Litchfield enquirer., 1870-12-29
The President ana MT. Sumner

The debate on the San Domingo oom- mission in the Senate, last week. brought out into full view the personal i'll feeling which has been growing up between the President and Mr. Sumner for year past. It seems that when the treaty for the an. nexation of San Domingo came before the Senate, the President called on Mr. Sum- ner. Chairman of the Committee on For eign Relations, to which it had been re. ferred. to urge It's ratification. He went away with the impression that MT. Snm' ner was favorable to the treaty, and was greatly astonished to find him afterwards leading his committee and the Senate in op- position to it's ratification The debate in executive session on that treaty was of course secret; but the secrets of the whole Senate are not very we'll kept; and it is in- timated that Mir. Sumner spoke very harshly of tue Presidents course regard ing the treaty. Mere opposition the Pres ident would easily have forgiven. but there were intimations of robbery. and chargeaof naval interference. which must have been extremely annoying.
 The removaA of MT. Motley. Summers personal friend, on one side, and an nn-
 .: aoa..>:-A.--~--f--Ai s-=>. ~sss1Uuts s course regarding San Domingo. on the other, widened the breach of the last ses sion. On Wednesday last, matters came to an open issue in the Senate. Joint res. olutions had been offered for the appoint ment of commission to examine matters at San Domingo, and report regarding the soil, climate, and resources of the coun- try. the feeling of its people regarding an- nexation, ,and to procure other information bearing upon the expediency of that meas ure. Tn opposition to this resolution, MT. Sumner spoke with great bitterness. de- nounced the Baez administration as ''po. htical jockeys" and the ''protoco" nego- tiated by Gen. Babcock on behalf of the President as bargain out of which Baez and his coadiutors. at least, were to reap pecuniary advantage. He charged also that Baez was justly unpopular with the people of San Domingo, who, he believed, were generally opposed to annexation, and that he was: only retained in his posi- tion by the presence of our Aeet-in short, only a sham president. with whom only sham arrangement could be effect. ed. MT. Sumner furthermore accused the President, in effect. of personal hostility to himself. and of suggesting his removal from the chairmanship of the committee on Foreign relations.
 In reply, MT. Morton sustained the course of the President throughout, and advocated the annexation of San Domin. go. He denied tue charges against Baez, and maintained that the Dominicans of all factions were anxious for annexation. Messrs. Edmunds of Vermont, Conkling of New York. and other Republicans, defend e1 the President, charged Mir. Sumner with making most uncalled for attack up- on him and demanded his removal from the chairmanship of the committee on Foreign Relations. The latter disavowed all imputation on the Presidents honesty. but retracted nothing further. The de- bate continued through the whole of We'd nesday night. and at its close the resolu- tions were passed by large majority, most of the Republicans who oppose an- nexation being willing that commission should be sent out to enquire into the facts
 While it is our belief that large ma iority throughout the country will agree with Mr. Summon. in opposing the annex. ation of San Domingo, every one must le. gret the bitterly personal folm Lis oppo. sition has taken. All his attempts to pic- ture the President as another Andrew Johnson are doomed to failure. On the other hand, all iutrigaes to remove Mr. sumner from the position he has earned in the Senate, and all bekeading of officials because they are personal friends of his. are deserving of equal reproduction. LET US HAVE PEACE ?