Lamoille newsdealer. [volume] (Hyde Park, Vt.) 1860-1877, 1871-04-05
senator summers speech on san
Domingo.
The following !, a synopsis Of The 'Pe''

evidence before the senate tua' wy
If t,e United States, acting under orders
from Washington. has been engaged IA
measures Of violence and OF beilige'an'
intervention. being rar without the aH-
thori,y Of Congress. The whole business
/. aggravated when it is considered that
the declared object Of this violence Is the
acquisition Of foreign territory that being
half an island in the Caribbean sea aud
still further. this violence has been en-
ployed to prop aud maintain a weak rul-
er, himself an usuper, unfolding him IN
power that he might sell his country and
secondly. it has been employed to menace
the black republic of Hayii. Such. Sen
ator Sumner says, has been DONE
and the Republican party cannot afford to
become responsible for such conduct. But
beyond all these considerations is the ques-
ton, not whether the acquisition OF San-
Domingo is desirable, but whether we are
justified in the means employed to accom-
plish this acquisition and the evidence
now before the, United States shows too
clearly that means have been employed
which cannot be justified. Senator SUM
ner then enters into legal arguments, and
cites precdents to show that a contract Tor
the cession Of territory must be without
the presence Of superior force, and alludes
TO the fact that recent returns OF the
navy department show the whole island
beleagured by our navy sailing from port
port, and hugging the land with its guns /;
and unless the reports Of the state and
navy departments are discredied, it Is
obvious beyond doubt that our govern
ment has usurptd the war powers care
fully guarded by the constitution, and
without authority of Congress employed
them to trample on the independence and
equal rights of two nations co-cqual with
ours. The senator then characterized Ba-
ez and Grant as co.partners in the melan'
choly affairs and carefully reviewath the his
tory of the former and his unscrupulous
usurpatiou; rccites the origin of the SCENE
for anexing half the island, reviewing al
great length the circumstances under
which the Babcock treaty was negotiated
and condemning in the severest terms the
part which President Baez had taken il
the transaction for the sale of his country
Mr.. Sumner then repeated the allegation
in his former speech, that Baez was main
tanned in power by our navy, to enable
HIM to carry on the contract with Bah
cock aud presented voluminous documen
tary and official evidence to sustain them
After giving the testimony establishing
beyond question the two proposltsons, -
first, that Baez was maintained in powe
by our navy out the sale of his country
and secondly, that further to assure thi
sale the neighboring republic of Hayt
was violently being meDaced, all this be
ing in breach of public law intcrnationa
and constitutional. Mr.. Sumner proceed
to show that this conduct is very gros
5 violation Of the internal civil law and con
| stitution of the United States, and cite
voluminous authority to prove the promls
: made by the President to employ the wa
e powers without authority of Congress wa
void, and the very employment Of thes
war powers in pursuance Of this assumI
ton, was an usupation, and that til
I assumption in the San Domingo treaty
s. exceptional and abnormal, being absolut,
c ly without precedent But, continued NJ
r Sumner, even admitting some remote, il
y finitessimal sembance of excuse or apol
c gy during the pending of the treaty, all
u which is absurd beyond question, thong
n not entirely impossible in quarter uuusc
70 to constitutional questions, aud hcedil
i them little; conceding that "assumsit
M inserted in the treaty by the Secretary
e State has deceived the President into Il
y idea that he possessed the kingly perog
! of declaring war at his own mere MOTTO
u and wishing to deal most gently, ev,
. with an undoubted usurpation and exc
u else Of kingly perogative, so long as L
vi Secretary Of State, the sworn COUNSEL
= of the President supplied the formula f
v the usurpation--and you will bear witne
a that / have done nothing but state the ca
u" 1T is hard to hold back when the sal
= usurpation is openly prolonged after t
u. Senate has rejected the treaty on viii
Vi the exercise of the .kingly perogative W
~ founded; and when the '.assumpsit' q
10 vised by the Secretary of State had pass
>" into limbo of things lost on earth. The
'e is 20 remote infnitesimal resemblance
20 excuse, or apology; nothing, absolute
" nothing; the usurpation pivots on nc
., entity, always excepting the kingy will
vel Tho pros;aon, uh;oh oon..;..,,;o.,,, :.