The republic. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1849-1853, 1853-03-23

tuat you. were Too well acquainted Will your Owl
Duties and with the rights Of the French authori-
ties. to mean to call in question, even BY imputa-
| ton, the manner in which these rights bad been
obtained; and that would address this letter to
and say to him that, in any thing which may have
been said or done, either BY yourself or by me, at
the iuncturereferred to, nothing was in contempla
ton disrespectful to the President of the French
Republic, or inconsistent with the high sense which
we entertain of the friendship of the French gov
eminent and people.
am, sir, respectfully, your obedient servant,
DAN'L WEBSTER.
Mr.. Ripes to Mr. Webster.
LEGATION OF THE UNITED SrArxs,
PARIS, March 81, 1852.
STA: received few days ago your despatch
| (No. 40) of the 9Th instant, informing me tina t
Monsieur Sartges had that day called at the Departs
ment Of State, and said that there were some ex
preesions in one of my dispatches relative to the
last revolution in France, which might be con.
strued as an interference in question purely
domestic in it's nature; that he added he presumed
it was not my intention to use language capable of
such an interpretation and that he did not specify
the phrases to which he referred. You proceed to
say: 81 assured him you were too well acquainted
with your own duties and with the rights of the
French authorities to mean to call in question,
even by implication, the manner in which those
rights had been obtained, and that would address
this letter to you, and authorize you to read to
| M. de Turgot, and say to him, that in any thing
| which may have been said or done either by your
self or me, at the juncture referred to, nothing was
in contemplation disrespectful to the President of
the French republic, inconsistent with the high
sense we entertain of the friendship of the French
government and people,"
Without knowing what portions of nv dispatches
| may have been communicated to Congress-, am
yet without any information the subject except
what s contained in the imperfect reports of the
newspapers. think may say with confidence,
alter reviewing all that was written by me at
the epoch referred to, that there is nothing in any
of them fairly justly susceptible of the nterpre-
| tation mentioned BY MIR. Sartiges. On the con
| trary, the principle which governed my whole
| conduct on the occasion of the late important
events here was that of an inflexible abstinence
from any interference the side or the other
in the grave conflict which had arisen between tho
constituted authorities of the State, which con-
sdered question essentially domestic in its char
acter, and as such to be legitimately determined
only by the French nation, to whom the President
himself had appealed and that until the decision
ofthat-theonIyright observation-disclosures
the most proper course for the representatives of
| foreign powers to pursue, especially one repre-
senting the Government and people did, was to
remain passive and respectful spectators in the
presence of the sovereignty of the nation DELHI
| Grating upon it's destinies and rights
That there are no expressions in my dispatches
| indicating, not even by implication, natural
sympathy for the cause of liberty and those great
constitutional guarantees for its enjoyment which
| all Americans are taught to reverence, will not
| undertake to affirm. ! should be sorry, indeed
| if that could be said. But then it must be borne
in mind that was writing to my own Govern.
ment; that it was my duty to communicate events
to it as saw them without extenuation or exagpe-
ration; and that the first and indispensable quail
| ty in all such communications is truth, and as
| far as practicable the whole truth. Nor were
the dispatches in question ever expected bv me
to be published, for their sole object was to keen
the Government informed of current eyents here
at moment of peculiar interest If thew have
since obtained publicity, it was by no act of mine.
with the sole authority to Judge of the fitness of
their publication, and who are presumed to have
weighed at the time all the considerations of expe-
diency and propriety belonging to question Of
ten OF great dellcacy. Having been made public,
however, and in the regular and constitutional
intercourse between the CO ordinate departments
of the Government, it becomes question of grave
Importance whether foreign power has right
70 take exception - views and opinions which
minister of the United States, in free and confiden
tial correspondence with his own Government
may express, or be supposed by implication to en-
terrain, respecting occurrences passing under his
observation abroad.
On this point find that in your Justly celebrated
letter to Mr. Hulsemann, answering similar com
plant OF the Austrian government, you used the
following language:
"The Presidents message was communication
made by him to the Senate, transmitting corre
spondence between the Executive Government and
a confidential agent of his own. This would seem
to be itself domestic transaction, mere instance
ate, in the manner which is usual and indispen-
sable in commune atoms between the different
branches of the Government. 1t was not addressed
either to Austria or Hungary; nor was it any pub
lie manifesto to which any foreign State called
on to reply. 1t an account of it's transactions
communicated by the Executive Government to
the Senate, at the request of that body, made pub
lie indeed, but made public only because such is
the common and usual course of proceeding; and
it may be regarded somewhat strange. there
fore, that the Austrian Cabinet did not perceive
that, by the instructions given to Mr.. Hulsemann
1t was itself interfering with the domestic concerns
ground of its complaint against the United States,
In subsequent part Of the letter Of Mr. Hulse-
mann the same principle is again affirmed, and
with yet greater emphasis:
"With respect to the communication of Mr.
Mann instructions to the Senate land the language
in which they are couched, it has already been
said-and Mr.. Hulsemann must feel the justice of
the remark-that there are domestic affairs in re-
ference to which the Government of the United
States cannot admit the slightest responsibility to
the Government of his Imperial Majesty. No State
deserving the appellation of Independent can per-
init the language in which it may instruct its own
officers in the discharge of their duties to itself to
De called IN question, under any pretext, by for
eign power"
The same latitude and immunity claimed for
communications of the Government to its officers
must upon every consideration of Justice and
with perhaps even stronger reason, be extended to
communications addressed to the Government by
is0 oUoao, "uOse expressly enJOlned duty it
is to give full and correct information of all i'm.
portant political events and changes occurring in
the countries where they reside. Though the IAN
guage OF my dispatches relating to the late events
here was unstudied, of them having been
written, as have already said, with a view to
publication, yet have not been able to find on a re-
currence to them, any expressions of mere denun-
citation and lntemperance, any disrespectful or |
offensive phrase towards the President or apy |
functionary of the Government, or any thing, in |
short, which it was not proper for me to say in |
faithful narrative of occurrences addressed to INV
own Government, and which was not justified AZ |
believed, by the truth of facts. This being this |
case, you will readily comprehend that as mater
of selfrespect, we'll from Just regard to the
honor and dignity of my country, l feel an irwin
chile repugnance to offering an explanation and |
apology where am deeply sensible no Just cause
OF exception or complaint exists. The terms of
disavowal embodied in your despatch extend, Ire |
mark, not only to any thing which may have been
said or implied. but to any thing which may have |
been done by me, and might seem therefore to be |
an apology for the course pursued in Temporarily
abstaining from the Presidents receptions az we'll
as for the tenor Of my dispatches. But that part |
OF my conduct have supposed to be already Off |
ciaily approved, and not now liable to be called in
question.
After full and deliberate consideration of the |
subject in all its bearings, have concluded not to
read your despatch to M. de Turgot, nor to saw
any thing to him in relation to circumsta noes now
Dassed ble which ho 1o H.. :.