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SPEECH 
 
 OF 
 
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 HON. JAMES B. CLAY. OF KENTUCKY, 
 
 ON 
 
 THE NEUTRALITY LAWS; 
 
 DELIVERED 
 
 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, JANUARY 13, 1858. 
 
 
 
 .WASHINGTON: 
 PRINTED AT THE CONGRESSIONAL GLOBE OFFICE, 
 1858. 
 
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 THE NEUTRALITY LAWS 
 
 The House having resolved itself into the Committee of 
 the Whole on the state of the Union, and resumed the con- 
 sideration of the President's annual message — 
 
 Mr. CLAY said: 
 
 Mr. Chairman: In arising for the first time 
 in all my life to address any legislative assem- 
 bly whatever, I confess that 1 do so Avitli all 
 that diffidence and embarrassment that might be 
 expected to surround one under such circum- 
 stances. I am gratified, however, that I have the 
 privilege, at this time, of rising to sustain what I 
 believe to be law and order. I have seen the re- 
 markable spectacle presented to this country of 
 an Administration going out before the country 
 apparently unsustained by its own friends. I 
 have seen, sir, that on every message of the Pres- 
 ident of the United States, to this House, or the 
 other, opportunities have been taken to assail and 
 to pick at him and his motives. In the message 
 which the President of the United States has sent 
 to this House, on the subject of our relations with 
 Nicaragua, and in reference to the conduct of 
 " General" William Walker, as his friends choose 
 to call him, I am happy to say that I sustain him 
 in every word that he has written. 
 
 What are the facts of the case of General Walker 
 as presented to this House and before the country? 
 He is no citizen of the United States. He has 
 expatriated himself. He has chosen, sir, to say 
 to the world that he will no longer be covered by 
 tl\e glorious stars and stripes of which we are so 
 proud, and that he arrays himself under another 
 flag, and has become the citizen of another coun- 
 try . What have been his acts and his conduct while 
 a citizen of that other country .' Brought home 
 because there was a sympathy felt for him in this 
 
 land of ours; brought home for the purpose of 
 saving hisneck — a thing for which he should have 
 been full of gratitude to the Government of the 
 United States — what, sir, is his conduct when he 
 obtains liberty upon this soil once again ? instant- 
 ly he proceeds to levy war, to enroll men, and to 
 collect arms and all the munitions of war, for the 
 purpose of using them against a country with 
 v/hich we are at peace. I have every sympathy for 
 Walker, and for the gallant spirits who went with 
 him to Nicaragua; nevertheless, while I entertain 
 that sympathy for him, and for them, and while I 
 believe that it is entertained by the whole country, 
 I believe, sir, that it considers him, not as Gen- 
 eral Walker, not as the President of Nicaragua, 
 but as nothing more or less than a.Jillibuster. 
 
 Sir, the proceedings of this gentleman in levying 
 war against Nicaragua were so well known to the 
 whole country, that it was necessary that instruc- 
 tions should be given to the district attorneys and 
 the other officers of this country to watch him, 
 and to prevent him from carrying on that war 
 which he was about levying. What does he do ? 
 He is brought up before a court in New Orleans 
 and held to bail, a bail very easily given, because 
 among his friends were men at the North and 
 elsewhere who had schemes and designs of their, 
 own, and who were able to pay the $2,000 bail 
 which this gentleman gave. But does that stop 
 his proceedings for a single instant? Does that 
 stop his designs for a moment? No, sir, he pro- 
 ceeds with all his preparations. He carries them 
 on. He puts his men and arms on board a vessel, 
 and he puts one of his own officers in the first in- 
 stance, as I believe the newspapers stated, on 
 board in command of that vessel. But when it is 
 
found that she will not be permitted to sail under 
 the command of that officer and under the flag 
 ■which he would have been bound to raise, if he 
 raised any, the officer is withdrawn, and the 
 American flag is run up at the fore, and her reg- 
 istry and everything of that sort is passed through 
 the custom-house in proper order. 
 
 Sir, the vessel had on board the armed men and 
 the armament of General Walker. Her clearance 
 was obtained in fraud of our laws; and when that 
 vessel left the port of Mobile, as I believe she 
 did, she left in fraud of our laws, and evaded 
 them. It ia my opinion that the same law which 
 was meted out to an American vessel which went 
 to the coast of Cuba, should have been meted out 
 to that vessel which was willing to prostitute the 
 flag of the American Union to the purposes of 
 the fillibuster, General Walker. I believe that 
 that vessel should have been seized; I believe she 
 should have been tried before our courts; I be- 
 Eeve that she subjected herself to forfeitui-e and 
 eonfiscation. 
 
 Gentlemen have contended that there is no 
 power in this Government of the United States to 
 seize her own citizens even when they are levying 
 war against a foreign country with which we are 
 at peace, and when they are not outside of the 
 marine league. I believe, sir, in no such doctrine. 
 I believe, so far as regards the duty of this Gov- 
 ernment towards foreign nations, that it is the 
 duty of the President of these United States and 
 of all the authorities of this Government, under 
 - the law of nations, to restrain our citizens from 
 any such act. What would be the consequences 
 if every man who pleased might fit out a vessel, 
 and like the old vikings of the North, sail out for 
 the purpose of acquiring territory, and invading 
 territories with which we are at peace ? Would 
 it not be to involve us, in all probability, in war 
 with territories with which we are at peace, and 
 with which we desire to maintain friendly rela- 
 tions.' That would be the direct consequences; 
 and the duty incumbent upon the authorities of 
 this Government, under the law of nations, is to 
 restrain such acts, and for the very reason that 
 these consequences would be disastrous to our- 
 selves. 
 
 But, sir, it is not the case of a citizen of our 
 own country that we are considering. It is the 
 case of a man who is no citizen of ours; who has 
 no right whatever to appeal to us for any of the 
 rights of citizenship. He has chosen volunta- 
 rily to expatriate himself. He has chosen, when 
 this country had saved his life, when this country 
 had thrown our broad asgis around him, to save 
 iiim from death, to come amongst us and levy 
 
 war in breach of the neutrality laws of this coun- 
 try, if the law of nations did not suffice to pre- 
 vent him from carrying on such an act. Why, 
 sir, how does the case of this gentleman differ 
 from that of Aaron Burr, with the single, sole ex- 
 ception that Burr was a citizen, and this man was 
 not a citizen ? So far as the records of the country 
 show us, there was nothing ever proved against 
 Aaron Burr making his conduct in the slightest 
 degree different from the conduct pursued by Gen- 
 eral Williani Walker; and yet the name of Aaroo 
 Burr has been handed down to us, as it will be 
 handed down to after times, coupled with th«- 
 epithet of traitor. 
 
 Sir, I maintain that it was the duty of the Pres- 
 ident of the United States to stop this man in the 
 first instance, from proceeding from our shores, 
 with his armament against Nicaragua. I main- 
 tain, sir, that if he had come into this country of 
 ours, had raised a band of a hundred men with 
 whom he might seek to attack any city or any 
 portion of our people, and afterward had gone tto 
 the sea-coast and got himself and men on board 
 a vessel and sought to escape from the penalties 
 of the laws of the country — I maintain thatund'er 
 the law of nations, and without the law of 1818, 
 the President of the United States might hav« 
 directed him to have been followed by our ships 
 of war, and brought back for trial and condemna- 
 tion, if the facts were proved against him. Well, 
 sir, he breaks not only the law of nations in this 
 ease, but the statute law of the country — the law 
 of 1818. He escapes from our shores under false 
 colors, fraudulently escapes from our shores, and 
 I maintain that it was not only within the power 
 and authority, but that it was the duty of the 
 President to send for him over the high seas, and 
 have him brought back to this country. I think 
 that the President stopped at precisely the right 
 point, when he stopped atone marine league from 
 the coast of Nicaragua. I am not in favor, even 
 for any purpose of our own, of invading the ter- 
 ritory of another country, even though good may 
 come from so doing wrong; neither do I under- 
 stand the President to be in favor of doing any 
 such thing. 
 
 I do not coincide with my honorable friend from 
 Ohio, [Mr. Groesbeck,] although I agreed with 
 him in almost everything else he said, that tbs 
 President had the authority to send, or that the 
 force of this country, either the Army or Navy, had 
 the right to go upon the shores of a foreign country 
 to execute our lavirs. But the President does not 
 go to ths,t extent. He stops at the marine league ; 
 and it is my opinion that under the law of nations, 
 as well as under the neutrality laws of 1818, he 
 
had the I'ight, and it was his duty, to have gone 
 just to that marine league on the shores of Nic- 
 earagua, and no further. There he went, and thus 
 far he upholds his officers ; he goes no further. 
 
 But, sir, I have been astonished that men in 
 this House, while maintaining the rights of this 
 General Walker; while maintaining his rights, 
 sometimes as a citizen, and at other times as a 
 mere man — I say I am astonished at their casting 
 such censures upon that gallant officer of our 
 Navy, Commodore Paulding. I care not whether 
 he be descended from the Paulding who seized 
 Andre, and refused a bribe of British gold; I care 
 not who his father may have been ; all I care about 
 is the fact that he is an officer of the United States 
 Government; that he had the epaulets of that 
 Government upon his shoulders; and at the very 
 day he was denounced in this House, by those 
 for whom I entertain the highest respect, as having 
 been guilty of an act of robbery; as having been 
 ft kidnapper; as having been guilty of unofficer- 
 like conduct — that at that very day the flag of his 
 country was floating above him; and that, I have 
 no doubt, had occasion arisen for him to have 
 done so, he would have maintained it gallantly 
 Mid well, as his father, in the early days of the 
 Republic, maintained the honor of his country. 
 
 Sir, what has Commodore Paulding done ? Up 
 to the very moment he landed upon the shore 
 of Nicaragua, he and those with him were fully 
 borne out to the completestextent by the instruc- 
 tions of the Government whose officer he was. It 
 is not necessary for me to refer to those instruc- 
 tions. It would take more time of this committee 
 than I chose to consume, but there is no man who 
 will read those instructions, as given repeatedly 
 to the officers of that squadron, and other officers 
 of the United States, who will not agree with me 
 in saying that up to the moment of landing upon 
 the shores of Nicaragua, Commodore Paulding 
 was borne out to the fullest extent by the Exec- 
 utive of this country. What, then, has he done? 
 Knowing, sir, the extreme desire of this country 
 to prevent this waging of war by this fillibuster 
 Walker against Nicaragua, knowing the extreme 
 desire of the Government to prevent it, this gen- 
 tJeman, Commodore Paulding, perhaps with an 
 excess of zeal, landed his men upon the shore 
 and broke up the expedition. 
 
 But, sir, he had some cause to send his men 
 there to hold this General Walker responsible and 
 accountable. Look at the letter of Mr. Cilley, a 
 lieutenant of one of our ships, who went with the 
 other otHcers upon the shore, with the uniform 
 of the United States upon him. He goes there, 
 as he had a right to go, to the shore of a country 
 
 with which we were at peace; and how is he met? 
 Before his boat reaches the landing even, he is 
 ordered off. He is told that if he attempts to land 
 he will be fired upon. The epaulets of our coun- 
 try were to be fired upon. Our officer, going to a 
 peaceful shore, was to be fired upon, by the order, 
 as it was said, of General Walker, the commander 
 of fiUibusters. 
 
 Sir, if there had been no other cause for hold- 
 ing these men to accountability, that, in my hum- 
 ble opinion, would have been sufficient cause. I 
 pledge my honor, that if I had been in the position 
 of Commodore Paulding, and if Walker, or tb« 
 citizen of any country, had dared to direct his 
 men to present their muskets at the bosoms of 
 my officers, I would have held him to such terms 
 as would, perhaps, have saved a good deal of dis- 
 cussion in this House about him. 
 
 But, sir, the President has, in his message, cen- 
 sured the conduct of Commodore Paulding. Ho 
 has said that that officer committed a grave error, 
 r agree with the President fully in that. I think 
 that Commodore Paulding did, perhaps, exceed 
 his instructions in landing on the shores of Nic- 
 aragua, and in sending these men home to th« 
 United States. But did he do so like a kidnapper? 
 Did he do so like a robber ? Did he do so like a 
 man conscious that he was doing a villainous act? 
 I have no acquaintance with that gentleman, and 
 I am not here as his special defender. But I say, 
 sir, that he acted not as a robber, a kidnapper, or 
 as a man who was committing a villainous act. He 
 knew himself fully. He knew well that his zeal 
 had perhaps carried him beyond hisinstri^ctions, 
 and frankly, and in a manner manly, open, and 
 above-board, he comes out in his letter to the De- 
 partment and states that he was aware that he 
 had exceeded his instructions, and that he wa« 
 willing to bear such responsibility as the coun- 
 try — which ought perhaps to be grateful to him — 
 might choose to hold him to. 
 
 I think that the censure contained in the Presi- 
 dent's message is sufficient censure for the con- 
 ductof Commodore Paulding. I think thatagainst 
 this little Navy of ours, which ought to be our 
 pride, and which, in old times, was our pride, 
 enough has been said. Enough has been done to 
 destroy it. Naval courts have been instituted for 
 that purpose. A Spanish inquisition, almost, has 
 been placed over its officers. Many of them, gal- 
 lant and true, have been degraded from the posi- 
 tions which they held. I am gratified, however, 
 that many of them have been, at last, restored 
 to the positions which they deserved to hold. I 
 am not in favor of attacking any further the espi-it 
 de corps of this Navy of ours. I am proud of our 
 
Navy. I glory in the gallant men who expose 
 their lives to the tempest and to the waves in up- 
 holding the flag of their country. I glory in those 
 men. Although I come from the far West, where 
 tlie plow, not the anchor, is our emblem, they 
 will always find in me a defender. 
 
 Sir, I am opposed altogether to this system of 
 private warfare which is now attempted to be in- 
 itiated in the history of the country. There are 
 three modes of private warfare, to all of which, 
 and to each of which, I am opposed. There is 
 piracy on the high seas, to which every civilized 
 man is opposed. There is buccaneering — a sys- 
 tem under which, in that barbarous age, men 
 thought they could prey upon the Spanish Main 
 and rob the Spanish -American towns. They at- 
 tacked the towns for the purpose of robbery, and 
 not for the purpose of holdhig them. Then, 
 again, there is this system of fillibusterism , which 
 I conceive to be a relic of the dark ages. Under 
 tliis system, men set out in their own ships, and 
 with their own armaments, to take countries, not 
 merely to rob them, but to hold them as conquer- 
 ors. I am opposed to all this system. I believe 
 that whenever we shall need Central America, or 
 any portion of it, we have it within our gi'asp, 
 and can take it. 1 believe that the proper means 
 of civilizing these semi-barbarous lands is by 
 emigration, peaceful emigration — not that emi- 
 gration where the musket and bayonet are in the 
 hands of the emigrant. Peaceful emigration is 
 the proper course. When the day shall arrive 
 that any portion of the fair and sunny South, from 
 
 Cuba to the remotest province of Central Amer- 
 ica, is necessary to this nation, let the flag of the 
 Union be thrown out, and there will be volunteers 
 enough to march under it and take whatever may 
 be thought necessary for us to have. For my 
 part, I will march under no flag but the flag of 
 the Union. I will keep step to no music but th« 
 music of the Union. 
 
 Sir, as to the resolutions before the committee, 
 I have no objection to them. I have no objeo- 
 tion to the reference of the President's message, 
 or of any part of it, to the appropriate committees. 
 1 have not the slightest objection to the reference 
 of the whole subject of the neutrality laws to a 
 proper committee. I care not much whether it 
 be to one of the standing committees of the House, 
 or to a select committee. I am not prepared to 
 say to what extent I would uphold the present 
 neutrality laws of the country. I do not think it 
 necessary now to express any opinion in refer- 
 ence to that, further than I have done. At a 
 proper time and in a proper place I may again ask 
 leave of the House to express the views which I 
 entertain on that subject. I have accomplished 
 all I intended to do now. I have, feebly, I know, 
 but to the best of my humble ability, attempted 
 to sustain the President of the United States in 
 the views he has taken, and have attei^ipted to 
 vindicate the honor of the epaulets and of the flag 
 of this country. In doing that, I feel that I have 
 only done a duty which I owe to myself, and 
 which I owe to the constituency which I ha%-e the 
 honor to represent. 
 
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