The record-union., 1896-02-21

| be perfectly understood that the Com
mittee on Foreign Relations had not
been animated in the slightest degree
| by any sense of wrong or injustice
/ done by the Spanish Government to
/ the Government of the United States,
now or heretofore. There was nothing
| in its actions which partook in the
| slightest degree of retaliation. The
| United States had nothing to retaliate
/ TOR. The action of the committee was
! controlled entirely by the consideration
| of what was due to the American Gov
ernment and people under the facts of
the peculiar situation which they held
! to the Government and the people of
/ Cuba The Senate could advance with
absolute confidence to the ground that
the war in Cuba was a public war.
1t was the duty of Spain to make a
i concession in favor of the other bellig-
erents to the effect that the people who
are IN arms against it, by regular en-
listment, are soldiers and should have
the treatment of soldiers. If Spain
should do such thing as that that
! would be recognition by the sover-
/ eign of belligerent rights of those people
who are struggling for their independ-
ence, and from that point of view there
! would be no occasion, certainly no ne
| cesSity, for the Government of the
/ United States or for any other Govern
ment to interfere for the purpose of Sc
curing to the soldiers of the insurgent
| army the advantages of civil wafare.
| spain had not done this: Spain has not
intended to do it; Spain filled the prison
| at Ceuta, Africa, with persons cap
tured from the army of the rebels: she
1llled Moro Castle and Porto Cubano
to repletion with victims from the in
| surgent army; she inflicted on them
| cruel penalties. / would say to Spain:
/ You have long enough laeerated these
people Now they are entitled to bel
| llgerent rights, and we intend. so far
as We are concerned, to give them that
recognition by expressing our opinion
that they are so entitled And when
we have given that recognition we in
tend to be bound by our own laws and
by the international law, the law of the
nations of the earth, to maintain per
fect neutrality between these two bel
ligerents.''
Morgan, continuing, said that if
SPAN took offense where none was in
tended, it was better that the limited
States should incur the risk of that
onense rather than by it's attitude COM
mt an offense against the God of ma
tlons and against the human family
by its silence and weakness in the pres
ence of wrong. He would say to Spain. +.
We are forced to take an attitude
which you have forced upon us. and we
should take that attitude which is be-
| coming great republic and to an hon
est and courageous people, and having
! taken that attitude. if you choose to
emDroil us on an occasion of this kind
we simply can't help it,
In the further course of his remarks
Morgan referred to the Republic of
Cuba as being a Moses in the bull
rushes, and predicted that after
while the world would be blessed by the
presence Of that new republic.
Platt (Rep) of Connecticut asked
Morgan whether he understood that the
passage of the concurrent resolution
without the sanction of the President
amounted to anything. or whether it
amounted to 3 recognition or DefiIg1r-
ency.
Morgan-I think that it does. I do
not deny the delicacy Of that question.
nor do 1 deny the fact that it has never
been settled by a statute of the United
States. That question is a constitu-
tional question, and the rights of Con-
gress and of the President in relation to
1t is found only in the Constitution.
But the proper Interpretation of the rule
is not necessarily to be determined now.
because the form of the pending resolu-
tion is not such as to invoke the ques-
ton. Nevertheless, if it be necessary.
or if the Senate desires to adopt a res
olution either for the recognition of bel
ligerent rights or for the independence
of Cuba, we would necessarily have to
give consideration to the question
whether concurrent vote of the two
houses would be equivalent to a full
vote or not
Hale-Does the Senator have any
doubt that the passage of a resolution
recognizing the independence of that
assumed republic would result immedi-
ately in a suspension of friendly diplo-
matte relations and the withdrawal of
the Spanish Minister, and the possi-
bility of being involved in hostiIities? {?
Does not the Senator think that such a
resolution would be a determinative act
in the direction of probable war?
Morgan-I remarked in the opening of
my speech that that question had
grown upon US. That we had ap-
preached it reluctantly because Of its
magnitude and because of the ultimate
consequences that might follow it. 1
think | may take the liberty of saying
to the Senate what / said to the Com
mittee on Foreign Relations when the
matter came up. Here was that great
mass of petitions and memorials to
which we had to make some answer.
We had either to report them back ad-
versely and ask to be discharged from
the further considera ton of the ques-
tion, or else we had to do something in
the direction of the recognition of bell
ligerent rights of the Cubans. How far
we should go. was, Of course, matter
of after consideration.
PIatt-The question which I wish 10
have answered is whether the passage
OF this resolution by the two houses
without the action of the Executive
amounts to according belligerent rights
to the insurgents or patriots in Cuba?
Morgan-I cannot leave the floor
without answering the questions pro-
pounded by the honorable Senators. 1
said to the Committee on Foreign Rela-
tions, and / repeat it now, that / be-
Iieve Spain would be to-day obliged to
us for giving her a cause for a war in
relation to Cuba
Spain knows just as well as the rest
of the world that the fetters with which
she has bound Cuba since the island
was discovered by Columbus have cor
roded until they are rusting off the
limbs of that people. These shackels
have become disreputable, even in the
contamination of Spain herself But