The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1897-06-13
CLEVELAND THWARTED
STORY THAT THROWS LIGHT ON THE
LATE HAWAIIAN IMBROGLIO.
Why Growers Instructions to Willis
to Recognize His ''GOOd Friend"
Were Not Carried Out.
Special to the Indianapolis Journal.


young Hawaiian republic which has never
been published and which is deeply inter-
esting. 1t tells of a. casual incident which
enabled the Hawaiian representative in
Washington to obtain piece of advance in
formation which probably decided the fate
of the Dole government. l give it as it was
told to me by one who is in position to be
fully advised of the accuracy of the nara
tive. He said: "A young man called at the
State Department one day to see a friend
who was a clerk in an important bureau.
1t was about the middle of the afternoon,
Spread out before him on a desk was a
typewriter sheet of paper. CHANGING at
it he saw that it was interlined in the IA
miliar handwriting of President Cleveland.
! The clerk picked up the sheet of paper
moment later and put it away in drawer
| of his desk, saying as he did so TO his
caller: That paper contains the instruc
| tions of Willis, the new Hawaiian minister,
| and it is going to raise the devil. Willis
was about to start for Hawaii and the in
structions were to be handed to him the
next day.
THE young man a friend of Frank
Hastings, who died in this city recently,
| and who was here then as the personal rep
| resentatiVe of President Dole, of the newly
| born Hawaiian republic, and CHANGED to
meet that gentleman within the next half
hour. They were close associates of many
| years standing, and the caller at the State
Department told him of what he had seen
| and heard. Realizing that the instructions
were of the greatest possible Importance
| to the country he represented, Mr.. Hastings
| begged his friend to try and get copy
of the document. Yielding to his importu-
mites, the young man returned to the de-
| partment, took the typewriter sheet from
! the unlocked drawer in which it had been
| placed. had a certified copy of it made and
returned the paper to it's repository the
next morning before the correspondence
clerk arrived at his desk.
THE instructions to Willis were to not
recognize the Dole government, but to treat
Queen Lii as the representative of the gov
eminent with which the United States
would do business. A copy of the instruc-
lions, together with message from Mr..
Hastings, went to San Francisco on the
same train with Mr.. Willis and were sur
reptitiously conveyed to Honolulu on the
revenue cutter that carried the diplomat.
The package was placed in the hands of
President Dole several hours before Minis
ter Willis made his official call. Mr.. Willis
opened the conversation when he did call
by saying that he had an unpleasant mis-
sion to perform in carrying out the in
structions of the President of the United
| States but before he could proceed he was
interrupted sharply by President Dole, who
| said bluntly that he knew what the instruc-
| tions were; that he must decline to receive
his visitor officially, and would refuse to
| listen to his communication adding: If you
| persist in forcing yourself on me 1 have
| only one course left, and that is to instant
| ly declare war upon the United States. We
! are a mere toy government but we can
! better afford to stand the consequences of
that act than the United States. 1 will not
! dwell upon the complications which are
| likely to arise, but will leave that for you
! to think about
Mr.. Willis withdrew, and, not caring to
take the responsibility of forcing a declara-
! ton of war, sent on to Washington for
| further instructions. The delay was the
| salvation of the republic and the be-
| ginning of the chapter in the diplomatic
history of what turned out to be the most
unpleasant episode in the Cleveland admin
istration."
1 have very little reason to doubt the
| correctness of the story as told above. The
recital will not hurt any one at this time
| 1t would not hurt Mr.. Hastings, if he were
alive and cannot injure the clerk whose
careIessness enabled Mr.. Hastings's friend
to obtain the copy of a document which
was invaluable to President Dole. and which
enabled him to be forearmed and prepared
for the reception of Minister Willis, and
| thereby to prevent a move which might
have been fatal to the Dole government
AS for the young man who distracted the
| document, kept it over night and returned
it-well, he is still in Washington
A group of senators down in the res
| taurant had Vice President Hobart under
discussion. The agreement reached was
that Mr.. Hobart had made very favorable
| impression upon the Senate, and he had
''been sized up" they say, as a safe
man. IF Mckinley should die" said one,
1.-The reins of government would descend
into careful hands. Mr.. Hobart is not as
diplomatic as President Mckinley, and has
not his broad experience and acquaintance
| with affairs and public men, but he is
| broad-gauged and patriotic. Ever since he
attained his majority he has associated
with big men, and has been concerned in
large affairs His mind has great grasp.
His judgment is sound. and he has un-
doubted decision of character. He never
goes off half-cocked, and, while far from
being slow in reaching conclusions, he
takes plenty of time to make up his mind
and proceeds in q very careful way The
country would not run wild with Mr.. Ho-
bart in the White House."
Since the resignation of Senator Edmunds
the Senate has been without a whip"
| Senator Hoar has tried to fill the bill in
| that particular, and really believes that he
exercises the same power that the Granite
State senator formerly did, but in this he
is very much mistaken, although he occu-
| pies the Vermonter's old position as chair
man of the judiciary committee. Senator
| Hoar is a. very able man in many respects
and exceedingly keen in debate, but a
| Senate leader he is vessel of considerable
| lighter tonnage than Senator Edmunds
| The brightest men in the Senate, not even
| excepting ingalls, and Plumb were afraid
of the Vermont senator. He a giant
among them, and when on his feet he was
| an overpowering personality. The smaller
| craft got out of his way, and very few
| had the temerity to take liberties with
him. Not so with Senator Hoar. He is
prone TO scold his associates. and occa-
sionalIy says tart and saucy things. but as
/ whip" he is not a success. 1t filled him
with unspeakabIe wrath the other day when
the irrepressible "Billy" Mason. of Illinois,
| raferred IN him in a debate as INV yo,Jng