180 



CONGRESS. (THE PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE.) 



Rear- Admiral Brown, commanding the United States 

 naval forces, a communication, from which the fol- 

 lowing is an extract : 



" The Provisional Government has learned by the 

 cablegrams of the Associated Press that the transport 

 1 Itata,' detained in San Diego by order of the United 

 States for taking on board munitions of war and in 

 possession of the marshal, left the port, carrying on 

 board this official, who was landed at a point near the 

 coast, and then continued her voyage. ... If this 

 news be correct, this Government would deplore the 

 conduct of the ' Itata,' and, as an evidence that it is 

 not disposed to support or agree to the infraction of 

 the laws of the United States, the undersigned takes 

 advantage of the personal relations you have been 

 good enough to maintain with him since your arrival 

 in this port to declare to you that as soon as she is with- 

 in reacli of our orders his Government will put the 

 ' Itata,' with the arms and munitions she took on'board 

 in San Diego, at the disposition of the United States." 



A trial in the district court of the United States for 

 the southern district of California has recently re- 

 sulted in a decision holding, among other things, that 

 inasmuch as the Congressional party had not been 

 recognized as a belligerent, the acts done in its inter- 

 est could not be a violation of our neutrality laws. 

 From this judgment the United States has appealed, 

 not that the condemnation of the vessel is a matter of 

 importance, but that we may know what the present 

 state of our law is ; for, if this construction of the 

 statute is correct, there is obvious necessity for revis- 

 ion and amendment. 



During the progress of the war in Chili this Gov- 

 ernment tendered its good offices to bring about a 

 peaceful adjustment, and it was at one time hoped 

 that a good result might be reached ; but in this we 

 were disappointed. 



The instructions to our naval officers and to our 

 minister at Santiago, from the first to the last of this 

 struggle, enjoined upon them the most impartial 

 treatment and absolute noninterference. I am satis- 

 fied that these instructions were observed, and that 

 our representatives were always watchful to use their 

 influence impartially in the interest of humanity, and 

 on more than one occasion did so effectively. We 

 could not forget, however, that this Government was 

 in diplomatic relations with the then established Gov- 

 ernment of Chili, as it is now in such relations with 

 the successor of that Government I am quite sure 

 that President Montt, who has, under circumstances 

 of promise for the peace of Chili, been installed as 

 President of that republic, will not desire that, in 

 the unfortunate event of any revolt against his au- 

 thority, the policy of this Government should be 

 other "than that which we have recently observed. 

 Ntf official complaint of the conduct of our minister 

 or of our naval officers during the struggle has been 

 presented to this Government ; and it is a matter of 

 regret that so many of our own people should have 

 given ear to unofficial charges and complaints that 

 manifestly had their origin in rival interests and in a 

 wish to pervert the relations of the United States 

 with Chili. 



The collapse of the Government of Balmaceda 

 brought about a condition which is unfortunately too 

 familiar in the history of the Central and South 

 American States. With the overthrow of the Balma- 

 ceda Government, he, and many of his councilors and 

 officers, became at once fugitives for their lives and 

 appealed to the commanding officers of the foreign 

 naval vessels in the harbor of Valparaiso and to the 

 resident foreign ministers at Santiago for asylum. 

 This asylum was freely given, according to my infor- 

 mation, by the naval vessels of several foreign pow- 

 ers and by several of the legations at Santiago. The 

 American minister, as well as his colleagues, acting 

 upon the impulses of humanity, extended asylum to 

 political refugees whose lives were in peril. I have 

 not been willing to direct the surrender of such of 

 these persons as are still in the American Legation 

 without suitable conditions. 



It is believed that the Government of Chili is not 

 in a position, in view of the precedents with which it 

 has been connected, to broadly deny the right of asy- 

 lum, and the correspondence has not thus far pre- 

 sented any such denial. The treatment of our minis- 

 ter for a time was such as to call for a decided protest, 

 and it was very gratifying to observe that untriendly 

 measures, which were undoubtedly the result of the 

 prevailing excitement, were at once rescinded or 

 suitably relaxed. 



On the 16th of October an event occurred in Val- 

 paraiso so serious and tragic in its circumstances and 

 results as to very justly excite the indignation of our 

 people, and to call for prompt and decided action on 

 the part of this Government. A considerable number 

 of the sailors of the United States steamship " Balti- 

 more," then in the harbor of Valparaiso, being upon 

 shore leave and unarmed, were assaulted by armed 

 men nearly simultaneously in different localities in 

 the city. One petty officer was killed outright and 

 seven or eight seaman were seriously wounded, one of 

 whom has since died. So savage and brutal was the 

 assault that several of our sailors received more than 

 two, and one as many as eighteen stab wounds. An 

 investigation of the affair was promptly made by a 

 board of officers of the " Baltimore," and their report 

 shows that these assaults were unprovoked, that our 

 men were conducting themselves in a peaceable and 

 orderly manner, and that some of the police of the 

 city took part in the assault and used their weapons 

 with fatal effect, while a few others, with some well- 

 disposed citizens, endeavored to protect our men. 

 Thirty-six of our sailors were arrested, and some of 

 them, while being taken to prison, were cruelly beaten 

 and maltreated. The fact that they were all dis- 

 charged, no criminal charge beiug^ lodged against any 

 one of them, shows very clearly that they were inno- 

 cent of any breach of the peace. 



So far as I have yet been able to learn no other ex- 

 planation of this bloody work has been suggested 

 than that it had its origin in hostility to these men as 

 sailors of the United States, wearing the uniform of 

 their Government, and not in any individual act or 

 personal animosity. The attention of the Chilian 

 Government was at once called to this affair, and a 

 statement of the facts obtained by the investigation 

 we had conducted was submitted, accompanied by a 

 request to be advised of any other or qualifying facts 

 in the possession of the Chilian Government that might 

 tend to relieve this affair of the appearance of an in- 

 sult to this Government. The Cmlian Government 

 was also advised that if such qualifying facts did not 

 exist this Government would confidently expect full 

 and prompt reparation. 



It is to be regretted that the reply of the Secretary 

 for Foreign Affairs of the Provisional Government 

 was couched in an offensive tone. To this no response 

 has been made. This Government is now awaiting 

 the result of an investigation which has been con- 

 ducted by the criminal court at Valparaiso. It is re- 

 ported unofficially that the investigation is about 

 completed, and it is expected that the result will soon 

 be communicated to this Government, together with 

 some adequate and satisfactory response to the note 

 by which the attention of Chili was called to this in- 

 cident. If these just expectations should be disap- 

 pointed or further needless delay intervene, I will, 

 by a special message, bring this matter again to the 

 attention of Congress for such action as may be neces- 

 sary. The entire correspondence with the Govern- 

 ment of Chili will at an early day be submitted to 

 Congress. 



1 renew the recommendation of my special message, 

 dated Jan. 16, 1890, for the adoption of the necessary 

 legislation to enable this Government to apply in the 

 case of Sweden and Norway the same rule in respect 

 to the levying of tonnage dues as was claimed and 

 secured to the shipping of the United States in 1828 

 under Article VIII of the treaty of 1827. 



The adjournment of the Senate without action on 

 the pending acts for the suppression of the slave traffic 



