The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1896-03-13
HILL KEEPING COOL HEADED.
HE OPPOSES THE CONFERENCE RE-
PORT on CUBA.

states to Be Prepared TO Intervene.
The Senator Looks Upon the ResO-
IutiOn as Too Much Like "A Threat
and as Unnecessary and UnVvise.
Washington, March 12.-The conference
report on the Cuban belligerency resolu-
tions was again up in the Senate to-day
and two speeches were made upon it. The
first was by Mr. Hill, announcing his
purpose Of voting against the conference
report, and stating the reasons which in
duced him to take that position, after
having voted for the resolution that passed
the Senate. His opposition was to the
third clause of the conference report,
which proclaims the purpose of the Unit
ed States to be prepared to intervene in
order to protect the legitimate interests
OF the United States. He opposed that
resolution as being liable to misinterpre-
tation, and as being unnecessary, and,
therefore, unwise. He thought it was too
much like a threat; too much like bun
combe, and that it was putting interven-
tion on too low ground. He could not
vote for it, and as a conference report is
not amendable, he would have to vote
against the report.
The action of the committee on foreign
relations and of the Senate conference
was defended by Mr.. Sherman, and then
the matter went over till tomorrow, Mr..
Morgan having the floor. 1t was subse-
quently stated that Mr. Sherman would
ask unanimous consent tomorrow to take
up the conference report, displacing tenn
porarily the Delaware election case, and
that if objection were made, he would
move to take it up, so that the matter
would be decided by majority vote.
After a speech by Mr.. Pritchard, rep,
OF North Carolina, in support of Mr. Du-
| points claim to a seat in the Senate from
| the state of Delaware, number of bills
were taken from the calendar and passed,
| and the Senate, at $3.50 o'clock, adjourned.
At the opening of the session the House
| joint resolution for the adjustment OF GER
tain claims Of the United States against
| the state OF Tennessee and OF certain
| claims of Tennessee against the United
| States was, at the request of Mr.. Harris
| of Tennessee, taken from the calendar
| and passed. The claims and counter
claims arise out Of railroads seized and
| used by the United States during the
war between the states
! The debate on the Cuban resolutions be-
/ gan at l o'clock, and Mr.. Hill took the
! floor. He stated, in the outset, that he
| should vote against concurrence in the
| report of the conference committee, and
| his remarks were intended as an eXpla-
! nation of his vote more than an elaborate
| argument on the question involved. He
| wished TO call attention to the parlia-
| mentary situation of the conference re-
| port. 1t had to be accepted in its entirety
| or be rejected. 1t could not be amended
1t could not be changed. He objected to
| the third resolution, and he read ii, with
| criticisms upon its language. 1t declares
| that the United States had not intervened
in the struggles between any European
| government and their colonies on this
| continent. What, he asked, did that word
'1nterVened" mean. If il meant that the
United States had not recognized those
| colonies as belligerents, it was not true.
The United States had recognized them
| as belligerentS. 1t had done more than
that. 1t had recognized their independ-
| ence. Something more, therefore, Mr..
| Hill said, must be meant by Intervention
! IN the House resolution. 1t was not in the
! SenateS resolution. The Senate cOnferees
| had abandoned the two Senate resolutions.
Without the firing of a gun, with little
| consultation, the Senate conferees sur
/ rendered to the House,"
Evidently the word 'lntervened" meant
something more If it had any legitimate
| meaning at an, it meant that the United
| states was to take part in the struggle
| between Spain and Cuba. An unnecessary
! resolution was an unwise one and this
/ thlrd resolution was an unnecessary one.
| III was subject to double construction. 1t
! was hable to misinterpretation and il
SSuopted II would produce mischief in the
tuture. All the Senate had intended to do
IN It's resolution-for which he had voted
| was TO declare two points: First, that
| state of war exists between Spain and
| Cuba, which warrants the recognition of
| the insurgents as belligerents; and sec
| ond, that the kind offices of the United
| oAdltS government SQ0uId be extended to
the end OF securing Cuban independence.
Mr. Hill added, with strong emphasis:
| we could not have gone further We
! ought not to have gone further. This res
| olutiOn is liable to complicate us What
! was meant by this term intervened?' The
| resolution sounds too much like a threat
too much like buncombe But it. means
| more than that; and that is the reason
| why it is mischieVous. Let us be frank
| with ourselves. Let us be frank with
| Spain. Let US be frank with Cuba. Let
us not deceive either party to this con-
| troversy.''
Going on to criticise the third resolu-
ton, Mr.. Hill came to the clause which
declares that the government of the United
States should be prepared to protect the
| legitimate interests of our citizens by
| intervention, II necessary. And he asked ::
What does that mean? If it means that
| we should increase our navy and our
army, let it proceed by bill, duly intro
| duced and passed, and to which the
! President of the United States shall be-
! come party. Let us proceed to pre-
pare, not by threatening preparation, not
by IDLE boasts OF preparation, but by
| bills. Let us raise the necessary revenue.
! Let US prove, in the forms of law what
| we are going to do to prepare for war
There is hardly any necessity, / think,
| for the declaration about protecting the
legitimate interests Of the United States.
! What interests? Not their lives Not
! their safety. Not their comfort Why are
| we TO interfere? Not on the score of hui
| manity. The resolution does not put our
| intervention on any such high ground
| Not for the purpose of stopping blood
| she'd Not for liberty's sake. Not because
we want to help along free institutions.
| No. No such words are uttered. This
! House resolution says: The United
| States should be prepared to protect the
| legitimate interests of our citizens
MIR. Hill repeated this phrase with in
tense seorn; and he added: This is plac-
ing our proposed action on very low
! ground. If there must be Intervention let
| it be placed on some higher ground than
! the mere losses to some of the business
| interests of the country. Let it be put
| upon the broad ground of stopping blood
| shed Let it be put upon the broad
| ground of doing something for people
| struggling to be free Let 1t be put upon
the ground of our sympathy with the es-
| tabhshment of republics. But do not put
it on the low ground that we are losing a
| few dollars by this contest between Spain
| and Cuba"
Mr. Hill read a telegram which he had
received from merchant in New York
city to the effect that the present atti-
| tude Of the United States toward Cuba
| is seriously affecting the commerce of
| New York; and that the Spanish mer-
chants were boycottng American pro-
! ducts in consequence of the congressional
/ action. and were cancelling all orders