Year: 1871

The st. Domingo Discussion in the Senate


The Presidents Friends Offer But a Feeble
| Deience-ConcIusiOn of Carl Schurz's Great


spcech-Grave Error OF tho Administrator
| Demonstrated.


| The contest In the Senate over Summers st, Do
mingo resolutions, which ended to-day, when the
resolutions were laid upon the table, has resulted
most dlsastrously for the administration and Its
friends. This Is the general opinion here tonight
| Sumner did not of course. expect to have his
resolutions passed when he introduced them. His
main object was to create an occasion for
| the delivery of his own speech and to
| inaugurate q discussion which would nut
the friends OF the President upon the de.
| fcnslve. He has succeeded admirably. II was
manifest from the first to every spectator that the
defence was weak, and utterly unable to meet and
resist the attack The men who undertook to
arlaign the President for his st. Domingo policy
| were masters OF the subject, and they were so
thoroughly prepared and posted that all attempts at
reply only served to expose the weakness of the
Presidents position and TO reveal the strength of
their own. Sumner and Schurz have no doubt
been studying this question for weeks, perhaps
months. past. There was not legal or Official
authority not o precedent bearing on the subject,
not parallel chapter OF history, with which they
did not exhibit familiarity that at amazed and
conl0unded their opponents. One after another
the Senatorial friends OF the President endeavored
to controvert their arguments and to dispute both
their statements and the authorities quoted, but
every such attempt ended In failure and
In placing the Senators and their distin-
gushed client in positions from which they
could not exuricate themselves. The worst
feature Of the Presidents case was that all the evi
dence against him was drawn from the Official
documents furnished by his subordinates Had the
charges md Cchu
rested upon their mere assertion they would have
fallen comparatively harmless at his feet. The
documentary evidence vas Of O character which
made defence impossible.


The Senators who assumed 10 champion the
Presidents cause did not seem prepared
Their replies were weak, lame and impo-
tent. Manifestly they had no idea OF either
the character or the amount OF ammunition
that Sumner and SchurZ, by dint Of industry and
perseverance, had gathered together. In the first
place, 1t was supposed that Summers speech of
Monday would be nothing more than a TRADE OF per-
sonal abuse upon the President This would have
been easily answered, but when he read document
after document from the State and Navy Depart
ments In support OF his resolutions there was no
reply. Schurz, with his keen, incisve, close rea.
soning, philosophical intellect, following Sumner,
drove the nail home ana clnched 1t on the other
side. IL was no wonder that the Presidents friends
were anxious TO lay Summers resolutions on the
table. They would gladly have done 1t when sum-
ner closed his speech on Monday. Every day the
debate continued was day OF disaster to the
administration and to the republican party. There
was danger. had the debate continued, that zen
like Trumbull and Wilson ana Logan would have
followed up Summer and Schurz The trouble was
the leading men who support the President In the
Senate had no stomach for the fight
Morton did what he could. but his health
is feeble and he had neither the time
nor the strength to prepare reply. He
bore the brunJ Of the fight upon that side, while
Conk.ing, Carpenter, Edmunds and other friends OF
the President looked on with mingled feeling OF
fear and surprise. Probably these gentlemen, who
pride themselves upon their profession as lawyers,
had no disposition to make precedents which years
hence they might not wish to have stare them in the
face IL may be that they were admonished by the
fate OF Howe, Stewart and Frelinghuysen, who went
into the fight and came out wounded.


The speech OF Schurz to-day was, however, supe-
rior to his effort OF yesterday he was subjected to
less interruption. The experience of yesterday was


bitter one for Senators who felt desire to cross
examine SchurZ, and 1t was not repeated. The
galleries were again crowded, but not so densely as
on Monday, when Sumner spoke. Upon the floor Of
The Senate there was q large number OF members OF
the House and many distinguished gentlemen





an attentive listener to the close; General Sher-
man and ex-senator Thomas Ewing, OF Ohio.
After retracing the line OF his argument a
little. so as as to connect what he said yesterday
with what he was about to say to-day, Mr. Schurz to
the intense qualification Of his audience, took up
and reviewed Robson on International law. The
jolly Robson proved a healthy subject for Gssec-
ton. Schurz showed that, whatever the Secretary
Of tho Navy might be as sailor he was not O re.
liable authority upon International law or even
upon the history Of his own country. First
OF all, Schurz took the gallant Secretary
up upon his facts, and actually proved
from his own orders issued from the Navy Depart
ment, as well as from the Official reports OF his
admirals and commanders, that he was mistaken In
asserting that 'neither the United States nor Its
Executive has chosen to take part in the internal
connicts Of the Dominican repubc.n The Secre.
tarys alluson to the action OF President Monroe in
marching the army into what was then known as
West Florida, was equally unfortunate regards the
facts. Schurz, after reading this, turned to one Of
the numerous book upon his desk and soon convinced
mis- hearers that Robson had got his ideas mixed
and that President Monroe did not march the army


into the territory until after 1t had been acq uired by
treaty.


Senator Frelinghuysen, at this point came to the
rescue OF his friend, the Secretary. Probably
III.
Frelinghuysen asserted that Robson was
right, whereupon Schurz turned the laugh on him
by saying that the Senator from New Jersey took
the ground that President Madison marched the
army into the territory OF West Florida ten years
before the treaty was negotiated with Spain for its
acquisition by the United States. After upsettlng
the two NAN points In Robeson's letter Schurz
called attention to the fact that the letter was
addressed to an admiral, and he added the
Secretary had probably addressed the letter to
sailor, in order that the story might be told TO
the marines. This provoked broad laugh at poor
Robeson's expense. Referring to the Secretary's
exposition OF constitutional laws the Senator said
that If he went In this way the Secretary OF the
Navy would have the reputation Of being great
constitutional lawyer among sailors u great
''saier' among constitutional lawyers. Here was
another "papable hit" at the Jolly Robson, which
the audience did not fail to appreciate and enjoy.
Col, e., ~ nny-