The San Francisco call., 1896-03-18

morrow.
At P. NJ. the Cuban resolutions were
taken up and Morgan CD of Alabama
continued his speech in support of them.
Morgan began by speaking of the super
sensitiveness of Spain because she felt the
sand slipping from under her feet while
s'the gem of the Antilles was passing out
of her grasp" He sent to the clerks desk
and had read what he called the Spanish
Minister'S 'diatribe against the Senate
and Senator's" He spoke of Senor de
Lone as IA supercilious foreign Minister"
and said that it was high time for the
House and the Senate TO close their doors
against such attempts to influence them.
Morgan spoke of the censorship OF the
cable between Cuba and America by the
Spanish authorities, and said that, so far
as the mails were concerned, he had been
informed yesterday by a Catholic priest,
who knew perfectly well both Spain and /
Cuba, that the mails between Cuba and
the United States were constantly opened
and their contents examined. He charac-
terized Senor de Lome's statement to the
press as "a fragrant abuse of privilege"
1t was certainly time he added, that the
diplomatic affairs of the United States
were withdrawn from public tinkering and
tampering. If the Senate was to be con-
tinually kept in "uproar and confusion by
kilograms coming from the Premier of
Spain to some newspaper editor in the
United States to be read in the Senate as
authoritative statements, the State De-
partment might as well be abolished, leav-
ing the people to rely on those men who
had acquired emlnence in newspaperdom
for the purpose of gaining knowledge of
what is transpiring in foreign countries"
Morgan then discussed the point of the
constitutional guarantee against Senators
or Representatives being held to account
for words spoken in debate. He might, in
his place in the Senate, calumniate any
citizen of the United States having some
connection with public affairs without be-
ing accountable for libel.
Gray Cd of Delaware asked Morgan
whether the citizen in question would not
have the same freedom of speech?
Morgan admitted that he would, but it
turned out in this case, he said, that the
Minister from Spain was not citizen of
the United States. He was entirely pro-
tected by the law of nations against any
proceeding to hold him accountable for
libel. either criminslly or civilly. There
was where the rub came in which sealed a
Minister'S lips.
Morgan read the historical incident of
the interview between Jefferson and the
French Minister, Sevet, and exclaimed
passionately: Would to God that we
had somebody here now who had just
conception of the constitutional rights of
the different parts of this Governmentr'
81 have not asked" he continued, ''for
the dismissal of this Minister. Let him
stay if he wants to, but l have right to
claim the protection of the constitution of
my country against any assault that may
be made upon my votes or speeches. /
have perfect indifference to what Senor
de LONE may say, but am not going to
subordinate myself quietly to any man IN
the world, but m ore especially to a foreign
Minister whose country is now being made
a subject of serious examination in the
councils of the Senate"
Hale (R.) of Maine called attention to
the fact that the chairman of the Commit
tee on Foreign Relations (Sherman) did
not share in Morgan's opinion as to the
Spanish Minister'S statement. and read an
extract from Sherman's last speech in the
Senate to the effect that De LONE had
perfect right to defend his Government
and people anywhere.
Morgan said he had not proposed to
notice that position of Sherman, but row
that it had been brought forward he would
say that he did not agree with Sherman on
that subject. He would now place against
Mr.. de Lome's statement that of Mr..
Quesada, the representative of the Cuban
republic to Washington, who sent the
case in behalf of Cuba to the Department
of State, which statement the Secretary of
State sent to the Committee on Foreign
Relations.
strip Mr.. de Lome," said Morgan, 'of
his royal commission and put him on his
Spanish blood on his Spanish character
and his history (of which l know nothing).
Then bring Mr.. Quesada here on his his
tory and Spanish blood and character (of
which know nothing) and confront them
as they are confronted through the news
papers, and let them both speak"
Morgan sent to the clerk s desk and had
read Quesada's letter to a Washington
paper describing several horrible atroci.
ties alleged to have been perpetrated in
Cuba during the last rebellion, in which
General Weyler is represented as having
had ladies stripped naked, whipped and
given up to the lust of his troops.
The reading was interrupted by Chand-
Ter (R.) of New Hampshire on the ground
that the statements were too indecent for
public rehearsal but Hale insisted that the
reading should be proceeded with in order
to show how utterly unworthy of credit
the statements were.
Then Morgan had sent to the clerk s
desk and read story from the New York
1ribune-high authority, he said. on ac-
count of its anti-Cu5an sentiment-as to
the execution of seven students in
Havana in 1878 on suspicion of having
desecrated the grave of Spanish general
in the cemetery.
Hale inquired what name was signed to
the article, and was told that th ere was no
name signed to it. He said that he
thought that some authority should be
given for such statements.
Morgan disagreed with him on that
point. 1t was like statement in any pub
lie history. The Tribune was the historian
in the case. 1t selected extracts with the