The Saint Paul globe., 1897-06-18
M'KINLEYS MESSAGE, ALSO
TOGETHER WITH THE LETTER or,
SECRETARY SIBERIAN TO THE
PRESIDENT.
NEGOTIATIONS ON A NEW BASIS.
Head of the State Department. Calls
Pointed Attention to the Fact in
Questieft. b.

sage or President Mckinley and a LET
ter from Secretary Sherman to the
president on the subject. Mr.. Sher-
mans letter is as follows:
The undersigned, secretary of state has the
honor to lay before the president for submis1
sion TO the senate, should it be deemed for
tne PUBIC interest to do so, a treaty signed
IN the city of Washington on the 18th inst
by the undersigned, and by the duly empow
ered representatives Of the republic of Ha-
wall whereby the islands constituting the
Salu republic OF Hawaii, and all their deDen-
dencies, are fully and absolutely ceded to the
United States Of America forever. 1t does not
seem necessary to the present purpose of the
undersigned to review the incident of 1893,
when similar treaty of cession was signed
on Feb. IA and submitted to the senate be-
Ing subsequently withdrawn by the president
on the 9Th Of March following. The nego-
tiat1on which has eliminated in the treaty
now submitted has not been a mere resump-
tion OF the negotiation OF 1898, but was in
itiated and has been conducted upon indie
pendent lines.
Then an abrupt revolutionary movement
had brought about the dethronement Of the
late queen, and set up, instead of the here
tofore titulary monarchy, provisional gov
ernment for the control and management of
the public affairs and the protection of the
public peace, such government to exist only
until terms of union with the United States
should have been negotiated and agreed upon
Thus seE-constituted, its promoters claimed
purpose of annexation in which it took rise
should be accomplished. AS time passed and
the plan Of union with the United States be-
came an uncertain contingency, the orgagni-
cation of the Hawaiian commonwealth under
went necessary changes; the temporary char
acter Of its first government gave place to a
permanent scheme under a r. constitution
framed by the representatives of the electors
of the island, administered by an executive
council not chosen by suffrage, but sef-ap-
pointed, was succeeded by an elective and
parliamentary regime, and the ability Aof the
new government to hold-as the Republic of
Hawaiian Independent place In the family
of sovereign states, preserving order at home
and fulfilling international obligations
abroad, has been put to the proof
Recognized by the powers of the earth
sending and receiving ENJOYS, enforcing re-
spect for the law and maintaining p eace
within it's island borders, Hawaii sends to the
United States, not commission representing
a successful revolution but the accredited
plenipotentiary of constituted and firmly es-
tablished sovereign state. However, sufficient
may have been the authority of the commits
sioners with whom the United States gov
ernment treated in 1898, and however satisfied
the president may then have been of their
power to offer the domain of the Hawaiian
Islands to the United States, the fact remains
that that they then rendered was
a territory rather than an estab-
lished government, country whose
administration had been cast down by
a bloodless but complete revolution, and a
C immunity in a state of political transition.
Now, however, the Republic of Hawaii ap-
proaches the United States as an equal and
points for its authority to that provision of
article % Of the constitution promulgated July
"a, 1894.
The president with the approval Of the
cabinet, is hereby expressly authorized and
empowered to make treaty Of political or
commercial union between the Republic of
Hawaii and the United States of America
subject to the ratification of the senate. The
present negotiation is therefore, as has been
said not a mere renewal of the tender OF
Hawaiian territory made in 1893, but has re-
sponded to the purpose declared in the Ha-
waiian constitution, and the conferences Of
the plenipotentiarieS have been directed to
weighing the advantages of political and
commercial union, alternately proposed re.a-
lively considering the scope and extent there
Of It soon appeared to the negotiators that
a purely commercial union on the lines OF
the German zol.verein could not satisfy the
problems of the administration in Hawaii
and of the political associations between the
islands and the United States. Such COM
munication would deprive the Hawaiian gov
ernment on the one hand OF its CHIEF source
of revenues from custom duties putting its
territory in relation of free exchange of the
territory of the United States, its main mar
ket of purchase and supply. while on the
other hand it would entail upon Hawaii the
maintenance of an internal revenue system
on a par with that of the United States, or
else involve the organization OF correspond
ing branch of cur revenue service WITHIN
foreign jurisdiction. o.
We have had with Hawaii since 1875 a
treaty of commercial union, which practically
assimilates the two territories with regargd
to many of their most important PRODUCTIONS
and excludes other nations from enjoyment
of it's privileges; yet, although that treaty
has outlived other less favored reciprocity
schemes its permanency has at times been
gravely imperilled. Under such circum-
stances. to enter upon the raolcai experiment
of a complete commercial union between
Hawaii and the United States as independ-
emily sovereign, without assurance OF the
permanence and with perpetual subjection to
the vicissitudes OF public sentiment IN the
two countries was not to be thought OF.
AS In previous instances when the united
States has acquired territory by treaty, IL mas
been necessary to reserve all the organic
provisions of the action of congress. III there
was requisite in the case of the transfer
to the United States of part of the domain
of titular sovereign as In the cesslon OF
Louisiana by France, or Florida by Spain, or
Of Alaska by Russia, 1t is the more requisite
when the act is not cession. but union, in
volving the complete Incorporation OF an alien
sovereignty into the body polite OF the united
States. For this the only precedent OF our
political history is found in. the uncompleted
treaty concluded during President Grant 8
administration, Nov. 20, 1869. for the annexa-
ton of the Dominican republic to the United
States Following that example the treaty
now signed by the plenipotentiarfes of the
United States and the republic of Hawaii,
reserves to the congress Of the United States
the determination of all questions affecting the
form of government Of the annexed terri.
tory the citizenship and elective franchise OF
it's inhabitants. and the manner in which
laws of the United States are to be extended
to the island.
In order that this independence of the con-
gress shall be complete and unquestionabie
and pursuant to the recognized doctrine OF
public law, that treaties expire with the in
dependent life of the contracting state, there
has been introduced out of abundant caution
an express provision for the determination ar
all treaties heretofore concluded by Hawaii,
with foreign nations, and the extension to
the islands of the treaties Of the United
such especial regulation for the contract la
Dor system OF the islands circumstances
may require That there may be no existing
statute to affect the land Of the incorporated
territory it was necessary to stipulate as in
the Dominican precedent for continuing the
laws in the Hawaiian islands until provisions
shall be made by law for the government as
territory Of the United States lof the domain
thus incorporated into the union but, having
in view the peculiar status created in Hawaii
by laws enacted in exception Of the treaties
other countries, only such Hawaiian laws are
thus Professionally continued as shall not
be incompatible with the constitution the
laws of the United States or with the pro-
visions of this treaty. twill BE noticed that
the express stimulation is made prohibiting
islands to any other BART Of our national
territory. This provision was proper and
necessary in view of the Chinese exclusion
acts, and 1t behooved the negotiators to see
to 1t that this treaty. Which in turn is to
become In due constitutionalSc course a SUI
preme law Of the land.1 shalb not alter or
amend existing law in this most important
regard