Huntsville gazette., 1892-01-30
MESSAGE To CONGRESS
The President Sends the Promised
Chill Communication.
Tho Message Promptly Referred to the
Committee on Foreign Affairs of the
House and Taken Under Inn
mediate Consideration.

mediate Consideration.
WASHINGTON. Jan. 25.-The follow
ing is President Harrison's message on
the Chilian situation sent to congress
to-day:
TIvEs-ln my annual message. delivered to con-
gress at the beginning of the present session.
after brief statement of the facts then in the
possession of the government touching the as
sault in the streets of Valparaiso, Chill upon
the sailors Of the United States steamship Balti-
more on the evening of the 10th of October
last, said: This government is now awaiting
the result of an investigation which has
been conducted by the criminal court at
Valparaiso. 1t is reported unofficially that the
invesagaslon t rs Is about completed, and it is ex-
Gated to this government, together with some
adequate and satisfactory response, to the
note by which the attention of Chill was called
to this incident. If these expectations should
be disappointed or further needless delay in
tervene, will, by special message, bring this
matter again to the attention Of congress for
such action as may be necessary"
In my opinion the time has now come when I
should lay before the congress and the country
the correspondence between this government
and the government of Chill, from the time Of
the breaking out of the revolution against Bal
maceda together will all other facts in the pos
session of the executive department relating to
bu1S uldttST. 1ue QlplOndLlc correspondence IS
herewith transmitted, together with some cor
respondence between the naval officers for the
time in command in Chilian waters and the sec
retary of the navy, and also the evidence taken
at the Mare Island navy yard since the ar
rival of the Baltimore at San Francisco. do
not deem it necessary in this communication to
attempt any full analysis of the correspondence
or of the evidence brief restatement of the in
| ternational questions involved, and of the rea-
| sons why the responses of the Chilian govern
ment are unsatisfactory, is all that 1 deem
| 1t may be well, at the outset to say that,
| whatever may have been said in this country or
| in Chill in criticism of Mr.. Egan, our minister
at Santiago, the true history of this exciting
period in Chilian affairs, from the outbreak of
the revolution until this time, discloses no act
| on the part of Mr.. Egan unworthy of his posi-
tion or that could Justly be the occasion of seri
Gus animadverson or criticism. He has
think. borne himself, in very trying circum-
| stances, with dignity discretion and courage,
! and has conducted the correspondence with
ability. courtesy and fairness.
1t is worth while, also, at the beginning to say
that the right of Mr.. Egan to give shelter in the
| legation to certain adherents of the Balmaccda
| government who applied to him for asylum has
not been denied by the Chilian authorities, nor
| these refugees. That there was urgent need of
asylum is shown by Mr.. Egan's note of August
a. 1891. describing the disorders that prevailed
IN Santiago, and by the evidence of Capt. Schley
| as to the pillage and violence that prevailed
| at Valparaiso The correspondence dis
, closes, however, that the request of Mr..
W
| in behalf Of these refugees was denied The
| precedents cited by him in the correspondence,
particularly the case of the revolution in Peru
in 1865, did not leave the Chilian government in
position to deny the right for asylum to polit-
| ical refugees, and seemed very clearly to sup
port Mr.. Egan's contention that safe conduct
| to neutral territory was necessary and ac-
| knowledged incident of the asylum. These ref
ugees have very recently without formal safe
conduct but by the acquiescence Of the Chilian
| authorities, been placed on board the Yorktown,
and are now being conveyed to Callao, Peru.
This incident might be considered wholly
closed, but for the disrespect manifested toward
| this government by the close and offensive po-
| lice surveillance of the legation premises which
| was maintained during most of the period of
the stay of the refugees therein. After the
date of my annual message, and up to the time
of the transfer of the refugees to the York
! town, the legation premises seem to have been
surrounded by police in uniform, and police
| agents detectives, in citizens dress, who o..
fensively scrutinized persons entering or leav-
| ing the legation, and, on one or more occa-
| sions, arrested members of the minister s
| family. Commander Evans, who by my direc-
ton, recently visited Mr.. Egan at Santiago, in
| his telegram to the navy department, described
the legation as, "a veritable prison." and states
his arrival, withdrawn during his stay. 1t ap-
| pears further, from the note OF Mr.. Egan of
| November 20, 1891 that on one occasion, at
least, those police agents, whom ne declares to
| be known to him, invaded the legation premises,
| pounding upon its windows and using insulting
and threatening language towards persons
| therein.
| This breach of the right of minister to free
dom from police espionage and restraint seems to
| have been so fragrant that the Argentine minis
| ter, who was dean OF the diplomatic corps hav-
| ing observed it, felt oalled upon to protest
against It to the Chilian minister of foreign af
| fairs. The Chilian authorities have, will be
| observed from the correspondence, charged the
refugees and the inmates of the legation with
insulting the police; but it seems to Inc incred-
liable that men whose lives were in jeopardy and
whose safety could only be secured by retire
ment and quietness, should have sought to pro-
woke collision which could only end IN their
destruction, or to aggravate their condition by
intensifying popular feeling that, at one time,
SO threatened the legation as to require Mr.
Egan to appeal to the minister OF foreign affairs.
But tine most serious incident disclosed by the
| correspondence is that of the attack upon the
| sailors of the Baltimore in the streets of Val
| paraiso on the 18th of October last. In my an
nual message, speaking upon the information
then in my possession, l said: so far as
have yet been able to learn, no other
explanation sae,sd Of san ns thef Ga9dy it w9ra had It's
origin in hostility to these sailors Of the
United States, wearing the uniform of their
government. and not in any individual act or
| from the Chilian government an abstract OF the
conclusions of the fiscal general upon the testi-
mony taken by the Judge OF crimes IN an in
vestigation which was made to extend over
nearly three months. | very. much regret to
be compelled to say that this report does
not enable me to modify the conclu-
| sion aQQOu0C6U III Iuy dllhuol AnoSSoSS-
| I am still of the opinion that our
sailors were assaulted, beaten, stabbed and
killed not for anything they or any one OF
| them had done, but for what the government OF
| the United States had DONE or was charged
with having done, by its civil officers and naval
| commanders. If that be the true aspect of the
case the injury was to the government OF the
| United States, not to those poor sailors VINO
| were assaulted in manner so brutal and so
| cowardly.
| Before attempting to give an outline OF the
| facts upon which this conclusion rests, l
think it right to say word or two
upon the legal aspect of the case:
The Baltimore was in the harbor of
| Valparaiso by virtue Of that general invitation
which nations are held to extend to the war
| vessels of other powers with which they have
| friendly relations. This invitation, ! THINK,
must be held ordinarily to embrace the prlvl-
| lege of such communication with the shore as Is
| reasonable necessary and proper for the com :
| fort and convenience of the officers ana men OF
such vessels Capt. Schley testifies that when
his vessel returned to Valparaiso, on September
IA the city officers, as is customary, EXTENDED
the hospitalties of the city to his officers ana
crew.
1t is not claimed that every personal coii1slon
or injury IN which sailor or officer OF sucn ma
| val vessel visiting the shore may be involved
raises an international question: but am clear
| ly of the opinion that where such sailors or ON
| GERS are assaulted by resident populace am
mated by hostility TO the government wnoss
roifor-a thase sailors and Officers wear, ana "