Evening journal., 1901-11-11

In boston on Saturday night last In
some respects, peculiarly with regard
tc reciprocal rc cations, the speech IS Il
most remarkable production. We re-
grct that we are unable to publish it
in full but une following is it's sub
stance:
Mr. Chairman and Gentlemen of the
Free Trade League: Your committee
has chosen a great subject for consid-
Grafton tonight, and in addressing you
uron it, l feel that l can hardly do
more than clear the ground for your
own further investigation. l shall not
burden you with details or figures. but
leave them for others to gather and lay
before you. They would constitute a
Mt basis for a book. which ought to be
prepared and widely circulated.
Furthermore | feel that a few words
PERSONA. TO myself may not be amiss
upon this occasion. 1t has been a
long time since / spoke to Boston
audience. l have travelled far and seen
much since | had that honor. / have
been twice in China, once on mis-
sion of peace-as the Chinaman would
say, ITO take look, see'-and once to
assist in the relief of the beleaeured
legations. from the danger of destruc-
ton by THE Boxers. Between these
two visits to China, I visited EuropeI
twice and Mexico twice; took part inI
the Porto Rico expedition and in the,
occupation of Cuba, where / he'd com
mand for eighteen months over tlle two
central provinces. While my occupa-
lions were primarily military. as mili-l
tary governor it became my duty tol
study sociological and economic ques.
uons, and ] can only add that in doingl
uhis ! gave unremitting attention to my
work. | believe / may safely claim ahat
was the only general in Cuba whol
visited every city, town and section ofl
the territory under his sway Such asl
J could not reach by steamship or rail-
road, | visited on horseback. and inl
this way | came in contact with every
man OF importance within the limits ofl
my command. l personally made the
acquaintance of every Cuban general. |
provincial governor, alcalde. council |
man, priest, teacher, lawyer, doctor and |
Planter in the provinces of Matanzas
and Santa Clara; | held private and
public interviews With thCm taking
full stenographic notes of What was
said. | sent my stam officers to makel
special Investigations and reports. / !
did this as a friend, inviting full andl
free confidence from all. high and low. |
and l believe | received honest and
loyal cooperation from every Cuban. |
as well as from every Porto Rican. Att
all events the official census which I
was the first TO recommend confirmed (
with singular accuracy the information
gathered and used as the basis of !
my report to the War Department.
Within the limits of my functions and
faculties. ! was an original investiga-
tor and this is my only claim TO your
attention tonigiht
Another word of personal eXplana-
ton will, | trust. be pardOned by the
members OF the New England Free
Trade League. As many of you per-
haps know, | am a Republican and
a protectiOnist and as those words are
generally used, but | am an American
before am Republican, and
/ am a free trader before I am
a nrOtectionist. as those words are
call myself Free trade protection
ist-a free trader inside, a protec-
ZIONIST outside of our sphere of inter
est or influence / believe that the
greatest benefit conferred ON the Amer
lean people by uhe Federal COnstitu-l !
ton after creating the machinery of
Government for a more perfect Union |
and providing for the common defense, !
arises from the inhibitions of the Con- |
stitution which forbid the sOvereigal
States and the Congress alike from
levying or collecting any tax or ex
port duty ON goods, wares and mer- |
chandise sent out Of the States, or out
OF the country at large. ! believe that
lhe free trade between the States, |
which results from these inhibitiOns |
has dome more than any or al Otherl
influences combined to make not only
the States themselves rich and power-f
full but the United States, as a whole !
the richest and most powerful nation
on the earth. To this absolute free
dom of trade between the States 0l
say absolute freedom" because il isl
limited only by the distance which sop
arates the States and their chief ciHesl
and the cost of transportation between
thcm1 is primarily due the wonderful
development Of our steamboat and rail
road system. which i'm turn enablesI
THE producer and merchant 90 iayI
down our naturag and manufactured
products at tide water at lower cost
than those OF any other cOrntry. II II
am correct in this generalization. it isl
This absolute freedom Ofinterstato trade
which. with equal ocean freight rates.
is now giving us the markets of the
world.
One of your distinguished citizens.
the Hon. Richard Olney. has demon
strated in a most notable communica-
tion from the Department Of State TO
the late Thomas +. Bayard. Ambassa-
| dor of Great Britain. in connection with
! THE Venezuela boundary question, that
| the Monroe Doctrine is the public law
Of tho Western Hemisphere If there
was any doubt on that question. it, has
been removed by The Spanish war and
the consequences flowing from IL. We
have given practical effect TO il i'm
other cases I refer. of course. 10
those ~ Mexico and Cuba, and without
pausing 10 diatc upon them I merely
wish now TO point out that cur vindi-
cation cf that doctrine has been linn
tied with a single exception to the