Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1872-02-16
TEsE TRE.rTI'O or sy.sSEEs.TGT O.T.


REMARKS or SENATOR EDMUNDS.
In the Senate Feb. 9Th, Mr.. Edmunds, in
offering his resolution asking for any infor-
nation in the Presidents possession re-
spccting "the alleged intention Of the gov
eminent of Great Britain to revoke the
treaty Of Washington" spoke as follows:
Nobody feels more deeply than the val
ne Of peace between the two governments.
This treaty, which we are told is under dis
cussion with a view TO its revocation, was
the product. 50 far as we are concerned, ol
desire for peace. Every word shows That
the people of the United States had given
up what they considered to be valuable
rights and privileges in the interest of arb
itration between nations for the settlement
of their disputes. 1t is stated that the
ground of this proposal to repudate is the
claim for consequential damages for the
acts of the British cruisers, called the Ala
hama claims. are not claims which the
treaty will fairly embrace, one of the very
questions which you might suppose would
be proper for the tribunal to try. But now
let us see whether this pretension is well
founded. l hold in my hand this ca .
which has been made the subject of this
complaint. 1t commences with a refer
cnceto the negotiations and protocols which
took place in the founding Of this commits
sion out of which the treaty grew, and con-
tains copiOus extracts from the daily pro-
ccedingS of the commissioners on the one
side, and on the other, which 90 by the
name of the protocol. In that / find quot
ed from the protocol. which is also i'm print
and believe, published, the following:
sat tle Conference held on the sth Of March, the
american Commissioners stated that the people ard
the Government Of the United States felt that they
had sustained great wrong that great loesos and
injures inflicted upon their and their
material interests by the and conduct Of Grcf
Britain during the recent rebellion in the United
that hn1 dat,
her colonies during that period had given rise to feel
ngs in the United States which the people Of the Uni
ted States did not desire to cherish toward GrCG. Brit
ain; THAT is to say, feelings OF resentment -icclurs
that we had been struck by our mother when were
in distress That the history Of the Alabama, and
other cruisers which had been fitted out armed,
equipped or which had received augmentation Of
force in Great Britain or in her colonies, and of the
operations Of these vessels showed extensive direct
losses in the capture and destruction Of large num-
Der Of vessels with their cargoes; and in the heavy
national expenditures in the pursuit of the cruisers
and indirect injury in the transfer Of large part Of
the American commercial marine to the British flag
in the enhanced payments Of insurance. in the pro
lOngation Of the war, and in the addition of large
sum TO the cost OF the war and the suppression Of the
rebellion; ard also showed that Great Britain by rea
son OF failure in the proper observance Of her duties
as a neutral had become justly liable for the acts Of
the cruisers and Of their tcnders that the claims fer
the loss and destruction Of private property which
had been thus far presented amounted to abont sl4
U00 900 without interest, which amount liable to
be increased greatly by claims which had not been
been put in the pursuit Of cruisers could easily be as
certlined by certificates Of Government accounting
onicers that in the hope Of an amicabe settlement
no estimate made of the indirect losses without
prejudice however to the right OF indemnihcaon in
their account, in the event Of NO settlement being
made
Here, then, you have from the official
record of the proceedings of the Commits
sion, preliminary to the conclusion of this
treaty, a complete and fair statement of
the United States, coupled with estimates
as far a they could be made, and an excuse
for not furnishing the estimates as far rs
they could not be made, provided treaty
could be concluded which should settle the
disputes and square the accounts between
the United States and Her Maiesty's Gov
eminent. Instead of concluding such a
treaty, which would settle the controversy
and make an end of It, it ended the old
controversy in the form in which ii stood.
and opened a new one in the form Of a civ
il litigation in the form of arbitration, con-
sisting of persons mutually to be chosen,
so that the right which we reserved with
out prejudice for their indemnifcation, un-
less we could agree then and there, was ex-
Dressly reserved. 1t is stated also, beyond
This plain protocol in the treaty itself
which is, perhaps, the best evidence OF
what the parties intended to submit, viZ
and IL was as well known perhaps to the
British nation, possibly better known &c
the whole English nation than any Other
discussion on any other public subject it
perhaps including the Revolution. That Is
not ali, One of the statesmen Of Great Bri
tain-Mr. CObdcn-in informing Parliu
ment what responsibilities they were a.
Stunning in permitting these cruisers to es
cape, used this language in 1864. Here
Mr.. Edmunds cited in IIansard, vol. ;
page l72 where Mr. Golden sets forth thu
nature and extent Of the damage to on
commerce by rebel cruisers, directly anC
indirectly, in reply to an argument of tn,
Attorney General that the British law as i
stood was effective for preventing a brea cl
of neutrality.l The book, Mr.. Edmund
continued, from which | have read NJ r
Cobden's words, is book which was pub
lished with view to public Information
preceding this very treaty. 1t is the very
valuable book OF Mr.. BEAMS, which wa
printed in the winter of ls70-7l, and cover
The statement of this whole case, In thi
book of his he again sets forth in the strong
est language, not only the actual damage T.
orr vessels as ground Of claim, but ais
all the indirect, as they are sometimes cal
led, but more properly the direct, natura
and consequent damages growing out o
these acts, and he states them much in Tn
way that Mr.. Golden does, only perhaps II
a more summary and concise manner.
shall read only one clause of this, becaus
I am asking the indulgence of the Sen
ate to make these remarks:
'.The escape of, and burning by the Florida, Ais
bama and other vessels greatly Increased the hope
and expectations Of the insurgents, and on that aC
count the contest was very much prolonged. rha
contest cost the United States - 600 OOOO0O Let an