,.r ^. 
 
 '^0' 
 
 
 
 ^^ "^ 
 
 cO\*^ 
 
 "^o< :^/ 
 
 
 
 
 '%.** 
 
 
 V 
 
 i^ <^ .w^^..-. ^ 
 
 .s^ -^ 
 
 
 \> 
 
 
 
 5o. 
 
 9^, ^' 
 
 
 
 
 ,^^9. 
 
 
 
 
 - ^ 
 
 
 
 V 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 <i5 o^ 
 
 
 
 ' ' » o S -- 
 
 
 ^J ' / 4 J, S " \> _ 
 
 \' 
 
 <> 
 
 ^0^ 
 
 
 ■^i /. 
 
 
 
 G^- 
 
 tt.0^ 
 
 ^ o. 
 
 
 .V%^' ^ 
 
 .^ ,^^^ 
 
 ■^'-^^ 
 
 
 '^6 
 
 
 
 
 v\^ 
 
 ip, (>N 
 
 
 
 
 
 < 
 
 -,^ 
 

 
 vl£^/° "^(^ 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 .^^ ^^ 
 
 
 
 
 ^. '' 
 
 
 
 
 
 G- ^-Vy.yp^ 
 
 
 ^^o< 
 
 ,^^<5. 
 
 1^ '^-^^ v>^ 
 
 c 
 
 
 
 -.^rTJ^,- oP^ 
 
 H o^ 
 
 '■ - ~. •-- v^ ^ ^ 2IJXS J' .^ ^ ^.^M^ . ,f; 
 
 
 >;/ 
 
 cS <^ 
 
 
 ^0^ 
 
 
 <'. 
 
 o~ . •< <■ , V 
 
 4^ -^ =•/ 
 
 r.f^ 
 
 "^ 
 
 %.o^ 
 
 
 ^^^ :{ 'rx -r. ^'^ 
 
 
 
 
 -^x''^,? ^ X 
 
 '^^^ 
 
 : ,^ 9. 
 
 
 c>. '/ 
 
 ,^^^ 
 
 
 n)" * ^ " " / '^. " " V ^ ■ ->^, •e^ 
 
 
 
 ^&^' 
 
 aSJ-' 
 
 
 #5^ 
 
 
 
 0.V- 
 
 
 
 
 
 <''<-■>'' A*^ ^ '-^ / s ^ A*^ 
 
 
 V ^ ^ * , 
 
 ■^^ '' ' » i, ^ '' A t^ ' '■ ■■ ^ 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES 
 
 OK 
 
 RUTHERFORD B. HAYES, 
 
 PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES, 
 
 TOGETHER WITH 
 
 LETTER OF ACCEPTANCE 
 
 IIV^UOXJKAL ^r>r>R^ESS. 
 
 ■^^\^^ntJ'67^''/K^I ili-d.ye%) 
 
 WASHINGTON 
 1881. 
 

/ -'^^ 
 
 /02> 
 
 LETTER OF ACCEPTANCE 
 
 REPUBLICAN NOMINATION FOR PRESIDENT OF 
 THE UNITED STATES. 
 
 JUJLY 8, 1876. 
 
By transfer 
 lie Wiite House, 
 
LETTER OF ACCEPTANCE. 
 
 Columbus, Ohio, July 8, 1876. 
 
 GENTLE3IEX : lu reply to your official communication of June 17, by 
 which I am informed of my nomination for the oflSce of President of 
 the United States by the Eepublican National Convention at Cincin- 
 nati, I accept the nomination with gratitude, hoping that, under Provi- 
 dence, I shall be able, if elected, to execute the duties of the high 
 office as a trust for the benefit of all the people. I do not deem it 
 necessary to enter upon any extended examination of the declaration 
 of principles made by the Convention. The resolutions are in accord 
 with my views, and I heartily concur in the principles they announce. 
 In several of the resolutions, however, questions are considered which 
 are of such iuii^ortance that I deem it proper to briefly express my con- 
 victions in regard to them. The fifth resolution adopted by the Con- 
 vention is of paramount interest. More than forty years ago a system 
 of making appointments to office grew up, based upon the maxim " to 
 the victors belong the spoils." The old rule, the true rule, that honesty, 
 capacity, and fidelity constitute the only real qualification for office, 
 and that there is no other claim, gave j)lace to the idea that party ser- 
 vices were to be chiefly considered. All parties in jjractice have adopted 
 this system. It has been essentially modified since its first introduc- 
 tion. It has not, however, been improved. At first the President, 
 either directly or through the heads of department, made all the ap- 
 pointments, but gradually the appointing power, in many cases, passed 
 into the control of members of Congress. The offices in these cases have 
 become not merely rewards for party services, but rewards for services to 
 party leaders. This system destroys the independence of the separate 
 departments of the Government. " It tends directly to extravagance and 
 official incapacity." It is a temptation to dishonesty; it hinders and im- 
 pairs that careful supervision and strict accountability by which alone 
 faithful and efficient public service can be secured; it obstructs the 
 prompt removal and sure punishment of the unworthy; in every way it 
 degrades the civil service and the character of the Government. It is 
 felt, I am confident, by a large majority of the members of Congress, 
 to be an intolerable burden and an unwarrantable hindrance to the 
 proper discharge of their legitimate duties. It ought to be abol- 
 
6 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 islied. Tbe reform should be tliorough, radical, and complete. We 
 should return to the priuciples and practice of the founders of the 
 Government — supplying by legislation, when needed, that which was 
 formerly the estaljlished custom. They neither expected nor desired 
 from the public oflflcers any partisan service. They meant that public 
 officers should give their whole service to the Government and to the 
 people. They meant that the officer should be secure in his tenure as 
 long as his personal character remained untarnished and the perform- 
 ance of his duties satisfactory. If elected, I shall conduct the admin- 
 istration of the Government upon these principles, and all constitu- 
 tional powers vested in the Executive will be employed to establish 
 this reform. The declaration of principles by the Cincinnati Conven- 
 tion makes no announcement in favor of a single Presidential term. I 
 do not assume to add to that declaration; but believing that the resto- 
 ration of the civil service to the system established by Washington 
 and followed by the early Presidents can be best accomplished by an 
 Executive who is under no temptation to use the patronage of his 
 office to promote his own re-election, I desire to perform what I regard 
 as a duty in now stating my inflexible purpose, if elected, not to be a 
 candidate for election to a second term. 
 
 On the currency question I have frequently expressed my views in 
 public, and I stand by my record on this subject. I regard all the laws 
 of the United States relating to the payment of the public indebtedness, 
 the legal-tender notes included, as constituting a pledge and moral 
 obligation of the Government, which must in good faith be kept. It 
 is my conviction that the feeling of uncertainty inseparable from an 
 irredeemable paper currency, with its tiuctuations of value, is one of 
 the great obstacles to a revival of confidence and business, and to a 
 return of prosperity. That uncertainty can be ended in but one way — 
 the resumption of specie payments. But the longer the instability of 
 our money system is permitted to continue, the greater will be the in- 
 jury inflicted upon our economical interests and all classes of society. 
 If elected, I shall approve every appropriate measure to accomplish 
 the desired end ; and shall oppose any step backward. 
 
 The resolution with respect to the public-school system is one which 
 should receive the hearty support of the American people. Agitation 
 upon this subject is to be apprehended, until, by constitutional amend- 
 ment, the schools are placed beyond all danger of sectarian control or 
 interference. The Eepublicau party is pledged to secure such an 
 amendment. 
 
 The resolution of the Convention on the subject of the permanent pa- 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 7 
 
 cificationjof the country, and the complete protection of all its citizens 
 in the free enjoyment of all their constitutional rights, is timely and of 
 great importance. The condition of the Southern States attracts the 
 attention and commands the sympathy of the people of the whole 
 Union. In their progressive recovery from the effects of the war, their 
 first necessity is an intelligent and honest administration of govern- 
 ment which will protect all classes of citizens in their political and 
 private rights. What the South most needs is "peace," and peace de- 
 pends upon the supremacy of the law. There can be no enduring 
 peace if the constitutional rights of any portion of the people are 
 habitually disregarded. A division of political parties resting merely 
 upon sectional lines is always unfortunate and may be disastrous. The 
 welfare of the South, alike with that of every other part of this country, 
 depends upon the attractions it can ofl'er to labor and immigration, and 
 to capital. But laborers will not go, and cai^ital will not be ventured 
 where the Constitution and the laws are set at defiance, and distrac- 
 tion, apprehension, and alarm take the place of peace-loving and 
 law-abiding social life. All parts of the Constitution are sacred and 
 must be sacredly observed — the parts that are new no less than the 
 parts that are old. The moral and national prosperity of the Southern 
 States can be most effectually advanced by a hearty and generous re- 
 cognition of the rights of all, by all — a recognition without reserve or 
 exception. With such a recognition fully accorded it will be practica- 
 ble to promote, by the influence of all legitimate agencies of the Gen- 
 eral Government, the efl:brts of the people of those States to obtain for 
 themselves the blessings of honest and capable local government. If 
 elected, I shall consider it not only my duty, but it will be my ardent 
 desire to labor for the attainment of this end. 
 
 Let me assure my countrymen of the Southern States that if I shall be 
 charged with the duty of organizing an administration, it will be one 
 which will regard and cherish their truest interests — the interests of 
 the white and of the colored people both, and equally; and which will 
 put forth its best efforts in behalf of a civil policy which will wipe out 
 forever the distinction between North and South in our common country. 
 With a civil service organized upon a system Avhich will secure purity, 
 experience, efficiency, and economy, a strict regard for the public wel- 
 fare solely in appointments, and the speedy, thorough, and unsparing 
 prosecution and punishment of all public officers who betray official 
 trusts ; with a sound currency ; with education unsectariau and free to 
 all ; with simplicity and frugality in public and private affairs, and with 
 a fraternal spirit of harmony pervading tlie people of all sections and 
 
a LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 classes, we may reasonably hope that the second century of our exist- 
 ence as a Xation will, by the blessing of God, be pre-eminent as an era 
 of good feeling and a period of progress, prosperity, and happiness. 
 Very respecfully, your fellow-citizen, 
 
 E. B. HAYES. 
 
 To theHons. Edwakd McPherson,Wm. A.Howard, Jos. H. Eainey, 
 AND OTHERS, Committee of the National Republican Convention. 
 
INAUGURAL ADDRESS 
 
 PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES. 
 
 MARCH 5, 1877. 
 
INAUGURAL ADDRESS. 
 
 Fellow-Citizens: We have assembled to repeat the public cere- 
 mouial, begun by Wasliiugtou, observed by all my i^redecessors, and 
 now a time-honored custom, which marks the commencement of a new 
 term of the Presidential office. Called to the duties of this great trust, 
 I ijroceed, in compliance with usage, to announce some of the leading 
 principles on the subjects that now chiefly engage the public attention, 
 by which it is my desire to be guided in the discharge of those duties. 
 I shall not undertake to lay down irrevocably principles or measures of 
 administration, but rather to speak of the motives which should animate 
 us, and to suggest certain important ends to be attained in accordance 
 with our institutions and essential to the welfare of our country. 
 
 At the outset of the discussions which preceded the recent Presiden- 
 tial election, it seemed to me fitting that I should fully make kno"\vn 
 my sentiments in regard to several of the important questions which 
 then appeared to demand the consideration of the country. Following 
 the example, and in part adopting the language, of one of my pred- 
 ecessors, I wish now, when every motive for misrepresentation has 
 passed away, to repeat what was said before the election, trusting that 
 my countrymen will candidly weigh and understand it, and that they 
 will feel assured that the sentiments declared in accepting the nomina- 
 tion for the Presidency will be the standard of my conduct in the path 
 before me, charged, as I now aui, with the grave and difficult task of 
 carrying them out in the practical administration of the Government 
 so far as depends, under the Constitution and laws, on the Chief Ex- 
 ecutive of the Xation. 
 
 The permanent pacification of the country upon such principles and 
 by such measures as will secure the complete protection of all its cit- 
 izens in the free enjoyment of all their constitutional rights is now the 
 one subject, in our public affairs, which all thoughtful and patriotic 
 citizens regard as of supreme importance. 
 
 Manj^ of the calamitous effects of the tremendous revolution which 
 has passed over the Southern States still remain. The immeasurable 
 benefits wliich will surely follow, sooner or later, the hearty and gen- 
 erous acceptance of the legitimate results of that revolution, have not 
 vet been realized. Difficult and embarrassing questions meet us at the 
 
12 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 tbresliokl of this subject. The people of those States are still impov- 
 erished, and the inestimable blessing: of wise, honest, and i)eaceful self- 
 government is not fully enjoyed. Whatever difference of opinion may 
 exist as to the cause of this condition of things, the fact is clear, that, 
 in the progress of events, the time has come when such government is 
 the imperative necessity required by all the varied interests, i)ul)lic and 
 private, of those States. But it must not be forgotten that only a local 
 government which recognizes and maintains inviolate the rights of all 
 is a true self-government. 
 
 With respect to the two distinct races whose peculiar relations to 
 each other have brought upon us the deplorable complications and 
 peri^lexities which exist in those States, it must be a government which 
 guards the interests of both races carefully and equally. It must be a 
 government which submits loyally and heartily" to the Constitution and 
 the laws — the laws of the Nation and the laws of the States them- 
 selves — accepting and obeying faithfully the whole Constitution as it is. 
 
 Resting upon this sure and substantial foundation, the superstructure 
 of beneficent local governments can be built up, and not otherwise. 
 In furtherance of such obedience to the letter and the spirit of the Con- 
 stitution, and in behalf of all that its attainment implies, all so-called 
 party interests lose their apparent importance, and party lines may well 
 be permitted to fade into insignificance. The question we have to con- 
 sider for the immediate welfare of those States of the Union is the 
 question of government or no government, of social order and all the 
 peaceful industries and the happiness that belong to it, or a return to 
 barbarism. It is a question in which every citizen of the Nation is 
 deeply interested, and with respect to which we ought not to be, in a 
 partisan sense, either Republicans or Democrats, but fellow-citizens 
 and fellow-men, to whom the interests of a common country and a 
 common humanity are dear. 
 
 The sweeping revolution of the entire labor system of a large portion 
 of (mr country, and the advance of four millions of people from a con- 
 dition of servitude to that of citizenship, upon an equal footing with 
 their former masters, could not occur without presenting ])roblems of 
 the gravest moment, to be dealt with by the emancipated race, by their 
 former masters, and by the General Government, the author of the act 
 of emancipation. That it was a wise, just, and Providential act, fraught 
 with good for all concerned, is now generally conceded throughout the 
 country. That a moral obligation rests upon the National Government 
 to employ its constitutional power and influence to establish the rights 
 of the people it has emancipated, and to protect them in the enjoyment 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 13 
 
 of those rights wheu they are infriuged or assailed, is also generally 
 admitted. 
 
 The evils which afflict the Southern States can only be removed or 
 remedied by the united and harmonious efforts of both races, actuated 
 by motives of mutual sympathy and regard. And while in duty bound 
 and fully determined to i^rotect the rights of all by every constitutional 
 means at the disposal of my administration, I am sincerely anxious to 
 use every legitimate influence in favor of honest and efficient local self- 
 government as the true resource of those States for the promotion of 
 the contentment and prosperity of their citizens. In the effort I shall 
 make to accomplish this purpose I ask the cordial co-operation of all 
 who cherish an interest in the welfare of the country, trusting that 
 party ties and the prejudice of race will be freelj^ surrendered in behalf 
 of the great purpose to be accomplished. In the important work of 
 restoring the South it is not the political situation alone that merits 
 attention. The material development of that section of the country" 
 has been arrested by the social and political revolution through which 
 it has passed, and now needs and deserves the considerate care of the 
 National Government, within the just limits prescribed by the Consti- 
 tution and wise public economy. 
 
 But, at the basis of all prosperity, for that as well as for every other 
 l)art of the country, lies the improvement of the intellectual and moral 
 condition of the people. Universal suffrage should rest upon universal 
 education. To this end, liberal and i^ermanent provision should be 
 made for the support of free schools by the State governments, and, if 
 need be, supplemented by legitimate aid from national authority. 
 
 Let me assure my countrymen of the Southern States that it is my 
 earnest desire to regard and j^romote their truest interests, the interests 
 of the white and of the colored people both, and equally, and to put 
 forth my best efforts in behalf of a civil policy which will forever wipe 
 out in our political affairs the color line, and the distinction between 
 North and South, to the end that we may have not merely a united 
 North or a united South, but a united country. 
 
 I ask the attention of the public to the paramount necessity of reform 
 in our civil service, a reform not merely as to certain abuses and i)rac- 
 tices of so-called official patronage, which have come to have the sanc- 
 tion of usage in the several departments of our Government, but a 
 change in the system of appointment itself, a reform that shall be 
 thorough, radical, and complete; a return to the principles and prac- 
 tices of the founders of the Government. They neither expected nor 
 desired from public officers any partisan service. They meant that 
 
14 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 public ofificers sliould owe their whole service to the Government aud 
 to the ])eople. They meant that the officer should be secure in his 
 tenure as long as his personal character remained untarnished, and the 
 performance of his duties satisfactory. They held that appointments 
 to office were not to be made nor expected merely as rewards for parti- 
 san services, nor merely on the nomination of members of Congress, 
 as being entitled in any respect to the control of such appointments. 
 
 The fact that both the great political parties of the country, in de- 
 claring their principles prior to the election, gave a prominent place to 
 the subject of reform of our civil service, recognizing and strongly 
 urging its necessity, in terms almost identical in their specific imi)ort 
 with those I have here employed, must be accepted aS a conclusive 
 argument in belialf of these measures. It must be regarded as the 
 expression of the united voice and will of the whole country upon this 
 subject, and both political parties are virtually pledged to give it their 
 unreserved support. 
 
 The President of the United States of necessity owes his election to 
 office to the suffrage and zealous labors of a political party, the mem- 
 bers of which cherish with ardor, and regard as of essential importance, 
 the principles of their party organization. But he should strive to be 
 always mindful of the fact that he serves his party best Avho serves his 
 country best. 
 
 In furtherance of the reform we seek, and in other important respects 
 a change of great importance, I recommend an amendment to the Con- 
 stitution prescribing a term of six years for the Presidential office, and 
 forbidding a re-election. 
 
 With respect to the financial condition of the country, I shall not 
 attempt an extended history of the embarrassment and prostration 
 which we have suffered during the past three years. The depression 
 in all our varied commercial and manufacturing interests throughout 
 the country, which began in September, 1873, still continues. It is 
 very gratifying, however, to be able to say that there are indications 
 all around us of a coming change to prosperous times. 
 
 Upon the currency question, intimately connected as it is with this 
 topic, I may be permitted to repeat here the statement made in my let- 
 ter of acceptance, that, in my judgment, the feeling of uncertainty 
 inseparable from an irredeemable paper currency, with its fluctuation 
 of values, is one of the greatest obstacles to a return to prosperous 
 times. The only safe paper currency is one which rests upon a coin 
 basis, and is at all times and promptly convertible into coiji. 
 
 I adhere to the ^lews heretofore expressed by me in favor of con- 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 15 
 
 gressional legislation in behalf of an early resumption of specie pay- 
 ment, and I am satisfied not only tliat this is wise, but that the interests 
 as well as the public sentiment of the country imi)eratively demand it. 
 
 Passing- from these remarks upon the condition of our own country 
 to consider our relations with other lands, we are reminded by the in- 
 ternational comijlications abroad, threatening the peace of Europe, that 
 our traditional ride of non-interference in the affairs of foreign nations 
 has proved of great value in past times, and ought to be strictly 
 observed. 
 
 The policy inaugurated by my honored predecessor, President Grant, 
 of submitting to arbitration grave questions in dispute between our- 
 selves and foreign Powers, points to a new and incomparably the best 
 instrumentality for the preservation of peace, and will, as I believe, 
 become a beneficent example of the course to be pursued in similar 
 emergencies by other nations. 
 
 If, unhappily, questions of difference should at any time during the 
 period of my administration arise between the United States and any 
 foreign Government, it will certainly be my disposition and my hope 
 to aid in their settlement in the same peaceful and honorable way, thus 
 securing to our country the great blessings of peace and mutual good 
 offices with all the nations of the world. 
 
 Fellow-citizens, we have reached the close of a political contest 
 marked by the excitement which usually attends the contests between 
 great political parties, whose members espouse and advocate with 
 earnest faith their respective creeds. The circumstances were, perhaps, 
 in no respect extraordinary, save in the closeness and the consequent 
 uncertainty of the result. 
 
 For the first time in the history of the country, it has been deemed 
 best, in view of the peculiar circumstances of the case, that the objec- 
 tions and questions in dispute ^ith reference to the counting of the 
 electoral votes should be referred to the decision of a tribunal appointed 
 for this purpose. 
 
 That tribunal — established by law for this sole purpose; its members, 
 all of them, men of long-established reputation for integrity and intelli- 
 gence, and, with the exception of those who are also members of the 
 Supreme Judiciary, chosen equally from both political parties; its 
 deliberations— enlightened by the research and the arguments of able 
 counsel — was entitled to the fullest confidence of the American people. 
 Its decisions have been patiently waited for, and accepted as legally 
 conclusive by the general judgment of the public. For the present, 
 opinion will widely vary as to the wisdom of the several conclusions 
 
16 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 announced by that tribunal. This is to be anticipated in every instance 
 where matters of dispute are made the subject of arbitration under the 
 forms of law. Human judgment is never unerring, and is rarely re- 
 garded as otherwise than wrong by the unsuccessful party in the con- 
 test. 
 
 The fact that two great political parties have in this way settled a 
 dispute, in regard to which good raeu differ as to the facts and the law, 
 no less than as to the proper course to be pursued, in solving the ques- 
 tion in controversy, is an occasion for general rejoicing. 
 
 Upon one point there is entire unanimity in public sentiment, that 
 contlictiug claims to the Presidency unist be amicably and peaceably 
 adjusted, and that when so adjusted the general acquiescence of the 
 Nation ought surely to follow. 
 
 It has been reserved for a Government of the people, where the right 
 of suffrage is universal, to give to the world the first example in history 
 of a great Nation, in the midst of a struggle of opposing parties for 
 power, hushing its party tumults, to yield the issue of the contest to 
 adjustment according to the forms of law. 
 
 Looking for the guidance of that Divine Hand by which the destinies 
 of nations and individuals are shaped, I call upon you. Senators, Eep- 
 resentatives. Judges, fellow-citizens, here and everywhere, to unite with 
 me in an earnest effort to secure to our country the blessings, not only 
 of material i^rosperity, but of justice, peace, and union — a Union de- 
 pending not upon the constraint of force, but upon the lo^ ing devotion 
 of a free people; "and that all things may be so ordered and settled 
 upon the best and surest foundations, that peace and happiness, truth 
 and justice, religion and piety, may be established among us for all 
 generations." 
 
LETTER OF INSTRUCTION 
 
 TO THE 
 
 LOUISIANA COMMISSION 
 
 APRIL 9, 1877. 
 
LETTER OF INSTRUCTION. 
 
 Washington, April 2, 1877. 
 
 Gentlemen: I am iustructed by the President to lay before you 
 some observations upon the occasion and objects wliich have led him 
 to invite you, as members of the commission about to visit the State of 
 Louisiana, to undertake this public service. 
 
 Upon assuming his office the President finds the situation of affairs 
 in Louisiana such as to justly demand his prompt and solicitous atten- 
 tion ; for this situation presents as one of its features the apparent 
 intervention of the military j)ower of the United States in the domestic 
 controversies which, unhaijpily, divide the opinions and disturb the 
 harmony of the people of that State. This intervention, arising dur- 
 ing the term and by the authority of his predecessor, throws no present 
 dutj' upon the President, except to examine and determine the real 
 extent and form and effect to which such intervention actually exists, 
 and to decide as to the time, manner, and conditions which should be 
 observed in putting an end to it. It is in aid of his intelligent and 
 prompt discharge of this duty that the President has sought the service 
 of this commission to supply by means of its examination, conducted 
 in the State of Louisiana, some information that may be pertinent to 
 the circumspection and security of any measure he may resolve upon. 
 
 It will be readily understood that the service desired of and intrusted 
 to this commission does hot include any examination into or report upon 
 the facts of the recent State election, or of the canvass of the votes 
 cast at such election. So far as attention to these subjects may be 
 necessary the President cannot but feel that the reports of the com- 
 mittees of the two Houses of Congress, and other public information 
 at hand, will dispense with and should i^reclude any original explora- 
 tion by the commission of that field of inquiry. 
 
 But it is most pertinent and important, in coming to a decision upon 
 the precise question of executive duty before himj, that the President 
 should know what are the real impediments to regular, legal, and 
 peaceful procedures under the laws and constitution of the State of 
 Louisiana by which the anomalies in government there presented may 
 be put in course of settlement without involving the element of mill- 
 
20 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 tary power as either an ageut or a make-weiglit iu such solution. The 
 successful ascertaiumeut of these impediments, the President would 
 confidently expect, would indicate to the people of that State the wis- 
 dom and the mode of their removal. The unusual circumstances which 
 attended and followed the State election and canvass, from its relation 
 to the excited feelings and interests of the Presidential election, may 
 have retarded, within the State of Louisiana, the persuasive influences 
 by which the great social and material interests common to the whole 
 people of a State, and the pride of the American character as a law- 
 abiding nation, ameliorate the disappointments and dissolve the resent- 
 ments of close and zealous political contests. But the President both 
 hopes and believes that the great body of the people of Louisiana are 
 now prepared to treat the unsettled results of their State election with 
 a calm and conciliatory spirit. If it be too much to expect a complete 
 concurrence in a single government for that State, at least the Presi- 
 dent may anticipate a submission to the peaceful resources of the laws 
 and the constitution of the State of all their discussions, at once reliev- 
 ing themselves from the reproach, and their fellow-citizensof the United 
 States from the anxieties, which must ever attend a prolonged dispute 
 as to the title and the administration of the government of one of the 
 States of the Union. 
 
 The President, therefore, desires that you should devote your first 
 and principal attention to a removal of the obstacles to an acknowl- 
 edgment of one government for the purpose of an exercise of author- 
 ity within the State, and a representation of the State in its relations 
 to the General Government, under section four of article four of the 
 Constitution of the United States, leaving, if necessary, to judicial or 
 other constitutional arbitrament A^•ithin the State the question of ulti- 
 mate right. If these obstacles should prove insuperable from whatever 
 reason, and the hope of a single government in all its departments be 
 disappointed, it should be your next endeavor to accomplish the recog- 
 nition of a single Legislature as the depositary of the representative 
 will of the people of Louisiana. This great department of government 
 rescued from disi)ute, the rest of the problem could gradually be worked 
 out by the pre\'alent authority which the legislative power, w hen un- 
 disputed, is quite competent to exert in composing conflict in the co- 
 ordinate branches of the Government. 
 
 An attentive consideration of the conditions under which the Federal 
 Constitution and the acts of Congress provide or permit military inter- 
 vention by the President in protection of a State against domestic vio- 
 lence, has satisfied the President that the use of this authority in deter- 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 21 
 
 mining or iuflnencing disputed elections in a State is most carefully to 
 be avoided. Undoubtedly, as was held by the Supreme Court in the 
 case of Luther vs. Borden, the appeal from a State may involve such 
 an inquiry as to the lawfulness of the authority which invokes the 
 interference of the President in supposed pursuance of the Constitu- 
 tion. But it is equally true that neither the constitutional provision 
 nor the acts of Congress were framed with any such design. Both 
 ob\aously treated the case of domestic violence within a State as of 
 outbreak against law and the authority of established government 
 which the State was unable to supiiress by its own streugth. A case 
 wherein every department of the State government has a disputed 
 representation, and the State, therefore, furnishes to the Federal Gov- 
 ernment no internal political recognition of authority upon which the 
 Federal Executive can rely, will present a case of so much difficulty 
 that it is of pressing importance to all interests in Louisiana that it 
 should be avoided. A single Legislature would greatly relieve this 
 difficulty, for that department of the State government is named by the 
 Constitution as the necessary applicant, when it can be convened, for 
 military intervention by the United States. 
 
 If, therefore, the disputing interests can concur in or be reduced to a 
 single Legislature for the State of Louisiana, it would be a great step in 
 composing this unhappy strife. 
 
 The President leaves entirely to the commission the conciliatory in- 
 fluences which, in their judgment formed on the spot, may seem to 
 conduce to the proposed end. His own determination that only public 
 considerations should insi)ire and attend this effort to give the ascen- 
 dency in Louisiana to the things that belong to peace, is evinced by 
 his selection of commissioners who offer to the country, in their own 
 character, every guarantee of the public motives and methods of the 
 transactions which they have undertaken. Your report of the result 
 of this endeavor will satisfy the President, he does not doubt, of the 
 wisdom of his selection of and of his plenary trust in the commission. 
 
 A second and less important subject of attention during your visit to 
 New Orleans will be the collection of accurate and trustworthy informa- 
 tion from the public officers and prominent citizens of all political connec- 
 tions as to the State of public feeling and opinion in the community at 
 large upon the general questions which affect the peaceful and safe exer- 
 cise, within the State of Louisiana, of all legal and i^olitical rights, and 
 the protection of all legal and political privileges conferred by the Con- 
 stitution of the United States upon all citizens. The maintenance and 
 protection of these rights and privileges, by all constitutional means, 
 
22 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 and by every just, moral, aud social influence, are the settled purpose 
 of the President in his adniinistratiou of the Government. He will 
 hope to learn from your investigations that this purpose will be aided 
 and not resisted by tlie substantial and effective public opinion of the 
 great body of the people of Louisiana. 
 
 The President does not wish to impose any limit upon your stay in 
 Louisiana that would tend to defeat the full objects of your \isit. He 
 is, however, extremely desirous to find it in his power, at the earliest 
 day compatible w ith a safe exercise of that authority, to put an end to 
 even the appearance of military intervention in the domestic affairs of 
 Louisiana, and he awaits your return with a confident hope that your 
 report will enable him promptly to execute a purpose he has so much at 
 heart. 
 
 The President desires me to add, that the publication of the results 
 of your visit he shall hope to make immediately after their communi- 
 cation to him. 
 
 I have the honor to be, with great respect, your obedient servant, 
 
 WM. M. EYARTS. 
 
 To the Honorables Charles B. Lawkence, Joseph R. Hawley, 
 John M. Haklan, John C. Brown, and Wayne MacYeagh, Com- 
 missioners. 
 
EXECUTIVE ORDER 
 
 IN RELATION TO 
 
 MILITAEY INTEEYENTION OP THE GENEEAL GOVEENMENT IN THE 
 APFAIES OP THE STATE OP LOUISIANA. 
 
 APRIL 90, 1877. 
 
EXECUTIVE ORDER. 
 
 Executive Mansion, Washington, Ajwil 20, 1877. 
 
 Sir : Prior to my entering upon the duties of the Presidency there 
 had been stationed by order of my predecessor in the immediate vicin- 
 ity of the buikling- used as a State-house iu jS'ew Orleans, La., and 
 known as Mechanics' Institute, a detachment of United States infantry. 
 Finding- them in that phice, I have thought proper to delay a decision 
 of the question of their removal until I could determine whether the 
 condition of affairs is now such as to either require or justify continued 
 military intervention of the National Government in the affairs of the 
 State. 
 
 In my opinion there does not now exist in Louisiana such domestic 
 violence as is contemplated by the Constitution as the ground upon 
 which the military power of the IS^ational Government may be invoked 
 for the defence of the State. The disputes which exist as to the right 
 of certain claimants to the chief executive office of that State are to 
 be settled and determined, not by the Executive of the United States, 
 but by such orderly and peaceable methods as may be provided by the 
 constitution and the laws of the State. Having the assurance that no 
 resort to violence is contemplated, but, on the contrary, the disputes 
 in question, are to be settled by peaceful methods, under and in ac- 
 cordance with law, I deem it proper to take action in accordance with 
 the principles announced when I entered upon the duties of the Presi- 
 dency. 
 
 You are therefore directed to see that the jjroper orders are issued 
 for the removal of said troops at an early date from their present posi- 
 tion to such regular barracks in the vicinity as may be selected for their 
 occupation. 
 
 E. B. HAYES. 
 
 To the Hon. Geo. W. McCrary, 
 
 Secretary of War. 
 
R E ¥> O R T 
 
 LOUISIANA COMMISSION 
 
 APRIL 24., 1877. 
 
REPORT OF THE LOUISIANA COMMISSION. 
 
 New Orleans, Ajyril 24, 1877. 
 To the President of the United States : 
 
 Sir : In accordance with your request the undersigned have visited 
 this city and i)assed the hist sixteen days in ascertaining the political 
 situation of Louisiana, arjd endeavoring to bring about a peaceful solu- 
 tion of its difficulties. In view of the declaration in the letter of the 
 Secretary of State, that we should direct our efforts to the end of 
 securing the recognition of a single Legislature as the depositary of 
 the representative vnll of the people of Louisiana, leaving, if necessary, 
 to the judicial or other constitutional arbitrament within the State the 
 question of the ultimate right, and in view of your determination to 
 withdraw the troops of the United States to their barracks as soon as 
 it could be done without endangering the peace, we addressed ourselves 
 to the task of securing a common Legislature and undisputed authority 
 competent to compose the existing political contentions and preserve 
 peace without any aid from the National Government. To this end we 
 endeavored to assuage the bitterness and animosity we found existing 
 on both sides, so as to secure public opinion less unfavorable to such 
 concessions as were indispensable to our success in obtaining such 
 Legislature, and such general acquiescence in its authority as would 
 insure social order. We have had full conferences with two gentlemen 
 who claim the gubernatorial office, and with many members of their 
 respective governments in their executive, judicial, and legislative 
 departments. We have also conversed very freely with large delega- 
 tions of men of business, with many of the district judges, and with 
 hundreds of prominent citizens of all parties and races, representing 
 not only this city but almost every i^arish in the State. We have also 
 received many printed and written statements of fact and legaf argu- 
 ment, and every person with whom we came in contact has shown an 
 earnest desire to give us all possible information bearing on the unfor- 
 tunate political divisions in the State. 
 
 The actual condition of affairs on our arrival in this city may be 
 briefly stated as follows : Governor Packard (we shall speak of both 
 gentlemen by the title they claim) was at the State-house with his 
 
30 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 Legislature and friends and armed police force. As there was no quo- 
 rum in tlie Senate, even upon his own theory of law, his Legislature 
 was necessarily inactive. The supreme court, which recognized his 
 authority, had not attempted to transact any business since it was dis- 
 possessed of its court-room and the custody of its records on the 9th 
 day of January, 1877. He had no organization of the militia, alleging 
 that his deficiency in that respect was owing to the obedience to the 
 orders of President Grant to take no steps to change the relative posi- 
 tion of himself and Governor Mcholls. His main chance was upon 
 the alleged legal title, claiming that it was the constitutional duty of 
 the President to recognize it, and to afford him such military assistance 
 as might be necessary to enable him to assert his authority as Governor. 
 Governor NichoUs was occupying Odd Fellows' Hall as a State-house. 
 His Legislature met there, and was actively engaged in business of 
 legislation. All the departments of the city government of New Orleans 
 recognized his authority. The supreme court, nominated by him, and 
 confirmed by the Senate, was holding daily sessions, and had heard 
 about two hundred cases. The time for the collection of taxes had not 
 arrived, but considerable sums of money, in the form of taxes, had 
 been voluntarily paid into his treasury, out of which he was defraying 
 the ordinary expenses of the State government. The Nicholls Legisla- 
 ture had a quorum in the Senate upon either the Nicholls or Packard 
 theory of law, and a quorum in the House on the Nicholls, but not on 
 the Packard theory. The Packard Legislature had a quorum in the 
 House on its own theory of law, but, as already stated, not in the Sen- 
 ate, and was thus disabled from any legislation that would be valid 
 even in the judgment of its own party. The commission found it to be 
 very difficult to ascertain the precise extent to which the respective 
 governments were acknowledged in the various parishes outside of 
 New Orleans ; but it is safe to say that the changes which had taken 
 place in parishes after the organization of the two governments, January 
 9, 1877, were in favor of the Nicholls government. The claim to the 
 legality of the supreme court, composed of Chief Justice Manning and 
 his associates, who were nominated by Governor Nicholls, and con- 
 firmed by his Senate, rests upon the same basis as the title of Governor 
 Nicholls and his Senate. The claim to tlie legality of the supreme 
 court, composed of Chief Justice Ludehng and his associates, rests 
 either upon their right to hold over in case the Nicholls court is illegal, 
 or upon the legality of the Kellogg-Packard Senate, which confirmed 
 the judges upon the nomination of Governor Kellogg, and while it had 
 a returning-board quorum. We have briefly sketched the actual posi- 
 tion as w^e found it. 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 31 
 
 THE LEGAL STATUS. 
 
 We will now state the legal question ui)on which the right of these 
 respective governments dei)ends. The constitution of the State of Lou- 
 isiana requires that the " returns of all elections for members of the 
 General Assembly shall be made to the Secretary of State." It also 
 l^rovides that "qualified electors shall vote for Governor and Lieuten- 
 ant-Governor at the time and place of voting for Eepresentatives. The 
 returns of every election shall be sealed up and transmitted by the 
 proper returning officers to the Secretary of State, who shall deliver 
 them to the Speaker of the House of Eepresentatives on the second 
 day of the General Assembly then to be holden. Members of the Gen- 
 eral Assembly shall meet in the House of Representatives and examine 
 and count the votes." It will be observed that this i^rovision of the 
 Constitution requires the returns of votes for Governor and Lieuten- 
 ant-Governor to be sealed up and transmitted by the proper return- 
 ing officers to the Secretary of State, and the same provision is made, 
 in substance, as to members of the General Assembly; but, in 1870, 
 the Legislature passed an act, amended in 1872, which created a body 
 called the returning board, consisting of five members, to be appointed 
 by the Senate, and to be returning officers for all elections in the State. 
 The act provides that " the commissioners of election, at each poll or 
 voting-place, shall count the votes, making the list of names of all 
 persons voted for and the officers for which the votes were given, num- 
 ber of votes received by each, number of ballots contained in the box, 
 and the number rejected, and reasons therefor, and to make dnplicates 
 of such lists, and send one to the supervisor of registration of the par- 
 ish of Orleans and one to the Secretary of State." The law further 
 requires the supervisors of registration to consolidate the returns re- 
 ceived from the different polling-places and forward them, with the 
 originals, to the returning board. The act further provides "that if 
 there shall be any riot, tumult, acts of violence, intimidation, and dis- 
 turbance, bribery or corrupt influences at any places within said parish, 
 at or ]iear any poll or voting-i)lace, or places of registration or revision 
 of registration, which riot, tumult, acts of violence, intimidation, and 
 disturbance, bribery or corrupt influences, shall i^revent or tend to pre- 
 vent a fair, free, peaceable, and full vote of all qualified electors, it shall 
 be the dutj^ of the commissioners to make a statement of such facts 
 and forward the same to the supervisor of registration with his returns 
 of election, and the supervisors of registration shall forward the same 
 to the returning board." The returning board is required to investi- 
 gate statements of intimidation, and to exclude from the returns, which 
 
32 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 it makes to the Secretary of State, the returns received by it from 
 those polls or votiug-places where a fair election has been prevented 
 by the causes above named. The same law further declares — 
 
 " It shall be the duty of the Secretary of State to transmit to the 
 clerk of the House of Eepresentatives, and to the secretary of the Sen- 
 ate of the last General Assembly, a list of tlie names of such persons 
 as, according to the returns, shall have been elected to either branch 
 of the General Assembly; and it shall be the duty of the clerk and 
 secretary to place the names of Eepresentatives and Senators elect 
 upon the roll of the House and Senate respectively, and those Rep- 
 resentatives and Senators whose names are so placed by the clerk 
 and secretary respectively, in accordance with the foregoing provisions, 
 and none other, shall be competent to organize the House of Repre- 
 sentatives or Senate." 
 
 It is claimed by the counsel for the Nicholls government that this 
 act, so far as it interposes the returning board exercising those powers 
 of exclusion between the parish supervisor of registration, with his 
 consolidated report, and the Secretary of State, is, when applied to the 
 election of members of the General Assembly, of Governor, and Lieu- 
 tenant-Governor, a plain violation of those provisions of the constitu- 
 tion of Louisiana which say the returns of all elections for members of 
 the General Assembly shall be made to the Secretary of State; and, 
 in reference to Governor and Lieutenant-Governor, the returns of every 
 election " shall be sealed up and transmitted by the proper returning 
 officers to the Secretary of State," who shall deliver them to the Speaker 
 of the House of Representatives. On the other hand, it is insisted by 
 the counsel for the Packard government that the Legislature has power 
 to create this returning board and give it the authority with which the 
 act clothes it. It is also claimed by them that the constitutionality of 
 the act has been settled by tbe supreme court of the State, but the 
 Nicbolls party denied that the question was decided by the supreme 
 court in a manner that could be considered authoritative. It should be 
 further stated that it was not claimed by the counsel for Governor 
 Kicholls tliat the Legislature could not create a returning board and 
 clothe it with these powers in regard to the appointment of the Presi- 
 dential electors, since the provisions of the State constitution on which 
 they rely relate only to the election of members of the Legislature, of 
 Governor, and Lieutenant-Governor. We quote the following sentence 
 from one of their printed arguments: 
 
 "Indeed, as to Presidential electors, the mode of their appointment 
 is, by the Constitution of the United States, left to the discretion of the 
 Legislature of the State, therefore the General Assembly of Louisiana 
 might create any tribunal whatever and confide the appointment of 
 electors for President and Vice-President to it; consequently it may 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. , 33 
 
 properly authorize such a tribunal in the case of the election of Presi- 
 dential electors by the peoj^le to count the votes and decide and declare 
 who were entitled to seats in the electoral college." 
 
 As matters stood on our arrival here the legal title of the respective 
 claimants to the office of Governor depended upon the question we have 
 stated. There was no judicial tribunal acknowledged to be authori- 
 tative by both parties by which it could be solved for reasons already 
 given. The only hope of a practical solution was by the union of so 
 many members of the rival Legislatures as would make a Legislature 
 with a constitutional quorum, in both Senate and House, of members 
 whose title to seats is valid under either view of the law. With a 
 Legislature of undisputed authority the settlement of other questions 
 could, as stated in the letter of instruction to our commission from tlie 
 Secretary of State, be gradually worked out by the prevalent authority 
 which legislative power, when undisputed, is quite competent to exert 
 in composing conflicts in co-ordinate branches of the Government. 
 Within the last three days this first great step in restoring peace to the 
 State has been accomi)lished. In consequence of a withdrawal of mem- 
 bers from the Packard to the Nicholls Legislature the latter body has 
 noAV eighty-seven returning-board members in the House and thirty- 
 two in the Senate. Sixty-one members constitute a constitutional 
 quorum in the House and nineteen in the Senate. 
 
 CONCLUSIONS OF THE COMMISSION. 
 
 It is proper that we should say in conclusion, that it was in view of 
 the foregoing facts, especially the consolidation of the Legislatures and 
 our knowledge of the condition of Louisiana, derived from personal 
 contact with the people, that we were induced to suggest, in our tel- 
 egram of tho 20th instant, that the inmiediate announcement of the 
 time when the troops would be withdrawn to their barracks would be 
 better for the x>eace of Louisiana than to postpone such announcement 
 to some distant day. The commissioners, holding various shades of 
 political belief, caunot well concur in any sketch of the past or probable 
 future of Louisiana. We have foreborne in this report to express any 
 opinion on the legal questions arising upon the foregoing statement of 
 facts, because our letter of instructions seemed to call for a statement 
 of facts rather than an expression of opinion by the commissioners. 
 We all, however, indulge in confident hopes of better days for all races 
 in Louisiana. Among the reasons for these hopes are the resolutions 
 of the Nicholls Legislature and the letter of Governor Xicholls, here- 
 with submitted, and which has already been given to the public. 
 3 
 
34 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 With an earnest hope that the adjustment which has been made of 
 the political controversies of Louisiana will be of lasting benefit to that 
 State, and be approved by the patriotic people of all sections, we have 
 the honor to be, your obedient servants, 
 
 CHARLES B. LAWRENCE. 
 
 JOSEPH R. HAWLEY. 
 
 JOHN M. HARLAN. 
 
 JOHN C. BROWN. 
 
 WAYNE MacVEAGH. 
 
 (I 
 
 i 
 
PROCLAMATION 
 
 CONVENING 
 
 THE TWO HOUSES OF CONGRESS. 
 
 MAY 5, 1877. 
 
PROCLAMATION. 
 
 BY THE PEESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. 
 A PROCLAMATION. 
 
 Whereas the final adjournment of the Forty- fourth Congress without 
 making the usual appropriations for the support of the Army for the 
 fiscal year ending June 30, 1878, presents an extraordinary occasion 
 requiring the President to exercise the power vested in him by the 
 Constitution to convene the Houses of Congress in anticipation of the 
 day fixed hj law for their next meeting: 
 
 ISTow, therefore, I, Rutherford B. Hayes, President of the United 
 States, do, by virtue of the power to this end in me vested by the Con- 
 stitution, convene both Houses of Congress to assemble at their re- 
 spective chambers at 12 o'clock noon on Monday, the fifteenth day of 
 October next, then and there to consider and determine such measures 
 as, in their wisdom, their duty and the welfare of the people may seem 
 to demand. 
 
 In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand, and caused the 
 
 seal of the United States to be afiixed. 
 
 Done at the city of Washington this fifth day of May, in the year of 
 
 our Lord one thousand eight hundred and seventy-seven, and 
 
 [seal.] of the Independence of the United States of America the one 
 
 hundred and first. 
 
 R. B. HAYES. 
 By the President : 
 
 Wm. M. Evaets, 
 
 Secretary of State. 
 
LETTEH 
 
 ON 
 
 THE CONDUCT TO BE OBSEEVED BY OPFIOERS OP THE GENERAL 
 GOVERNMENT IN RELATION TO ELECTIONS. 
 
 MAY 26, 1877. 
 
LETTER. 
 
 Executive Mansion, 
 
 Washington, May 26, 1877. 
 
 My dear SIR: I have read the partial report of the Commission 
 appointed to examine the New Yorli custom-house. I concur with the 
 Commission in their recommendations. It is my wish that the collec- 
 •tion of the revenues should be free from partisan control, and organized 
 on a strictly business basis, with the same guarantees for efficiency and 
 fidelity in the selection of the chief and subordinate officers that would 
 be required by a prudent merchant. Party leaders should have no 
 more influence in appointments than other equally respectable citizens. 
 No assessment for political purposes, on officers or subordinates, should 
 be allowed. No useless officer or employe should be retained. No 
 officer should be required or permitted to take part in the manage- 
 ment of political organizations, caucuses, conventions, or election cam- 
 paigns. Their right to vote, and to express their views on public 
 questions, either orally or through the press, is not denied, provided it 
 does not interfere with the discharge of their official duties. 
 
 Eespectfully, 
 
 R. B. HAYES. 
 
 Hon. John Sherman, &c. 
 
EXECUTIVE ORDER, 
 
 No. 1. 
 
 JUNE 22, 1877. 
 
EXECUTIVE ORDER, 
 
 ExECUTiATE Mansion, 
 
 Washington, June 22, 1877. 
 
 Sir: I desire to call your attention to the following paragraph in a 
 letter addressed by me to the Secretary of the Treasury, on the conduct 
 to be observed by officers of the General G-overniuent in relation to the 
 elections : 
 
 " iSTo officer should be required or permitted to take part in the man- 
 agement of political organizations, caucuses, conventions, or election 
 campaigns. Their right to vote and to express their views on public 
 (juestious, either orally or through the press, is not denied, provided it 
 does not interfere with the discharge of their official duties. No assess- 
 ment for political purposes, on officers or subordinates, should be 
 allowed." 
 
 This rule is applicable to every department of tbe civil service. It 
 should be understood by every officer of the General Government that 
 he is expected to conform his conduct to its requirements. 
 
 Very respectfully, 
 
 R. B. HAYES. 
 To the . 
 
PROCLAMATION. 
 RAILROAD RIOT IN WEST VIRGINIA. 
 
 JULY 18, 1877. 
 
PROCLAMATION. 
 
 BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. 
 A PROCLAMATION. 
 
 Whereas it is provided in the Constitutiou of the United States that 
 the United States shall protect every State in this Union, on application 
 of the Legislature, or of the Executive, (when the Legislature cannot be 
 convened,) against domestic violence ; 
 
 And whereas the Governor of the State of West Virginia has repre- 
 sented that domestic violence exists in said State, at Martinshurg, and 
 at various other ])oints along the line of the Baltimore and Ohio Rail- 
 road, in said State, which the authorities of said State are unable to 
 suppress ; 
 
 And whereas the laws of the United States require that in all cases 
 of insurrection in any State or of obstruction to the laws thereof, when- 
 ever it may be necessary, in the judgment of the President, he shall 
 forthwith, by proclamation, command such insurgents to disperse and 
 retire peaceably to their respective abodes within a limited time: 
 
 Now, therefore, I, Rutherford B. Hayes, President of the United 
 States, do hereby admonish all good citizens of the United States, and 
 all persons within the territory and jurisdiction of the United States, 
 against aiding, countenancing, abetting, or taking part in such unlawful 
 proceedings ; and I do hereby warn all persons engaged in or connected 
 with said domestic violence and obstruction of the laws to disperse and 
 retire peaceably to their respective abodes on or before twelve o'clock 
 noon of the 19th day of July instant. 
 
 In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand, and caused the 
 seal of the United States to be affixed. 
 
 Done at the city of Washington this eighteenth day of July, in the 
 
 year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and seventy- 
 
 [SEAL.] seven, and of the Independence of the United States of 
 
 America the one hundred and second. 
 
 R. B. HAYES. 
 
 By the President : 
 
 F. W. Seward, 
 
 Actimi Secretory of State. 
 
PROCLAMATION. 
 RAILROAD RIOT IN MARYLAND. 
 
 JULY ^1, 1877. 
 
PROCLAMATION. 
 
 BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. 
 A PROCLAMATION. 
 
 Wliereas it is provided in the Constitution of the United States that 
 the United States shall protect every State in this Union, on application 
 of the Legislature, or of the Executive, (when the Legislature cannot be 
 convened,) against domestic violence ; 
 
 And whereas the Governor of the State of Maryland has represented 
 that domestic violence exists in said State, at Cumberland, and along 
 the Hue of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, in said State, which the 
 authorities of said State are unable to suppress; 
 
 And whereas the laws of the United States require that in all cases 
 of insurrection in any State or of obstruction to the laws thereof, when- 
 ever in the judgment of the President it becomes necessary to use the 
 military forces to suppress such insurrection or obstruction to the laws, 
 he shall forthwith, by proclamation, command such insurgents to dis- 
 perse and retire peaceably to their respective abodes within a limited 
 time : 
 
 Now, therefore, I, Rutherford B. Hayes, President of the United 
 States, do hereby admonish all good citizens of the United States, and 
 all persons within the territory and jurisdiction of the United States, 
 against aiding, countenancing, abetting, or taking part in such unlawful 
 proceedings; and I do hereby warn all persons engaged in or connected 
 with said domestic violence and obstruction of the laws to disperse and 
 retire peaceably to their respective abodes on or before noon of the 
 twenty-second day of July instant. 
 
 In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand, and caused the 
 seal of the United States to be affixed. 
 
 Done at the city of Washington this twenty-first day of July, in the 
 
 year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and seventy- 
 
 fsEAL.] seven, and of the Independence of the United States of 
 
 America the one hundred and second. 
 
 R. B. HAYES. 
 By the President: 
 
 Wm. M. Evarts, 
 
 Secretary of State. 
 
PROCLAMATION. 
 
 RAILROAD RIOT IN PENNSYLVANIA. 
 
 JULY 23, 1877. 
 
PROCLAMATION. 
 
 BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. 
 
 A PEOCLAMATIOK 
 
 Whereas it is provided iu the Constitution of the United States that 
 the United States shall protect everj^ State in this Union, on application 
 of the Legislature, or of the Executive, (when the Legislature cannot be 
 convened,) against domestic violence; 
 
 And whereas the Governor of the State of Pennsylvania has repre- 
 sented that domestic violence exists in said State which the authorities 
 of said State are unable to suppress; 
 
 Anil whereas the laws of the United States require that in all cases 
 of insurrection in any State or of obstruction to the laws thereof, when- 
 ever in the judgment of the President it becomes necessary to use the 
 military forces to suppress such insurrection or obstruction to the laws, 
 he shall forthwith, by proclamation, command such insurgents to dis- 
 perse and retire peaceably to their respective abodes within a limited 
 time: 
 
 Now, therefore, I, Rutherford B. Hayes, President of the United 
 States, do hereby admonish all good citizens of the United States, and 
 all persons within the territory and jurisdiction of the United States, 
 against aiding, countenancing, abetting, or taking part in such unlawful 
 proceedings ; and I do hereby warn all persons engaged in or connected 
 with said domestic ^dolence and obstruction of the laws to disperse 
 and retire peaceably to their respective abodes on or before twelve 
 o'clock noon of the 24th day of July instant. 
 
 In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand, and caused the 
 seal of the United States to be affixed. 
 
 Done at the city of Washington this twenty-third day of July, in the 
 year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and seventy- 
 [SEAL.] seven, and of the Independence of the United States of 
 America the one hundred and second. 
 
 R. B. HAYES. 
 
 By the President : 
 Wm. M. Evarts, 
 
 Secretary of State. 
 
IMESS^GE 
 
 TWO HOUSES OF OONGKESS AT THE COMMENCEMENT OF THE FIKST 
 SESSION OF THE FORTY-FIFTH CONGRESS. 
 
 OCTOBER 1,5, 1877. 
 
MESSAGE 
 
 Fellow-Citizens of the Senate 
 
 AND House of Eepresentatives : 
 
 The adjournment of the last Congress, without making appropria- 
 tions for the support of the Armj' for the present fiscal year, has ren- 
 dered necessary a suspension of payments to the officers and men of 
 the sums due them for services rendered after the 30th day of June 
 last. The Army exists by virtue of statutes which prescribe its num- 
 bers, regulate its organization and employment, and which fix the pay 
 of its ofiBcers and men, and declare thek riglit to receive the same at 
 stated periods. These statutes, however, do not authorize the payment 
 of the troops in the absence of specific appropriations therefor. The 
 Constitution has wisely provided that "no money shall be drawn from 
 the Treasury but in consequence of appropriations made by law;" and 
 it has also been declared by statute that "no department of the Gov- 
 ernment shall expend in any one fiscal year any sum in excess of appro- 
 - priations made by Congress for that fiscal year." We have, therefore, 
 an Army in service, authorized by law and entitled to be paid, but no 
 funds available for that purpose. It may also be said, as an additional 
 incentive to prompt action by Congress, that, since the commencement 
 of the fiscal year, the Army, though without pay, lias been constantly 
 and actively employed in arduous and dangerous service, in the per- 
 formance of which both officers and men have discharged their duty 
 with fidelity and courage, and without complaint. These circum- 
 stances, in my judgment, constitute an extraordinary occasion, re- 
 quiring that Congress be convened in advance of the time prescribed 
 by law for your meeting in regular session. The importance of speedy 
 action upon this subject on the part of Congress, is so manifest, that I 
 venture to suggest the propriety of making the necessary appropria- 
 tions for the support of the Army for the current year, at its present 
 maximum numerical strength of twenty-five thousand men; leaving for 
 future consideration all questions relating to an increase or decrease 
 of the number of enlisted men. In the event of the reduction of the 
 Army by subsequent legislation during the fiscal year, the excess of the 
 appropriation could not be expended ; and in the event of its enlarge- 
 ment, the additional sum required for the payment of the extra force 
 
62 LETTEES AND MESSAGES. 
 
 coiild be provided in due time. It would be unjust to the troops now 
 in service, and whose pay is already largely in arrears, if payment to 
 them should be further postponed until after Congress shall have con- 
 sidered all the questions likely to arise in the eifort to fix the proper 
 limit to the strength of the Army. 
 
 Estimates of appropriations for the support of the military establish- 
 ment for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1878, were transmitted to Con- 
 gress by the fornier Secretary of the Treasury at the opening of its 
 session in December last. These estimates, modified by the present 
 Secretary so as to conform to present requirements, are noAv renewed — 
 amounting to $32,436,704.98 — and, having been transmitted to both 
 Houses of Congress, are submitted for your consideration. 
 
 There is also required by the Xavy Department 82,003,801.27. This 
 sum is made up of $1,446,688.10 due to officers and enlisted men for 
 the last quarter of the last fiscal year ; $311,953.50 due for advances 
 made by the fiscal agent of the Government in London for the support 
 of the foreign service ; $50,000 due to the Naval-Hospital fund ; $150,000 
 due for arrearages of pay to officers; and $45,219.58 for the support 
 of the Marine Corps. 
 
 There will also be needed an appropriation of $262,535.22 to defray 
 the unsettled expenses of the United States courts for the fiscal year 
 ending June 30, last, now .due to attorneys, clerks, commissioners, and 
 marshals, and for rent of court-rooms, the support of prisoners, and 
 other deficiencies. 
 
 A part of the building of the Interior Department was destroyed by 
 fire on the 24th of last month. Some immediate repairs and temporary 
 structures have in consequence become necessary, estimates for which 
 will be transmitted to Congress immediately, and an appropriation of 
 the requisite funds is respectfully recommended. 
 
 The Secretary of the Treasury will communicate to Congress, in con- 
 nection with the estimates for the appropriations for the support of the 
 Army for the current fiscal year, estimates for such other deficiencies 
 in the different branches of the public service as require immediate 
 action, and cannot, without inconvenience, be postponed until the regu- 
 lar session. 
 
 I take this opportunity, also, to invite your attention to the propriety 
 of adopting at your present session the necessary legislation to enable 
 the people of the United States to participate in the advantages of the 
 International Exhibition of Agriculture, Industry, and the Fine Arts, 
 which is to be held at Paris in 1878, and in which this Government has 
 been invited by the Government of France to take part. 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 63 
 
 This invitation was communicated to this Government in May, 1876,. 
 by the Minister of France at this Capital, and a copy thereof was sub- 
 mitted to the proper committees of Congress at its last session, but no 
 action was taken upon the subject. 
 
 The Department of State has received many letters from various 
 parts of the country expressing a desire to participate in the Exhibi- 
 tion, and numerous applications of a similar nature have also been 
 made at the United States Legation at Paris. 
 
 The Department of State has also received official advice of the strong 
 desire on the part of the French. Government that the United States 
 should participate in this enterprise, and space has hitherto been, and 
 still is, reserved in the Exhibition buildings for the use of exhibitors 
 from the United States, to the exclusion of other parties who have been 
 applicants therefor. 
 
 In order that our industries may be properly represented at the Exhi- 
 bition, an apju-opriation will be needed for the payment of salaries and 
 expenses of commissioners for the transportation of goods, and for other 
 l)urposes in connection with the object in view, and as May next is the 
 time fixed for the opening of the Exhibition, if our citizens are to share 
 the advantages of this international competition for the trade of other 
 nations, the necessity of immediate action is apparent. 
 
 To enable the United States to co-operate in the International Exhi- 
 bition which was held at Vienna in 1873, Congress then passed a joint 
 resolution making an api^ropriation of two hundred thousand dollars,, 
 and authorizing the President to appoint a certain number of practical 
 artisans and scientific men who should attend the Exhibition and report 
 their proceedings and observations to him. Provision was also made 
 for the appointment of a number of honorary commissioners. 
 
 I have felt that prompt action by Congress in accepting the invita- 
 tion of the Government of France is of so much interest to the people 
 of this country, and so suitable to the cordial relations between the 
 Governments of the two countries, that the subject might properly be 
 presented for attention at your present session. 
 
 The Government of Sweden and Xorway has addressed an official in- 
 vitation to this Government to take part in the International Prison 
 Congress, to be held at Stockholm next year. The problem which the 
 congress proposes to study — how to diminish crime — is one in which 
 all civilized nations have an interest in common ; and the congress of 
 Stockholm seems likely to prove the most important convention ever 
 held for the study of this grave question. Under authority of a joint 
 resolution of Congress, approved February 16, 1875, a commissioner 
 
64 LETTERS AXD MESSAGES. 
 
 was appointed by my predecessor to represent the United States npou 
 that occasion, and the prison congress having been, at the earnest de- 
 sire of the Swedisli Government, i^ostponed to 1878, his commission was 
 renewed by me. An appropriation of eight thousand dollars was made 
 in the sundry civil-service act of 1875 to meet the expenses of the com- 
 missioner. I recommend the reapproi^riation of that sum for the same 
 purpose, the former appropriation having been covered into theTreasury, 
 and being no longer available for the purpose without further action by 
 Congress. The subject is brought to your attention at this time in view 
 of cii'cumstances which render it highly desirable that the commissioner 
 should proceed to the discharge of his important duties immediately. 
 
 As the several acts of Congress providing for detailed reports from 
 the different departments of the Government, require their submission 
 at the beginning of the regular annual session, I defer until that time 
 any further reference to subjects of public interest. 
 
 E. B. HAYES. 
 
 Washington, October 15, 1877. 
 
THANKSGIVING PROCLAMATION. 
 
 0(rroBKR 49, 1877 
 
PROCLAMATION. 
 
 BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. 
 
 A proclamations". 
 
 The completed circle of summer and winter, seed-time and harvest, 
 has brought us to the accustomed season at which a religious people 
 celebrates with praise and thanksgiving the enduring mercy of Almightj' 
 God. This devout and public confession of the constant dependence of 
 man upon the Divine favor for all the good gifts of life and health, and 
 peace and happiness, so early in our history made the habit of our 
 people, finds in the sm^vey of the past year new grounds for its joyful 
 and grateful manifestation. 
 
 In all the blessings which depend upon benignant seasons this has 
 indeed been a memorable year. Over the wide territory of our country, 
 with all its diversity of soil and climate and products, the earth has 
 yielded a bountiful return to the labor of the husl tandman. The health 
 of the people has l>een blighted by no prevalent or wide-spread diseases, 
 No great disasters of shipwreck upon our coasts, or to our commerce 
 on the seas, have brought loss and hardship to merchants or mariners, 
 and clouded the happiness of the community with sympathetic sorrow. 
 
 In all that concerns our strength and peace and greatness as a Nation ; 
 in all that touches the permanence and security of our Government, and 
 the beneficent institutions on which it rests ; in all that aftects the 
 character and dispositions of our people, and tests our capacity to enjoy 
 and uphold the equal and free condition of society, now permanent and 
 universal throughout the land, the experience of the last year is con- 
 spicuously marked by the protecting providence of God, and is fuU of 
 promise and hope for the coming generations. 
 
 Under a sense of these infinite obligations to the great Ruler of times 
 and seasons and events, let us humbly ascribe it to our own faults and 
 frailties if, in any degree, that perfect concord and happiness, peace and 
 justice, which such great mercies should diffuse through the hearts and 
 lives of our people, do not altogether and always and everywhere pre- 
 vail. Let us with one spirit and with one voice lift up praise and 
 thanksgiving to God for his manifold goodness to our land, his manifest 
 care for our Nation. 
 
68 LETTERS AXD MESSAGES. 
 
 Now, therefore, I, Rutherford B. Hayes, President of the United 
 States, do appoint Thursday, the twenty-ninth day of November next, 
 as a Day of National Thanksgiving and Prayer ; and I earnestly recom- 
 mend that, withdrawing themselves from secular cares and labors, the 
 people of the United States do meet together on that day in their re- 
 spective places of worship, there to give thanks and praise to Almighty 
 God for his mercies, and to devoutly beseech their continuance. 
 
 In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand, and caused the seal 
 of the United States to be affixed. 
 
 Done at the city of Washington this twent3'-uinth day of October, in 
 the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and seventy- 
 TsEAL.] seven, and of the Independence of the United States the one 
 hundred and second. 
 
 R. B. HAYES. 
 By the President : 
 
 Wm. M. Evarts, 
 
 Secretary of State. 
 
EXECUTIVE ORDER. 
 
 DEATH OF SENATOR OLIVER R MORTON, 
 
 NOVEMBKR 2, 1877. 
 
EXECUTIVE ORDER. 
 
 Executive Mansion, 
 Washington, D. C, November 2, 1877. 
 
 I lament the sad occasion which makes it my duty to testify the public 
 respect for the eminent citizen and distinguished statesman whose death 
 yesterday, at his home in Indianapolis, has been made known to the 
 people by telegraphic announcement. 
 
 The services ot Oliver P. Morton to the Xation in the difficult and 
 responsible administration of the affairs of the State of Indiana, as its 
 Governor, at a critical juncture of the civil war, can never be over- 
 valued by his countrymen. His long service in the Senate has shown 
 his great powers as a legislator, and as a leader and chief counsellor of 
 the political party charged with the conduct of the Government during 
 that period. 
 
 In all things and at all times lie has been able, strenuous, and faithful 
 in the public service, and his fame with his countrymen rests upon secure 
 foundations. 
 
 The several Executive Departments will be closed on the day of his 
 funeral, and appropriate honors should be paid to the memory of the 
 deceased statesman by the whole Nation. 
 
 R. B. HAYES. 
 
IVTESS^OE 
 
 TWO HOUSES or OONGEESS AT THE COMMENCEMENT OF THE SECOND 
 SESSION OF THE FORTY-FIFTH CONGEESS. 
 
 DECEMBER 3, 1877- 
 
MESSAGE. 
 
 lELLOW-ClTlZENS OF THE SENATE 
 
 AND House of Eepresentatiyes : 
 
 With devout gratitude to the bountiful Giver of all good, I congratu- 
 late you that, at the beginning of your first regular session, you find 
 our country blessed with health and peace and abundant harvests, and 
 with encouraging prospects of an early return of general prosperity. 
 
 To complete and make permanent the pacification of the country 
 continues to be, and, until it is fully accomplished, must renuiin, the 
 most important of all our national interests. The earnest purpose of 
 good citizens generally, to unite their elforts in this endeavor, is evident. 
 It found decided expression in the resolutions announced in 1876 by 
 the national conventions of the leading political parties of the country. 
 There was a wide-spread apprehension that the momentous results in 
 our progress as a :N'atiou, marked by the recent amendments to the Con- 
 stitution, were in imminent jeopardy; that the good understanding 
 which prompted their adoption, in the interest of a loyal devotion to 
 the general welfare, might prove a barren truce, and that the two sections 
 of the country, once engaged in ci^dl strife, might be again almost as 
 widely severed and disunited as they were when arrayed in arms against 
 each other. 
 
 The course to be pursued which in my judgment seemed wisest, in the 
 presence of this emergency, was plainly indicated in my inaugural 
 address. It pointed to the time which all our people desire to see, when 
 a genuine love of our whole country, and of all that concerns its true 
 welfare, shall supplant the destructive forces of the mutual animosity 
 of races and of sectional hostility. Opinions have differed widely as 
 to the measures best calculated to secure this great end. This was to 
 be expected. The measures adopted by the Administration have been 
 subjected to severe and varied criticism. Any course whatever which 
 might have been entered upon would certainly have encountered distrust 
 and opposition. These measures were, in my judgment, such as were 
 most in harmony with the Constitution and with the genius of our peo- 
 ple, and best adapted, under all the circumstances, to attain the end 
 in view. Beneficent results, already apparent, prove that these endeavors 
 
7G LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 are not to be regarded as a mere experiment, and sliould sustain and 
 encourage us in our eftbrts. Already, in the brief i)eriod wliich has 
 elapsed, the immediate effectiveness, no less than the justice of the 
 course i)ursued, is demonstrated, and I have an abiding faith that time 
 will furnish its ample vindication in the minds of the great majority of 
 my fellow-citizens. The discontinuance of the use of the Army for the 
 purpose of upholding local governments in two States of the Union 
 was no less a constitutional duty and requirement, under the circum- 
 stances existing- at the time, than it was a much-needed measure for the 
 restoration of local self-government and the promotion of national har- 
 mony. The withdrawal of the troops from such employment was 
 effected deliberately, and with solicitous care for the peace ano. good 
 order of society, and the protection of the property and persons and 
 every right of all classes of citizens. 
 
 The results that have followed are indeed signiflcant and encourag- 
 ing. All apprehension of danger from remitting those States to local 
 self-government is dispelled, and a most salutary change in the minds 
 of the people has begun and is in progress in every part of that section 
 of the country" once the theatre of unhapi)y civil strife, substituting for 
 suspicion, distrust, and aversion, concord, friendship, and i)atriotic 
 attachment to the Union, iso unprejudiced mind Avill deny that the 
 terrible and often fatal collisions which for several years have been of 
 frequent occurrence, and have agitated and alarmed the public mind, 
 have almost entirely ceased, and that a spirit of mutual forbearance 
 and hearty national interest has succeeded. There has been a general 
 re-establishment of order, and of the orderly administration of justice; 
 instances of remaining lawlessness have become of rare occurrence; 
 political turmoil and turbulence have disappeared; useful industries 
 have been resumed ; public credit in the Southern States has been greatly 
 strengthened; and the encouraging benefits of a revival of commerce 
 between the sections of the country lately embroiled in civil war are 
 fully enjoyed. Such are some of the results already attained, upon 
 which the country is to be congratulated. They are of such importance, 
 that we may with confidence patiently await the desired consummation 
 that will surely come with the natural progress of events. 
 
 It may not be improper here to say that it should be our fixed and 
 unalterable determination to protect, by all available and proper means, 
 under the Constitution and the laws, the lately-enuincipated race in the 
 enjoyment of their rights and privileges; and I urge upon those to 
 whom heretofore the colored people have sustained the relation of bond- 
 men, the wisdom and justice of humane and liberal local legislation 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 77 
 
 with resi)e('t to their education and general welfare. A firm adherence 
 to the laws, both National and State, as to the civil and political rights 
 of the colored people, now advanced to full and equal citizenship; the 
 immediate repression and sure punishment by the National and local 
 authorities, within their respective jurisdictious, of every instance of 
 lawlessn^iss and violence toward them, is required for the security alike 
 of both races, and is justly demanded by the public opinion of the 
 country and the age. In this way the restoration of harmony and good 
 Avill, aud the complete protection of every citizen in the full enjoyment 
 of every .constitutional right, will surely be attained. Whatever 
 authority rests with me to this end, I shall not hesitate to put forth. 
 Whatever belongs to the power of Congress and the jurisdiction of the 
 courts of the Union, they may confidently be relied upon to provide 
 and perform. And to the legislatures, the courts, and the executive 
 authorities of the several States, I earnestly appeal to secure, by ade- 
 quate, api)ropriate, and seasonable means, withiu their borders, these 
 common and uniform rights of a united people which loves liberty,, 
 abhors oppression, and reveres justice. These objects are very dear to 
 my heart. I sliall continue most earnestly to strive for their attainments 
 The cordial co-operation of all classes— of all sections of the country 
 and of both races— is required for this purpose; and with these bless- 
 ings assured, and not otherwise, we may safely hope to hand down our 
 free institutions of government unimpaired to the generations that will 
 succeed us. 
 
 Among the other snlyects of great and general importance to the 
 people of this country I cannot be mistaken, I think, in regarding as 
 pre-eminent the policy and measures which are designed to secure the 
 restoration of the currency to that normal aud healthful condition in 
 which, by the resumption of specie payments, our internal trade and 
 foreign commerce may be brought into harmony Avith the system of 
 exchanges which is based upon the precious metals as the intrinsic 
 money of the world. In the public judgment that this end should be 
 sought and compassed as speedily and securely as the resources of the 
 people and the wisdom of their Government can accomplish, there is a 
 much greater degree of unanimity than is found to concur in the specific 
 measures which will bring the country to this desired end, or the rapidity 
 of the steps by which it can be safely reached. 
 
 Upon a most anxious and deliberate examination which I have felt 
 it my duty to give to the subject, I am but the more confirmed in the 
 opinion which I expressed in accepting the nomination for the Presi- 
 dency and again upon my inauguration, that the policy of resumption 
 
78 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 slioulcl he pursued by every suitable means, and that no legislation 
 would be wise that should disparage the importance or retard the attain- 
 ment of that result. I have no dis])osition, and certainly no right, to 
 question the sincerity or the intelligence of opposing opinions, and 
 would neither conceal nor undervalue the consideraljle difficulties, and 
 even occasional distresses, which may attend the progress of the Xation 
 towards this primary condition to its general and permanent prosperity. 
 I must, however, adhere to my most earnest conviction that any waver- 
 ing in purpose or unsteadiness in methods, so far from avoiding or 
 reducing the inconvenience inseparable from the transition from an 
 irredeemable to a redeemable paper currency, would only tend to in- 
 creased and prolonged disturbance in values, and. unless retrieved, 
 must end in serious disorder, dishonor, and disaster in the financial 
 affairs of the Government and of the people. The mischiefs which I 
 apprehend, and urgently dei)recate, are confined to no class of the peo- 
 ple indeed, but seem to me most certainly to threaten the industrious 
 masses, whether their occupations are of skilled or common labor. To 
 them, it seems to me, it is of prime importance that their labor should 
 be compensated in money which is itself fixed in exchangeable value 
 by being irrevocably measured by the labor necessary to its produc- 
 tion. Tliis permanent quality of the money of the people is souglit for, 
 and can only be gained by the resumption of specie payments. The 
 rich, the speculative, the operating, the money-dealing classes, may not 
 always feel the mischiefs of, or may find casual profits in, a variable 
 currency, but the misfortunes of such a currency to those who are paid 
 salaries or wages are inevitable and remediless. 
 
 Closely connected with this general subject of the resumption of specie 
 payments, is one of subordinate, but still of grave importance — I mean 
 the readjustment of our coinage system, by the renewal of the silver 
 dollar, as an element in our specie currency, endowed by legislation 
 with the quality of legal-tender to a greater or less extent. 
 
 As there is no doubt of the power of Congress, under the Constitu- 
 tion, "to coin money and regulate the value thereof," and as this power 
 covers the whole range of authority applicable to the metal, the rated 
 value, and the legal-tender quality which shall be adopted for the coin- 
 age, the considerations which should induce or discourage a particular 
 measure connected with the coinage belong clearly to the province of 
 legislative discretion, and of pubhc expediency. AVithout intruding upon 
 this i)rovince of legislation in the least, I have yet thought the subject 
 of such critical importance in the actual condition of our affairs, as to 
 present an occasion for the exercise of the duty imposed by the Consti- 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 79 
 
 tutiou ou the President, of recommending to the consideration of Con- 
 gress "such measures as he shall judge necessary- and expedient." 
 
 Holding- the opinion, as I do, that neither the interests of the Gov- 
 ernment nor of the people of the United States would be promoted by 
 disparaging silver as one of the two precious metals which furnish the 
 coinage of the world; and that legislation which looks to maintaining 
 the volume of intrinsic money to as full a measure of both metals as 
 their relative commercial values will permit, would be neither unjust 
 nor inexpedient, I must ask your indulgence to a brief and definite 
 statement of certain essential features in any such legislative measure 
 which I feel it my duty to recommend. 
 
 I do not propose to enter the debate, represented ou both sides by 
 such able disputants in Congress and before the people and in the 
 press, as to the extent to which the legislation of any one nation can 
 control this question, even within its own borders, against the unwrit- 
 ten laws of trade, or the positive laws of other governments. The wis- 
 dom of Congress, in shaping any particular law that may be presented 
 for my approval, may wholly supersede the necessity of my entering 
 into these considerations, and I willingly avoid either vague or intricate 
 inquiries. It is only certain plain and practical traits of such legisla- 
 tion that I desire to recommend to your attention. 
 
 In any legislation providing for a silver coinage, regulating its value 
 and imparting to it the quality of legal -tender, it seems to me of great 
 importance that Congress should not lose sight of its action as operat- 
 ing in a twofold capacity, and in two distinct directions. If the United 
 States Government were free from a public debt, its legislative dealing 
 with the question of silver coinage would be purely sovereign and gov- 
 ernmental, under no restraints but those of constitutional power and 
 the public good as affected by the proposed legislation. But, in the 
 actual circumstances of the Nation, with a vast public debt distributed 
 xery widely among our own citizens, and held in great amounts also 
 abroad, the nature of the silver-coinage measure, as aifecting this rela- 
 tion if the Government to the holders of the public debt, becomes an 
 element, in any pro[)Osed legislation, of the highest concern. The obli- 
 gation of the public faith transcends all questions of profit or public 
 advantage otherwise. Its unquestionable mainteaance is the dictate 
 as well as of the highest expediency, as of the most" necessary duty, 
 and will ever be carefully guarded by Congress and people alike. 
 
 The public debt of the United States, to the amount of 8729,000,000, 
 bears interest at the rate of six per cent., and $708,000,000 at the rate 
 of five per cent., and the only way in which the country can be relieved 
 
80 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 from the payment of these high rates of interest is by advantageously 
 refunding the indebtedness. Whether the debt is ultimately j)aid in 
 gold or in silver coin is of but little moment compared with the possible 
 reduction of interest one-third, by refunding it at such reduced rate. 
 If the United States had the unquestioned right to pay its bonds in 
 silver coin, the little benefit from that process would be greatly over- 
 balanced by the injurious effect of such payment, if made or proposed 
 against the honest convictions of the i)ublic creditors. All the bonds 
 that have been issued since February 12, 1873, when gold became the 
 only unlimited legal-tender metallic currency of the country, are justly 
 payable in gold coin or in coin of equal value. During the time of these 
 issues, the only dollar that could be or was received by the Govern- 
 ment in exchange for bonds was the gold dollar. To require the public 
 creditors to take, in repayment, any dollar of less commercial value, 
 would be regarded by them as a repudiation of the full obligation 
 assumed. The bonds issued prior to 1873 were issued at a time when 
 the gold dollar was the only coin in circulation or contemplated by 
 either the Government or the holders of the bonds as the coin in which 
 they were to be i)aid. It is far better to pay these bonds in that coin 
 than to seem to take advantage of the unforeseen fall in silver bullion 
 to pay in a new issue of silver coin, thus made so much less valuable. 
 The power of the United States to coin money and to regulate the value 
 thereof ought never to be exercised for the purpose of enabling- the 
 Government to pay its obligations in a coin of less value than that con- 
 templated by the parties when the bonds were issued. Any attempt 
 to pay the national indebtedness in a coinage of less commercial value 
 than the money of the world, would involve a violation of the public 
 faith, and work irreparable injury to the public credit. 
 
 It was the great merit of the act of March, 1869, in strengthening- 
 the |)ublic credit, that it removed all doubt as to the purpose of the 
 United States to pay their bonded debt in coin. That act was accepted 
 as a ])ledge of public faith. The Government has derived great benefit 
 from it in the progress thus far made in refunding the public debt at 
 low rates of interest. An adherence to the wise and just policy of an 
 exact observance of the public faith will enable the Government rapidly 
 to reduce the burden of interest on the national debt to an amount 
 exceeding $20,000,000 per annum, and effect an aggregate saving to 
 the United States of more than $300,000,000 before the bonds can be 
 fully i)aid. 
 
 In adapting the new silver coinage to the ordinary uses of currency 
 in the every-day transactions of life and prescribing the quality of legal- 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 81 
 
 tender to be assigned to it, a consideration of the first iniportaiice 
 should be so to adjust the ratio between the silver and the gold coin- 
 age, which now constitutes our specie currency, as to accomplish the 
 desired end of maintaining the circulation of the two metallic currencies, 
 and keei)ing up the volume of the two precious metals as our intrinsic 
 money. It is a mixed question for scientific reasoning and historical 
 experience to determine how far, and by what methods, a practical 
 equilibrium can be maintained Avhich will keep both metals in circula- 
 tion in their appropriate spheres of common use. An absolute equality 
 of commercial value, free from disturbing fluctuations, is hardly attain- 
 able, and without it an unlimited legal-tender for private transactions 
 assigned to both metals would irresistibly tend to drive out of cinada- 
 tion the dearer coinage, and disappoint the principal object proposed by 
 the legislation in view. I apprehend, therefore, that the two conditions 
 of a near approach to equality of commercial value between the gold 
 and silver coinage of the same denomination, and of a limitation of the 
 amounts for which the silver coinage is to be a legal-tender, are essen- 
 tial to maintaining both in circulation. If these conditions can be suc- 
 cessfully observed, the issue from the mint of silver dollars would afford 
 material assistance to the community in the transition to redeemable 
 paper money, and would fVicilitate the resumption of specie payment 
 and its permanent establishment. Without these conditions, I fear that 
 only mischief and misfortune would flow from a coinage of silver dol- 
 lars with the quality of unlimited legal-tender, even in private trans- 
 actions. 
 
 Any expectation of temporary ease from an issue of silver coiuage to 
 pass as a legal-tender, at a rate materially above its commercial value, 
 is, I am persuaded, a delusion. Nor can I think that there is any sub- 
 stantial distinction between an original issue of silver dollars at a nomi- 
 nal value nuxterially above their commercial value, and the restoration 
 of the silver dollar at a rate which once was, but has ceased to be, its 
 commercial value. Certainly the issue of our gold coinage, reduced in 
 weight materially below its legal-tender value, would not be any the 
 less a present debasement of the coinage by reason of its equalling or 
 even exceeding in weight a gold coinage which at some past time had 
 been commercially etpial to the legal-tender value assigned to the new 
 
 issue. 
 
 In recommending that the regulation of any silver coinage which 
 may be authorized by Congress should observe these conditions of 
 commercial value and limited legal-tender, I am governed by the feel- 
 ing that every possible increase should be given to the volume of 
 G 
 
82 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 metallic money which can l)e kept in circulation, and thereby every 
 possible aid afforded to the ]>eople in the process of resuming specie 
 payments. It is because of my firm conviction that a disregard of these 
 conditions would frustrate the good results which are desired from the 
 proposed coinage, and embarrass with new elements of confusion and 
 uncertainty the business of the country, that I urge upon your atten- 
 tion these considerations. 
 
 I respectfully recommend to Congress that in any legislation pro- 
 viding for a silver coinage, and imparting to it the quality of legal- 
 tender, there be impressed upon the measure a firm pro\ision exempting 
 the public debt, heretofore issued and now outstanding, from payment, 
 either of principal or interest, in any coinage of less commercial value 
 than the present gold coinage of the country. 
 
 The organization of the civil service of the country has for a number 
 of years attracted more and more of the public attention. So general 
 has become the opinion that the methods of admission to it, and the 
 conditions of remaining in it, are unsound, that both the great political 
 parties have agreed in the most explicit declarations of the necessity of 
 reform, and in the most emphatic demands for it. I have fully believed 
 these declarations and demands to be the expression of a sincere con- 
 viction of the intelligent masses of the people upon the subject, and 
 that they should be recognized and followed by earnest and prompt 
 action on the part of the Legislative and Executive Departments of the 
 Government, in pursuance of the purpose indicated. 
 
 Before my accession to office I endeavored to have my own views 
 distinctly understood, and upon my inauguration my accord with the 
 public opinion was stated in terms believed to be plain and unambigu- 
 ous. My experience in the executive duties has strongly confirmed the 
 belief in the great advantage the country would find in observing 
 strictly the plan of the Constitution, which imposes upon the Executive 
 the sole duty and responsibility of the selection of those Federal officers 
 who, by law, are appointed, not elected; and which, in like manner, 
 assigns to the Senate the complete right to advise and consent to, or to 
 reject, the nominations so made; whilst the House of Representatives 
 stands as the public censor of the performance of official duties, with the 
 prerogative of investigation and prosecution in all cases of dereliction. 
 The blemishes and imperfections in the civil service may, as I think, 
 be traced, in most cases, to a practical confusion of the duties assigned 
 to the several departments of the Government. My purpose, in this 
 respect, has been to return to the system established by the funda- 
 mental law, and to do this with the heartiest co-operation and most cor- 
 dial understanding with the Senate and House of Representatives. 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 83 
 
 The practical difficulties in the selection of numerous officers for posts 
 of widely-varying responsibilities and duties are acknowledgred to be 
 very great. No system can be expected to secure absolute freedom 
 from mistakes, and the beginning of any attempted change of custom 
 is quite likely to be more embarrassed in this respect than any subse- 
 quent period. It is here that the Constitution seems to me to prove its 
 claim to the great wisdom accorded to it. It gives to the Executive 
 the assistance of the knowledge and experience of the Senate, which, 
 when acting upon nominations as to which they may be disinterested 
 and impartial judges, secures as strong a guaranty of freedom from 
 errors of importance as is perhaps possible in human affairs. 
 
 In addition to this, I recognize the public advantage of making all 
 nominations, as nearly as possible, impersonal, in the sense of being free 
 from mere caprice or favor in the selection ; and in those offices in which 
 special training is of greatly increased value, I believe such a rule as 
 to the tenure of office should obtain as may induce men of proper quali- 
 fications to apply themselves industriously to the task of becoming 
 proficients. Bearing these things in mind, I have endeavored to reduce 
 the number of changes in subordinate places usually made upon the 
 change of the general administration, and shall most heartily co-operate 
 with Congress in the better systematizing of such methods and rules 
 of admission to the public service, and of promotion within it, as may 
 promise to be most successful in making thorough competency, effi- 
 ciency, and character the decisive tests in these matters. 
 
 I ask the renewed attention of Congress to what has already been 
 done by the Civil- Service Commission, appointed in pursuance of an 
 act of Congress by my predecessor, to prepare and revise civil-service 
 rules. In regard to much of the departmental service, especially at 
 Washington, it may be difficult to organize a better system than that 
 which has thus been provided, and it is now being used to a consider- 
 able extent under my direction. The commission has still a legal 
 existence, although for several years no appropriation has been made 
 for defraying its expenses. Believing that this commission has ren- 
 dered valuable service, and will be a most useful agency in improving 
 the administration of the civil service, I respectfully recommend that a 
 suitable appropriation, to be immediately available, be made to enable 
 it to continue its labors. 
 
 It is my purpose to transmit to Congress as early as practicable a 
 report by the chairman of the commission, and to ask your attention to 
 such measures on this subject as in my opinion will further promote 
 the improvement of the civil service. 
 
84 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 During- tlie ])ast year the United States have (iontinned to maintain 
 peaceful relations with foreign i'owers. 
 
 The outbreak of war between Eussia and Turkey, though at one time 
 attended by grave apprehension as to its eflect upon other European 
 nations, has had no tendency to disturb the amicable relations existing- 
 between the United States and each of the two contending Powers. 
 An attitude of just and impartial neutrality has been preserved, and I 
 am gratified to state that, in the midst of their hostilities, both the 
 llussian and the Turkish Governments have shown an earnest disposi- 
 tion to adhere to the obligations of all treaties with the United States, 
 and to give due regard to the rights of American citizens. 
 
 By the terms of the treaty, defining the rights, immunities, and priv- 
 ileges of consuls, between Italy and the United States, ratified in 18G8, 
 either Government may, after the lapse of ten years, terminate the 
 existence of the treaty by giving twelve months' notice of its intention. 
 The Government of Italy, availing itself of this faculty, has now given 
 the required notice, and the treaty will, accordingly, end on the 17th 
 of September, 1878. It is understood, however, that the Italian Gov- 
 ernment wishes to renew it, in its general scope, desiring only certain 
 modifications in some of its articles. In this disposition I concur, and 
 shall hope that no serious obstacles may intervene to prevent or delay 
 the negotiation of a satisfactory treaty. 
 
 Numerous questions in regard to passports, naturalization, and ex- 
 emption from military service, have continued to arise in cases of emi- 
 grants from Germany who have returned to their native country. The 
 l)rovisions of the treaty of February 22, ISGS, however, have proved to 
 be so ample and so judicious, that the Legation of the United States 
 at Berlin has been able to adjust all claims arising under it, not only 
 without detriment to the amicable relations existing between the two 
 Governments, but it is believed without injury or injustice to any duly- 
 naturalized American citizen. It is desirable that the treaty originally 
 made with the Xorth German Union in 18G8 should now be extended, 
 so as to apply equally to all the States of the Empire of Germany. 
 
 The invitation of the Government of France to participate in the ex- 
 position of the products of agriculture, industry', and the fine arts, to 
 be held at Paris during the coming year, was submitted for .your con- 
 sideration at the extra session. It is not doubted that its acceptance 
 by the United States, and a well-selected exhibition of the products of 
 American industry on that occasion, will tend to stinndate international 
 comnuMce and emigration, as well as to promote the traditional friend- 
 ship between the two countries. 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 85 
 
 A question arose, sometime since, as to tlie proper meaning of the 
 extradition articles of tlie treaty of 1842 between tlie United States and 
 Great Britain. Both Governments, however, are now in accord in the 
 belief tliat the question is not one that should be allowed to frustrate 
 the ends of justice, or to disturb the friendship between the two Nations. 
 No serious difficulty has arisen in accomplishing- the extradition of 
 criminals when necessary*. It is prol)able that all points of disagree- 
 ment will, in due time, be settled, and, if need be, more explicit decla- 
 rations be made in a new treaty. 
 
 The Fishery Commission, under Articles XVIII to XXV of the Treaty 
 of Washington, has concluded its session at Halifax. The result of 
 the deliberations of the commission, as made iiublic by the commis- 
 sioners, will be communicated to Congress. 
 
 A treaty for the protection of trade-marks has been negotiated with 
 Great Britain, which has been submitted to the Senate for its con- 
 sideration. 
 
 The revolution which recently occurred in Mexico was followed by 
 the accession of the successful party to power, and the installation of 
 its chief, General Porfino Diaz, in the presidential office. It has been 
 the custom of the United States, when such changes of government 
 have heretofore occurred in Mexico, to recognize and enter into official 
 relations witli the de facto government as soon as it should api)ear to 
 have the approval of the Mexican x^tiople, and should manifest a dis- 
 position to adhere to the obligations of treaties and international friend- 
 shi]). In the present case, the official recognition has been deferred by 
 the occurrences on the Eio Grande border, the records of which ha\ e 
 already been communicated to each House of Congress, in answer to 
 their respective resolutions of inquiry-. Assurances have been received 
 that the au'horities at the seat of the Mexican Government have both 
 the disposition and the power to prevent and punish such unlawful in- 
 vasions and depredations. It is earnestly to be hoped that events may 
 prove these assurances to be well founded. The best interests of both 
 countries require the maintenance of peace upon the border, and the 
 development of counnerce between the two Republics. 
 
 It is gratifying to add that this temporary interruption of official re- 
 lations has not prevented due attention by the representatives of the 
 United States in Mexico to the protection of American citizens, so far 
 as practicable. Nor has it interfered with the prompt payment of the 
 amounts due from Mexico to the United States under the treaty of July 
 4, 1868, and the awards of the Joint Commission. While I do not an- 
 ticipate an interruption of friendly relations with Mexico, yet I cannot 
 
86 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 but look with some solicitude upon a continuance of border disorders^ 
 as exposing- the two countries to initiations of popular feeling and mis- 
 chances of action which are naturally unfavorable to complete amity. 
 Firndy determined that nothing shall be wanting on my part to pro- 
 mote a good understanding between the two Nations, I yet must ask 
 the attention of Congress to the actual occurrences on the border, that 
 the lives and property of our citizens may be adequately protected and 
 peace preserved. 
 
 Another year has passed without bringing to a close the protracted 
 contest between the Spanish Government and the insurrection in the 
 Island of Cuba. While the United States have sedulously abstained 
 from any intervention in this contest, it is impossible not to feel that it 
 is attended with incidents affecting the rights and interests of Ameri. 
 can citizens. Apart from the effect of the hostilities upon trade between 
 the United States and Cuba, their progress is inevitably accompanied 
 by complaints, having more or less foundation, of searches, arrests^ 
 embargoes, and oppressive taxes upon the property of American resi- 
 dents, and of unprovoked interference with American vessels and com- 
 merce. It is due to the Government of Spain to say that, during the 
 past year, it has promptl3' disavowed and offered reparation for any 
 unauthorized acts of unduly zealous subordinates, whenever such acts 
 have been brought to its attention. Nevertheless such occurrences can- 
 not but tend to excite feelings of annoyance, suspicion, and resentment, 
 which are greatly to be deprecated between the respective subjects and 
 citizens of two friendly Powers. 
 
 Much delay (consequent ni)on accusations of fraud in some of the 
 awards) has occurred in respect to the distribution of the limited 
 amounts received from Venezuela under the treaty of April 25, 1866, 
 applicable to the awards of the Joint Commission created by that treaty. 
 So long as these matters are pending in Congress, the Executive can- 
 not assume eitlier to pass upon the questions presented, or to distribute 
 the fund received. It is eminently <lesirable that detiuite legislative 
 action should be taken, either affirming the awards to be final or pro- 
 viding some method for re-examination of the claims. 
 
 Our relations with the Republics of Central and South America, and 
 with the Empire of Brazil, liave continued without serious change, 
 further than tlie temporary interruption of diplomatic intercourse with 
 Venezuela and with Guatemala. Amicable relations have already been 
 fully restored with Venezuela, and it is not doubted that all grounds of 
 misunderstanding with Guatemala will speedily be removed. From all 
 these countries there are favorable indications of a disposition on the 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 87 
 
 part of their Governments and people to reciprocate our efforts in the 
 direction of increased commercial intercourse. 
 
 The Government of the Samoau Islands has sent au envoy in the 
 person of its Secretary of State to invite the Government of the United 
 States to recognize and protect their independence, to establish com- 
 mercial relations with their people, and to assist them in their steps 
 toward regulated and responsible government. The inhabitants of these 
 islands, having made considerable progress in Christian civilization and 
 the development of trade, are doubtful of their ability to maintain 
 peace and independence without the aid of some stronger power. The 
 subject is deemed worthy of respectful attention, and the claims upon 
 our assistance by this distant community will be carefully considered. 
 
 The long commercial depression in the United States has directed 
 attention to the subject of the possible increase of our foreign trade 
 and the methods for its development, not only with Europe, but with 
 other countries, and especially with the States and sovereignties of the 
 western hemisphere. Instructions from the Department of State were 
 issued to the various diplomatic and consular officers of the Govern- 
 ment, asking them to devote attention to the question of methods by 
 which trade between the respective countries of their official residence 
 and the United States could be most judiciously fostered. In obedience 
 to these instructions, examinations and reports upon this subject have 
 been made by many of these officers and transmitted to the Depart- 
 ment, and the same are submitted to the consideration of Congress. 
 
 The annual report of the Secretary of the Treasury on the state of 
 the finances presents important questions for the action of Congress, 
 upon some of which I have already remarked. 
 
 The revenues of the Government during the fiscal year ending June 
 30, 1877, Avere $260,000,580.62. The total expenditures for the same 
 period were $238,060,008.03, leaving a surplus revenue of $30,340,577.69. 
 This has substantially supplied the requirements of the sinking-fund 
 for that year. The estimated revenues of the current fiscal year are 
 $265,500,000, and the estimated expenditures for the same period are 
 $232,430,643.72. If these estimates prove to be correct, there will be 
 a surplus revenue of $33,060,350.28, an amount nearly sufficient for- the 
 sinking-fund for that year. The estimated revenues for the next fiscal 
 year are $260,250,000. 
 
 It appears from the report that during the last fiscal year the revenues 
 of the Government, compared with the previous year, have largely 
 decreased. This decrease, amounting to the sum of $18,481,452.54, 
 was mainly in customs duties, caused partly by a large falling off of 
 
CO LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 the amount of imported dutiable goods, and partly by the general fall 
 of prices in the marketsof production of such articles as pay ar?-r«/orew 
 taxes. While this is felt injuriously iu the diminution of the revenue, 
 it has been accompanied with a very large increase of exportations. 
 The total exports during the last fiscal year, including coin, have been 
 $658,037,457, and tlie imports have been $402,097,540— leaving a bal- 
 ance of trade in favor of the United States amounting to the sum of 
 $100,539,917; the beneficial effects of which extend to all branches of 
 business. 
 
 The estimated revenue for the next fiscal year will impose upon Con- 
 gress the duty of strictly limiting appropriations, including the requisite 
 sun) for the maintenance of the sinking-fund, within the aggregated 
 estimated receipts. 
 
 While the aggregate of taxes should not be increased, amendments 
 might be made to the revemielaws that would, Avithout diminishing the 
 revenue, relieve the people from unnecessary burdens. A tax on tea 
 and coffee is shown by the experience not only of our Own country, but 
 of other countries, to be easily collected, without loss by undervaluation 
 or fraud, and largely borne in the country of production. A tax of ten 
 cents a pound on tea and two cents a pound on coffee would produce a 
 revenue exceeding $12,000,000, and thus enable Congress to repeal a 
 multitude of annoying taxes yielding a revenue not exceeding that sum. 
 The internal revenue system grew out of the necessities of the war, 
 and most of the legislation imposing taxes upon domestic products, 
 under this system, has been repealed. By the substitution of a tax on 
 tea and coffee, all forms of internal taxation may be re[)ealed, except 
 that on whiskey, spirits, tobacco, and beer. Attention is also called 
 to the necessity of enacting more rigorous laws for the protection of 
 the revenue and for the punishment of frauds and smuggling. This 
 can best be done by judicious jiro visions that will induce the disclosure 
 of attempted fraud by uuderval nation and snuiggling. All revenue 
 laws should be simple iu their provisions and easily understood. So 
 far as practicable, the rates of taxation should be in the form of specific 
 duties, and not ad valorem, requiring the judgment of experienced men 
 to ascertain values, and exposing the revenue to the temptation of 
 fraud. 
 
 My attention has been called during the recess of Congress to abuses 
 existing in the collecti<ni of the customs, and strenuous efforts have 
 been made for their correction l)y ExecutiNe orders. The recommenda- 
 tion submitted to the Secretary of the Treasury by a commission 
 appointed to examine into the collection of customs duties at the port 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 89 
 
 of New York, contain many suggestions for tlie modificatiou of the 
 customs laws, to which the attention of Congress is invited. 
 
 It is matter of congratuhition that, notwithstanding the severe bur- 
 dens caused by the war, the public faith with all creditors has beeu 
 preserved, and that, as the result of this policy, the public credit has 
 continuously advanced, and our public securities are regarded Avith the 
 highest favor in the markets of the world. I trust that no act of the 
 Government Avill cast a shadow upon its credit. 
 
 The progress of refunding the public debt has been rapid and satis- 
 factory. Under the contract existing when I entered upon the discharge 
 of the duties of my office, bonds bearing interest at the rate of 4i per 
 cent, were being rapidly sold, and within three months the aggregate 
 sales of these bonds had reached the sum of J^2()0,()00,()0(). With my 
 sanction the SecretarA- of the Treasury entered into a new contract for 
 the sale of four per cent, bonds, and within thirtj" days after the popu- 
 lar subscription for such bonds was opened subscriptions were had 
 amounting to $75,490,550, which were paid for within ninety days after 
 the date of subscription. By this process, within but little more than 
 one year, the annual interest on the public debt was reduced in the 
 sum of $3,775,000. 1 recommend that suitable provision be made to 
 enable the people to easily convert their savings into Government 
 securities, as the best mode in which small savings may be well secured 
 and yield a moderate interest. It is an object of public policy to retain 
 among our own peox)le the securities of the United States. In this way 
 our country is guarded against their sudden return from foreign coun- 
 tries, caused bj- war or other disturbances beyond our limits. 
 
 The commerce of the United States with foreign Nations, and especially 
 the export of domestic productions, has of late years largely increased; 
 but the greater portion of this trade is c<mducted in foreign vessels. 
 The importance of enlarging our foreign trade, and especially by direct 
 and speedy interchange, with countries on this continent, cannot be 
 over-estimated; and it is a matter of great moment that our own ship- 
 j)ing interest should receive, to the utmost practical extent, the benefit 
 of our commerce with other lands. These considerations are forcibly 
 urged by all the large commercial cities of the country, and public 
 attention is generally and wisely attracted to the solution of the problems 
 they present. It is not doubted that Congress will take them up in the 
 broadest spirit of liberality, and respond to the public demand, by prac- 
 tical legislation, upon this important subject. 
 
 The report of the Secretary of War shows that the Army has been 
 actively' employed during the year, and has rendered A^ery important 
 
90 LETTERS AND MEi-SAGES. 
 
 service in suppressiiig- liostilities in the Indian country, and in preserv- 
 ing peace, and protecting life and property in the interior as well as 
 along the Mexican border. A long and arduous campaign has been 
 prosecuted, with final complete success, against a portion of the ^ez 
 Percys tribe of Indians. A full account of this campaign will be found 
 in the report of the General of the Army. It will be seen that in its 
 course several severe battles were fought, in which a number of gallant 
 officers and men lost their lives. I join with the Secretary of War and 
 the General of the Army in awarding to the officers and men employed 
 in the long and toilsome pursuit, and in tlie final capture of these 
 Indians, the honor and praise which are so justly their due. 
 
 The very serious riots which occurred in several of the States in July 
 last rendered necessary the employment of a considerable portion of 
 the Army to preserve the peace and maintain order. In the States of 
 West Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, and Illinois these disturbances 
 were so formidable as to defy the local and State authorities, and the 
 National Executive was called upon, in the mode provided by the Con- 
 stitution and laws, to furnish military aid. I am gratified to be able 
 to state that the troops sent, in response to these calls for aid in the 
 suppression of domestic violence, were al)le, by the influence of their 
 presence in the disturbed regions, to preserve the peace and restore 
 order without the use of force. In the discharge of this delicate and 
 important duty, both officers and men acted with great prudence and 
 courage, and for their services deserve the thanks of the country. 
 
 Disturbances along the Rio Grande, in Texas, to which I have already 
 referred, have rendered necessary the constant employment of a mili- 
 tary for(;e in that vicinity. A full report of all recent military opera- 
 tions in that quarter has been transmitted to the House of Kepreseuta- 
 tives,in answer to a resolution of that body, and it will, therefore, not 
 be necessary to enter into details. I regret to say that these lawless 
 incursions into our territory by armed bands from the ^Mexican side of 
 the line, for the purpose of robl)ery, have been of frequent occurrence, 
 and, in spite of the most vigilant eftbrts of the commander of (mr forces, 
 the marauders have generally succeeded in escaping into Mexico with 
 their ])lunder. In May last I gave orders for the exercise of the utmost 
 vigilance on the part of our troops for the suppression of these raids, 
 and the i)unishment of the guilty parties, as well as the recapture of 
 property stolen by them. General Ord, commanding in Texas, was 
 directed to invite the co-operation of the Mexican authorities in etforts 
 to this end, and to assure them that I was anxious to avoid giving the 
 least offence to Mexico. At the same time, he was directed to give 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 91 
 
 notice of my determination to put an end to the invasion of our territory 
 by lawless bands, intent upon the plunder of our peaceful citizens, even 
 if the effectual punishment of the outlaws should make the crossing of 
 the border by our troops in their pursuit necessary. It is believed that 
 this policy has had the effect to check somewhat these depredations,, 
 and that, with a considerable increase of our force upon that frontier, 
 and the establishment of several additional military posts along the 
 Eio Grande, so as more effectually to guard that extensive border, peace 
 may be preserved, and the lives and property of our citizens in Texas 
 fully protected. 
 
 Prior to the 1st day of July last the Army was, in accordance with 
 law, reduced to the maximum of 25,000 enlisted men, being a reduction 
 of 2,r)00 below the force previously authorized. This reduction was. 
 made, as required by law, entirely from the infantry and artillery branches 
 of the service, without any reduction of the cavalry. Under the law, 
 as it now stands, it is necessary that the cavalry regiments be recruited 
 to one hundred men in each company for service ou the Mexican and 
 Indian frontiers. The necessary effect of this legislation is to reduce 
 the infantry and artillery arms of the service below the number required 
 for efficiency; and I concur with the Secretary of War in recommending 
 that authority be given to recruit all companies of infantry to at least 
 fifty men, and all batteries of artillery to at least seventy-five nuni, with 
 the ])ower, in case of emergency, to increase the former to one hundred,, 
 and the latter to one hundred and twenty-two men each. 
 
 I invite your s[)ecial attention to the following recommendations of 
 the Secretary of War : 
 
 First. That provision be made for supplying to the Army a more 
 abundant and better supply of reading-matter. 
 
 Second. That early action be taken by Congress looking to a com- 
 plete revision and republication of the Army Regulations. 
 
 Third. That section 1258 of the Revised Statutes, limiting the num- 
 ber of officers on the retired list, be repealed. 
 
 Fourth. That the claims arising under the act of July 4, 18G4, for 
 supplies taken by the Army during the war, be taken from the offices 
 of the Quartermaster and Commissary-General, and transferred to the 
 Southern Claims Commission, or some other tribunal having more time 
 and better facilities for their prompt investigation and decision than are 
 possessed by these officers. 
 
 Fifth. That Congress provide for an annuity-fund for the families of 
 deceased soldiers, as recommended by the raymaster-General of the 
 Army. 
 
92 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 The report of tlie Secretary of the Ifavy shows that we have six 
 squadrons now engaged in tlie protection of our foreign commerce, ami 
 other duties pertaining to the naval service. The condition and opera- 
 ti(ms of the Department are also shown. The total expenditures for 
 the fiscal year ending June 30, 1877, were $10,077,974.54. There are 
 unpaid claims against the Department chargeable to the last year, which 
 are presented to the consideration of Congress by the report of the 
 Secretary. The estimates for the fiscal year commencing July 1, 1878, 
 are $10,233,234.40, exclusive of the sum of $2,314,231, submitted for 
 new buildings, repairs, and improvements at the several navy-yards. 
 The appropriations for the present fiscal year, commencing July 1, 1877, 
 are $13,592,032.00. The amount drawn from the Treasury trom July 
 1 to :N^ovember 1, 1877, is $5,343,037.40, of which there is estimated to 
 he yet available $1,029,528.30, showing the amount of actual expendi- 
 ture during the first four months of the present fiscal year to have been 
 $4,313,509.10. 
 
 The report of the Postmaster-General contains a full and clear state- 
 ment of the operations and condition of the Post-Office Department. 
 The ordinary revenues of the Department for the fiscal year ending 
 June 30, 1877, including receipts from the money-order business and 
 from otficial stamps and stamped envelopes, amounted to the sum of 
 $27,531,585.20. The additional sum of $7,013,000 was realized from 
 appropriations from the general treasury for various ])urposes, making 
 the receipts from all sources $34,544,885.20. The total expenditures 
 during the fiscal year amounted to $33,480,322.44, leaving an excess of 
 total receipts over total expenditures of $1,058,502.82, and an excess 
 ■of total expenditures over ordinary receipts of $5,954,737.18. Deduct- 
 ing from the total receipts the sum of $03,201.84, received frinn inter- 
 national money-orders of the preceding fiscal year, and deducting from 
 the total expenditures the sum of $1,103,818.20, paid on liabilities in- 
 curred in previous fiscal years, the expenditures and receipts apper- 
 taining to the business of the last fiscal year were as follows : 
 
 Expenditures $32,322, 504 24 
 
 Receipts, (ordinary, from money-order business and from 
 
 official postage-stamps) ^'7, 408, 323 42 
 
 Excess of expenditures 'l? 854, 180 82 
 
 The ordinary revenues of the Post-Office Department for the year 
 ending June 30, 1879, are estimated at an increase of three per cent, 
 over those of 1877, making $29,034,098.28, and the expenditures for the 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 93 
 
 same year are estimated at $30,427,771, leaving an estimated deficiency 
 for the year 1S79 of $7,393,672.72. Tlie additional legislation recom- 
 mended by the I*ostmaster-General for improvements of the mail service^ 
 and to protect the i)0stal revenues from the abuses piactised under 
 existing' laws, is resj)ectfully recommended to the careful consideration 
 of Congress. 
 
 The report of the Attoiiiey-General contains several suggestions as 
 to the administration of justice, to which I invite your attention. The 
 pressure of business in the Supreme Court and in certain circuit courts 
 of the United States is now such that serious dehiys, to the great injury^ 
 and even op[»ression, of suitors occur, and a remedy should be sought 
 for this condition of affairs. Whether it will be found in the plan 
 brietly sketclied in the rei)ort, of increasing the number of Judges of 
 the circuit courts, and by means of this addition to the judicial Ibrce 
 of creating an intermediate court of errors and appeals, or whether 
 some other mode can be devised for obviating the difficulties which 
 now exist, I leave to your mature consideration. 
 
 The present condition of the Indian tribes on tlie territory of the 
 United States, and our relations with tliem, are tally set Ibrtli in the 
 reports of tlie Secretary of the Interior and the Commissioner of Indian 
 Affairs. After a series of most deplorable conflicts — the successful 
 termination of wliicli, wliile reflecting lionor u])on tlie brave soldiers, 
 who accomplished it, cannot lessen our regret at their occurrence —we 
 are now at peace with all the Indian tribes within our borders. To 
 preserve that peace by a just and huuume i)olicy will be the object of 
 my earnest endeavors. Whatever may be said of their character and 
 savage propensities, of the difficulties of introducing among them the 
 habits of civilized life, and of the obstacles they have ofl'ered to the 
 progress of settlement and enterprise in certain parts of the country, 
 the Indians are certainly entitled to our sympathy, and to a conscien- 
 tious respect on our i)art for their claims ui^on our sense of justice. 
 They Avere the aboriginal occupants of the land we now possess. They 
 have been driven from place to place; the purchase-money paid ta 
 them, hi some cases, for what they called their own, has still left them 
 poor. In many instances, when they had settled down upon land 
 assigned to them by compact, and began to support themselves by their 
 own labor, they were rudely jostled off and thrust into the wilderness 
 again. Many, if not most, of our Indian wars have had their origin in 
 broken promises and acts of injustice upon our part; and the advance 
 of the Indians in civilization has been slow, because the treatment they 
 received did not permit it to be faster and more general. We cannot 
 
t)4 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 expect them to improve and to follow our guidance unless we keep faith 
 with them in respecting the rights they possess, and unless, instead of 
 depriving them of their opportunities, we lend them a helping-hand. 
 
 I cordially approve the i^olicy regarding the management of Indian 
 Affairs outlined in the rex)orts of the Secretary of the Interior and of 
 the Commissioner of Indian Affairs. The faithful j)erformance of our 
 promises is the first condition of a good understanding with the Indians. 
 I cannot too urgently recommend to Congress that prompt and liberal 
 provision be made for the conscientious fulfilment of all engagements 
 entered into by the Government with Indian tribes. To withhold the 
 means necessary for the performance of a promise is always a false 
 economy, and is apt to prove disastrous in its consequences. Especial 
 care is recommended to provide for Indians settled on their reserva- 
 tions cattle and agricultural imi)lements, to aid them in whatever 
 ■efforts they may make to support themselves; and by the establish- 
 ment and maintenance of schools to bring them under the control of 
 ci\alized influences. I see no reason why Indians who can give satis- 
 factory proof of having by their own labor supported their families for 
 a number of years, and who are willing to detach themselves from their 
 tribal relations, should not be admitted to the benefit of the homestead 
 act and the privileges of citizensliip ; and I recommend the passage of 
 a law to that effect. It will be an act of justice, as well as a measure of 
 encouragement. Earnest efforts are being made to purify the Indian 
 Service, so that every dollar approj^riated by Congress shall redound 
 to the benefit of the Indians, as intended. Those efforts shall have my 
 firm support. With an improved service, and every possible encoiu-- 
 agement held out to the Indians to better their condition and to elevate 
 themselves in the scale of civilization, we may hope to accomplish, at 
 the same time, a good work for them and for ourselves. 
 
 I invite the attention of Congress to the importance of the statements 
 and suggestions made by the Secretary of the Interior concerning the 
 depredations committed on the timber-lands of the United States, and 
 the necessity for the preservation of forests. It is believed that the 
 measures taken in jjursuance of existing law to arrest those depreda- 
 tions will be entirely successful if Congress, by an apx)ropriation for 
 that purpose, renders their continued enforcement possible. The expe- 
 rience of other nations teaches us that a country cannot be stripped of 
 its forests with impunity, and we shall expose ourselves to the gravest 
 consequences unless the wasteful and improvident manner in which the 
 forests of the United are destroyed be effectually checked. I earnestly 
 recommend that the measures suggested by the Secretary of the Inte- 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 95 
 
 rior for the suppression of depredations on the public timber-lands of 
 the United States, for the selling of timber from the public lands, and 
 for the preservation of forests, be embodied in a law; and that, consid- 
 ering the urgent necessity of enabling the people of certain States and 
 Territories to purchase timber from the public lands in a legal manner, 
 which at present they cannot do, such a law be passed without una- 
 voidable delay. I would also call the attention of Congress to the 
 statements made by the Secretary of the Interior concerning the dis- 
 position that ]uight be made of the desert lauds not irrigable west of 
 the 100th meridian. These lands are practically unsalable under exist- 
 ing laws, and the suggestion is worthy of consideration that a system 
 of leasehold tenure would make them a source of prolit to the United 
 States, while at the same time legalizing the business of cattle-raising, 
 which is at present carried on ui)on them. 
 
 The report of the Commissioner of Agriculture contains the gratify- 
 ing announcement of the extraordinary success which has rewarded 
 the agricultural industry of the country for tlie past year. With the 
 fair prices which obtain for the products of the soil, especially for the 
 surplus which our people have to export, we may confidently turn to 
 this as the most important of all our resources for the revival of the 
 depressed industries of the country. The report shows our agricultural 
 progress during the year, and contains a statement of the work done 
 by this department for the advancement of agricultural industry, upon 
 which the prosi^erity of our people so largely depends. Matters of in- 
 formation are included of great interest to all who seek, by the exi)e- 
 rieuce of others, to improve their own methods of cultivation. The 
 efforts of the Department to increase the production of important 
 articles of consumption will, it is ho])ed, improve the demand for labor, 
 and advance the business of the country, and eventually result in 
 saving some of the many millions that are now annually paid to foreign 
 Nations for sugar and other staple products which habitual use has 
 made necessary in our domestic every-day life. 
 
 The Board on behalf the United States Executive Departments at the 
 International Exhibition of 1876 has concluded its labors. The final 
 report of the Board was transmitted to Congress by the President near 
 the close of the last session. As these papers are understood to con- 
 tain interesting and valuable information, and will constitute the only 
 report emanating from the Government on the subject of the Exhibi- 
 tion, I invite attention to the matter and recommend that the report be 
 published for general information. 
 
 Congress is empowered by the Constitution with the authority of 
 exclusive legislation over the District of Columbia, in which the seat 
 
96 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 of Govei'iniient of the Xatiou is located. The interests of the District 
 havings no direct representation in Congress, are entitled to especial 
 consideration and care at the hands of the General Government. The 
 capital of the United States belongs to the Nation, and it is natural 
 that the American people should take pride in the seat of their National 
 Government, and desire it to be an ornament to the country. Much 
 has been done to render it healthful, convenient, and attractive, but 
 much remains to be done, which its permanent inhabitants are not able 
 and ought not to be expected to do. To impose upon them a large 
 propcution of the cost required for public improvements, which are in a 
 great measure i)lanned and executed for the convenience of the Gov- 
 ernment, and of the many thousands of visitors from all i)arts of the 
 country, who temi)orarily reside at the capital of the Nation, is an evi- 
 dent injustice. Special attention is asked by the Commissioners of the 
 District in their report, which is herewith transmitted, to the impor- 
 tance of a permanent adjustment by Congress of the financial relations 
 between the United States and the District, involving the regular 
 annual contribution by the United States of its just proportion of the 
 expenses of the District government, and of the outlay for all needed 
 public improvements, and such measure of relief from the burden of 
 taxation now resting upon the people of the District as in the wisdom 
 of Congress may be deemed just. 
 
 The report of the Commissioners shows that the affairs of the District 
 are in a condition as satisfactory as could be expected, in view of the 
 heavy burden of debt resting upon it, and its very limited means for 
 necessary expenses. 
 
 The debt of the District is as follows: 
 
 Old funded debt |8, 379, C91 96 
 
 3.65 bonds, guaranteed by the United States 13, 743, 250 00 
 
 Total bonded debt 22, 122, 941 96 
 
 To which should be added certain outstanding claims, 
 
 as explained in the report of the Commissioners. . . 1, 187, 204 52 
 
 Making the total debt of the District 23, 310, 146 48 
 
 The Commissioners also ask attention to the importance of the im- 
 provement of the Potomac river, and the reclamation of the marshes 
 bordering the city of Washington ; and their view^s upon this subject 
 are concurred in by the members of the Board of Health, whose report 
 is also herewith transmitted. Both the commercial and sanitary in- 
 terests of the District will be greatly promoted, I doubt not, by this, 
 improvement. 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 97 
 
 Yolu' attention is invited to the suggestion of the Commissioners, and 
 of the Board of Health, for the organization of a Board of Charities, 
 to have supervision and control of the disbursement of all moneys for 
 charitable purposes from the District treasury. I desire, also, to ask 
 your special attention to the need of adding to the efficiency of the 
 public schools of the District, by supplemental aid from the is'ational 
 Treasury. This is especially just, since so large a number of those 
 attending these schools are children of employes of the Government. 
 I earnestly commend to your care the interests of the people of the 
 District, who are so intimately associated with the Government estab- 
 lishments, and to whose enterprise the good order and attractiveness of 
 the capital are largely due; and I ask your attentioii to the request of 
 the Commissioners for legislation in behalf of the interests intrusted 
 to their care. The appropriations asked, for the care of the reserva- 
 tions belonging to the Government within the city, by the Commissioner 
 of Public Buildings and Grounds, are also commended to your favor- 
 able consideration. 
 
 The report of the Joint Commission created by the act approved 
 August 2, 1876, entitled "An act providing for the completion of the 
 Washington Monument,'' is also herewith transmitted, with accom- 
 panying documents. The board of engineer officers detailed to ex- 
 amine the monument, in compliance with the second section of the act, 
 have reported that the foundation is insufficient. Xo authority exists 
 for making the expenditure necessary to secure its stability. I there- 
 fore recommend that the commission Ije authorized to expend such 
 portion of the sum appropriated by the act as may be necessary for 
 the purpose. The present unfinished condition of the hionument, beguii 
 so long ago, is a reproach to the Xation. It cannot be doubted that 
 the patriotic sense of the country will warmly respond to such prompt 
 provision as may be made for its completion at an early day, and I urge 
 upon Congress the propriety and necessity of immediate legislation for 
 this purpose. 
 
 The wisdom of legislation upon the part of Congress in aid of the 
 States, for the education of the whole people in those branches of study 
 which are taught in the common schools of the country, is no longer a 
 question. The intelligent judgment of the country goes still further, 
 regarding it as also both constitutional and expedient for the General 
 Government to extend to technical and higher education, such aid as is 
 deemed essential to the general welfore and to our due prominence 
 among the enlightened and cultured Xations of the world. The ulti- 
 mate settlement of all questions of the future, whether of administra- 
 7 
 
98 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 tion or fiuauce, or of true nationality of sentiment, depends upon the 
 virtue and intelligence of the people. It is vain to hope for the 
 success of a free government without the means of insuring the intelli- 
 gence of those who are the source of j)Ower. Xo less than one-seventh 
 of the entire voting population of onr country are yet unable to read 
 and write. 
 
 It is encouraging to observe, in connection with the growth of frater- 
 nal feeling in those States in which slavery formerly existed, evidences 
 of increasing interest in universal education, and I shall be glad to give 
 my approval to any appropriate measures which may be enacted by 
 Congress for the purpose of supplementing with national aid the local 
 systems of education in those States, and in all the States ; and having 
 already invited your attention to the needs of the District of Columbia 
 with respect to its public-school system, I here add that I believe it 
 desirable, not so much with reference to the local wants of the District, 
 but to the great and lasting benefit of the entire country, that this 
 system should be crowned with a university in all respects in keeping 
 with the iN^ational Capital, and thereby realize the cherished hopes of 
 Washington on this subject. ' 
 
 I also earnestly commend the request of the Eegents of the Smith- 
 sonian Institution that an adequate appropriation be made for the 
 establishment and conduct of a national museum under their super- 
 vision. 
 
 The question of providing for the preservation and growth of the 
 Library of Congress is also one of national importance. As the depos- 
 itory of all copyright publications and records, this library has out- 
 grown the provisions for its accommodation; and the erection, on such 
 site as the judgment of Congress may approve, of a fire-proof library- 
 building, to preserve the treasures and enlarge the usefulness of this 
 valuable collection, is recommended. I recommend also such legisla- 
 tion as will render available and efficient, for the purposes of instruction, 
 so far as is consistent with the public service, the cabinets or museums 
 of invention, of surgery, of education, and of agriculture, and other 
 collections, the property of the National Government. 
 
 The capital of the Nation should be something more than a mere 
 political centre. We should avail ourselves of all the opportunities 
 which Providence has here placed at our command, to promote the 
 general intelligence of the people and increase the conditions most 
 favorable to the success and perpetuity of our institutions. 
 
 E. B. HAYES. 
 
 December 3, 1S77. 
 
IMESS^OE 
 
 RETURNIXG TO 
 
 THE HOUSE OF KEPEESENTATIVES THE BILL ENTITLED "AN ACT TO 
 
 AUTHORIZE THE COINAGE OF THE STANDARD SILVER DOLLAR 
 
 AND TO RESTORE ITS LEGAL-TENDER CHARACTER. 
 
 FEBRUARY 98, 1878- 
 
MESSAGE. 
 
 To THE House of Kepresentatives : 
 
 After a very careful consideration of the House bill No. 1093, entitled 
 "An act to authorize the coinage of the standard silver dollar and to 
 restore its legal-tender character," I feel compelled to return it to the 
 House of Representatives, in which it originated, with mj objections 
 to its passage. 
 
 Holding the opinion which I^ expressed in my annual message, that 
 "neither the interests of the Government nor of the people of the 
 United States would be promoted by disparaging silver as one of the 
 two precious metals which furnish the coinage of the world, and that 
 legislation which looks to maintaining the volume of intrinsic money to 
 as full a measure of both metals as their relative commercial values 
 will permit would be neither unjust nor inexpedient," it has been my 
 earnest desire to concur with Congress in the adoption of such meas- 
 ures to increase the silver coinage of the country as would not impair 
 the obligation of contracts, either public or private, nor injuriously 
 afiect the public credit. It is only upon the conviction that this bill 
 does not meet these essential requirements that I feel it my duty to 
 withhold from it my approval. 
 
 My present ofBcial duty as to this bill permits only an attention to 
 the specific objections to its passage which seem to me so important as 
 to justify me in asking from the wisdom and duty of Congress that 
 further consideration of the bill for which the Constitution has, in such 
 cases, provided. 
 
 The bill provides for the coinage of silver dollars of the weight of 
 412^ grains each, of standard silver, to be a legal-tender at their- nom- 
 inal value for all debts and dues, public and private, except where 
 otherwise expressly stipulated in the contract. It is well known that 
 the market value of that number of grains of standard silver during the 
 past year has been from ninety to ninety-two cents as compared with 
 the standard gold dollar. Thus the silver dollar authorized by this 
 bill is worth 8 to 10 per cent, less than it purports to be worth, and is 
 made a legal-tender for debts contracted when the law did not recog- 
 nize such coins as lawful money. 
 
 The right to pay duties in silver or certificates for silver deposits will, 
 
102 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 when they are issued in sufficient amount to circulate, put an end to 
 tlie receipt of revenue in gold, and thus compel the payment of silver 
 for both the principal and interest of the public debt. One thousand one 
 hundred and forty-three million four hundred and ninety-three thou- 
 sand four hundred dollars of the bonded debt, now outstanding, was 
 issued prior to February, 1873, when the silver dollar was unknown in 
 circulation in this country, and was only a convenient form of silver 
 bidUon for exportation ; $583,4:40,3o0 of the funded debt has been issued 
 since February, 1873, when gold alone was the coin for which the bonds 
 were sold, and gold alone was the coin in which both parties to the 
 contract understood that the bonds would be paid. These bonds entered 
 into the markets of the world. They were paid for in gold when silver 
 had greatly depreciated, and when no one would have bought them if 
 it had been understood that they would be paid in silver. The sum of 
 $225,000,000 of these bonds has been sold during my administration 
 for gold coin, and the United States received the benefit of these sales 
 by a reduction of the rate of interest to 4 and 4^ per cent. During 
 the progress of these sales a doubt was suggested as to the coin 
 in which payment of these bonds would be made. The public an- 
 nouncement was thereupon authorized that it was " not to be antici- 
 pated that any future legislation of Congress, or any action of any De- 
 partment of the Government, would sanction or tolerate the redemp- 
 tion of the principal of these bonds, or the payment of the interest 
 thereon, in coin of less value than the coin authorized by law at the 
 time of the issue of the bonds, being the coin exacted by the Govern- 
 ment in exchange for the same." 
 
 In view of these facts it will be justly regarded as a grave breach of 
 the public faith to undertake to pay these bonds, principal or interest, 
 in silver coin wortli in the market less than the coin received for them. 
 It is said that the silver dollar made a legal-tender by this bill ^^ill. 
 under its operation, be equivalent in value to the gold dollar. Many 
 supporters of the bill believe this, and would not justify an attempt to 
 pay debts, either public or private, in coin of inferior value to the money 
 of the world. The capital defect of the bill is that it contains no pro- 
 vision protecting from its operation pre-existing debts in case the coinage 
 which it creates shall continue to be of less value than that which was 
 the sole legal- tender when they were contracted. If it is now proposed 
 for the purpose of taking advantage of the depreciation of silver in the 
 payment of debts to coin and make a legal-tender a silver dollar of less 
 commercial value than any dollar, whether of gold or i^aper, which is 
 now lawful money in this country, such measure, it will hardly be (pies- 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 103 
 
 tioned, will, in tlie judgment of mankind, be an act of bad faith. As 
 to all debts heretofore contracted, the silver dollar should be made a 
 legal-tender only at its market value. The standard of value should 
 not be changed without the consent of both parties to the contract. 
 National promises should be kept with unflinching fidelity. There is 
 no power to compel a Nation to pay its just debts. Its credit depends 
 on its honor. The Nation owes what it has led or allowed its creditors 
 to expect. I cannot approve a bill which in my judgment authorizes 
 the violation of sacred obligations. The obligation of the public faith 
 transcends all questions of profit or public advantage. Its unques- 
 tionable maintenance is the dictate as well of the highest expediency 
 as of the most necessary duty, and should ever be carefully guarded 
 by the Executive, by Congress, and by the people. 
 
 It is my firm conviction that, if the country is to be benefited by a 
 silver coinage, it can be done only by the issue of silver dollars of full 
 value, which will defraud no man. A currency worth less than it pur- 
 ports to be worth will in the eud defraud not only creditors, but all 
 who are engaged in legitimate business, and none more surely than 
 those who are dependent on their daily labor for their daily bread. 
 
 K. B. HAYES. 
 
 ExECUTH^E Mansion, February 28, 1878. 
 
m:essa.ge 
 
 RETURNING TO 
 
 THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES THE BILL ENTITLED "AN ACT TO- 
 
 AUTHORIZE A SPECIAL TERM OF THE CIRCUIT COURT OF 
 
 THE UNITED STATES FOR THE SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF 
 
 MISSISSIPPI, TO BE HELD AT SCRANTON, IN 
 
 JACKSON COUNTY." 
 
 MARCH 6, 187B. 
 
MESSAGE. 
 
 To THE House of Kepresentatives: 
 
 I return lierevrith House bill Xo. 3072, entitled "An act to authorize 
 a special term of the circuit court of the United States for the southern 
 district of Mississippi, to be held at Scrantou, in Jackson County," with 
 the following- objections to its becoming a law: 
 
 The act provides that a special term of the circuit court of the United 
 States for the southern district of Mississippi shall be held at Scran- 
 ton, in Jackson County, Mississippi, to begin on the second Monday in 
 March, 1878, and directs the clerk of said court to "cause notice of said 
 special term of said court to be published in a newspaper in Jackson, 
 Mississippi, and also in a newspaper in Scranton, at least ten days 
 before the beginning thereof." 
 
 The act cannot be executed, inasmuch as there is not sufficient time 
 to give the notice of the holding of the special term, which Congress 
 thought proper to require. 
 
 The number of suits to be tried at the special term, in which the 
 United States is interested, is forty-nine, and the amount involved ex- 
 ceeds $200,000. The Government cannot prepare for trial at said special 
 term, because no fund appropriated by Congress can be made available 
 for that purpose. If, therefore, the Government is compelled to go to 
 trial at the special term provided for by this bill, the United States must 
 be defeated for want of time and means to make preparation for the 
 proper vindication of its rights. 
 
 The bill is therefore 'returned for the further consideration of Con- 
 gress. 
 
 E. B. HAYES. 
 
 Executive Mansion, March 6, 1878. 
 
 I certify that this act originated in the House of Representatives. 
 
 Attest: 
 
 GEO. M. ADAMS, 
 
 Clerl: 
 
108 • LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 AN ACT to authorize a special term of the circuit court of the United States for the 
 southern district of Mississippi, to be held at Scrauton, in Jackson County. 
 
 Be it enacted by the Senate and Rouse of Representatives of the United 
 States of America in Congress assembled, That a si)ecial term of tlie cir- 
 cuit coiirt of the United States for the southern district of Mississippi 
 shall be holden at Scrauton, in Jackson County, Mississippi, to begin 
 on the second Monday in March, eighteen hundred and seventy-eight; 
 and the clerk of said court shall cause notice of said special term of said 
 court to be published in a newspaper in Jackson, Mississippi, and also 
 in a newspaper in Scrauton, at least ten days before the beginning 
 thereof. And all process, writs, bonds, and recognizances which relate 
 to any suit or suits pending, or which may be instituted in said court 
 in belialf of the United States against any party or parties for or on 
 account of any lumber, logs, charcoal, or turpentine, or growing out of 
 or on account of any alleged depredation upon, or timber cut or taken 
 from, any of the puljlic lauds of the United States in said district shall 
 be considered as belonging to such special term; and such suits shall 
 be then and there tried and determined as if they had been brought, 
 and such writs, process, bonds, and recognizances had been opened and 
 taken with reference and made returnable to such special term. And 
 the presiding judge of said court shall have power to continue such 
 special term from time to time until said suits shall be determined, if, 
 in his judgment, the ends of justice mav so recpiire. 
 
 SAM. J. RANDALL, 
 Spealcer of the House of Representatives. 
 
 W. A. WHEELER, 
 Vice-President of the United States and President of the Senate. 
 
PROCLAMATION 
 
 MARTIAL LAW IX NEW MEXICO, 
 
 OCTOBER 7, 1878. 
 
PROCLAMATION. 
 
 BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. 
 
 A PROCLAMATIO:^^. 
 
 Whereas it is provided in the laws of the United States that when- 
 ever, by reason of nnlawfnl obstrnctions, combinations or assemblages 
 of persons, or rebellion against the authority of the Government of the 
 United States, it shall become impracticable, in the judgment of the 
 President, to enforce by the ordinary course of judicial proceedings the 
 laws of the United States within any State or Territory, it shall be law- 
 ful for the President to call forth the militia of any or all the States, and 
 to employ such parts of the land and naval forces of the United States 
 as he may deem necessary to enforce the faithful execution of the laws 
 of the United States, or to suppress such rebellion, in whatever State or 
 Territory thereof the laws of the United States may be forcibly opposed 
 or the execution thereof forcibly obstructed ; 
 
 And whereas it has been made to appear to me that by reason of un- 
 lawful combinations and assemblages of persons in arms, it has become 
 impracticable to enforce, by the ordinary coarse of judicial proceedings, 
 the laws of the United States within the Territory of :Sew Mexico, and 
 especially within Lincoln County therein; and that the laws of the 
 United States have been therein forcibly opposed and the execution 
 thereof forcibly resisted ; 
 
 And whereas the laws of the United States require that whenever it 
 may be necessary, in the judgment of the President, to use the military 
 force for the purpose of enforcing the faithful execution of the laws of 
 the United States, he shall forthwith, by proclamation, command such 
 insurgents to disperse and retire peaceably to their respective abodes, 
 within a limited time : 
 
 Xow, therefore, I, Rutherford B. Hayes, President of the United 
 States, do hereby admonish all good citizens of the United States, and 
 especially of the Territory of New Mexico, against aiding, countenanc- 
 ing, abetting, or taking part in any such unlawful proceedings, and I 
 do hereby warn all persons engaged in or connected with said obstruc- 
 tion of the laws, to disperse and retire peaceably to their respective 
 abodes on or before noon of the thirteenth day of October, instant. 
 
112 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand, and caused the seal 
 of the United States to be affixed. 
 
 Done at the city of Washington this seventh day of October, in the 
 
 year of our Lord eighteen hundred and seventy-eight, and of 
 
 [SEAL.] the Independence of the United States the one hundred and 
 
 third. 
 
 K. B. HAYES. 
 
 By the President : 
 
 F. W. Seward, 
 
 Acting Secretary of State. 
 
THANKSGIVING PROCLAMATION 
 
 OCTOBER 30, 1878. 
 
PROCLAMATION. 
 
 BY THE PKESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. 
 
 A proclamatio:n^. 
 
 The recurrence of that season at which it is the habit of our people to 
 make devout and pubhc confession of their constant dependence upon 
 the Divine favor for all the good gifts of life and happiness and of public 
 peace and prosperity, exhibits, in the record of the year, abundant 
 reasons for our gratitude and thanksgiving. 
 
 Exuberant harvests, productive mines, ample crops of the staples of 
 trade and manufactures, have enriched the country. 
 
 The resources, thus furnished to our reviving industry and expanding- 
 commerce, are hastening the day when discords and distresses, through 
 the length and breadth of the land, will, under the continued favor of 
 Providence, have given way to confidence, and energy and assured 
 prosperity. 
 
 Peace with all Nations has been maintained unbroken, domestic tran- 
 quillity has prevailed, and the institutions of liberty and justice which 
 the wisdom and ^irtue of our fathers established, remain the glory and 
 defence of their children. 
 
 The general prevalence of the blessings of health through our wide 
 land, has made more conspicuous the sufferings and sorrows, which the 
 dark shadow of pestilence has cast upon a portion of our people. This 
 heavy afftictiou, even, the Divine Euler has tempered to the suffering 
 communities in the universal sympathy and succor which have flowed 
 to their relief, and the whole Nation may rejoice in the unity of spirit 
 in our people by which they cheerfully share one another's l)urdens. 
 
 Now, therefore, I, Rutherford B. Hayes, President of the United 
 States, do appoint Thursday, the 28th day of November, next, as a 
 Day of National Thanksgiving and Prayer; and I earnestly recom- 
 meiul that, withdrawing themselves from secular cares and labors, the 
 people of the United States do meet together on that day in their re- 
 spective places of worship, there to give thanks and praise to Almighty 
 God for His mercies, and to devoutly beseech their continuance. 
 
 In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand, and caused the seal 
 of the United States to be affixed. 
 
116 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 Done at tlie city of Wasliiugtou tliis thirtieth day of October, in the 
 year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and seveuty- 
 [SEAL.] eight, and of the Independence of the United States the one 
 hundred and third. 
 
 E. B. HAYES. 
 
 By the President: 
 
 Wm. M. Evarts, 
 
 Secretary of State. 
 
]VI E s s ^ a E 
 
 TWO HOUSES OF OONGEESS AT THE COMMENCEMENT OF THE THIED 
 SESSION OF THE FOETY-FIFTH CONGEESS. 
 
 DECEMBER 2, 1878. 
 
MESSAGE 
 
 Fellow- CrnzEX8 of the Senate 
 
 AND House of Eepresentatives : 
 
 Our heartfelt gratitude is due to the Divine Beiug, wlio hokls iu His 
 hands the destinies of Nations, for the continued bestowal, during the 
 last year, of countless blessings upon our country. 
 
 We are at peace with all other Xations. Our public credit has greatly 
 improved, and is, i^erhaps, now stronger than ever before. Abundant 
 harvests have rewarded the labors of those who till the soil, our manu- 
 facturing industries are reviving, and it is believed that general pros- 
 perity, which has been so long anxiously looked for, is at last within 
 our reach. 
 
 The enjoyment of health by our people generally has, however, been 
 Interrupted, during the past season, by the prevalence of a fatal pes- 
 tilence, the yellow-fever, in some portions of the Southern States, cre- 
 ating an emergency which called for prompt and extraordinary measures 
 of relief. The disease appeared as an epidemic, at IS^ew Orleans and 
 at other places on the lower Mississippi, soon after midsummer. It 
 was rapidly spread by fugitives from the infected cities and towns, and 
 did not disappear until early in November. The States of Louisiana, 
 Mississippi, and Tennessee have suffered severely. About one hun- 
 dred thousand cases are believed to have occurred, of which al)Out 
 twenty thousand, according to intelligent estimates, proved fatal. It 
 is impossible to estimate with any approach to accuracy the loss to the 
 country occasioned by this epidemic. It is to be reckoned by the hun- 
 dred millions of dollars. The suffering and destitution that resulted 
 excited the deepest sympathy in all parts of the Union. Physicians 
 and nurses hastened from every quarter to the assistance of the afflicted 
 communities. Voluntary contributions of money and supplies, in every 
 needed form, were speedily and generously furnished. The Govern- 
 ment was able to respond in some measure to the call for help, by pro- 
 viding tents, medicines, and food for the sick and destitute, the requi- 
 site directions for the ]nirpose being given, in the confident expectation 
 that this action of the Executive would receive the sanction of Con- 
 gress. About eighteen hundred teuts, and rations of the value of 
 
120 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 about twenty-five thousand dollars, were sent to cities and towns wliicli 
 applied for thein, full details of which will be furnished to Congress by 
 the proper Department. 
 
 The fearful spread of this pestilence has awakened a very general 
 public sentiment in favor of national sanitary administration, which 
 shall not only control quarantine, but have the sanitary supervision of 
 internal commerce in times of epidemics, and hold an advisory relation 
 to the State and municipal health authorities, with power to deal with 
 whate^'er endangers the public health, and which the municipal and 
 State authorities are unable to regulate. The national quarantine act 
 approved April 29, 1878, which was passed too late in the last session of 
 Congress to provide the means for carrying it into practical operation, 
 during the past season, is a step in the direction here indicated. In 
 view of the necessity for the most effective measures, by quarantine 
 and otherwise, for the i)rotection of our seaports, and the countrj^ gen- 
 erally, from this and other epidemics, it is recommended that Congress 
 give to the whole subject early and careful consideration. 
 
 The permanent pacification of the country by the complete protec- 
 tion of all citizens in every civil and political right continues to be of 
 paramount interest with the great body of our people. Every step in 
 this direction is welcomed with public approval, and every interruption 
 of stead^^ and uniform progress to the desired consnmmation awakens 
 general uneasiness and wide-spread condemnation. The recent Con- 
 gressional elections have furnished a direct and trustworthy test of 
 the advance thus far made in the practical establishment of the right 
 of suffrage, secured by the Constitution to the liberated race in the 
 Southern States. All disturbing influences, real or imaginary, had been 
 removed from all of these States. 
 
 The three constitutioHal amendments, which conferred freedom and 
 equality of civil and political rights upon the colored people of the 
 South, were adopted by the concurrent action of the great body of 
 good citizens who maintained the authority of the National Govern- 
 ment and the integrity and i^erpetuity of the Union at such a cost of 
 treasure and life, as a wise and nec(\ssary embodiment in the organic 
 law of the just results of the war. The j^eople of the former slave- 
 holding States accepted these results, and gave, in every practicable 
 form, assurances that the thirteenth, fourteenth, and fifteenth amend- 
 ments, and laws passed in pursuance thereof, should, in good faith, be 
 enforced', rigidly and impartially, in letter and spirit, to the end that the 
 humblest citizen, without distinction of race or color, should, under 
 them, receive full and equal protection in person and property and in 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 121 
 
 political rights aud privileges. By these constitutional amendments^ 
 the southern section of the Union obtained a large increase of political 
 power in Congress and in the Electoral College, aud the country justly 
 expected that elections would j)roceed, as to the enfranchised race, upon 
 the same circumstances of legal and constitutional freedom and pro- 
 tection which obtained in all the other States of the Union. The friends 
 of law and order looked forward to the conduct of these elections, -as 
 ottering to the general judgment of the country an important opportu- 
 nity to measure the degree in which the right of sutfrage could be 
 exercised by the colored people, and would be resjiected by their fellow- 
 citizens: but a more general enjoyment of freedom of suffrage by the 
 colored ix'ople, and a more just and generous protection of that freedom 
 by the comnuinities of which they form a part, were generally antici- 
 pated than the record of the elections discloses. In some of those 
 States in which the colored people have been unable to make their 
 opinions felt in the elections, the result is mainly due to influences not 
 easily measured or remedied by legal protection; but in the States of 
 Louisiana aud South Carolina at large, and in some particular con- 
 gressional districts outside of those States, the records of the elections 
 seem to compel the conclusion that the rights of the colored voters 
 have been overridden, and their participation in the elections not per- 
 mitted to be either general or free. 
 
 It will be for the Congress for which these elections were held, to 
 make such examinations into their conduct as may be appropriate to 
 determine the validity of the claims of members to their seats. In the 
 meanwhile it becomes the duty of the Executive and Judicial Depart- 
 ments of the Government, each in its province, to inquire into and pun- 
 ish violations of the laws of the United States which have occurred. I 
 can but repeat what I said in this connection in my last message, that 
 whatever authority rests with me to this end I shall not hesitate to put 
 forth, and I am unwilling to forego a renewed appeal to the legislatures, 
 the courts, the executive authorities, and the peoi)le of the States where 
 these wrongs have been i)erpetrated, to give their assistance towards 
 bringing to justice the offenders aud preventing a repetition of the 
 crimes. Xo means within my power will be spared to obtain a full and 
 fair investigation of the alleged crimes, and to secure the conviction 
 and just punishment of the guilty. 
 
 It is to be observed that the i)rincipal approiu'iation made for the 
 Department of Justice at the last sessioh contained the following' 
 clause: "And for defraying the expenses which may be incurred in 
 the enforcement of tlie act approved February twenty-eighth, eighteen 
 
122 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 hundred and seventy-one, entitled 'An act to amend an act approved 
 May tliirtietli, eighteen hundred and .seventy, entitled An act to enforce 
 the rights of citizens of the I'nited States to vote in the several States 
 of the Union, and for other purposes,' or any acts amendatory thereof 
 or supplementary thereto."' 
 
 It is the opinion of the Attorney-General that the expenses of these 
 proceedings will largely exceed the amount -vrhich was thus provided, 
 and I rely confidently upon Congress to make adequate appropriations 
 to enable the Executive Department to enforce the laws. 
 
 I respectfully lu-ge upon your attention that the Congressional elec- 
 tions, in every district, in a very important sense, are justly a matter 
 of political interest and concern throughout the whole country. Each 
 State, every political party, is entitled to the share of power which is 
 conferred by the legal and constitutional suffrage. It is the right of 
 every citizen, possessing the qualifications prescribed by law, to cast 
 one unintiuiidated ballot, and to have his ballot honestly counted. So 
 long as the exercise of this power and the enjoyment of this right are 
 common and equal, practically as well as formally, submission to the 
 results of the suffrage will be accorded loyally and cheerfully, and all 
 the departments of Government will feel the true vigor of the popular 
 will thus expressed. Xo temporary or administrative interests of Gov- 
 ernment, however urgent or weighty, will ever displace the zeal of our 
 people in defence of the primary rights of citizenship. They under- 
 stand that the protection of liberty requires the maintenance, in full 
 vigor, of the manly methods of free speech, free press, and free suffrage, 
 and will sustain the full authority of Government to enforce the laws 
 which are framed to preserve these inestimable rights. The material 
 progress and welfare of the States depend on the protection afforded to 
 their citizens. There can be no peace without such protection, no pros- 
 perity without i)eace, and the whole country is deeply interested in 
 the growth and prosperity of all its parts. 
 
 While the country has not yet reached complete unity of feeling and 
 reciprocal confidence between the communities so lately and so seriously 
 estranged, I feel an absolute assurance that the tendencies are in that 
 direction, and with increasing force. The power of public opinion will 
 override all political prejudices, and all sectional or State attachments, 
 in demanding that all over our wide territory the name and character 
 of citizen of the United States shall mean one and the same thing, and 
 carry with them unchallenged security and respect. 
 
 Our relations with other countries continue peaceful. Our neutrality 
 in contests between foreign Powers has been maintained and respected. 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 123 
 
 The Uiiiver.sal Exposition held at Paris during the past suiuiner lias 
 l)een attended by large numbers of our citizeus. The brief period 
 allowed for the i)reparation and arrangement of the contributions of 
 our citizens to tliis great Exposition was well employed in energetic 
 and judicious efforts to overcome this disadvantage. These efforts, led 
 and directed by tlie Commissioner-General, were remarkably success- 
 ful, and the exliibition of the products of American industry was credit- 
 able and gratifying in scope and character. The reports of the United 
 States Commissioners, giving its results in detail, will be duly laid 
 before you. Our participa.tion in this international competition for the 
 favor and the trade of the world may be expected to produce useful 
 and important results in promoting intercourse, friendship, and com- 
 merce with other ivTations. 
 
 In accordance with the i)rovisions of the act of February 1*8, 1878, 
 three commissioners were appointed to an international conference on 
 the subject of adopting a common ratio between gold and silver, for 
 the purpose of establishing internationally the use of bimetalHc money, 
 and securing fixity of relative value between those metals. 
 
 Invitations were addressed to the various Governments which had 
 expressed a wilHuguess to participate in its deliberations. The confer- 
 ence held its meetings in Paris in August last. The report of the 
 Commissioners, herewith submitted, will shdw its results. Xo common 
 ratio between gold and silver could be agreed upon by the confer- 
 ence. The general conckision was reached that it is necessary to 
 maintain in the workl the monetary functions of silver as well as of 
 gold, lea\ing the selection of the use of one or the other of these two 
 metals, or of both, to be made by each State. 
 
 Congress having appropriated at its last session the sum of $5,500,000 
 to pay the award of the Joint Commission at Halifax, if, after corre- 
 spondence with the British Government on the subject of the con- 
 formity of the award to the requirements of the treaty and to the terms 
 of the question thereby submitted to the Commission, the President 
 shall deem it his duty to make the payment, communications upon 
 these points were addressed to the British Government through the 
 Legation of the United States at London. Failing to obtain the con- 
 currence of the British Government in the views of this Government 
 respecting the award, I have deemed it my duty to tender tlie sum 
 named, within the year fixed by the treaty, accompanied by a notice of 
 the grounds of the ])ayment, and a protest against any other construc- 
 tion of the same. The correspondence upon this subject will be laid 
 before you. 
 
124 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 The Spaiiisli Govoniiueut has officially aiinouuced the termination 
 of the insnrrection in Cuba, and the restoration of i)eaee throughout 
 that Island. Confident expectations are expressed of a revival of trade 
 and prosi)erity, which it is earnestly hoped may i>rove well founded. Nu- 
 merous claims of American citizens for lelief for injuries or restoration 
 of i)roperty have been among rlie incidents of the long'-continued hos- 
 tilities, Some of these claims are in process of adjustment by Spain, 
 and tlie others are promised earl}- and careful consideration. 
 
 The treaty niade with Italy in regard to reciprocal consular privi- 
 leges has been duly ratified and proclaimed. 
 
 Xo questions of grave importance have arisen with any other of the 
 European Powers. 
 
 The Japanese Government has been desirous of a re%'ision of such 
 parts of its treaties with foreign Powers as relate to commerce, and, it 
 is understood, has addressed to each of the treaty Powers a request to 
 open negotiations with that view. The United States Government has 
 been inclined to regard the nuitter favorably. Whatever restrictions 
 upon trade with Jajjan are found injimous to that people cannot but 
 affect injuriously Nations holding commercial intercourse with them. 
 Japan, after a long period of seclusion, has within the past few years 
 made rapid strides in the path of enlightenment and progress, and, 
 not unreasonably, is looking forward to the time when her relations 
 Avith the Nations of Europe and America shall be assimilated to those 
 which they hold with each other. A treaty looking to this end has 
 been made, which will be submitted for the consideration of the Senate. 
 
 After an interval of several years, the Chinese Government has again 
 sent envoys to the United States. They have been received, and a 
 permanent Legation is now established here by that Government. It 
 is not doubted that this step will be of advantage to both Nations in 
 promoting friendly relations and removing causes of difference. 
 
 The treaty with the Samoan Islands, having been duly ratified and 
 accepted on the part of both Governments, is now in operation, and a 
 survey and soundings of the harbor of Pago-Pago have been made by 
 a naval vessel of the United States, with a view of its occupation as 
 a naval station, if found desirable to the service. 
 
 Since the resumption of diphmiatic relations Avith Mexico, corre- 
 spondence has been opened and still continues between the two Gov- 
 ernments upon the various questions Avhich at one time seemed to 
 endanger their relations. While no formal agreement has been reached 
 as to the troubles on the border, much has been done to repress and 
 diminish them. The effective force of United States troops on the Eio 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 125 
 
 Grande, by a strict and faithful compliance with instructions, has done 
 much to remove the sources of dispute, and it is now understood that 
 a like force of Mexican troops on the other side of the river is also 
 making an energetic movement against the marauding Indian tribes. 
 
 This Government looks with the greatest satisfaction upon every 
 evidence of strength in the National authority of Mexico, and upon every 
 effort put forth to prevent or to punish incursions upon our territory. 
 Eeluctant to assume any action or attitude in the control of these incur- 
 sions by military movements across the border not imperatively de- 
 manded for the protection of the lives and property of our own citizens, 
 I shall take the earliest opportunity, consistent with the proper dis- 
 charge of this plain duty, to recognize the ability of the Mexican 
 Government to restrain effectively violations of our territory. It is 
 proposed to hold next year an International Exhibition in Mexico, and 
 it is believed that the display of the agricultural and manufacturing 
 products of the two ]N'ations will tend to better understanding and 
 increased commercial intercourse between their ])eople. 
 
 With Brazil, and the Republics of Central and South America, some 
 steps have been taken toward the development of closer commercial 
 intercourse. Diplomatic relations have been resumed with Colombia 
 and with Bolivia. A boundary question between the Argentine Repub- 
 lic and Paraguay has been submitted by those governments for arbi- 
 tration to the President of the United States, and I have, after a careful 
 examination, given a decision i\])(m it. 
 
 A naval expedition up the Amazon and Madeira rivers has brought 
 back information valuable both for scientific and commercial purposes. 
 A like expedition is about visiting the coast of Africa and the Indian 
 Ocean. The reports of diplomatic and consular officers in relation to 
 the development of our foreign commerce have furnished many facts 
 that have proved of public interest, and have stimulated to practical 
 exertion the enterjirise of our people. 
 
 The report of the Secretary of the Treasurj^ furnishes a detailed 
 statement of the operations of that Department of the Government, 
 and of the condition of the i)ublic finances. 
 
 The ordinary revenues from all sources for the fiscal year ended 
 June 30, 1878, were $257,763,878,705 the ordinar}' expenditures for the 
 saiue period were $230,964,326.80 — leaving a surplus revenue for the 
 year of $20,709,551.90. 
 
 The receipts for the present fiscal year, ending June 30, 1879, actual 
 and estimated, are as follows : Actual receipts for the first quarter com- 
 mencing July 1, 1878, $73,389,7-43.43; estimated receipts for the remain- 
 
126 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 iiig three-quarters of the year, 8191,110,256.37; total receipts for the 
 current fiscal year, actual and estimated, $264,500,000. The expendi- 
 tures for the same period will be, actual and estimated, as follows: 
 For the quarter commenciuj^- Jiily 1, 1878, actual expenditures, 
 873,311,573.27; and for the remaining- three-quarters of the year the 
 expenditures are estimated at $100,755,120.73 — making the total ex- 
 penditures 8240,100,000; and leaving an estimated surplus revenue for 
 the year ending June 30, 1879, of 824,400,000, 
 
 The total receipts during the next fiscal year, ending June 30, 1880, 
 estimated according to existing laws, will be 8201,500,000; and the esti- 
 mated ordinary expenditures for the same period will be 8230,320,412.08; 
 leaving a surplus of $28,179,587.32 for that year. 
 
 In the foregoing statements of expenditures, actual and estimated, 
 no amount is allowed for the sinking-fund provided for by the act ap- 
 proved February 25, 1862, which requires that one per cent, of the 
 entire debt of the United States shall be purchased or paid within each 
 fiscal year, to be set ai)art as a sinking-fund. There has been, however, 
 a substantial compliance with the conditions of the law. By its terms 
 the public debt should have been reduced, between 1862 and the close 
 of the last fiscal year, $518,361,806.28; the actual reduction of the 
 ascertained debt, in that period, has been 8720,644,739.01; being in ex- 
 cess of the reduction required by the sinking-fund act — $202,282,033.33. 
 
 The amount of the public debt, less cash in the Treasury, Xovember 
 1, 1878, was $2,021,200,083.18 — a reduction, since the same date last 
 year, of $23,150,617.39. 
 
 The progress made during the last year in refunding the public debt 
 at lower rates of interest is very gratifying. The amount of four per 
 cent, bonds sold during the present year prior to ]!Srovember 23, 1878, is 
 $100,270,900, and six per cent, bonds, commonly known as five-twenties, 
 to an e<pial amount, have been or will be redeemed as calls mature. 
 
 It has been the policy of the Department to place the four per cent, 
 bonds within easy reach of every citizen who desires to invest his 
 savings, whether small or great, in these securities. The Secretary of 
 the Treasury recommends that the law be so modified that small sums 
 may be invested, and that through the post offices or other agents of 
 the Government, the freest opportunity may be given in all parts of the 
 country for such investments. 
 
 The best mode suggested is, that the Department be authorized to 
 issue certificates of deposit, of the denomination of ten dollars, bearing 
 interest at the rate of 3.65 per cent, per annum, and convertible at any 
 time within one year after their issue into the four per cent, bonds 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 127 
 
 authorized by the refmidiug act, and to be issued only in exchange for 
 United States notes sent to the Treasury by mail or otherwise. Such a 
 provision of law, supported by suitable regulations, would enable any 
 person readily, without cost or risk, to convert his money into an in- 
 terest-bearing security of the United States, and the money so received 
 could be applied to the redemption of six per cent, bonds. 
 
 The coinage of gold during the last fiscal year was $52,798,980. The 
 coinage of silver dollars, under the act passed February 28, 1878^ 
 amounted on the 23d of November, 1878, to $19,814,550; of which 
 amount $1,981,917 are in circulation, and the balance, $14,829,003, is. 
 still in the possession of the Government. 
 
 With views unchanged with regard to the act under which the coin- 
 age of silver proceeds, it has been the purpose of the Secretary faith- 
 fully to execute the law, and to afford a fair trial to the measure. 
 
 In the present financial condition of the country, I am persuaded that 
 the welfare of legitimate business and industry of every description 
 will be best i)romoted by abstaining from all attempts to make radical 
 changes in the existing financial legislation. Let it be understood that 
 during the coming year the business of the country will be undisturbed 
 by governmental interference with laws affecting it, and we may confi- 
 dently expect that the resum]ition of specie payments, which will take 
 l)lace at the appointed time, will be successfully and easily maintained, 
 and that it will be followed by a healthful and enduring revival of 
 business prosperity. 
 
 Let the healing influence of time, the inherent energies of our people^ 
 and the boundless resources of our country, have a fair opportunity^ 
 and re]i"f from present difiiculties will surely follow. 
 
 The report of the Secretary of War shows that the Army has been 
 well and economically supplied, that our small force has beeij actively 
 employed, and has faithfully performed all the service required of it. 
 The morale of the Army has improved, and the number of desertions 
 has materially decreased during the year. 
 
 The Secretary recommends — 
 
 1. That a pension be granted to the widow of the late Lieutenant 
 Henry H. Benner, 18th Infantry, who lost his life by yellow-fever while 
 in command of the steamer "J. M. Chambers," sent with supplies for 
 the relief of sufferers in the South from that disease.. 
 
 2. The establishment of the annuity scheme for the benefit of the 
 heirs of deceased ofticers, as suggested by the Paymaster- General. 
 
 3. The adoption by Congress of a plan for the publication of the 
 records of the War of the Rebellion, now being prepared for that pur- 
 pose. 
 
128 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 4, The increase of the extra 2>c>' (Hem of soldier-teacher.s employed 
 in post-schools, and liberal appropriations for the erection of buildings 
 for schools and libraries at the different i)osts. 
 
 5. The repeal or amendment of the act of June 18, 1878, forbidding 
 the "use of the Army as a 2>osse comitatus, or otherwise, for the pur- 
 pose of executing the laws, except in such cases and under such cir- 
 cumstances as may be expressly' authorized by the Constitution or by 
 act of Congress." 
 
 G. The passage of a joint resolution of Congress legalizing the issues 
 of rations, tents, and medicines which were made for the relief of suf- 
 ferers from yellow-fever. 
 
 7. That provision be made for the erection of a fire-proof building for 
 the preser\ation of certain valuable records, now constantly exposed 
 to destruction by fire. 
 
 These recommendations are all commended to your favorable con- 
 sideration. 
 
 The report of the Secretary of the ^S'avy shows that the ^S'avy has 
 improved during the last fiscal year. Work has been done on seventy- 
 five vessels, ten of which have been thoroughly re])aired and made 
 ready for sea. Two others are in rapid progress towards completion. 
 The total expenditures of the year, including the amount appropriated 
 for the deficiencies of the previous year, were $17,468,392.05. The 
 actual expenses chargeable to the year, exclusive of these deficiencies, 
 were $13,306,914.09, or $767,199.18 less than those of the previous 
 year, and $4,928,077.74 less than the expenses, including the defi- 
 ciencies. The estimates for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1880, are 
 $14,562,381.45 — exceeding the appropriations of the present year only 
 $33,949.75; which excess is occasioned by the demands of the Xaval 
 Academy- and the Marine Corps, as explained in the Secretary's report. 
 The appropriations for the present fiscal year are $14,528,431.70, which, 
 in the opinion of the Secretary, will be am^^le for all the current ex- 
 penses of the Department during the year. The amount drawn from 
 the Treasury from July 1 to November 1, 1878, is $4,740,544.14, of 
 which $70,980.75 has been refunded, leaving as the expenditure for 
 that period $4,669,563.39, or $520,899.24 less than the corresponding 
 period of the last fiscal year. 
 
 The report of the Postmaster-General embraces a detailed state- 
 ment of the operations of the Post-Oflice Department. The expend- 
 itures of that Department for the fiscal year ended June 30, 1878, 
 were $34,165,084.49. The receipts, including sales of stamps, money- 
 order business, and ofiicial stamps, were $29,277,516.95. The sum of 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 129 
 
 $290,436.90, included iu the foregoing statement of expenditures, is 
 chargeable to preceding years, so that the actual expenditures for the 
 fiscal jear ended June 30, 1878, are $33,874,647.50. The amount 
 drawn from the Treasury on appropriations, in addition to the rev- 
 enues of the Department, was $5,307,652.82. The expenditures for 
 the fiscal year ending June 30, 1880, are estimated at $36,571,900, and 
 the receipts from all sources at $30,664,023.90, leaving a deficiency to 
 be appropriated out of the Treasury of $5,907,876.10. The report calls 
 attention to the fact that the comijensation of postmasters and of rail- 
 roads for carrying the mail is regulated by law, and that the failure of 
 Congress to appropriate the amounts required for these purposes does 
 not relieve the Government of responsibility, but necessarily increases 
 the deficiency bills which Congress will be called upon to pass. 
 
 In providing for the postal service, the following questions are pre- 
 sented : Should Congress annually appropriate a sum for its expenses 
 largely in excess of its revenues, or should such rates of postage be 
 established as will make the Department self-sustaining! Should the 
 postal service be reduced by excluding from the mails matter which 
 does not pay its way? Should the number of post-routes be dimin- 
 ished? Should other methods be adopted which will increase the rev- 
 enues or diminish the expenses of the postal service f 
 
 The International Postal Congress, which met at Paris May 1, 1878, 
 and continued in session until June 4 of the same year, was composed 
 of delegates fi'om nearly all the civilized countries of the world. It 
 adopted a new convention to take the place of the treaty concluded at 
 Berne October 9, 1874; which goes into effect on the 1st of April, 
 1879, between the countries whose delegates have signed it. It was 
 ratified and approved, by and with the consent of the President, 
 August 13, 1878. A synopsis of this Uni'S'ersal Postal Convention 
 wiU be found in the report of the Postmaster-General, and the full 
 text in the appendix thereto. In its origin the Postal Union comi)rised 
 twenty-three countries, having a population of three hundred and fifty 
 millions of people. On the 1st of April next it will comprise forty- 
 three countries and colonies, with a population of more than six hundred 
 and fifty millions of people, and will soon, by the accession of the few 
 remaining countries and colonies which maintain organized postal 
 services, constitute, in fact as well as in name, as its new title indi- 
 cates, a Universal Union, regulating, upon a uniform basis of cheap 
 postage-rates, the postal intercourse between all civilized Nations. 
 
 Some embarrassment has arisen out of the conflict between the cus- 
 toms laws of this country and the provisions of the Postal Convention 
 9 
 
130 LKTTKRS AND .MESSAGES. 
 
 in regard to tlic transmission of foreij4U books and newspapers to this 
 country by mail. It is hoped that Congress will be able to devise some 
 means of reconciling the ditticulties which have thus been created, so 
 as to do Justice to all parties involved. 
 
 The business of the Sui)reme Court, and of the courts in many of the 
 circuits, has increased to such an extent during the past years that 
 additional legislation is imperative to relieve and prevent the delay 
 of justice, and possible oppression, to suitors, which is thus occasioned. 
 The encumbered condition of these dockets is presented anew iu the 
 report of the Attorney-General, and the remedy suggested is earnestly 
 urged for Congressional action. The creation of additional circuit 
 judges, as proposed, would afford a complete remedy, and would involve 
 an expense — at the present rate of salaries — of not more than $00,000 
 a year. 
 
 The annual reports of the Secretary of the Interior and of the Com- 
 missioner of Indian Affairs present an elaborate account of the present 
 condition of the Indian tribes, and of that branch of the public service 
 which ministers to their interests. While the conduct of the Indians, 
 generally, has been orderly, and their relations with their neighbors 
 friendly and peaceful, two local disturbances have occurred, which 
 were deplorable in their character, but remained, happily, confined to 
 a comparatively small number of Indians. The discontent among the 
 Bannocks, which led first to some acts of violence on the part of some 
 members of the tribe, and finally to the outbreak, appears to have been 
 caused by an insufficiency of food on the reservation, and this insuffi- 
 ciency to have been owing to the inadequacy of the appropriations 
 made by Congress to the wants of the Indians at a time when the 
 Indians were prevented from supplying the deficiency by hunting. 
 After an arduous pursuit by the troops of the United States, and 
 several engagements, the hostile Indians were reduced to subjection, 
 and the larger part of them surrendered themselves as prisoners. In 
 this connection, I desire to call attention to the recommendation made 
 by the Secretary of the Interior that a sufficient fund be placed at 
 the disposal of the Executive, to be used, with proper accountability, 
 at discretion, in sudden emergencies of the Indian service. 
 
 The other case of disturbance was that of a band of Northern Chey- 
 ennes, who suddeidy left their reservation iu the Indian Territory and 
 marched rajjidly through the States of Kansas and Nebraska, in the 
 direcition of their old hunting-grounds, committing murders and other 
 crimes on their way. From documents accompanying the report of the 
 Secretaiy of the Interior, it appears that this disorderly band was as 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 131 
 
 fully supplied Avitli tlie necessaries of life as the four tbousaud seven 
 liundred other Indians wLo remained quietly on the reservation, and 
 that the disturbance was caused by men of a restless and mischievous 
 disposition among the Indians themselves. Almost the whole of this 
 band have surrendered to the military authorities, audit is a gratifying 
 fact that, when some of them had taken refuge in the camp of the Red 
 Cloud Sioux, A\ith whom they had been in friendly relations, the Sioux 
 held them as prisoiu'rs, and readily gave them up to the officers of the 
 United States, thus giving new proof of the loyal spirit which, alarming 
 rumors to the contrary notwithstanding, they h ive uniformly shown 
 ever since the wishes they expressed at the conncil of September, 1877, 
 had been complied with. 
 
 Both the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of War unite in 
 the recommendation that provision be nmde by Congress for the organ- 
 ization of a corps of mounted "Indian auxiliaries," to be under the 
 control of the Army, and to be used for the purpose of keeping the 
 Indians on their reservations and preventing or repressing disturbance 
 on their part, I earnestl}' concur in this recommendation. It is be- 
 lieved that the organization of such a body of Indian cavalry, receiving 
 a moderate pay from the Government, would considerably weaken the 
 restless element among the Indians by withdrawing from it a number 
 of young men, and giving them congenial employment under the Gov- 
 ernment, it being a matter of experience that Indians in our service, 
 almost without exception, are faithful in the performance of the duties 
 assigned to them. Such an organization would materially aid the Army 
 in the accomplishment of a task for which its numerical strength is 
 sometimes found insufficient. 
 
 But, while the emi)loyment of force for the prevention or repression 
 of Indian troubles is of occasional necessity, and wise preparation 
 should be made to that end, greater reliance must be T)laced on humane 
 and civilizing agencies for the ultimate solution of what is called the 
 Indian problem. It may be very difficult, and require much patient 
 effort, to curb the unruly spirit of the savage Indian to the restraints 
 of civilized life, but experience shows that it is not impossible. Many 
 of the tribes which are now quiet and orderly and self-supporting were 
 once as savage as any that at present roam over the plains or in the 
 mountains of the far West, and were then considered inaccessible to 
 civilizing influences. It may be impossible to raise them fully up to the 
 level of the white population of the United States; but we should not 
 forget that they are the aborigines of the country, and called the soil 
 their own on which our people have grown rich, powerful, and happy. 
 
132 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 We owe it to tbem aa a moral duty to Jielp them in attaining at least 
 that degree of civilization which they may be able to reach. It is not 
 only our duty — it is also our interest to do so. Indians who have be- 
 come agriculturists or herdsmen, and feel an interest in property, will 
 thenceforth cease to be a warlike and distmbiug element. It is also a 
 well-authenticated fact that Indians are apt to be peaceable and quiet 
 when their children are at school, and I am gratified to know, from the 
 expressions of Indians themselves and from many concurring reports, 
 that there is a steadily increasing desire, even among Indians belonging 
 to comparatively wild tribes, to have their children educated. I in- 
 vite attention to the reports of the Secretary of the Interior and the 
 Commissioner of Indian Affairs, touching the experiment recently in- 
 augurated, in taking fifty Indian children, boys and girls, from different 
 tribes, to the Hampton jSTormal Agricultural Institute, in Virginia, 
 where they are to receive an elementary English education and train- 
 ing in agriculture and other useful work, to be returned to their tribes, 
 after the completed course, as interpreters, instructors, and exami^les. 
 It is reported that the officer charged with the selection of those chil- 
 dren might have had thousands of young Indians sent with him had it 
 been possible to make provision for them. I agree with the Secretary 
 of the Interior in saying that " the result of this interesting experiment, 
 if favorable, may be destined to become an important factor in the ad- 
 vancement of civilization among the Indians." 
 
 The question, whether a change in the control of the Indian service 
 should be made, was, at the last session of Congress, referred to a com- 
 mittee for inquiry and report. Without desiring to anticipate that 
 report, I venture to express the hope that in the decision of so impor- 
 tant a question, the views exjjressed above may not be lost sight of, 
 and that the decision, whatever it may be, will arrest further agitation 
 of this subj^t, such agitation being apt to produce a disturbing effect 
 upon the service as well as on the Indians themselves. 
 
 In the enrolment of the biU making appropriations for sundry civil 
 expenses, at the last session of Congress, that portion which pro\ided 
 for the continuation of the Hot Springs Commission was omitted. As 
 the commission had completed the w^ork of taking testimony on the 
 many contlicting claims, the suspension of their labors, before deter- 
 mining the rights of claimants, threatened, for a time, to embarrass the 
 interests, not only of the Government, but also of a large number of 
 the citizens of Hot Springs, who were waiting for final action on their 
 claims before beginning (M)ntemplated improvements. In order to pre- 
 vent serious difficulties, wlii(;h were ai)prehended, and at the solicita- 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 133 
 
 tion of many leading citizens of Hot Springs, and others interested in 
 the welftire of the town, the Secretary of the Interior was authorized 
 to request the late commissioners to take charge of the records of their 
 proceedings, and to perform such work as could properly be done 
 by them under such circumstances, to facilitate the fature adjudica- 
 tion of the claims at an early day, and to preserve the status of the 
 claimants until their rights shall be finally determined. The late com- 
 missioners complied with that request, and report that the testimony, 
 in all the cases, has been written out, examined, briefed, and so ar- 
 ranged as to facilitate an early settlement when authorized by law. It 
 is recommended that the requisite authority be given at as early a day 
 in the session as possible, and that a ftiir compensation be allowed the 
 late commissioners for the expense incurred and the labor performed 
 by them since the 25th of June last. 
 
 I invite the attention of Congress to the recommendations made by 
 the Secretary of the Interior with regard to the preservation of the 
 timber on the public lands of the United States. The protection of the 
 public property is one of the first duties of the Government. The De- 
 partment of the Interior should, therefore, be enabled, by sufficient 
 ai)propriations, to enforce the laws in that respect. But this matter 
 appears still more important as a question of public economy. The 
 rapid destruction of our forests is an evil fraught with the gravest con- 
 sequences, especially in the mountainous districts, where the rocky 
 slopes, once denuded of their trees, will remain so forever. There the 
 injury, once done, cannot be repaired. I fully concur with the Secre- 
 tary of the Interior in the opinion that, for this reason, legislation 
 touching the public timber in the mountainous States and Territories 
 of the West, should be especially well considered, and that existing 
 law^s, in which the destruction of the forests is not sufficiently guarded 
 against, should be speedily modified. A general law concerning this 
 important subject a]>pears to me to be a matter of urgent public neces- 
 sity. 
 
 From the organization of the Government, the importance of encour- 
 aging, by all possible means, the increase of our agricultural produc- 
 tions has been acknowledged and urged upon the attention of Congress 
 and the people as the surest and readiest means of increasing our sub- 
 stantial and enduring prosj)erity. 
 
 The words of Washington are as applicable to-day as when, in his 
 eighth annual message, he said: "It is not to be doubted that, with 
 reference either to individual or national welfare, agriculture is of pri- 
 mary importance. In proportion as Nations advance in population and 
 
134 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 Other circumstances of maturity, tliis truth becomes more apparent, 
 and renders the cultivation of the soil more and more an object of pub- 
 lic patronage. Institutions for promoting it grow up, supported by the 
 public purse — and to what object can it be dedicated with greater i)ro- 
 priety? Among the means which have been employed to this end, 
 none have been attended with greater success than the establishment 
 of boards composed of proper characters, charged with collecting and 
 difitusing information, and enabled, by premiums and small pecuniary- 
 aids, to encourage and assist the spirit of discover^' and improvement, 
 tliis si)eeies of establishment contributing doubly to the increase of 
 improvement by stimulating to enterprise and experiment, and by 
 drawing to a common centre the results everywhere of individual skill 
 and observation, and spreading them thence over the whole Nation. 
 Experience accordingly hath shown that they are very cheap instru- 
 ments of immense national benefit." 
 
 The great preponderance of the agricultural over any other interest 
 in the United States, entitles it to all the consideration claimed for it 
 by Washington. About one-half of the i)opulation of the United States 
 is engaged in agriculture. The value of the agricultural products of 
 the United States for the year 1878 is estimated at three thousand mil- 
 lions of dollars. The exports of agricultural products for the year 1877, 
 as appears from the report of the Bureau of Statistics, were five hun- 
 dred and twenty-four millions of dollars. Tbe great extent of onr 
 country, with its diversity of soil and climate, enables u.s to ])ro(luce 
 within our own borders, and by our own labor, not only the necessa- 
 ries but most of the luxuries that are consumed in civilized countries. 
 Yet, notwithstanding our advantages of soil, cliuuite, and intercommu- 
 nication, it appears from the statistical statements in the rei)ort of the 
 Commissioner of Agriculture, that we import annually irom foreign 
 lands many millions of dollars' worth of agricultural products which 
 could be raised in our own country. 
 
 Numerous questions arise in the practice of advanced agriculture 
 which can only be answered by experiments, often costly and some- 
 times fruitless, which are beyond the means of private individuals, and 
 are a just and proper charge on the whole Nation for the benefit of the 
 Nation. It is good policy, especially in times of depression and uncer- 
 tainty in other business pursuits, with a vast area of uncultivated, and 
 hence unproductive territory, wisely opened to homestead settlenuMit, 
 to encourage, by every proper and legitimate means, the occupation 
 and tillage of the soil. The efforts of the Department of Agriculture 
 to stimidate old and introduce new agricultural industries, to improve 
 
LETTERS AN]) MESSAGES. 135 
 
 the quality and increase the quantity of our products, to determine the 
 value of okl or establish the importance of new methods of culture, are 
 worthy of your careful and favorable consideration, and assistance by 
 such api)ropriations of money and enlargement of facilities as may 
 seem to be demanded by the present favorable conditions for the growth 
 and rapid develoi)ment of this important interest. 
 
 The abuse of animals in transit is widely attracting public attention. 
 A national convention of societies specially interested in the subject 
 has recently met at Baltimore, and the facts developed, both in regard 
 to cruelties to animals and the effect of such cruelties upon the public 
 health, would seem to demand the careful consideration of Congress, 
 and the enactment of more efiQcient laws for the prevention of these 
 abuses. 
 
 The report of the Commissioner of the Bureau of Education shows 
 very gratifying progress throughout the country, in all the interests 
 committed to the care of this important office. The report is especially 
 encouraging with respect to the extension of the advantages of the 
 common-school system, in sections of the country where the general 
 enjoyment of the privilege of free schools is not yet attained. 
 
 To education more than to any other agency we are to look, as the 
 resource for the advancement of the people in the requisite knowledge 
 and appreciation of their rights and responsibilities as citizens, and I 
 desire to repeat the suggestion contained in my former message in 
 behalf of the enactment of appropriate measures by Congress for the 
 purpose of supplementing, with national aid, the local systems of edu- 
 cation in the several States. 
 
 Adequate accommodations for the great library, which is overgrow- 
 ing the capacity of the rooms now occupied at the Capitol, should be 
 provided without further delay. This invaluable collection of books, 
 raanuscripts, and illustraiive art, has grown to such proportions, in 
 connection with the copyright system of the country, as to demand the 
 prompt and careful attention of Congress, to save it from injury in its 
 present crowded and insufficient quarters. As this library is national 
 in its character, and nuist, from the nature of the case, increase even 
 more rapidly in the future than in the past, it cannot be doubted that 
 the i)eople will sanction any wise expenditure to preserve it and to 
 enlarge its usefulness. 
 
 The appeal of the Regents of the Smithsonian Institution tor the 
 means to organize, exhibit, and make available for the public benefit 
 the articles now stored away belonging to the N^ational Museum, I 
 heartily recommend to your favorable consideration. 
 
136 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 The attenticm of Congress is again invited to the condition of tlie 
 river-front of the city of Wasliington. It is a matter of vital impor- 
 tance to the health of the residents of the Xational Capital, both tem- 
 porary and permanent, that the low lands in front of the city, now 
 subject to tidal overflow, should be reclaimed. In their present condi- 
 tion these flats obstruct the drainage of the city, and are a dangerous 
 source of malarial i)oison. The reclamation will improve the naviga- 
 tion of the river by restricting and consequently deepening its chan- 
 nel, and is also of importance, when considered in connection with the 
 extension of the public ground and the enlargement of the park west 
 and south of the Washington Monument. The report of the board of 
 survey, heretofore ordered by act of Congress, on the improvement of 
 the harbor of Washington and Georgetown, is respectfully commended 
 to consideration. 
 
 The report of the Commissioners of the District of Columbia presents 
 a detailed statement of the affairs of the District. 
 
 The relative expenditures by the United States and the District for 
 local purposes is contrasted, showing that the expenditures by the 
 people of the District greatly exceed those of the General Government. 
 The exhibit is made in connection with estimates for the requisite re- 
 pair of the defective pavements and sewers of the city, which is a- work 
 of immediate necessity; and, in the same connection, a plan is presented 
 for the permanent funding of the outstanding securities of the Dis- 
 trict. 
 
 The benevolent, reformatory, and penal institutions of the District 
 are all entitled to the favorable attention of Congress. The Reform 
 School needs additional buildings and teachers. Appropriations which 
 will ])lace all of these institutions in a ccmdition to become models of 
 usefulness and beneticence, will be regarded by the country as liber- 
 ality wisely bestowed. 
 
 The Commissioners, with evident justice, request attention to the 
 discrimination made by Congress against the District in the donation 
 of land for the sui)port of the public schools, and ask that the same 
 liberality that has been shown to the inhabitants of the various States 
 and Territories of the United States may be extended to the District 
 of Columbia. 
 
 The Commissioners also invite attention to the damage inflicted upon 
 public and private interests by the present location of the depots and 
 switching-tracks of the several railroads entering the city, and ask for 
 legislation looking to their removal. The recommendations and sug- 
 gestions contained in the report will, I trust, receive the careful con- 
 sideration of Congress. 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 137 
 
 Sufficient time lias, perhaps, not elapsed since the reorganization of 
 government of the District, under the recent legislation of Congress, 
 for the expression of a confident opinion as to its successful operation y 
 but the practical results already attained are so satisfactory that the 
 friends of the new government may well urge upon Congress the 
 wisdom of its continuance, without essential modification, until, by 
 actual experience, its advantages and defects may be more fully ascer- 
 tained. 
 
 E. B. HAYES. 
 
 Executive Mansion, December 2, 1878. 
 
M:ESSA.aE 
 
 SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES, TRANSMITTING INFORMATION CON- 
 CERNING POSTAL AND COMMERCIAL INTERCOURSE BETWEEN 
 THE UNITED STATES AND SOUTH AMERICAN COUNTRIES. 
 
 DECEMBER 17, 1878. 
 
i 
 
MESSAGE. 
 
 To THE Senate of the United States: 
 
 In answer to the resolution of the Senate of the 5th instant, request- 
 ing the transmission to the Senate of " any information which may have 
 been received by the Departments concerning postal and commercial 
 intercourse between the United States and South American countries, 
 together with any recommendations desirable to be submitted of meas- 
 ures to be adopted for facilitating and improving such intercourse," I 
 transmit herewith reports from the Secretary of State and the Postmas- 
 ter-General, with accompanying papers. 
 
 The external commerce of the United States has for many years been 
 the subject of solicitude, because of the outward drain of the precious 
 metals it has caused. For fully twenty years previous to 1877, the ship- 
 ment of gold was constant and heavy, so heavy during the entire period 
 of the suspension of specie payments as to preclude the hope of resump- 
 tion safely during its continuance. In 1876, however, vigorous efforts 
 were made by enterprising citizens of the country, and have since been 
 continued, to extend our general commerce with foreign lands, espe- 
 cially in manufactured articles, and these efforts have been attended 
 with very marked success. 
 
 The importation of manufactured goods was at the same time reduced 
 in an equal degree, and the result has been an extraordinary reversal 
 of the conditions so long prevailing, and a complete cessation of the 
 outward drain of gold. The official statement of the values represented 
 in foreign commerce Avill show the unprecedented magnitude to which 
 the movement has attained, and the protection thus secured to the 
 public interests at the time when commercial security has become indis- 
 pensable. 
 
 The agencies through which this change has been effected must be 
 maintained and strengthened, if the future is to be made secure. A 
 return to excessive imports, or to a material decline in export trade, 
 would render possible a return to the former condition of adverse bal- 
 ances, with the inevitable outward drain of gold as a necessary conse- 
 quence. Every element of aid to the introduction of the products of 
 our soil and manufactures into new markets should be made available. 
 
142 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 At present, sucli is the favor in which nuinj' of the products of the 
 United States are hekl, that they obtain a renmnerative distribution, 
 notwithstanding positive differences of cost resulting from our defective 
 sliipping, and the imperfection of our arrangements in every respect, 
 in comparison with those of our comijetitors, for conducting trade with 
 foreign markets. 
 
 If we liave equal commercial facilities we need not fear competition 
 anywhere. 
 
 Tlie laws have now directed a resumption of financial equality with 
 other Nations, and have ordered a return to the basis of coin values. 
 It is of the greatest importance that the commercial condition now for- 
 tunately attained shall be made permanent, and that our rapidly in- 
 creasing export trade shall not be allowed to suffer for want of the 
 ordinary means of communicati<m with other countries. 
 
 The accompanying reports contain a valuable and instructive sum- 
 mary of information with respect to our commercial interests in South 
 America, where an inviting field for the enterprise of our people is pre- 
 sented. They are transmitted with the assurance that any measures 
 that may be enacted in furtherance of these important interests will 
 meet with my cordial approval. 
 
 E. B. HAYES. 
 
 ExECi^TiVE Mats^sion, December 17, 1878. 
 
 To THE President: 
 
 The Secretary of State, to whom was referred the resolution of the 
 Senate of the 5th instant, requesting the President to transmit to the 
 Senate "any information which may have been received by the De- 
 partments concerning postal and commercial intercourse between the 
 United States and South American countries, together with any recom- 
 mendations desirable to be adopted for facilitating and improving such 
 intercourse," has the honor to lay before the President copies of des- 
 patches from the diplomatic agents of the United States accredited to 
 the Governments of South America, touching the subject-matter of the 
 resolution ; and also, as coming within the purview thereof, copies of 
 a report and its annexes, presented to this Department by Mr. J. W. 
 Fralick, upon his return from an extended journey through the leading 
 States of South America. * * * 
 
 With reference to the request of the Senate for " any recommenda- 
 tions desirable to be submitted of measures to be adopted for facilitat- 
 ing and impro^ing" postal and commercial intercourse, the Secretary 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 145 
 
 of State, without eutering into an extended discussion of the very im. 
 portant and interesting- topics suggested by the papers submitted, 
 respectfully calls attention to certain manifest conclusions which all 
 these reports tend to support. 
 
 I. It seems to be very evident that the provision of regular steam 
 postal communication, by aid from Government, has been the forerunner 
 of the commercial predominance of Great Britain in the great marts of 
 Central and South America, both on the Pacific and Atlantic coasts of 
 the continent. It is no less apparent that the eftbrts of other European 
 Nations, Germany, France, and Italy, to share in this profitable trade 
 have been successful in proportion with their adoption of regular steam 
 postal communication with the several markets whose trade they 
 sought. 
 
 II. These papers show, also, that the enterprise and sagacity thus, 
 shown by European aSratious have actually reversed the advantage which 
 our geographical position gives us in relation to this extensive com- 
 merce of the American hemisphere. The commercial correspondence 
 of our merchants with the trading points on the east and west coasts 
 crosses the Atlantic twice to make a jiostal connection in a circuit of 
 trade which has its beginning and its end on our own continent. The 
 statistics of our limited trade under this extraordinary disadvantage,, 
 show that the growing preference for our products in these South 
 American markets insist upon being gratified, even at the cost of a. 
 circuit of importation which carries our merchandise to Europe and 
 incorporates it as a contribution to the volume and the i)rofits of Eu- 
 ropean South American trade. No stronger demonstration of the ten- 
 dency of commerce to follow in the train of postal communication can 
 be conceived than this vast and expensive circuit of importation resorted 
 to in default of direct opportunities between the countries of demand 
 and supply. 
 
 III. It would seem from these reports that the merchants and the 
 comnumities, no less than the Governments, of these countries strongly 
 desire an enlargement of direct trade with the United States. With 
 all the advantages of foreign commerce supplied by the existing Eu- 
 ropean arrangements for its prosecution, these markets perceive that 
 this unnatural circuit, when the resources of the United States could 
 sui>ply a direct trade in its place, must be at the expense of the party 
 subjected to the system and the profit of the party which administers 
 and controls it. Everywhere there is shown a great desire to expand 
 their trade with the United States, and even the least prosperous, 
 exchequers of these Governments are ready to be opened to share in 
 
144 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 the expenses of steam postal communications, of whose value in pro- 
 moting foreign commerce their own experience furnishes irrefragable 
 proof. 
 
 IV. While mfiny less immediate and less simple measures, about 
 which judgments may not readily concur, may jiroperiy be canvassed 
 by our people, now eager for a restoration and extension of foreign 
 commerce, ux)on this one simple and first step of direct, regular, and 
 frequent steam j^ostal communication between the United States and 
 the principal commercial ports of Central and South America there 
 would seem to be no room for doubt. 
 
 If this be so, it is obviously the dictate of interest and duty, on the 
 part of the Government, to promote by every just and appropriate 
 means the attainment of this first and principal agency for the desired 
 expansion of our foreign commerce. It is difficult to understand how 
 this commencement and development of an ocean postal system, to be 
 a forerunner of the expected trade, can be wholly trusted to the mere 
 interests of mercantile combinations. 
 
 The Governments of the foreign States with wliich this commerce 
 is to be opened are ready to take their part in the public expense of 
 this postal communication with us, and the participation or non-parti- 
 cipation by the United States in this public expense seems to be the 
 turning-point in the acceptance or rejection of the reciprocal trade now 
 proffered us. 
 
 WM. M. EVAKTS. 
 
 Department of State, 
 
 Washington, December 17, 1878. 
 
TO THE 
 
 SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES, TRANSMITTING A LETTER FROM THE 
 SECRETARY OF THE TREASURY, WITH ACCOMPANYING DOCU- 
 MENTS, RELATING TO THE NEW YORK CUSTOM-HOUSE. 
 
 JANUARY 31, 1879. 
 
 10 
 
MESSAGE. 
 
 To THE Senate: 
 
 I transmit herewith a letter of the Secretary of the Treasury, in rela- 
 tion to the suspension of the late collector and naval officer of the port 
 of New York, with accompanying documents. 
 
 In addition thereto I respectfully submit the following observations: 
 The custom-house in New York collects more than two-thirds of all 
 the customs revenues of the Government. Its administration is a mat- 
 ter not of local interest merely, but is of great importance to the people 
 of the whole country. For a long period of time it has been used to 
 manage and control political affairs. The officers suspended by me 
 are, and for several years have been, engaged in the active personal 
 management of the party politics of the city and State of New York. 
 The duties of the offices held by them have been regarded as of sub- 
 ordinate importance to their partisan work. Their offices have been 
 conducted as part of the political machinery under their control. They 
 have made the custom-house a centre of partisan political manage- 
 ment. 
 
 The custom-house should be a business office. It should be con- 
 ducted on business principles. General James, the postmaster of New 
 York city, writing on the subject, says: "The post office is a business 
 institution, and should be run as such. It is my deliberate judgment 
 that I and my subordinates can do more for the party of om- choice by 
 giving the people of this city a good and efficient postal service than 
 by controlling primaries or dictating nominations." The New York 
 custom-house should be placed on the same footing with the New York 
 post office. But under the suspended officers the custom-house would 
 be oue of the principal x^olitical agencies in the State of New York. 
 To change this, they profess to believe, would be, in the language of 
 Mr. Cornell, in his response, "to surrender their personal and political 
 rights." 
 
 Convinced that the people of New York, and of the country gen- 
 erally, wish the New York custom-house to be administered solely with 
 a view to the public interest, it is my purpose to do all in my power to 
 introduce into this great office the reforms which the country desires. 
 
r 
 
 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 With my information of the facts in the case, and with a deep sense 
 of the responsible obligation imposed upon me by the Constitution, to 
 "take care that the laws be faithfully executed," I regard it as my plain 
 duty to suspend the officers in question, and to make the nominations 
 now before the Senate, in order that this important office may be hon- 
 estly and efficiently administered. 
 
 E. B. HAYES. 
 
 Executive Mansion, January 31, 1879. 
 
 J 
 
LETTER 
 
 GENERAL E. A. MEERITT, OOLLEOTOE OF CUSTOMS, 
 NEW YOEK CITY. 
 
 FEBRUARY 4, 1879. 
 
J 
 
LETTER 
 
 Executive Mansion, 
 
 Washington, February 4, 1879. 
 
 Dear General : I congratulate you on your confirmation. It is a 
 great gratification to your friends, very honorable to you, and will 
 prove, I believe, of signal service to the country. 
 
 My desire is that your office shall be conducted on strictly business 
 principles, and according to the rules which were adopted, on the rec- 
 ommendation of the Civil- Service Commission, by the administration of 
 General Grant. In making appointments and removals of subordinates, 
 you sliould be perfectly independent of mere influence. Neither my 
 recommendation nor that of the Secretary of the Treasury, nor the 
 recommendation of any member of Congress, or other influential person, 
 should be specially regarded. Let appointments and removals be made 
 on business principles, and by fixed rules. There must be, I assume, a 
 few places the duties of which are confidential, and which should be 
 filled by those whom you personally know to be trustworthy; but re- 
 strict the area of patronage to the narrowest possible limits. Let no 
 man be put out merely because he is a friend of the late collector, and 
 no man be put in merely because he is our friend. I am glad you ap- 
 prove of the message sent to the Senate. I wish you to see that aU 
 that is expressed in it, and all that is implied in it, is faithfully carried 
 out. 
 
 With the assurance of my entire confidence, 
 
 I remain, sincerely, 
 
 R. B. HAYES. 
 
 General E. A. Merritt, 
 
 Collector of Customs, New Yorlc. 
 
]M E S S ^ GT E 
 
 RETURNING TO 
 
 THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES THE BILL ENTITLED "AN ACT TO 
 
 RESTRICT THE IMMIGRATION OF CHINESE TO THE 
 
 UNITED STATES." 
 
 MARCH 1, 1879. 
 
MESSAGE 
 
 To THE House of Representatives: 
 
 After a very careful consideration of House bill No. 2423, entitled 
 "An act to restrict the immigration of Chinese to the United States,'^ 
 I herewith return it to the House of Eepresentatives, in which it origi- 
 nated, with my objections to its passage. 
 
 The bill, as it was sent to the Senate from the House of Representa- 
 tives, was confined in its provisions to the object named in its title, 
 which is that of "An act to restrict the immigration of Chinese to the 
 United States." The only means adopted to secure the proposed ob- 
 ject was a limitation on the number of Chinese passengers which might 
 be brought to this country by any one vessel to fifteen, and as this 
 number was not fixed in any proportion to the size or tonnage of the 
 vessel, or by any consideration of the safety or the accommodation of 
 these passengers, the simple purpose and effect of the enactment were 
 to repress this immigration to an extent falling but little short of its 
 absolute exclusion. 
 
 The bill, as amended in the Senate and now presented to me, in- 
 cludes an independent and additional provision which aims at, and in 
 terms requires, the abrogation by this Government of articles 5 and 6 
 of the treaty with China, commonly called the Burlingame treaty, 
 through the action of the Executive enjoined by this provision of the 
 act. 
 
 The Burlingame treaty, of which the ratifications were exchanged at 
 Peking, November 23, 18C9, recites as the occasion and motive of its 
 negotiation by the two Governments that "since the conclusion of the 
 treaty between the United States of iVmerica and the Ta Tsing Empire 
 (China) of the 18th of June, 1858, circumstances have arisen showing the 
 necessity of additional articles thereto," and proceeds to an agreement 
 as to said additional articles. These negotiations, therefore, ending by 
 the signature of the additional articles July 28, 18G8, had for their object 
 the completion of our treaty rights and obligations toward the Gov- 
 ernment of China by the incorporation of these new articles as, thence- 
 forth, parts of the principal treaty to which they are made supplemental. 
 Upon the settled rules of interjiretation apjdicable to such supple- 
 mental negotiations, the text of the principal treaty and of these "addi- 
 
156 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 tional articles tliereto" constitute one treaty, from the conclusion of the 
 new negotiations, in all parts of equal and concurrent force and obli- 
 gation between the two Governments, and to all intents and purposes 
 as if embraced in one instrument. 
 
 The principal treaty, of which the ratifications were exchanged Au- 
 gust IG, 1859, recites that " the United States of America and the Ta 
 Tsing Empire desiring to maintain firm, lasting, and sincere friendship, 
 have resolved to renew, in a manner clear and positive, by means of a 
 treaty or general convention of peace, amity, and commerce, the rules 
 of which shall in future be mutually observed in the intercourse of their 
 respective countries," and j)i'Oceeds, in its thirty articles, to lay out a 
 careful and comprehensive system for the commercial relations of our 
 people with China. The main substance of all the provisions of this 
 treaty is to define and secure the rights of our people in respect of 
 access to, residence and protection in, and trade with China. The 
 actual provisions in our favor, in these respects, were framed to be, and 
 have been found to be, adequate and appropriate to the interests of our 
 commerce, and by the concluding article we receive the important 
 guarantee, " that should at any time the Ta Tsing Emi)ire grant to any 
 Nation, or the merchants or citizens of any Nation, any right, privilege, 
 or favor connected either with navigation, commerce, political or 
 other intercourse which is not conferred by this treaty, such right, 
 privilege, and favor shall at once freely inure to the benefit of the 
 United States, its public officers, merchants, and citizens." Against 
 this body of stipulations in our favor, and this permanent engagement 
 of equality in respect of all future concessions to foreign Nations, the 
 general promise of permanent peace and good offices on our jiart seems 
 to be the only equivalent. For this the first article untlertakes as fol- 
 lows : "There shall be, as there have always been, i)eace and friendship 
 between the United States of America and the Ta Tsing Emi»ire, and 
 between their peojde res])ectiv^ely. They shall not insult or oppress 
 each other for any trifling cause, so as to produce an estrangement be- 
 tween them ; and if any other Nation should act unjustly or oppressively, 
 the United States will exert their good offices, on being informed of 
 the case, to bring about an amicable arrangement of the <iuestion, thus 
 showing their friendly feelings." 
 
 At the date of the negotiation of this treaty our Pacific possessions 
 had attracted a considerable Chinese immigration, and the advantages 
 and the inconveniences felt or feared therefrom had become more or 
 less manifest, but they dictated no stipulations on the subject to be 
 incorporated in the treaty. The year 1S()8 was niaiked by the striking 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 157 
 
 event of a spontaneous embassy from the Chinese Empire, lieaded by 
 an American citizen, Anson Bnrlin^ame, who liad relinquished his 
 diplomatic representation of his own country in China to assume that 
 of the Chinese Empire to the United States and the European i^ations. 
 By this time the facts of the Chinese immigration and its nature and 
 intluences, present and prospective, had become more noticeable, and 
 were more observed by the population immediately aftected, and by 
 this Government. The principal feature of the Burlingame treaty was 
 its attention to and its treatment of the Chinese immigration and the 
 Chinese as forming, or as they should form, a part of our population. 
 Up to this time our uncovenanted hospitality to immigration, our fear- 
 less liberality of citizenship, our equal and com])rehensive justice to all 
 inhabitants, whether they abjured their foreign nationality or not, our 
 civil freedom and our religious toleration, had made all comers wel- 
 come, and under these protections the Chinese, in considerable num- 
 bers, had made their lodgment upon our soil. 
 
 The Burlingame treaty undertakes to deal with this situation, and 
 its fifth and sixth articiles embrace its most important i)rovisions in this 
 regard, and the main stipulations in which the Chinese Government 
 has secured an obligatory protection of its subjects within our territory. 
 They read as follows : 
 
 "Article V. The United States of America and the Kmi)eror of 
 China cordially recognize the inherent and inalienable right of nmn to 
 change his home an<l allegiance, and also the nuitual advantage of the 
 free migration and emigration of their citizens and subjects respectively 
 from the one country to the other for i)urposes of curiosity, of trade, or 
 as permanent residents. The high contracting parties, therefore, join 
 in reprobating any other than an entirely voluntary emigration for 
 these purposes. They consequently agree to pass laws nuiking it a 
 penal oftence for a citizen of the United States or Chinese subjects to 
 take Chinese subjects either to the United States or to any other for- 
 eign country, or Ibr a Chinese subject or citizen of the United States 
 to take citizens of the United States to China or to any other foreign 
 country without their free and voluntary consent, respectively. 
 
 "Article VI. Citizens of the United States visiting or residing in 
 China shall enjoy the same privileges, imnuinities, or exemptions, in 
 respect to travel or residence, as may there be enjoyed by the citizens 
 or subjects of the most favored Nation; and, reciprocally, Chinese sub- 
 jects visiting or residing in the United States shall enjoy the same 
 "privileges, immunities, and exemptions, in respect to travel or residence, 
 as may there be enjoyed by the citizens or subjects of the most favored 
 Nation. But nothing herein contained shall be held to confer naturali- 
 zation upon citizens of the United States in China, nor upon the sub- 
 jects of China in the United States." 
 
 An examination of these two articles, in the light of the experience 
 then influential in suggesting their "necessity," will show that the 
 
158 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 fifth article was framed in hostility to what seemed the principal mis- 
 chief to be guarded against, to wit, the introduction of Chinese laborers 
 by methods which should have the character of a forced and servile 
 importation, and not of a voluntary emigration of freemen seeking our 
 shores ui)on motives and in a manner consonant with the system of our 
 institutions and approved by the experience of the Kation. Unques- 
 tionably the adhesion of the Government of China to these liberal prin- 
 ciples of freedom in emigration, with which we were so familiar, aud 
 with which we were so well satisfied, was a great advance toward open- 
 ing that Empire to our civilization and religion, and gave promise in 
 the future of greater and greater practical results in the diffusion 
 throughout that great population of our arts aud industries, our manu- 
 factures, our material improvements, and the sentiments of government 
 and religion, which seem to us so important to the welfare of mankind. 
 The first clause of this article secures this acceptance by China of the 
 American doctrines of free migration to and fro among the peoples and 
 races of the earth. 
 
 The second clause, however, in its reprobation of "any other than 
 entirely voluntary emigration" by both the high contracting parties, 
 and in the reciprocal obligations, whereby we secured the solemn and 
 unqualified engagement on the part of the Government of China "to 
 pass laws making it a penal offence for a citizen of the United States 
 or Chinese subjects to take Chinese subjects either to the United States 
 or to any other foreign country without their free and voluntary con- 
 sent," constitutes the great force and value of this article. Its impor- 
 tance, both in principle and in its practical service toward our protec- 
 tion against servile importation in the guise of immigration, cannot be 
 over-estimated. It commits the Chinese Government to active and 
 efficient measures to suppress this iniquitous system where those meas- 
 ures are most necessary and can be most effectual. It gives to this 
 Government the footing of a treaty right to such measures and the 
 means and opportunity of insisting upon their adoption, and of com- 
 plaint and resentment at their neglect. The fifth article, therefore, if 
 it fall short of what the pressure of the later exi)erience of our 
 I*acific States may urge upon the attention of this Government as essen- 
 tial to the public welfare, seems to be in the right direction, and to con- 
 tain important advantages, which, once relinquished, cannot be easily 
 recovered. 
 
 The second topic which interested the two Governments under the 
 actual condition of things which prompted the Burlingame treaty was 
 adequate protection under the solemn and definite guarantees of a 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 159 
 
 treaty of the Chinese already in this country and those who should seek 
 our shores. This was the object and forms the subject of the sixth 
 article, by whose reciprocal engagement the citizens and subjects of 
 the two Governments, respectively, visiting or residing in the country 
 of the other, are secured the same privileges, immunities, or exemp- 
 tions, there enjoyed by the citizens or subjects of the most favored 
 Nations. The treaty of 1858, to which these articles are made supple- 
 mental, provides for a great amount of privilege and protection, both 
 of person and property, to American citizens in China; but it is upon 
 this sixth article that the main body of the treaty-rights and securities 
 of the Chinese already in this country depends. Its abrogation, were 
 the rest of the treaty left in force, would leave them to such treatment 
 as we should voluntarily accord them by our laws and customs. Any 
 treaty obligation would be wanting to restrain our liberty of action 
 toward them, or to measure or sustain the right of the Chinese Govern- 
 ment to complaint or redress in their behalf. 
 
 The lapse of ten years since the negotiation of the Burlingame treaty 
 has exhibited to the notice of the Chinese Government, as well as to 
 our owu people, the working of this experiment of immigration in great 
 numbers of Chinese laborers to this country, and their maintenance 
 here of all the traits of race, religion, manners and customs, habita- 
 tions, mode of life, and segregation here, and the keeping up of the 
 ties of their original home, which stamp them as strangers and sojourn- 
 ers, and not as incorporated elements of our national life and growth. 
 This experience may naturally suggest the reconsideration of the sub- 
 ject, as dealt with by the Burlingame treaty, and may properly become 
 the occasion of more direct and circumspect recognition, in renewed 
 negotiations, of the difiiculties surrounding this political and social 
 problem. It may well be that, to the apprehension of the Chinese 
 Government, no less than our own, the simple pro\isions of the Burlin- 
 game treaty may need to be replaced by more careful methods, secur- 
 ing the Chinese and oiu-selves against a larger and more rapid infusion 
 of this foreign race than our system of industry and society can take 
 up and assimilate with ease and safety. This ancient Government, 
 ruling a polite and sensitive people, distinguished by a high sense of 
 national pride, may properly desire an adjustment of their relations 
 with us, which would in all things confirm, and in no' degree endanger, 
 the permanent peace and amity and the growing commerce and pros- 
 perity, which it has been the object and the effect of our existing treaties 
 to cherish and perpetuate. 
 I regard the very grave discontents of the people of the Pacific 
 
160 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 States with the present working of the Chinese immigration, and their 
 still graver apprehensions therefrom in the future, as deserving the 
 most serious attention of the people of the whole country, and a solicit- 
 ous interest on the part of Congress and the Executive. If this were 
 not my own judgment, the passage of this bill by both Houses of Con- 
 gress would impress upon me the seriousness of the situation, when a 
 majority of the representatives of the people of the whole country had 
 thought it to justify so serious a measure of relief. 
 
 The authority of Congress to terminate a treaty with a foreign power 
 by exj>ressing the will of the Nation no longer to adhere to it, is as free 
 from controversy under our Constitution as is the further proposition 
 that the power of making new treaties or modifying existing treaties is 
 not lodged by the Constitution in Congress, but in the President, by 
 and with the advice and consent of the Senate, as shown by the con- 
 currence of two-thirds of that body. A denunciation of a treaty hy any 
 Government is, confessedlj^ justifiable only upon some reason both of 
 the highest justice and of the highest necessity. The action of Con- 
 gress in the matter of the French treaties, in 1879, if it be regarded as 
 an abrogation by this Nation of a subsisting treaty, strongly illustrates 
 the character and degree of justification which was then thought suit- 
 able to such a proceeding. The preamble of the act recites that " the 
 treaties concluded between the United States and France have been 
 repeatedly \dolated on the iiart of the French Government, and the just 
 claims of the United States for reparation of the injuries so committed 
 have been refused, and their attempts to negotiate an amicable adjust- 
 ment of all complaints between the two Nations have been repelle<l with 
 indignity ;" and that '' under authority of the French Government there 
 is yet pursued against the United States a system of predatory vio- 
 lence, infracting the said treaties, and hostile to the rights of a free 
 and independent Nation." 
 
 The enactment, as a logical conseipience of these recited facts, de- 
 clares that the United States are of right freed and exonerated from 
 the stipulations of the treaties and of the consular convention hereto- 
 fore concluded between the United States and France, and that the 
 same shall not henceforth be regarded as legally obligatory on the 
 Government or citizens of the United States." 
 
 The history of the Government shows no other instance of an abroga- 
 tion of a treaty by Congress. 
 
 • Instances have sometimes occurred where the ordinary legislation of 
 Congress has, by its conflict with some treaty obligation of the Govern- 
 ment toward a foreign Power, taken effect as an infraction of the treaty, 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 161 
 
 and been judicially declared to be operative to that result. But neither 
 such legislation nor such judicial sanction of the same has been re- 
 garded as an abrogation, even for the moment, of the treaty. On the 
 contrary, the treaty in such case still subsists between the Govern- 
 ments, and the casual infraction is repaired by api^ropriate satisfaction 
 in maintenance of the treaty. 
 
 The bill before me does not enjoin upon the President the abrogation 
 of the entire Burlingame treaty, much less of the principal treaty of 
 which it is made the supplement. As the power of modifying an exist- 
 ing treaty, whether by adding or striking out provisions, is a part <^f 
 the treaty-making power under the Constitution, its exercise is not com- 
 petent for Congress; nor would the assent of China to this partial abro- 
 gation of the treaty make the action of Congress, in thus procuring an 
 amendment of a treaty, a competent exercise of authority under the 
 Constitution. The importance, however, of this special consideration 
 seems superseded by the principle that a denunciation of a part of a 
 treaty, not made by the terms of the treaty itself separable from the 
 rest, is a denunciation of the whole treaty. As the other high contract- 
 ing party has entered into no treaty obligations except such as inchule 
 the part denounced, the denunciation by one party of the part neces- 
 sarily^ liberates the other party from the whole treaty. 
 
 I am convinced that, whatever urgency might in any quarter or by 
 any interest be supposed to require an instant suppression of further 
 emigration from China, no reasons can require the immediate with- 
 drawal of our treaty protection of the Chinese already in this country, 
 and no circumstances can tolerate an exposure of our citizens in China, 
 merchants or missionaries, to the consequences of so sudden an abro- 
 gation of their treaty protections. Fortunately, however, the actual 
 recession in the flow of the emigration from China to the Pacific coast, 
 shown by trustworthy statistics, relieves us from any apprehension that 
 the treatment of the subject in the proper course of diplomatic nego- 
 tiations will introduce any new features of discontent or disturbance 
 among the communities directly affected. Were such delay fraught 
 with more inconveniences than have ever been suggested by the in- 
 terests most earnest in promoting this legislation, I cannot but regard 
 the summary disturbance of our existing treaties with China as greatly 
 more inconvenient to much wider and more permanent interests of the 
 country. 
 
 I have no occasion to insist upon the more general considerations of 
 interest and duty which sacredly regard the faith of the Nation in 
 whatever form of obligation it may have been given. These sentiments 
 11 
 
162 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 animate the deliberations of Congress and jjervade the minds of our 
 whole people. Our history gives little occasion for any reproach in this 
 regard, and in asking the renewed attention of Congress to this bill, I 
 am persuaded that their action will maintain the public duty and the 
 public honor. 
 
 E. B. HAYES. 
 Executive Mansion, March i, 1879. 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 163 
 
 After mature consideration of House bill No. 2423, entitled "An act 
 to restrict the immigration of Chinese to the United States," I am con- 
 strained by my convictions of duty to return it, with my objections to 
 its passage, to the House of Representatives, in which it originated. 
 
 The seventh section of the bill is as follows : 
 
 " That this act shall take effect from and after the 1st day of July, 
 1879; and the President of the United States shall, immediately on the 
 approval of this act, give notice to the Government of China of the ab- 
 rogation of the articles 5 and 6 of the additional articles of the treaty 
 of June 18, 1858, between the United States and China, proclaimed 
 February 5, 1870, commonly called the Burlingame treaty." 
 
 The following- are the articles of the treaty between the United States 
 and China named in the foregoing section of the bill, and which, by its 
 approval, would be immediately abrogated, viz: 
 
 "Article V. The United States of America and the Emperor of 
 China cordially recognize the inherent and inalienable right of man to 
 change his home and allegiance, and also the mutual advantage of the 
 free migration and emigration of their citizens and subjects, respec- 
 tively, from the one country to the other, for purposes of curiosity, of 
 trade, or as permanent residents. The high contracting parties, there- 
 fore, join in reprobating any other than an entirely voluntary emigra- 
 tion for these purposes. They consequently agree to pass laws making 
 it a penal offence for a citizen of the United States or Chinese subjects 
 to take Chinese subjects either to the United States or to any other 
 foreign country, or for a Chinese subject or citizen of the United States 
 to take citizens of the United State's to China or to any other foreign 
 country without their free and voluntary consent, respectively. 
 
 "Article VI. Citizens of the United States visiting or residing in 
 China shall enjoy the same privileges, immunities, or exemptions, in 
 respect to travel or residence, as may there be enjoyed by the citizens 
 or subjects of the most favored Nation; and, reciprocally, Chinese sub- 
 jects visiting or residing in the United States shall enjoy the same 
 privileges, immunities, and exemptions, in respect to travel or resi- 
 dence, as may there be enjoyed by the citizens or subjects of the most 
 favored Nation. But nothing herein contained shall be held to confer 
 naturalization upon citizens of the United States in China, nor upon 
 the subjects of China in the United States." 
 
 The Burlingame treaty of 18G8, which contains the foregoing articles, 
 was, as its title shows, an addition to the treaty of 1858, commonly 
 known as the Eead treaty, and, together with that treaty, establishes 
 and regidates the present relations between this country and China. 
 These treaty relations were not formed on the solicitation of that Em- 
 pire. They are of our seeking, and are the work of our own statesmen. 
 Mr. Burlingame was sent to China as minister of the United States in 
 18G1. In 1867 he announced his purpose to resign his place as minis- 
 ter of the United States, in order to become the minister of China to 
 
164 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 the United States ; and in 1868 lie came to Waslnngton as tlie repre- 
 sentative of ('lima, one of a coniinission of whioli be was the head, and 
 over wliieh he had control. In June, 1868, he, with the then Secretary 
 of State, Mr. Seward, negotiated the present treaty between the United 
 States and China. It was ratified by the Senate with the almost uni- 
 versal approval of the peojile of the United States, and, having been 
 sent to China, was afterwards ratified by that Empire. 
 
 Under the guarantees of protection aflbrded bj' this treaty, subjects 
 of China, to the number of probably not less than one hundred thou- 
 sand, are now domiciled in the United States. In like manner, Ameri- 
 can citizens, in comparatively much smaller numbers, however, engaged 
 as missionaries, merchants, and mechanics, are now in China, protected 
 by the provisions of this treaty. Commercial and manufacturing" en- 
 terprises, already of considerable magnitude and rapidly increasing in 
 importance, are dependent on the continuance of favorable treaty rela- 
 tions between the United States and China. If these relations are now 
 to be terminated by the abrogation of essential parts of the existing 
 treaty by the sole action of the United States, on what ground is such 
 action to be taken ? The bill under consideration contains no recital 
 of the causes which are believed by its supporters to justify the abro- 
 gation of solemn treaty stipulations. Every important fact in regard 
 to the object of the bill which is now urged in its support existed and 
 was perfectly well known in 1868, when the treaty was ratified by the 
 United States. The immigration in question had continued for twenty 
 years, and its character and tendency were fully understood, and had 
 been considered and discussed by legislative bodies and by the people. 
 No grave and sudden change of conditions has occurred. Xo unfore- 
 seen emergency exists. The case stands almost precisely as it has 
 stood for nearly a quarter of a century. Let it be admitted that the 
 dangers apprehended from a longer continuance of the Chinese immi- 
 gration require consideration and action ; they surely do not require a 
 departure from the well-settled principles and usages of Nations in their 
 intercourse with each other, and in regard to the observance of treaties. 
 We should deal with China in this matter precisely as we would expect 
 and wish other Nations to deal with us under similar circumstances. 
 The peremptory abrogation of a part of this treaty without negotiation 
 M ith China, and without her consent, is the abrogation of the whole. 
 The abrogation of a treaty by one of the contracting parties is justifi- 
 able only upon reasons both of the highest justice and of the highest 
 necessity. To do this without notice; without fixing a day in advance 
 when the act shall take effect; Avithout aftbrding an opportunity to 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 165 
 
 China to be heard ; and withont the happening of any grave or unfore- 
 seen emergency, will be regarded by the enlightened judgment of man- 
 kind as the denial of the obligation of the national faith. 
 
 Entertaining this view of the bill before me, I am compelled to with- 
 hold from it my signature, and to return it to the House of Eepresenta- 
 tives, in which it originated, for that further consideration which the 
 Constitution requires. 
 
 E. B. HAYES. 
 
 Executive Mansion, 2Iarch 1, 1879. 
 
II 
 
PROCLAMATION 
 
 CONVENING 
 
 THE TWO HOUSES OF CONGRESS. 
 
 MARCH 4, 1879. 
 
 
PROCLAMATION 
 
 BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. 
 A PEOCLAMATION. 
 
 Whereas the final adjoiirninent of the Forty-fifth Congress without 
 making the usual and necessary appropriations for the legislative, 
 executive, and judicial expenses of the Government for the fiscal year 
 ending June 30, 1880, and without making the usual and necessary 
 aj)j)roj)riations for the support of the Army for the same fiscal year, 
 presents an extraordinary occasion, requiring the President to exercise 
 the power vested in him by the Constitution to convene the Houses of 
 Congress in anticipation of the day fixed by law for their next meeting : 
 
 Now, therefore, I, Eutherford B. Hayes, President of the United 
 States, do, by virtue of the power to this end in me vested by the 
 Constitution, convene both Houses of Congress to assemble at their 
 respective Chambers at twelve o'clock noon on Tuesday, the 18th day 
 of March, instant, then and there to consider and determine such 
 measures as, in their wisdom, their duty and the welfare of the i)eoj)le 
 may seem to demand. 
 
 In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand, and caused the seal 
 of the United States to be affixed. 
 
 Done at the city of Washington this 4th day of March, A. D. 1879, 
 
 [SEAL 1 ^^^ ^^ *^^ Independence of the United States of Amer- 
 ica the one hundred and third. 
 
 E. B. HAYES. 
 
 By the President : 
 Wm. M. Evarts, 
 
 /Secretary of StateH 
 
I 
 
jnj: E s s ^ GMi: 
 
 TWO HOUSES OF CONGRESS AT THE COMMENCEMENT OF THE FIKST 
 SESSION OF THE FOETY-SIXTH OONGEESS. 
 
 MARCH 19, 1879. 
 
MESSAGE 
 
 Fellow-Citizens of the Senate 
 
 AND House of Eepresentatives : 
 
 The failure of the last Congress to make the requisite appropriatious 
 for legislative and judicial puri)oses, for the expenses of the several 
 Executive Departments of the Government, and for the support of the 
 Army, has made it necessary to call a si)ecial session of the Forty-sixth 
 Congress. 
 
 The estimates of the appropriations needed, which were sent to" 
 Congress by the Secretary of the Treasury at the opening of the last 
 session, are renewed, and are herewith transmitted to both the Senate 
 and the House of Eepresentatives. 
 
 Eegretting the existence of the emergency which requires a special 
 session of Congress at a time when it is the general judgment of the 
 country that the i)ublic welfare will be best promoted by permanency 
 in our legislation and by peace and rest, I commend these few neces- 
 sary measures to your considerate attention. 
 
 EUTHERFORD B. HAYES. 
 
 Washington, March 19, 1879. 
 
i 
 
PROCLAMATION 
 
 IN REiLATION TO 
 
 ILLEGAL SETTLEMEOTS IN THE INDIAN TERRITORY. 
 
 APRIL 36, 1879 
 
 \ 
 
PROCLAMATION. 
 
 BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. 
 A PEOCLAMATIOK 
 
 Whereas it has become kuowu to me that certain evil-disi)0sed i)er- 
 sons have, within the territory and jurisdiction of the United States, 
 begun and set on foot preparations for an organized and forcible i)08- 
 session of and settlement upon the lands of what is known as the Indian 
 Territory, west of the State of Arkansas, which Territory is designated, 
 recognized, and described by the treaties and laws of the United States 
 and by the Executive authorities as Indian country, and as such is only 
 subject to occupation by Indian tribes, officers of the Indian Depart- 
 ment, military posts, and such persons as may be privileged to reside 
 and trade therein under the intercourse laws of the United States ; and 
 whereas those laws provide for the removal of all persons residing 
 and trading therein without express permission of the Indian Depart- 
 ment and agents, and also of all persons whom such agents may deem 
 to be improper persons to reside in the Indian country: 
 
 Now, therefore, for the ijurpose of properly protecting the interests 
 of the Indian nations and tribes, as well as of the United States in 
 said Indian Territory, and of duly enforcing the laws governing the 
 same, I, Eutherford B. Hayes, President of the United States, do 
 admonish and warn all such persons so intending or preparing to re- 
 move upon said lands or into said Territory, without permission of the 
 proper agent of the Indian Dejiartment, against any attempt to so re- 
 move or settle upon any of the lands of said Territory; and I do further 
 warn and notify any and all such persons who may so offend, that they 
 will be speedily and immediately removed therefrom by the agent ac- 
 cording to the laws made and provided ; and if necessary the aid and 
 assistance of the military forces of the United States will be invoked to 
 carry into proper execution the laws of the United States herein 
 referred to. 
 
 In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand, and caused the 
 seal of the United States to be affixed. 
 12 
 
178 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 Done at the city of Washington this twenty-sixth day of April, in 
 the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and seventy- 
 [SEAL.] nine, and of the Independence of the United States the one 
 hundred and third. 
 
 EUTHERFORD B. HAYES. 
 
 By the President: 
 
 Wm. M. Evarts, 
 
 Secretary of State. 
 
MESSAGE 
 
 RETURNING TO 
 
 THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES THE BILL ENTITLED "AN ACT 
 
 MAKING APPROPRIATIONS FOR THE SUPPORT OF THE 
 
 ARMY FOR THE FISCAL YEAR ENDING JUNE 30, 
 
 1880, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES." 
 
 APRIL. 99, 1879. 
 
MESSAGE. 
 
 To THE House of Representatives: 
 
 I have maturely considered the important questions presented by 
 the bill entitled "An act making appropriations for the support of the 
 Army for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1880, and for other purposes," 
 and I now return it to the House of Representatives, in which it orig- 
 inated, with my objections to its approval. 
 
 The bill provides in the usual form for the appropriations required 
 for the support of the Army during the next fiscal year. If it con- 
 tained no other provisions, it would receive my j)romi)t approval. It 
 includes, however, further legislation, which, attached as it is to appro- 
 priations which are requisite for the efficient performance of some of 
 the most necessary duties of the Grovernment, involves questions of the 
 gravest character. The sixth section of the bill is amendatory of the 
 statute now in force in regard to the authority of persons in the civil, 
 military, and naval service of the United States, "at the place where 
 any general or special election is held in any State." This statute was 
 adopted February 25, 1865, after a protracted debate in the Senate, 
 and almost without opposition in the House of Representatives, bj'^ the 
 concurrent votes of both of the leading political ])arties of the country, 
 and became a law by the approval of President Lincoln. It was re- 
 enacted in 1874 in the Revised Statutes of the United States — sections 
 2002 and 5528, which are as follows : 
 
 "Sec. 2002. No military or naval officer or other person engaged in 
 the civil, military, or naval service of the United States shall order, 
 bring, keep, or have under his authority or control any troops or armed 
 men at the place where any general or special election is held in any 
 State, unless it be necessary to repel the armed enemies of the United 
 States, or to keep the peace at the polls." 
 
 "Sec. 5528. Every officer of the Army or Navy, or other person in 
 the civil, military, or naval service of the United States, who orders, 
 brings, keeps, or has under his authority or control any troops or 
 armed men at any place where a general or special election is held in 
 any State, unless such force be necessary to repel armed enemies of the 
 United States or to keep the peace at the polls, shall be fined not more 
 than $5,000, and suffer imprisonment at hard labor not less than three 
 months nor more than five years." 
 
 The amendment proposed to this statute, in the bill before me, omits 
 
182 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 from both of the foregoing sections the words "or to keep the peace at 
 the polls." The effect of the adoption of this amendment may be con- 
 sidered — 
 
 First. Upon the right of the United States Government to use mili- 
 tary force to keep the peace at the elections for members of Congress j 
 and — 
 
 Second. Upon the right of the Government, by civil authority, to 
 protect these elections from \iolence and fraud. 
 
 In addition to the sections of the statute above quoted, the follow- 
 ing provisions of law relating to the use of the military power at the 
 elections are now in force: 
 
 " Sec. 2003. No officer of the Army or Navy of the United States 
 shall prescribe or fix, or attem])t to prescribe or fix, by proclamation, 
 order, or otherwise, the qualifications of voters in any State, or in any 
 manner interfere with the freedom of any election in any State, or with 
 the exercise of the free right of suffrage in any State." 
 
 "Sec. 5529. Every officer or other person in the military or naval 
 service who, by force, threat, intimidation, order, advice, or otherwise, 
 prevents, or attempts to prevent, any qualified voter of any State,- from 
 freely exercising the right of suffrage at any general or special election 
 in such State, shall be fined not more than five thousand dollars, and 
 imprisoned at hard labor not more than five years. 
 
 " Sec. 5530. Every officer of the Army or ISfavy who prescribes or 
 fixes, or attempts to prescribe or fix, whether by proclamation, order, 
 or otherwise, the qualifications of voters at any election in any State, 
 shall be punished as provided in the preceding section. 
 
 "Sec. 5531. Every officer or other person in the military or naval 
 service who, by force, threat, intimidation, order, or otherwise, compels, 
 or attempts to compel, any officer holding an election in any State to 
 receive a vote from a person not legally qualified to vote, or M^ho im- 
 poses, or attempts to impose, any regulations for conducting any gen- 
 eral or special election in a State different from those prescribed by law, 
 or who interferes in any manner with auy officer of an election in the 
 discharge of his duty, shall be punished as provided in section fifty-five 
 hundred and twenty-nine. 
 
 "Sioc. 5532. Every person convicted of any of the offences specified 
 in the five i)receding sections shall, in addition to the punishments 
 therein severally ])rescribe(l, be disqualified from holding any office of 
 honor, profit, or trust under the United States; but nothing in those 
 sections shall be construed to i)revent any officer, soldier, sailor, or 
 marine from exercising the right of suffrage in any election district to 
 which he may belong, if otherwise qualified according to the laws of 
 the State in which he otters to vote." 
 
 The foregoing enactments would seem to be sufficient to prevent 
 military interference with -the elections. But the last Congress, to re- 
 move all apprehension of such interference, added to this body of law: 
 
 Section 15 of an act entitled "An act making appropriations for the 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 183 
 
 support of the Army for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1879, and for 
 other purposes," approved June 18, 1878, which is as follows : 
 
 " Sec. 15. From and after the passage of this act it shall not be 
 lawful to employ any part of the Army of the United States as a posse 
 coniitatus, or otherwise, for the purpose of executing the laws, except 
 in such cases and under such circumstances as such employment of said 
 force may be expressly authorized by the Constitution or by act of 
 Congress ; and no money appropriated by this act shall be used to pay 
 any of the expenses incurred in the employment of any troops in vio- 
 lation of this section, and any person wilfully \iolating the provisions 
 of this section shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and on con- 
 viction thereof shall be punished by fine not exceeding ten thousand 
 dollars or imprisonment not exceeding two years, or by both such fine 
 and imprisonment." 
 
 This act passed the Senate, after full consideration, without a single 
 vote recorded against it on its final passage, and, by a majority of more 
 than two-thirds, it was concurred in by the House of Representatives. 
 
 The purpose of the section quoted was stated in the Senate by one 
 of its supporters as follows : 
 
 "Therefore I hope, without getting into any controversy about the 
 past, but acting wisely for the future, that we shall take away the idea 
 that the Army can be used by a general or special deputy marshal, or 
 any marshal, merely for election purposes as a posse, ordering them about 
 the polls or ordering them anywhere else, when there is no election 
 going on, to prevent disorders or to suppress disturbances that should 
 be suppressed by the peace officers of the State, or, if they must bring 
 others to their aid, they should summon the unorganized citizens, and 
 not summon the officers and men of the Army as a jwsse coniitatus to 
 quell disorders, and thus get up a feeling which will be disastrous to 
 peace among the people of the country." 
 
 In the House of Representatives the object of the act of 1878 was 
 stated by the gentleman who had it in charge in similar terms. He 
 said: 
 
 "But these are all mnior points and insignificant questions compared 
 with the great principle which was incor})orated by the House in the 
 bill in reference to the use of the Army in time of peace. The Seiiate 
 had already conceded what they called, and what we might accejjt, as 
 the principle, but they had stricken out the penalty, and had stricken 
 out the word ^ express!}/^'' so that the Army might be used in all cases 
 where implied authority might be inferred. The House committee 
 planted themselves firmly upon the doctrine that rather than yield this 
 fundamental principle, for which for three years this House had strug- 
 gled, they would allow the bill to fail — notwithstanding the reforms 
 which we had secured — regarding these reforms as of but little conse- 
 quence alongside the great principle that the Army of the United 
 States, in time of peace, should be under the control of Congress, and 
 obedient to its laws. After a long and protracted negotiation, the 
 Senate committee have conceded that princii)le in all its length and 
 breadth, including the penalty, which the Senate had stricken out. We 
 
184 lettp:rs and messages. 
 
 bring you back, therefore, a report,* with the alteration of a single 
 word, which the lawyers assure nie is proper to be made, restoring- to 
 this bill the principle for which we have contended so long, and which 
 is so vital to secure the rights and liberties of the people. 
 
 ******* 
 
 "Thus have we, this day, secured to the people of this country the 
 same great protection against a standing army which cost a struggle 
 of two hundred years for the Commons of England to secure for the 
 British i)eople." 
 
 From this brief review of the subject, It sufficiently appears that, under 
 existing laws, there can be no military interference with the elections. 
 No case of such interference has, in fact, occurred since the passage of 
 the act last referred to. No soldier of the United States has appeared 
 under orders at any place of election in any State. No complaint even 
 of the presence of United States troops has been made in any quarter. 
 It may, therefore, be confidently stated that there is no necessity for 
 the enactment of section six of the bill before me, to prevent military 
 interference with the elections. The laws already in force are all that 
 is required for that end. 
 
 But that part of section six of this bill which is significant and 
 vitally important, is the clause which, if adopted, will deprive the civil 
 authorities of the Ignited States of all power to keep the peace at the 
 Congressional elections. The Congressional elections in every district, 
 in a very important sense, are justly a matter of political interest and 
 concern throughout the whole country. Each State, every political 
 party, is entitled to the share of power which is conferred b>' the legal 
 and constitutional suffrage. It is the right of every citizen, possess- 
 ing the qualifications prescribed by law, to cast one unintimidated 
 ballot,. and to have his ballot honestly counted. So long as the exer- 
 cise of this power and the enjoyment of this right are common and 
 equal, practically as well as formally, submission to the results of the 
 suffrage will be accorded loyally and cheerfully, and all the dejiart- 
 ments of Government will feel the true vigor of the popular will thus 
 expressed. 
 
 Two provisions of the Constitution authorize legislation by (con- 
 gress for the regulation of the Congressional elections. 
 
 Section 4 of Article 1 of the C'onstitutiou declares— 
 
 "The times, places, and manner of holding elections for Senators 
 and Representatives shall be i)rescribe(l in each State by the Legisla- 
 ture thereof; but the Congress may at any time, by law, make or alter 
 such regulations, except as to the places of choosing Senators." 
 
 The fifteenth amendment of the Constitution is as follows : 
 
 "Sec. 1. The right of citizens of the United States to vote sliall not 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 185 
 
 be denied or abridged by the United States, or by any State, on account 
 of race, color, or previous condition of servitude. 
 
 "Sec. 2. Tlie Congress shall have power to enforce this article by 
 appropriate legislation." 
 
 The Supreme Court has held that this amendment invests the citizens 
 of the United States with a new constitutional right which is within 
 the protecting power of Congress. That right the court declares to 
 be exemption from discrimination in the exercise of the elective fran- 
 chise on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude. 
 The power of Congress to protect this right by appropriate legislation 
 is expressly affirmed by the court. 
 
 National legislation to provide safeguards for free and honest elec- 
 tions is necessary, as experience has shown, not only to secure the right 
 to vote to the enfranchised race at the South, l)utalso to prevent fraud- 
 ulent voting in the large cities of the North. Congress has therefore 
 exercised the power conferred by the Constitution, and has enacted cer- 
 tain laws to prevent discriminations on account of race, color, or previous 
 condition of servitude, and to punish fraud, violence, and intimidation 
 at Federal elections. Attention is called to the following sections of 
 the Revised Statutes of the United States, viz: 
 
 Section 2004, which guarantees to all citizens the right to vote 
 without distinction on account of race, color, or previous condition of 
 servitude. 
 
 Sections 2005 and 2006, which guarantee to all citizens equal oppor- 
 tunity, without discrimination, to perform all the acts recpiired by law 
 as a prerequisite or (pialification for voting. 
 
 Section 2022, which authorizes the United States marshal and his 
 deputies to keep the peace and preserve order at the Federal elections. 
 Section 2024, which expressly authorizes the United States marshal 
 and his deputies to summon a posse comitatus whenever they or any of 
 them are forcibly resisted in the execution of their duties under the 
 law, or are prevented from executing such duties by violence. 
 
 Section 5522, which provides for the punishment of the crime of in- 
 terfering with the supervisors of elections and deputy marshals in the 
 discharge of their duties at the elections of Eepresentatives in Con- 
 gress. 
 
 These are some of the laws on this subject which it is the duty of 
 the Executive Dei^artment of the Government to enforce. The intent 
 and effect of the sixth section of this bill is to proliibit all the civil 
 officers of the IT nited States, under penalty of fine and imprisonment, 
 from employing any adequate civil force for this purpose at the place 
 
186 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 where their enforcement is most necessary: namely, at the places where 
 the Congressional elections are held. Among the most valuable enact- 
 ments to which I have referred are those which protect the supervisors of 
 Federal elections in the discharge of their duties at the polls. If the pro- 
 posed legislation should become the law, there will be no power vested in 
 any officer of the Government to protect from violence the officers of the 
 United States engaged in the discharge of their duties. Their rights j 
 and duties under the law will remain, but the National Government 
 will be powerless to enforce its own statutes. The States may employ 
 both military and civil power to keep the peace, and to enforce the 
 laws at State elections. It is now proposed to deny to the United 
 States even the necessary civil authority to protect the National elec- 
 tions. No sufficient reason has been given for this discrimination in 
 favor of the State and against the National authority. If well-founded 
 objections exist against the present National election laws, all good 
 citizens should unite in their amendment. The laws providing the 
 safeguards of the elections should be impartial, just, and efficient. 
 They should, if possible, be so non-partisan and fair in their operation 
 that the minority — the party out of power — will have no just grounds 
 to complain. The present laws have, in practice, unquestionably con- 
 duced to the prevention of fraud and violence at the elections. In 
 several of the States, members of different political parties have applied 
 for the safeguards which they furnish. It is the right and duty of the 
 National Government to enact and enforce laws which will secure free 
 and fair Congressional elections. The laws now in force should not be 
 repealed except in connection with the enactment of measures which 
 will better accomplish that important end. Believing that section six 
 of the bill before me will weaken, if it does not altogether take away, 
 the power of the National Government to protect the Federal elections 
 by the civil authorities, I am forced to the conclusion that it ought not 
 to receive my approval. 
 
 This section is, however, not presented to me as a separate and inde- 
 pendent measure, but is, as has been stated, attached to the bill mak- 
 ing the usual annual appropriations for tlie sux)port of the Army. It 
 makes a vital change in the election laws of the country, which is in 
 no way connected with the use of the Army. It prohibits, under heavy 
 penalties, any person engaged in the civil service of the United States 
 from having any force at the place of any election i)repared to preserve 
 order, to make arrests, to keep the peace, or in any manner to enforce 
 the laws. This is altogether foreign to the purpose of an Army appro- 
 priation bill. The practice of tacking to appropriation bills measures 
 
 J 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 187 
 
 not pertinent to sucli bills did not prevail until more than forty years 
 after the ado})tion of the Constitution. It has become a common prac- 
 tice. All parties when in power have adopted it. Many abuses and 
 great waste of public money have in this way crept into appropriation 
 bills. The jmblic oi)inion of the country is against it. The States 
 which have recently adopted constitutions have generally provided a 
 remedy for the evil, by enacting that no law shall contain more than 
 one subject, which shall be plainly expressed in its title. The consti- 
 tutions of more than half of the States contain substantially this pro- 
 vision. The public welfare will be promoted in many ways by a 
 return to the early i)ractice of the Government, and to the true prin- 
 ciple of legislation, which requires that every measure shall stand 
 or fall according to its own merits. If it were understood that to 
 attach to an appropriation bill a measure irrelevant to the general 
 object of the bill would imperil and probably prevent its final passage 
 and approval, a valuable reform in the parliamentary practice of Con- 
 gress would be accomplished. The best justification that has been 
 offered for attaching irrelevant riders to appropriation bills is that it is 
 done for convenience sake, to facilitate the passage of measures which 
 are deemed expedient by all the branches of Government which i)artici- 
 pate in legislation. It cannot be claimed that there is any such reason 
 for attaching this amendment of the election laws to the Army appropri- 
 ation bill. The history of the measure contradicts this assumption. A 
 majority of the House of Representatives in the last Congress was in 
 favor of section six of this bill. It was known that a majority of the 
 Senate was opposed to it, and that as a separate measure it could not 
 be adopted. It was attached to the Army appropriation bill to compel 
 the Senate to assent to it. It was plainly announced to the Senate 
 that the Army appropriation bill would not be allowed to pass unless 
 the proposed amendments of the election la^vs were ndopted with it. 
 The Senate refused to assent to the l)ill on account of this irrelevant 
 section. Congress thereui)on adjourned without passing an appropri- 
 ation bill for the Army, and the present extra session of the Forty- 
 sixth Congress became necessary to furnish the means to carry on the 
 Govermnent. 
 
 The ground upon which the action of the House of Representatives 
 is defended has been distinctly stated by many of its advocates. A 
 week before the close of the last session of Congress the doctrine in 
 question was stated by one of its ablest defenders, as follows: 
 
 " It is our duty to repeal these laws. It is not worth Avhile to attempt 
 the repeal except upon an ai)propriation bill. The Republican Senate 
 
188 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 would not agree to, nor the Republican President sign, a bill for such 
 repeal. Whatever objection to legislation upon approjjriation bills may 
 be made in ordinary cases does not api)ly where free elections and the 
 liberty of the citizen are concerned. * * * We have the ])ower to 
 vote money; let us annex conditions to it, and insist upon the redress 
 -of grievances." 
 
 By another distinguished member of the House it was said: 
 
 "The right of the representatives of the people to withhold supplies 
 is as old as English liberty. History records numerous instances where 
 the Commons, feeling that the people were oppressed by laws that the 
 Lords would not consent to repeal by the ordinary metliods of legisla- 
 tion, obtained redress at last by refusing apin^opriations unless accom- 
 panied by relief measures." 
 
 That a question of the gravest magnitude, and new in this country, 
 was raised by this course of proceeding, was fully recognized also by 
 its defenders in the Senate. It was said by a distinguished Senator: 
 
 "Perhaps no greater question in the form we are brouglit toconsi<ler 
 it was ever considered by the American Congress in time of peace; for 
 it involves not merely the merits or demerits of the laws which the 
 House bill proposes to repeal, but involves the rights, the privileges, 
 the powers, the duties of the two branches of Congress and of tlie 
 President of the United States. It is a vast question ; it is a question 
 whose importance can scarcely be estimated; it is a question that never 
 yet has been brought so sharply before the American Congress and the 
 American jieople as it may be now. It is a question which sooner or 
 later must be decided, and the decision must determine what are the 
 powers of the House of Representatives under the Constitution, and 
 what is the duty of that House in the view of the framers of that Con- 
 stitution according to its letter and its si)irit. 
 
 "Mr. President, I should approach this question, if I were in the 
 best possible condition to speak and to argue it, with very grave diffi- 
 dence, and certainly with the utmost anxiety, for no one can think of 
 it as long and as carefully as I have thought of it without seeing that 
 we are at the beginning perliaps of a struggle that may last as long in 
 this country as a similar struggle lasted in what we are accustonu'd to 
 call the mother-land. There the struggle lasted for two centuries 
 before it was ultimately decided. It is not likely to last so long here, 
 but it may last until every man in this chamber is in his grave. It is 
 the (juestion whether or no the House of Representatives has a right 
 to say: ' We will grant supplies only upon condition that grievan<;es 
 iire redressed. We are the representatives of the tax-i)ayers of the 
 Republic. We, the House of Representatives, alone have the right to 
 ■originate money bills; we, the House of Representatives, have alone 
 the riglit to originate bills which grant the money of the people; the 
 Senate represents States; we represent the tax-payers of the Kepublic; 
 we, therefore, by the very terms of the Constitution, are {-harged with 
 the duty of originating tlu? bills which grant the money of the people. 
 We claim the right, which the House of Commons in England estab- 
 lished, after two centuries of contest, to say that Nve will not grant the 
 .money of the peoi)le unless there is a redress of grievances.'" 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 189 
 
 Upon the assembling of this Congress, in pnrsuance of a call for an 
 extra session, which was made necessary by the failure of the Forty- 
 fifth Congress to make the needful appropriations for the support of 
 the Government, the question was presented whether the attempt made 
 in the last Congress to engraft by construction a new principle upon 
 the Constitution should be persisted in or not. This Congress has 
 ample opportunity and time to pass the appropriation bills, and also to 
 enact any political measures which may be determined upon in sepa- 
 rate bills by the usual and orderly methods of proceeding. But the 
 majority of both Houses have deemed it wise to adhere to the prin- 
 ciple asserted and maiiitaiued in the last Congress by the majority of 
 the House of Keprcsentatives. That principle is, that the House of 
 Representatives has the sole right to originate bills for raising revenue, 
 and therefore has tlie right to withhold appropriations upon which the 
 existence of the Government may depend unless the Senate and the 
 President shall give their assent to any legislation which the House 
 may see tit to attach to appropriation bills. To establish this principle 
 is to make a radical, dangerous, and unconstitutional change in the 
 character of our institutions. The various Departments of the Govern- 
 ment, and the Army and the Navy, are established by the Constitution, 
 or by laws passed in pursuance thereof. Their duties are clearly defined^ 
 and their support is carefully provided for by law. The money required 
 for this purpose has been collected from the people, and is now in the 
 Treasury, ready to be paid out as soon as the appropriation bills are 
 passed. Whether appropriations are made or not the collection of the 
 taxes will go on. The public money will accunudate in the Treasury. 
 It was not the intention of the framers of the Constitution that any 
 single branch of the Government should have the power to dictate 
 conditions upon Avhich this treasure should be applied to the purposes 
 for which it was collected. Any such intention, if it had been enter- 
 tained, would have been plainly expressed in the Constitution. 
 
 That a majority of the Senate now concurs in the claim of the House 
 adds to the gravity of the situation, but does not alter the question at 
 issue. The new doctrine, if maintained, will result in a consolidation 
 of unchecked and despotic power in the House of Kepresentatives. A 
 bare majority of the House will become the Government. The Execu- 
 tive will no longer be what the framers of the Constitution intended, an 
 equal and independent branch of the Government. It is clearly the 
 constitutional duty of the President to exercise his discretion and judg- 
 ment upon all bills presented to him without constraint or duress from 
 any other branch of the Government. To say that a majority of either 
 
190 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 or both of the Houses of Congress may insist ou the approval of a bill 
 under the penalty of stopping all of the operations of the Government 
 for want of the necessary supplies, is to deny to the Executive that 
 share of the legislative power which is plainly conferred by the second 
 section of the seventh article of tlie Constitution. It strikes from the 
 Constitution the qualified negative of the President. It is said that 
 this should be done because it is the peculiar function of the House of 
 Representatives to represent the will of the people. But no single 
 branch or department of the Government has exclusive authority to 
 speak for the American people. The most authentic and solemn ex- 
 pression of their will is contained in the Constitution of the United 
 States. By that Constitution they have ordained and established a 
 Government whose powers are distributed among co-ordinate branches, 
 which, as far as possible, consistently with a harmonious co-operation, 
 are absolutely independent of each other. The people of this country 
 are unwilling to see the supremacy of the Constitution replaced by the 
 omnipotence of any department of the Government. 
 
 The enactment of this bill into a law will establish a precedent which 
 will tend to destroy the equal independence of the several branches of 
 the Government. Its principle places not merely the Senate and the 
 Executive, but the judiciary also, under the coercive dictation of the 
 House. The House alone will be the judge of what constitutes a griev- 
 ance, and also of the means and measures of redress. An act of Con- 
 gress to protect elections is now the grievance complained of. But the 
 House may on the same principle determine that any other act of Con- 
 gress, a treaty made by the President, with the advice and consent of 
 the Senate, a nomination or ai)pointment to office, or that a decision or 
 opinion of the Supreme Court is a grievance, and that the measure of 
 redress is to withhold the appropriations required for the support of 
 the offending branch of the Government. 
 
 Believing that this bill is a dangerous violation of the spirit and 
 meaning of the Constitution, I am compelled to return it to the House 
 in which it originated without my approval. The qualified negative 
 with which the Constitution invests the President is a trust that in- 
 volves a duty which he cannot decline to perform. With a firm and 
 conscientious purpose to do what I can to preserve, unimpaired, the 
 constitutional powers and equal independence, not merely of the Ex- 
 ecutive, but of every branch of the Government, which will be imper- 
 illed by the adoption of the principle of this bill, I desire earnestly to 
 urge upon the House of Representatives a return to the wise and 
 wholesome usage of the earlier days of the Republic, which excluded 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 191 
 
 from appropriation bills all irrelevant legislation. By this conrse you 
 will inaugurate an important reform in tlie method of Congressional 
 legislation; your action will be in harmony with the fundamental prin- 
 ciples of the Constitution and the patriotic sentiment of nationality 
 which is their firm support; and you will restore to the country that 
 feeling of confidence and security and the repose which are so essen- 
 tial to the prosperity of all of our fellow-citizens. 
 
 EUTHEEFORD B. HAYES. 
 Executive Mansion, A^nil 20, 1879. 
 
M:ESS^aE 
 
 RETURNING TO 
 
 TKE HOUSE OF EEPEESENTATIVES THE BILL ENTITLED "AN ACT TO 
 PEOHIBIT MILITAEY INTEEPEEENOE AT ELECTIONS." 
 
 MAY IS, 1879. 
 
 13 
 
i 
 
MESSAGE 
 
 To THE House of Representatives : 
 
 After careful consideration of the bill entitled "An act to prohibit 
 military interference at elections," I retnrn it to the House of Eepre- 
 sentatives, in which it originated, with the following objections to its 
 approval : 
 
 In the communication sent to the House of Representatives on the 
 29th of last month, returning to the House Avithout my approval the 
 bill entitled "An act making appropriations for the support of the 
 Army for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1880, and for other purposes," 
 I endeavored to show by quotations from the statutes of the United 
 States now in force, and by a brief statement of facts in regard to recent 
 elections in the several States, that no additional legislation was neces- 
 sary to prevent interference with the elections by the military or naval 
 forces of the United States, The fact was presented in that communi- 
 cation that at the time of the passage of the act of June 18, 1878, in 
 relation to the employment of the Army as a posse comitatus or other- 
 wise, it was maintained by its friends that it would establish a vital 
 and fundamental principle which wM)uld secure to the people protection 
 against a standing army. The fact was also referred to that, since the 
 passage of this act, Congressional, State, and municipal elections have 
 been held throughout the Union, and that in no instance has complaint 
 been made of the presence of United States soldiers at the polls. 
 
 Holding as I do the opinion that any military interference whatever 
 at the polls is contrary to the spirit of our institutions, and would tend 
 to destroy the freedom of elections, and sincerely desiring to concur 
 with Congress in all of its measures, it is with very great regret that I 
 am forced to the conclusion that the bill before me is not only unneces- 
 sary to ijreveut such interference, but is a dangerous departure from 
 long-settled and important constitutional principles. 
 
 The true rule as to the emi)loyment of military force at the elections 
 is not doubtful. No intimidation or coercion should be allowed to 
 control or influence citizens in the exercise of their right to vote, 
 whether it appears in the shape of combinations of evil-disposed per- 
 sons, or of armed bodies of the militia of a State, or of the military 
 force of the United States. 
 
196 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 The elections vslionld be tVee from all forcible interference, and, as far 
 as practicable, from all apprehension of such interference. Xo soldiers, 
 either of the llniou or of the State militia, should be present at the 
 l)olls to take the place or to perform the duties of the ordinary civil 
 police force. There has been and will be no violation of this rule under 
 orders from nie during- this adnjinistration. But there should be no 
 denial of the right of the National Government to employ its military 
 force on any day and at any i)lace in case such employment is necessary 
 to enforce the Constitution and laws of the United States. 
 
 The bill before me is as follows: 
 
 '■'•Be it enacted,, tC'c, That it shall not be lawful to bring to or employ, 
 at any place where a general or special election is being lield in a State, 
 any part of the Army or Navy of the United States, unless such force 
 be necessary to repel the armed enemies of the United States, or to 
 enforce section 4, article 4, of the Constitution of the United States, 
 aud the laws made in ])ursuance thereof, on ai)i)lication of the Legis- 
 lature or Executive of the State where such force is to be used; and so 
 much of all laws as is inconsistent herewith is hereby repealed." 
 
 It will be observed that the bill exempts from the general prohibition 
 against the emploj^ment of military force at the polls two specified 
 cases. These exceptions recognize aiul concede the soundness of the 
 princii)le that military force nmy pro])erly and constitutionally be used 
 at the [)lace of elections, when such use is necessary to enforce the Con- 
 stitution and the laws. But the excepted cases leave the iirohibitiou 
 so extensive and far-rea<;hing that its adoi)tion will seriously impair 
 the etticiency of the Executive Department of the Government. 
 
 The first act expressly authorizing the use of military power to exe- 
 cute the laws was passed almost as early as the organization of the 
 Government under the Constitution, and was approved hy President- 
 Washington, May 2, 179-J. It is as follows: 
 
 " Sec. 2. And he it fnrther enacted, That whenever the laws of the 
 United States shall be opposed, or the execution thereof obstructed, 
 in any State, by combinations too i)owerful to be supi)ressed by the 
 or<linary course of jiulicial proceedings, or by the powers vested in the 
 marshals by this act, the same being notified to the President of the 
 United States by an associate justice or the district judge, it shall be 
 lawful for the I'resident of the United States to call forth the militia 
 of such State to suppress such cond)inations, and to cause the laws to 
 be duly executed. And if the militia of a State where such combina- 
 tions may happen shall refuse or be insufficient to suppress the same, 
 it shall be lawful for the President, if the Legislature of the United 
 States be not in session, to call forth and employ such numbers of the 
 militia of any other State or States most convenient thereto as may be 
 necessary; and the use of militia, so to be called forth, may be con- 
 tinued, if necessary, until the expiration of thirty days after the com- 
 mencement of the ensuing session." 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 107 
 
 III 1795 tbis provision Avas substantially re-enacted in a law wliicli 
 repealed the act of 1792. In 1807 the following- act became the law 
 by the approval of President Jefterson: 
 
 "That in all cases of insurrection or obstruction to the laws, either 
 of the United States or of any individual State or Territory, where it is 
 lawful for the President of the United States to call fotth the militia 
 for the purpose of suppressing such insurrection, or of causing the 
 laws to be duly executed, it shall be lawful for him to emidoy, for the 
 same purposes, such part of tlie land or naval force of the United 
 States as shall be judged necessary, having tirst observed all the pre- 
 requisites of the law in that respect." 
 
 By this act it will be seen that the scope of the law of 1795 was 
 extended so as to authorize the National Government to use not only 
 the militia but the Army and Navy of the United States in "causing 
 the laws to be duly executed." 
 
 The important provision of the acts of 1792, 1795, and 1807, moditied 
 in its terms from time to time to adapt it to the existing emergency, 
 remained in force until, by an act approved by President Lincoln July 
 29, 1861, it was re-enacted substantially in the same language in which 
 it is now found in the Revised Statutes, viz: 
 
 " Sec. 5298. Whenever, by reason of unlawful obstructions, combi- 
 nations, or assemblages of persons, or rebellion against the authority 
 of the Government of the United States, it shall become impracticable, 
 in the iudgment of the President, to enforce, by the ordinary course of 
 judicial proceedings, the laws of the United States within any State or 
 Territory, it shall be lawful for the President to call forth the militia 
 of any or all the States, and to employ such parts of the land and 
 naval forces of the United States as he may deem necessary to enforce 
 the faithful execution of the laws of the United States, or to supi)ress 
 sncli rebellion, in whatever State or Territory thereof the laws of the 
 Unite<l States nmy be forcibly opposed, or the execution thereof forci- 
 bly obstructed." 
 
 This ancient and fundamental law has been in force from the foun- 
 dation of the Goveinment. It is now proposed to abrogate it on cer- 
 tain days and at certain places. In my judgment no fact has been pro- 
 duced which tends to show that it ought to be repealed or suspended 
 for a single hour at any jdace in any of the States or Territories of the 
 Union. All the teachings of experience in the course of our history 
 are in favor of sustaining its efficiency unimpaired. On every occasion 
 when the supremacy of the Constitution has been resi^sted, and the per- 
 petuity of our institutions imi)erilled, the principle of this statute, en- 
 acted by the fathers, has enabled the Government of the Union to 
 maintain its authority and to preserve the integrity of the Nation. 
 
 At the most critical periods of our history, my predecessors in the 
 
198 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 Executive office have relied on this great principle. It was on this 
 principle that President Washington suppressed the whiskey rebel- 
 lion in Pennsylvania in 1794. In 180G, on the same principle, Presi- 
 dent riefferson broke np the Bnrr conspiracy by issuing "orders for the 
 employment of such force, either of the regulars or of the militia, and 
 by such proceedings of the civil authorities, * * * as might enable 
 them to suppress effectually the further progress of the enterprise." 
 And it was under the same authority that President Jackson crushed 
 nullification in South Carolina, and that President Lincoln issued his 
 call for troops to save the Union in 1861. On numerous other occa- 
 sions of less significance, under probably every administration, and 
 certainly under the present, this power has been usefully exerted to 
 enforce the laws, without objection by any party in the country, and 
 almost without attracting public attention. 
 
 The great elementary constitutional principle which was the founda- 
 tion of the original statute of 1792, and which has been its essence in 
 the various forms it has assumed since its first adoption, .is, that the 
 Government of the United States possesses under the (Constitution, in 
 full measure, the power of self-protection by its own agencies, alto- 
 gether- independent of State authority, and, if need be, against the 
 hostility of State governments. It should remain embodied in our 
 statutes, unimpaired, as it has been from the very origin of the Gov- 
 ernment. It should be regarded as hardly less valuable Or less sacred 
 than a provision of the Constitution itself. 
 
 There are many other important statutes containing provisions that 
 are liable to be suspended oi- annulled at the times and places of hold- 
 ing elections, if the bill before me should become a law. I do not 
 undertake to furnish a list of them. :\Iany of them— perhaps the 
 most of them— have been set forth in the debates on this measure. 
 They relate to extradition, to crimes against the election laws, to 
 quarantine regulations, to neutrality, to Indian reservations, to the 
 civil rights of citizens, and to other subjects. In regard to them 
 all, it may be safely said, that the meaning and effect of this bill is to 
 take from the General Government au im])ortant part of its power to 
 enforce the hiAvs. 
 
 Another grave objection to the bill is its discrimination in favor of 
 the State and against the National authority. The presence or em- 
 ployment of the Army or Navy of the United States is lawful under 
 the terms of this bill at the place where an election is being held in a 
 State to uphold the authority of a State govern men-t then and there in 
 need of such military intervention, but unlawful to uphold the autlior- 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 199 
 
 ity of the Government of the United States then and there in need of 
 such military intervention. Under this bill the presence and employ- 
 ment of the Army or jSTavy of the United States would be lawful, and 
 might be necessary to maintain the conduct of a State election against 
 the domestic violence that would overthrow it, but would be unlawful 
 to maintain the conduct of a ISTational election against the same local 
 violence that would overthrow it. This discrimination has never been 
 attempted in any previous legislation by Congress, and is no more 
 compatible with sound principles of the Constitution or the necessary 
 maxims and methods of our system of government on occasions of 
 elections than at other times. In the early legislation of 1792 and of 
 1795, by which the militia of the States was the only military power 
 resorted to for the execution of the constitutional powers in support of 
 State or I^ational authority, both functions of the Government were 
 put upon the same footing. By the act of 1807 the employment of the 
 Army and Navy was authorized for the performance of both constitu- 
 tional duties in the same terms. 
 
 In all later statutes on the same subject-matter the same measure of 
 authority to the Government has been accorded for the performance of 
 both these duties. No precedent has been found in any previous legis- 
 lation, and no sufficient reason has been given for the discrimination 
 in favor of tha State and against the National authority which this bill 
 contains. 
 
 Under the sweeping terms of the bill, the National Government is 
 effectually shut out from the exercise of the right, and from the dis- 
 charge of the imperative duty to use its whole Executive power when- 
 ever and wherever required for the enforcement of its laws at the 
 places and times where and when its elections are held. The employ- 
 ment of its organized armed forces for any such purpose would be an 
 offence against the law unless called for by, and therefore upon permis- 
 sion of, the authorities of the State in which the occasion arises. What 
 is this but the substitution of the discretion of the State governments 
 for the discretion of the Government of the United States as to the 
 performance of its own duties ? In my judgment, this is an abandon- 
 ment of its obligations by the National Government — a subordina- 
 tion of National authority, and an intrusion of State supervision over 
 National duties, which amounts, in spirit and tendency, to State su- 
 premacy. 
 
 Though I believe that the existing statutes are abundantly adequate 
 to completely prevent military interference with the elections in the 
 sense in which the phrase is used in the title of this bill and is em- 
 
200 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 ployed by the people of this country, I shall find no difficulty in con- 
 curring in any additional legislation limited to that object which does 
 not interfere Avith the indispensable exercise of the powers of the 
 Government under the Constitution and laws. 
 
 RUTHERFORD B. HAYES. 
 Executive Mansion, May 12, 1879. 
 
 a 
 
]VIESS^GE 
 
 RETURNING TO 
 
 THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES THE BILL ENTITLED "AN ACT 
 MAKING APPROPRIATIONS FOR THE LEGISLATIVE, EXECU- 
 TIVE, AND JUDICIAL EXPENSES OF THE GOVERN- 
 MENT, FOR THE FISCAL YEAR ENDING JUNE 
 30, 1880, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES." 
 
 MAY 99, 1879 
 
MESSAGE. 
 
 To THE House of Representatives: 
 
 After mature consideration of the bill entitled " An act making ap 
 propriations for the legislative, executive, and judicial expenses of the 
 Government for the fiscal year ending June thirtieth, eighteen hun- 
 dred and eighty, and for other purposes," I herewith return it to the 
 House of Eepresentatives, in which it originated, with the following 
 objections to its approval: 
 
 The main purpose of the bill is to appropriate the money required 
 to support, during the next fiscal year, the several civil departments 
 of the Government. The amount appropriated exceeds in the aggre- 
 gate eighteen millions of dollars. 
 
 This money is needed to keep in operation the essential functions of 
 all the great departments of the Government— legislative, executive, 
 and judicial. If the bill contained no other provisions, no objection to 
 its approval would be made. It embraces, however, a number of 
 clauses relating to subjects of great general interest, which are wholly 
 unconnected with the approimations which it provides for. The objec- 
 tions to the practice of tacking general legislation to appropriation 
 bills, especially when the object is to deprive a co-ordinate branch of 
 the Government of its right to the free exercise of its own discretion 
 and judgment touching such general legislation, were set forth in the 
 special message in relation to House bill number one, which was re- 
 turned to the House of Representatives on the 29th of last mouth. I 
 regret that the objections which were then expressed to this method 
 of legislation have not seenuKl to Congress of sufficient weight to dis- 
 suade from this renewed incorporation of general enactments in an 
 ap])ropriation bill, and that my constitutional duty in respect of the 
 general legislation thus placed before me cannot be discharged with- 
 out seeming to delay, however briefly, the necessary appropriations by 
 Congress for the support of the Government. Without repeating those 
 objections, I respectfully refer to that message for a statement of my 
 views on the principle maintained in debate by the advocates of this 
 bill, viz., that "to withhold appropriations is a constitutional means 
 for the redress" of what the majority of the Bouse of Representatives 
 may regard as "a grievance." 
 
204 lettp:rs and messages. 
 
 The bill contains the following clauses, viz : 
 
 ^'Aiid provided further^ Tluit the following sections of the Revised 
 Statutes of the tinited States, namely, sections two thousand and 
 sixteen, two thousand and eighteen, and two tliousand and twenty, 
 and all of the succeeding sections of said statutes down to and including 
 section two thousand and twenty-seven, and also section tifty-tive hun- 
 dred an<l twenty-two, be, and the same are hereby, repealed;" * * * 
 ^'and that all the other sections of the Revised Statutes, and all laws 
 and i)arts of laws authorizing the appointment of chief supervisors of 
 elections, special deputy nuirshals of elections, or general deputy 
 nuirshals having any duties to perform in respect to any election and 
 prescribing their duties and powers and allowing them compensation, 
 be, and the same are hereby repealed." 
 
 It also contains clauses amending sections 2017, 2010, 202S, and 2031 
 of the Revised Statutes. 
 
 The sections of the Revised Statutes which the bill, if approved, 
 would repeal or amend, are part of an act approved May 30, 1870, and 
 amended February 28, 1871, entitled "An act to enforce the rights of 
 citizens of the United States to vote in the several States of this Union, 
 and for other purposes." All of the provisions of the above-named acts, 
 which it is proposed in this bill to repeal or modify, relate to the Con- 
 gressional elections. The remaining portion of the law, which will con- 
 tinue in force after the enactment of this measure, is that which pro- 
 vides for the appointment, by ajudge of the circuit court of the United 
 States, of two supervisors of election in each election district, at any 
 Congressional election, on due application of citizens who desire, in the 
 language of the law, "to have such election guarded and scrutinized ^ 
 
 The duties of the supervisors will be to attend at the i)olls at all Con- 
 gressional elections, and to remain after the polls are oi)en until every 
 vote cast has been counted, but they will "have no authority to make 
 arrests, or to perform other duties than to be in the immediate presence 
 of the ofHcers holding the election, and to witness all their proceed- 
 ings, including the counting of the votes, and the making of a return 
 thereof." The part of the election law which will be repealed by the 
 approval of this bill, includes those sections which give authority to 
 the supervisors of election "to personally scrutinize, count, and can- 
 vass each ballot," and all the sections which confer authority u]»on the 
 United States marshals and deputy marshals, in connection with the 
 Congressional elections. The enactment of this bill will also repeal sec- 
 tion 5522 of the Criminal Statutes of the United States, which was 
 enacted for the i)rotecti()n of United States otticers engaged in the dis- 
 charge of their duties at the Congressional elections. This section 
 protects supervisors and marshals in the performance of their duties 
 
LtrrTERS AND MESSAGES. 205 
 
 by making tlie obstructiou or the assaulting- of these officers, or any 
 interference with them by bribery or solicitation, or otherwise, crimes 
 against the United States. 
 
 The true meaning and effect of the proposed legislation are plain. 
 The supervisors, with the authority to observe and witness the pro- 
 ceedings at the Congressional elections, will be left ; but there w ill be 
 no power to protect them, or to i)revent interference with their duties^ 
 or to punish any ^'iolation of the law from which their powers are 
 derived. If this bill is approved, only the shadow of the authority of 
 the United States at the National elections will remain— the substance 
 will be gone. The supervision of the elections will be reduced to a 
 mere inspection, without authority on the part of the supervisors to do 
 any act whatever to make the election a fair oue. All that will be left 
 to the supervisors is the permission to have such oversight of the elec- 
 tions as political parties are in the habit of exercising without any au- 
 thority of law, in order to prevent their opponents from obtaining unfair 
 advantages. The object of the bill is to destroy any control whatever 
 by the United States over the Congressional elections. 
 
 The passage of this bill has been urged upon the ground that the 
 election of members of Congress is a matter which concerns the States 
 alone; that these elections should be controlled exclusively by the 
 States; that there are and can be no such elections as National elec- 
 tions ; and that the existing law of the United States regulating the 
 Congressional elections is without warrant in the Constitution. 
 
 It is evident, how^ever, that the framers of the Constitution regarded 
 the election of members of Congress in every State and in every dis- 
 trict as, in a very important sense, justly a matter of political interest 
 and concern to the whole country. The original provision 0/ the Con- 
 stitution on this subject is as follow^s : ■ 
 
 Sec. 4, Article 1. "The times, places, and manner of holding elec- 
 tions for Senators and Representatives shall be ])rescribed in each 
 State by the Legislature thereof; but the Congress may at any time, 
 by law, uuike or alter such regulations, except as to the places of choos- 
 ing Senators." 
 
 A further provision has been since added, which is embraced in the 
 fifteenth amendment. It is as follows : 
 
 " Sec. 1. The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not 
 be denied or abridged by the United States, or by any State, on ac- 
 count of race, color, or previous condition of servitude. 
 
 "Sec. 2. The Congress shall have power to enforce this article by 
 appropriate legislation ." 
 
 Under the general provision of the Constitution, (section 4, article 1,) 
 
206 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 Congress, in 18(10, passed a compreliensive law which prescribed full 
 and detailed regulations for the election of Senators by the Legisla- 
 tures of the several States. This law has been in force almost thirteen 
 years. In pursuance of it all of the members of the present Senate of 
 the United States hold their seats. Its constitutionality is not called 
 in question. It is confidently believed that no sound argument can 
 be made in support of the constitutionality of National regulation 
 of Senatorial elections which will not show that the elections of mem- 
 bers of the House of Representatives may also be constitutionally 
 regulated by the JSTational authority. 
 
 The bill before me itself recognizes the principle that the Congres- 
 sional elections are not State elections, but National elections. It 
 leaves in full force the existing statute under which supervisors are 
 still to be ap])ointed by National authority, to <' observe and witness" 
 the Congressional elections whenever due application is made by citi- 
 zens who desire said elections to be " guarded and scrutinized." If the 
 power to supervise, in any respect whatever, the Congressional elec- 
 tions exists, under section 4, article 1, of the Constitution, it is a power 
 which, like every other power belonging to the Government of the 
 United States, is i)aramount and supreme, and includes the right to 
 employ the necessary means to carry it into elfect. 
 
 The statutes of the United States which regulate the election of mem- 
 bers of the House of Representatives, an essential part of which it is 
 proposed to repeal by this bill, have been in force about eight years. 
 Four Congressional elections have been held under them, two of which 
 were at the Presidential elections of 1872 and 1876. Numerous prose- 
 cutions, trials, and convictions have been had in the courts of the 
 United States in all parts of the Union for violations of these laws. 
 In no reported case has their constitutionality been called in question 
 by any judge of the courts of the United States. The validity of 
 these laws is sustained by the uniform course of judicial action and 
 opinion. 
 
 If it is urged that the United States election laws are not necessary, 
 an ample reply is furnished by the history of their origin aud of their 
 results. They were especially prompted by the investigation and ex- 
 posure of the frauds committed in the city and State of New York at 
 the elections of 1868. Committees representing both of the leading 
 political parties of the country have submitted reports to the House of 
 Representatives on the extent of those frauds. A committee of the 
 Fortieth Congress, after a full investigation, reached the conclusion 
 that the number of fraudulent votes cast in the city of New York alone 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 207 
 
 in 1868 was not less than twenty-five thousand. A committee of the 
 Forty-fonrth Congress, in their report submitted in 1877, adopted the 
 opinion that for every one hundred actual voters of the city of New 
 York in 1868, one hundred and eight votes were cast ; when, in fact, 
 the number of lawful votes cast could not have exceeded eighty-eight 
 per cent, of the actual voters of the city. By this statement the num- 
 ber of fraudulent votes at that election, in the city of New York alone, 
 was between thirty and forty thousand. These frauds completely re- 
 versed the result of the election in the State of New York, both as to 
 the choice of Governor and State officers, and as to the choice of 
 electors of President and Vice-President of the United States. They 
 attracted the attention of the whole country. It was plain that if they 
 could be continued and repeated with impunity, free government was 
 impossible. A distinguished Senator, in opposing the passage of the 
 election laws, declared that he had " for a long time believed that our 
 form of Government was a comparative failure in the larger cities." 
 To meet these evils and to prevent these crimes the United States laws 
 regulating Congressional elections were enacted. 
 
 The framers of these laws have not been disappointed in their results. 
 In the large cities, under their provisions, the elections have been com- 
 paratively peaceable, orderly, and honest. Even the opponents of 
 these laws have borne testimony to their value and efficiency, and to 
 the necessity for their enactment. The Committee of the Forty -fourth 
 Congress, composed of members a majority of whom were opposed to 
 these laws, in their report on the New York election of 1876, said : 
 
 "The committtee would commend to other portions of tlie country 
 and to other cities this remarkable system, developed through the 
 agency of both local and Federal authorities acting in harmony for an 
 honest purpose. In no portion of the world, and in no era of time, 
 where there has been an expression of the popular will through the forms 
 of law, has there been a more complete aud tliorough illustration of 
 republican institutions. Whatever may have been the previous habit 
 or conduct of elections in those cities, or howsoever they may conduct 
 themselves in the future, this election of 1876 will stand as a monu- 
 ment of what good faith, honest endeavor, legal forms, and just au- 
 thority may do for the protection of the electoral franchise." 
 
 This bill recognizes the authority and duty of the United States to 
 appoint supervisors to guard and scrutinize the Congressional elec- 
 tions, but it denies to the Government of the United States all power 
 to make its supervision effectual. The great body of the people of all 
 parties want free and fair elections. They do not think that a free 
 election means freedom from the wholesome restraints of law, or that 
 the place of an election should.be a sanctuary for lawlessness and 
 
208 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 crime. On the day of an election peace and good order are more neces- 
 sary than on any other day of the year. On that day the humblest 
 and feeblest citizens, the aged and the infirm, should be, and should 
 have reason to feel that they are, safe in the exercise of their most re- 
 sponsible duty, and. their most sacred right as members of society, their 
 duty and their right to vote. The constitutional authority to regulate 
 the Congressional elections which belongs to the Government of the 
 United States, and which it is necessary to exert to secure the right to 
 vote to every citizen possessing the requisite qualifications, ought to be 
 enforced by appropriate legislation. So far from public opinion in any 
 part of the country favoring any relaxation of the authority of the 
 Government in the protection of elections from violence and corruption, 
 I believe it demands greater vigor, both in the enactment and in the 
 execution of laws framed for that purpose. Any oppression, any partisan 
 partiality, which experience may have shown in the working of existing 
 laws, may well engage the careful attention both of Congress and of 
 the Executive, in their respective spheres of duty, for the correction of 
 these mischiefs. As no Congressional elections occur until after the 
 regular session of Congress will have been held, there seems to be no 
 public exigency that would preclude a seasonable consideration at that 
 session of any administrative details that might improve the present 
 methods designed for the protection of all citizens in the com]>lete and 
 equal exercise of the right and power of the suffrage at such elections. 
 But with my views, both of the constitutionality and of the value of 
 the existing laAvs, 1 cannot approve any measure for their repeal except 
 in connection with the enactment of other legislation which may reason- 
 ably be expected to aftbrd wiser and more efficient safeguards for free 
 and honest Congressional elections. 
 
 KUTHERFORD B. HAYES. 
 
 Executive Mansion, May 29, 1871). 
 
IMESS^GE 
 
 RETURNING TO 
 
 THE HOUSE OP EEPEESENTATIVES THE BILL ENTITLED "AN ACT 
 MAKING APPEOPEIATIONS FOE OEETAIN JUDICIAL EXPENSES." 
 
 JUNE 93, 1879. 
 
 14 
 
MESSAGE. 
 
 To THE House of Eepresentatives : 
 
 After careful examination of the bill entitled "An act making appro- 
 priations for certain judicial expenses," I return it herewith to the 
 House of Eepresentatives, in which it originated, with the following 
 objections to its approval: 
 
 The general purpose of the bill is to provide for certain judicial ex- 
 penses of the Government for the fiscal year ending June thirtieth, 
 eighteen hundred and eighty, for which the sum of two million six 
 hundred and ninety thousand dollars is appropriated. These appro- 
 priations are required to keep in operation the general functions of the 
 judicial department of the Government, and if this part of the bill 
 stood alone there would be no objection to its approval. It contains, 
 however, other provisions, to which I desire respectfully to ask your 
 attention. 
 
 At the present session of Congress a majority of both Houses favor- 
 ing a repeal of the Congressional-election laws, embraced in title 
 twenty-six of the Eevised Statutes, passed a measure for that purpose, 
 as part of a bill entitled "An act making appropriations for the legis- 
 lative, executive, and judicial expenses of the Government for the fiscal 
 year ending June 30, 1880, aiid for other purposes." Unable to concur 
 with Congress in that measure, on the 29th of May last I returned the 
 bill to the House of Eepresentatives, in which it originated, without 
 my approval, for that further consideration for which the Constitution 
 provides. On reconsideration the bill was approved by less than two- 
 thirds of the House, and failed to become a law. The election laws, 
 therefore, remain valid enactments, and the supreme law of the land, 
 binding not only upon all private citizens, but also alike and equally 
 binding upon all who are charged with the duties and responsibilities 
 of the legislative, the executive, and the judicial departments of the 
 Government. 
 
 It is not sought by the bill before me to repeal the election laws. 
 Its object is to defeat their enforcement. The last clause of the first 
 section is as follows : 
 
 "And no part of the money hereby appropriated is appropriated to 
 
212 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 pay any salaries, eoinpensation, fees, or expenses under or in virtne of 
 itie twenty-six of the Eevised statutes, or of any i)rovisi()n of said 
 tie." 
 
 Title twenty -six of the Eevised Statntes, referi-ed to in the foregoing- 
 clause, relates to the elective franchise, and contains the laws now iu 
 force regulating the Congressional elections. 
 
 The second section of the bill reaches much further. It is as fol- 
 lows : 
 
 "Sec. 2. That the sums appropriated in this act for the persons and 
 public service embraced in its provisions are in full for snch persons 
 and i)ublic service for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1880, and no De- 
 partment or otticer of the Government shall, during said tiscal year, 
 make any contract or incur any liability for the future ])ayment of 
 money under any of the provisions of title twenty-six of the Eevised 
 Statutes of the I'nited States authorizing the ai)pointment or payment 
 of general or special deputy marshals for service in connection with 
 elections or ou election day, until an appropriation sufticient to meet 
 such contract or pay such liability shall have first been uuule by law." 
 
 This section of the bill is intended to make an extensive and essen- 
 tial change in the existing laws. The following are the provisions of 
 the statutes on the same subject which are now in force: 
 
 "Sec. 2679. jSTo Department of the Government shall expend, in any 
 one tiscal year, any sum iu excess of appropriations made by Congress 
 for that tiscal year, or involve the Goverinnent iu any contract for the 
 future i)ayment of money in excess of such ai)pro]mations." 
 
 "Sec. 2732. No contract or ]>urchase on behalf of the United States 
 shall be made unless the same is authorized by law, or is under au 
 appropriation adecjuate to its tultillment, except in the War and Xavy 
 Dei)artments, for clothing, subsistence, forage, fuel, (piarters, or trans- 
 portation, which, however, shall not exceed the necessities of the cur- 
 rent year." 
 
 The object of these sections of the Eevised Statutes is plain. It is, 
 first, to prevent any money from being expended unless appropriations 
 have been made therefor; and, second, to prevent the Government 
 from being bound by any contract not previously authorized by law, 
 except for certain necessary puri)oses in the War and Navy Depart- 
 ments. 
 
 Under the existing laws, the failure of Congress to make the appro- 
 priations required for the execution of the i)rovisions of the election 
 laws would not prevent their enforcement. The right and duty to ap- 
 point the general and special deputy marshals which they provide for 
 would still remain, and the Executive Department of the Government 
 would also be empowered to incur the requisite liability for their com- 
 pensation. But the second section of this bill contains a i)rohibitiou 
 not Ibund in any previous legislation. Its design is to render the elec- 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 213 
 
 tioii laws inoperative and a dead letter during tlio next fiscal year. It 
 is souoht to accomplish this by omitting to appropriate inoney for their 
 enforcement, and by expressly prohibiting any Department or oflBcer 
 of the Government from incurring any liability under any of the pro- 
 visions of title twenty-six of the Eevised Statutes authorizing the ap- 
 pointment or payment of general or special deputy marshals for service 
 on election days, until an appropriation sufflcient to pay such liability 
 shall have first been made. 
 
 The President is called upon to give his affirmative approval to posi- 
 tive enactments which in effect deprive him of the ordinary and neces- 
 sary means of executing laws still left in the statute-book, and embraced 
 within his constitutional duty to see that the laws are executed. If he 
 approves tlie bill, and thus gives to such positive enactments the au- 
 thority of law, he participates in the curtailment of his means of seeing 
 that the law is faithfully executed while the obligation of the law and 
 of his constitutional duty remains unimpaired. 
 
 The appointment of special deputy marshals is not made by the 
 statute a spontaneous act of authority on the part of any executive 
 or judicial officer of the Government, but is accorded as a popular 
 right of the citizens to call into operation this agency for securing the 
 purity and freedom of elections in any city or town having twenty 
 thousand inhabitants or upward. Section 2021 of the Kevised Statutes 
 puts it in the power of any two citizens of such city or town to require 
 of the marshal of the district the appointment of these special deputy 
 marshals. Thereupon the duty of the marshal becomes imi)erative, 
 and its non-performance would expose him to judicial mandate or pun- 
 ishment, or to removal from office by the President, as the circum- 
 stances of his conduct might require. The bill now before me neither 
 revokes this popular right of the citizens nor relieves the marshal of 
 the duty imposed by law, nor the President of his duty to see that this 
 law is faithfully executed. 
 
 I forbear to enter again upon any general discussion of the wisdom 
 and necessity of the election laws, or of the dangerous and unconstitu- 
 tional principle of this bill, that the power vested in Congress to origi- 
 nate appropriations involves the right to compel the Executive to 
 approve any legislation which Congress may see fit to attach to such 
 bills, under the penalty of refusing the means needed to carry on essen- 
 tial functions of the Government. My views on these subjects have 
 been sufBciently presented in the special messages sent by me to the 
 House of Representatives during their present session. What was 
 said in those messages I regard as conclusive as to my duty in respect 
 
214 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 to the bill before me. The arguments urged in those communicatious 
 against the repeal of the election laws, and against the right of Con- 
 gress to deprive the Executive of that separate and independent dis- 
 cretion and judgment which the Constitution confers and requires, are 
 equally cogent in opposition to this bill. This measure leaves the pow- 
 ers and duties of the supervisors of elections untouched. The compen- 
 sation of those officers is provided for under permanent laws, and no 
 liability for which an appropriation is now required would, therefore, 
 be incurred by their appointment. But the power of the National 
 Government to protect them in the discharge of their duty at the polls 
 would be taken away. The States may employ both civil and military 
 power at the elections, but by this bill even the ciNdl authority to pro- 
 tect the Congressional elections is denied to the United States. The 
 object is to prevent any adequate control by the United States over the 
 ]!^ational elections by forbidding the payment of deputy marslials, the 
 officers who are clothed with authority to enforce the election laws. 
 
 The fact that these laws are deemed objectionable by a majority of 
 both Houses of Congress is urged as a sufficient warrant for this legis- 
 lation. 
 
 There are two lawful ways to overturn legislative enactments : one 
 is their repeal; the other is the decision of a competent tribunal against 
 their validity. The effect of this bill is to deprive the Executive De- 
 partment of the Government of the means to execute laws which are 
 not repealed, which have not been declared invalid, and which it is, 
 therefore, the duty of the Executive and of every other De])artnient of 
 the Government to obey and to enforce. 
 
 I have, in my former message on this subject, expressed a willingness 
 
 to concur in suitable amendments for the imi>rovement of the election 
 
 laws; but I cannot consent to their absolnte and entire repeal, aud I 
 
 . cannot approve legislation which seeks to prevent their enforcement. 
 
 EUTHERFORD B. HAYES. 
 
 Executive Mansion, June 23, 1879. 
 
INCESS^aE 
 
 RETURNING TO 
 
 THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES THE BILL ENTITLED "AN ACT 
 
 MAKING APPROPRIATIONS TO PAY FEES OF UNITED STATES 
 
 MARSHALS AND THEIR GENERAL DEPUTIES." 
 
 JUNE 30, 1879. 
 
MESSAGE. 
 
 To THE House of Representatives: 
 
 I return to the House of Representatives, in whicli it originated, the 
 bill entitled "An act making appropriations to pay fees of United States 
 marshals and their general deputies," with the following objections to 
 its becoming a law : 
 
 The bill approj^riates the sum of six hundred thousand dollars for the 
 payment, during the fiscal yenr ending June thirtieth, eighteen hundred 
 and eighty, of United States marshals and tlieir general deputies. The 
 offices thus provided for are essential to the faithful execution of the 
 laws. They were created and their i)owers and duties defined by Con- 
 gress at its first session after the adoption of the Constitution in the 
 Judiciary Act, which was approved September 24, 1789. Their general 
 duties, as defined in the act which originally established them, were 
 substantially the same as those prescribed in the statutes now in force. 
 
 The principal provision on the subject in the Revised Statutes is as 
 follows : 
 
 " Section 787. It shall be the duty of the marshal of each district 
 to attend the district and circuit courts, when sitting therein, and to 
 execute throughout the district all lawful i>recepts directed to him, and 
 issued under the authority of the United States; and he shall have 
 power to command all necessarv assistance in the execution of his 
 duty." 
 
 The original act was amended February 28, 1795, and the amendment 
 is now found in the Revised Statutes in the following form: 
 
 " Section 788. The marshals and their <leputies shall have in each 
 State the same powers in executing the laws of the United States as the 
 sheriffs and tlieir deputies in such State may have by law in executing 
 the laws thei-eof." 
 
 By subsequent statutes, additional duties have been from time to 
 time imposed upon the marshals and their deputies, the due and regu- 
 lar performance of which are required for the efficiency of almost every 
 branch of the public service. Without these officers there Avould be no 
 means of executing the warrants, decrees, or other process of the courts, 
 and the judicial system of the country would be fatally defective. The 
 criminal jurisdiction of the courts of the United States is very exten- 
 
218 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 sive. The crimes committed within the maritime jurisdiction of the 
 United States are all cognizable only in the courts of the United States. 
 Crimes against public justice; crimes against the operations of the 
 Government, such as forging or counterfeiting the money or securities 
 of the United States; crimes against the postal laws; offences against 
 the elective franchise, against the civil rights of citizens, against the 
 existence of the Government; crimes against the internal-revenue laws, 
 the customs laws, the neutrality laws; crimes against laws for the pro- 
 tection of Indians, and of the public lands— all of these crimes, and 
 many others, can be punished only under United States laws — laws 
 which, taken together, constitute a body of jurisprudence which is ^^tal 
 to the welfare of the whole country, and which can be enforced only by 
 means of the marshals and deputy marshals of the United States. In 
 the District of Columbia all of the process of the courts is executed by 
 the officers in question. In short, the execution of the criminal laws of 
 the United States, the service of all civil process in cases in which the 
 United States is a party, and the execution of the revenue laws, the 
 neutrality laws, and many other laws of large importance, depend on 
 the maintenance of the marshals and their deputies. They are in eft'ect 
 the only police of the United States Government. Officers with corre- 
 sponding powers and duties are found in every State of the Union and 
 in every country which has a jurisprudence which is worthy of the 
 name. To deprive the National Government of these officers would be 
 as disastrous to society as to abolish the sheriffs, constables, and police 
 officers in the several States. It would be a denial to the United States 
 of the right to execute its laws— a denial of all authority which requires 
 the use of civil force. The law entitles these officers to be paid. The 
 funds needed for the purpose have been collected from the people, and 
 are now in the Treasury. No objection is therefore made to that part 
 of the bill before me Avhich appropriates money for the support of the 
 marshals and deputy marshals of the United States. 
 
 The bill contains, however, other provisions which are identical in 
 tenor and effect with the second section of the bill entitled "An act 
 making appropriations for certain judicial expenses," which, on the 2;>d 
 of the present month, was returned to the House of Eepresentatives 
 with my objections to its approval. The provisions referred to are as 
 follows : 
 
 "Sec. 2. That the sums appropriated in this act for the persons and 
 public service embraced in its provisions are in full for such persons 
 and i)ublic service for the fiscal year ending June thirtieth, eighteen 
 hundred and eightv; and no Department or officer of the Government 
 shall, during said iiscal year, make any contract or incur any liability 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 219 
 
 for tlie future payment of money under any of the provisions of title 
 twenty-six mentioned in section one of this act until an appropriation 
 sufficient to meet such contract or pay such liability shall have first 
 been made by law." 
 
 Upon a reconsideration, in the House of Kepresentatives, of the bill 
 which contained these provisions it lacked a constitutional majority, 
 and therefore failed to become a law. In order to secure its enactment 
 the same measure is again presented for my approval, coupled in the 
 bill before me with appropriations for the support of marshals and their 
 deputies during the next fiscal year. The object manifestly is to place 
 before the Executive this alternative: either to allow necessary func- 
 tions of the public service to be crippled or suspended for want of the 
 appropriations required to keep them in operation, or to approve legis- 
 lation which in ofticial communications to Congress he has declared 
 would be a violation of his constitutional duty. Thus, in this bill the 
 principle is clearly embodied that, by virtue of the provision of the Con- 
 stitution which requires that "all bills for raising revenue shall origi- 
 nate in the House of Eepresentatives," a bare majority of the House 
 of Representatives has the right to withhold appropriations for the 
 support of the Government unless the Executive consents to approve 
 any legislation which may be attached to appropriation bills. I respect- 
 fully refer to the communications on this subject which I have sent to 
 Congress during its present session for a statement of the grounds of 
 my conclusions, and desire here merely to repeat that, in my judgment,, 
 to establish the principle of this bill is to make a radical, dangerous^ 
 and unconstitutional change in the character of our institutions. 
 
 EUTHEEFOED B. HAYES. 
 
 Executive Mansion, June 30, 1879. 
 
IVEESS^aE 
 
 TO 
 
 THE TWO HOUSES OF CONGRESS. 
 
 JUNE 30, 1879. 
 
MESSAGE. 
 
 To THE Senate and House of Eepresentatives : 
 
 The bill luakiug provision for the payment of the fees of United 
 States marshals and their general deputies, which I have this day re- 
 turned to the House of Eepresentatives, in which it originated, with 
 my objections, having upon its reconsideration by that body failed to 
 become a law, I respectfully call your attention to the immediate 
 necessity of making some adequate provision for the due and efficient 
 execution by the marshals and deputy marshals of the United States 
 of the constant and important duties enjoined upon them by the ex- 
 isting law^s. All appropriations to provide for the performance of 
 these indispensable duties expire to-day. Under the laws prohibiting 
 public officers from involving the Government in contract liabilities 
 beyond actual appropriations, it is apparent that the means at the 
 disposal of the Executive Department for executing the laws through 
 the regular ministerial officers will after to-day be left inadequate. 
 The suspension of these necessary functions in the ordinary adminis- 
 tration of the first duties of Government for the shortest period is 
 inconsistent with the public interests, and at any moment may prove 
 inconsistent with the public safety. 
 
 It is impossible for me to look without grave concern upon a state 
 of things which will leave the public service thus unprovided for and 
 the public interests thus unprotected, and I earnestly urge upon your 
 attention the necessity of making immediate appropriations for the 
 maintenance of the service of the marshals and deputy marshals for 
 the fiscal year which commences to-morrow. 
 
 RUTHERFORD B. HAYES. 
 
 Executive Department, June 30, 1879. 
 
i 
 
ADDRESS 
 
 ANNUAL EEUNION OP THE TWENTY-THIRD EEGIMENT, OHIO VETEEAN 
 VOLUNTEER INEANTRY, AT YOUNGSTOWN, OHIO. 
 
 SEPTEMBER 17, 1879. 
 
 15 
 
ADDRESS. 
 
 Comrades and Fellow Citizens : 
 
 After almost a year spent in Washington, engrossed in public affairs, 
 it is a great pleasure to visit again my friends in Ohio, and especially to 
 meet so many of my old comrades at this yearly reunion of the Twenty- 
 third Eegiraent. Since we last met at Willoughby, a year ago, there 
 has been a vast improvement in the business condition of our country. 
 Whatever differences of opinion may be still found among the people of 
 this part of Ohio as to the importance of the resumption of specie pay- 
 ments, and as to the methods by which it has been accomplishea, there 
 is one kind of resumption which is very noticeable in Toungstown, and 
 which is making rapid progress in the whole country, about which I 
 imagine we are all heartily agreed. When I last visited this beautiful 
 valley of the Mahoning, four years ago, the financial crisis, and the 
 gloomy outlook for business and labor and capital, occupied the thoughts 
 and depressed the spirits of the people wherever I met them, whether 
 ju public assemblies, at their places of business, or at their hospitable 
 homes. Now, however, how great and how gratifying is the change t 
 All around us here, and throughout the country generally, we see cheer- 
 ing and hopeful indications of better times. Not only have specie pay. 
 ments been resumed, but business activity and profitable employment 
 for capital and labor have come also. The chief industry and interest 
 of this valley — the great iron interest — already begins to share largely 
 in the benefit of our improved condition, and I therefore heartily con- 
 gratidate all classes of citizens in this large assemblage on the present 
 favorable business situation, and on the bright and encouraging pros- 
 pect which the future holds out. 
 
 There is a subject interesting to every citizen, and especially to those 
 who served in the Union Army, in regard to which I wish to say a few 
 words: 
 
 Since our last reunion, in several of the States and in Congress, events 
 have occurred which have revived the discussion of the question as to 
 the objects for which we fought in the great conflict from 1861 to 1865, 
 and as to what was accomplished by the final triumph of the Union 
 cause. The question is, What was settled by the wax? What may 
 
228 LETTERS AND .MESSAGES. 
 
 those who foughtfortheUnion justly claim; and what ouoht those who 
 fought for secession, faithfully to accei)t as the legitimate results of the 
 war? 
 
 An eminent citizen of our State, Mr. Groesbeck, said some years ago, 
 that "war legislates." He regarded the new constitutional amend- 
 ments as part of the legislation of the war for the Union, and said, with 
 significant emphasis, "and they will stand." The equal -rights amend- 
 ments are the legislation of the war for the Union, and they ought to 
 stand. Great wars always legislate. A little more than a hundred 
 years ago, this land, where we now are, was claimed and held by France. 
 General Wolfe, on the ])lains of Abraham, settled that claim, and the 
 result was the transfer of the title and jurisdiction of this entire section 
 of the country to England. For a few years its chief ruler was the 
 English King. The Revolution followed, and the question of its 
 ownership was again the subject of war legislation, and it became a 
 part of the United States, no longer under a monarchy, but under a - 
 free Republican Government. 
 
 i need not enter into any discussion of the causes of our civil war. 
 We all know that the men who iilanned the destruction of the Union 
 and the establishment of the Confederate States, based their attempt 
 on a construction of the Constitution called the State-rights doctrine, 
 and on the interest of the people of those States in the extension and 
 perpetuation of slavery. The doctrine of State-rights was, that each 
 State was sovereign and supreme, and might nullify the laws of the 
 Union or secede from the Union at pleasure. They held that slavery 
 was the natural and normal condition of the colored man, and that, 
 therefore, slavery in this liountry could and should be the corner-stone I 
 of a free government. 
 
 Ko man has ever stated the issues of the civil war more fully, more 
 clearly, or more accurately than Mr. Lincoln. In any inquiry as to \ 
 what may fairly be included among the things settled by our victory, 
 all just and ijatriotic minds instinctively turn to Mr. Lincoln. To him, 
 more than to any other man, the cause of Union and liberty is indebted 
 for its final triumph. Besides, with all his wonderful sagacity, and 
 wisdom, and logical taculty, dwelling intently, and anxiously, and pray- 
 erfully, during four years of awful trial and responsibdity, on the 
 questions which were continually arising to i)erplex and almost con- 
 found him, he at last became the very embodiment of the principles by 
 w^hich the country and its liberties were saved. All good citizens may 
 now well listen to and heed his words. None have more reason to do 
 it with respect and confidence, and a genuine regard, than those whom 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 229 
 
 he addressed in his first inaugural speech as "my dissatisfied fellow- 
 countrymen." The leader of the Union cause was so just and moderate, 
 and patient and humane, that many supporters of the Union thought 
 that he did not go far enough or fast enough, and assailed his opinions 
 and his conduct ; hut now all men begin to see that the plain people, 
 who at last came to love him, and to lean upon his wisdom and firmness 
 with absolute trust, were altogether right, and that in deed and pur- 
 pose he was earnestly devoted to the welfare of the whole country, and 
 of all its inhabitants. 
 
 Believing that :\Ir. Lincoln's opinions are of higher authority on the 
 questions of the war than those of any other pubhc man on either side 
 of the controversy, I desire to present them quite fully and in his own 
 language. 
 
 In the third year of the war, and while its result Avas still undecided, 
 Mr. Lincoln made his memorable address at the consecration of the 
 Gettysburg National Cemetery, on the IDth of November, 1S03. He 
 was standing on the field of the greatest battle of the war. He was, no 
 doubt, deeply impressed with the heavy responsibilities which he had 
 borne so long. He spoke not as a partisan, embittered and narrow and 
 sectional, but in the broad and generous spirit of a patriot, solicitous 
 to say that which would be worthy to be pondered by all of his coun- 
 trymen throughout all time. In his^ short speech of only two or three 
 paragraphs he twice spoke of the objects of the war, once in its opening 
 and again in its closing sentence. The words have been often quoted, 
 but they cannot be too familiar. They bear clearly and forcibly on the 
 question we are considering. 
 
 "Four score and seven years ago," said Mr. Lincoln, "our fathers 
 brought forth on this continent a new Nation, conceived in liberty and 
 dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal. Now we 
 are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that Nation, or any 
 Nation so conceived and so dedicated, can long endure." 
 
 And again, in closing, he said: " It is rather for us * * * that 
 we here highly resolve that the dead shall not have died in vain ; that 
 the Nation shall, under God, have a new birth of freedom; and that 
 Government of the people, by the people, and for the people, shall not 
 perish from the earth." 
 
 No statement of the true objects of the war more complete than this 
 has ever been made. It includes them all— Nationality, Liberty, Equal 
 Eights, and Self-Government. These are the principles for which the 
 Union soldier fought, and which it was his aim to maintain and to per- 
 petuate. 
 
230 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 If any oue supposes that that construction of our National Constitu- 
 tion, which is known as the State-riglits doctrine, is consistent with 
 sound principles, let him consider a few paragraphs from Mr. Lincoln's 
 first message to Congress, at the extra session of ISGl. 
 
 Speaking of what was called the right of peaceful secession — that is, 
 secession in accordance with the National Constitution — he said : 
 
 "This sophism derives much, perhaps the whole, of its currency 
 from the assumption that there is some omnipotent and sacred suprem- 
 acy pertaining to a State — to each State of our Federal Union. Our 
 States have neither more nor less power than that reserved to them in 
 the Union by the Constitution, no oue of them ever having been a State 
 out of the Union. The original ones passed into the Union even before 
 they cast off their British colonial dependence, and the new ones each 
 came into the Union directly from a condition of dependence, except- 
 ing Texas. And even Texas, in its temporary independence, was never 
 designated a State. The new ones only took the designation of States 
 on coming into the Union, while that name was first adopted for the 
 old ones in and by the Declaration of Independence. Therein the 
 'United Colouies' were declared to be 'free and independent States;' 
 but, even then, the object plainly was not to declare their indepen- 
 dence of o)ie another, or of the Union, but, directly the contrary, as their 
 mutual i^ledge, and their mutual action, before, at the time, and after- 
 wards, abundantly show. The express ])lighting of faith by each and all 
 of the original thirteen, in the articles of Confederation, two years later, 
 that the Union shall be jierpetual, is most conclusive. Having never been 
 States, either in substance or in name, outside of the Union, whence 
 this magical omnipotence of 'State-rights,' asserting a claim of ])ower 
 to lawfully destroy the Union itself"? Much is said about the 'sov- 
 ereignty' of the States; but the word, even, is not in the Xational 
 Constitution, nor, as is believed, in any of the State constitutions. 
 What is a 'sovereignty,' in the ])olitical sense of the term? Would 
 it be far wrong to define it 'A political community, without a political 
 sujierior V Tested by this, no one of our States, except Texas, ever was 
 a sovereignty; and even Texas gave uj) the character on coming into 
 the Union; by which act she acknowledged the Constitution of the 
 United States, and the laws and treaties of the United States made in 
 pursuance of the Constitution, to be, for her, the supreme law of the 
 land. The States have their .status in the tlnion, and they have no 
 other legal status. If they break from this, they can only do so against 
 law, and by revolution. The Union, and not themselves separately, 
 procured their indei»endence and their liberty. By conquest, or i)ur- 
 chase, the Union gave each of them whatever of iudei)endence and 
 liberty it has. The Union is older than any of the States, and, in fact, 
 it created them as States, Originally, some dependent colonies made 
 the Union, and, in turn, the Union tlirew off their old dependence for 
 them, and made them States, such as they are. Xot one of them ever 
 had a State constitution in<lei)endent of the Union. Of course, it is 
 not forgotten that all the new States framed their constitutions before 
 they entered the Union; nevertheless, dependent upon, and prepara- 
 tory to, coming into the Union." 
 
 Unquestionably the States have the powers and rights reserved to 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 231 
 
 them in and by the National Constitution; and upon this point, in 
 another part of this great message, Mr. Lincoln says : 
 
 " This relative matter of National power and State-rights, as a prin- 
 ciple, is no other than the principle of generality and locality. What- 
 ever concerns the whole should be confided to the whole — to the Gen- 
 eral Government; while w^hatever concerns only the State should be 
 left exclusively to the State. This is aU there is of original principle 
 about it." 
 
 Mr. Lincoln held that the United States is a Nation, and that its 
 Government possesses ample power under the Constitution to maintain 
 its authority and enforce its laws in every part of its territory. The 
 denial of this principle by those who asserted the doctrine of State- 
 rights, and who rightly claimed that it was inconsistent with State 
 sovereignty, made up an issue over which arose one of the leading 
 controversies which led to the civil war. The result of the war decided 
 that controversy in favor of nationahty and in favor of the supremacy 
 of the National Government. 
 
 On the question of human rights, Mr. Lincoln was equally explicit, 
 and often declared that it was involved in the conflict, and to be decided 
 by the result. In his matchless message, already quoted, he says : 
 
 "Our adversaries have adopted some declarations of independence, 
 in which, uulike the good old one, penned by Jefferson, they omit the 
 words, ' all men are created equal.' Why ? They have adopted a tem- 
 porary national constitution, in the preamble of which, unlike our good 
 old one, signed by Washington, they omit, ' We, the people,' and substi- 
 tute, ' Wo, ttie deputies of the sovereign and independent States.' Why % 
 Why this deliberate pressing out of view the rights of men, and the 
 authority of the people? This is essentially a People's contest. On 
 the side of the Union it is a struggle for maintaining in the world that 
 form and substance of government whose leading object is to elevate 
 the condition of men ; to lift artificial weights from all shoulders ; to 
 clear the paths of laudable pursuit to all ; to afford all an unfettered 
 start, and a fair chance in the race of life. Yielding to partial and 
 temporary departures, from necessity, this is the leading object of the 
 Government for whose existence we contend. I am most happy to 
 believe that the plain people understand and appreciate this." 
 
 On the subject of suffrage, Mr. Lincoln's guiding principle was that 
 "no man is good enough to govern another man without that other 
 man's consent." 
 
 Thus we have from the lips and pen of Mr. Lincoln— the great leader 
 and representative of the Union cause— in the most solemn and authen- 
 tic form, a complete statement of the issues of the war. He held that 
 the Union is perpetual; that its Government is national and supreme; 
 and that all of its inhabitants should be free, and be accorded equal 
 civil and poUtical rights. 
 
232 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 These are the great fundamental principles, affirmed on the one side, 
 and denied on the other, iii)on which the appeal was made to the God 
 of battles. I do not undertake to review the debate as to the nature 
 and powers of the Government of the Union, and as to the doctrine of 
 State-rights, which began with the foundation of our institutions, and 
 which was continued until it was hushed by the clash of arms. It is 
 enough for my present purpose to say that, as a matter of history, all of 
 the political i)arties of the past, when charged with the responsibility of 
 directing the affairs of the Government, have maintained, in their prac- 
 tical administration of it, precisely the same principles which were held 
 by President Lincoln. The principles as to the powers of the National 
 Government which were acted upon by Washington and Jackson, and 
 which are sustained by the decisions of Chief Justice Marshall, and by 
 which Lincoln and the Union armies crushed the rebellion and rescued 
 the Eepublic, are among the legitimate and irreversible results of the 
 war which ought not to be questioned. 
 
 Touching the remaining important controversy settled by the war, 
 the public avowals of opinion are almost all in favor of the faithful 
 acceptance of the new constitutional amendments. On this subject the 
 speeches of public men and the creeds and platforms of the leading 
 political parties have for some years past been explicit. In 1S72, all 
 parties in their respective National Conventions adoi)ted resolutions 
 recognizing the equality of all men before the law, and pledging them- 
 selves, in the words of the Democratic National Convention, "to main- 
 tain emancipation and enfranchisement, and to oppose the reopening of 
 the questions settled by the recent amendments to the Constitution." In 
 1876, the great political parties again, in the language of the St. Louis 
 National Convention, affirmed their " devotion to the Constitution of the 
 United States, with its amendments universally accepted as a final settle- 
 ment of the controversies that engendered the civil war." Notwith- 
 standing these declarations, we are compelled to take notice that, while 
 verj' few citizens anywhere woidd wish to re-establish slaverj^ if they 
 could, and no one would again attempt to break up the Union by seces- 
 sion, there still remains in some communities a dangerous practical denial 
 to the colored citizens of the political rights which are guaranteed to 
 them by the Constitution as it now is. In the crisis of the war, Mr. 
 Lincoln appealed to the colored people to take up arms. About two 
 hundred thousand res]»onded to the call, enlisted in the Union armies, 
 and fought for the Union cause under the L^nion flag. Equality of 
 rights for the colored people, from that time, thus became one of the 
 essential issues of the war. General Sherman said, "when the fight is 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 233 
 
 over, the hand that drops the musket caunot be denied the ballot." 
 Jefferson said long before, "the man wlio fights for the country is en- 
 titled to vote." When, with the help of the colored men, the victory 
 was gained, the Fifteenth Amendment followed naturally as one of its 
 legitimate results. No man can truthful!}' claim that he faithfully 
 accepts the true settlements of the war, Avho sees with indifference the 
 Fifteenth Amendment practically nullified. 
 
 No one can overstate the evils which the country must suffer if law- 
 less and violent opposition to the enjoyment of constitutional rights is 
 allowed to be permanently successful. The lawlessness which to-day 
 assails the rights of the colored people will find other victims to-mor- 
 row. This question belongs to no race, to no party, and to no section. 
 It is a question in which the whole country is deeply interested. 
 Patriotism, justice, humanity, and our material interests, all plead on 
 the right side of this question. The colored people are the laborers 
 who x)roduce the cotton which, going abroad to the markets of the 
 world, gives us that favorable balance of trade which is now doing so 
 much for the revival of all business. The whole fabric of society rests 
 upon labor. If free laborers suffer from oppression and injustice, they 
 will either become discontented and turbulent, destroyers of property, 
 and not producers of property, or they will abandon the communities 
 which deprive them of their inalienable rights. In either case, social 
 order and the peaceful industries upon which prosperity depends are 
 imperilled and perhaps sacrificed. It will not do to say that this is an 
 atfair which belongs solely to the distant States of the South. The 
 whole country must suffer if this question is not speedily settled, and 
 settled rightly. Where the two races are numerous, prosperity can only 
 exist by the united and harmonious efforts of both the white people and 
 the colored people. The only solid foundations for peace and progress 
 in such communities are equal and exact justice to both races. Con- 
 sider the present situation ? Whatever complaints may have been heard 
 during the i^rogress of reconstruction, candid men must admit that all 
 sections and all States are now equally regarded, and share alike the 
 rights, the privileges, and the benefits of the common Government. 
 All that is needed for the permanent pacification of the country is, the 
 cordial co-operation of all well-disposed citizens to secure the faithful 
 observance of the equal-rights amendments of the 'Constitution. 
 
 Happily, in the very communities where lawlessness has been most 
 general and most successful, there are editors of newspapers and other 
 influential citizens who speak out and denounce these crimes against 
 free government. It is plain that a sound ijublic opinion is forming 
 
234 LETTEES AND MESSAGES. 
 
 where it is most needed, ^o community can afford to allow any of its 
 citizens to be oppressed — to lose their riglits. To be indifferent on tlie 
 subject is to disregard interest and duty. The Union citizens and sol- 
 diers can do much to remove the evils we are considering. Let it be 
 understood that no public man in any party will be sustained unless he 
 will undertake to carry out in good faith the pledges made in all our 
 platforms in regard to the rights of colored citizens; unless he will sujd- 
 port laws providing the means required to punish crimes against them; 
 and unless he will oppose the admission of any man to either House of 
 Congress whose seat has been obtained by the violation of the Fifteenth 
 Amendment. The right of suffrage is the right of self-protection. Its 
 free exercise is the vital air of Republican institutions. 
 
 To establish now the State-rights doctrine of the supremacy of the 
 States, and an oligarchy of race, is deliberately to throw away an essen- 
 tial part of the fruits of the Union victory. The settlements of the 
 war in favor of equal rights and the supremacy of the laws of the Nation 
 are just and wise, and necessary. Let them not be surrendered. Let 
 them be faithfully accepted and firmlj- enforced. Let them stand, and, 
 with the advancing tide of business prosperity, we may confidently 
 hope, by the blessing of Di\ine Providence, that we shall soon enter 
 upon an era of harmony and progress such as has been rarely enjoyed 
 by any people. 
 
ADDRESS 
 
 THE MICHIGAN STATE FAIR, AT DETROIT, 
 
 SEPTEMBER 18, 1879. 
 
ADDRESS. 
 
 Fellow-Citizens of Michigan: 
 
 E-eacliing Detroit only a few hours ago, I cannot, from x^ersonal ob- 
 servation, speak of the condition of your agriculture, or of your min- 
 ing, manufacturing, and other large business interests. The informa- 
 tion which I get, however, from the newspapers and from conversations 
 with intelligent citizens, leads me to suppose that the outlook for the 
 laborer, the capitalist, and the people generally, is, in this State, at 
 least as favorable as that of the people of the country at large. This 
 is what one would expect from its well-known advantages. Your State 
 is almost surrounded by the navigable waters of inland seas, which 
 communicate with many markets in different States, and in countries 
 beyond the ocean. It is midway, by the best of railway-routes of 
 travel and trade, between the old and the new States. It has mines of 
 copper and iron. It has manufactures, salt, and lumber, and raises in 
 abundance the most valuable crops and animals which are produced in 
 the north temperate zone. It possesses a climate which is healthful 
 and friendly to labor, and which gives vigor and character to men and 
 women. Satisfactory as the material resources of Michigan unques- 
 tionably are, they do not constitute that excellence which perhaps 
 chieiiy attracts the admiration, and possibly excites the envy, of your 
 less fortunate neighbors. All the world knows that when the list is 
 made up of the most favored States of this country, and of the most 
 favored countries of the Old World, with respect to education — either 
 general education or the higher education — an honored and very con- 
 spicuous place on that list must be given to the State of Michigan. 
 
 A year ago, making a visit of two or three weeks to the West and 
 ISTorthwest, I thought it might be useful to speak of the financial con- 
 dition of the country, and to present a hopeful view of the situation 
 and prospects. The business depression which followed the panic of 
 1873 had then lasted five years ; but there were indications of improve- 
 ment, and it seemed to me that what was most needed was confidence, 
 and that a presentation of encouraging facts and figures would tend 
 to inspire confidence. It was my opinion, also, that there could be no 
 permanent revival of business prosperity until the currency was placed 
 
238 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 upon a sound basis, and was excliangeable at its par value in the uni- 
 versally-recognized money of the world. The friends of the constitu- 
 tional currency generally believed that this end could only be reached 
 by the faithful execution of the Eesumption Act ; that there was no 
 need of further legislation; and that the true policy was to stop tink- 
 ering with the currency. Accordingly, the pith of what I wished to 
 say last year to audiences like this was, that we ought to " let well 
 enough alone." Now the resumption of specie payments has come, and 
 with it have come also better times. 
 
 The evidences of good times are numerous, palpable, and cheering. 
 One bright day in June last, more steamers — more shipping of all 
 sorts — gathered in NewTork harbor than was ever before seen in that 
 great mart of commerce, and their tonnage was in greater excess com- 
 paratively than the number of vessels. The lines of the Pennsylva- 
 nia Railroad east of Pittsburgh and Erie, for the first seven months of 
 this year, as compared with the same period in 1878, show an increase 
 of gross earnings of $1,208,294, an increase of expenses of $750,985, 
 and an increase in net earnings of $448,309; the lines of the Philadel- 
 phia and Eeading Railroad (the great anthracite-coal road) a net in- 
 crease of $1,340,000 for the same period. The latest published state- 
 ment of the Erie Railway Company shows a net increase of $561,000. 
 The Baltimore and Ohio Raikoad Company shows a net increase of 
 #532,000 for the first ten months of its current fiscal year, beginning in 
 October last. It is estimated that more than a thousand miles of rail- 
 road track have already been laid this year in the United States — a 
 greater mileage than in the same period in any year since 1873. Work- 
 ers in iron and steel find their business recovering so rapidly from its 
 great depression that they are unable to fill their orders, and their 
 annual production is likely soon to surpass the highest figures ever 
 reached. The building of iron steamships in successful competition 
 with Europe is fully established on the Delaware. Our cotton facto- 
 ries are again all at work, and running on full time. Our mines of 
 precious metals are increasing their product, and it mainly stays at 
 home. Our manufactures go abroad more than ever before; our cur- 
 rency is exchangeable at par in the markets of the world_^with the 
 money of the world ; and, finally, and most important, the demand for 
 labor has increased and is increasing. It extends to cotton-mills, 
 iron and glass-works, machine-shops, brick-making, building, the 
 clothing trade, and nearly all branches of industry. The "Philadel- 
 phia Record," on the authority of a well-known statistician, states that 
 there are twenty thousand more laborers employed in that city than 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 239 
 
 there were a year ago. Our exports for the year 1878 amoimted to 
 $710,439,441, and the excess of exports over imports was $264,661,001, 
 both sums being greater than in any previous year. 
 
 The following tables show the rapid advance our farmers and manu- 
 facturers are making in supplying both the foreign and the home mar- 
 kets. They were prepared by Mr. Joseph Nimmo, jr., the able chief 
 of the Bureau of Statistics of the Treasury Department: 
 
 DOMESTIC EXPORTS. 
 
 Values of ilie 
 
 2)rincq)al commodHies of domestic prod uciion the exportation of ivhich greatly 
 increased from June ".50, 1868, to June 30, 1879. 
 
 Commodities. 
 
 Vnlue exported during the 
 year euded June 30 — 
 
 Agricultural implements 
 
 Animals, living : 
 
 Bread and bieadstufifs 
 
 Coal v;--- 
 
 Copper and brass, and manufactures of, not including 
 copper ore 
 
 Cotton, manufactures of 
 
 Fruit 
 
 Iroii and steel, and manufactures of, exclusive of fire- 
 arms, but including scales and balances, sewing-ma- 
 chines and tire-engines 
 
 Leather of all kinds 
 
 Mineral oil, illuminating 
 
 Provisions 
 
 Sugar, refined 
 
 TaSow 
 
 Total 
 
 1868. 
 
 $673, 381 
 
 733, 395 
 
 69, 024, 059 
 
 1, 516, 220 
 
 496, 320 
 
 4, 871, 054 
 
 406, 512 
 
 5, 491, 306 
 
 607, 105 
 
 19, 752, 143 
 
 30, 436, 642 
 
 313, 378 
 
 2, 540, 227 
 
 136, 861, 751 
 
 1879. 
 
 $2, 9.33, 388 
 
 11, 487, 754 
 
 210, 35.-., 528 
 
 2, 319, 398 
 
 3, 031, 924 
 10, 853, 950 
 
 1, 916, 382 
 
 12, 766, 294 
 6, 800, 070 
 
 35, 999, 8(i2 
 
 116, 858, 650 
 
 6, 164, 024 
 
 6, 934, 940 
 
 Increase in 
 1879 over 
 1868. 
 
 $2, 260, 007 
 
 10, 754, 3.59 
 
 141, 331, 469 
 
 803, 178 
 
 2, 535, 595 
 5, 982. 896 
 1, 509, 870 
 
 7, 274, 988 
 6, 192, 965 
 16, 247, 719 
 86, 422, 008 
 5, 850, 646 
 4, 394, 713 
 
 428, 422, 164 
 
 291, 560, 413 
 
 VALUES OF CERTAIN DOMESTIC EXPORTS. 
 
 Comparative statement of the values of certain articles of domestic production exported from 
 the United States during the f seal years ended Jvne 30, 1873, 1876, and 1879. 
 
 Articles. 
 
 Fiscal year ended June 30 — 
 
 Indian-corn 
 
 Wheat 
 
 Wheat-flour 
 
 Cotton manufactured, (colored and uncol 
 
 ored) 
 
 Railroad-bars 
 
 Locomotives 
 
 Mineral oil, illuminating 
 
 Bacon and liams 
 
 Beef, fresh and salted 
 
 Butter 
 
 Cheese 
 
 Lard 
 
 Sugar, refined 
 
 ToDacco, leaf 
 
 123, 794, 694 
 51, 452, 254 
 19, 381, 664 
 
 2, 252, 028 
 
 104, 054 
 
 9.52, 655 
 
 37, 195, 735 
 
 35, 022, 137 
 
 2, 447, 481 
 
 952, 919 
 
 10, 498, 010 
 
 21, 245, 815 
 
 1, 142, 824 
 
 22,689,135 
 
 !|33, 265, 280 
 
 68, 382, 899 
 
 1 24,43.3,470 
 
 1 6, 770, 200 
 
 57, 109 
 
 .561, 559 
 
 1 28,7.5.5,638 
 
 I 39,664,456 
 
 I 3, 186, 304 
 
 i 1, 109, 496 
 
 12, 270, 083 
 
 22, 429, 485 
 
 5, 5.52, 587 
 
 22, 737, 383 
 
 840, 655, 120 
 130, 701, 079 
 29, 567, 713 
 
 9, 497, 416 
 
 233, 514 
 
 567, 302 
 
 35, 999, 862 
 
 51, 074, 433 
 
 7, 219, 458 
 
 5, 421, 205 
 12, .579, 968 
 22, 856, 673 
 
 6, 164, 024 
 25, 157, 364 
 
 Increase in 
 1879 over 
 1876. 
 
 $7, 389, 840 
 62, 318, 180 
 5, 134, 243 
 
 2, 727, 216 
 
 176, 405 
 
 5,743 
 
 7, 244, 224 
 11, 409, 977 
 
 4, 033, 154 
 
 4, 311, 709 
 309, 885 
 427, 188 
 611, 437 
 
 2, 419, 981 
 
 3 n 
 
 22.2 
 91.1 
 21.0 
 
 40.3 
 
 308.9 
 
 1.0 
 
 25.2 
 
 28.8 
 
 126.6 
 
 388.6 
 
 2.5 
 
 1.9 
 
 11.0 
 
 10.6 
 
240 
 
 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 QUANTITIES OF CKRTAIX DOMESTIC EXPORTS. 
 
 Comparative statement of the qtiavtities of certain articles of domestic production exported 
 frovi the United States during the fiscal years ended June 30, 1873, 1876, and 1879. 
 
 Aitic-les. 
 
 Iiuliaii-corii Imsliela. 
 
 Wheat liushels 
 
 "Wlicattldiir . -banels. 
 
 Cotton, iiiaimlactuied, colored and 
 
 iimolored yds 
 
 Locomotives -■ ■ ■ >>'o 
 
 Railioadliais pounds 
 
 Miiieial oil. illuniiiiatiiifr. ... jialls 
 
 Bacon and lianis . . ; ]iound.s 
 
 Beef, IVcsli and salted jiounds 
 
 Butter ])ounds 
 
 Cheese I)Ouuds 
 
 Lard pounds 
 
 Sugar, refined pounds. 
 
 Tobacco, leaf pounds. 
 
 Fiscal year ended June 30 — 
 
 38,541,930 
 
 39, 204, 285 
 
 2, 562, 086 
 
 13, 772, 774 
 
 58 
 
 2, 832, 592 
 
 l.'-.8, 102, 414 
 
 395, 381, 737 
 
 31, CO,^ U'O 
 
 4,518,844 
 
 80, 306, 540 
 
 230, 534, 207 
 
 9, 870, 738 
 
 213, 995, 176 
 
 49, 493, 572 
 55, 073, 122 
 
 3, 935, 512 
 
 75, 807, 481 
 
 44 
 
 2, 244, 704 
 
 204, 814, 673 
 
 327, 730, 172 
 
 30, 590, 150 
 
 4, 044, 894 
 97, tno, 204 
 
 108. 405, 839 
 
 51, 840, 977 
 
 218, 310, 265 
 
 86, 296, 252 
 
 122, 353, 936 
 
 5, 629, 714 
 
 129, 197, 377 
 73 
 
 14, 097, 583 
 331, 586, 442 
 732, 249, 576 
 
 90, 970, 395 
 
 38, 248, 016 
 141,654,474 
 326, 658, 686 
 
 72, 309, 009 
 322, 279, 540 
 
 Iucrea.se in -i^ » 
 1879 over § © 
 1876. ? o 
 
 36, 802, 680 
 
 67, 2b0, 814 
 
 1, 094, 202 
 
 53, 389, 896 
 
 29 
 
 11,852,879 
 
 126,771,769 
 
 404, 519, 404 
 
 54, 380, 245 
 33, 003, 122 
 43, 978, 210 
 
 158, 252, 847 
 20, 468, 032 
 103, 969, 275 
 
 74.4 
 
 122.2 
 
 43.0 
 
 70.4 
 
 65.9 
 
 528.0 
 
 61.9 
 
 123. 4 
 
 148.6 
 
 723.4 
 
 45.0 
 
 94.0 
 
 39.5 
 
 47.6 
 
 VaJiKK of the principaJ commodities of foreign production the importation of which greatly 
 decreased from June 30, 1873, to June 30, 1879. 
 
 Commodities. 
 
 "Watches and watch-movements and materials. 
 
 Textiles: 
 Cotton, manufactures of, (not including ho- 
 siery, shiits. and drawers) 
 
 Flax, manufactures of 
 
 Silk, manufactures of 
 
 Clothing, (inchiding hosiery, shirts, and 
 
 drawers of cotton and wool) 
 
 Wool, and manufactures of: 
 
 Uumanufactured 
 
 Carpets 
 
 Dress-goods - - - ■ 
 
 Other manufactures of, (not including 
 hosieiy, shirts, and drawers) 
 
 Value imported during the year ended Decrease of 
 J"°e 3"- 1879 as 
 
 — compared 
 with 1873. 
 
 1878. 
 
 1879. 
 
 §812, 582 
 
 $920, 599 $2, 354, 226 
 
 129, 752, 116 
 20, 428, 391 
 29, 890, 035 
 
 8, 496, 993 
 
 20, 4.33, 938 
 4, 388, 257 
 19, 447, 797 
 
 $14, 398, 791 
 14, 413, 000 
 19, 837, 972 
 
 6, 540, 587 
 
 8, 303, 015 
 
 398, 389 
 
 12, 055, 806 
 
 $14, 930, 975 
 14, 693, 842 
 24, 013, 398 
 
 5, 034, 555 
 
 367, 105 
 
 12, 436, 861 
 
 Total textiles . 
 
 Iron and steel, and manufactures of: 
 
 Pig-iroTi 
 
 Bar, boiler, band, hoop, scridl, and .sheet-iron . 
 Anchors, cables, cliains. castings, hardware, 
 
 machinery, old and scrap iron 
 
 Railroad-bars or rails 
 
 Steel ingots, bars, sheets, and wire 
 
 rircarms, tiles, cutlery, saws, and tools 
 
 All other manufactures of 
 
 Total iron and steel . 
 
 .59, 308, 452 
 
 Copper, and manufactures of, (uot including 
 
 co))])er ore) 
 
 Lead, anil uianufa<'tures of 
 
 Leatlu r of all kinds 
 
 India-rubber and gutta-percha, manufactures 
 
 Tea 
 
 $3, 687, 096 
 3, 247, 153 
 6, 766, 202 
 
 900, 187 
 24, 466, 170 
 
 $371, 518 
 
 301, 894 
 
 3, 784, 729 
 
 242, 504 
 15, COO, 168 
 
 $294, 707 
 
 64, 340 
 
 3, 667, 564 
 
 174. 137 
 14, ,577, 618 
 
 14, 821, 141 
 5, 734, 549 
 5, 876, 037 
 
 6, 560, 456 1, 936, 537 
 
 15, 399, 383 
 4, 021, 152 
 7, 010, 936 
 
 20,626,721 
 
 12,193,037 
 
 11, 158, 030 
 
 15, 468, 691 
 
 1.59, 404, 248 
 
 88, 201, 197 
 
 89, 195, 222 
 
 70, 269, 026 
 
 $7, 293, 769 
 7, 477, 556 
 
 $1, 250, 057 
 1, 627, 052 
 
 $1, 924, 128 
 1, 378, 976 
 
 $5, 279, 641 
 6, 098, 580 
 
 9, 416, 293 
 19, 740, 702 
 4, 1.5.5, 2.34 
 4, 093, 097 
 7, 221, 801 
 
 920,790 
 
 530 
 
 1,2-20,037 
 
 1,029,001 
 
 2,410,10.-. 
 
 845, 306 
 
 78,257 
 
 1.281,942 
 
 1,846,026 
 
 2, 091, 853 
 
 8, 570, 927 
 19, 062, 445 
 2, 873, 292 
 2, 246, 471 
 5, 129, 948 
 
 9, 447, 148 4!l, 801, 304 
 
 $3, 392, 389 
 3, 182, 813 
 3, 098, 638 
 
 726, 050 
 9, 888, 552 
 
 Grand total 261, 114, 333 118, 492, 284 i 118, 341, 335 142, 772, 998 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 241 
 
 With these authentic and significant facts and figures before us, we 
 may reasonably assume that the country has entered again upon a 
 period of business prosperity. The interesting questions now are, 
 have the good times come to stay ? What can we do in private and 
 in public affairs to prolong the period of prosperity, and to mitigate 
 the severity of hard times when they again return? The prospects 
 are now bright, but all experience teaches that the wheel of human 
 affairs, always turning, brings around those tremendons events called 
 financial panics, if not with regularity, at any rate with certainty. Tlie 
 writer of an intelligent article in one of the monthlies says : " Panics, it 
 has been observed, recur about every twenty years in this country, and 
 almost every ten years in England." The explanation of this is not 
 difficult to discover. In good times the tendency is to extravagance 
 to speculation, and to running in debt. Many spend more than they 
 earn, and the balance of trade soon begins to run against communities 
 and individuals. When this has continued until the business of the 
 country is loaded down with debts, a financial crisis is inevitable, and 
 only waits for "the last straw." If this view is correct, the way to meet 
 the dangerous tendencies of flush times is plain. Let two of Doctor 
 Franklin's homely proverbs be strictly observed by individuals and by 
 communities. One is: "Never live beyond your means;" and the other 
 is like unto it, namely — "Pay as you go." 
 
 It is easy to see that, if these old maxims of the philosophy of common 
 sense could have general practical acceptance, the period of good times 
 would be greatly prolonged, and the calamities of hard times would be 
 vastly diminished. There can be no great financial crisis without large 
 indebtedness, and the distress which it brings is in proportion to the 
 extent of the extravagance, speculation, and consequent indebtedness 
 which have caused it. Those who are out of debt suffer least. Where 
 the debts are heaviest the calamity is heaviest. But it is of public in- 
 debtedness, and especially of the debts of towns and cities, that I wish 
 to say a few words. 
 
 The practice of creating public debts, as it prevails in this country, 
 especially in municipal government, has long attracted very serious at. 
 tention. It is a great and growing evil. States, whose good name and 
 credit have been hitherto untarnished, are threatened with repudiation. 
 Many towns and cities have reached a point where- they must soon face 
 the same peril. I do not now wish to discuss the mischiefs of repudia- 
 tion. My purpose is merely to make a few suggestions as to the best way 
 to avoid repudiation. But, in passing, let me observe : Experience in 
 this country has shown that no State or community can, under any cir. 
 IG 
 
242 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 cumstances, gain by repudiation. The repudiators themselves cannot 
 afford it. The community that deliberately refuses to provide for its 
 honest debts loses its good name and shuts the door to all hope of future 
 prosperity. It demoralizes and degrades all classes of its citizens. Cap- 
 ital and labor and good people will not go to such communities, but will 
 surely leave them. If I thought my words could influence any of my 
 countrymen who are so unfortunate as to be compelled to consider this 
 question, I would say,Llet no good citizen be induced by any prospect 
 of advantage to himself or to his party to take a single step towards 
 repudiation. Let him set his face like flint against the first dawning of 
 an attemi^t to enter upon that downward pathway. It has been well 
 said that the most expensive way for a community to get rid of its honest 
 debts is repudiation^ 
 
 Eeturning to the subject of municipal debts, it is not alone those that 
 live in towns and cities who are interested in their wise and economical 
 government. All who trade with their citizens, all who buy of them, 
 all who sell to them — in a word, the whole of the laboring and producing 
 classes — must bear a share of their burdens. The taxes collected in the 
 city find their way into the price-lists of what is bought of and sold to 
 the farmers and laborers in the country. On the questions of debt and 
 taxation the dwellers of the city and those who habitually deal with 
 them form together one community and have a common interest. 
 
 The usual argument in favor of creating a city debt is, that the pro- 
 posed building or improvement is not for this generation alone, but is 
 also for the benefit of posterity, and, therefore, posterity ought to help 
 to pay for it. This reasoning will not bear examination. Each gen- 
 eration has its own demands upon its purse. It should not be called 
 on to pay for the cast-off garments of its ancestors. 
 
 The appliances and structures which our ancestors jirovided for 
 water, light, streets, parks, cemeteries, for putting-out fires, for police^ 
 for locomotion, for education, and for the thousand other necessities of 
 city life, would not be well suited to the tastes, habits, and wants of 
 our day. This generation must have steam fire-engines and water- 
 works, and its tax-payers do not want to be called upon to pay for the 
 cisterns, the fire-buckets, and the pumps of thirty years ago. 
 
 Municipal borrowing is the parent of waste, profligacy, and corrup- 
 tion. Money that comes easily goes easily. In this career of reckless 
 extravagance, cities build and buy what they do not need, and pay for 
 wliat they get far more than it is worth. I adopt the Avords of the val- 
 uable report of the Pennsylvania Commission appointed to devise a 
 plan for the government of cities. To sum it up, it too often hap- 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 243 
 
 pens that "the men who authorize the contracts are substantially the 
 men who profess to perform them; the men who fix the prices are 
 substantially the men who receive the pay for performing the labor ; 
 and the men who issue the bonds are the men who receive the money." 
 
 The magnitude and the growth of this evil are shown by statistics 
 with which the x)ublic is familiar. I do not choose to detain you by 
 repeating them in detail. 
 
 A few weeks ago the "Kew York Tribune" called attention to an ex- 
 cellent article on this subject in the "Princeton Review," by Mr. Rob- 
 ert P. Porter, in which it is shown that local debts have, since the war, 
 increased out of all proportion to the increase of property and jjopula- 
 tion. Mr. Porter shows that in one hundred and thirty cities the debt 
 increased from $221,312,000, in 1866, to $644,378,663 in 1876. The 
 percentage of increase is about 200 per cent, in ten years, while the 
 property of these cities increased but 75 per cent., and their population 
 only 33 per cent. The total local indebtedness of all of the States, 
 omitting the Territories, it is estimated in the article referred to, at the 
 close of 1878, was $1,051,106,112. In many instances it is shown that 
 the annual amount of interest paid by cities on their debts is almost 
 equal to the total annual expenses for carrying on their local govern- 
 ments. The volume of the local indebtedness of the country akeady 
 exceeds one-half the great war debt of the Nation, and the interest 
 upon them, from the high rates usually paid, will soon equal the total 
 interest upon the National debt. 
 
 The urgent question that is now pressing for consideration is, how to 
 -deal with these large and increasing local debts. The best answer, it 
 seems to me, is simple, ready at hand, and sufficient : Do not have any 
 local debts. Let it be embodied in the constitution and laws of every 
 State that local authorities shall create no debts; that they shall make 
 no appropriations of money until it is collected and on hand; that all 
 appropriations shall be for specific objects, and that as to existing debts, 
 suitable provision shall be made for their extinguishment. 
 
 To pay off the old debts, to create no new debts, will be difiBcult and 
 embarrassing. Valuable reforms always are difiBcult, and thorough 
 work often is embarrassing. If we would be rid of the peril of ap- 
 proaching bankruptcy and repudiation which now threaten so many 
 towns and cities, there must be a halt to this dangerous downward 
 march. If the remedies I have suggested are too radical, let others be 
 proposed and acted on, and that promptly. 
 
 The policy of preventing the creation of local debts by positive con- 
 stitutional prohibition is fully sustained by the experience of the States 
 
244 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 with respect to State debts. Constitutions in many of the okl, and in 
 all of the new, States have been adopted within the last thirty or forty 
 years, and almost all of them contain provisions denying to State legis- 
 latures the authority to create debts except in case of war, insurrec- 
 tion, or other extraordinary emergency. Under the operation of these 
 prohibitory pro^isions, the debts existing at the time of their adoption 
 have been greatly reduced, and the only States now embarrassed by 
 debt are those whose constitutions do not contain this wise prohibition. 
 
 The general policy of the National Government on the subject of debt 
 has always been sound. It may be summed up in a few words: No 
 debts to be created in time of peace, and war debts to be paid off as 
 rapidly as possible when the war ends. 
 
 The Revolutionary -War debt, at the inauguration of the present form 
 of Government, March 4, 1789, amounted to $76,000,000, and after suc- 
 cessive refundings, in long-time bonds, was paid off by their redemp- 
 tion, finally, in 1835. 
 
 The debt created by the War of 1812, after refunding in 4J per cent, 
 bonds, was also paid in 1835, and at the close of that year the Nation 
 was i)ractically free from debt. 
 
 The debt incurred on account of the Mexican War amounted to 
 $83,552,098, the bonded debt bearing six per cent, interest, running 
 from five to twenty years, and Treasury notes at various rates of inter- 
 est, from one mill to five and two-fifths per cent. All of this debt was 
 redeemed prior to 1870, excepting a very small amount not yet pre- 
 sented for redemi^tion. 
 
 As a marked evidence of the fidelity with which our National obliga- 
 tions of this description have heretofore been met, it is worthy of note 
 that, during the War of 1812, the interest on the portion of the debt 
 hchl by British subjects was regularly paid, the agents of the holders 
 in this country, owing to the interruption of direct commercial inter- 
 course, being sometimes obliged to resort to circuitous and extremely- 
 difficult routes for the transmission of payment. I find the fact re- 
 marked upon by Mr. Alexander Trotter, the British author of a stand- 
 ard work published in 1839, upon our National financial position and 
 credit at that time. The author also notes the fact that the act of Con- 
 gress passed by the first Congress that assembled after the adoption 
 of the Constitution, to make provision for the payment of all the out- 
 standing engagements of the Government, "with a degree of integrity 
 which is rare in the history of the financial embarrassments of States," 
 postponed the claims of creditors at home until those of the foreign 
 creditor were provided for. 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 245 
 
 Our war debt resulting from the War for the Union amounted to 
 about $3,000,000,000, and has been reduced to about $2,000,000,000. 
 During the last year there has been no reduction of the aggregate 
 amount, but there has been a reduction of the amount of the interest- 
 bearing debt of $13,700,000, and the rates of interest have bec^n so re- 
 duced by refunding within the past year that there is an annual saving 
 of $13,700,900 in interest. The annual uiterest on the ISTational debt 
 reached its highest ])oint about ftmrteen years ago, when it was 
 $150,977,097.87. It is now reduced to $83,744,710.50, a yearly saving 
 of $07,232,987.37, or about forty-five per cent, of what was payable in 
 1805. The policy of paying off the National debt, which, at the close 
 of the war, was urged ui)on the country with so much force by the Sec- 
 retary of the Treasury, Mr. Hugh McCulloch, has borne good fruit. 
 Young men of this audience can remember when the Government of 
 the United States found great difficulty in borrowing so small a sum 
 as $25,000,000, and for a considerable part of it was compelled to pay 
 as high as twelve per cent. Last spring, by reason of improved and 
 strengthened credit, the Government had no trouble in borrowing, in 
 the single month of April, $225,000,000 at four per cent, interest. The 
 amount offered in that month exceeded five hundred millions of dollars, 
 and there was one day when the amount offered was $159,000,000. 
 
 Let the policy of extinguishing the National debt be adhered to. Let 
 it be the fixed purpose of the i)eople and all who administer the Gov- 
 ernment to pay off the debt within thirty-three years. It can be done 
 by economy and prudence without a material increase of the burdens 
 of the people. The payment of thirty-three millions a year upon the 
 principal of the debt, or into a sinking-fund for that purpose, will, 
 within thirty-three years, leave us free from debt as a Nation. 
 
 That which is sound policy in National and State affairs, in regard 
 to public debts, is, I believe, also wise policy in local affairs and in pri- 
 vate affairs. Let it be everywhere adopted, in public and private, and 
 we may welcome the advancing tide of better times, confident that we 
 have found the secret that will prolong their stay, and which will go 
 far to make us independent in that, I trust, distant day when a finan- 
 cial panic may again strike down the general prosperity. 
 
I 
 
 EXECUTIVE ORDER. 
 
 DEATH OF SENATOR ZACHARIAH CHANDLER. 
 
 NOVEMBER 1, 1879. 
 
EXECUTIVE ORDER. 
 
 I 
 
 Executive Mansion, 
 
 Washington^ November 1, 1879. 
 
 The sad intelligence of the death of Zachariah Chandler, late Secre- 
 tary of the Interior, and during so many years a Senator from the 
 State of Michigan, has been communicated to the Government and to 
 the country ; and in proper respect to his memory I hereby order that 
 the several Executive Departments be closed to public business, and 
 their flags and those of their dependencies throughout the country be 
 displayed at half-mast on the day of his funeral. 
 
 E. B. HAYES. 
 
i 
 
 THANKSGIVING PROCLAMATION. 
 
 NOVEMBER 3, 1879. 
 
PROCLAMATION. 
 
 BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. 
 A PROCLAMATION. 
 
 At no recurrence of the season which the devout habit of a religious 
 people has made the occasion for giving thanks to Almighty God and 
 humbly invoking His continued favor, has the material prosperity en- 
 joyed by our whole country been more conspicuous, more manifold, or 
 more universal. 
 
 During the past year, also, unbroken peace with all foreign nations, 
 the general prevalence of domestic tranquillity, the supremacy and 
 security of the great institutions of civil and religious freedom, have 
 gladdened the hearts of our people, and confirmed their attachment to 
 their government, which the wisdom and courage of our ancestors so 
 fitly framed, and the wisdom and courage of their descendants have so 
 firmly maintaiued, to be the habitation of hberty and justice to suc- 
 cessive generations : 
 
 Now, therefore, I, Rutherford B. Hayes, President of the United 
 States, do appoint Thursday, the 27th day of November, instant, as a 
 Day of National Thanksgiving and Prayer; and I earnestly recommend 
 that, withdrawing themselves from secular cares and labors, the people 
 of the United States do meet together on that day in their respective 
 places of worship, there to give thanks and praise to Almighty God for 
 His mercies, and to devoutly beseech their continuance. 
 
 In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand, and caused the 
 seal of the United States to be affixed. 
 
 Done at the city of Washington this third day of November, in the 
 year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and seventy- 
 [SEAL.] nine, and of the Independence of the United States the one 
 hundred and fourth. 
 
 RUTHERFORD B. HAYES. 
 
 By the President : 
 
 W3I. M. EVAKTS, 
 
 Secretary of State. 
 
]viESSA,aE: 
 
 TWO HOUSES OF OONGEESS AT THE COMMENCEMENT 01 THE SECOND 
 SESSION or THE FOKTY-SIXTH OON&EESS. 
 
 DECEMBER 1, 1879. 
 
MESSAGE. 
 
 Fellow-Citizens of the Senate 
 
 AND House of IIepresentatives: 
 
 The members of the Forty-sixth Congress have assembled iu their 
 first regular session under circumstances calling for mutual congratu- 
 lation and grateful acknowledgment to the Giver of all good for the 
 large and unusual measure of national prosperity which we now enjoy. 
 
 The most interesting events which have occurred iu our public affairs 
 since my last annual message to Congress are connected with the finan- 
 cial oi)erations of the Government, directly affecting the business inter- 
 ests of the country. I congratulate Congress on the successful ex- 
 ecution of the Eesumption Act. At the time fixed and in the manner 
 contemi)lated by law, United States notes began to be redeemed in coin. 
 Since the first of January last they have been promptly redeemed on 
 presentation, and in all business transactions, public and private, in all 
 parts of the country, they are received and paid out as the equivalent 
 of coin. The demand upon the Treasury for gold and silver in exchange 
 for United States notes has been comparatively small, and the volun- 
 tary deposit of coin and bullion iu exchange for notes has been very 
 large. The excess of the precious metals deposited or exchanged for 
 United States notes over the amount of United States notes redeemed 
 is about $40,000,000. 
 
 The resumption of specie payments has been followed by a very great 
 revival of business. With a currency equivalent in value to the money 
 of the commercial Avorld, we are enabled to enter upon an equal coni- 
 jjetition with other Nations in trade and production. The increasing 
 foreign demand for our manufactures and agricultural products has 
 caused a large balance of trade in our favor, which has been paid in 
 gold, from the 1st of July last to November 15, to the amount of about 
 $,")9,000,000. Since the resumption of specie payments there has also 
 been a marked and gratifying improvement of the public credit. The 
 bonds of the Government bearing only four per cent, interest have been 
 sold at or above par, sufacient iu amount to pay off' all of the National 
 debt which was redeemable under present laws. The amount of inter- 
 est saved annually by the process of refunding the debt, since March 
 17 
 
258 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 1, 1877, is $14,297,177. The bonds sold were largely in small sums, 
 aiui tlie number of our citizens now holding the public securities is much 
 greater than ever before. The amount of the Xational debt which ma- 
 tures within less than two years is $792,121,700, of which $500,000,000 
 bear interest at the rate of live per cent, and the balance is in bonds 
 bearing six per cent, interest. It is believed that this part of the pub- 
 lic debt can be refunded by the issue of four per cent, bouds, and, by 
 the reduction of interest which will thus be effected, about eleven mil- 
 lions of dollars can be annually saved to the Treasury. To secure this 
 important reduction of interest to be paid by the United States, further 
 legislation is required, which, it is hoped, will be provided by Congress 
 during its present session. 
 
 The coinage of gold by the mints of the United States during the 
 last fiscal 'year was $40,986,912. The coinage of silver dollars, since 
 the passage of the act for that purpose up to November 1, 1879, was 
 $45,000,850, of which $12,700,344 have been issued from the Treasury, 
 and are now in circulation, and $32,300,506 are still in the possession 
 of the Government. 
 
 The pendency of the proposition for unity of action between the 
 United States and the principal commercial nations of Europe, to effect 
 a permanent system for the equality of gold and silver in the recog- 
 nized money of the world, leads me to recommend that Congress refrain 
 from new legislation on the general subject. The great revival of trade, 
 internal and foreign, will supply during the coming year its own instruc- 
 tions, which may well be awaited before attempting further experimental 
 measures with the coinage. I would, however, strongly urge upon 
 Congress the importance of authorizing the Secretary of the Treasury 
 to suspend the coinage of silver dollars upon the present legal ratio. 
 The market value of the silver dollar being uniformly and largely less 
 than the market value of the gold dollar, it is obviously impracticable 
 to maintain them at par with each other if both are coined without 
 liudt. K the cheaper coin is forced into circulation, it will, if coined 
 without limit, soon become the sole standard of value, and thus defeat 
 the desired object, which is a currency of both gold and silver, which 
 shall be of equivalent value, dollar for dollar, mth the universally 
 recognized money of the world. 
 
 The retirement from circulation of United States notes, with the 
 capacity of legal-tender in private contracts, is a step to be taken in 
 our progress towards a safe and stable currency, which should be ac- 
 cepted as the policy and duty of the Government, and the interest and 
 security of the people. It is my firm conviction that the issue of legal- 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 259 
 
 tender paper jiioney based wliolly upon the autliority and credit of the 
 Government, except in extreme emergency, is without warrant in the 
 Constitution, and a violation of sound financial principles. The issue 
 of United States notes during the late civil war mth the capacity of 
 legal-tender between private individuals was not authorized except as 
 a means of rescuing the country from imminent peril. The circulation 
 of these notes as paper monej', for any protracted i)eriod of time after 
 the accomplishment of this purpose, was not contemplated by the 
 framers of the law under which they were issued. They anticipated 
 the redemption and withdrawal of these notes at the earliest practica- 
 ble period consistent with the attainment of the object for which they 
 were provided. 
 
 The policy of the United States, steadily adhered to from the adop- 
 tion of the Constitution, has been to avoid the creation of a National 
 debt, and when, from necessity in time of war, debts have been created, 
 they have been paid oif on the return of peace as rapidly as possible. 
 With this view, and for this purpose, it is recommended that the exist- 
 ing laws for the accumulation of a sinking-fund sufficient to extinguish 
 the public debt within a limited period be maintained. If any change 
 of the objects or rates of taxation is deemed necessary by Congress, it 
 is suggested that experience has shown that a duty can be i^laced on 
 tea and coffee, which will not enhance the price of those articles to the 
 consumer, and which will add several millions of dollars annually to 
 the Treasury. 
 
 The continued deliberate violation by a large number of the promi- 
 nent and influential citizens of the Territory of Utah of the laws of the 
 United States for the prosecution and punishment of polygamy de- 
 mands the attention of every department of the Government. This 
 Territory has a population sufficient to entitle it to admission as a State, 
 and the general interests of the Nation, as well as the welfare of the 
 citizens of the Territory, require its advance from the territorial form 
 of government to the responsibilities and privileges of a State. This 
 important change will not, however, be approved by the country while 
 the citizens of Utah in very considerable number uphold a practice 
 which is condemned as a crime by the laws of all ci^alized communities 
 throughout the world. 
 
 The law for the suppression of this offence was enacted with great 
 unanimity by Congress more than seventeen years ago, but has re- 
 mained until recently a dead-letter in the Territory of Utah, because of 
 the peculiar difficulties attending its enforcement. The opinion widely 
 prevailed among the citizens of Utah that the law was in contraven- 
 
260 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 tion of tlie constitutional guarantee of religious freedom. This objec- 
 tion is now removed. The Supreme Court of the United States has 
 decided the law to be within the legislative power of C(mgress, and 
 binding as a rule of action for all who reside within the Territories. 
 There is no longer any reason for delay or hesitation in its enforce- 
 ment. It should be firmly and effectivelj- executed. If not sufHciently 
 stringent in its provisions it slnmld be amended, and, in aid of the pur- 
 pose in view, I recommend that more comprehensive and more search- 
 ing methods for preventing as well as punishing this crime be provided. 
 If necessary to secure obedience to the law, the enjoyment and exer- 
 cise of the rights and privileges of citizenship in the Territories of the 
 United States may be withheld or withdrawn from those who violate 
 or oi)pose the enforcement of the law on this subject. 
 
 The elections of the past year, though occupied only with State offi- 
 ces, have not failed to elicit, in the political discussions which attended 
 them all over the country, new and decisive evidence of the deep in- 
 terest which the great body of citizens take in the progress of the 
 country towards a more general and complete establishment, at what- 
 ever cost, of universal security and freedom in the exercise of the 
 elective franchise. While many toi»ics of political concern demand 
 great attention from our people, both in the sphere of National and 
 State authority, I find no reason to qualify the opinion I expressed in 
 my last annual message, that no temporary or administrative interests 
 of government, however urgent or weighty, will ever displace the zeal 
 of our people in defence of the primary rights of citizenship, and that 
 the power of public opinion will override all political prejudices, and 
 all sectional and State attachments, in demanding that all over our 
 wide territory the name and character of citizen of the United States 
 shall mean one and the same thing, and carry with them unchallenged 
 security and respect. I earnestly appeal to the intelligence and i)atriot- 
 isni of all good citizens of every part of the country, however much 
 they may be divided in opinions on other political subjects, to unite in 
 compelling obedience to existing laws aimed at the protection of the 
 riglit of suffrage. I respectfully urge u])on Congress to sui)ply any de- 
 fects in these laws which experience has shown, and which it is within 
 its power to remedy. I again invoke the co-operation of the executive 
 and legislative authorities of the States in this great purpose. I am 
 fully convinced that if the public mind can be set at rest on this para- 
 mount question of popular rights, no serious obstacle will thwart or 
 delay the com]>lete pacification of the country, or retard the general 
 diffusion of prosperity. 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 261 
 
 In a former message I iivited the attention of Congress to the subject 
 of the reformation of the civil service of the Government, and ex- 
 pressed the intention of transmitting to Congress, as early as prac- 
 ticable, a report upon this subject by the chairman of the Civil Service 
 Commission. 
 
 In view of the facts that, during a considerable period, the Govern- 
 ment of Great Britain has been dealing with administrative problems 
 and abuses, in various particulars analogous to those presented in this 
 country, and that in recent years the measures adopted were understood 
 to have been effective and in every respect highly satisfactory, I thought 
 it desirable to have fuller information upon the subject, and accordingly 
 requested the chairman of the Civil-Service Commission to make a 
 thorough investigation for this purpose. The result has been an elabo- 
 rate and comprehensive report. 
 
 The report sets forth the history of the partisan-spoils system in 
 Great Britain, and of the rise and fall of the i)arliamentary patronage, 
 and of ofiticial interference with the freedom of elections. It shows 
 that after long trials of various kiuds of examinations, those which are 
 competitive and open on equal terms to all, and which are carried on 
 under the superintendence of a single commission, have, with great 
 advantage, been established as conditions of admission to almost every 
 official place in the subordinate administration of that country and of 
 British India. The completion of the report, owing to the extent of 
 the labor involved in its preparation, and the omission of Congress to 
 make any provision either for the compensation or the expenses of the 
 Commission, has been postponed until the present time. It is herewith 
 transmitted to Congress. 
 
 While the reform measures of another Government are of no author- 
 ity for us, they are entitled to intiueuce, to the extent to which their 
 intrinsic wisdom, and their adaptation to our institutions and social 
 life, may commend them to our consideration. 
 
 The views I have heretofore expressed concerning the defects and 
 abuses in our civil administration remain unchanged, except in so far 
 as an enlarged experience has dee])ened my sense of the duty both of 
 officers and of the people themselves to co-operate for their removal. 
 The grave evils and perils of a partisan-spoils system of appointment 
 to office and of office tenure, are now generally recognized. In the 
 resolutions of the great parties, in the reports of Departments, in the 
 debates and proceedings of Congress, in the messages of Executives, 
 the gravity of these evils has been pointed out and the need of their 
 reform has been admitted. 
 
262 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 To command the necessary support, every measure of reform must 
 be based on common riglit and justice, and must be compatible with 
 the healthy existence of great parties, which are inevitable and essen- 
 tial in a free State. 
 
 When the people have approved a policy at a National election, con- 
 fidence on the part of the officers they have selected, and of the ad- 
 visers who, in accordance with our political institutions, should be 
 consulted, in the policy which it is their duty to carry into effect, is 
 indispensable. It is eminently proper that they should explain it 
 before the people, as well as illustrate its spirit in the performance of 
 their official duties. 
 
 Very different considerations apply to the greater number of those 
 who fill the subordinate places in the civil service. Their responsibility 
 is to their superiors in official position. It is their duty to obey the 
 legal instructions of those upon whom that authority is devolved, and 
 their best public service consists in the discharge of their functions 
 irrespective of partisan politics. Their duties are the same, whatever 
 party is in power and whatever policy prevails. As a consequence, it 
 follows that their tenure of office should not depend on the prevalence 
 of any policy or the supremacy of any party, but should be determined 
 by their capacity to serve the people most usefully, quite irrespective 
 of partisan interests. The same considerations that should govern the 
 tenure should also prevail in the appointment, discipline, and removal 
 of these subordinates. The authority of apjwintment and removal is 
 not a perquisite which may be used to aid a friend or reward a parti- 
 san, but is a trust to be exercised in the public interest, under all the 
 sanctions which attend the obligation to apply the public funds only 
 for public purposes. 
 
 Every citizen has an equal right to the honor and profit of entering 
 the public service of his country. The only just ground of discriuiina- 
 tion is the measure of character and capacity he has to make that 
 service most useful to the people. Except in cases where, upon just 
 and recognized principles, as upon the theory of pensions, offices and 
 promotions are bestowed as rewards for past services, their bestowal 
 upon any theory which disregards personal merit is an act of injustice 
 to the citizen, as well as a breach of that trust subject to which the 
 appointing power is held. 
 
 In the light of these principles, it becomes of great importance to 
 provide just and adequate means, especially for every department, and 
 large administrative office, where personal discrimination on the part 
 of its head it not i)racticable, for ascertaining those qualifications to 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 263 
 
 wliicli appointments and removals should have reference. To fail to 
 provide such means is not only to deny the opportunity of ascertaining 
 the facts upon which the most righteous claim to ofiBce depends, but, 
 of necessity, to discourage all worthy aspirants by handing over aij 
 pointments and removals to mere influence and favoritism. If it is the 
 right of the worthiest claimant to gain the appointment, and the inter- 
 est of the peoi)le to bestow it upon him, it would seem clear that a wise 
 and just method of ascertaining i)ersonal fitness for office must be an 
 imi)ortant and permanent function of every just and wise government. 
 It has long since become impossible, in the great offices, for those hav- 
 ing the duty of nomination and appointment to personally examine 
 into the individual qualifications of more than a small proportion of 
 those seeking office, and, with the enlargement of the civil service, that 
 proportion must continue to become less. 
 
 In the earlier years of the Government, the subordinate offices 
 were so few in number that it was quite easy for those making ap- 
 pointment and promotions to personally ascertain the merits of candi- 
 dates. Party managers" and methods had not then become powerful 
 agencies of coercion, hostile to the free and just exercise of the appoint- 
 ing power. 
 
 A large and responsible i)art of the duty of restoring the civil service 
 to the desired purity and efficiency rests upon the President, and it is 
 my purpose to do what is within my power to advance such prudent 
 and gradual measures of reform as will most surely and rapidly bring- 
 about that radical change of system essential to make our administra- 
 tive methods satisfactory to a free and intelligent people. By a proper 
 exercise of authority, it is in the power of the Executive to do much to 
 promote such a reform. But it cannot be too clearly understood that 
 nothing adequate can be accomplished without co-operation on the part 
 of Congress and considerate and intelligent support among the people. 
 Eeforms which challenge the generally accepted theories of parties, 
 and demand changes in the methods of departments, are not the work 
 of a day. Their permanent foundations must be laid in sound i)rinci- 
 ples, and in an experience which demonstrates their wisdom and exi)oses 
 the errors of their adversaries. Every worthy officer desires to make 
 his official action a gain and an honor to his country, but the people 
 themselves, far more than their officers in public station, are interested 
 in a pure, economical, and vigorous administration. 
 
 By laws enacted in 1853 and 1855, and now in substance incorporated 
 in the Revised Statutes, the practice of arbitrary appointments to 
 the several subordinate grades in the great Departments was con- 
 
264 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 demned, and examinations, as to capacity, to be conducted by de- 
 partmental boards of examiners, were provided for and made conditions 
 of admission to the public service. These statutes are a decision by 
 Congress that examinations of some sort, as to attainments and 
 capacity, are essential to the well-being of the i)ublic service. The im- 
 portant questions since the enactment of these laws have been as to 
 the character of these examinations, and whether official favor and par- 
 tisan influence, or common right and merit, were to control the access 
 to the examiimtions. In practice, these examinations have not always 
 been open to worthy persons generally, who might wish to be examined. 
 Official favoritism and partisan influence, as a rule, ai)i)ear to have 
 designated those who alone were permitted to go before the examining- 
 boards, subjecting even the examiners to a pressure from the friends of 
 the candidates very difficult to resist. As a consequence, the standard 
 of admission fell below that which the public interest demanded. It 
 was also almost inevitable that a system which provided for various 
 separate boards of examiners, with no common supervision oi' uniform 
 method of procedure, should result in confusion, inconsistency, and 
 inadequate tests of capacity highly detrimental to the public interests. 
 A further and more radical change was obviously required. 
 
 In the annual message of December, 1870, my predecessor declared 
 that "there is no duty which so much embarrasses the Executive and 
 heads of Departments as that of appointments; nor is there any such 
 arduous and thankless labor imposed on Senators and Representatives 
 as that of finding places for constituents. The present system does 
 not secure the best men, and often not even fit men for the public 
 places. The elevation and purification of the civil service of the Gov 
 ernment will be hailed with approval by the whole people of the United 
 States." Congress accordingly passed the act, approved March 3, 1871, 
 "to regulate the civil service of the United States and promote the effi- 
 ciency thereof," giving the necessary authority to the Executive to 
 inaugurate a civil-service reform 
 
 Acting under this statute, which was interpreted as intended to secure 
 a system of just and eftectual examinations under uniform supervision, 
 a number of eminently comi)etent persons were selected for the purpose, 
 who entered witli zeal upon the discharge of their duties, prepared, with 
 an intelligent appreciation of the requirements of the service, the regu- 
 lations contemplated, and took charge of the examinations, and who, in 
 their capacity as a board, have been known as tlie " Civil-Service Com- 
 mission." Congress for two years appropriated the money needed for 
 the compensation and for the expense of carrying on the work of the 
 Commission. 
 
J^ETTERS AND MESSAGES. 265 
 
 It appears from the report of the Commission, submitted to the Presi- 
 dent in April, 1874, that examinations had been held in various sections 
 of the country", and that an appropriation of about $25,000 would be 
 required to meet the annual expenses, including salaries, involved in 
 discharging" the duties of the Commission. The report was transmitted 
 to Congress by special message of April 18, 1874, with the following 
 favorable comment upon the labors of the Commission: "If sustained 
 by Congress, I have no doubt tlie rules can, after the experience gained, 
 be so improved and enforced as to still more materially benefit the public 
 service and relieve the Executive, Members of Congress, and the heads 
 €f Departments, frominfluencesprejudicialto good adunnistration. The 
 rules, as they have hitherto been enforced, have resulted beneficially, as 
 is shown by the o]iinions of the members of the Cabinet and their sub- 
 ordinates in the Departments, and in that ojunion I concur." And in 
 the annual message of December of the same year similar views are 
 expressed, and an appropriation for continuing the work of the Com- 
 mission again advised. 
 
 The appropriation was not made, and, as a consequence, the active 
 work of the Commission was suspended, leaving the Commission itself 
 still in existence. Without the means, therefore, of cansing qualifi- 
 cations to be tested in any systematic manner, or of securing for 
 the public service the advantages of competition ui)on any extensive 
 plan, I recommended in my annual message of December, 1877, the 
 making of an appropriation for the resumption of the work of the Com- 
 mission. 
 
 In the meantime, however, competitive examinations under numy 
 embarrassments have been conducted within limited spheres in the 
 Executive Departments in Washington, and in a number of the custom- 
 houses and post ofiHces of the principal cities of the country, with a 
 view to further test their effects, and, in every instance, they have been 
 found to be as salutary as they are stated to have been under the ad- 
 ministration of my predecessor. I think the economy, purity, and 
 efficiency of the public service would be greatly promoted by their 
 systematic introduction, wherever practicable, throughout the entire 
 civil service of the Government, together with ample provision for 
 their general supervision, in order to secure consistency and uniform 
 justice. 
 
 Reports from the Secretary of the Interior, from the Postmaster- 
 General, from the i)ostmaster in the city of New York, where such ex- 
 aminations have been sometime on trial, and also from the collector 
 of the port, the naval officer, and the surveyor in that city, and from 
 
2G6 LETTERS AND MESSAGES, 
 
 the postmasters and collectors in several of the other large cities, show 
 that the competitive system, where applied, has, in various ways, con- 
 tributed to imiirove the public ser\ice. 
 
 The reports show that the results have been salutary in a marked 
 degree, and that the general application of similar rules cannot fail to 
 be of decided beneht to the service. 
 
 The reports of the Government officers in the city of New York 
 especially, bear decided testimony to the utility of open competitive 
 examinations in their respective offices, showing that "these exami- 
 nations, and the excellent qualifications of those admitted to the ser- 
 vice through them, have had a marked incidental effect upon the 
 persons previously in the service, and particularly upon those aspiring 
 to promotion. There has been, on the i^art of these latter, an increased 
 interest in the work, and a desire to extend acquaintance with it be- 
 yond the particular desk occupied, and thus the morale of the entire 
 force has been raised. * * * The examinations have been attended 
 by many citizens who have had an opportunity to thoroughly investi- 
 gate the scope and character of the tests and the method of determin- 
 ing the results, and those visitors have, without exception, approved 
 the methods employed, and several of them have i)ublicly attested 
 their favorable opinion." 
 
 Upon such considerations, I deem it my duty to renew the recom- 
 mendation contained in my annual message of December, 1877, re- 
 questing Congress to make the necessary appropriation for the resump- 
 tion of the work of the Civil-Service Commission. Economy will be 
 promoted by authorizing a moderate compensation to persons in the 
 public service who may j)erform extra labor upon or under the Com- 
 mission, as the Executive may direct. 
 
 I am convinced that if a just and adequate test of merit is enforced 
 for admission to the ijublic service and in making promotions, such 
 abuses as removals without good cause and partisan and ofiicial inter- 
 ference with the proper exercise of the appointing power, will in large 
 measure disappear. 
 
 There are other administrative abuses to wliich the attention of Con- 
 gress should be asked in this connection. Mere partisan appoint- 
 ments, and the constant peril of removal without cause, very naturally 
 lead to an absorbing and mischievous political activity, on the part of 
 those thus appointed, which not only interferes with the due discharge 
 of official duty, but is incompatible with the freedom of elections. Not 
 without warrant, in the views of several of my predecessors in the Presi- 
 dential- office, and directly within the law of 1871, already cited, I en- 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 267 
 
 deavorert by reg^ulation, made ou the 22d day of June, 1877, to put some 
 reasonable limits to sucli abuses. It may not be easy, and it may never 
 perhaps be necessary, to define with precision the proper limit of po- 
 litical action on the part of Federal officers. But while their right to 
 hold and freely express their opinions cannot be questioned, it is very 
 plain that they should neither be allowed to devote to other subjects 
 the time needed for the proper discharge of their official duties, nor to 
 use the authority of their office to enforce their own opinions, or to 
 coerce the political action of those who hold different opinions. 
 
 Eeasons of justice and public policy, quite analogous to those which 
 forbid the use of official power for the oppression of the private citizen^ 
 impose upon the Government the duty of protecting its officers and 
 agents from arbitrary exactions. In whatever aspect considered, the 
 practice of making levies, for party purposes, upon the salaries of 
 officers is highly demoralizing to the public service and discreditable 
 to the country. Though an officer should be as free as any other citizen 
 to give his own money in aid of his opinions or his party, he should 
 also be as free as any other citizen to refuse to make such gifts. If 
 salaries are but a fair compensation for the time and labor of the 
 officer, it is gross injustice to levy a tax upon them. If they are made 
 excessive in order that they may bear the tax, the excess is an indirect, 
 robbery of the public funds. 
 
 I recommend, therefore, such a revision and extension of present 
 statutes as shall secure to those in every grade of official life or public 
 employment the protection with which a great and enlightened Nation 
 should guard those who are faithful in its service. 
 
 Our relations with foreign countries have continued peaceful. 
 
 With Great Britain there are still unsettled questions, growing out 
 of the local laws of the maritime provinces and the action of provin- 
 cial authorities, deemed to be in derogation of rights secured by treaty 
 to American fishermen. The United States Minister in London has 
 been instructed to present a demand for $105,305.02, in view of the 
 damages received by American citizens at Fortune Bay on the Gth 
 day of January, 1878. The subject has been taken into consideration 
 by the British Governuient, and an early reply is anticipated. 
 
 Upon the completion of the necessary preliminary examinations, the 
 subject of our participation in the provincial fisherfes, as regulated by 
 treaty, will at once be brought to the attention of the British Govern- 
 ment with a view to an early and permanent settlement of the whole 
 question, which was only temporarily adjusted by the Treaty of Wash- 
 ington. 
 
2GB' LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 Efforts have been made to obtain the removal of restrictions found 
 injurious to tlie exportation of cattle to the United Kinjidom. 
 
 Some corresi)ondence has also occurred with regard to the rescue and 
 saving of life and property upon the lakes, which has resulted in im- 
 portant modifications of the previous regulations of the Dominion Gov- 
 ernment on the subject, in tlie interest of humanity and commerce. 
 
 In accordance with the joint resolution of the last session of Con- 
 gress, commissioners were appointed to represent the United States at 
 the two Internatioual Exhibitions in Australia, one of which is now in 
 progress at Sydney, and the other to be held next year at Melbourne. 
 A desire has been expressed by our merchants and manufacturers 
 Interested in the important and growing trade with Australia, that an 
 increased provision should be made by Congress for the reiiresentation 
 of our industries at the Melbourne Exhibition of next year, and the 
 subject is respectfully submitted to your favorable consideration. 
 
 The assent of the Government has been given to the landing, on the 
 coast of Massachusetts, of a new and independent transatlantic cable 
 between France, by way of the French island of St. Pierre, and this 
 country, subject to any future legislation of Congress on the subject. 
 The conditions imposed, before allowing this connection with, our shores 
 to be established, are such as to secure its competition with any exist- 
 ing or future lines of marine cable, and preclude amalgamation there- 
 with, to provide for entire equality of rights to our Government and 
 peoi)le with those of France in the use of the cable, and i)revent any 
 exclusive possession of the i)rivilege as accorded by France to the dis- 
 advantage of any future cable communication between France and the 
 United States which may be projected and accomplished by our citi- 
 zens. An important reduction of the present rates of cable communi- 
 cation with Europe, felt to be too burdensome to the interests of our 
 commerce, must necessarily How from the establishment of this com- 
 peting line. 
 
 The attention of Congress was drawn to thej)ropriety of some gen- 
 eral regulation by Congress of the whole subject of transmarine cables 
 by my predecessor in bis message of December 7, 1875, and I respect- 
 fully submit to your consideration the importance of Congressional 
 action in this matter. 
 
 The questions of grave importance with Spain, growing out of the 
 incidents of the Cuban insurrection, have been, for the most part, hap- 
 pily and honorably settled. It may reasonably be anticipated that the 
 Commission now sitting in Washington, for the decision of private cases 
 in this connection, will soon be able to bring its labors to a conclusion. 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 269 
 
 The long-standing- (lucstion of East Florida claims lias lately been 
 renewed as a snbject of correspondence, and may possibly recjuire Cou- 
 g-ressional action for its final disposition. 
 
 A treaty witli the Netherlands, with respect to consular rights and 
 privileges, simihir to those with other Powers, has been signed and 
 ratified, and the ratifications were exchanged on the 31st of July last. 
 Negotiations for extradition treaties with the Netherlands and with 
 Denmark are now in progress. 
 
 Some questions with Switzerland, in regard to pauper and convict 
 emigrants, have arisen, but it is not doubted that they will be arranged 
 upon a just and satisfactcny basis. A question has also occurred with 
 respect to an asserted claim by Swiss municipal authorities to exercise 
 tutelage over persons and property of Swiss citizens naturalized in thi& 
 country. It is possible this may require adjustment by treaty. 
 
 With the German Empire frequent questions arise in connection with 
 the subjects of naturalization and expatriation, but the Imperial Gov- 
 ernment has constantly manifested a desire to strictly maintain and 
 comply with all treaty stipulations in regard to them. 
 
 In consequence of the omission of Congress to provide for a diplo- 
 matic representative at Athens, the legation to Greece has been with- 
 drawn. There is now no channel of diplomatic communication between 
 the two countries, and the expediency of providing for one, in some 
 form, is submitted to Congress. 
 
 Eelations with Austria, Russia, Italy, Portugal, Turkey, and Bel- 
 gium continue amicable, and marked by no incident of especial im- 
 portance. 
 
 A change of the personal head of the Government of Egypt has. 
 taken place. No change, however, has occurred in the relations be- 
 tween Egypt and the United States. The action of the Egyi»tian Gov- 
 ernment in presenting to the city of New York one of the ancient 
 obelisks, which possess such historic interest, is highly apitreciated as 
 a generous mark of international regard. If prosperity should attend 
 the enterprise of its transportation across the Atlantic, its erection in 
 a conspicuous i)Osition in the chief commercial city of the Nation will 
 soon be accomplished. 
 
 The treaty recently made between Japan and the United States in 
 regard to the revision of former commercial treaties, it is now believed, 
 will be followed by similar action on the part of other treaty Powers. 
 The attention of Congress is again invited to the subject of the indem- 
 nity funds received some years since from Japan and China, which, 
 with their accumulated interest, now amount to considerable sums. If 
 
270 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 any part of these funds is justly due to American citizens, tliey sliould 
 receive it promptly, and wliatever may have been received by this 
 Government in excess of strictly just demands should, in some form, 
 be returned to the Nations to whom it equitably belongs. 
 
 Tlie Government of China has signified its willingness to consider 
 the question of the emigration of its subjects to the United States with 
 a dispassionate fairness, and to co-operate in such measures as may 
 tend to prevent injurious consequences to the United States. The ne- 
 gotiations are still proceeding, and will be pressed with diligence. 
 
 A question having arisen between China and Jaj)an about the Lew 
 Chew Islands, the United States Government has taken measures to 
 inform those Powers of its readiness to extend its good offices for the 
 maintenance of x^eace, if they shall mutually deem it desirable, and 
 find it practicable to avail themselves of the proffer. 
 
 It is a gratification to be able to announce that, through the judi- 
 cious and energetic action of the military commanders of the two Nations 
 on each side of the Eio Grande, under the instructions of their respec- 
 tive Governments, raids and depredations have greatly decreased, and, 
 in the localities w^here formerly most destructive, have now almost 
 wholly ceased. In view of this result, I entertain a confident expecta- 
 tion that the prevalence of quiet on the border will soon become so as- 
 sured as to justify a modification of the present orders to our military 
 commanders as to crossing the border, without encouragiug such dis- 
 turbances as would endanger the peace of the two countries. 
 
 The third instalment of the aAvard against Mexico under the Claims 
 Commission of July 4, 1868, was duly paid, and has been put in course 
 of distribution in pursuance of the act of Congress providing for the 
 same. This satisfactory situation between the two countries leads me 
 to anticipate an expansion of our trade with Mexico, and an increased 
 contribution of capital and industry by our people to the development 
 of the great resources of that country. I earnestly commend to the 
 wisdom of Congress the provision of suitable legislation looking to this 
 result. 
 
 Diplomatic intercourse with Colombia is again fully restored by the 
 arrival of a minister from that country to the United States. This is 
 especially fortunate in view of the fact that the question of an inter- 
 oceanic canal has recently assumed a new and important aspect, and is 
 now under discussion with the Central American countries through 
 whose territory the canal, by the Nicaragua route, would have to pass. 
 It is trusted that enlightened statesmanship on their part will see that 
 the early prosecution of such a work wiU largely enure to the benefit, 
 
 i 
 
LETTEKS AND MESSAGES. 271 
 
 uot only of their own citizens and those of the United States, but of 
 the commerce of the civilized world. It is not doubted that should the 
 work be undertaken under the protective auspices of the United States, 
 and upon satisfactory concessions for the right of way, and its security, 
 by the Central American governments, the capital for its completion 
 would be readily furnished from this country and Europe, which might, 
 failing such guarantees, prove inaccessible. 
 
 Diplomatic relations with Chili have also been strengthened by the 
 reception of a minister from that country. 
 
 The war between Peru, Bolivia, and Chili still continues. The 
 United States have not deemed it proper to interpose in the matter 
 further than to convey to all the Governments concerned the assurance 
 that the friendly offices of the Government of the United States for 
 the restoration of peace upon an honorable basis will be extended, in 
 case the belligerents shall exhibit a readiness to accept them. 
 
 Cordial relations continue with Brazil and the Argentine Eepublic, 
 and trade with those countries is impro\dng. A j)rovision for regular 
 and more frequent mail communication, in our own ships, between the 
 ports of this countrj" and the Nations of South America seems to me to 
 deserve the attention of Congress, as an essential precursor of an 
 enlargement of our commerce with them, and an extension of our car- 
 rying trade. 
 
 A recent revolution in Venezuela has been followed by the establish- 
 ment of a provisional government. The Government has not yet been 
 formally recognized, and it is deemed desirable to await the proposed 
 action of the people, which is exj^ected to give it the sanction of con- 
 stitutional forms. 
 
 A naval vessel has been sent to the Samoan Islands to make surveys 
 and take possession of the privileges ceded to the United States by 
 Samoa in the harbor of Pago Pago. A coaling-station is to be estab- 
 lished there, which will be convenient and useful to United States 
 vessels. 
 
 The subject of opening diplomatic relations with Eoumauia and Ser- 
 vla, now become independent sovereignties, is at present under con- 
 sideration, and is the subject of diplomatic correspondence. 
 
 There is a gratifpng increase of trade with nearly all European and 
 American countries, and it is believed that with 'judicious action in 
 regard to its development it can and will be still more enhanced, and 
 that American products and manufactures will find new and expand- 
 ing markets. The reports of diplomatic and consular officers upon this 
 subject, under the system now adopted, have resulted in obtaining 
 
272 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 much valuable information, which has been and will continue to be laid 
 before Congress and the public from time to time. 
 
 The third article of the treaty with Russia, of March 30, 18G7, by 
 which Alaska was ceded to the United States, provides that the inhabi- 
 tants of the ceded territory, with the exception of the uncivilized native 
 tribes, shall be admitted to the enjoynieut of all the rights of citizens 
 of the United States, and shall be maintaine<l and protected in the free 
 enjoyment of their liberty, property, and religion. The uncivilized 
 tribes are subject to such laws and regulations as the United States 
 may from time to time adopt in regard to the aboriginal tribes of that 
 country. 
 
 Both the obligations of this treaty and the necessities of the i)eople 
 require that some organized form of government over the Territory of 
 Alaska be adopted. 
 
 There appears to be no law for the arrest of persons charged with 
 common-law ofiences, such as assault, robbery, and murder, and no 
 magistrate authorized to issue or execute process in such cases. Serious 
 difliculties have already arisen from offences of this character, not only 
 among the original inhabitants, but among citizens of the United States 
 and other countries, who have engaged in mining, fishing, and other 
 business operations within the Territory. A bill authorizing the ap- 
 pointment of justices of the peace and constables, and the arrest and 
 detention of persons charged with criminal offences, and providing for 
 an appeal to United States courts for the district of Oregon, in suita- 
 ble cases, will, at a proper time, be submitted to Congress. 
 
 The attention of Congress is called to the annual report of the Sec 
 retary of the Treasury on the condition of the pubhc finances. 
 
 The ordinary revenues from all sources for the fiscal year ended June 
 30, 1870, were 1273,827,184.40; the ordinary expenditures for the same 
 period were .$260,047,883.53; leaving a surplus revenue for the year of 
 $0,879,300.93. 
 
 The receipts for the present fiscal year, ended June 30, 1880, actual 
 and estimated, are as follows: Actual receipts for the first quarter 
 commencing July 1, 1879, $79,843,663.01; estimated receipts for the 
 remaining three-quarters of the year, $208,156,336.39; total receipts 
 for the current fiscal year, actual and estimated, $288,000,000. 
 
 The expenditures for the same period will be, actual and estimated, 
 as follows : For the quarter commencing July 1, 1879, actual expendi- 
 tures, $91,683,385.10; and for the remaining three-quarters of the year 
 the expenditures are estinuited at $172,315,614.90— making the total 
 expenditures $264,000,000, and leaving an estimated surplus revenue 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 273 
 
 for the year ending Jnne 30, 1880, of $24,000,000. The total receipts 
 during- the next fiscal year ending June 30, 1881, estimated according to 
 existing laws, will be $288,000,000; and the estimated ordinary ex- 
 penditures for the same period will be $278,097,364.39 ; leaving a sur- 
 plus of $9,902,635.61 for that year. 
 
 The large amount expended for arrears of pensions during the last 
 and the present fiscal year, amounting to $21,747,249.60, has prevented 
 the application of the full amount required by law to the sinking-fund 
 for the current year; but these arrears having been substantially paid, 
 it is believed that the sinking-fund can hereafter be maintained with- 
 out any change of existing law. 
 
 The Secretary of War reports that the War-Department estimates 
 for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1881, are $40,380,428.93, the same 
 being for a less sum of money than any annual estimate rendered to 
 Congress from that Department during a period of at least twelve 
 years. 
 
 He concurs with the General of the Army in recommending such 
 legislation as will authorize the enlistment of the full number of twenty- 
 five thousand men for the line of the Army, exclusive of the three 
 thousand four hundred and sixty-three men required for detached duty, 
 and therefore not available for service in the field. 
 
 He also recommends that Congress be asked to provide by law for 
 the disposition of a large number of abandoned military posts and res- 
 ervations, which, though very valuable in themselves, have been ren- 
 dered useless for military purposes by the advance of civilization and 
 settlement. 
 
 He unites with the Quartermaster-General in recommending that an 
 appropriation be made for the' construction of a cheap and perfectly 
 fire-proof building for the safe storage of a vast amount of money ac- 
 counts, vouchers, claims, and other valuable records now in the Quar- 
 termaster-General's office, and exposed to great risk of total destruction 
 by fire. 
 
 He also recommends, in conformity with the views of the Judge- 
 Advocate General, some declaratory legislation in reference to the 
 military statute of limitations as applied to the crime of desertion. 
 
 In these several recommendations I concur. 
 
 The Secretary of War further reports, that the work for the improve- 
 ment of the South Pass of the Mississippi river, under contract with 
 Mr. James B. Eads, made in pursuance of an act of Congress, has been 
 prosecuted during the past year, with a greater measure of success in 
 the attainment of results than during any previous year. The channel 
 18 
 
274 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 through the South Pass, which, at tliebej^iniiiiig of operations in June, 
 187o, liad a depth of only seven and one-half feet of water, had, on the 
 8th of July, 1879, a niiniinuui depth of twenty-six feet, haviuj*' a M'idth 
 of not less than two hundred feet, and a central depth of thirty feet. 
 l*aynients have been made in accordance with the statute, as the work 
 progressed, amounting in the aggregate to $4,250,00{); and further 
 l)ayments will become due, as provided by the statute, in the event of 
 success in maintaining the channel now secured. 
 
 The reports of the General of the Army and of his subordinates, ])re- 
 sent a full and detailed account of the military operations for the sup- 
 pression of hostilities among the Indians of the Ute and Ai)ache tribes, 
 and praise is justly awarded to the ofiicers and troops engaged, for 
 promptness, skill, and courage displayed. 
 
 The past year has been one of almost unbroken peace and quiet on 
 the Mexican frontier, aiul there is reason to believe that the efforts of 
 this Government and of Mexico, to maintain order in that region, will 
 prove permanently successful. 
 
 This Department was enabled during the past year totind temi)orary 
 though crowded accommodations, and a safe depository for a i)ortiou 
 of its records, in the completed east wing of the building, designed for 
 the State, War, and Xavy T)ei)artments. The construction of the north 
 wing of the building, a part of the structure intended for the use of the 
 War Department, is being carried forward with all possible dispatch, 
 and the work should receive from Congress such liberal appropriations 
 as will secure its speedy completion. 
 
 The report of the Secretary of the Navy shows continued improve- 
 ment in that branch of the service during the last fiscal year. Exten- 
 sive repairs have been made ui)on vessels, and two new ships have been 
 completed and made ready for sea. 
 
 The total expenditures of the year ending June 30, 187!), including 
 specific appropriations not estimated for by the Department, were 
 $13,555,710.01). The expenses chargeable to the year, after deducting 
 the amount of these specific appropriations, were $13,343,317.70; but 
 this is subject to a reduction of $283,725.99, that amount having been 
 drawn upon warrants, but nftt paid out during the year. The amount 
 of appropriations api)licable to the last fiscal year was $14,538,010.17. 
 There was, therefore, a balance of $1,479,054.37 remaining unexpended, 
 and to the credit of the Dei)artment, on June 30, 187t). The estimates 
 for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1881, are $14,804,147.95, which 
 exceeds the appropriations for the present fiscal year $301,897.28. The 
 reason for this increase is explained in the Secretary's report. The 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 275 
 
 appropriations available for the present fiscal year are $14,502,250.67, 
 which will, in the o])inion of the Secretary, answer all the ordinary 
 demands of the service. The anionnt drawn from the Treasury from 
 July 1 to ^^ovember 1, 1870, was 85,770,404.12, of which $1,095,440.33 has 
 been refunded, leavinj;- as the expenditure for that period $4,674,903.79. 
 If the expenditures of the remaining- two-thirds of the year do not exceed 
 the proportion for these four months, there will remain unexpended, at 
 the end of the year, $477,359.30 of the current appropriations. The 
 reiKirt of the Secretary shows the gratifying fact that among all the 
 disbursing ofiBcers of the pay cori)s of the Navy there is not one who is 
 a defaulter to the extent of a single dollar. I unite with him in recom- 
 mending the removal of the Observatory to a more healthful location. 
 That institution reflects credit upon the Nation, and has obtained the 
 approbation of scientific men in all parts of the world. Its removal 
 from its present location would not only be conducive to the health of 
 its officers and professors, but would greatly increase its usefulness. 
 
 The appropriation for judicial expenses, which has heretofore been 
 made for the Department of Justice, in gross, was subdivided at the 
 last session of Congress, and no appropriation whatever was made for 
 the payment of the fees of marshals and their deputies, either in the 
 service of process or for the discharge of other duties ; and, since June 
 30, these officers have continued the performance of their duties without 
 compensation from the Government, taking upon themselves the neces- 
 sary incidental outlays, as well as rendering their own services. In only 
 a few unavoidable instances has the proper execution of the process of 
 the United States failed by reason of the absence of the reciuisite ap- 
 propriation. This course of ofQcial conduct on the part of these officers, 
 highly creditable to their fidelity, was advised by the Attorney-General, 
 who informed them, however, that they would necessarily have to rely 
 for their compensation upon the prospect of future legislation by Con- 
 gress. I therefore especially recommend that immediate appropriation 
 be made by Congress for this purpose. 
 
 The act making the principal appropriation for the Department of 
 Justice at previous sessions has uniforndy contained the following 
 clause: "And for defraying the expenses which may be incurred in the 
 enforcement of the act approved February 28, 1870, entitled 'An act to 
 amend an act approved May 30, 1870, entitled 'An act to enforce the 
 right of citizens of the United States to vote in the several States of the 
 United States, and for other purposes,' or any acts amendatory thereof 
 or supplementary thereto.' " 
 
 No appropriation was made for this purpose for the current year. As 
 
276 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 no general election for members of Congress occurred, the omission 
 was a matter of little practical importance. Such election will, how- 
 ever, take pliice during the ensuing year, and the appropriation made 
 for the pay of marshals and deputies should be sufiQcieiit to embrace 
 compensation for the services they may be required to perform at such 
 elections. 
 
 The business of the Suj)reme Court is, at present, largely in arrears. 
 It cannot be expected that more causes can be decided than are noAv 
 disposed of in its annual session, or that by any assiduity the distin- 
 guished magistrates who compose the Court can accomplish more than 
 is now done. In the courts ot many of the circuits, also, the business 
 has increased to such an extent that the delay of justice will call the 
 attention of Congress to an appropriate remedy. It is believed that 
 all is done in each circuit which can fairly be expected from its judicial 
 force. The evils arising from delay are less heavily felt by the United 
 States than by private suitors, as its causes are advanced by the courts 
 when it is seen that they involve the discussion of questious of a pub- 
 lic character. 
 
 The remedy suggested by the Attorney-General is the appointment 
 of additional circuit judges, and the creation of an intermediate court 
 of errors and appeals, which shall relieve the Supreme Court of a part 
 of its jurisdiction, while a larger force is also obtained for the perform- 
 ance of circuit duties. 
 
 I commend this suggestion to the consideration of Congress. It 
 would seem to afford a complete remedy, and Avould involve, if ten ad- 
 ditional circuit judges are appointed, an expenditure, at the present 
 rate of salaries, of not uiore than sixty thousand dollars a year, which 
 would certainly be small in comparison with the objects to be attained. 
 The report of the Postmaster-General bears testimony to the general 
 revival of business throughout the country. The receipts of the Post- 
 Office Department for the fiscal year ended June 30, 1879, were 
 130,041,982.86, being $764,465.91 more than the revenues of the pre- 
 ceding year. The amount realized from the sale of postage-stamps, 
 stamped enveloi)es, and postal-cards was $764,465.91 more than in the 
 preceding year, and $2,387,559.23 more than in 1877. The expendi- 
 tures of the Department were $33,449,899.45, of which the sum of 
 $376,461.63 was paid on liabilities incurred in preceding years. 
 
 The expenditures during the year were $801,209.77 less than in the 
 preceding year. This reduction is to be attributed mainly to the oper- 
 ation of the law passed June 17, 1878, changing the compensation of 
 postmasters from a commission on the value of stamps sold to a com- 
 mission on stamps cancelled. 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 277 
 
 The amount drawu from the Treasury on appropriations, in ad- 
 dition to the revenues of the Department, was $3,031,454.96, being 
 $2,270,197.86 less than in the preceding- year. 
 
 The expenditures for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1881, are estimated 
 at $39,920,900, and the receipts from all sources at $32,210,000, leaving 
 a deficiency to be appropriated for, out of the Treasury, of $7,710,900. 
 
 The relations of the Department with railroad companies have 
 been harmonized, notwithstandiug the general reduction by Congress 
 of their compensation, by the appropriation for special facilities, and 
 the railway post-ofiice lines have been greatly extended, especially in 
 the Southern States. The interests of the railway-mail service and of 
 the public would be greatly promoted, and the expenditures could be 
 more readily controlled by the classification of the employes of the 
 railway-mail service as recommended by the Postmaster-General, the 
 appropriation for salaries, with respect to which the maximum limit is 
 already fixed by law, to be made in gross. 
 
 The Postmaster-General recommends an amendment of the law regu- 
 lating the increase of compensation for increased service and increased 
 speed on star routes, so as to enable him to advertise for proposals for 
 such increased service and speed. He also suggests the advantages to 
 accrue to the commerce of the country from the enactment of a general 
 law authorizing contracts with American-built steamers, carrying the 
 American flag, for transi)orting the mail between ports of the United 
 States and ports of the West Indies and South America, at a fixed 
 maximum price per mile, the amount to be expended lieing regulated 
 by annual appropriations, in like manner with the amount paid for the 
 domestic star service. 
 
 The arrangement made by the Postmaster-General and the Secre- 
 tary of the Treasury for the collection of duty upon books received in 
 the mail from foreign countries has proved so satisfactory in its prac- 
 tical operation that the recommendation is now made that Congress 
 shall extend the provisions of the act of March 3, 1879, under which 
 this arrangement was made, so as to api)ly to all other dutiable articles 
 received in the mails from foreign countries. 
 
 The reports of the Secretary of the Interior and of the Commissioner 
 of Indian Affiiirs, setting forth the present state of our relations with 
 the Indian tribes on our territory, the measures taken to advance their 
 civilization and prosperity, and the progress already achieved by them, 
 will be found of more than ordinary interest. The general conduct of 
 our Indian population has been so satisfactory that the occurrence of 
 two disturbances, which resulted in bloodshed and destruction of 
 property', is all the more to be lamented. 
 
278 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 The history of the outbreak on the White River Ute reservation, iu 
 Western Colorado, has become so lainiliar by elaborate reports in the 
 public press that its remarkable incidents need not be stated here iu 
 detail. It is expected that the settlement of this difficulty will lead to 
 such arrangements as will prevent further hostile contact between the 
 Indians and the border settlements in Western Colorado. 
 
 The other disturbance occurred at the Mescalero agency, in New 
 Mexico, where Victoria, the head of a small band of nuirauders, after 
 committing many atrocities, being vigorously chased by a military 
 force, made his way across tlie Mexican border and is now on foreign 
 soil. 
 
 While these occurrences, in Avhicli a comparatively small number of 
 Indians were engaged, are most deplorable, a vast majority of our 
 Indian population have fidly justified the expectations of those who 
 believe that by humane and peaceful iutluences the Indians can be led 
 to abandon the habits of savage life and to develop a capacity for useful 
 and civilized occupations. What they have already accomplished in the 
 pursuit of agricultural and mechanical work, the remarkable success 
 which has attended the experiment of employing as freighters a class 
 of Indians hitherto counted among the wildest and most intractable, 
 and the general and urgent desire expressed by them for the education 
 of their children, may be taken as sufficient proof that they will be 
 found capable of accomplishing much more if they continue to be wisely 
 and fairly guided. The " Indian policy " sketched in the report of the 
 Secretary of the Interior, the object of which is to make liberal i)r()- 
 vision for the education of Indian youth, to settle the Indians upon 
 farm-lots in severalty, to give them title in fee to their farms, inaliena- 
 ble for a certain number of years, and when their wants are thus pro- 
 vided for, to dispose by sale of the lauds on their reservations not 
 occupied and used by them, a fund to be formed out of the proceeds 
 for the benefit of the Indians, which will gradually relieve the Govern- 
 ment of the expenses now provided for by annual appropriations, must 
 commend itself as just and beneficial to the Indians, and as also calcu- 
 lated to remove those obstructions which the existenc«^ of large reser- 
 vations presents to the settlement and development of the country. 
 I, therefore, earnestly recommend the enactment of a law emibling the 
 Government to give Indians a title in fee, inalienable for twenty-five 
 years, to the farm-lands assigned to them by allotment. I also repeat 
 the recommendation made in my first annual message, that a law be 
 passed admitting Indians who can give satisfactory proof of having 
 by their own labor, supported their families for a number of years, 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 279 
 
 and who are willin.^- to detach themselves from their tribal relations, to 
 the benefit of the liomestead act, and to grant them patents containing 
 the same provision of inalienability for a certain period. 
 
 The experiment of sending a number of Indian children, of both 
 sexes, to the ITampton Normal and Agricultural Institute, in Virginia, 
 to receive an elementary English education and practical instruction in 
 farming and other useful industries, has led to results so promising, 
 that it was thought expedient to turn over the cavalry barracks at 
 Carlisle, in Pennsylvania, to the Interior Department for the establish- 
 ment of an Indian school on a larger scale. This school has now one 
 hundred and flfty-eight pupils, selected from various tribes, and is in 
 full operation. Arrangements are also made for the education of a 
 mimber of Indian boys and girls belonging to tribes on the Pacific 
 slope, in a similar manner, at Forest Grove, in Oregon. These institu- 
 tions will commend themselves to the liberality of Congress and to the 
 philanthropic munificence of the American i)eople. 
 
 Last spring, information was received of the organization of an ex- 
 tensive movement in the Western States, the object of which was the 
 occupation by unauthorized persons of certain lands in the Indian 
 Territory ceded hy the Clierokees to the Government for the ijurpose 
 of settlenuMit by other Indian tribes. 
 
 On the 20th of April, I issued a proclamation warning all i^ersons 
 against participation in such an attempt, and, by the co-operation of 
 a military force, the invasion was promptly checked. It is my purpose 
 to protect the rights of the Indian inhabitants of that Territory to the 
 full extent of the Execntive power. But it would be unwise to ignore 
 the fact that a Tei-ritory so large and so fertile, with a population so 
 sparse and with so great a wealth of unused resources, will be fonnd 
 more exposed to the repetition of such attempts as happened this year 
 when the surrounding States are more densely settled and the westward 
 movement of our population looks still more eagerly for fresh lands to 
 occupy. Under such circumstances, the difficulty of maintaining the 
 Indian Territory in its present state will greatly increase, and the In- 
 dian tribes inhabiting it would do well to prepare for snch a contin- 
 gency. I, therefore, fully approve of the advice given to them by the 
 Secretary of the Interior on a recent occasion, to divide among them- 
 selves in severalty as large a quantity of their land:3 as they can culti- 
 vate, to acquire imlividual title in fee, instead of their present tribal 
 ownership in couunon, and to consider in what manner the balance of 
 their lands may be disposed of by the Government for their benefit. 
 By adopting such a policy they would more certainly secnre for them- 
 
280 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 selves the value of their possessions, and at the same time promote 
 their progress in civilization and prosperity, than by endeavoring to 
 perpetuate the present state of things in the Territory. 
 
 The question whether a change in the control of the Indian service 
 should be made was, in the Forty-fifth Congress, referred to a joint 
 committee of both Houses for inquiry and report. In my last annual 
 message I expressed the hope that the decision of that question, then 
 in prospect, "would arrest further agitation of this subject, such agita- 
 tion being apt to produce a disturbing effect upon the service as well as 
 the Indians themselves." Since then, the committee having reported, 
 the question has been decided in the negative by a vote in the House 
 of Eepresentatives. 
 
 For the reasons here stated, and in view of the fact that further un- 
 certainty on this point will be calculated to obstruct other much-needed 
 legislation, to weaken the discipline of the service, and to unsettle 
 salutary measures now in progress for the government and improve- 
 ment of the Indians, I respectfully recommend that the decision arrived 
 at by Congress at its last session be permittted to stand. 
 
 The eftbrts made by the Department of the Interior to arrest the 
 depredations on the timber-lands of the United States have been con- 
 tinued, and have met with considerable success. A large number of 
 cases of trespass have been prosecuted in the courts of the United 
 States; others have been settled, the trespassers offering to make pay- 
 ment to the Government for the value of the timber taken by them. 
 The proceeds of these prosecutions and settlements turned into the 
 Treasury far exceed in amount the sums appropriated by Congress for 
 this purpose. A more important result, however, consists in the ftict 
 that the destruction of our public forests by depredation, although such 
 cases still occur, has been greatly reduced in extent, and it is probable 
 that if the present policy is vigorously pursued, and sufficient provision 
 to that end is made by Congress, such trespasses, at least those on a 
 large scale, can be entirely suppressed, except in the Territories where 
 timber for the daily requirements of the population cannot, under the 
 present state of the law, be otherwise obtained. I, therefore, earnestly 
 invite the attention of Congress to the recommendation made by the 
 Secretary of the Interior, that a law be enacted enabling the Govern- 
 ment to sell timber from the public lands without conveying the fee, 
 where such lands are principally valuable for the timber thereon, such 
 sales to be so regulated as to conform to domestic wants and business 
 requirements, while at the same time guarding against a sweeping 
 destruction of the forests. The enactment of such a law appears to 
 become a more pressing necessity every day. 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 281 
 
 My recommendations iu former messages are renewed in favor of en- 
 larging the facilities of the Department of Agriculture. Agriculture is 
 the leading interest and the permanent industry of our people. It is to 
 the abundance of agricultural production, as compared with our home 
 consumption, and the largely-increased and highly-profitable market 
 abroad which we have enjoyed in recent years, that we are mainly 
 indebted for our present prosperity as a people. We must look for its 
 continued maintenance to the same substantial resource. There is no 
 branch of industry in which labor, directed by scientific knowledge, 
 yields such increased production in comparison with unskilled labor, 
 and no branch of the public service to which the encouragement of 
 liberal appropriations can be more appropriately extended. The omis- 
 sion to render such aid is not a wise economy ; but, on the contrary, 
 undoubtedly results in losses of immense sums annually that might be 
 saved through well-directed efforts by the Government to promote this 
 vital interest. 
 
 The results already accomplished with the very limited means here- 
 tofore placed at the command of the Department of Agriculture are an 
 earnest of what may be expected with increased aijpropriations for the 
 several purposes indicated in the report of the Commissioner, with a 
 view to placing the Department upon a footing which will enable it to 
 prosecute more eifectively the objects for which it is established. 
 
 Appropriations are needed for a more complete laboratory, for the 
 establishment of a veterinary division, and a division of forestry, and 
 for an increase of force. 
 
 The requirements for these and other purposes, indicated in the re- 
 port of the Commissioner under the head of the immediate necessities 
 of the Department, will not involve any expenditure of money that the 
 country cannot with i)ropriety now undertake in the interests of agri- 
 culture. 
 
 It is gratifying to learn from the Bureau of Education the extent to 
 which educational privileges throughout the United States have been 
 advanced during the year. No more fundamental responsibility rests 
 upon Congress than that of devising appropriate measures of financial 
 aid to education, supplemental to local action in the States and Terri- 
 tories and in the District of Columbia. The wise forethought of the 
 founders of our Government has not only furnishe'd the basis for the 
 support of the common-school systems of the newer States, but laid the 
 foundations for the maintenance of their universities and colleges of 
 agriculture and the mechanic arts. Measures in accordance with this 
 traditional policy for the further benefit of all these interests, and the 
 
282 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 extension of the same advantages to every i^ortion of the country, it is 
 hoped, will receive your favorable consideration. 
 
 To preserve and i)erpetuate the Xational literature should be among 
 the foremost cares of the iS'ational legislature. The library gathered 
 at the Capitol still remains unprovided witli anj- suitable accommoda- 
 tions for its rapidly-increasing stores. The magnitude and imjiortance 
 of the collection, increased as it is by the deposits made under the law 
 of copyright, by domestic and foreign exchanges, and by the scientific 
 library of the Smithsonian Institution, call for building accommodations 
 which shall be at once adequate and fire-proof. The location of such a 
 public building, which should provide for the pressing necessities of the 
 present, and for the vast increase of the Nation's books in the future, is 
 ii matter which addresses itself to the discretion of Congress. It is 
 earnestly recommended as a measure which should unite all suffrages, 
 and which should no longer be delayed. 
 
 The Joint Commission created by the act of Congress of August 2, 
 1870, for the purpose of supervising and directing the completion of the 
 Washington National Monument, of which Commission the President 
 is a member, has given careful attention to this subject, and already 
 the strengthening of the foundation has so far progressed as to insure 
 the entire success of this part of the work. A massive layer of masonry 
 has been introduced below the original foundation, widening the base, 
 increasing the stability of the structure, and rendering it j)ossible to 
 carry the shaft to completion. It is earnestly recommended that such 
 further appropriations be made for the continued prosecution of the 
 work as may be necessary for the completion of this National Monu- 
 ment at an early day. 
 
 In former messages, impressed with the importance of the subject, I 
 have taken occasion to commend to Congress the adoption of a gen- 
 erous policy towards the District of Columbia. The report of the Com- 
 missioners of the District, herewith transmitted, contains suggestions 
 and recommendations, to all of which I earnestly invite your careful 
 attention. I ask your early and faA^orable consideration of the views 
 which they express as to the urgent need of legislation for the reclama- 
 tion of the marshes of the Potomac and its Eastern Branch, within the 
 limits of the city, and for the repair of the streets of the Capital, here- 
 tolbre laid with wooden blocks, and now, by decay, rendered almost 
 impassable, and a source of imminent danger to the health of its citi- 
 zens. The means at the disposal of the Commissioners are wholly in- 
 adequate for the accomplishment of these important woiks, and should 
 be supplemented by timely approjmations from the Federal treasury. 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 283 
 
 The filling of the flats in front of the city will add to the adjacent 
 lauds and parks now owned by the United States a large and valuable 
 domain, sufBcient, it is thought, to reimburse its entire cost, and will 
 also, as an incidental result, secure the permanent improvement of the 
 river for the purposes of navigation. 
 
 The Constitution having invested Congress with supreme and exclu- 
 sive jurisdiction over the District of Columbia, its citizens must, of ne- 
 cessity, look to Congress alone for all needful legislation affecting their 
 interests; and, as the territory of this District is the common property 
 of the people of the United States, who, equally with its resident citi- 
 zens, are interested in the prosperity of their Capital, I cannot doubt 
 that you will be amply sustained by the general voice of the country 
 in any measures you may adoi)t for this purpose. 
 
 I also invite the favorable consideration of Congress to the wants of 
 the public schools of this District, as exhibited in the report of the 
 Commissioners. While the number of pupils is rapidly increasing, no 
 adequate provision exists for a corresponding increase of school accom- 
 modation, and the Commissioners are without the means to meet this 
 urgent need. A number of the buildings now used for school purposes 
 are rented, and are, in important particulars, uusuited for the purpose. 
 The cause of popular education in the District of Columbia is surely 
 entitled to the same consideration at the hands of the National Gov- 
 ernment as in the several States and Territories, to which munificent 
 grants of the public lands have been made for the endowment of 
 schools and universities. 
 
 RUTHERFORD B. HAYES. 
 
 Executive Mansion, December 1, 1879. 
 
A 
 
PROCLAMATION. 
 INVASION OF INDIAN TERRITORY 
 
 P^EBRUARY 19, 1880. 
 
PROCLAMATION. 
 
 BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. 
 
 A PROCLAMATION. 
 
 Whereas it has become known to itie that certain evil-disposed per- 
 sons have, within the territory and jnrisdiction of tl»e United States, 
 begun and set on foot preparations for an organized and forcible pos- 
 session of and settlement ujiou the lands of what is known as the Indian 
 Territory, west of the State of Arkansas, which Territory is designated, 
 recognized, and described by the treaties and laws of the United States, 
 and by the executive authorities, as Indian Country, and as such is 
 only subject to occupation by Indian tribes, ofiacers of the Indian 
 De])artnient, nulitary posts, and such persons as may be privileged to 
 reside and trade therein under the intercourse laws of the United 
 States; 
 
 And Avhereas those laws provide for the removal of all persons resid- 
 ing and trading therein, without express permission of the Indian 
 Department and agents, and also of all persons whom sucli agents may 
 deem to be improper persons to reside in the Indian Country; 
 
 And whereas, in aid and support of such organized movement, it has 
 been represented that no further action will be taken by the Govern- 
 ment to prevent persons from going into said Territory and settling 
 therein, but such representations are wholly without authority: 
 
 Now, therefore, for the purpose of properly protecting the interests 
 of the Indian nations and tril)es, as well as of the United States, in 
 said Indian Territory, and of duly enforcing the laws governing the 
 same, I, Rutherford B. Hayes, President of the United States, do ad- 
 monish and warn all such persons so intending or preparing to remove 
 upon said lands, or into said Territory, without permission of the proper 
 agent of the Indian Department, against any attempt to so remove or 
 settle upon any of the lands of said Territory; and I do further warn 
 and notify any and all such persons who may so offend that they will 
 be speedily and immediately removed therefrom by the agent, accord- 
 ing to the laws made and provided, and that no efforts will be spared 
 to prevent the invasion of said Territory, rumors spread by evil-disposed 
 
288 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 persons to the contrary notwithstanding; and if necessary the aid and 
 assistance of the military forces of the United States will be invoked 
 to carry into proper execution the laws of the United States herein 
 referred to. 
 
 In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand, and caused the 
 seal of the United States to be af&xed. 
 
 Done at the city of Washington, this twelfth day of February, in the 
 year of our Lord one thousand eiglit hundred and eighty, and 
 [SEAL.] of the Independence of the United States the one hundred 
 and fourth. 
 
 E. B. HAYES. 
 
 By the President : 
 
 Wm. M. Evarts, 
 
 Secretary of State. 
 
MESS^OE 
 
 THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
 
 MARCH 8, 1880. 
 
 19 
 
MESSAGE. 
 
 To THE House of Eepresentatives : 
 
 I transmit herewith the report of the Secretary of State, and the 
 accompanying papers, in response to the resolution adopted by the 
 House of Eepreseutatives on the 10th of February last, requesting 
 "copies of all correspondence in relation to the interoceanic canal 
 which may have passed between this Government and foreign Govern- 
 ments ; also between this Government and its own representatives in 
 other countries ; and between this Government and individuals inter- 
 ested in, or proposing to be interested in, negotiations for the construc- 
 tion of such a canal; and that he communicate to this House what, if 
 any, treaty obligations with other Governments rest upou this Govern- 
 ment." 
 
 In further compliance with the resolution of the House, I deem it 
 proper to state briefly my opinion as to the policy of the United States 
 with respect to the construction of an interoceanic canal by any route 
 across the American Isthmus. 
 
 The policy of this country is a canal under American control. The 
 United States cannot consent to the surrender of this control to any 
 European Power or to any combination of European Powers. If exist- 
 ing treaties between the United States and other Nations, or if the 
 rights of sovereignty or property of other Nations, stand in the way of 
 this policy — a contingency which is not apprehended— suitable steps, 
 should be taken by just and liberal negotiations to promote and estab- 
 lish the American policy on this subject, consistently with the rights 
 of the Nations to be aifected by ic. 
 
 The capital invested by corporations or citizens of other countries in 
 such an enterprise must in a great degree look for protection to one or 
 more of the great Powers of the world. No European Power can inter- 
 vene for such protection without adopting measures on this continent 
 which the United States would deem wholly inadmissible. If the pro- 
 tection of the United States is relied upou, the United States must 
 exercise such control as will enable this country to protect its national 
 interests and maintain the rights of those whose private capital is 
 embarked in the work. 
 
292 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 An interoceanic canal across tlie American Isthmus will essentially 
 change the geographical relations between the Atlantic and Pacific 
 coasts of the United States, and between the United States and the 
 rest of the world. It vnll be the great ocean thoroughfare between our 
 Atlantic and our Pacific shores, and virtually a part of the coast line 
 of the United States. Our merely commercial interest in it is greater 
 than that of all other countries, while its relations to our power and 
 prosperity as a Nation, to our means of defence, our unity, peace, and 
 safety, are matters of paramount concern to the people of the United 
 States. No other great Power would, under similar circumstances, fail 
 to assert a rightful control over a work so closely and vitally affecting 
 its interest and welfare. 
 
 Without urging further the grounds of my opinion, I repeat, in con- 
 clusion, that it is the right and the duty of the United States to assert 
 and maintain such supervision and authority over any interoceanic 
 canal across the Isthmus that connects North and South America, as 
 will protect our national interests. This I am quite sure will be found 
 not only compatible with, but promotive of the widest and most per- 
 manent advantage to commerce and civilization. 
 
 EUTHERFOED B. HAYES. 
 
 Executive Mansion, March 8, 1880. 
 
M:ESSA.aE: 
 
 THE TWO HOUSES OF CONGRESS 
 
 APRIL 92, 1880. 
 
MESSAGE. 
 
 To THE Senate and House of Representatives: 
 
 I have the honor to inform Congress that Mr. J. Randolph Coolidge, 
 Dr. Algernon Coolidge, Mr. Thomas Jefferson Coolidge, and Mrs. Ellen 
 Dwight, of Massachusetts, the heirs of the late Joseph Coolidge, jr., 
 desire to present to the United States the desk on which the Declara- 
 tion of Independence was written. It bears the following inscription 
 in the handwriting of Thomas Jefferson: 
 
 "Thomas Jefferson gives this writing-desk to Joseph Coolidge, jr., 
 as a memorial of his affection. It was made from a drawing of his 
 own, by Ben. Kandall, cabinet-maker of Philadelphia, with whom he 
 first lodged on his arrival in that city in May, 1776, and is the identical 
 one on which he wrote the Declaration of Independence. 
 
 "Politics as well as religion has its superstitions. These, gaining 
 strength, with time, mav one day give imaginary value to this relic for 
 its association with the "birth of the great charter of our Independence. 
 
 "MONTICELLO, November 18, 1825." 
 
 The desk was placed in my possession by Hon. Robert C. Winthrop, 
 and is herewith transmitted to Congress, with the letter of Mr. Win- 
 throp, expressing the wish of the donors "to offer it to the United 
 States, that it may hereafter have a place in the Department of State 
 in connection with the immortal instrument which was written upon it 
 in 1770." 
 
 I resi)ectfully recommend that such action may be taken by Congress 
 as may be deemed appropriate with reference to a gift to the Kation so 
 ])recious in its history and for the memorable associations which belong 
 
 to it. 
 
 RUTHERFORD B. HAYES. 
 
 Executive Mansion, April 22, 1880. 
 
 "Washington, D. C, April 14, 1880. 
 
 "My dear sir: I have been privileged to bring with me from Bos- 
 ton, as a present to the United States, a very precious historical relic. 
 It is the little desk on which Mr. Jefferson wrote the original draught 
 of the Declaration of Independence. 
 
 "This desk was given by Mr. Jefferson himself to my friend the late 
 Joseph Coolidge, of Boston, at the time of his marriage to Jefferson's 
 
296 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 grandclaugliter, Miss Randolpli; and it bears an autograph inscription, 
 of singular interest, written by the illustrious author of the Declara- 
 tion in the very last year of his life. 
 
 "On the recent death of Mr. Coolidge, whose wife had died a year 
 or two previously, the desk became the property of their children — Mr. 
 J. Randolph Coolidge, Dr. Algernon Coolidge, Mr. Thomas Jeflerson 
 Coolidge, and Mrs. Ellen Dwight — who now desire to offer it to the 
 United States, so that it may lienceforth have a place in the Depart- 
 ment of State, in connection with the immortal instrument which was 
 written upon it in 177G. 
 
 "They have done me the honor to make me the medium of this dis- 
 tinguished gift, and I ask permission to place it in the hands of the 
 Chief Magistrate of the Nation in their name and at their request. 
 
 "Believe me, dear Mr. President, with the highest respect, very faith- 
 fully, your obedient servant, 
 
 "ROBERT C. WINTHROP. 
 
 " His Excellency Rutherford B. Hayes, 
 
 ^^ President of the United States." 
 
 • 
 
]>d:ESSA.GE 
 
 RETURNING TO THE 
 
 HOUSE OF REPKESENTATIVES THE BILL ENTITLED "AN ACT MAKING 
 APPROPRIATIONS TO SUPPLY CERTAIN DEFICIENCIES IN THE 
 APPROPRIATIONS FOR THE SERVICE OF THE GOVERN- 
 MENT FOR THE FISCAL YEAR ENDING JUNE 30, 
 1880, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES." 
 
 MAY 4, 1880. 
 
I 
 
MESSAGE. 
 
 To THE House of Representatives: 
 
 After mature consideration of the bill entitled "An act making ap- 
 propriations to supply certain deficiencies in the appropriations for the 
 service of the Government for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1880, and 
 for other purposes," I return it to the House of Representatives, in 
 which it originated, with my objections to its passage. 
 
 The bill appropriates about $8,000,000, of which over $600,000 is for 
 the payment of the fees of United States marshals, and of the general 
 and special deputy marshals, earned during the current fiscal year, 
 and their incidental expenses. The appropriations made in the bill 
 are needed to* carry on the operations of the Government and to fulfil 
 its obligations for the payment of money long since due to its officers 
 for services and expenses essential to the execution of their duties under 
 the laws of the United States. The necessity for these appropriations 
 is so urgent, and they have been already so long delayed, that if the 
 bill before me contained no permanent or general legislation uncon- 
 nected with these appropriations it would receive my prompt approval. 
 It contains, however, provisions which materially change, and by im- 
 plication repeal, important parts of the laws for the regulation of the 
 United States elections. These laws have for several years past been 
 the subject of vehement political controversy, and have been denounced 
 as unnecessary, oppressive, and unconstitutional. On the other hand, 
 it has been maintained with equal zeal and earnestness, that the elec- 
 tion laws are indispensable to fair and lawful elections, and are clearly 
 warranted by the Constitution. Under these circumstances, to attempt 
 in an appropriation bill the modification or repeal of these laws is to 
 annex a condition to the passage of needed and proper appropriations 
 which tends to deprive the Executive of that equal and independent 
 exercise of discretion and judgment which the Constitution contem- 
 plates. 
 
 The objection to the bill, therefore, to which I respectfully ask your 
 attention, is that it gives a marked and deliberate sanction, attended 
 by no circumstances of pressing necessity, to the questionable and, as 
 I am clearly of opinion, the dangerous practice of tacking upon appro- 
 
300 LETTEKS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 l^riatiou bills general aud i)ermanciit legislation. This practice opens 
 a wide door to hasty, inconsiderate, and sinister legislation. It invites 
 attacks upon the independence and constitntional powers of the Exec- 
 utive by providing an easy and effective way of constraining Executive 
 discretion. Although of late this practice has been resorted to by all 
 political parties, when clothed with power, it did not prevail until forty 
 years after the adoption of the Constitution, and it is contideutly be- 
 lieved that it is condemned by the enlightened judgment of the coun- 
 try. The States which have adopted new constitutions during the last 
 quarter of a century have generally provided remedies for the evil. 
 Many of them have enacted that no law shall contain more than one 
 subject, which shall be plainly expressed in its title. The constitu- 
 tions of more than half of the States contain substantially this provis- 
 ion, or some other of like intent and meaning. The public welfare will 
 be promoted in many ways by a return to the early practice of the 
 Government and to the true rule of legislation, which is that every 
 measure should stand upon its own merits. 
 
 I am firmly convinced that appropriation bills ought not to contain 
 any legislation not relevant to the application or expenditure of the 
 money thereby appropriated, and that by a strict adherence to this 
 principle an important and much-needed reform will be accomplished. 
 
 Placing my objection to the bill on this feature of its frame, I for- 
 bear any comment upon the important general and permanent legisla- 
 tion which it contains, as matter for specific and independent consid- 
 eration. 
 
 RUTHERFORD B, HAYES. 
 
 Executive Mansion, May 4, 1880. 
 
ADDRESS 
 
 OHIO SOLDIERS' REUNION, COLUMBUS, OHIO. 
 
 AUaUST 11, 1880. 
 
ADDRESS. 
 
 Mr. President: 
 
 The citizens of Ohio who were soldiers in the Uuion Army, and who 
 have assembled here in such large numbers, have many reasons for 
 mutual congratulations as they exchange greetings and renew old 
 friendships at this State Keunion. We rejoice that we had the glorious 
 priAdlege of enlisting and serving on the right side in the great conflict 
 for the Union and for equal rights. 
 
 The time that has passed since the contest ended is not so great but 
 that we can without effort recall freshly and vividly the events and 
 scenes and feelings and associations of that most interesting period of 
 our lives. We rejoice, also, that we have been permitted to live long 
 enough to see and to enjoy the results of the victory we gained, and to 
 measure the vast benefits which it conferred on our country and on the 
 Avorld. I shall not attempt to make a catalogue of those benefits, or to 
 estimate their value. A single fact, to which I call your attention, will 
 sufficiently illustrate, for my present purpose, the immeasurable bless- 
 ings conferred upon the United States by the success of the Union 
 arms. 
 
 The statistics of emigration showing the movements of population 
 which are going on in the world, afford a very good test of the com- 
 parative advantages and prosperity of the various civilized Nations. 
 People leave their own country and seek new homes in foreign lands to 
 better their condition. Immigration into a country, therefore, is an 
 evidence of that country's prosperity. It is also a most efficient cause 
 of the progress of the country which receives it. During our civil war, 
 and during the disturbed and troubled years which immediately pre- 
 ceded and followed it, immigration fell off and became of comparatively 
 small importance. But now, our country's prosperity, the stability of 
 our Government, and the permanent prevalence of peace at home and 
 with foreign Nations, blessings which could not have been enjoyed by 
 this country if the Union arms had failed, have given to the world a 
 confidence in the future welfare and greatness of the United States 
 which is pouring upon our shores such streams of immigration as were 
 never known before. 
 
d04 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 This is a fact of the most j)regDaiit significance in our present con- 
 dition. If we take a survey of tlie globe we shall find everywhere, 
 among civilized Nations especially, many people who are eagerly look- 
 ing forward to the time when they can emigrate to some more favored 
 land. Only one of the great Nations is in no danger of losing its capital 
 and labor and skill by emigration. We find only one which, by immi- 
 gration, is gaining rapidly" in numbers, wealth, and power. All are 
 losing by this cause except the United States. The United States 
 alone is gaining. Other Nations see their people going, going. We 
 see, from every quarter, the people of other countries coming, coming, 
 coming. 
 
 There is one flag, and in all the world only one, whose protection, 
 good men and women born under it will never willingly leave. There 
 is one flag, and only one in the world, whose protecting folds, good men 
 and women born under every other flag that floats under the whole 
 heavens, are eagerly and gladly seeking. That flag, so loved at home, 
 so longed for by millions abroad, is the old flag under which we marched, 
 to save, what in our soldier days we were fond of calling "God's coun- 
 try." 
 
 It is easily seen what it is that chiefly attracts this immigration. It 
 goes where good land is cheap; where labor and capital find profitable 
 employment; where peace and social order prevail; and where civil and 
 religious liberty are secure. If we draw nearer to the subject, and ask 
 where in our own country does this immigration mainly go, the recent 
 census, whose results we are now getting, gives us the answer. That 
 census shows us parts of our country, where land is cheap and where 
 capital and labor are needed, that are not rapidly increasing in popula- 
 tion. In these States it will be found that two things are wanting: 
 the means for popular education are not sufiiciently provided, and the 
 good order of society is disturbed by a practical popular refusal to 
 accept the results of the war for the Union. These two defects, wher- 
 ever they prevail in our American society, are hostile to the increase 
 of population and to ])rosperity. They are found generally to exist 
 together. Where popular education prevails, the equal-rights " amend- 
 ments to the Constitution of the United States, embodying the results 
 of the war, are inviolable." 
 
 It must, perhaps, be conceded that there was one great error in the meas- 
 ures by which it was souglit to secure the results — to harvest the fruits 
 of our Union victory. The system of slavery in the South of necessity 
 kept in ignorance four millions of slaves. It also left unprovided with 
 education, a large number of non-slaveholding white i)eople. With the 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 305 
 
 end of the war the slaves inevitably became citizens. The uneducated 
 whites remained as they had been, also citizens. Thus the grave duties 
 and responsibilities of citizenship were devolved largely in the States 
 lately in rebellion, upon uneducated people, white and colored. And 
 with what result? Liberty and the exercise of the rights of citizen- 
 ship are excellent educators. In many respects, we are glad to believe, 
 that encouraging progress has been made at the South. The labor 
 system has been reorganized, material prosperity is increasing, race 
 prejudices and antagonisms have diminished, the passions and animosi- 
 ties of the war are subsiding, and the ancient harmony and concord, 
 and patriotic national sentiments are returning. But, after all, we can- 
 not fail to observe that immigration, which so infallibly and instinc- 
 tively finds out the true condition of all countries, does not largely go 
 into the late slaveholding region of the United States. A great deal 
 of cheap and productive land can there be found where population is 
 not rapidly increasing. When our Revolutionary Fathers adopted the 
 ordinance of 1787, for the government of the Northwest Territory, out 
 of which Ohio and four other great States have been carved, they 
 were not content with merely putting into that organic law a firm pro- 
 hibition against slavery, and providing etfectual guarantees of civil 
 and religious liberty, but they established, as the corner-stone of the 
 free institutions they wished to build, this Article: ^^Beligioii, morality, 
 and Tcnoicledge being necessary to good government and the happiness of 
 manUnd, schools and the means of education shall forever 
 BE ENCOURAaED." Unfortunately for the complete success of recon- 
 struction in the South, this stone was rejected by its builders. Slavery 
 had been destroyed by the war; but its evils live after it, and deprive 
 many parts of the South of that intelligent self-government without 
 which, in America at least, great and permanent prosperity is impos- 
 sible. 
 
 To perpetuate the Union and to abolish slavery were the work of the 
 war. To educate the uneducated is the appropriate work of peace. 
 As long as any considerable numbers of our countrymen are unedu- 
 cated, the citizenship of every American in every State is impaired in 
 value and is constantly imperilled. It is plain that at the end of the 
 war the tremendous change in the labor and social systems of the 
 Southern States, and the ravages and impoverishraent of the conflict, 
 added to the burden of their debts, and the loss of their whole circulat- 
 ing medium, which died in their hands, left the people of those States 
 in no condition to provide for universal popular education. In a recent 
 memorial to Congress on this subject, in behalf of the trustees of the 
 20 
 
306 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 Peabocly Educational Fund, Hon. A. H. H. Stuart, of Virginia, shows 
 that "two millions of children in the Southern States are without the 
 means of instruction;" and adds, with great force, "Where millions 
 of citizens are growing up in the grossest ignorance, it is obvious that 
 neither individual charity nor the resources of impoverished States 
 will be sufticieut to meet the emergency. Nothing short of the wealth 
 and power of the Federal Government will suffice to overcome the evil." 
 
 The principle applied by general consent to works of public improve 
 ment is in point. That principle is, that wherever a public improvement 
 is of national importance, and local and private enterprise are inade- 
 quate to its prosecution, the General Government should undertake it. 
 On this principle I would deal with the question of education by the 
 aid of the National Government. Wherever in the United States the 
 local systems of popular education are inadequate, they should be sup- 
 plemented by the General Government, by devoting to the purpose, by 
 suitable legislation and with proper safeguards, the public lands, or if 
 necessary, api)ropriations from the Treasury of the United States. 
 
 The soldier of the Union has done his work, and has done it well. 
 The work of the schoolmaster is now in order. Wherever his work 
 shall be well done, in all our borders, it will be found that there, also, the 
 principles of the Declaration of Independence will be cherished, the 
 sentiment of Nationality will prevail, the equal-rights amendments will 
 be cheerfully obeyed, and there will be "the home of freedom and the 
 refuge of the oppressed of every race and of every clime." 
 
THANKSGIVING PROCLAMATION. 
 
 NOVEMBER 1, 1880. 
 
i 
 
PROCLAMATION. 
 
 BY THE PEESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. 
 A PROCLAMATION 
 
 At no period ia their history since the United States became a 
 Nation has this people had so abundant and so universal reasons for 
 joy and gratitude at the favor of Almighty God, or been subject to so 
 profound an obligation to give thanks for His loving kindness and 
 humbly to implore His continued care and protection. 
 
 Health, wealth, and x^rosperity throughout all our borders; peace, 
 honor, and friendship with all the world; firm and faithful adherence 
 by the great body of our population to the principles of liberty and 
 justice which have made our greatness as a Nation; and to the wise 
 institutions and strong frame of government and society which will 
 perpetuate it. For all these let the thanks of a happy and united people, 
 as with one voice, ascend in devout homage to the Giver of all good. 
 
 I, therefore, recommend that on Thursday, the twenty-fifth day of 
 November next, the people meet in their respective places of worship 
 to make their acknowledgments to Almighty God for His bounties and 
 His protection, and to offer to Him prayers for their continuance. 
 
 In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand, and caused the 
 seal of the United States to be affixed. 
 
 Done at the city of Washington this first day of November, in the 
 year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and eighty, and 
 [seal,.] of the Independence of the United States the one hundred and 
 fifth. 
 
 R. B. HATES. 
 
 By the President: 
 
 Wm. M. Evarts, 
 
 Secretary of State. 
 
JMESS^aE 
 
 TWO HOUSES or OONGEESS AT THE OOMMEKCEMENT OE THE THIED 
 SESSION or THE EOETY-SIXTH OONaEESS. 
 
 DECEMBER 6, 1880. 
 
Ii 
 
MESSAGE. 
 
 Fellow-Citizens of the Senate 
 
 AND House of Eepresentatives: 
 
 I congratulate you on the continued and increasing prosperity of our 
 country. By tlie favor of Divine Providence we have been blessed^ 
 during the past year, with health, with abundant harvests, with i^roiit- 
 able employment for all our people, and with contentment at home^ 
 and with peace and friendship with other Nations. 
 
 The occurrence of the twenty-fourth election of Chief Magistrate has 
 afforded another opportunity to the people of the United States to • 
 exhibit to the world a significant example of the peaceful and safe 
 transmission of the power and authority of government from the public 
 servants whose terms of ofidce are about to exi^ire, to their newly-chosen 
 successors. This example cannot fail to impress profoundly, thought- 
 ful people of other countries witli the advantages which republican 
 institutions afford. The immediate, general, and cheerful acquiescence 
 of all good citizens, in the result of the election, gives gratifying assur- 
 ance to our country, and to its friends throughout the world, that a 
 Government based on the free consent of an intelligent and patriotic 
 people possesses elements of strength, stability, and iiermaneucy not 
 found in any other form of government. 
 
 Continued opposition to the full and free enjoyment of the rights of 
 citizenship, conferred upon the colored people by the recent amend- 
 ments to the Constitution, still prevails in several of the late slave- 
 holding States. It has, perhaps, not been manifested in the recent 
 election to nwy large extent in acts of violence or intimidation. It has, 
 however, by fraudulent practices in connection with the ballots, with 
 the regulations as to the places and manner of voting, and with count- 
 ing, returning, and canvassing the votes cast, been successful in defeat 
 ing the exercise of the right preservative of all rights, the right of 
 suffrage, which the Constitution expressly confers upon our enfranchised 
 citizens. 
 
 It is the desire of the good people of the whole country that section- 
 alism as a factor in our i)olitics should disap])ear. They prefer that no 
 section of the country should be united in solid opposition to any other 
 section. The disposition to refuse a prompt and hearty obedience to 
 
314 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 the equal-rights amendments to the Constitution, is all that now stands 
 in the way of a C()mi)lete obliteration of sectional lines in our political 
 contests. As long as either of these amendments is flagrantly violated 
 or disregarded, it is safe to assume that the people who placed them in 
 the Constitution, as embodying the legitimate results of the war for the 
 Union, and who believe them to be wise and necessary, will continue 
 to act together, and to insist that they shall be obeyed. The para- 
 mount question still is, as to the enjoyment of the right by every 
 American citizen who has the requisite qualifications, to freely cast his 
 vote and to have it honestly counted. With this question rightly 
 settled, the country will be relieved of the contentions of the past; 
 bygones will indeed be bygones; and political and party issues with 
 respect to economy and efficiency of administration, internal improve- 
 ments, the tariff, domestic taxation, education, finance, and other im- 
 portant subjects, will then receive their full share of attention; but 
 resistance to and nullification of the results of the war, will unite to- 
 gether in resolute purpose for their supi)ort all who maintain the 
 authority of the Government and the perpetuity of the Union, and who 
 adequately appreciate the value of the victory achieved. This deter- 
 mination proceeds from no hostile sentiment or feeling to any part of 
 the people of our country, or to any of their interests. The inviolability 
 of the amendments rests upon the fundamental principle of our Gov- 
 ernment. They are the solemn expression of the will of the people of 
 the United States. 
 
 The sentiment that the constitutional rights of all our citizens must 
 be maintained does not grow weaker. It will continue to control the 
 Government of the country. Happily, the history of the late election 
 jshows that in many parts of the country where opposition to the fif- 
 teenth amendment has heretofore i:)revailed, it is diminishing, and is 
 likely to cease altogether, if firm and well-considered action is taken by 
 Congress. I trust the House of Representatives and the Senate, which 
 have the right to judge of the elections, returns, and qualifications of 
 their own members, will see to it that every case of violation of the 
 letter or spirit of the fifteenth amendment is thoroughly investigated, 
 and that no benefit from such violation shall accrue to any person or 
 party. It will be the duty of the Executive, with sufficient appropria- 
 tions for the purpose, to prosecute unsparingly all who have been 
 engaged in depriving citizens of the rights guaranteed to them by the 
 Constitution. 
 
 It is not, however, to be forgotten that the best and surest guarantee 
 of the primary rights of citizenship is to be found in tliat capacity for 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 315 
 
 * self-protection which can belong only to a people whose right to uni- 
 versal suffrage is supported by universal education. The means at the 
 command of the local and State authorities are, in many cases, wholly 
 inadequate to furuish free instruction to all who need it. This is espe- 
 cially true where, before emancipation, the education of the people was 
 neglected or prevented, in the interest of slavery. Firmly convinced 
 that the subject of popular education deserves the earnest attention of 
 the people of the whole country, with a view to wise and comprehen- 
 sive action by the Government of the United States, I respectfully 
 recommend that Congress, by suitable legislation and with proi)er safe- 
 guards, supplement the local educational funds in the several States 
 where the grave duties and responsibilities of citizenship have been 
 devolved on uneducated people, by devoting to the purpose grants of 
 the public lands, and, if necessary, by appropriations from the Treasury 
 of the United States. Whatever Government can ftiirly do to promote 
 free popular education ought to be done. Wherever general education 
 is found, peace, virtue, and social order prevail, and civil and religious 
 liberty are secure. 
 
 In my former annual messages I have asked the attention of Con- 
 gress to the urgent necessity of a reformation of the (dvil-service sys- 
 tem of the Government. My views concerning the dangers of patronage, 
 or appointments for personal or partisan considerations, have been 
 strengthened by my observation and experience in the Executive ofiQce, 
 and I believe these dangers threaten the stability of the Government. 
 Abuses so serious in their nature cannot be permanently tolerated. 
 They tend to become more alarming with the enhirgement of admin- 
 istrative service, as the growtli of the country in population increases 
 the number of ofldcers and placemen employed. 
 
 The reasons are imperative for the adoption of fixed rules for the 
 regulation of appointments, promotions, and removals, establishing a 
 uniform method, having exclusively in view, in every instance, the 
 attainment of the best qualifications for the position in question. Such 
 a method alone is consistent with the equal rights of all citizens, and 
 the most economical and efficient administration of the public business. 
 
 Competitive examinations, in aid of impartial appointments and pro- 
 motions, have been conducted for some years past in several of tlie 
 Executive Departments, and by my direction this system has been 
 adopted in the custom-houses and post offices of the larger cities of the 
 country. In the city of Kew York over two thousand ])ositions in the 
 civil service have been subject, in their appointments and tenure of 
 place, to the operation of published rules for this purpose, during the 
 
316 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 past two years. The results of these practical trials have been very 
 satisfactory, and have confirmed my opinion in favor of this system of 
 selection. All are subjected to the same tests, and the result is free 
 from prejudice by personal favor or partisan influence. It secures for 
 the position applied for the best (pialifications attainable among- the 
 com])eting applicants. It is an effectual protection from the pressure 
 of importunity which, under any other course pursued, largely exacts 
 the time and attention of appointing officers, to their great detriment 
 in the discharge of other official duties, preventing the abuse of the 
 service for the mere furtherance of private or party purposes, and leaving 
 the employ^- of the Government, freed from the obligations imposed by 
 patronage, to depend solely upon merit for retention and advancement, 
 and with this constant incentive to exertion and improvement. 
 
 These invaluable results have been attained in a high degree in the 
 offices Avliere the rules for appointment by competitive examination 
 have been api)lied. 
 
 A method which has so approved itself by experimental tests at 
 points where such tests may be fairly considered conclusive, should be 
 extended to all subordinate positions under the Government. I believe 
 that a strong and growing public sentiment demands immediate meas- 
 ures for securing and enforcing the highest possible efficiency in the 
 civil service, and its protection from recognized abuses, and that the ex- 
 perience referred to has demonstrated the feasibility of such measures. 
 
 The examinations in the custom-houses and post offices have been 
 held under many embarrassments and without provision for compen- 
 sation for the extra labor performed by the officers who have con- 
 ducted them, and whose commendable interest in the improvement of 
 the public service has induced this devotion of time and labor without 
 pecuniary reward. A continuance of these labors gratuitously ought 
 not to be expected, and without an a])propriation by Congress for com- 
 pensation, it is not practicable to extend the system of examinations 
 generally througlumt the civil service. It is also highly important that 
 all such examinations should be conducted upon a uniform system and 
 under general supervision. Section 1753 of the Revised Statutes author- 
 izes the President to prescribe the regulations for admission to the 
 civil service of the United States, and for this purpose to employ suit- 
 able persons to conduct the requisite inquiries with reference to " the 
 fitness of each candidate, in respect to age, health, character, knowl- 
 edge, and ability, for the branch of service into which he seeks to enter; " 
 but the law is practically inoperative for want of the requisite appro- 
 priation. 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 317 
 
 I therefore recommend an appropriation of $25,000 per annum to 
 meet the expenses of a commission, to be appointed by the President 
 in accordance with the terms of this section, whose duty it shall be to 
 devise a just, uniform, and efficient system of competitive examina- 
 tions, and to supervise the application of the same throughout the 
 entire civil service of the Government. I am persuaded that the facili- 
 ties which such a commission will afford for testing the fitness of those 
 who apply for office will not only be as welcome a relief to members of 
 Congress as it will be to the President and heads of Departments, but 
 that it will also greatly tend to remove the causes of embarrassment 
 which now inevitably and constantly attend tlie conflicting claims of 
 patronage between the Legislative and Executive Departments. The 
 most effectual check upon the pernicious competition of influence and 
 official favoritism, in the bestowal of office, will be the substitution of 
 an open competition of merit between the applicants, in which every 
 one can make his own record with the assurance that his success will 
 depend upon this alone. 
 
 I also recommend such legislation as, while leaving every officer as 
 free as any other citizen to express his political opinions and to use his 
 means for their advancement, shall also enable him to feel as safe as 
 any private citizen in refusing all demands upon his salary for political 
 purposes. A law which should thus guarantee trueliberty and justice 
 to all who are engaged in the public service, and likewise contain 
 stringent provisions against the use of official authority to coerce the 
 political action of private citizens or of official subordinates, is greatly 
 to be desired. 
 
 The most serious obstacle, however, to an improvement of the civil 
 service, and especially to a reform in the method of appointment and 
 removal, has been found to be the practice, under what is known as the 
 spoils system, by which the appointing power has been so largely 
 encroached upon by members of Congress. The first step in the reform 
 of the civil service must be a complete divorce between Congress and 
 the Executive in the matter of appointments. The corrupting doctrine 
 that " to the victors belong the spoils" is inseparable from Con- 
 gressional patronage as the established rule and practice of parties in 
 powder. It comes to be understood by applicants for office, and by the 
 people generally, that Eepresentatives and Senators are entitled to 
 disburse the patronage of their respective districts and States. It is 
 not necessary to recite at length the evils resulting from this invasion 
 of the Executive functions. The true principles of government on the 
 subject of appointments to office, as stated in the National Conventions 
 
318 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 of the leading parties of the country, have again and again been ap- 
 proved V)y the American people, and have not been called in question 
 in any (piarter. These authentic expressions of public opinion upon 
 this all-important subject are the statement of principles that belong 
 to the constitutional structure of the Government. 
 
 "Under the Constitution, tlie President and heads of Departments 
 are to make nominations for office. The Senate is to advise and con- 
 sent to appointments, and the House of Representatives is to accuse 
 and prosecute faithless officers. The best interests of the public service 
 demand that these distinctions be respected ; that Senators and Rep- 
 resentatives, who may be judges and accusers, should not dictate ap- 
 pointments to office." To this end the co-operation of the Legislative 
 Department of the Government is required alike by the necessities of 
 the case and by public opinion. Members of Congress will not be 
 relieved from the demands made upon them with reference to appoint- 
 ments to office until, by legislative enactment, the pernicious practice 
 is condemned and forbidden. 
 
 It is, therefore, recommended that an act be passed defining the 
 relations of members of Congress with respect to appointments to 
 office by the President, and I also recommend that the provisions of 
 section 17G7, and of the sections following, of the Revised Statutes, 
 comprising the Tenure-of- Office Act, of March 2, 1867, be repealed. 
 
 Believing that to reform the system and methods of the civil service 
 in our country is one of the highest and most imperative duties of 
 statesmanship, and that it can be permanently done only by the co- 
 operation of the Legislative and Executive Departmentsof the Govern- 
 ment, I again commend the whole subject to your considerate attention. 
 
 It is the recognized duty and purpose of the people of the United 
 States to suppress polygamy where it now exists in our Territories, and 
 to prevent its extension. Faithful and zealous efforts have been made 
 by the United States authorities in Utah to enforce the laws against it. 
 Experience has shown that the legislation upon this subject, to be 
 effective, requires extensive modification and amendment. The longer 
 action is delayed the more difficult it will be to accomplish what is 
 desired. Prompt and decided measures are necessary. The Mormon 
 sectarian organization which upholds polygamy has the whole power 
 of making and executing the local legislation of the Territory. By its 
 control of the grand and petit juries, it i)Ossesses large influence over 
 the advuinistration of justice. Exercising, as the heads of this sect do, 
 the local political power of the Territory, they are able to nmke effect- 
 ive their hostility to the law of Congress on the subject of polygamy, 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 319 
 
 and, in fact, do prevent its enforcement. Polygamy will not be abol- 
 ished if the enforcement of the law depends on those who practice and 
 uphold the crime. It^an only be suppressed by taking away the 
 political power of the sect Vhich encourages and sustains it. The 
 power of Congress to enact suitable laws to protect the Territories is 
 ample. It is not a case for half-way measures. The political power of 
 the Mormon sect is increasing; it controls now one of our wealthiest 
 and most populous Territories. It is extending steadily into other Ter- 
 ritories. Wherever it goes it establishes polygamy and sectarian politi- 
 cal power. The sanctity of marriage and the family relation are the 
 corner-stone of our American society and civilization. Eeligious lib- 
 erty and the separation of Church and State are among the elementary 
 ideas of free institutions. Tore-establish the interests and princijdes 
 which polygamy and Mormonism have imperilled, and to fully reopen 
 to intelligent and virtuous immigrants of all creeds that part of our 
 domain which has been, in a great degree, closed to general immigra- 
 tion by intolerant and immoral institutions, it is recommended that the 
 government of the Territory of Utah be reorganized. 
 
 I recommend that Congress provide for the government of Utah 
 by a governor and judges, or commissioners, appointed by the Presi- 
 dent and confirmed by the Senate — a government analogous to the 
 provisional government established for the Territory northwest of the 
 Ohio, by the ordinance of 1787. If, however, it is deemed best to con- 
 tinue the existing form of local government, I recommend that the 
 right to vote, hold office, and sit on juries in the Territory of Utah^ 
 be confined to those who neither practice nor uphold polygamy. If 
 thorough measures are adopted, it is believed that within a few years 
 the evils which now afflict Utah will be eradicated, and that this 
 Territory will in good time become one of the most prosi)erous and 
 attractive of the new States of the Union. 
 
 Our relations with all foreign countries have been those of undis- 
 turbed peace, and have presented no occasion for concern as to their 
 continued maintenance. 
 
 My anticipation of an early reply from the British Government to the 
 demand of indemnity to our fishermen for the injuries sufl'ered by that 
 industry at Fortune Bay, in January, 1878, which I expressed in my 
 last annual message, was disappointed. This answer was received only 
 in the latter part of April in the present year, and, when received, ex- 
 hibited a failure of accord between the two Governments, as to the 
 measure of the inshore-fishing privilege secured to our fishermen by 
 the Treaty of Washington, of so serious a character that I made it the 
 
320 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 subject of a coinimiuicatioii to Congress, iu which I reconiineiided the 
 adoption of tlie measures which seemed to nie i)roper to be taken by 
 this Government in maintenance of the rights accorded to our fisher- 
 men under the treaty, and towards securing an indemnity for the injury 
 these interests had suffered. A bill to carry out these reconmienda- 
 tions was under consideration by the House of Eepresentatives at the 
 time of the adjournment of Congress in June last. 
 
 Within a few weeks I have received a communication from Her 
 Majesty's Government, renewing the consideration of the subject, both 
 of the indemnity for the injuries at Fortune Bay, and of the interpreta- 
 tion of the treaty in which the previous corres])ondence had sIioaaii the 
 two Governments to be at variance. Upon both these topics the dis- 
 position towards a friendly agreement is manifested by a recognition 
 of our right to an indemnity for the transaction at Fortune Bay, leaving 
 the measure of such indemnity to further conference, and by an assent 
 to the view of this Government, presented in the i^revious correspond- 
 ence, that the regulation of conflicting interests of the shore fishery of 
 the Provincial sea-coasts, and the vessel fishery of our fishermen, should 
 be made the subject of conference and concurrent arrangement between 
 the two Governments. 
 
 I sincerely hope that the basis may be found for a speedy adjust- 
 ment of the very serious divergence of views of the interpretation of 
 the fishery clauses of the Treaty' of Washington, which, as the cor- 
 respondence between the two Governments stood at the close of the 
 last session of Congress, seemed to be irreconcilable. 
 
 In the important exhibition of arts and industries, which was held 
 last year at Sydney, New South Wales, as well as in that now in i)ro- 
 gress at Melbourne, the United States have been eflSciently and honor- 
 ably' represented. The exhibitors from this country at the former place 
 received a large number of awards in some of the most considerable 
 departments, and the participation of the United States was recog- 
 nized by a special mark of distinction. In the exhibition at Melbourne, 
 the share taken by our country is no less notable, and an equal degree 
 of success is confidently expected. 
 
 The state of peace and tranquillity now enjoyed by all the ISTations of 
 the continent of Eurojie has its favorable influence upon our diplomatic 
 and commercial relations with them. We have concluded and ratified 
 a convention with the French Bepublic for the settlement of claims of 
 the citizens of either country against the other. Under this convention 
 a commission, presided over by a distinguished publicist, appointed, 
 in pursuance of the request of both Nations, by His Majesty the Emperor 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 321 
 
 of Brazil, has been organized and lias begun its sessions in this city. A 
 congress to consider means for tlie ])rotection of industrial property Las 
 recently been in session in Paris, to whicli I have appointed the Minis- 
 ters of the United States in France and in Belgium as delegates. The 
 International Commission upon Weights and Measures also continues 
 its work in Paris. I invite your attention to the necessity of an ap- 
 propriation to be made in time to enable this Government to comply 
 Avith its obligations under the Metrical Convention. 
 
 Our friendly relations with the German Empire continue without 
 interruption. At the recent International Exhibition of Fish and 
 Fisheries at Berlin, the participation of the United States, notwith- 
 standing the haste with which the commission was forced to make its 
 preparations, was extremely successful and meritorious, winning for 
 private exhibitors numerous awards of a high class, and for the country 
 at large the principal prize of honor offered by His Majesty the Emperor. 
 The results of this great success cannot but be advantageous to this 
 important and growing industry. There have been some questions 
 raised between the two Governments as to the proper effect and inter- 
 pretation of our treaties of naturalization, but recent despatches from 
 our Minister at Berlin show that favorable progress is making toward 
 an understanding, in accordance with the views of this Government, 
 which makes and admits no distinction whatever between the rights 
 of a native and a naturalized citizen of the United States. In practice, 
 the complaints of molestation suffered by naturalized citizens abroad 
 have never been fewer than at present. 
 
 There is nothing of importance to note in our unbroken friendly rela- 
 tions with the Governments of Austria-Hungary, Eussia, Portugal, 
 Sweden and Norway, Switzerland, Turkey, and Greece. 
 
 During the last summer several vessels belonging to the merchant 
 marine of this country, sailing in neutral waters of the West Indies, 
 were fired at, boarded, and searched by an armed cruiser of the Spanish 
 Government. The circumstances, as reported, involve not only a pri- 
 vate injury to the persons concerned, but also seemed too little observ- 
 ant of the friendly relations existing for a century between this country 
 and Spain. The wrong was brought to the attention of the Spanish 
 Government in a serious protest and remonstrance, and the matter is 
 undergoing investigation by the royal authorities, with a view to such 
 explanation or reparation as may be called for by the facts. 
 
 The commission sitting in this city for the adjudication of claims of 
 our citizens against the Government of Spain, is, I hope, approaching 
 the termination of its labors. 
 21 
 
322 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 The claims against the United States under the Florida Treaty with 
 Spain were submitted to Congress for its action at the late session, and 
 I again invite your attention to this long-standing question, with a view 
 to a final disposition of the matter. 
 
 At the invitation of the Spanish Government, a conference has re- 
 cently been held at the city of Madrid to consider the subject of pro- 
 tection by foreign Powers of native Moors in the Empire of Morocco. 
 The ;^rinister of the United States, in Spain, was directed to take part 
 in the deliberations of this conference, the result of which is a conven- 
 tion signed on behalf of all the Powers represented. The instrument 
 will be laid before the Senate for its consideration. The Government 
 of the United States has also lost no opportunity to urge upon that of 
 the Emperor of Morocco the necessity, in accordance with the humane 
 and enlightened spirit of the age, of putting an end to the persecutions, 
 which have been so prevalent in that country, of persons of a faith 
 other than the Moslem, and especially of the Hebrew residents of 
 Morocco. 
 
 The consular treaty concluded with Belgium has not yet been ofli- 
 cially promulgated, owing to the alteration of a word in the text by the 
 Senate of the United States, which occasioned a delay, during which 
 the time allowed for ratification expired. The Senate ^ill be asked to 
 extend the period for ratification. 
 
 The attempt to negotiate a treaty of extradition with Denmark failed 
 on account of the objection of the Danish Government to tlie usual 
 clause providing that each Nation should pay the expense of the arrest 
 of the persons whose extradition it asks. 
 
 The provision made by Congress, at its last session, for the expense 
 of the commission whicli had been appointed to enter upon negotiations 
 with the Imperial Government of China, on subjects of great interest to 
 the relations of the two countries, enabled the commissioners to pro- 
 ceed at once upon their mission. The Imperial Government was pre- 
 pared to give prompt and respectful attention to the matters brought 
 under negotiation, and the conferences proceeded with such rapidity and 
 success that, on the 17th of November last, two treaties were signed at 
 Pekin, one relating to the introduction of Chinese into this country 
 and one relating to commerce. Mr. Trescot, one of the commissioners, 
 is now on his way home bringing the treaties, and it is expected that 
 they Avill be received in season to be laid before the Senate early in 
 January. 
 
 Our Minister in Japan has negotiated a convention for the recipro- 
 cal relief of shipwrecked seamen. I take occasion to urge once more 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 323 
 
 ni)oii Congress the propriety of iiialdng" iirovision for the erection of 
 suitable fire-i)roof buildings at the Japanese capital for the use of the 
 American legation, and the court-house and jail connected with it. 
 The Japanese Government, with great generosity and courtesy, has 
 offered for this purpose an eligible piece of land. 
 
 In my last annual message I invited the attention of Congress to the 
 subject of the indemnity funds received some years ago from China and 
 Japan, I renew the recommendation then made, that whatever por- 
 tions of these funds are due to American citizens should be promptly 
 paid, and the residue returned to the Nations, respectively, to which 
 they justly and equitably belong. 
 
 The extradition treaty with the Kingdom of the Netherlands, which 
 has been for sometime in course of negotiation, has, during the past 
 year, been concluded and duly ratified. 
 
 Eelations of friendship and amity have been established between 
 the Government of the United States and that of Eoumania. We have 
 sent a diplomatic representative to Bucharest, and have received at this 
 capital the special envoy, who has been charged by his Royal Highness, 
 Prince Charles, to announce the independent sovereignty of Eoumania. 
 We hope for a speedy development of commercial relations between the 
 two countries. 
 
 In my last annual message I expressed the hope that the prevalence 
 of quiet on the border between this country and Mexico would soon be- 
 come so assured as to justify the modification of the orders, then in force, 
 to our military commanders, in regard to crossing the frontier, without 
 encouraging such disturbances as would endanger the peace of the 
 two countries. Events moved in^accordance with these exj)ectations, 
 and the orders were accordingly withdrawn, to the entire satisfaction 
 of our own citizens and the Mexican Government. Subsequently the 
 peace of the border was again disturbed by a savage foray, under the 
 command of the Chief Victorio, but, by the combined and harmonious 
 action of the military forces of both countries, his band has been 
 broken up and substantially destroyed. 
 
 There is reason to believe that the obstacles which have so long i^re- 
 vented rapid and convenient communication between the United States 
 and Mexico by railways, are on the point of disappearing, and that 
 several important enteri)rises of this character will soon be set on foot 
 which cannot fail to contribute largely to the prosperity of both 
 countries. 
 
 New envoys from Guatemala, Colombia, Bolivia, Yeneznela, and 
 Nicaragua have recently arrived at this capital, whose distinction and 
 
324 LETTERS AXD MESSAGES. 
 
 enligbteiiment afford the best guarantee of the coutiuuance of friendly 
 relations between ourselves and these sister Republics. 
 
 The relation between this Government and that of the United States 
 of Colombia have engaged public attention duiiiig the past year, mainly 
 by reason of the project of an interoceanic canal across the Isthmus of 
 Panama, to be built by private capital under a concession from the 
 Colombian Government for that purpose. The treaty obligations sub- 
 sisting between the United States and Colombia, by which we guarantee 
 the neutrality of the transit and the sovereignty and property of Co- 
 lombia in the Isthmus, make it necessary that the conditions under 
 which so stupendous a change in the region embraced in this guarantee 
 should be effected— transforming, as it would, this Isthmus, from a bar- 
 rier between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, into a gateway and 
 thoroughfare between them, for the navies and the merchant-ships of 
 the world — should receive the approval of this Government, as being 
 com[)atible with the discharge of these obligations on our part, and 
 consistent with our interests as the principal commercial power of 
 the Western Hemisphere. The views which I expressed in a special 
 message to Congress in March last, in relation to this project, I deem it 
 my duty again to press upon your attention. Subsequent consideration 
 has but confirmed the opinion "that it is the right and duty of the 
 United States to assert and maintain such supervision and authority 
 over any interoceanic canal across the isthmus that connects North and 
 South America as will protect our national interest." 
 
 The war between the Republic of Chili on the one hand, and the 
 allied Republics of Peru and Bolivia on the other, still continues. 
 This Government has not felt called upon to interfere in a contest that 
 is within the belligerent rights of the parties as independent States. 
 We have, however, always held ourselves in readiness to aid in ac- 
 commodating their difference, and have at diflferent times reminded 
 both belligerents of our willingness to render such service. 
 
 Our good offices, in this direction, were recently accepted by all the 
 belligerents, and it was hoped they would prove eflacacious; but I regret 
 to announce that the measures, which the Ministers of the United States 
 at Santiago and Lima were authorized to take, with the view to bring 
 about a peace, were not successful. In the course of the war some 
 questions have arisen affecting neutj:al rights; in all of these the Min- 
 isters of the United States have, under their instructions, acted with 
 promptness and energy in protection of American interests. 
 
 The relations of the United States with the Empire of Brazil con- 
 tinue to be most cordial, and their commercial intercourse steadily 
 increases to their mutual advantage. 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 325 
 
 Tlie internal disorders with which the Argentine Eepublic has for 
 sometime past been afflicted, and which have more or less inflnenced 
 its external trade, are nnderstood to liave been bronght to a close. 
 This happy resnlt may be expected to redonnd to the benefit of the 
 foreign commerce of that Eepnblic as well as to the development of its 
 vast interior resources. 
 
 In Samoa, the Government of King Malietoa, under the support and 
 recognition of the consular representatives of the United States, Great 
 Britain, and Germany, seems to have given peace and tranquillity to 
 the Islands. While it does not appear desirable to adopt as a whole 
 the scheme of tripartite local government, which has been proposed, 
 the common interests of the three great treaty Powers require harmony 
 in their relations to the native frame of government, and this may 
 be best secured by a simple diplomatic agreement between them. It 
 would be well if the consular jurisdiction of our representative at Apia 
 were increased in extent and importance, so as to guard American in- 
 terests in the surroiinding and outlying Islands of Oceanica. 
 
 The obelisk, generously presented by tlie Khedive of Egypt to the 
 city of New York, has safely arrived in this country, and will soon be 
 erected in that metroiwlis. A commission for the liquidation of the 
 Egyptian debt has lately concluded its work, and this Government, at 
 the earnest solicitation of the Khedive, has acceded to the pro^^sions 
 adopted by it, which will be laid Itefore Congress for its information. 
 A commission for the revision of the judicial code of the Eeform Tribunal 
 of Egypt is now in session in Cairo. Mr. Farman, consul-general, and 
 J. M. Batchelder, Esq., have been appointed as commissioners to par- 
 ticipate in this work. The organization of the reform tribunals will 
 probably be continued for another period of five years. 
 
 In ])ursuance of the act passed at the last session of Congress, invita- 
 tions have been extended to foreign maritime States to join in a sani- 
 tary conference in Washington, beginning the first of January. The 
 acceptance of this invitation by many prominent Powers gives promise 
 of success in this important measure, designed to establish a system of 
 international notification by which the spread of infectious or epidemic 
 diseases may be more etfectively checked or i)revented. The attention 
 of Congress is invited to the necessary appropriations for carrying into 
 effect the provisions of the act referred to. 
 
 The efforts of the Department of State to enlarge the trade and com- 
 merce of the United States, through the active agency of consular offi- 
 cers and through the dissemination of information obtained from them, 
 have been unrelaxed. The interest in these efforts, as <leveloped in 
 
326 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 our coniinercial coiiiuiunities, and the value of the iuforniation secured 
 by this meaus to the trade and manufactures of the country, were 
 recognized by Congress at its hist session, and provision was made for 
 the more frequent publication of consular and other reports by the 
 Department of State. The first issue of this publication has now been 
 I)repared, and subsequent issues may regularly be expected. The im- 
 portance and interest attached to the reports of consular ofiicers are 
 witnessed by the general demand for them by all classes of merchants 
 and manufacturers engaged in our foreign trade. It is believed that 
 the system of such publications is deserving of the approval of Con- 
 gress, and that the necessary appropriations for its continuance and 
 enlargement will commend itself to your consideration. 
 
 The prosperous energies of our domestic industries, and their im- 
 mense production of the subjects of foreign commerce, invite, and even 
 require, an active development of the wishes and interests of our people 
 in that direction. Especially important is it that our conuuercial rela- 
 tions with the Atlantic and Pacific coasts of South America, with the 
 West Indies and the Gulf of Mexico, should be direct, and not through 
 the circuit of European systems, and should be carried on in our own 
 bottoms. The full appreciation of the opportunities which our front on 
 the Pacific ocean gives to conunerce with Ja^ian, China, and the East 
 Indies, with Australia and the Island groups which lie along these 
 routes of navigation, sbould inspire equal efibrts toappropriate toourown 
 shipping, and to administer, by our own capital, a due proportion of this 
 trade. Whatever modifications of our regulations of trade and navi- 
 gation may be necessary or useful to meet and direct these impulses 
 to the enlargement of our exchanges and of our carrying trade, I 
 am sure the wisdom of Congress will be ready to sup])ly. One initial 
 measure, however, seems to me so clearly useful and efidcient that I 
 venture to press it upon your earnest attention. It seems to be very 
 evident that the provision of regular steam-postal comnumication, by 
 aid from Government, has been the forerunner of the commercial ])re- 
 domi nance of Great Britain on all these coasts and seas, a greater 
 share in whose trade is now the desire and the intent of our people. 
 It is also manifest that the ett'orts of other Euroi)ean Nations to con- 
 tend with Great IJritaiu for a share of this commerce have b(!en suc- 
 cessful in proportion with their adoption of regular steam-postal commu- 
 nication witli the markets whose trade; they sought. Mexico and the 
 States of South America are anxious tore(;eive such postal comnumi- 
 cations with this country, and to aid in their development. Similar 
 co-operation may be looked foi-, in due time, from the Eastern Nations 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 327 
 
 and from Australia. It is difficult to see how the lead in this movenieut 
 can bo expected from private interests. In respect of foreign commerce, 
 quite as much as in internal trade, postal communication seems neces- 
 sarily a matter of common and public administration, and thus per- 
 tainingf to Government. I respectfully recommend to your prompt 
 attention such just and efficient measures as may conduce to the devel- 
 opment of our foreign commercial exchanges and the building up of 
 our carrying trade. 
 
 In this connection I desire also to suggest the very great service 
 which might be expected in enlarging and facilitating our commerce on 
 the Pacific Ocean were a transmarine cable laid from San Francisco to 
 the Sandwich Islands, and thence to Japan at the Xorth and Australia 
 at the South. The great influence of such means of communication on 
 these routes of navigation, in developing and securing the due share of 
 our Pacific coast in the conuuerce of the world, needs no illustration 
 or enforcement. It may be that such an enterprise, useful and in the 
 end profitable as it would prove to private investment, may need to be 
 accelerated by prudent legislation by Congress in its aid, and I submit 
 the matter to your careful consideration. 
 
 An additional, and not unimportant, although secondary, reason for 
 fostering and enlarging the ISTavy may be found in the unquestionable 
 service to the expansion of our comjuerce, which would be rendered by 
 the frequent circulation of naval ships in the seas and ports of all 
 quarters of the globe. Ships of the proper construction and equipment, 
 to be of the greatest efficiency in case of maritime war, might be made 
 constant and active agents in time of peace in the advancement and 
 protection of our foreign trade, and in the nurture and discipline of 
 young seamen, who would naturally, in some numbers, mix with and 
 improve the crews of our merchant-ships. Our merchants at home and 
 abroad recoguize the value to foreign commerce of an active movement 
 of our naval vessels, and the intelligence and patriotic zeal of our naval 
 officers in promoting every interest of their countrymen is a just sub- 
 ject of national pride. 
 
 The condition of the financial affairs of the Government, as shown 
 by the report of the Secretary of the Treasury, is very satisfactory. It 
 is believed that the present financial situation of the United States, 
 whether considered with respect to trade, currency, credit, growing 
 wealth, or the extent and variety of our resources, is more favorable 
 than that of any other country of our time, and has never been sur- 
 passed by that of any country at any period of its history. All our 
 industries are thriving; the rate of interest is low ; new railroads are 
 being constructed; a vast immigration is increasing our population. 
 
328 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 capital, and labor; new enterprises in great number are in progress; 
 and our commercial relations Avitli other countries are improving. 
 
 The ordinarj' revenues, from all sources, for the fiscal year ended 
 June 30, 1880, were — 
 
 From customs $186, 522, 0()4 GO 
 
 From internal revenue 124, 009, 373 92 
 
 From sales of public lands 1, 016, 506 60 
 
 From tax on circulation and deposits of national banks 7, 014, 971 44 
 From repayment of interest by Pacific Railway Com- 
 panies 1, 707, 307 18 
 
 From sinking-fund for Pacific Railway Companies. . 786,621 22 
 
 From customs, fees, fines, penalties, &c 1, 148, 800 16 
 
 From fees — consular, letters-patent, and lands 2, 337, 029 00 
 
 From x>roceeds of sales of Government property ... 282, 616 50 
 
 From profits on coinage, &g 2, 792, 186 78 
 
 From revenues of the District of Columbia 1, 809, 469 70 
 
 From miscellaneous sources 4, 099, 603 88 
 
 Total ordinary receipts 333, 52(5, 610 98 
 
 The ordinary expenditures for the same period were — 
 
 For civil expenses $15, 693, 963 55 
 
 For foreign intercourse 1 , 211, 490 58 
 
 For Indians 5, 945, 457 09 
 
 For pensions, including $19, 341 , 025.20 arrears of pen- 
 sions 56, 777, 174 44 
 
 For the military establishment, including river and 
 
 harbor improvements and arsenals 38, 116, 916 22 
 
 For the naval establishment, including vessels, ma- 
 chinery, and imi)rovements at navy-yards 13, 536, 984 74 
 
 For miscellaneous expenditures, including public 
 
 buildings, light-houses, and collecting the revenue. 34, 535, 691 00 
 
 For expenditures on account of District of Columbia . 3, 272, 384 63 
 
 For interest on the public debt 95, 757, 575 11 
 
 For premium on bonds purchased ... 2, 795, 320 42 
 
 Total ordinary expenditures 267, 642, 957 78 
 
 Leaving a surplus revenue of $(jo, 883, 653 20 
 
 Which, with an amount drawn from the cash balance 
 
 in Treasury, of 8, 084, 434 21 
 
 Making 73, 968, 087 41 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 329 
 
 Was applied to the redemption — 
 
 Of bonds for the sinking-fund $73, (;52, 900 00 
 
 Of fractional currency 251 , 717 41 
 
 Of the loan of 1858 4(), 000 00 
 
 Of temporary loan 100 00 
 
 Of bounty-land scrip 25 00 
 
 Of compound-interest notes 1^'? 500 00 
 
 Of 7.30 notes of 1864-'5 2, 650 00 
 
 Of one and two-year notes 3, 700 00 
 
 Of old demand notes 495 00 
 
 73,908,087 11 
 
 The amount due the sinking-fund for this year was $37,931,043.55. 
 There was applied thereto the sumof $73,904,()17.41,being $35,972,973.80 
 in excess of the actual requirements for the year. 
 
 The aggregate of the revenues from all sources during the fiscal year 
 ended June 30, 1880, was $333,520,010.98, an increase over the pre- 
 ceding year of $59,099,426.52. The receipts thus far, of the current 
 year, together with the estimated receipts for the remainder of the 
 year, amount to $350,000,000, which will be sufflcient to meet the esti- 
 mated expenditures of the year, and leave a surplus of $90,000,000. 
 
 It is fortunate that this large surplus revenue occurs at a period when 
 it may be directly applied to the payment of the public debt soon to 
 be redeemable. No public duty has been more constantly cherished in 
 the United States than the policy of paying the Nation's debt as rapidly 
 as possible. 
 
 The debt of the United States, less cash in the Treasury and exclu- 
 sive of accruing interest, attained its maxinmm of 2,756,431,571.43 in 
 August, 1805, and has since that time been reduced to $1,880,019,504.05. 
 Of the principal of the debt, $108,758,100 has been paid since March 1, 
 1877, effecting an annual saving of interest of $0,107,593. The burden 
 of interest has also been diminished by the sale of bonds bearing a 
 low rate of interest, and the application of the proceeds to the redemp- 
 tion of bonds bearing a higher rate. The annual saving thus secured 
 since March 1, 1877, is $14,290,453.50. 
 
 Within a short period over six hundred millions of five and six per 
 cent, bonds will become redeemable. This presents a very favorable 
 opportunity not only to further reduce the principal of the debt, but 
 also to reduce the rate of interest on that which will remain unpaid. 
 I call the attention of Congress to the views expressed on this subject 
 by the Secretary of the Treasury in his annual report, and recommend 
 
330 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 prompt legislation, to euable the Treasury Department to complete 
 the refunding of the debt which is about to mature. 
 
 The continuance of specie payments has not been interrupted or 
 endangered since the date of resumption. It has contributed greatly 
 to the revival of business and to our remarkable prosperity. The fears 
 that preceded and accompanied resumption have proved groundless. 
 
 No considerable amount of United States notes have been presented 
 for redemption, while very large sums of gold bullion, both domestic 
 and imported, are taken to the mints and exchanged for coin or notes. 
 The increase of coin and bullion in the United States since January 1, 
 1879, is estimated at $227,399,428. 
 
 There are still in existence, uncancelled, $34G,()81,01G of United 
 States legal-tender notes. These notes were authorized as a war 
 measure, made necessary by the exigencies of the conflict in wWch the 
 United States was then engaged. The preservation of the Nation's 
 existence required, in the judgment of Congress, an issue of legal- 
 tender paper money. That it served well the purpose for which it was 
 created is not questioned, but the employment of the notes as paper 
 money indefinitelj', after the accomplishment of the object for which 
 they were provided, was not contemplated by the framers of the law 
 under which they were issued. These notes long since became like any 
 other pecuniary obligation of the Government — a debt to be j)aid, and, 
 when paid, to be cancelled as a mere evidence of au indebtedness 
 no longer existing. I therefore repeat what was said in the annual 
 message of last year, that the retirement from circulation of United 
 States notes, with the capacity of legal-tender in private contracts, is 
 a step to be taken in our i)rogress towards a safe and stable currency, 
 whicli should be accepted as the policy and duty of the Government 
 and the interest and security of the people. 
 
 At the time of the passage of the act now in force requiring the coin- 
 age of silver dollars, fixing their value and giving them legal-tender 
 character, it Avas believ^ed by many of the supporters of the measure 
 that the silver dollar, which it authorized, would speedily become, 
 under the operations of the law, of equivalent value to the gold dollar. 
 There were other sup[)orters of the bill, who, while the}' doubted as to the 
 l>robability of this result, nevertheless were willing to give the proi)osed 
 experiment a fair trial, with a view to stop the coinage, if experience 
 should i)rove that the silver dollar authorized by the bill continued to 
 be of less commercial value than the standard gold dollar. 
 
 The coinage of silver dollars, under the act referred to, began in March, 
 1878, and has been continued as required by the act. The average rate 
 
I 
 
 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 331 
 
 per inoiitli to the present time has been $2,270,492. The total amount 
 coined prior to the tirstof November last was $72,847,750. Of this amount 
 $47,084,450 remain in the Treasury, and only $25,763,291 are in the 
 hands of the people. A constant effort has been made to keep this cur- 
 rency in circulation, and considerable exi)ense has been necessarily 
 incurred for this purpose, but its return to the Treasury is promj)t and 
 sure. Contrary to the confident anticipation of the friends of the 
 measure at the time of its ado^ition, the value of the silver dollar, con- 
 taining" 412i grains of silver, has not increased. During- the year prior 
 to the passage of the bill authorizing its coinage, the market value of 
 the silver which it contained was from ninety to ninety-two cents, as 
 compared with the standard gold dollar. During the last year the 
 average market value of the silver dollar has been eighty-eight and a 
 half cents. 
 
 It is obvious, that the legislation of the last Congress in regard to sil- 
 ver, so far as it was based on an anticipated rise in the value of silver 
 as a result of that legislation, has failed to produce the effect then jire- 
 dicted. The longer the law remains in force, reqmring as it does the 
 coinage of a nominal dolhir, which in reality is not a dollar, the greater 
 becomes the danger that this country will be forced to accept a single 
 metal as the sole legal standard of value, in circulation, and this a 
 standard of less value than it i)urports to be worth in the recognized 
 money of the world. 
 
 The Constitution of the United States, sound financial principles, 
 and our best interests, all require that the countrj^ should have as 
 its legal-tender money both gold and silver coin, of an intrinsic valne, 
 as bullion, equivalent to that which, upon its face, it purports to 
 possess. The Constitution in express terms recognizes both gold and 
 silver as the only true legal-tender money. To banish either of these 
 metals from our currency is to narrow and limit the circulating medium 
 of exchange to the disparagement of important interests. The United 
 States produces more silver than any other country, and is directly 
 interested in maintaining it as one of the two precious metals which 
 furnish the coinage of the world. It will, in my judgment, contribute 
 to this result if Congress will repeal so much of existing legislation as 
 requires the coinage of silver dollars containing only 412i grains of 
 silver, an'd in its stead will authorize the Secretary of the Treasury to 
 coin silver dollars of equivalent value as bullion, with gold dollars. 
 This will defraud no man, and will be in accordance with familiar i)rece- 
 dents. Congress, on several occasions, has altered the ratio of value 
 between gold and silver, in order to establish it more nearly in accord- 
 ance with the actual ratio of value between the two metals. 
 
332 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 Ill fliiaiieial legislation every measure in the direction of greater 
 fidelity in tLe discharge of pecuniary obligations, has been found by 
 experience to diminish the rates of interest which debtors are required 
 to pay, and to increase the facility with which money can be obtained 
 for every legitimate purpose. Our own recent financial history shows 
 how surely money becomes abundant whenever confidence in the exact 
 lierformance of moneyed obligations is established. 
 
 The Secretary of War reports that the expenditures of the War De- 
 partment for the fiscal year ended June 30, 1880, were $39,924,773.03. 
 The api)ropriations for this Department, foi the current fiscal year, 
 amount to $41,993,030.40. 
 
 With respect to the Army, the Secretary invites attention to the fact 
 that its strength is limited by statute (section 1115, Revised Statutes) 
 to not more than 30,000 enlisted meu, but that provisos contained in 
 appropriation bills have limited expenditures to the enlistment of but 
 25,000. It is believed the full legal strength is the least possible force 
 at which the present organization can be maintained, having in view 
 efficiency, discipline, and economy. While the enlistment of this force 
 would add somewhat to the appropriation tor pay of the Army, the 
 saving made in other respects would be more than an equivalent for 
 this additional outlay, and the efficiency of the Army would be largely 
 increased. 
 
 The rapid extension of the railroad system west of the Mississippi 
 river, and the great tide of settlers which has flowed in upon new ter- 
 ritory, impose on the military an entire change of policy. The main- 
 tenance of small posts along wagon and stage-routes of travel is no 
 longer necessary. Permanent quarters at points selected, of a more sub- 
 stantial character than those heretofore constructed, will be required. 
 Under existing laws, permanent buildings cannot be erected without the 
 sanction of Congress, and when sales of military sites and buildings have 
 been authorized, tlie moneys received have reverted to the Treasury, and 
 could only become available through a new appropriation. It is recom- 
 mended that i)rovision be made, by general statute, for the sale of such 
 abandoned military posts and buildings as are found to be unneces- 
 sary, and for the application of the proceeds to the construction of other 
 posts. While many of the present i)osts are of but slight value for 
 military purposes, owing to the changed condition of the country, their 
 occupation is continued at great expense and inconvenience, because 
 they aflbrd the only available shelter for troops. 
 
 The absence of a large number of ofiicers of the line, in active duty, 
 from their regiments, is a serious detriment to the maintenance of the 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 333 
 
 service. The coustant demand for small detachments, each of which 
 should be commanded by a commissioned officer, and the various de- 
 tails of officers for necessary service away from their commands, occa- 
 sion a scarcity iu the number required for company duties. With a 
 view to lesseuiug this drain to some extent, it is recommended that 
 the law authorizing- the detail of officers from the active list as pro- 
 fessors of tactics and military science at certain colleges and univer- 
 sities, be so amended as to provide that all such details be made from 
 the retired list of the Army. 
 
 Attention is asked to the necessity of providing by legislation for 
 organizing, arming, and disciplining the active militia of the country^ 
 and liberal a]>propriations are recommended in this behalf The re- 
 ports of the Adjutant-General of the Army and the Chief of Ordnance 
 touching this subject fully set forth its importance. 
 
 The rei)ort of the officer iu charge of education in the Army shows that 
 there are seventy-eight schools now in operation in the Army, with an 
 aggregate attendance of 2,305 enlisted men and children. The Secre- 
 tary recommends the enlistment of one hundred and fifty schoolmasters,, 
 with the rank and pay of commissary-sergeants. An appropriation is 
 needed to supply the judge-advocates of the Army with suitable libra- 
 ries, and the Secretary recommends that the corps of judge-advocates, 
 be placed upon tlie same footing, as to promotion, with the other 
 staff corps of the Army. Under existing laws, the Bureau of Military 
 Justice consists of one officer, the Judge- Advocate General, and the 
 corps of judge-advocates, of eight officers of equal rank, (majors,) with 
 a provision that the limit of the corps shall remain at four, when. 
 reduced by casualty or resignation to that number. The consolidation 
 of the Bureau of Military Justice, and the corps of judge-advocates, 
 upon the same basis with the other staff corps of the Army, would re- 
 move an unjust discrimination against deserving officers, and subserve 
 the best interests of the service. 
 
 Especial attention is asked to the report of the Chief of Engineers upon 
 the condition of our national defences. From a personal inspection 
 of many of the fortifications referred to, the Secretary is able to empha- 
 size the recommendations made, and to state that their incomplete and 
 defenceless condition is discreditable to the country. While other Na- 
 tions have been increasing their means for carrying on offensive warfare 
 and attacking maritime cities, we have been dormant in preparation for 
 defence; nothing of importance has been done towards strengthening 
 and finishing our casemated works since our late civil war, during 
 which the great guns of modern warfare and the heavy armor of 
 
334 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 modern fortifications and ships came into use amonjj the Nations, and 
 our earthworks left, by a sudden faihire of appropriations some years 
 since, in all stages of incoinpletion, are now being rapidly destroyed 
 by the elements. 
 
 The two great rivers of the North American Continent, the Missis- 
 sippi and the Columbia, have their navigable waters wholly within the 
 limits of the United States, and are of vast importance to our internal 
 and foreign commerce. The permanency of the important work on the 
 South Pass of the Mississippi river seems now to be assured. There 
 has been no failure whatever in the maintenance of the maximum 
 channel during the six months ended August 9, last. This experiment 
 has opened a broad deep highway to the ocean, and is an improve- 
 ment, upon the permanent success of which, congratulations niay be 
 exchanged among* people abroad and at home, and especially among 
 the communities of the Mississippi valley, whose commercial exchanges 
 float in an unobstructed channel safely to and from the sea. 
 
 A comprehensive improvement of the Mississippi and its tributaries 
 is a matter of transcendent importance. These great water-ways com- 
 prise a system of inland transportation sjjread like net- work over a 
 large portion of the United States, and navigable to the extent of 
 many thousands of miles. Producers and consumers alike, have a com- 
 mon interest in such unequalled facilities for cheap transportation. 
 Geographically, commercially, and politically', they are the strongest tie 
 between the various sections of the country. These channels of com- 
 munication and interchange are the property of the Nation. Its Juris- 
 diction is paramount over their waters, and the plainest principles of 
 public interest require their intelligent and careful supervision, with 
 a view to their j)rotection, improvement, and the enhancement of their 
 usefulness. 
 
 The channel of the Columbia river, for a distance of about one hun- 
 dred miles from its mouth, is obstructed by a succession of bars, vrhich 
 occasion serious delays in navigation, and hea\'y expense for lighterage 
 and towage. A depth of at least twenty feet at low tide should be 
 secured and maintained, to meet the requirements of the extensive and 
 growing inland and ocean commerce it subserves. The most urgent 
 need, however, for this great water-way is a i^ermanent improvement 
 of the channel at the mouth of the river. 
 
 From Columbia river to San Francisco, a distance of over six hun- 
 dred miles, there is no harbor on our Pacific coast which can be ap- 
 proached during stormy weather. An appropriation of $150,000 was 
 made by the Forty-fifth Congress for the commencement of a break- 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 335 
 
 water and harbor of refuge, to be located at some point between the 
 Straits of Fiica and San Francisco, at wliiclj the necessities of com- 
 merce, local and general, will be best accommodated. The amount 
 appropriated is thought to be quite inadequate for the purpose intended. 
 The cost of the work, when finished, will be very great, owing to the 
 want of natural advantages for a site at any point on the coast between 
 the designated limits, and it has not been thought to be advisable to 
 undertake the work without a larger appropriation. I commend the 
 matter to the attention of Congress. 
 
 The comidetion of the new building for the War Department is ur- 
 gently needed, and the estimates for continuing its construction are 
 especially recommended. 
 
 The collections of books, specimens, and records constituting the 
 Army Medical Museum and Library are of national importance. The 
 library now contains about fifty-one thousand five hundred (51,500) 
 volumes and fifty-seven thousand (57,000) pamphlets relating to medi- 
 cine, surgery, and allied topics. The contents of the Army Medical 
 Museum consist of twenty-two thousand (22,000) specimens, and are 
 unique in the completeness with which both military surgery and the 
 diseases of armies are illustrated. Their destruction would be an irre- 
 parable loss, not only to the United States, but to the world. There 
 are filed in the record and pension division, over sixteen thousand 
 (10,000) bound volumes of hospital records, together with a great 
 quantity of papers, embracing the original records of the hospitals of 
 our armies during the civil war. Aside from their historical value, 
 these records are daily searched for evidence needed in the settlement 
 of large numbers of pension and other claims, for the protection of the 
 Government against attempted frauds as well as for the benefit of 
 honest claimants. These valuable collections are now in a building 
 which is peculiarly exposed to the danger of destruction by fire. It 
 is therefore earnestly recommended that an appropriation be made for 
 a new fire-proof building, adequate for the present needs and reason- 
 able future expansion of these valuable collections. Such a building 
 should be absolutely fire-proof; no expenditure for mere architectural 
 display is required. It is believed that a suitable structure can be 
 erected at a cost not to exceed two hundred and fifty thousand dollars, 
 ($250,000.) 
 
 I commend to the attention of Congress the great services of the 
 commander and chief of our armies during the war for the Union, whose 
 wise, firm, and patriotic conduct did so much to bring that momentous 
 conflict to a close. The legislation of the United States contains many 
 
336 LETTERS ANIJ MESSAGES. 
 
 precedents for the recognition of distinguislied military merit, author- 
 izing- rank and emolumeuts to be couferred for eminent services to the 
 country. An act of Congress authorizing the appointment of a Captain- 
 General of the Army, with suitable provisions relating to compensa- 
 tion, retirement, and other details, would, in my judgment, be alto- 
 gether fitting and pro[)er, and would be warmly approved by the country. 
 
 The report of the Secretary of the Navy exhibits the successful and 
 satisftictory management of that Department during the last fiscal year. 
 The total expenditures for the year were $12,910,039.45, leaving unex- 
 pended at the close of the year $2,141,682.23 of the amount of available 
 appro])riations. The appropriations for tlie present fiscal year ending- 
 June 30, 1881, are $15,095,001.45; and the total estimates for the next 
 fiscal year ending June 30, 1882, are $ 15,953,751.01. The amount drawn 
 by warrant from July 1, 1880, to November 1, 1880, is $5,041,570.45. 
 
 Tlie recommendation of the Secretary of the Navy, that provision be 
 made for the establishment of some form of civil government for the 
 people of Alaska, is approved. At present there is no protection 
 of persons or property in that Territory, exce])t such as is afforded by 
 the officers of the United States ship Jamestown. This vessel was 
 dispatched to Sitka, because of the fear that, without the immediate 
 presence of the National authority, there was impending danger of 
 anarchy. The steps taken to restore order have been accepted in good 
 faith by both white and Indian inhabitants, and the necessity for this 
 method of restraint does not, in my opinion, now exist. If however, 
 the Jamestown should be withdrawn, leaving the people, as at pres- 
 ent, without the ordinary, judicial, and administrative authority of organ- 
 ized local government, serious consequences might ensue. 
 
 The laws provide only for the collection of revenue, the protection of 
 l)ublic property, and the transmission of the mails. The problem is to 
 supply a local rule for a population so scattered and so peculiar in its 
 origin and condition. The natives are reported to be teachable and 
 self-supporting, and, if properly instructed, doubtless would advance 
 rapidly in civilization, and a new factor of prosperity would be added 
 to the national life. I therefore recommend the reiiuisite legislation 
 upon this subject. 
 
 The Secretary of the Navy has taken steps towards the establishment 
 of naval coaling-stations at the Isthmus of Panama, to meet the re- 
 quirements of our commercial relations with Central and South America, 
 which are rapidly growing in importance. Locations eminently suitable, 
 both as regards our naval purposes and the uses of commerce, have 
 been selected, one on the east side of the Isthmus, at Chiriqui Lagoon, 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 337 
 
 in the Caribbean Sea, and the other on the Pacific coast, at the Bay 
 of Golfito. The only safe harbors, sufficiently commodious, on the 
 Isthmus, are at these points, and the distance between them is less than 
 one hundred miles. The report of the Secretary of the N^avy concludes 
 with valuable suggestions with respect to the building up of our mer- 
 chant-marine service, which deserve the favorable consideration of 
 Congress. 
 
 The report of the Postmaster-General exhibits the continual growth 
 and the high state of efficiency of the postal service. The operations 
 of no Department of the Government, perhaps, represent with greater 
 exactness the increase in the population and the business of the coun- 
 try. In 1860, the postal receipts were $8,518,067.40 ; in 1880, the receipts 
 were $33,315,479.34. All the iuhabitants of the country are directly 
 and personally interested in having proper mail facilities, and natu- 
 rally watch the Post Office very closely. This careful oversight on the 
 part of the people has proved a constant stimulus to improvement. 
 During the past year there was an increase of 2,134 post offices, and 
 the mail routes were extended 27,177 miles, making an additional annual 
 transportation of 10,804,191 miles. The revenues of the postal service 
 for the ensuing year are estimated at $38,845,174,10, and the expendi- 
 tures at $42,475,932, leaving a deficiency to be appropriated out of the 
 Treasury of $3,630,757.90. 
 
 The Universal Postal Union has received the accession of almost all 
 the countries and colonies of the world maintaining organized postal 
 services, and it is confidently expected that all the other countries and 
 colonies now outside the Union will soon unite therewith, ilms realizing 
 the grand idea and aim of the founders of the Union, of forming, for 
 purposes of international mail communication, a single postal territory 
 embracing the world, with complete uniformity of postal charges, and 
 conditions of international exchange, for all descriptions of correspond- 
 ence. To enable the United States to do its full share of this great 
 work, additional legislation is asked by the Postmaster-General, to whose 
 recommendations especial attention is called. 
 
 The suggestion of the Postmaster-General, that it would be wise to 
 encourage by appropriate legislation, the establishment of American 
 lines of steamers by our own citizens, to carry the mails between our 
 own ports and those of Mexico, Central America, South America, and of 
 trans-Paciflc countries, is commended to the serious consideration of 
 Congress. 
 
 The attention of Congress is also invited to the suggestions of the 
 Postmaster-General in regard to postal savings. 
 22 
 
338 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 The necessity for additional provision, to aid in the transaction of 
 the business of the Federal courts, becomes each year more apparent. 
 The dockets of the Supreme Court, and of the circuit courts, in the 
 greater number of the circuits, are encumbered with the constant acces- 
 sion of cases. In the former court, and in many instances in the circuit 
 courts, years intervene before it is practicable to bring cases to hearing. 
 
 The Attorney-General recommends the establishment of an interme- 
 diate court of errors and appeals. It is recommended that the number 
 of judges of the circuit court in each circuit, with the exception of the 
 second circuit, should be increased by the addition of another judge ; in 
 the second circuit, that two should be added; and that an intermediate 
 appellate court shoukl be formed in each circuit, to consist of the cir 
 cuit judges and the circuit justice, and that in the event of the absence 
 of either of these judges the place of the absent judge should be 
 supplied by the judge of one of the district courts in the circuit. Sucli 
 an appelhite court could be safely invested with large jurisdiction, and 
 its decisions would satisfy suitors in many cases where appeals would 
 still be allowed in the Supreme Court. The expense incurred for this 
 intermediate court will require a very moderate increase of the appro- 
 priations for the expcMses of the Department of Justice. This recom- 
 mendation is commended to the careful consideration of Congress. 
 
 It is evident that a delay of justice, in many instances oppressive and 
 disastrous to suitors, now neccessarily occurs in the Federal courts, 
 which will in this way be remedied. 
 
 The report of the Secretary of the Interior presents an elaborate 
 account of the operations of that Department during the past year. 
 It gives me great pleasure to say that our Indian affairs appear to be in a 
 more hopeful condition now than ever before. The Indians have made 
 gratifying progress in agriculture, herding, and mechanical pursuits. 
 Many who were a few years ago in hostile conflict with the Govern- 
 ment are quietly settling down on farms where they hope to make their 
 permanent homes, building houses and engaging in the occupations of 
 civilized life. The introduction of the freighting business among them 
 has been remarkably fruitful of good results, in giving many of them 
 congenial and remunerative employment, and in stimulating their am- 
 bition to earn their own support. Their honesty, fidelity, and efticiency 
 as carriers are highly praised. The organization of a police force of 
 Indians has been equally successful in maintaining law and order upon 
 the reservations, and in exercising a wholesome moral influence among 
 the Indians themselves. I concur with the Secretary of the Interior 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 339 
 
 in tlie recommendation that the pay of this force be increased, as 
 an indncement to the best class of young men to enter it. 
 
 Much care and attention has been devoted to the enlargement of 
 educational facilities for the Indians. The means available for this 
 important object have been very inadequate. A few additional board- 
 ing-schools at Indian agencies have been established, and the erec- 
 tion of buildings has been begun for several more, but an increase 
 of the appropriations for this interesting undertaking is greatly 
 needed to accommodate the large number of Indian children of school- 
 age. The number ottered by their parents from all parts of the country 
 for education in the Government schools is much larger than can be 
 accommodated with the means at present available for that purpose. 
 The number of Indian pupils at the Normal School at Hampton, Vir- 
 ginia, under the direction of General Armstrong, has been considerably 
 increased, and their progress is highly encouraging. The Indian school 
 established by the Interior Department in 1879, at Carlisle, Pennsyl- 
 vania, under the direction of Captain Pratt, has been equally success- 
 ful. It has now nearly two hundred pupils of both sexes, representing 
 a great variety of the tribes east of the Rocky Mountains. The pupils 
 in both these institutions receive not only an elementary English edu- 
 cation, but are also instructed in house-work, agriculture, and useful 
 mechanical pursuits. A similar school was established this year at 
 Forest Grove, Oregon, for the education of Indian youth on the Pacific 
 coast. In addition to this, thirty-six Indian boys and girls wers selected 
 from the Eastern Cherokees and placed in boarding-schools in North 
 Carolina, where they are to receive an elementary English education 
 and training in industrial luirsuits. The interest shown by Indian 
 parents, even among the so-called wild tribes, in the education of their 
 children, is very gratifying, and gives promise that the results accom- 
 plished by the efforts now making will be of lasting benefit. 
 
 The expenses of Indian education have so far been drawn from the 
 Ijermauent civilization-fund at the disposal of the Department of the 
 Interior; but the fund is now so much reduced, that the continuance 
 of this beneficial work will in the future depend on specific ai)pro- 
 priations by Congress for the purpose, and I venture to express the 
 hope that Congress will not permit institutions so fruitful of good 
 results to perish for want of means for their support. On the con- 
 trary, an increase of the number of such schools appears to me highly 
 advisable. 
 
 The past year has been unusually free from disturbances among the 
 Indian tribes. An agreement has been made with the Utes, by which 
 
340 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 they surrender tlieir large reservatiou iu Colorado in consideration of 
 an annuity, to be paid to them, and agree to settle in severalty on cer- 
 tain lands designated for that purpose, as farmers, holding individual 
 title to their land in fee-simple, inalienable for a certain period. In this 
 way a costly Indian war has been avoided, which, at one time, seemed 
 imminent, and, for the first time in the history of the country, au 
 Indian nation has given up its tribal existence to be settled in sev- 
 eralty, and to live as individuals under tbe common protection of the 
 laws of the country. The conduct of the Indians throughout the coun- 
 try during the past year, with but few noteworthy exceptions, has been 
 orderly and peaceful. The guerilla warfare carried on for two years 
 by Victorio and his band of Southern Apaches has virtually come to 
 an end by the death of that chief and most of his followers, on Mexican 
 soil. The disturbances caused on our northern frontier by Sitting Bull 
 and his men, who had taken refuge in the British dominions, are also 
 likely to cease. A large majority of his followers have surrendered to 
 our military forces, and the remainder are apparently in progress of 
 disintegration. 
 
 I concur with the Secretary of the Interior in expressing the earnest 
 hope that Congress will at this session take favorable action on the bill 
 providing for the allotment of lands on the difterent reservations in 
 severalty to the Indians, with patents conferring fee-simple title inalien- 
 able for a certain period, and the eventual disposition of the residue of 
 the reservations, for general settlement, with the consent and for the 
 benefit of the Indians, placing the latter under the equal protection of 
 the laws of the country. This measure, together with a vigorous prose- 
 cution of our educational efforts, will work the most important and 
 effective advance toward the solution of the Indian problem, in prepar- 
 ing for the gradual merging of our Indian population in the great body 
 of American citizenship. 
 
 A large increase is reported in the disposal of public lands for settle- 
 ment during the past year, which nuirks the prosperous growth of our 
 agricultural industry, and a vigorous movement of population toward 
 our unoccupied lands. As this movement proceeds, the codification of 
 our land laws, as Avell as proper legislation to regulate the disposition of 
 public lands, become of more pressing necessity, and I therefore iuNite 
 the consideration of Congress to the report and the accompaniug draft 
 of a bill, nuule by the Public Laiuls Commission, which were communi- 
 cated by me to Congress at the last session. Early action upon this 
 important subject is highly desirable. 
 
 The attention of Congress is again asked to the wasteful depreda- 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 341 
 
 tions committed on our public timber-lands, and the rapid and indis- 
 criminate destruction of our forests. The urgent necessity for legisla- 
 tion to this end is now generally recognized. In view of the lawless 
 character of the depredations committed, and the disastrous conse- 
 quences which will inevitably follow their continuance, legislation has 
 again and again been recommended to arrest the evil, and to preserve 
 for the people of our Western States and Territories the timber needed 
 for domestic and other essential uses. 
 
 The report of the Director of the Geological Survey is a document 
 of unusual interest. The consolidation of the various geological and 
 geographical surveys and exploring enterprises, each of which has 
 heretofore operated upon an independent plan, without concert, can- 
 not fail to be of great benefit to all those industries of the country 
 which depend upon the development of our mineral resources. The 
 labors of the scientific men, of recognized merit, who compose the 
 corps of the Geological Survey, during the first season of their field 
 operations and inquiries, appear to have been very comprehensive, and 
 will soon be communicated to Congress in a number of volumes. The 
 Director of the Survey recommends that the investigations, carried on 
 by his bureau, which, so far, have been confined to the so-called public- 
 land States and Territories, be extended over the entire country, and 
 that the necessary appropriation be made for this purpose. This would 
 be particularly beneficial to the iron, coal, and other mining interests 
 of the Mississippi valley, and of the Eastern and Southern States. 
 The subject is commended to the careful consideration of Congress. 
 
 The Secretary of the Interior asks attention to the want of room in 
 the public buildings of the capital, now existing and in progress of con- 
 struction, for the accommodation of the clerical force employed, and of 
 the i)ublic records. Necessity has compelled the renting of private 
 buildings in different parts of the city for the location of public ofiQces, 
 for which a large amount of rent is annually paid, while the separation 
 of offices belonging to the same Department impedes the transaction 
 of current business. The Secretary suggests that the blocks surronnd- 
 ing Lafayette Square, on the east, north, and west, be purchased as 
 the sites for new edifices, for the accommodation of the Government 
 oflBces, lea%aug the square itself intact; and that, if such buildings 
 were constructed upon a harmonious plan of architecture, they would 
 add much to the beauty of the National capital, and would, together 
 with the Treasury and the new State, Navy, and War-Department 
 building, form one of the most imposing groups of public edifices in 
 the world. 
 
342 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 The Commissioner of Agriculture expresses the confident belief that 
 his efforts in behalf of the production of our own sugar and tea have 
 been encouragingly rewarded. The importance of the results attained 
 have attracted marked attention at home, and have received the special 
 consideration of foreign Xations. The successful cultivation of our own 
 tea, and the uuinufa(;ture of our own sugar, would nuike a difference of 
 many millions of dollars annually in the wealth of the Nation. 
 
 The report of the Commissioner asks attention particularly to the 
 continued prevalence of an infectious and contagious cattle-disease, 
 known and dreaded in Europe and Asia as cattle-plague, or pleuro- 
 pneumonia. A mild type of this disease, in certain sections of our 
 country, is the occasion of great loss to our farmers, and of serious 
 disturbance to our trade with Great Britain, Avhich furnishes a market 
 for most of our live-stock and dressed meats. The value of neat-cattle 
 exported from the United States for the eight months ended August 
 31, 1880, was more than twelve million dollars, and nearly double the 
 value for the same period in 1879, an unexampled increase of export 
 trade. Your early attention is solicited to this important matter. 
 
 The Commissioner of Education reports a continued increase of public 
 interest in educational affairs, and that the public schools generally 
 throughout the country are well sustained. Industrial training is at- 
 tracting deserved attention, and colleges for instruction, theoretical 
 and practical, iu agriculture and the mechanic arts, including the Gov- 
 ernment schools recently established for the instruction of Indian 
 youth, are gaining steadily in public estimation. The Commissioner 
 asks special attention to the depredations committed on the lands re- 
 served for the future support of public instruction, and to the very 
 great need of help from the Nation for schools in the Territories and in 
 the Southern States. The recommendation heretofore made is rei)eated 
 and urged, that an educational fund be set apart from the net proceeds 
 of the sales of the public lands annually, the income of which, and the 
 remainder of the net annual proceeds, to be distributed on some satis- 
 factory i>lan to the States and Territories and the District of Columbia. 
 
 The success of the public schools of the District of Columbia, and 
 the i)rogress made, under the intelligent direction of the Board of 
 Education and the superintendent, in supplying the educational require- 
 ments of the District with thoroughly-trained and efficient teachers, is 
 very gratifying. The actsofCongress, from time to time, donating public 
 lands to the several States and Territories, in aid of educational interests, 
 have proved to l)e Avise measures of public policy, resulting in great and 
 lasting benefit. It would seem to be a matter of simple justice to extend 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 343 
 
 the benefits of this legislation, the wisdom of which has been so fully 
 vindicated by exi)erience, to the District of Columbia. 
 
 I again commend the general interests of the District of Columbia to 
 the favorable consideration of Congress. The affairs of the District, as 
 shown by the report of the Commissioners, are in a very satisfactory 
 condition. 
 
 In my annual messages heretofore, and in my special message of De- 
 cember 19, 1879, I have urged upon the attention of Congress the 
 necessity of reclaiming the marshes of the Potomac adjacent to the 
 capital, and I am constrained by its importance to advert again to the 
 subject. These flats embrace an area of several hundred acres. They 
 are an impediment to the drainage of the city, and seriously impair its 
 Jiealth. It is believed that, with this substantial improvement of its 
 river front, the capital would be, in all respects, one of the most attrac- 
 tive cities in the world. Aside from its permanent popularity, this 
 city is necessarily the place of residence of persons from every section 
 of the country, engaged in the public service. Many others reside here 
 temporarily, for the transaction of business with the Government. 
 
 It should not be forgotten that the land acquired will probably be 
 worth the cost of reclaiming it, and that the navigation of the river will 
 be greatly improved. I therefore again invite the attention of Congress 
 to the importance of promi)t provision for this much-needed and too 
 long delayed imi^rovement. 
 
 The water supply of the city is inadequate. In addition to the ordi- 
 nary use throughout the city, the consumption by Government is neces- 
 sarily very great in the navy-yard, arsenal, and the various Departments, 
 and a large quantity is required for tlie proper preserxation of the 
 numerous parks and the cleansing of sewers. I recommend that this 
 subject receive the early attention of Congress, and that, iu making 
 provision for an increased supply, such means be adopted as will have 
 in view the future growth of the city. Temporary expedients for such 
 a purpose cannot but be wasteful of money, and therefore unwise. A 
 more ample reservoir, with corresponding facilities for keeping it filled, 
 should, in my judgment, be constructed. I commend again to the atten- 
 tion of Congress the subject of the removal, from their present location, 
 of the depots of the several railroads entering the city ; and I renew the 
 recommendations of my former messages in behalf of the erection of a 
 building for the Congressional Library; the completion of the Wash- 
 ington Monument; and of liberal appropriations in support of the 
 benevolent, reformatory, and penal institutions of the District. 
 
 RUTHEEFOED B. HAYES. 
 Executive Mansion, December 6, 1880. 
 
SPECIAL MESSAGE 
 
 THE SENATE AND HOUSE OP EEPEESENTATIVES, IN EELATION 
 TO THE PONOA INDIANS. 
 
 P^EBRUARY 1,1881. 
 
SPECIAL MESSAGE. 
 
 To THE Senate and House of Representatives: 
 
 lu compliance with tlie request of a large number of intelligent and 
 benevolent citizens, and believing that it was warranted by the extraor- 
 dinary circumstances of the case, on the 18th day of December, 1880, 
 I appointed a commission consisting of George Crook and Kelson A. 
 Mdes, brigadier-generals in the xVrmy, William Stickney, of the District 
 of Columbia, and Walter Allen, of Massachusetts, and requested them 
 to confer with the Ponca Indians in the Indian Territory, and if, in 
 their judgment, it was advisable, also with that part of the tribe which 
 remained in Dakota, and "to ascertain the facts in regard to their 
 removal and present condition so far as was necessary to determine the 
 question as to what justice and humanity re(iuire should be done by the 
 Government of the United States, and to report their conclusions and 
 recommendations in the premises." 
 
 The commission, in pursuance of these instructions, having visited 
 the Ponca Indians at their homes in the Indian Territory and in Dakota, 
 and made a careful investigation of the subject referred to them, have 
 reported their conclusions and recommendations, and I now submit 
 their report, together with the testimony taken, for the consideration 
 of Congress. A minority report by Mr. Allen is also herewith sub- 
 mitted. 
 
 On the 27th of December, 1880, a delegation of Ponca chiefs from 
 the Indian Territory presented to the Executive a declaration of their 
 wishes, in which they stated that it was their desire "to remain on the 
 lands now occupied by the Poncas in the Indian Territory," and "to 
 relimiuish all their right and interest in the lands formerly owned and 
 occupied by the Ponca tribe in the State of Nebraska and the Territory 
 of Dakota;" and the declaration sets forth the compensation which 
 they win accept for the lands to be surrendered, and for the injuries 
 done to the tribe by their removal to the Indian Territory. This decla- 
 ration, agreeably to the request of the chiefs making it, is herewith 
 transmitted to Congress. 
 
 The public attention has frequently been called to the injustice and 
 wrong which the Ponca tribe of Indians has suffered at the hands of 
 
348 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 the Governmeut of the United States. This subject was first brought 
 before Congress and the country by the Secretary of the Interior in 
 his annual report for the year 1877, in which he said : 
 
 The case of the Poucas seems entitled to especial consideration at the 
 hands of Congress. They have always been friendly to the Myites. It 
 is said, and, as far as I have been able to learn, truthfully, that no Ponca 
 ever killed a Avhite luan. The orders of the Government always met 
 with obedient compliance at their hands. Their removal from their old 
 homes on the jMissouri river was to them a great hardship. They had 
 beeu born and raised there. They had houses there in which they lived 
 according to their ideas of comfort. Many of them had engaged in 
 agriculture, and possessed cattle and agricultural implements. They 
 were very reluctant to leave all this, but when Congress had resolved 
 upon their removal they finally overcame that reluctance and obeyed. 
 Considering their constant good conduct, their obedient spirit, and the 
 sacrifices tbey have made, they are certainly entitled to more than or- 
 dinary care at the hands of the Government, and I urgently recom- 
 mend that liberal provision be made to aid them in their new settlement. 
 
 In the same volume, the report of E. A. Howard, the agent of the 
 
 Poncas, is published, which contains the following: 
 
 ******* 
 
 I am of the opinion that the removal of the Poucas from the northern 
 climate of Dakota to the southern climate of the Indian Territory, at 
 the season of the year it was done, will prove a mistake, and that a 
 great mortality will surely follow among the people when they shall 
 have been here for a time and become poisoned with the malaria of the 
 climate. Already the effects of the climate may be seen upon them in 
 the ennui that seejus to hav^ settled upon each, and in- the large num- 
 ber now sick. 
 
 It is a matter of astonishment to me that the Government should have 
 ordered the remo^'al of the Ponca Indians from Dakota to the Indian 
 Territory without ha^ing first made some provision for their settlement 
 and comfort. Before their removal was carried into effect, an appro- 
 priation should have been made l)y Congress sufticieut to liave located 
 them in their new home, by building a comfortable house for the occu- 
 pan(;y of every family of the tribe. As the case now is, no api)ropria- 
 tion has been made by Congress, except for a sum but little more than 
 sufficient to remove them; no houses have been built for their use, and 
 the result is, that these people have been placed on an uncultivated res- 
 ervation to live in their tents as best they may, and await further legis- 
 lative action. 
 ******* 
 
 These Indians claim that the Government had no right to move them 
 from their reservation without first obtaining from them by purchase 
 or treaty the title which they had acquired from the Government, and 
 for Avhich they rendered a valuable consideration. They claim that the 
 date of the settlement of their tribe upon tlie land composing their old 
 reservation is prehistoiic; that they were all born there, and that their 
 ancestors from geneiations back beyoiul tlu'ir knowledge were born and 
 lived upon its soil, and that they final]}' ac^iuired a comjilete and per- 
 fect title from the Government by treaty made with the "Great 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 349 
 
 Father" at Wasliiugton, wliicli they claimed made it as legitimately 
 theirs as is the home of the white man acquired by gift or purchase. 
 
 ******* 
 
 The subject was again referred to in similar terms in the annual re- 
 port of the Interior Department for 1878, in the reports of the Commis- 
 sioner of Indian Affairs and of the agent for the Poncas; and in 1879 
 the Secretary of the Interior said: 
 
 That the Poncas were grievously wronged by their removal from 
 their location ou the Missouri river to the Indian Territory, their old 
 reservation having, by a mistake in making the Sioux treaty, been 
 transferred to the Sioux, has been at length aud repeatedly set forth in 
 my reports as well as those of the Commissioner of Indian Affairs. All 
 that (;oukl Ije subsequently done by this Department in the absence of 
 new legislation to repair that wroug and to indemnify them for their 
 losses has been done with more than ordinary solicitude. Tbey were 
 permitted to select a new location for themselves in the Indian Terri- 
 tory, the Quapaw reserve, to which they luul first been taken, being 
 objectionable to them. They chose a tract of country on the Ar- 
 kansas river and the Salt Pork northwest of the Pawnee reserve. I 
 visited their new reservation personally to satisfy myself of their con- 
 dition. The lands they now occupy are among the very best in the 
 Indian Territory in point of fertility, well watered and well timbered, 
 and admirably adai)ted for agriculture as well as stock-raising. In this 
 respect their new reservation is unquestionably superior to that which 
 they left behind them on the Missouri river. Seventy houses have been 
 buiit by aud for them of far better quality than the miserable huts they 
 formerly occupied in Dakota, and the construction of a larger number 
 is now in progress, so that, as the agent reports, every Ponca family 
 will be comfortably housed before January. A very liberal allowance 
 of agricultural implements and stock-cattle has been given them, and 
 if they ai)]ily themselves to agricultural work there is no doubt that 
 their condition will soon be far more prosi)erous than it has ever been 
 before. During the first year after their removal to the Indian Terri- 
 tory they lost a comparatively large number of their people by death in 
 consequence of the change of climate, which is greatly to be deplored; 
 but their sanitary condition is now very much improved. The death 
 rate among them during the present year has been very low, and the 
 number of cases of sickness is constantly decreasing. It is thought 
 
 that they are now sufticiently acclimated to be out of danger. 
 
 * _ * * * * * * 
 
 A committee of the Senate, after a very full investigation of the 
 subject, on the 31st of May, 1880, reported their conclusions to the 
 Senate, and both the majority and minority of the committee agreed 
 that ''a great wroug had been done to the Ponca Indians." The ma- 
 jority of the committee says: 
 #**•*** 
 
 ]^othing can strengthen the Government in a just policy to the Indians 
 so much as a demonstration of its willingness to do ample and complete 
 justice whenever it can be shown that it has inflicted a wrong upon a 
 weak and trusting tribe. It is impossible for the United States to hope 
 for any confidence to be reposed in them by the Indian until there shall 
 be shown on their part a readiness to do justice. 
 
350 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 The minority report is equally explicit as to the duty of the Gov- 
 ernment to repair the wrong done the Poncas. It says: 
 * # * * * # . * 
 
 We should be more prompt and anxious bccniuse they are weak and 
 we are stron<?. In my judgment we should be liberal to the verge of 
 hivishness in the expenditure of our money to improve tlieir condition, 
 so that they and all others may know that, although like all Nations 
 and all men we may do wrong, we are willing to make ample reparation. 
 
 The report of the commission appointed by me, of which General 
 Crook was chairman, and the testimony taken by them and their in- 
 vestigations, add very little to what was already contained in the official 
 reports of the Secretary of the Interior and the report of the Senate 
 committee touching the injustice done to the Poncas by their removal 
 to the Indian Territory. Happily, however, the evidence reported by 
 the commission and their recommendations point out conclusively the 
 true measures of redress whichi the Government of the United States 
 ought now to adopt. 
 
 The commission in its conclusions omit to state the important facts 
 as to the present condition of the Poncas in the Indian Territory, but 
 tlie evidence they have reported shows clearly and conclusively that 
 the Poncas now residing in that Territory, five hundred and twenty-one 
 in number, are satisfied with their new homes; that they are healthy, 
 comfortable, and contented, and that they have freely and firmly de- 
 cided to adhere to the choice announced in their letter of October 25, 
 1880, and in the declaration of December 27, 1880, to remain in the In- 
 dian Territory and not to return to Dakota. 
 
 The e\idence reported also shows that the fragment of the Ponca 
 tribe — perhaps one hundred and fifty in number — which is still in Da- 
 kota and Nebraska prefer to remain on their old reservation. 
 
 In view of these facts I am convinced that the recommendations of 
 the commission, together with the declaration of the chiefs of December 
 last, if substantially followed, will aiford a solution of the Ponca ques- 
 tion which is consistent with the wishes and interests of both branches 
 of the tribe, with the settled Indian policy of the Government, and as 
 nearly as is now practicable with the demands of justice. 
 
 Our general Indian policy for the future should embrace the following 
 leading ideas: 
 
 1. The Indians should be prepared for citizenship by giving to their 
 young of both sexes that industrial and general education which is re- 
 quired to enable them to be self-supporting and capable of self-protec- 
 tion in a civilized community. 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 351 
 
 2. Lands should be allotted to the Indians in severalty, inalienable 
 for a certain period. 
 
 3. The Indians should have a fair compensation for their lands not 
 required for individual allotment, the amount to be invested with suit- 
 able safeguards for their benefit. 
 
 4. With these prerequisites secured, the Indians should be made citi- 
 zens, and invested with the rights and charged with the responsibilities 
 of citizenship. 
 
 It is therefore recommended that legislation be adopted in relation 
 to the Ponca Indians, authorizing the Secretary of the Interior to secure 
 to the individual members of the Ponca tribe, in severalty, sufficient 
 land for their support, inalienable for a term of years and until the re- 
 striction upon alienation may be removed by the President. Ample 
 time and opportunity should be given to the members of the tribe freely 
 to choose their allotments either on their old or their new reservation. 
 
 Full compensation should be made for the lauds to be relinquished, 
 for their losses by the Sioux depredations, and by reason of their re- 
 moval to the Indian Territory, the amount not to be less than the sums 
 named in the declaration of the chiefs, made December 27, 1880. 
 
 In short, nothing should be left undone to show to the Indians that 
 the Groverumeut of the United States regards their rights as equally 
 sacred with those of its citizens. 
 
 The time has come when the policy should be to place the Indians 
 as rapidly as practicable on the same footing with the other permanent 
 inhabitants of our country. 
 
 I do not undertake to ai^portion the blame for the injustice done to 
 the Poncas. Whether the Executive or Congress or the public is chiefly 
 in fault is not now a question of j)ractical importance. As the Chief 
 Executive at the time when the wrong was consummated, I am deeply 
 sensible that enough of the responsibility for that wrong justly attaches 
 to me to make it my particular duty and earnest desire to do all I can 
 to give to these injured people that measure of redress which is re- 
 quired alike by justice and by humanity. 
 
 EUTHERFOED B. HAYES. 
 
 Executive Mansion, February 1, 1881 . 
 
IVIESS^aE 
 
 TRANSMITTING 
 
 TO THE SENATE AND HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES A REPORT OF 
 THE RESULTS IN THE NEW YORK CITY POST OFFICE AND 
 CUSTOM-HOUSE OF THE APPLICATION OF THE CIVIL- 
 SERVICE REFORM RULES. 
 
 FEBRUARY 28, 1881. 
 
 23 
 
MESSAGE. 
 
 To THE Senate and House of Eepresentatives : 
 
 I transmit herewitli a copy of a letter addressed to the cliairman of 
 the civil service commissiou on the 3d of December last, requesting to 
 be furnished with a report upon the results in the post office and custom- 
 house in the city of New York of the application of the civil -service 
 rules requiring open competitive examinations for appointments and 
 promotions, together with the report of Hon. Dorman B. Eaton, the 
 chairman of the commission, in response. 
 
 The report presents a very gratifying statement of the results of the 
 application of the rules referred to, in the two largest and most impor- 
 tant local offices in the civil service of the Government. The subject is 
 one of great importance to the i^eople of the whole country. 
 
 I commend the suggestions and recommendations of the chairman of 
 the commission to the careful consideration of Congress. 
 
 E. B. HAYES. 
 
 Executive Mansion, February 28, 1881. 
 
I 
 
 PROCLAMATION 
 
 CONVENING 
 
 THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES. 
 
 FEBRUARY 28, 1881. 
 
PROCLAMATION. 
 
 BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE IHSflTED STATES OF AMERICA. 
 A PEOCLAMATION. 
 
 Whereas objects of interest to the United States reqnire that the 
 Senate should be convened at twelve o'clock on the fourth of March 
 next, to receive and act upon such communications as may be made to 
 it on the part of the Executive: 
 
 Now, therefore, I, Eutherford B. Hayes, President of the United 
 States, have considered it to be my duty to issue this my proclamation, 
 declaring that an extraordinary occasion requires the Senate of the 
 United States to convene for the transaction of business at the Capitol, 
 in the city of Washington, on the fourth day of March next, at twelve 
 o'clock at noon on that day, of which all who shall at that time be en- 
 titled to act as members of that body are hereby required to take notice. 
 Given under my hand and the seal of the United States, at Wash- 
 ington, the twenty-eighth day of February, in the year of our 
 [seal.] Lord one thousand eight hundred and eighty-one, and of the 
 Independence of the United States of America the one hundred 
 and fifth. 
 
 E. B. HAYES. 
 By the President : 
 Wm. M. Evarts, 
 
 Secretary of State. 
 
MlESS^aE 
 
 RETURNING TO 
 
 THE HOUSE or EEPKESENTATIVES THE BILL ENTITLED "AN ACT TO 
 EAOILITATE THE KEFUNDING 01 THE NATIONAL DEBT." 
 
 MARCH 3, 1881. 
 
MESSAGE. 
 
 To THE House of Representatives: 
 
 Having considered the bill entitled " An act to facilitate tlie refunding 
 of the National debt," I am constrained to return it to the House of 
 Eepreseutatives, in which it originated, with the following statement of 
 my objections to its passage. 
 
 The imperative necessity for prompt action, and the pressure of 
 public duties in this closing week of my term of office, compel me to re- 
 frain from any attempt to make a fiill and satisfactory presentation of 
 the objections to the bill. 
 
 The importance of the passage at the present session of Congress of 
 a suitable measure for the refunding of the National debt, which is about 
 to mature, is generally recognized. It has been urged upon the atten- 
 tion of Congress by the Secretary of the Treasury and in my last an- 
 nual message. • If successfully accomjdished, it will secure a large de- 
 crease in the annual interest payment of the Nation; and I earnestly 
 recommend, if the bill before me shall fail, that another measure for 
 this purpose be adopted before the present Congress adjourns. 
 
 While in my opinion it would be wise to authorize the Secretary of 
 the Treasury, in his discretion, to offer to the public bonds bearing 3^ per 
 cent, interest in aid of refunding, I should not deem it my duty to in- 
 terpose my constitutional objection to the passage of the present bill 
 if it did not contain, in its fifth section, provisions which in my judgment 
 seriously impair the value and tend to the destruction of the present 
 National banking system of the country. This system has now been in 
 operation almost twenty years. No safer or more beneficial banking 
 system was ever established. Its advantages as a business are free to 
 all who have the necessary capital. It furnishes a currency to the public 
 which for convesience and the security of the bill-holder has probably 
 never been equalled by that of any other banking system. Its notes are 
 secured by the deposit with the Government of the interest-bearing 
 bonds of the United States. 
 
 The section of the bill before me which relates to the National bank- 
 ing system, and to which objection is made, is not an essential part of 
 a refunding measure. It is as follows : 
 
 Sec. 5. From and after the 1st day of July, 1881, the 3 per cent, bonds 
 
364 LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 
 
 authorized by the first section of this act shall be the only bonds re- 
 ceivable as security for national-bank circulation, or as securitiy for the 
 safe-keeping and prompt ijayment of the i)ublic money deposited with 
 such banks; but when any such bonds deposited for the purposes afore- 
 said shall be designated for purchase or redemption by the Secretary of 
 the Treasury, the banking association depositing the same shall have 
 the right to substitute other issues of the bonds of the United States 
 in lieu thereof: Provided, That no bond upon which interest has ceased 
 shall be accepted or shall be continued on deposit as security for cir- 
 culation or for the safe-keeping of the public money; and in case bonds 
 so deposited shall not be withdrawn, as pro\ided by law, within thirty 
 days after interest has ceased thereon, the banking association deposit- 
 ing the same shall be subject to the liabilities and proceedings on the 
 part of the Comptroller provided for in section 5234 of the Revised 
 Statutes of the United States: And provided further, That section 4 of 
 the act of June 20, 1874, entitled "An act fixing the amount of United 
 States notes providing for a redistribution of the national-bank currency, 
 and for other purposes," be and the same is hereby, repealed ; and sections 
 5159 and 51G0 of the Revised Statutes of the United States be, and the 
 same are hereby, re-enacted. 
 
 Under this section it is obvious that no additional banks will here- 
 after be organized, except possibly in a few cities or localities where 
 the prevailing rates of interest in ordinary business are extremely low. 
 No new banks can be organized, and no increase of the capital of ex- 
 isting banks can be obtained except by the purchase and deposit of 
 3 per cent, bonds. No other bonds of the United States can be used 
 for the purpose. The one thousand millions of other bonds recently 
 issued by the United States, and bearing a higher rate of interest than 
 3 per cent., and therefore a better security for the bill-holder, cannot, 
 after the 1st of July next, be received as security for bank circulation. 
 This is a radical change in the banking law. It takes from the banks 
 the right they have heretofore had under the law to purchase and de- 
 posit, as security for their circulation, any of the bonds issued by the 
 United States, and deprives the bill-holder of the best security which 
 the banks are able to give, by requiring them to deposit bonds having the 
 least value of any bonds issued by the Government. 
 
 The average rate of taxation of capital employed in banking is more 
 than double the rate of taxation upon capital employed in other legiti- 
 mate business. Under these circumstances, to amend the banking law 
 so as to deprive the banks of the privilege of securing their notes by 
 the most valuable bonds issued by the Government will, it is believed, 
 in a large part of the country, be a practical prohibition of the organi- 
 zation of new banks, and prevent the existing banks from enlarging 
 their capital. The National banking system, if continued at all, will be 
 a monopoly in the hands of those already engaged in it, who may pur- 
 
LETTERS AND MESSAGES. 365 
 
 chase Government bonds bearing a more favorable rate of interest than 
 the 3 per cent, bonds prior to next July. 
 
 To prevent the further organization of banks is to put in jeopardy 
 the whole system by taking from it that feature which makes it as it 
 now is, a banking system free ujjon the same terms to all who wish to 
 engage in it. Even the existing banks will be in danger of being driven 
 from business by the additional disadvantages to which they will be 
 subjected by this bill. In short, I cannot but regard the fifth section 
 of the bill as a step in the direction of the destruction of the National 
 banking system. 
 
 Our country, after a long period of business depression, has just en- 
 tered upon a career of unexampled prosperity. 
 
 The withdrawal of the currency from circulation of the National banks 
 and the enforced winding up of the banks in consequence, would inev- 
 itably bring serious embarrassment and disaster to the business of the 
 country. Banks of issue are essential instruments of modern commerce. 
 If the present efficient and admirable system of banking is broken 
 down, it will inevitably be followed by a recurrence to other and infe- 
 rior methods of banking. Any measure looking to such a result will 
 be a disturbing element in our financial system. It will destroy confi- 
 dence and surely check the growing prosperity of the country. 
 
 Believing that a measure for refunding the National debt is not neces- 
 sarily connected with the National banking law, and that any refunding 
 act would defeat its own object if it imperilled the National banking 
 system or seriously impaired its usefulness; and convinced that section 
 5 of the bill before me would, if it should become a law, work great 
 harm, I herewith return the bill to the House of Eepresentatives for 
 that further consideration which is provided for in the Constitution. 
 
 EUTHERFORD B. HAYES. 
 
 Executive Mansion, March 3, 1881. 
 
IISTDEX. 
 
 Date. 
 
 Letter of Acceptance J"ly 8, 1876 
 
 Inaugural Address March 5, 1877 
 
 Letter of Instruction to tlie Louisiana Commission April 2, 1877 
 
 Executive Order, Withdrawal of Troops April 20, 1877 
 
 Report of Louisiana Commission April 24, 1877 
 
 Proclamation convening Congress May 5, 1877 
 
 Letter on the Conduct to be observed by Officers of the General Gov- 
 ernment in relation to Elections May 26, 1877 
 
 Executive Order, Civil Service June 22, 1877 
 
 Proclamation, Railroad Riot in West Virginia Jnly 18, 1877 
 
 Proclamation, Railroad Riot in Maryland July 21, 1877 
 
 Proclamation, Railroad Riot in Pennsylvania July 23, 1877 
 
 Message, First Session, Forty-fifth Congress October 15, 1877 
 
 Proclamation, Thanksgiving Day October 29, 1877 
 
 Executive Order, Death of Senator Morton November 2, 1877 
 
 Message, Second Session, Forty-fifth Congress December 3, 1877 
 
 Message returning Silver Bill February 28, 1878 
 
 Message returning Bill authorizing a Special Term of U. S. Court to 
 
 be held in Mississippi March 6, 1878 
 
 Proclamation, Riot in New Mexico October 7, 1878 
 
 Proclamation, Thanksgiving Day October 30, 1878 
 
 Message, Third Session, Forty-fifth Congress December 2, 1878 
 
 Message, Postal and Commercial Intercourse with South America . . December 17, 1878 
 
 Message, New York Custom-House January 31, 1879 
 
 Letter to General Merritt, Collector of Customs, New York City . . . February 4, 1879 
 
 Message returning Chinese Bill March 1, 1879 
 
 Message, Draft of Chinese Bill March 1, 1879 
 
 Proclamation convening Congress March 4, 1879 
 
 Message, First Session, Forty-sixth Congress March 19, 1879 
 
 Proclamation, Invasion of Indian Territory April 26, 1879 
 
 Message returning Army Bill April 29, 1879 
 
 Message returning Military-Interference Bill May 12, 1879 
 
 Message returning Legislative, Executive, and Judicial Bill .. ' May 29, 1879 
 
 Message returning Judicial Bill June 23, 1879 
 
 Message returning Marshals' Bill June 30, 1879 
 
 ^lessage. Appropriations for Pay of Marshals June 30, 1879 
 
 Address, Reunion, Twenty-third Ohio Veteran Volunteer Infantry, 
 
 Youngstown, Ohio September 17, 1879 
 
 Address, Michigan ^tate Fair, Detroit September 18, 1879 
 
368 INDEX. 
 
 Date. 
 
 Proclamation, Thanksgiving Day November 3, 1879 
 
 Executive Order, Death of Senator Chandler November 1, 1879 
 
 Message, Second Session, Forty-sixth Congress December 1, 1879 
 
 Proclamation, Invasion Indian Territory February 12, 1880 
 
 Message, Inter-oceanic Canal March 8, 1880 
 
 Message, Declaration of Independence Desk April 22, 1880 
 
 Message returning Deficiency Bill May 4, 1880 
 
 Address, Ohio Soldiers' Reunion, Columbus August 11, 1880 
 
 Proclamation, Thanksgiving Day No%emV>er 1, 1 '80 
 
 Message, Third Session, Forty-sixth Congress December 6, 1880 
 
 Message, Ponca Indians February 1, 1881 
 
 Message, Civil Service Commission February 28, 1881 
 
 Proclamation convening the Senate of the United States February 28, 1881 
 
 returning Refunding Bill March 3, 1881