CONGRESS. (PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE.) 



213 





The condition of the Chinese question in the West- 

 ern States and Territories is, despite this restrictive 

 legislation, far from being satisfactory. The recent 

 outbreak in Wyoming Territory, where numbers of 

 unoffending Chinamen, indisputably within the pro- 

 tection of the treaties and the law, were murdered 

 by a mob, and the still more recent threatened out- 

 break of trie same character in Washington Territory, 

 are fresh in the minds of all, and there is apprehen- 

 sion lest the bitterness of feeling against the Mongo- 

 lian race on the Pacific slope may find vent in similar 

 lawless demonstrations. All the power of this Gov- 

 ernment should be exerted to maintain the amplest 

 good faith toward China in the treatment of these 

 men, and the inflexible sternness of the law in bring- 

 ing the wrong-doers to justice should be insisted upon. 



Every effort has been made by this Government to 

 prevent these violent outbreaks and to aid the repre- 

 sentatives of China in their investigation of these out- 

 rages ; and it is but just to say that they are traceable 

 to the lawlessness of men not citizens of the United 

 States engaged in competition with Chinese laborers. 



Eace prejudice is the chief factor in originating 

 these disturbances, and it exists in a large part of our 

 domain, jeopardizing our domestic peace and the good 

 relationship we strive to maintain with China. 



The admitted right of a government to prevent the 

 influx of elements hostile to its internal peace and 

 security may not be questionedj even where there is 

 no treaty stipulation on the subject. That the exclu- 

 sion of Chinese labor is demanded in other countries 

 where like conditions prevail, is strongly evidenced 

 in the Dominion of Canada, where Chinese immi- 

 gration is now regulated by laws more exclusive than 

 our own. If existing laws are inadequate to compass 

 the end in view, I shall be prepared to give earnest 

 consideration to any further remedial measures, with- 

 in the treaty limits, which the wisdom of Congress 

 may devise. 



The independent state of the Congo has been or- 

 ganized, as a government, under the sovereignty of 

 his Majesty the King of the Belgians, who assumes 

 its chief magistracy in his personal character only, 

 without making the new state a dependency of Bel- 

 gium. It is fortunate that a benighted region, owing 

 all it has of quickening civilization to the beneficence 

 and philanthropic spirit of this monarch, should have 

 the advantage and security of his benevolent super- 

 vision. 



The action taken by this Government last year in 

 being the first to recognize the flag of the International 

 Association of the Congo has been followed by formal 

 recognition of the new nationality which succeeds to 

 its sovereign powers. 



A conference of delegates of the principal commer- 

 cial nations was held at Berlin last winter, to discuss 

 methods whereby the Congo Basin might be kept 

 open to the world's trade. Delegates attended on be- 

 half of the United States on the understanding that 

 their part should be merelv deliberative, without im- 

 parting to the results any binding character so far as 

 the United. States were concerned. This reserve was 

 due to the indisposition of this Government to share 

 in any disposal by an international congress of juris- 

 dictional questions in remote foreign territories. The 

 results of the conference were embodied in a formal 

 act of the nature of an international convention, 

 which laid down certain obligations purporting to 

 be binding on the signatories, subject to ratification 

 within one year. Notwithstanding the reservation 

 under which the delegates of the united States at- 

 tended, their signatures were attached to the general 

 act in the same manner as those of the plenipotenti- 

 aries of other governments, thus making the United 

 States appear, without reserve or qualification, as 

 signatories to a joint international engagement im- 

 posing on the signers the conservation of the terri- 

 toriarintegrity of distant regions where we have no 

 established interests or control. 



This Government does not, however, regard its 



reservation of liberty of action in the premises as at 

 all impaired; and holding that an engagement to 

 share in the obligation of enforcing neutrality in 

 the remote valley of the Congo would be an alliance 

 whose responsibilities we are not in a position to 

 assume, I abstain from asking the sanction of the 

 Senate to that general act. 



The correspondence will be laid before you, and 

 the instructive and interesting report of the agent 

 sent by this Government to the Congo country, and 

 his recommendations for the establishment or com- 

 mercial agencies on the African coast are also sub- 

 mitted for your consideration. 



The commission appointed by my predecessor last 

 winter to visit the Central and South American coun- 

 tries and report on the methods of enlarging the com- 

 mercial relations of the United States therewith, has 

 submitted reports, which will be laid before you. 



No opportunity has been omitted to testify the 

 friendliness of this Government toward Corea, whose 

 entrance into the family of treaty powers the United 

 States were the first to recognize. I regard with fa- 

 vor the application made by the Corean Government 

 to be allowed to employ American officers as military 

 instructors, to which the assent of Congress becomes 

 necessary, and I am happy to say this request has the 

 concurrent sanction of China and Japan. 



The arrest and imprisonment of Julio K. Santos, a 

 citizen of the United States, by the authorities of 

 Ecuador, gave rise to a contention with that Govern- 

 ment, in which his right to be released or to have a 

 speedy and impartial trial on announced charges, and 

 with all guarantees of defense stipulated by treaty, 

 was insisted upon by us. After an elaborate corre- 

 spondence, ana repeated and earnest representations 

 on our part, Mr. Santos was, after an alleged trial and 

 conviction, eventually included hi a general decree of 

 amnesty and pardoned by the Ecuadorian Executive 

 and released, leaving the question of his American 

 citizenship denied by the Ecuadorian Government, 

 but insisted upon by our own. 



The amount adjudged by the late French and 

 American Claims Commission to be due from the 

 United States to French claimants on account of in- 

 juries suffered by them during the war of secession, 

 having been appropriated by the last Congress, has 

 been duly paid to the French Government. 



The act of Feb. 25, 1885, provided for a prelimi- 

 nary search of the records of French prize-courts for 

 evidence bearing on the claims of American citizens 

 against France for spoliations committed prior to 

 1801. The duty has been performed, and the report 

 of the agent will be laid before you. 



I regret to say that the restrictions upon the impor- 

 tation of our pork into France continue, notwithstand- 

 ing the abundant demonstration of the absence of 

 sanitary danger in its use ; but I entertain strong 

 hopes that, with a better understanding of the mat- 

 ter, this vexatious prohibition will be removed. It 

 would be pleasing to be able to say as much with re- 

 spect to Germany, Austria, and other countries, where 

 such food-products are absolutely excluded without 

 present prospect of reasonable change. 



The interpretation of our existing treaties of natu- 

 ralization by Germany during the past year, has at- 

 tracted attention by reason of an apparent tendency 

 on the part of the Imperial Government to extend the 

 scope of the residential restrictions to which return- 

 ing naturalized citizens of German origin are asserted 

 to be liable under the laws of the empire. The tem- 

 perate and just attitude taken by this Government 

 with regard to this class of questions will doubtless 

 lead to a satisfactory understanding. 



The dispute of Germany and Spain relative to the 

 domination of the Caroline Islands has attracted the 

 attention of this Government, by reason of extensive 

 interests of American citizens having grown up hi 

 those parts during the past thirty years ; and because 

 the question of ownership involves jurisdiction of 

 matters affecting the status of our citizens under civil 



