CONGRESS. (THE PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE.) 



163 



American missionaries should be recognized and re- 

 spected. It is sincerely hoped that this pledge will 

 be observed by allowing our missionaries, who were 

 removed from Ponape to a place of safety by a United 

 States warship during the late troubles between the 

 Spanish garrison and the natives, to return to their 

 field of usefulness. 



The reproduced caravel, Santa Maria, built by 

 Spain and sent to the Columbian Exposition, has been 

 presented to the United States in token of amity and 

 in commemoration of the event it was designed to 

 celebrate. I recommend that, in accepting this gift, 

 Congress make grateful recognition of the sincere 

 friendship which prompted it. 



Important matters have demanded attention in our 

 relations with the Ottoman Porte. The firing and 

 partial destruction by an unrestrained mob of one of 

 the school buildings of Anatolia College, established 

 by citizens of the United States at Marsovan, and the 

 apparent indifference of the Turkish Government to 

 the outrage, notwithstanding the complicity of some 

 of its officials, called for earnest remonstrance, which 

 was followed by promises of reparation and punish- 

 ment of the offenders. Indemnity for the injury to 

 the buildings has already been paid, permission to 

 rebuild given, registration of the school property in 

 the name of the American owners secured, and effi- 

 cient protection guaranteed. 



Information received of maltreatment suffered by an 

 inoffensive American woman engaged in missionary 

 work in Turkish Koordistan was followed by such 

 representations to the Porte as resulted in the issu- 

 ance of orders for the punishment of her assailants, 

 the removal of a delinquent officials and the adoption 

 of measures for the protection of our citizens engaged 

 in mission and other lawful work in that quarter. 



Turkey complains that her American subjects ob- 

 tain citizenship in this country not to identify them- 

 selves in good faith with our people, but with the in- 

 tention ot returning to the land of their birth and 

 there engaging in sedition. This complaint is not 

 wholly without foundation. A journal published in 

 this country in the Armenian language openly coun- 

 sels its readers to arm, organize, and participate in 

 movements for the subversion of Turkish authority 

 in the Asiatic provinces. The Ottoman Government 

 has announced its intention to expel from its domin- 

 ions Armenians who have obtained naturalization in 

 the United States since 1868. The right to exclude 

 any or all classes of aliens is an attribute of sov- 

 ereignty. It is a right asserted and to a limited ex- 

 tent enforced by the United States, with the sanction 

 of our highest court. There being no naturalization 

 treaty between the United States and Turkey, our 

 minister at Constantinople has been instructed that, 

 while recognizing the right of that Government to 

 enforce its declared policy against naturalized Ar- 

 menians, he. is expected to protect them from un- 

 necessary harshness of treatment. 



In view of the impaired financial resources ot 

 Venezuela, consequent upon the recent revolution 

 there, a modified arrangement for the- satisfaction ot 

 the awards of the late revisory claims commission, 

 in progressive installments, has been assented to, and 

 payments are being regularly made thereunder. 



The boundary dispute between Venezuela and 

 British Guiana is yet unadjusted. A restoration of 

 diplomatic intercourse between that republic and 

 Great Britain and reference of the question to im- 

 partial arbitration would be a most gratifying con- 

 summation. 



The ratification by Venezuela of the convention 

 for the arbitration of the long-deferred claim of the 

 Venezuelan Transportation Company is awaited. 

 _ It is hardly necessary for me to state that the ques- 

 tions arising from our relations with Hawaii have 

 caused serious embarrassment. Just prior to the in- 

 stallation of the present Administration the existing 

 Government had been suddenly overthrown and a 

 treaty of annexation had been negotiated between the 

 Provisional Government of the islands and the United 



States, and submitted to the Senate for ratification. 

 This treaty I withdrew for examination, and dis- 

 patched Hon. James H. Blount, of Georgia, to Hono- 

 lulu as a special commission to make an impartial in- 

 vestigation of the circumstances attending the change 

 of government, and of all the conditions bearing upon 

 the subject of the treaty. After a thorough and ex- 

 haustive examination Mr. Blount submitted to me his 

 report, showing beyond all question that the Consti- 

 tutional Government of Hawaii had been subverted 

 with the active aid of our representative to that Gov- 

 ernment and through the intimidation caused by the 

 presence of an armed naval force of the United States 

 which was landed for that purpose at the instance of 

 our minister. 



Upon the facts developed it seemed to be the only 

 honorable course for our Government to pursue was 

 to undo the wrong that had been done by those repre- 

 senting us, and to restore as far as practicable the 

 status existing at the time of our forcible intervention. 

 With a view of accomplishing this result within the 

 constitutional limits of executive power, and recog- 

 nizing all our obligations and responsibilities growing 

 out of any changed conditions brought about by our 

 unjustifiable interference, our present minister at 

 Honolulu has received appropriate instructions to this 

 end. Thus far no information of the accomplishment 

 of any definite results has been received from him. 



Additional advices are soon expected. When re- 

 ceived they will be promptly sent to the Congress, 

 together with all other information at hand, accom- 

 panied by a special executive message fully detailing 

 all the facts necessary to a complete understanding ot 

 the case, and presenting a history of all the material 

 events leading up to the present situation. 



By a concurrent resolution passed by the Senate 

 Feb. 14, 1890, and by the House of Eepresentatives on 

 the 3d of April following, the President was requested 

 u to invite from time to time, as fit occasions may 

 arise, negotiations with any government with whicli 

 the United States has or may have diplomatic rela- 

 tions, to the end that any differences and disputes 

 arising between the two governments, which can be 

 adjusted by diplomatic agency, may be referred to 

 arbitration and be peacefully adjusted by such means." 

 April 18, 1890, the International American Conference 

 of Washington, by resolution, expressed the wish that 

 all controversies between the republics of America 

 and the nations of Europe might be settled by arbi- 

 tration, and recommended that the government ot 

 each nation represented in that conference should 

 communicate this wish to all friendly powers. A 

 favorable response has been received from Great 

 Britain in the shape of a resolution adopted by Parli- 

 ament July 16 last, cordially sympathizing with the 

 purpose in view, and expressing the hope that Her 

 Majesty's Government will lend ready co-operation 

 to the Government of the United States upon the 

 basis of the concurrent resolution above quoted. It 

 affords me signal pleasure to lay this parliamentary 

 resolution before the Congress, and to express my 

 sincere gratification that the sentiment of two great 

 and kindred nations is thus authoritatively mani- 

 fested in favor of the rational and peaceable settle- 

 ment of international quarrels by honorable resort to 

 arbitration. 



Since the passage of the act of March 3, 1893, au- 

 thorizing the President to raise the grade of our en- 

 voys to correspond with the rank in which foreign 

 countries accredit their agents here, Great Britain, 

 France, Italy, and Germany have conferred upon 

 their representatives at this capital the title of ambas- 

 sador, and I have responded by accrediting the 

 agents of the United States to those countries with 

 the same title. A like elevation of mission is an- 

 nounced by Eussia, and when made will be similarly 

 met. This step fittingly comports with the position 

 the United States holds 'in the family of nations. 



During my former administration I took occasion 

 to recommend a recast of the laws relating to the con- 

 sular service, in order that it might become a more 



