Page:The Biographical Dictionary of America, vol. 02.djvu/286

 CLEVELAND

CLEVELAND

of the 49th congress, convened Dec. 6, 1886. the President sent in his second annual message, in ■which he recommended a reasonable restriction of Chinese immigration, coupled with assurances to the Chinese government of ample protection to its subjects already within our borders ; and sucli guardian.ship as would insure them speedy and impartial trial if accused of crime committed in foreign countries, or rendition for trial if ac- cused of crime committed at home. He repeated his recommendation made to the former congress for the abolition of the tax on foreign works of art ; recommended a provision for the full recog- nition of the rights of property in the creations of the human intellect as applied to authors and inventors, in securing an international copy- right ; and directed attention to the large accu- mulation of revenue, suggesting that legislative action should relieve the people from the un- necessary burden of taxation, thus made appar- ent. He claimed that capital and labor would be made harmonious by reducing the tariff, thus lowering the prices of the necessaries of life then augmented by a superfluous tax. He brought again to the attention of the people the vast ac- cumulation of coined silver and recommended a suspension of compulsory coinage, re.stricting the supply to the actual demand to meet the need of a circulatory medium. In the matter of pensions he reported the total amount paid from 1861 to 1886 to be §808,624,811.57, and that during the fiscal year then closed 40,857 new pensions had been allowed, and 2229 pensioners previously dropped from the rolls, restored. In closing this portion of his message he added : " As long as we adhere to the principle of granting pensions for service and disability as the result of the service, the allowing of pensions should be restricted to cases presenting these featvires."' In the regula- tion of the differences between capital and labor he claimed the true solution to be that capital should, in recognition of the brotherhood of our citizenship and in the spirit of American fairness, generously accord to labor its just compensation and consideration, on the ground that labor is capital's best protection and faithful allj'; and in the mattev of the bankrupt Freedman's sav- ings and trust company he maintained that it was the plain dut\- of the government to make good to depositors the §1,291,744.50 deposited in that institution and lost, in view of the general belief and understanding that inasmuch as the banks were largely under control of commissioned United States officers wearing the uniform of the army and naturally supposed to be agents of the government, the depositors were in a degree ■wards of the nation. On Jan. 17, 1887, the inva- lid pension bill was passed by the house by a vote of 180 to 76 and by the senate on the 27th

witliout a discussion and on Feb. 11, 1887, the President returned it unsigned, giving at length his objections. On Feb. 24, 1887, a motion to pass the bill notwithstanding the veto was de- bated in the house but it failed to pass over the veto. On February 14, Secretary Manning re- signed and on March 31, Charles S. Fairchild was appointed secretary of the treasury-. In his mes- sage to the congress assembled Dec. 6, 1887, the President reiterated his former demand for a relief to a congested treasury, and stated that should no provision be made to stop the accumu- lation, by Jime, 1888, the surplus would exceed $140,000,000, which condition in no measure comported with the depleted monetary condi- tion of the country. He devoted this message exclusively to recommending a radical reduction in the tariff, rather than extravagant appropria- tions with their demoralizing consequences. In this message he said, " It is a condition which confronts us, not a theory. Relief from this con- dition may involve a slight reduction of the advantages which we award over home produc- tions but the entire withdrawal of such advan- tages would not be contemplated." This message placed the subject of tariff reform before con- gress; the Democratic advocates in the house were led by Roger Q. Mills of Texas, and the Republican protectionists by "William McKinley, Jr., of Ohio. The Mills bill passed the house July 21, 1888, by a vote of 162 to 149, an almost strictly party vote, but failed to reach a vote in the senate before the adjournment of the 50th congress. Another important matter presented to the 50th congress by the President, was the fisheries treaty which was sent to the senate, Feb. 20, 1888. This treaty had been negotiated by commissioners consisting of Thomas F. Bay- ard, secretary of state, William L. Putnam of Maine and James B. Angell of Michigan on the part of the L'nited States, and Joseph Chamber- lain, L. S. Sackville-West and Charles Tupper on the part of Great Britain, and was signed at Washington, Feb. 15, 1888. The President rec- ommended its immediate publication and dis- cussion, which suggestion the senate adopted. On August 21, the senate refused to adopt the treaty by a vote of twenty-seven to thirty, and on the 23d the President asked of congress fuller power to undertake retaliation in case harsh measures should become necessarj^ in conse- quence of the rejection of the treaty. A bill such as the President asked for was passed by the house September 8, but the senate took no action and the subject remained iindecided at the end of the session, no relief being furnished until Jan. 24, 1887. when the senate passed the act by a vote of forty-six to one. The President in his fourth annual message, at the second session of