The news & observer., 1905-10-14
RUSSIA'S FRIENDSHIP WAS NOT
UNSELFTSH


selfishness, made by Colonel George
Harvey at a banquet given by him to
NJ White, sthis paper gave in some
detail the story of how the United
States came to buy Alaska. The
story was, in brief, this: During the
War Between the States. Mr.. Seward
felt the need of making a demonstra-
tion to other powers that the Rus
sian Government was in sympathy
with Mr.. Lincoln's administration.
He, therefore, arranged with the Rus
sian Ambassador that the Russian
American waters, on both the Pacific
and Atlantic. coast, the United States
Government agreeing to pay the cost
of such demonstration. All the world
knows that the Russian navy did
make a demonstration in American
waters and that it profoundly i'm
pressed the whole world and helped
to cut off all hope of recognition by
other powers of the Southern Confed-
eracy. Who believes that Russia was
altruistic friendship? After the war,
Russia presented the bill for making
the naval demonstration. 1t was
pretty steep, but the fact did not
trouble the administration. The only
question was: How can we pay it?''
1t would never do to make a direct
appropriation of a certain sum ''tt.
remimburse Russia for making a
naval demonstration to help the United
States Government during the War
Between the States Neither country
could afford that. The diplomats
were in great perplexity and could
not find way to pay the money with
out exposing the diplomatic secret.
In that emergency Mr.. Simon Cameron
was appealed to, and he suggested
that as neither Russia nor the United
States cared a fig for Alaska, that
the United States buy it from Russia
at a price that would reimburse Rus
sia for the money expended and
enough more to cover UP the transac-
ton. That suggestion was eagerly
seized upon by the Russian Ambassa-
dor and the Secretary of State, and
that course was followed. That publi-
cation in The News and Observer
seems to have attracted wide atten-
ton as the following editorial from
the Louisville Courfer-Jouranl shows:
'.An Open Secret
''Mistah George Harvey hab sutting'
ly got Mistah Josephus Danls whar
his ha'r am short" or words to that
effect. Yet the subject being historic,
perhaps we should approach it with
greater dignity. Said the Raleigh, n.
c., News and Observer. of which Mr..
Daniels is the editor:
Mr.. Harvey may be right in
SAYING that the mission of the
Russian navy that made a de-
monstration in American waters
bore no tamt of selfishness, but
it is an open secret that Mr..
Seward agreed to pay Russia the
cost of such naval demonstration,
and when no | egal way was
found to make payment. made the
purchase of Alaska-not valued
by either country-the pretext for
paying Russia the cost of its naval
demonstration, which, we are as
sured, bore no taint of selfish
ness.
This is a serious allegation. If the
editor of The News and Observer has
not some documentary evidence to
support it, the editor of Harper 5
Weekly has the right to demand it,
not as an open secret as Mr. Daniels
described it, but as "a concealed myth.
Meanwhile, Harper'S Weekly recalls
this chapter of interesting history:
In his Life of Seward Mr..
to purchase Alaska was consid-
cred by the State Department as
early as 1859, and. according to
tradition, as far back as President
Polk's time. The movement
which ultimately resulted in the
transfer had it's origin on the
Pacific slope in 1856, when the
Legislature of Washington Ter
ritory petitioned President john
son to obtain such concessions
from the Russian Government as
would enable American fishing
vessels to visit ports and obtain
fuel and provisions Seward di &
z ,rectedh Cassius NJ. Clay, our Min
lister to st. Petersburg, to open
| negotiations. and in ) February,
: 1857 the Ai'ef1duke$ Constantine
handed = to Stoeckl the Russian
Minister to Washington, map
with the lines of a cession which
the Gar was willing to make. On
the evening of March % the
treaty was made by Seward and
Stoeckl a the formers house.
'"The price ($7 0.000) was
practically fixed by Seward, and
was not paid till year later. 1t
was never regarded as adequate
compensation, but rather as an
honorarium. That it was not eX-
cessive is evidenced by the fact
that in a single year our govern
ment's receipts from the seal in
dustry alone exceeded $4,000
600. Russia's chief motive un-
doubtedly was to create an effec-
tive counterpoiSe to Great Brit
aims Pacific possessions. but the
accomplishment was none the less
advantageous to us for that rea-
son, and in the business part of
the transaction her attitude was
eminently high-minded and credi-
table. The unanimity of senti
| ment in this country is clearly de-
monstrated by the fact that only
| two votes were cast in the Senate
against the confirmation of the
treaty.
I'VE make no question that the
natural and proper gratitude felt
by our people toward Russia at