Wichita eagle., 1888-08-26
BLAINE AT LEWISTON.
The Presidents Message Denounced as
Purely Political Docu-
ment,

!
ment.
| LEWISTON, Me-, Aug. 25.-The second
public address of Mr., Blaine on the polit-
ical issue of the campaign was delivered
| il City hall at Lewiston tonight. Hon.
| John A. Kasson, of Iowa, and Hon. Mel
| son Dingley jr., of Maine, also addressed
the Assem- blage, which was the largest
ever known in this section Of Maine. Mr.
Blaine also spokd with precision and vigor
ond was enthusiastically received. In the
course of the speech Mr.. Blaine said:
II did not happen to have an opportu-
nifty Of reading the full text OF President
Cleveland's message on the fisheries sub
iect until this morning, and with all due
respect to the chief executive OF the
nation / must say that considering
all the circumstances, it is the most extra
ordinary document that was ever sent out
from the white house to the capitol. Here
are the main facts of the issue between
Canada and the United States, perhaps to
speak more exactly, between Great Brit
ain and the United States, in respect to
the fisheries. 1t was our belief and still is.
that after articles of the treaty. Of Wash
ington relative to the fisheries had eX-
pired, the Canadian government behaved
in an unneighborly, unseemly and unjust
manner toward our fishermen in denying
them the rights which they had enjoyed
by long prescription. In order to bring
the government of the dominion
to just appreciation of the subject, con-
gress authorized the president in spring
of 1887. to adopt at his discretion policy
OF suitable retaliation, directing among
other things that whenever and SO long
as American vessels were deprived of COM
mercial privileges in the parts of Canada,
Canadian vessels should be deprived of
like privileges in the ports Of the United
States. This if / may indulge in appro
pirate slang, was genuine TIT
for-tat policy, in which the pun
ishment was admirably fitted to
the crime. President Cleveland declined
to enforce the policy and allowed outrage
after outrage upon our fishing vessels to
go unredressed. He was bend upon some
form OF negotiation with England, even
against the express wish and Will of the
United States senate, and IN defiance or
the treaty making power, which the constl-
tuition assigns to the senate. The flnahty,
without the consent of the senate and
against its protest, the presl
dent organized q commission to frame
treaty that should settle all points of dis
pute. He TINS gave what was meyer in
tended by the constitutions par
tlsan side to an international dis
cussion. 1t was never designed by
founders of our government that inter |
course with foreign nations should be con- |
Quoted by Republicans or by Democrats or
by Wings or by Federalists. 1t should only |
be by the nation as a whole. Why should |
Of the United States, that annu- |
ally transport so, 900, 900 of Canadian goods |
in transit, be deprived of their business |
and endure large loss on account of sud |
den whim of the president? Why should |
the transit SIom Detroit to Buffalo and |
r. y l.
dian lines of rail be suspended when 1t has |
90 relation whatever to the fishery
question? Why should the large traffic
between Quebec and Montreal on the
one hand and Portland on the other hand
by which Portland becomes the winter
port of Canada, be summarily stopped at
he caprice of the president, because his
;hagrin over the course of an independent,
out as be considers, refractory senate. 1t
s the design of the president to make the
ishng question excuse, by embarrassing
commercial relations and commercial eX
change along 5000 miles Of frontier
ind to infict upon American
needless, vexa
ious and perilous confusion Of
rade. If congress will give him the
nactments which he asks he will give
hem retaliation until they cry "hold,
and will allow him to settle the
ishery question in the precise manner
which the senate now contemporary re
ects, or after all, fellow citizens, is not the
residents position, a merely political
levice to divert the attention of American
people from his free trade message and
rom the Mills tariff bill. Are not permits
or bravado to be issued by political
gents of the administration, marked on
he back "Good till after the first Tuesday
f November p We have our partisan
ifferences at home, and settle them on
ur own soil in our own way, bnt towards
Il foreign powers on the globe we should
resent one united, indivisible American
epublic. But this was not done.
he treaty was launched as
Democratic partisan measure, rather
han a patriotic American measure and {
he London papers have been following ,
heir usual vocation of eulogizing the
and abusing the Republicans
18th greatly increased vituperation against
he Republican party ever since it was
)und that the senate was bent on main ,
aiming the national dignity. 1t is :
apparent from the text
f the constitution itself that ,
ne wise men who framed it intended that
ne ordinary legislative power should be
to the majority, however small, /.
ut that no treaty could be framed with ,
ut the overwhelming support Of public !
pinion.