled to the highest commendation. It is my
regret that there seems to be no provision for their suitable
recognition.
In this connection it is a pleasure for me to mention in terms of
cordial appreciation the timely and useful work of the American National
Red Cross, both in relief measures preparatory to the campaigns, in
sanitary assistance at several of the camps of assemblage, and later,
under the able and experienced leadership of the president of the
society, Miss Clara Barton, on the fields of battle and in the hospitals
at the front in Cuba. Working in conjunction with the governmental
authorities and under their sanction and approval, and with the
enthusiastic cooperation of many patriotic women and societies in the
various States, the Red Cross has fully maintained its already high
reputation for intense earnestness and ability to exercise the noble
purposes of its international organization, thus justifying the
confidence and support which it has received at the hands of the
American people. To the members and officers of this society and all who
aided them in their philanthropic work the sincere and lasting gratitude
of the soldiers and the public is due and is freely accorded.
In tracing these events we are constantly reminded of our obligations to
the Divine Master for His watchful care over us and His safe guidance,
for which the nation makes reverent acknowledgment and offers humble
prayer for the continuance of His favor.
The annihilation of Admiral Cervera's fleet, followed by the
capitulation of Santiago, having brought to the Spanish Government
a realizing sense of the hopelessness of continuing a struggle now
become wholly unequal, it made overtures of peace through the French
ambassador, who, with the assent of his Government, had acted as the
friendly representative of Spanish interests during the war. On the
26th of July M. Cambon presented a communication signed by the Duke of
Almodóvar, the Spanish minister of state, inviting the United States to
state the terms upon which it would be willing to make peace. On the
30th of July, by a communication addressed to the Duke of Almodóvar
and handed to M. Cambon, the terms of this Government were announced
substantially as in the protocol afterwards signed. On the 10th of
August the Spanish reply, dated August 7, was handed by M. Cambon to the
Secretary of State. It accepted unconditionally the terms imposed as to
Cuba, Puerto Rico, and an island of the Ladrones group, but appeared to
seek to introduce inadmissible reservations in regard to our demand as
to the Philippine Islands. Conceiving that discussion on this point
could neither be practical nor profitable, I directed that in order
to avoid misunderstanding the matter should be forthwith closed by
proposing the embodiment in a formal protocol of the terms upon which
the negotiations for peace were to be undertaken. The vague and
inexplicit suggestions of the Spanish note could not be accepted, the
only reply being to present as a virtual ultimatum a draft of protocol
embodying the precise terms tendered to Spain in our note of July 30,
with added stipulations of detail as to the appointment of commissioners
to arrange for the evacuation of the Spanish Antilles. On August 12
M. Cambon announced his receipt of full powers to sign the protocol
so submitted. Accordingly, on the afternoon of August 12, M. Cambon,
as the plenipotentiary of Spain, and the Secretary of State, as the
plenipotentiary of the United States, signed a protocol providing--
ARTICLE I. Spain will relinquish all claim of sovereignty over and title
to Cuba.
ART. II. Spain will cede to the United States the island of Puerto Rico
and other islands now under Spanish sovereignty in the West Indies, and
also an island in the Ladrones to be selected by the United States.
ART. III. The United States will occupy and hold the city, bay, and
harbor of Manila pending the conclusion of a treaty of peace which shall
determine the control, disposition, and government of the Philippines.
The fourth article provided for the appointment of joint commissions on
the part of the United States and Spain, to meet in Havana and San Juan,
respectively, for the purpose of arranging and carrying out the details
of the stipulated evacuation of Cuba, Puerto Rico, and other Spanish
islands in the West Indies.
The fifth article provided for the appointment of not more than five
commissioners on each side, to meet at Paris not later than October 1
and to proceed to the negotiation and conclusion of a treaty of peace,
subject to ratification according to the respective constitutional forms
of the two countries.
The sixth and last article provided that upon the signature of the
protocol hostilities between the two countries should be suspended and
that notice to that effect should be given as soon as possible by each
Government to the commanders of its military and naval forces.
Immediately upon the conclusion of the protocol I issued a proclamation,
of August 12,[22] suspending hostilities on the part of the United
States. The necessary orders to that end were at once given by
telegraph. The blockade of the ports of Cuba and San Juan de Puerto Rico
was in like manner raised. On the 18th of August the muster out of
100,000 volunteers, or as near that number as was found to be
practicable, was ordered.
On the 1st of December 101,165 officers and men had been mustered out
and discharged from the service, and 9,002 more will be mustered out
by the 10th of this month; also a corresponding number of general and
general staff officers have been honorably discharged the service.
The military commissions to superintend the evacuation of Cuba, Puerto
Rico, and the adjacent islands were forthwith appointed--for Cuba,
Major-General James F. Wade, Rear-Admiral William T. Sampson,
Major-General Matthew C. Butler; for Puerto Rico, Major-General John R.
Brooke, Rear-Admiral Winfield S. Schley, Brigadier-General William W.
Gordon--who soon afterwards met the Spanish commissioners at Havana and
San Juan, respectively. The Puerto Rican Joint Commission speedily
accomplished its task, and by the 18th of October the evacuation of the
island was completed. The United States flag was raised over the island
at noon on that day. The administration of its affairs has been
provisionally intrusted to a military governor until the Congress shall
otherwise provide. The Cuban Joint Commission has not yet terminated its
labors. Owing to the difficulties in the way of removing the large
numbers of Spanish troops still in Cuba, the evacuation can not be
completed before the 1st of January next.
Pursuant to the fifth article of the protocol, I appointed William R.
Day, lately Secretary of State; Cushman K. Davis, William P. Frye, and
George Gray, Senators of the United States, and Whitelaw Reid to be the
peace commissioners on the part of the United States. Proceeding in due
season to Paris, they there met on the 1st of October five commissioners
similarly appointed on the part of Spain. Their negotiations have made
hopeful progress, so that I trust soon to be able to lay a definitive
treaty of peace before the Senate, with a review of the steps leading
to its signature.
I do not discuss at this time the government or the future of the new
possessions which will come to us as the result of the war with Spain.
Such discussion will be appropriate after the treaty of peace shall
be ratified. In the meantime and until the Congress has legislated
otherwise it will be my duty to continue the military governments which
have existed since our occupation and give to the people security in
life and property and encouragement under a just and beneficent rule.
As soon as we are in possession of Cuba and have pacified the island
it will be necessary to give aid and direction to its people to form
a government for themselves. This should be undertaken at the earliest
moment consistent with safety and assured success. It is important that
our relations with this people shall be of the most friendly character
and our commercial relations close and reciprocal. It should be our
duty to assist in every proper way to build up the waste places of the
island, encourage the industry of the people, and assist them to form a
government which shall be free and independent, thus realizing the best
aspirations of the Cuban people.
Spanish rule must be replaced by a just, benevolent, and humane
government, created by the people of Cuba, capable of performing all
international obligations, and which shall encourage thrift, industry,
and prosperity and promote peace and good will among all of the
inhabitants, whatever may have been their relations in the past. Neither
revenge nor passion should have a place in the new government. Until
there is complete tranquillity in the island and a stable government
inaugurated military occupation will be continued.
With the one exception of the rupture with Spain, the intercourse of
the United States with the great family of nations has been marked with
cordiality, and the close of the eventful year finds most of the issues
that necessarily arise in the complex relations of sovereign states
adjusted or presenting no serious obstacle to a just and honorable
solution by amicable agreement.
A long unsettled dispute as to the extended boundary between the
Argentine Republic and Chile, stretching along the Andean crests from
the southern border of the Atacama Desert to Magellan Straits, nearly a
third of the length of the South American continent, assumed an acute
stage in the early part of the year, and afforded to this Government
occasion to express the hope that the resort to arbitration, already
contemplated by existing conventions between the parties, might prevail
despite the grave difficulties arising in its application. I am happy to
say that arrangements to this end have been perfected, the questions of
fact upon which the respective commissioners were unable to agree being
in course of reference to Her Britannic Majesty for determination.
A residual difference touching the northern boundary line across the
Atacama Desert, for which existing treaties provided no adequate
adjustment, bids fair to be settled in like manner by a joint
commission, upon which the United States minister at Buenos Ayres has
been invited to serve as umpire in the last resort.
I have found occasion to approach the Argentine Government with a view
to removing differences of rate charges imposed upon the cables of an
American corporation in the transmission between Buenos Ayres and the
cities of Uruguay and Brazil of through messages passing from and
to the United States. Although the matter is complicated by exclusive
concessions by Uruguay and Brazil to foreign companies, there is strong
hope that a good understanding will be reached and that the important
channels of commercial communication between the United States and the
Atlantic cities of South America may be freed from an almost prohibitory
discrimination.
In this relation I may be permitted to express my sense of the fitness
of an international agreement whereby the interchange of messages over
connecting cables may be regulated on a fair basis of uniformity.
The world has seen the postal system developed from a congeries of
independent and exclusive services into a well-ordered union, of which
all countries enjoy the manifold benefits. It would be strange were the
nations not in time brought to realize that modern civilization, which
owes so much of its progress to the annihilation of space by the
electric force, demands that this all-important means of communication
be a heritage of all peoples, to be administered and regulated in their
common behoof. A step in this direction was taken when the international
convention of 1884 for the protection of submarine cables was signed,
and the day is, I trust, not far distant when this medium for the
transmission of thought from land to land may be brought within the
domain of international concert as completely as is the material
carriage of commerce and correspondence upon the face of the waters
that divide them.
The claim of Thomas Jefferson Page against Argentina, which has been
pending many years, has been adjusted. The sum awarded by the Congress
of Argentina was $4,242.35.
The sympathy of the American people has justly been offered to the ruler
and the people of Austria-Hungary by reason of the affliction that has
lately befallen them in the assassination of the Empress-Queen of that
historic realm.
On the 10th of September, 1897, a conflict took place at Lattimer, Pa.,
between a body of striking miners and the sheriff of Luzerne County and
his deputies, in which 22 miners were killed and 44 wounded, of whom
10 of the killed and 12 of the wounded were Austrian and Hungarian
subjects. This deplorable event naturally aroused the solicitude of the
Austro-Hungarian Government, which, on the assumption that the killing
and wounding involved the unjustifiable misuse of authority, claimed
reparation for the sufferers. Apart from the searching investigation and
peremptory action of the authorities of Pennsylvania, the Federal
Executive took appropriate steps to learn the merits of the case, in
order to be in a position to meet the urgent complaint of a friendly
power. The sheriff and his deputies, having been indicted for murder,
were tried, and acquitted, after protracted proceedings and the hearing
of hundreds of witnesses, on the ground that the killing was in the line
of their official duty to uphold law and preserve public order in the
State. A representative of the Department of Justice attended the trial
and reported its course fully. With all the facts in its possession,
this Government expects to reach a harmonious understanding on the
subject with that of Austria-Hungary, notwithstanding the renewed claim
of the latter, after learning the result of the trial, for indemnity for
its injured subjects.
Despite the brief time allotted for preparation, the exhibits of this
country at the Universal Exposition at Brussels in 1897 enjoyed the
singular distinction of a larger proportion of awards, having regard
to the number and classes of articles entered than those of other
countries. The worth of such a result in making known our national
capacity to supply the world's markets is obvious.
Exhibitions of this international character are becoming more frequent
as the exchanges of commercial countries grow more intimate and varied.
Hardly a year passes that this Government is not invited to national
participation at some important foreign center, but often on too short
notice to permit of recourse to Congress for the power and means to do
so. My predecessors have suggested the advisability of providing by
a general enactment and a standing appropriation for accepting such
invitations and for representation of this country by a commission.
This plan has my cordial approval.
I trust that the Belgian restrictions on the importation of cattle from
the United States, originally adopted as a sanitary precaution, will at
an early day be relaxed as to their present features of hardship and
discrimination, so as to admit live cattle under due regulation of their
slaughter after landing. I am hopeful, too, of favorable change in
the Belgian treatment of our preserved and salted meats. The growth
of direct trade between the two countries, not alone for Belgian
consumption and Belgian products, but by way of transit from and to
other continental states, has been both encouraging and beneficial. No
effort will be spared to enlarge its advantages by seeking the removal
of needless impediments and by arrangements for increased commercial
exchanges.
The year's events in Central America deserve more than passing mention.
A menacing rupture between Costa Rica and Nicaragua was happily composed
by the signature of a convention between the parties, with the
concurrence of the Guatemalan representative as a mediator, the act
being negotiated and signed on board the United States steamer
_Alert_, then lying in Central American waters. It is believed that
the good offices of our envoy and of the commander of that vessel
contributed toward this gratifying outcome.
In my last annual message the situation was presented with respect to
the diplomatic representation of this Government in Central America
created by the association of Nicaragua, Honduras, and Salvador under
the title of the Greater Republic of Central America, and the delegation
of their international functions to the Diet thereof. While the
representative character of the Diet was recognized by my predecessor
and has been confirmed during my Administration by receiving its
accredited envoy and granting exequaturs to consuls commissioned under
its authority, that recognition was qualified by the distinct
understanding that the responsibility of each of the component sovereign
Republics toward the United States remained wholly unaffected.
This proviso was needful inasmuch as the compact of the three
Republics was at the outset an association whereby certain
representative functions were delegated to a tripartite commission
rather than a federation possessing centralized powers of government
and administration. In this view of their relation and of the
relation of the United States to the several Republics, a change
in the representation of this country in Central America was neither
recommended by the Executive nor initiated by Congress, thus leaving one
of our envoys accredited, as heretofore, separately to two States of the
Greater Republic, Nicaragua and Salvador, and to a third State, Costa
Rica, which was not a party to the compact, while our other envoy was
similarly accredited to a union State, Honduras, and a nonunion State,
Guatemala. The result has been that the one has presented credentials
only to the President of Costa Rica, the other having been received only
by the Government of Guatemala.
Subsequently the three associated Republics entered into negotiations
for taking the steps forecast in the original compact. A convention of
their delegates framed for them a federal constitution under the name of
the United States of Central America, and provided for a central federal
government and legislature. Upon ratification by the constituent States,
the 1st of November last was fixed for the new system to go into
operation. Within a few weeks thereafter the plan was severely tested
by revolutionary movements arising, with a consequent demand for unity
of action on the part of the military power of the federal States to
suppress them. Under this strain the new union seems to have been
weakened through the withdrawal of its more important members. This
Government was not officially advised of the installation of the
federation and has maintained an attitude of friendly expectancy, while
in no wise relinquishing the position held from the outset that the
responsibilities of the several States toward us remained unaltered by
their tentative relations among themselves.
The Nicaragua Canal Commission, under the chairmanship of Rear-Admiral
John G. Walker, appointed July 24, 1897, under the authority of a
provision in the sundry civil act of June 4 of that year, has nearly
completed its labors, and the results of its exhaustive inquiry into the
proper route, the feasibility, and the cost of construction of an
interoceanic canal by a Nicaraguan route will be laid before you. In the
performance of its task the commission received all possible courtesy
and assistance from the Governments of Nicaragua and Costa Rica, which
thus testified their appreciation of the importance of giving a speedy
and practical outcome to the great project that has for so many years
engrossed the attention of the respective countries.
As the scope of the recent inquiry embraced the whole subject, with the
aim of making plans and surveys for a canal by the most convenient
route, it necessarily included a review of the results of previous
surveys and plans, and in particular those adopted by the Maritime Canal
Company under its existing concessions from Nicaragua and Costa Rica, so
that to this extent those grants necessarily hold as essential a part
in the deliberations and conclusions of the Canal Commission as they
have held and must needs hold in the discussion of the matter by the
Congress. Under these circumstances and in view of overtures made to the
Governments of Nicaragua and Costa Rica by other parties for a new canal
concession predicated on the assumed approaching lapse of the contracts
of the Maritime Canal Company with those States, I have not hesitated
to express my conviction that considerations of expediency and
international policy as between the several governments interested in
the construction and control of an interoceanic canal by this route
require the maintenance of the _status quo_ until the Canal
Commission shall have reported and the United States Congress shall have
had the opportunity to pass finally upon the whole matter during the
present session, without prejudice by reason of any change in the
existing conditions.
Nevertheless, it appears that the Government of Nicaragua, as one
of its last sovereign acts before merging its powers in those of the
newly formed United States of Central America, has granted an optional
concession to another association, to become effective on the expiration
of the present grant. It does not appear what surveys have been made
or what route is proposed under this contingent grant, so that an
examination of the feasibility of its plans is necessarily not embraced
in the report of the Canal Commission. All these circumstances suggest
the urgency of some definite action by the Congress at this session
if the labors of the past are to be utilized and the linking of the
Atlantic and Pacific oceans by a practical waterway is to be realized.
That the construction of such a maritime highway is now more than ever
indispensable to that intimate and ready intercommunication between our
eastern and western seaboards demanded by the annexation of the Hawaiian
Islands and the prospective expansion of our influence and commerce in
the Pacific, and that our national policy now more imperatively than
ever calls for its control by this Government, are propositions which
I doubt not the Congress will duly appreciate and wisely act upon.
A convention providing for the revival of the late United States and
Chilean Claims Commission and the consideration of claims which were
duly presented to the late commission, but not considered because of the
expiration of the time limited for the duration of the commission, was
signed May 24, 1897, and has remained unacted upon by the Senate. The
term therein fixed for effecting the exchange of ratifications having
elapsed, the convention falls unless the time be extended by amendment,
which I am endeavoring to bring about, with the friendly concurrence of
the Chilean Government.
The United States has not been an indifferent spectator of the
extraordinary events transpiring in the Chinese Empire, whereby portions
of its maritime provinces are passing under the control of various
European powers; but the prospect that the vast commerce which the
energy of our citizens and the necessity of our staple productions for
Chinese uses has built up in those regions may not be prejudiced through
any exclusive treatment by the new occupants has obviated the need of
our country becoming an actor in the scene. Our position among nations,
having a large Pacific coast and a constantly expanding direct trade
with the farther Orient, gives us the equitable claim to consideration
and friendly treatment in this regard, and it will be my aim to subserve
our large interests in that quarter by all means appropriate to the
constant policy of our Government. The territories of Kiao-chow, of
Wei-hai-wei, and of Port Arthur and Talienwan, leased to Germany,
Great Britain, and Russia, respectively, for terms of years, will,
it is announced, be open to international commerce during such alien
occupation; and if no discriminating treatment of American citizens and
their trade be found to exist or be hereafter developed, the desire of
this Government would appear to be realized.
In this relation, as showing the volume and value of our exchanges with
China and the peculiarly favorable conditions which exist for their
expansion in the normal course of trade, I refer to the communication
addressed to the Speaker of the House of Representatives by the
Secretary of the Treasury on the 14th of last June, with its
accompanying letter of the Secretary of State, recommending an
appropriation for a commission to study the commercial and industrial
conditions in the Chinese Empire and report as to the opportunities
for and obstacles to the enlargement of markets in China for the
raw products and manufactures of the United States. Action was not
taken thereon during the late session. I cordially urge that the
recommendation receive at your hands the consideration which its
importance and timeliness merit.
Meanwhile there may be just ground for disquietude in view of the unrest
and revival of the old sentiment of opposition and prejudice to alien
people which pervades certain of the Chinese provinces. As in the case
of the attacks upon our citizens in Szechuen and at Kutien in 1895, the
United States minister has been instructed to secure the fullest measure
of protection, both local and imperial, for any menaced American
interests, and to demand, in case of lawless injury to person or
property, instant reparation appropriate to the case. War ships have
been stationed at Tientsin for more ready observation of the disorders
which have invaded even the Chinese capital, so as to be in a position
to act should need arise, while a guard of marines has been sent to
Peking to afford the minister the same measure of authoritative
protection as the representatives of other nations have been constrained
to employ.
Following close upon the rendition of the award of my predecessor as
arbitrator of the claim of the Italian subject Cerruti against the
Republic of Colombia, differences arose between the parties to the
arbitration in regard to the scope and extension of the award, of which
certain articles were contested by Colombia, while Italy claimed their
literal fulfillment. The award having been made by the President of the
United States, as an act of friendly consideration and with the sole
view to an impartial composition of the matter in dispute, I could
not but feel deep concern at such a miscarriage, and while unable to
accept the Colombian theory that I, in my official capacity, possessed
continuing functions as arbitrator, with power to interpret or revise
the terms of the award, my best efforts were lent to bring the parties
to a harmonious agreement as to the execution of its provisions.
A naval demonstration by Italy resulted in an engagement to pay
the liabilities claimed upon their ascertainment; but this apparent
disposition of the controversy was followed by a rupture of diplomatic
intercourse between Colombia and Italy, which still continues, although,
fortunately, without acute symptoms having supervened. Notwithstanding
this, efforts are reported to be continuing for the ascertainment of
Colombia's contingent liability on account of Cerruti's debts under the
fifth article of the award.
A claim of an American citizen against the Dominican Republic for
a public bridge over the Ozama River, which has been in diplomatic
controversy for several years, has been settled by expert arbitration
and an award in favor of the claimant amounting to about $90,000. It,
however, remains unpaid, despite urgent demands for its settlement
according to the terms of the compact.
There is now every prospect that the participation of the United States
in the Universal Exposition to be held in Paris in 1900 will be on a
scale commensurate with the advanced position held by our products and
industries in the world's chief marts.
The preliminary report of Mr. Moses P. Handy, who, under the act
approved July 19, 1897, was appointed special commissioner with a view
to securing all attainable information necessary to a full and complete
understanding by Congress in regard to the participation of this
Government in the Paris Exposition, was laid before you by my message
of December 6, 1897, and showed the large opportunities opened to make
known our national progress in arts, science, and manufactures, as
well as the urgent need of immediate and adequate provision to enable
due advantage thereof to be taken. Mr. Handy's death soon afterwards
rendered it necessary for another to take up and complete his unfinished
work, and on January 11 last Mr. Thomas W. Cridler, Third Assistant
Secretary of State, was designated to fulfill that task. His report was
laid before you by my message of June 14, 1898, with the gratifying
result of awakening renewed interest in the projected display. By a
provision in the sundry civil appropriation act of July 1, 1898, a sum
not to exceed $650,000 was allotted for the organization of a commission
to care for the proper preparation and installation of American exhibits
and for the display of suitable exhibits by the several Executive
Departments, particularly by the Department of Agriculture, the Fish
Commission, and the Smithsonian Institution, in representation of the
Government of the United States.
Pursuant to that enactment I appointed Mr. Ferdinand W. Peck, of
Chicago, commissioner-general, with an assistant commissioner-general
and a secretary. Mr. Peck at once proceeded to Paris, where his success
in enlarging the scope and variety of the United States exhibit has
been most gratifying. Notwithstanding the comparatively limited area
of the exposition site--less than one-half that of the World's Fair at
Chicago--the space assigned to the United States has been increased from
the absolute allotment of 157,403 square feet reported by Mr. Handy to
some 202,000 square feet, with corresponding augmentation of the field
for a truly characteristic representation of the various important
branches of our country's development. Mr. Peck's report will be laid
before you. In my judgment its recommendations will call for your early
consideration, especially as regards an increase of the appropriation to
at least one million dollars in all, so that not only may the assigned
space be fully taken up by the best possible exhibits in every class,
but the preparation and installation be on so perfect a scale as to
rank among the first in that unparalleled competition of artistic and
inventive production, and thus counterbalance the disadvantage with
which we start as compared with other countries whose appropriations are
on a more generous scale and whose preparations are in a state of much
greater forwardness than our own.
Where our artisans have the admitted capacity to excel, where our
inventive genius has initiated many of the grandest discoveries of these
later days of the century, and where the native resources of our land
are as limitless as they are valuable to supply the world's needs, it is
our province, as it should be our earnest care, to lead in the march of
human progress, and not rest content with any secondary place. Moreover,
if this be due to ourselves, it is no less due to the great French
nation whose guests we become, and which has in so many ways testified
its wish and hope that our participation shall befit the place the two
peoples have won in the field of universal development.
The commercial arrangement made with France on the 28th of May, 1898,
under the provisions of section 3 of the tariff act of 1897, went into
effect on the 1st day of June following. It has relieved a portion of
our export trade from serious embarrassment. Further negotiations
are now pending under section 4 of the same act with a view to the
increase of trade between the two countries to their mutual advantage.
Negotiations with other governments, in part interrupted by the war with
Spain, are in progress under both sections of the tariff act. I hope to
be able to announce some of the results of these negotiations during the
present session of Congress.
Negotiations to the same end with Germany have been set on foot.
Meanwhile no effort has been relaxed to convince the Imperial Government
of the thoroughness of our inspection of pork products for exportation,
and it is trusted that the efficient administration of this measure by
the Department of Agriculture will be recognized as a guaranty of the
healthfulness of the food staples we send abroad to countries where
their use is large and necessary.
I transmitted to the Senate on the 10th of February last information
touching the prohibition against the importation of fresh fruits from
this country, which had then recently been decreed by Germany on the
ground of danger of disseminating the San José scale insect. This
precautionary measure was justified by Germany on the score of the
drastic steps taken in several States of the Union against the spread of
the pest, the elaborate reports of the Department of Agriculture being
put in evidence to show the danger to German fruit-growing interests
should the scale obtain a lodgment in that country. Temporary relief was
afforded in the case of large consignments of fruit then on the way by
inspection and admission when found noninfected. Later the prohibition
was extended to dried fruits of every kind, but was relaxed so as to
apply only to unpeeled fruit and fruit waste. As was to be expected, the
alarm reached to other countries, and Switzerland has adopted a similar
inhibition. Efforts are in progress to induce the German and Swiss
Governments to relax the prohibition in favor of dried fruits shown to
have been cured under circumstances rendering the existence of animal
life impossible.
Our relations with Great Britain have continued on the most friendly
footing. Assenting to our request, the protection of Americans and their
interests in Spanish jurisdiction was assumed by the diplomatic and
consular representatives of Great Britain, who fulfilled their delicate
and arduous trust with tact and zeal, eliciting high commendation.
I may be allowed to make fitting allusion to the instance of Mr. Ramsden,
Her Majesty's consul at Santiago de Cuba, whose untimely death after
distinguished service and untiring effort during the siege of that city
was sincerely lamented.
In the early part of April last, pursuant to a request made at the
instance of the Secretary of State by the British ambassador at this
capital, the Canadian government granted facilities for the passage of
four United States revenue cutters from the Great Lakes to the Atlantic
coast by way of the Canadian canals and the St. Lawrence River. The
vessels had reached Lake Ontario and were there awaiting the opening of
navigation when war was declared between the United States and Spain.
Her Majesty's Government thereupon, by a communication of the latter
part of April, stated that the permission granted before the outbreak of
hostilities would not be withdrawn provided the United States Government
gave assurance that the vessels in question would proceed direct to
a United States port without engaging in any hostile operation.
This Government promptly agreed to the stipulated condition, it being
understood that the vessels would not be prohibited from resisting any
hostile attack.
It will give me especial satisfaction if I shall be authorized to
communicate to you a favorable conclusion of the pending negotiations
with Great Britain in respect to the Dominion of Canada. It is the
earnest wish of this Government to remove all sources of discord and
irritation in our relations with the neighboring Dominion. The trade
between the two countries is constantly increasing, and it is important
to both countries that all reasonable facilities should be granted for
its development.
The Government of Greece strongly urges the onerousness of the duty here
imposed upon the currants of that country, amounting to 100 per cent or
more of their market value. This fruit is stated to be exclusively a
Greek product, not coming into competition with any domestic product.
The question of reciprocal commercial relations with Greece, including
the restoration of currants to the free list, is under consideration.
The long-standing claim of Bernard Campbell for damages for injuries
sustained from a violent assault committed against him by military
authorities in the island of Haiti has been settled by the agreement of
that Republic to pay him $10,000 in American gold. Of this sum $5,000
has already been paid. It is hoped that other pending claims of American
citizens against that Republic may be amicably adjusted.
Pending the consideration by the Senate of the treaty signed June 16,
1897, by the plenipotentiaries of the United States and of the Republic
of Hawaii, providing for the annexation of the islands, a joint
resolution to accomplish the same purpose by accepting the offered
cession and incorporating the ceded territory into the Union was adopted
by the Congress and approved July 7, 1898. I thereupon directed the
United States steamship _Philadelphia_ to convey Rear-Admiral
Miller to Honolulu, and intrusted to his hands this important
legislative act, to be delivered to the President of the Republic of
Hawaii, with whom the Admiral and the United States minister were
authorized to make appropriate arrangements for transferring the
sovereignty of the islands to the United States. This was simply but
impressively accomplished on the 12th of August last by the delivery of
a certified copy of the resolution to President Dole, who thereupon
yielded up to the representative of the Government of the United States
the sovereignty and public property of the Hawaiian Islands.
Pursuant to the terms of the joint resolution and in exercise of
the authority thereby conferred upon me, I directed that the civil,
judicial, and military powers theretofore exercised by the officers of
the Government of the Republic of Hawaii should continue to be exercised
by those officers until Congress shall provide a government for the
incorporated territory, subject to my power to remove such officers and
to fill vacancies. The President, officers, and troops of the Republic
thereupon took the oath of allegiance to the United States, thus
providing for the uninterrupted continuance of all the administrative
and municipal functions of the annexed territory until Congress shall
otherwise enact.
Following the further provision of the joint resolution, I appointed the
Hons. Shelby M. Cullom, of Illinois, John T. Morgan, of Alabama, Robert
R. Hitt, of Illinois, Sanford B. Dole, of Hawaii, and Walter F. Frear,
of Hawaii, as commissioners to confer and recommend to Congress such
legislation concerning the Hawaiian Islands as they should deem
necessary or proper. The commissioners having fulfilled the mission
confided to them, their report will be laid before you at an early day.
It is believed that their recommendations will have the earnest
consideration due to the magnitude of the responsibility resting upon
you to give such shape to the relationship of those mid-Pacific lands to
our home Union as will benefit both in the highest degree, realizing the
aspirations of the community that has cast its lot with us and elected
to share our political heritage, while at the same time justifying the
foresight of those who for three-quarters of a century have looked to
the assimilation of Hawaii as a natural and inevitable consummation, in
harmony with our needs and in fulfillment of our cherished traditions.
The questions heretofore pending between Hawaii and Japan growing out
of the alleged mistreatment of Japanese treaty immigrants were, I am
pleased to say, adjusted before the act of transfer by the payment of
a reasonable indemnity to the Government of Japan.
Under the provisions of the joint resolution, the existing customs
relations of the Hawaiian Islands with the United States and with other
countries remain unchanged until legislation shall otherwise provide.
The consuls of Hawaii here and in foreign countries continue to fulfill
their commercial agencies, while the United States consulate at Honolulu
is maintained for all appropriate services pertaining to trade and the
revenue. It would be desirable that all foreign consuls in the Hawaiian
Islands should receive new exequaturs from this Government.
The attention of Congress is called to the fact that, our consular
offices having ceased to exist in Hawaii and being about to cease in
other countries coming under the sovereignty of the United States, the
provisions for the relief and transportation of destitute American
seamen in these countries under our consular regulations will in
consequence terminate. It is proper, therefore, that new legislation
should be enacted upon this subject in order to meet the changed
conditions.
The interpretation of certain provisions of the extradition convention
of December 11, 1861, has been at various times the occasion of
controversy with the Government of Mexico. An acute difference arose in
the case of the Mexican demand for the delivery of Jesús Guerra, who,
having led a marauding expedition near the border with the proclaimed
purpose of initiating an insurrection against President Diaz, escaped
into Texas. Extradition was refused on the ground that the alleged
offense was political in its character, and therefore came within the
treaty proviso of nonsurrender. The Mexican contention was that the
exception only related to purely political offenses, and that as
Guerra's acts were admixed with the common crime of murder, arson,
kidnaping, and robbery, the option of nondelivery became void, a
position which this Government was unable to admit in view of the
received international doctrine and practice in the matter. The Mexican
Government, in view of this, gave notice January 24, 1898, of the
termination of the convention, to take effect twelve months from that
date, at the same time inviting the conclusion of a new convention,
toward which negotiations are on foot.
In this relation I may refer to the necessity of some amendment of
our existing extradition statute. It is a common stipulation of such
treaties that neither party shall be bound to give up its own citizens,
with the added proviso in one of our treaties, that with Japan, that it
may surrender if it see fit. It is held in this country by an almost
uniform course of decisions that where a treaty negatives the obligation
to surrender the President is not invested with legal authority to act.
The conferment of such authority would be in the line of that sound
morality which shrinks from affording secure asylum to the author of a
heinous crime. Again, statutory provision might well be made for what is
styled extradition by way of transit, whereby a fugitive surrendered by
one foreign government to another may be conveyed across the territory
of the United States to the jurisdiction of the demanding state.
A recommendation in this behalf made in the President's message of
1886[23] was not acted upon. The matter is presented for your
consideration.
The problem of the Mexican free zone has been often discussed with
regard to its inconvenience as a provocative of smuggling into the
United States along an extensive and thinly guarded land border.
The effort made by the joint resolution of March 1, 1895, to remedy the
abuse charged by suspending the privilege of free transportation in
bond across the territory of the United States to Mexico failed of good
result, as is stated in Report No. 702 of the House of Representatives,
submitted in the last session, March 11, 1898. As the question is one to
be conveniently met by wise concurrent legislation of the two countries
looking to the protection of the revenues by harmonious measures
operating equally on either side of the boundary, rather than by
conventional arrangements, I suggest that Congress consider the
advisability of authorizing and inviting a conference of representatives
of the Treasury Departments of the United States and Mexico to consider
the subject in all its complex bearings, and make report with pertinent
recommendations to the respective Governments for the information and
consideration of their Congresses.
The Mexican Water Boundary Commission has adjusted all matters
submitted to it to the satisfaction of both Governments save in three
important cases--that of the "Chamizal" at El Paso, Tex., where the two
commissioners failed to agree, and wherein, for this case only, this
Government has proposed to Mexico the addition of a third member; the
proposed elimination of what are known as "Bancos," small isolated
islands formed by the cutting off of bends in the Rio Grande, from
the operation of the treaties of 1884 and 1889, recommended by the
commissioners and approved by this Government, but still under
consideration by Mexico; and the subject of the "Equitable distribution
of the waters of the Rio Grande," for which the commissioners
recommended an international dam and reservoir, approved by Mexico, but
still under consideration by this Government. Pending these questions
it is necessary to extend the life of the commission, which expires
December 23 next.
The coronation of the young Queen of the Netherlands was made the
occasion of fitting congratulations.
The claim of Victor H. McCord against Peru, which for a number of
years has been pressed by this Government and has on several occasions
attracted the attention of the Congress, has been satisfactorily
adjusted. A protocol was signed May 17, 1898, whereby, the fact of
liability being admitted, the question of the amount to be awarded was
submitted to the chief justice of Canada as sole arbitrator. His award
sets the indemnity due the claimant at $40,000.
The Government of Peru has given the prescribed notification of its
intention to abrogate the treaty of friendship, commerce, and navigation
concluded with this country August 31, 1887. As that treaty contains
many important provisions necessary to the maintenance of commerce
and good relations, which could with difficulty be replaced by the
negotiation of renewed provisions within the brief twelve months
intervening before the treaty terminates, I have invited suggestions by
Peru as to the particular provisions it is desired to annul, in the hope
of reaching an arrangement whereby the remaining articles may be
provisionally saved.
His Majesty the Czar having announced his purpose to raise the
Imperial Russian mission at this capital to the rank of an embassy,
I responded, under the authority conferred by the act of March 3,
1893, by commissioning and accrediting the actual representative
at St. Petersburg in the capacity of ambassador extraordinary and
plenipotentiary. The Russian ambassador to this country has since
presented his credentials.
The proposal of the Czar for a general reduction of the vast military
establishments that weigh so heavily upon many peoples in time of peace
was communicated to this Government with an earnest invitation to be
represented in the conference which it is contemplated to assemble with
a view to discussing the means of accomplishing so desirable a result.
His Majesty was at once informed of the cordial sympathy of this
Government with the principle involved in his exalted proposal and of
the readiness of the United States to take part in the conference.
The active military force of the United States, as measured by our
population, territorial area, and taxable wealth, is, and under any
conceivable prospective conditions must continue to be, in time of peace
so conspicuously less than that of the armed powers to whom the Czar's
appeal is especially addressed that the question can have for us no
practical importance save as marking an auspicious step toward the
betterment of the condition of the modern peoples and the cultivation
of peace and good will among them; but in this view it behooves us as
a nation to lend countenance and aid to the beneficent project.
The claims of owners of American sealing vessels for seizure by Russian
cruisers in Bering Sea are being pressed to a settlement. The equities
of the cases justify the expectation that a measure of reparation will
eventually be accorded in harmony with precedent and in the light of the
proven facts.
The recommendation made in my special message of April 27 last is
renewed, that appropriation be made to reimburse the master and owners
of the Russian bark _Hans_ for wrongful arrest of the master and
detention of the vessel in February, 1896, by officers of the United
States district court for the southern district of Mississippi. The
papers accompanying my said message make out a most meritorious claim
and justify the urgency with which it has been presented by the
Government of Russia.
Malietoa Laupepa, King of Samoa, died on August 22 last. According to
Article I of the general act of Berlin, "his successor shall be duly
elected according to the laws and customs of Samoa."
Arrangements having been agreed upon between the signatories of the
general act for the return of Mataafa and the other exiled Samoan
chiefs, they were brought from Jaluit by a German war vessel and landed
at Apia on September 18 last.
Whether the death of Malietoa and the return of his old-time rival
Mataafa will add to the undesirable complications which the execution of
the tripartite general act has heretofore developed remains to be seen.
The efforts of this Government will, as heretofore, be addressed toward
a harmonious and exact fulfillment of the terms of the international
engagement to which the United States became a party in 1889.
The Cheek claim against Siam, after some five years of controversy, has
been adjusted by arbitration under an agreement signed July 6, 1897, an
award of 706,721 ticals (about $187,987.78), with release of the Cheek
estate from mortgage claims, having been rendered March 21, 1898, in
favor of the claimant by the arbitrator, Sir Nicholas John Hannen,
British chief justice for China and Japan.
An envoy from Siam has been accredited to this Government and has
presented his credentials.
Immediately upon the outbreak of the war with Spain the Swiss
Government, fulfilling the high mission it has deservedly assumed as the
patron of the International Red Cross, proposed to the United States and
Spain that they should severally recognize and carry into execution,
as a _modus vivendi_, during the continuance of hostilities, the
additional articles proposed by the international conference of Geneva,
October 20, 1868, extending the effects of the existing Red Cross
convention of 1864 to the conduct of naval war. Following the example
set by France and Germany in 1870 in adopting such a _modus vivendi_,
and in view of the accession of the United States to those additional
articles in 1882, although the exchange of ratifications thereof still
remained uneffected, the Swiss proposal was promptly and cordially
accepted by us, and simultaneously by Spain.
This Government feels a keen satisfaction in having thus been enabled to
testify its adherence to the broadest principles of humanity even amidst
the clash of war, and it is to be hoped that the extension of the Red
Cross compact to hostilities by sea as well as on land may soon become
an accomplished fact through the general promulgation of the additional
naval Red Cross articles by the maritime powers now parties to the
convention of 1864.
The important question of the claim of Switzerland to the perpetual
cantonal allegiance of American citizens of Swiss origin has not made
hopeful progress toward a solution, and controversies in this regard
still continue.
The newly accredited envoy of the United States to the Ottoman Porte
carries instructions looking to the disposal of matters in controversy
with Turkey for a number of years. He is especially charged to press for
a just settlement of our claims for indemnity by reason of the
destruction of the property of American missionaries resident in that
country during the Armenian troubles of 1895, as well as for the
recognition of older claims of equal justness.
He is also instructed to seek an adjustment of the dispute growing
out of the refusal of Turkey to recognize the acquired citizenship of
Ottoman-born persons naturalized in the United States since 1869 without
prior imperial consent, and in the same general relation he is directed
to endeavor to bring about a solution of the question which has more or
less acutely existed since 1869 concerning the jurisdictional rights of
the United States in matters of criminal procedure and punishment under
Article IV of the treaty of 1830. This latter difficulty grows out of a
verbal difference, claimed by Turkey to be essential, between the
original Turkish text and the promulgated translation.
After more than two years from the appointment of a consul of this
country to Erzerum, he has received his exequatur.
The arbitral tribunal appointed under the treaty of February 2, 1897,
between Great Britain and Venezuela, to determine the boundary line
between the latter and the colony of British Guiana, is to convene at
Paris during the present month. It is a source of much gratification to
this Government to see the friendly resort of arbitration applied to the
settlement of this controversy, not alone because of the earnest part we
have had in bringing about the result, but also because the two members
named on behalf of Venezuela, Mr. Chief Justice Fuller and Mr. Justice
Brewer, chosen from our highest court, appropriately testify the
continuing interest we feel in the definitive adjustment of the question
according to the strictest rules of justice. The British members,
Lord Herschell and Sir Richard Collins, are jurists of no less exalted
repute, while the fifth member and president of the tribunal, M.F.
De Martens, has earned a world-wide reputation as an authority upon
international law.
The claim of Felipe Scandella against Venezuela for arbitrary expulsion
and injury to his business has been adjusted by the revocation of the
order of expulsion and by the payment of the sum of $16,000.
I have the satisfaction of being able to state that the Bureau of
the American Republics, created in 1890 as the organ for promoting
commercial intercourse and fraternal relations among the countries of
the Western Hemisphere, has become a more efficient instrument of the
wise purposes of its founders, and is receiving the cordial support of
the contributing members of the international union which are actually
represented in its board of management. A commercial directory, in two
volumes, containing a mass of statistical matter descriptive of the
industrial and commercial interests of the various countries, has been
printed in English, Spanish, Portuguese, and French, and a monthly
bulletin published in these four languages and distributed in the
Latin-American countries as well as in the United States has proved to
be a valuable medium for disseminating information and furthering the
varied interests of the international union.
During the past year the important work of collecting information of
practical benefit to American industries and trade through the agency
of the diplomatic and consular officers has been steadily advanced, and
in order to lay such data before the public with the least delay the
practice was begun in January, 1898, of issuing the commercial reports
from day to day as they are received by the Department of State. It is
believed that for promptitude as well as fullness of information the
service thus supplied to our merchants and manufacturers will be found
to show sensible improvement and to merit the liberal support of
Congress.
The experiences of the last year bring forcibly home to us a sense of
the burdens and the waste of war. We desire, in common with most
civilized nations, to reduce to the lowest possible point the damage
sustained in time of war-by peaceable trade and commerce. It is true we
may suffer in such cases less than other communities, but all nations
are damaged more or less by the state of uneasiness and apprehension
into which an outbreak of hostilities throws the entire commercial
world. It should be our object, therefore, to minimize, so far as
practicable, this inevitable loss and disturbance. This purpose can
probably best be accomplished by an international agreement to regard
all private property at sea as exempt from capture or destruction by the
forces of belligerent powers. The United States Government has for many
years advocated this humane and beneficent principle, and is now in
position to recommend it to other powers without the imputation of
selfish motives. I therefore suggest for your consideration that the
Executive be authorized to correspond with the governments of the
principal maritime powers with a view of incorporating into the
permanent law of civilized nations the principle of the exemption of
all private property at sea, not contraband of war, from capture or
destruction by belligerent powers.
The Secretary of the Treasury reports that the receipts of the
Government from all sources during the fiscal year ended June 30,
1898, including $64,751,223 received from sale of Pacific railroads,
amounted to $405,321,335 and its expenditures to $443,368,582. There
was collected from customs $149,575,062 and from internal revenue
$170,900,641. Our dutiable imports amounted to $324,635,479, a decrease
of $58,156,690 over the preceding year, and importations free of duty
amounted to $291,414,175, a decrease from the preceding year of
$90,524,068. Internal-revenue receipts exceeded those of the preceding
year by $24,212,067.
The total tax collected on distilled spirits was $92,546,999;
on manufactured tobacco, $36,230,522, and on fermented liquors,
$39,515,421. We exported merchandise during the year amounting to
$1,231,482,330, an increase of $180,488,774 from the preceding year.
It is estimated upon the basis of present revenue laws that the
receipts of the Government for the year ending June 30, 1899, will
be $577,874,647, and its expenditures $689,874,647, resulting in a
deficiency of $112,000,000.
On the 1st of December, 1898, there was held in the Treasury gold coin
amounting to $138,441,547, gold bullion amounting to $138,502,545,
silver bullion amounting to $93,359,250, and other forms of money
amounting to $451,963,981.
On the same date the amount of money of all kinds in circulation, or not
included in Treasury holdings, was $1,886,879,504, an increase for the
year of $165,794,966. Estimating our population at 75,194,000 at the
time mentioned, the per capita circulation was $25.09. On the same date
there was in the Treasury gold bullion amounting to $138,502,545.
The provisions made for strengthening the resources of the Treasury in
connection with the war have given increased confidence in the purpose
and power of the Government to maintain the present standard, and have
established more firmly than ever the national credit at home and
abroad. A marked evidence of this is found in the inflow of gold to the
Treasury. Its net gold holdings on November 1, 1898, were $239,885,162
as compared with $153,573,147 on November 1, 1897, and an increase of
net cash of $207,756,100, November 1, 1897, to $300,238,275, November 1,
1898. The present ratio of net Treasury gold to outstanding Government
liabilities, including United States notes, Treasury notes of 1890,
silver certificates, currency certificates, standard silver dollars,
and fractional silver coin, November 1, 1898, was 25.35 per cent, as
compared with 16.96 per cent, November 1, 1897.