Year: 1870

prisons-lt viii be abundant time for us tC
: inquire whether the English government, BY
Q such arrest and imprisonment, is attempting
to exercise a jurisdiction which by the laws
e of nations it has no right to exercise. Now
| we are called upon to express our sympathy
: with these men who, as is now more than
: implied by the report of the Committee on
9 Foreign Affairs, are suffering indignities, are
7 subjected to atrocious and barbarous treat
ment in English jails. And have the right
$ to assume that this resolution clearly applies
: in its whole scope to the prisoners who were
lawfully imprisoned. The government ha.
not been asked by either of these resolutions
: whether the British government had thrust
into its jaiis American citizens who had COM
, mitted no offense against it; but this reso-


luton upon its face asks the good Offices of
our government for men who are in Jail for
. " pcatical offenses against the government


of Great Britain.


But, sir, as l was saying when the gentle


man from Minnesota Mr.. WILKINSON inter
rupted me, while would extend the same
Il protection, the same protection precisely, to


an American citizen of Irish birth who is


nov n1grsd a n gssiah aa- ss. &c e inr we
should proceed with the utmost caution and
circumspection when we arraign foreign
government, which we now have the right


to assume is friendly government, for the


treatment of its political prisoners.


This resolution, or rather the report of the


committee-for am speaking rather against


that than the resolution-the report of this
committee is an attack upon, a criticism of,


the conduct of the English government in


the treatment of it's prisoners. 1t is a charge


made against that government of finhumanity,
of atroclous inhumanity in that treatment.


The report declares that the inquiry is not


only /" duty of Christian charity, but of


obligation to our adopted citizens 1t i'm


plies. sir. that the conduct Of those who have
charge of the penitentiaries of England is so
aggravated and atrocous in its inhumanity


that the government, the Congress and the
people of the United States are called upon


to express their sense of this great injustice,


wrong and inhumanity


Well. sir, say now and here that this
resolution, in my judgment, never would


have appeared on this floor and the Com


mittee on Foreign Affairs would never have


been invited to bring before the House this


report had it not been that the constituents


of many gentlemen of this House are Irish


American citizens who sympathize with this


effort TO divide the empire of Great Britain


and to establish a separate government for


Ireland. 1t is, sir, nothing less than sym
pathy with an insurrectiOn across the water


sympathy with an assault upon the integrity


of the kingdom of Great Britain and for an
expression of any such sympathy have not
only no kindly feeling, hut | mean TO enter
my protest against it. And think il is very


clear indeed, sir, for those who have read


the debate on this report to see that Fenian-
ism, if not only expressed, is implied in the
resolution Of the gentleman from New York


Mr.. Cox and in the report Of the commit


tee. The gentleman from Maryland, Mr..
SWAMI who is my colleague on this COM
mittee, will perhaps pardon me for calling
I his attention TO tue fact that he has not
grown so old as yet in his association with
the Democratic party that he has utterly
/ forgotten some of his past record and |
imagine some fourteen or fifteen years ago if
many of his constituents and staunch sup
porters in Maryland had heard him express
J this warm sympathy with our Irish adopted
ncitizens ht5 voice wgZld havaf. sad very


nn---w5TFr5rs4 rs4--sl--sS. 18S was then,


..1 correctly informed, the champion Of
the American organization in Baltimore,
which was founded on the principle that
'' America belongs to the Americans" and
that our Irish-American citizens have few
rights which white native-born American
citizens are bound to respect.


Mr.. SWAMI. 1 have never stood upon
any such principle as the gentleman has an
nounced.


Mr.. WILLARD ! am glad to be assured
from the gentleman g own mouth that he mas
never advocated any such principle | have
only to say that have been entirely misin-
formed in reference to his former position
but of course his testimony is superior 90
any hear-say report. | certainly cordially
agree with the general proposition he now
advances, that it is the duty of our govern
ment to extend its shield of protection to all
its citizens on whatever land they may be
thrown.


But / agree, as l said before, that when he
invokes that shield as his protection, tho
American citizen must show that he Is in
the lawful pursuit of his business as an
American citizen. We had in tie annual
message of the President, sent to this House
in December, statement from the Chief
Executive of this country, as follows


THE citizen Of the United states whether native
or adopted, Is entitled TO ITS complete protection


No person on this floor can more cordially
indorse that proposition than | do And the
President adds


While have a voice in the direction OF affairs
shall not consent to imPer that right by comforting
And agree. sir, heartily, with that dec
laration. that it is the duty of this country
not to imperil this right of protection to


American citizens, wherever they may So
lourn, by the attempt to extend that protec-
tion to citizens who are not entitled to it and
who have forfeited their right to invoke it by
their unlawful enterprises against foreign
governments.


Now, sir, believe that the golden rule is
as good for nations as it is for individuals.
1t is wise for us to say as a people that we
will do nothing and aid in doing nothing
against foreign Power that we should dis
like to have that foreign Power do or aid in
doing against US. Sir, the teachings of the
war Of the rebellion ought at least to settle
in our minds this fact : that established gov
ernments have right to maintain the integ-
rity of their territory; have a right to com
pei their people to still remain a part Of
their government. | hold that what we
claimed for ourselves during the rebellion
that we had right to insist that our bound
aries should not be disturbed by the intcrfer-
enee Of foreign or domestic foes-is no more
than we ought to concede to every foreign
government. And, sir, our rebellion should
teach us this lesson that we should guard
with the greatest care, with the most scru-
pulous fidelity, the neutrality and non-inter-
ventiOn which we are bound to exercise in
our relations with foreign governments.
Straightforward demands for redress arc
manly, but fomenting Instructions against
a foreign government is quite beneath the
dignity or honor of this great Republic.
No greater crime against the laws of Great
Britain can be committed By citizen of the
United States than to join conspiracy against
the integrity of that empire and this House
should rather teach our citizens that it dis
courages than that it encourages such con-
spiracies.


Sir, have ne sympathy with flibustering
enterprises OF any sort, whether organized
! for the purpose of overturning government,
or of annexing contiguous islands. or for the
purpose Of bringing into the limits of our
| Republic new and disorganized populations.
| believe that the mission of this Republic is
rather a mission which it should exercise at
! home than mission which it should exercise
abroad. / believe, sir, that if we have any