Section 3 of State of the Union Addresses, 1885-1888. This is a LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain. For more information, go to volunteer, please visit LibriVox.org. State of the Union Address, Grover Cleveland, December 8, 1885, Part 3. The affairs of the Postal Service are exhibited by the report of the Postmaster General, which will be laid before you. The Postal Revenue, whose ratio of gain upon the rising prosperity of 1882 and 1883 outstripped the increasing expenses of our growing service, was checked by the reduction in the rate of letter postage, which took effect with the beginning of October in the latter year, and it diminished during the two past fiscal years, $2,790,000, in about the proportion of $2,270,000 in 1884, to $520,000 in 1885. Postal growth and development have meantime increased expenditure, resulting in a deficiency in the revenue to meet the expenses of the department of $5.25 million for the year 1884, and $8.3 million in the last fiscal year. The anticipated and natural revival of the revenue has been oppressed and retarded by the unfavorable business condition of the country, of which the Postal Service is a faithful indicator. The gratifying fact is shown, however, by the report that our returning prosperity is marked by a gain of $380,000 in the revenue of the latter half of the last year, over the corresponding period of the preceding year. The change in the weight of first-class matter, which may be carried for a single rate of postage from a half-ounce to an ounce, and the reduction by one-half of the rate of newspaper postage, which under recent legislation began with the current year, will operate to restrain the augmentation of receipts which otherwise might have been expected to such a degree that the scale of expense may gain upon the revenue and cause an increased deficiency to be shown at its close. But after no long period of reawakened prosperity by proper economy it is confidently anticipated that even the present low rates, now as favorable as any country affords, will be adequate to sustain the cost of the service. The operation of the Post Office Department is for the convenience and benefit of the people, and the method by which they pay the charges of this useful arm of their public service, so that it be just and impartial, is of less importance to them than the economical expenditure of the means they provide for its maintenance and the due improvement of its agencies, so that they may enjoy its highest usefulness. The proper attention has been directed to the prevention of waste or extravagance, and good results appear from the report who have already been accomplished. I approve the recommendation of the Post Master General to reduce the charges on domestic money orders of five dollars and less from eight to five cents. This change will materially aid those of our people who most of all avail themselves of this instrumentality, but to whom the element of cheapness is of the greatest importance. With this reduction the system would still remain self-supporting. The free delivery system has been extended to nineteen additional cities during the year, and one hundred and seventy-eight now enjoy its conveniences. Experience has commended it to those who enjoy its benefits, and further enlargement of its facilities is due to other communities to which it is adapted. In the cities where it has been established, taken together, the local postage exceeds its maintenance by nearly one million three hundred thousand dollars. The limit to which this system is now confined by law has been nearly reached, and the reasons given justify its extension which is proposed. It was decided with my approbation, after a sufficient examination, to be inexpedient for the Post Office Department to contract for carrying our foreign males under the additional authority given by the last Congress. The amount limited was inadequate to pay all within the purview of the law the full rate of fifty cents per mile, and it would have been unjust and unwise to have given it to some and denied it to others. Nor could contracts have been let under the law to all, at a rate to have brought the aggregate within the appropriation without such practical pre-arrangement of terms as would have violated it. The rate of sea and inland postage, which was preferred under another statute, clearly appears to be a fair compensation for the desired service, being three times the price necessary to secure transportation by other vessels upon any route, and much beyond the charges made to private persons for services not less burdensome. One of the steamship companies upon the refusal of the postmaster general to attempt, by the means provided, the distribution of the sum appropriated as an extra compensation withdrew the services of their vessels, and thereby occasioned slight inconvenience, though no considerable injury, the males having been dispatched by other means. Whatever may be the thought of the policy of subsidizing any line of public conveyance or travel, I am satisfied that it should not be done under cover of an expenditure, incident to the administration of a department. Nor should there be any uncertainty as to the recipients of the subsidy, or any discretion left to an executive officer as to its distribution. If such gifts of the public money are to be made, for the purpose of aiding any enterprise in the supposed interest of the public, I cannot but think that the amount to be paid, and the beneficiary, might better be determined by Congress than in any other way. The International Congress of Delegates from the Postal Union Countries, conveyed at Lisbon, in Portugal, in February last, and after a session of some weeks the delegates signed a convention a mandatory of the present Postal Union Convention in some particulars designed to advance its purposes. This additional act has had my approval, and will be laid before you with the departmental report. I approve the recommendation of the Postmaster General that another assistant be provided for his department. I invite your consideration to the several other recommendations contained in his report. The report of the Attorney General contains a history of the conduct of the Department of Justice during the last year, and a number of valuable suggestions as to needed legislation, and I invite your careful attention to the same. The condition of business in the courts of the United States is such that there seems to be an imperative necessity for remedial legislation on the subject. Some of these courts are so overburdened with pending causes that the delays in determining litigation amount often to a denial of justice. Among the plans suggested for relief is one submitted by the Attorney General. Its main features are the transfer of all the original jurisdiction of the circuit courts to the district courts, and an increase of judges for the latter where necessary. In addition of judges to the circuit courts, and constituting them exclusively courts of appeal, and reasonably limiting appeals thereto, further restrictions of the right to remove causes from the state to federal courts, permitting appeals to the Supreme Court from the courts of the District of Columbia and the territories only in the same cases as they are allowed from state courts and guarding against any unnecessary number of appeals from the circuit courts. I approve the plan thus outlined, and recommend the legislation necessary for its application to our judicial system. The present mode of compensating United States Marshals and District Attorneys should, in my opinion, be changed. They are allowed to charge against the government certain fees for services, their income being measured by the amount of such fees within a fixed limit as to their annual aggregate. This is a direct inducement for them to make their fees in criminal cases as large as possible in an effort to reach the maximum sum permitted. As an entirely natural consequence, unscrupulous marshals are found encouraging frivolous prosecutions, arresting people on petty charges of crime and transporting them to distant places for examination and trial for the purpose of earning mileage and other fees, and District Attorneys uselessly attend criminal examinations far from their places of residence for the express purpose of swelling their accounts against the government. The actual expenses incurred in these transactions are also charged against the government. Thus the rights and freedom of our citizens are outraged, and public expenditures increased, for the purpose of furnishing public officers pretext for increasing the measure of their compensation. I think marshals and District Attorneys should be paid salaries, adjusted by a rule which will make them commensurate with services fairly rendered. In connection with this subject, I desire to suggest the advisability, if it be found not obnoxious to constitutional objection, of investing United States commissioners with the power to try and determine certain violations of law within the grade of misdemeanors. Such trials might be made to depend upon the option of the accused, the multiplication of small and technical offenses, especially under the provisions of our internal revenue law, render some change in our present system very desirable, in the interests of humanity as well as economy. The District Courts are now crowded with petty prosecutions involving a punishment in case of conviction, of only a slight fine, while the parties accused are harassed by an enforced attendance upon courts held hundreds of miles from their homes. If poor and friendless, they are obliged to remain in jail during months. Perhaps that elapsed before a session of the court is held, and are finally brought to trial surrounded by strangers and with but little real opportunity for defense. In the meantime, frequently the Marshal has charged against the government his fees for an arrest, the transportation of the accused, and the expense of the same, and for summoning witnesses before a commissioner, a grand jury, and a court, the witnesses have been paid from the public funds large fees and traveling expenses, and the commissioner and district attorney have also made their charges against the government. This abuse in the administration of our criminal law should be remedied, and if the plan above suggested is not practicable, some others should be devised. The report of the Secretary of the Interior, containing an account of the operations of this important department and much interesting information, will be submitted for your consideration. The most intricate and difficult subject in charge of this department is the treatment and management of the Indians. I am satisfied that some progress may be noted in their condition as a result of a prudent administration of the present laws and regulations for their control, but it is admitted that there is a lack of a fixed purpose or policy on this subject, which should be supplied. It is useless to dilate upon the wrongs of the Indians, and as useless to indulge in the heartless belief that because their wrongs are revenged in their own atrocious manner, therefore they should be exterminated. They are within the care of our government, and their rights are, or should be, protected from invasion by the most solemn obligations. They are properly enough called the wards of the government, and it should be borne in mind that this guardianship involves on our part efforts for the improvement of their condition and the enforcement of their rights. There seems to be general concurrence in the proposition that the ultimate object of their treatment should be their civilization and citizenship, fitted by these to keep pace in the march of progress, with the advanced civilization about them. They will readily assimilate with the mass of our population, assuming the responsibilities and receiving the protection incident to this condition. The difficulty appears to be in the selection of the means to be at present employed toward the attainment of this result. Our Indian population, exclusive of those in Alaska, is reported as numbering 260,000, nearly all being located on lands set apart for their use and occupation, aggregating over 134 million acres. These lands are included in the boundaries of 171 reservations of different dimensions, scattered in 21 states and territories, presenting great variations in climate and in the kind and quality of their soils. Among the Indians upon these several reservations, there exist the most market differences in natural traits and disposition, and in their progress toward civilization. While some are lazy, vicious, and stupid, others are industrious, peaceful, and intelligent, while a portion of them are self-supporting and independent, and have so far advanced in civilization that they make their own laws administered through offices of their own choice and educate their children in schools of their own establishment and maintenance, others still retain in squalor and dependence almost the savagery of their natural state. In dealing with this question, the desires manifested by the Indians should not be ignored. Here again we find a great diversity. With some the tribal relations cherished with the utmost tenacity, while it's hold upon others is considerably relaxed. The love of home is strong with all, and yet there are those whose attachment to a particular locality is by no means unyielding. The ownership of their lands in severalty is much desired by some, while by others, and sometimes among the most civilized, such a distribution would be bitterly opposed. The variation of their wants growing out of and connected with the character of their several locations should be regarded. Some are upon reservations most fit for grazing, but without flocks or herds, and some on arable land have no agricultural implements, while some of the reservations are double the size necessary to maintain the number of Indians now upon them, in a few cases perhaps they should be enlarged. And to all this, the difference in the administration of the agencies, while the same duties are devolved upon all, the disposition of the agents in the manner of their contact with the Indians have much to do with their condition and welfare. The agent who perfunctorily performs his duty and slothfully neglects all opportunity to advance their moral and physical improvement, and fails to inspire them with a desire for better things, will accomplish nothing in the direction of their civilization, while he who feels the burden of an important trust, and has an interest in his work, will by consistent example, firm yet considerable treatment and well directed aid and encouragement, constantly lead those under his charge toward the light of their enfranchisement. The history of all the progress which has been made in the civilization of the Indian, I think will disclose the fact that the beginning has been religious teaching, followed by, or accompanying, secular education, while the self-sacrificing and pious men and women who have aided in this good work by their independent endeavor, have for their reward the beneficent results of their labor and the consciousness of Christian duty well performed. Their valuable services should be fully acknowledged by all who under the law are charged with the control and management of our Indian wards. What has been said indicates that in the present condition of the Indians no attempt should be made to apply a fixed and unyielding plan of action to their varied and varying needs and circumstances. The Indian bureau, burdened as it is, with their general oversight, and with the details of the establishment, can hardly possess itself of the minute phases of the particular case's needing treatment, and thus the propriety of creating an instrumentality auxiliary to those already established for the care of the Indians suggests itself. I recommend the passage of a law, authorizing the appointment of six commissioners, three of whom shall be detailed from the army, to be charged with the duty of a careful inspection from time to time of all the Indians upon our reservations, or subject to the care and control of the government, with a view of discovering their exact condition and needs and determining what steps shall be taken on behalf of the government to improve their situation in the direction of their self-support and complete civilization, that they ascertain from such inspection what, if any, of the reservations may be reduced in area, and in such cases what part not needed for Indian occupation may be purchased by the government from the Indians and disposed of for their benefit. What, if any, Indians may, with their consent, be removed to other reservations, with a view of their concentration, and the sale, on their behalf, of their abandoned reservations. What Indian lands now held in common should be allotted in severality. In what manner and to what extent the Indians upon the reservations can be placed under the protection of our laws and subjected to their penalties, and which, if any, Indians should be invested with the right of citizenship. The powers and functions of the commissioners in regard to these subjects should be clearly defined, though they should, in conjunction with the Secretary of the Interior, be given all the authority to deal definitely with the questions presented deemed safe and consistent. They should be also charged with the duty of ascertaining the Indians who might properly be furnished with implements of agriculture, and of what kind, in what cases the support of the government should be withdrawn, where the present plan of distributing Indian supplies should be changed, where schools may be established, and where discontinued. The conduct, methods, and fitness of agents in charge of reservations. The extent to which such reservations are occupied or intruded upon by unauthorized persons, and generally all matters related to the welfare and improvement of the Indian. They should advise with the Secretary of the Interior concerning these matters of detail and management, and he should be given power to deal with them fully, if he is not now invested with such power. This plan contemplates the selection of persons for commissioners, who are interested in the Indian question, and who have practical ideas upon the subject of their treatment. The expense of the Indian Bureau during the last fiscal year was more than six and a half million dollars. I believe much of this expenditure might be saved under the plan proposed, and its economical effects would be increased with its continuance, that the safety of our frontier settlers would be subserved under its operation, and that the nation would be saved through its results from the imputation of inhumanity, injustice, and mismanagement. In order to carry out the policy of allotment of Indian lands and severality, which deemed expedient, it will be necessary to have surveys completed of the reservations, and I hope that provision will be made for the prosecution of this work. In May of the present year, a small portion of the Chirikwahua Apaches, on the White Mountain Reservation in Arizona, left the reservation and committed a number of murders and depredations upon settlers in that neighborhood. Though prompt and energetic action was taken by the military, the renegades eluded capture and escaped into Mexico, the formation of the country through which these Indians passed, their thorough acquaintance with the same, the speed of their escape, and the manner in which they scattered and concealed themselves among the mountains near the scene of their outrages, put our soldiers at a great disadvantage in their efforts to capture them, though the expectation is still entertained that they will be ultimately taken and punished for their crimes. The threatening and disorderly conduct of the Chayans in the Indian territory early last summer caused considerable alarm and uneasiness. Investigation proved that their threatening attitude was due in great measure to the occupation of the land of their reservation by immense herds of cattle, which their owners claimed were rightfully there under certain leases made by the Indians. Such occupation appearing under examination to be unlawful, not withstanding these leases, the intruders were ordered to remove their cattle from the lands of the Indians by executive proclamation. The enforcement of this proclamation had the effect of restoring peace and order among the Indians, and they are now quiet and well behaved. By an executive order issued on February 27, 1885, by my predecessor, a portion of the tract of country in the territory known as the Old Winnebago and Croque Creek Reservations was directed to be restored to the public domain and open to settlement under the land laws of the United States, and a large number of persons entered upon those lands. This action alarmed the Sioux Indians, who claimed the territory, as belonging to their reservation under the Treaty of 1868. This claim was determined after careful investigation to be well rounded, and consequently the executive order referred to was by proclamation of April 17, 1885 declared to be inoperative and of no effect, and all persons upon the land were warned to leave. This warning has been substantially complied with. The public domain had its origin in sessions of land by the States to the general government. The first session was made by the State of New York, and the largest, which in area exceeded all the others, by the State of Virginia. The territory, the proprietorship of which became thus vested in the general government, extended from the western line of Pennsylvania to the Mississippi River. These patriotic donations of the States were encumbered with no condition, except that they should be held and used for the common benefit of the United States. By purchase with the common fund of all the people, additions were made to this domain until it extended to the northern line of Mexico, the Pacific Ocean, and the Polar Sea. The original trust for the common benefit of the United States attached to all. In the execution of that trust, the policy of many homes, rather than large estates, was adopted by the government. That these might be easily obtained and be the abode of security and contentment the laws for their acquisition were few, easily understood, and general in their character. But the pressure of local interests combined with a speculative spirit, have in many instances procured the passage of laws which marred the harmony of the general plan, and encumbered the system with a multitude of general and special enactments which render the land laws complicated, subject the titles to uncertainty, and the purchasers often to oppression and wrong. Laws which were intended for the common benefit have been perverted, so that large quantities of land are vesting in single ownerships, from the multitude and character of the laws. This consequence seems incapable of correction by mere administration. It is not for the common benefit of the United States that a large area of the public lands should be acquired, directly or through fraud, in the hands of a single individual. The nation's strength is in the people. The nation's prosperity is in their prosperity. The nation's glory is in the equality of her justice. The nation's perpetuity is in the patriotism of all her people. Hence, as far as practicable, the plan adopted in the disposal of the public lands should have in view the original policy, which encouraged many purchases of these lands for homes, and discouraged the massing of large areas. Exclusive of Alaska, about three-fifths of the national domain has been sold or subjected to contract or grant. Of the remaining two fifths, a considerable portion is either mountain or desert. A rapidly increasing population creates a growing demand for homes, and the accumulation of wealth inspires an eager competition to obtain the public land for speculative purposes. In the future, this collision of interests will be more marked than in the past, and the execution of the nation's trust in behalf of our settlers will be more difficult. I therefore commend to your attention the recommendations contained in the report of the Secretary of the Interior with reference to the repeal and modification of certain of our land laws. The nation has made princely grants and subsidies to a system of railroads projected as great national highways to connect the Pacific States with the East. It has been charged that these donations from the people have been diverted to private gain and corrupt uses, and thus public indignation has been aroused and suspicion engendered. Our great nation does not begrudge its generosity, but it abhors speculation and fraud, and the favorable regard of our people for the great corporations to which these grants were made can only be revived by a restoration of confidence, to be secured by their constant, unequivocable, and clearly manifested integrity. A faithful application of the undiminished proceeds of the grants to the construction and perfecting of their roads, an honest discharge of their obligations, and entire justice to all the people in the enjoyment of their rights on these highways of travel are all the public asks, and it will be content with no less. To secure these things should be the common purpose of the officers of the government as well as of the corporations. With this accomplishment prosperity would be permanently secured to the roads, and national pride would take the place of national complaint. It appears from the report of the Commissioner of Pensions that there were on the first day of July 1885 345,125 persons born upon the pension rolls, who were classified as follows, Army Invalids 241,456, widows, minor children, and dependent relatives of deceased soldiers, 78,841, Navy Invalids, 2,745, Navy widows, minor children, and dependents, 1,926, survivors of the war of 1812, 2,945, and widows of those who served in that war, 17,212. About one man in ten, of all those who enlisted in the late war, are reported as receiving pensions, exclusive of the dependents of deceased soldiers. On the first of July 1875 the number of pensioners was 234,821, and the increase within the ten years next thereafter was 110,304. While there is no expenditure of the public funds which the people more cheerfully approve than that made in recognition of the services of our soldiers, living and dead, the sentiment underlying the subject should not be vitiated by the introduction of any fraudulent practices. Therefore, it is fully as important that the rolls should be cleansed of all those who by fraud have secured a place thereon, as that meritorious claims should be speedily examined and adjusted. The reforms and the methods of doing the business of this bureau which have been lately inaugurated promise better results in both these directions. The operations of the patent office demonstrate the activity of the inventive genius of the country. For the year ended June 30th, 1885 the applications for patents, including reissues, and for the registration of trademarks and labels numbered 35,688. During the same period there were 22,928 patents granted and reissued, and 1,429 trademarks and labels registered. The number of patents issued in the year 1875 was 14,387. The receipts during the last fiscal year were one million, seventy-four thousand, nine hundred and seventy-four dollars and thirty-five cents, and the total expenditures, not including contingent expenses, nine hundred and thirty-four thousand, one hundred and twenty-three dollars and eleven cents. There were nine thousand, seven hundred and eighty-eight applications for patents pending on the first day of July, 1884, and five thousand, seven hundred and eighty-six on the same date in the year 1885. There has been considerable improvement made in the prompt determination of applications and a consequent relief to expectant inventors. A number of suggestions and recommendations are contained in the report of the commissioner of patents, which are well entitled to the consideration of Congress. In the territory of Utah, the law of the United States passed for the suppression of polygamy has been energetically and faithfully executed during the past year with measurably good results. A number of convictions have been secured for unlawful cohabitation, and in some cases pleas of guilty have been entered and a slight punishment imposed upon a promise by the accused that they would not again offend against the law, nor advise, counsel, aid, or abet in any way its violation by others. The Utah commissioners express the opinion based upon such information as they are able to obtain that, but few polygamous marriages have taken place in the territory during the last year. They further report that while there cannot be found upon the registration lists of voters, the name of a man actually guilty of polygamy, and while none of that class are holding office, yet at the last election in the territory, all the officers elected, except in one county, were men, who though not actually living in the practice of polygamy, subscribe to the doctrine of polygamous marriages as a divine revelation and a law unto all higher and more binding upon the conscience than any human law, local or national. Thus is the strange spectacle presented of a community protected by a Republican form of government to which they owe allegiance, sustaining by their suffrages a principle and a belief which set at naught that obligation of absolute obedience to the law of the land which lies at the foundation of Republican institutions. The strength, the perpetuity, and the destiny of the nation rest upon our homes, established by the law of God, guarded by parental care, regulated by parental authority, and sanctified by parental love. These are not the homes of polygamy. The mothers of our land, who rule the nation as they mold the characters and guide the actions of their sons, live according to God's holy ordinances, and each secure and happy in the exclusive love of the father of her children, sheds the warm light of true womanhood, unperverted, unpolluted, upon all within her pure and wholesome family circle. These are not the cheerless, crushed, and unwomanly mothers of polygamy. The fathers of our families are the best citizens of the Republic. Wife and children are the sources of patriotism, and conjugal and parental affection beget devotion to the country. The man who undefiled with plural marriage is surrounded in his single home with his wife and children has a stake in the country which inspires him with respect for its laws and courage for its defense. These are not the fathers of polygamous families. There is no feature of this practice, or the system which sanctions it, which is not opposed to all that is of value in our institutions. There should be no relaxation in the firm, but just execution of the law now in operation, and I should be glad to approve such further discreet legislation as will rid the country of this blot upon its fair fame. Since the people upholding polygamy in our territories are reinforced by immigration from other lands, I recommend that a law be passed to prevent the importation of Mormons into the country. The agricultural interest of the country demands just recognition and liberal encouragement. It sustains with certainty an unfailing strength our nation's prosperity by the products of its steady toil, and bears its full share of the burden of taxation without complaint. Our agriculturalists have but slight personal representation in the councils of the nation, and are generally content with the humbler duties of citizenship and willing to trust to the bounty of nature for reward of their labor. But the magnitude and value of this industry are appreciated when this statement is made that our total annual exports more than three-fourths of the products of agriculture and of our total population nearly one-half are exclusively engaged in that occupation. The Department of Agriculture was created for the purpose of acquiring and diffusing among the people useful information respecting the subjects it has in charge, and aiding in the cause of intelligent and progressive farming by the collection of statistics by testing the value and usefulness of new seas and plants and distributing such as are found desirable among agriculturalists. This and other powers and duties with which this department is invested are of the utmost importance, and if wisely exercised must be of great benefit to the country. The aim of our beneficent government is the improvement of the people in every station and the amelioration of their condition. Surely our agriculturalists should not be neglected. The instrumentality established in aid of the farmers of the land should not only be well equipped for the accomplishment of its purpose, but those for whose benefit it has been adopted should be encouraged to avail themselves fully of its advantages. The prohibition of the importation into several countries of certain of our animals and their products, based upon the suspicion that health is endangered in their use and consumption, suggests the importance of such precautions for the protection of our stock of all kinds against disease, as will disarm suspicion of danger and cause the removal of such an injurious prohibition. If the laws now in operation are insufficient to accomplish this protection, I recommend their amendment to meet the necessities of the situation, and I commend to the consideration of Congress the suggestions contained in the report of the Commissioner of Agriculture calculated to increase the value and deficiency of this department. The report of the Civil Service Commission, which will be submitted, contains an account of the manner in which the Civil Service law has been executed during the last year, and much valuable information on this important subject. I am inclined to think that there is no sentiment, more general, in the minds of the people of our country, than a conviction of the correctness of the principle upon which the law enforcing Civil Service reform is based. In its present condition, the law regulates only a part of the subordinate public positions throughout the country. It applies the test of fitness to applicants for these places by means of a competitive examination, and gives large discretion to the commissioners as to the character of the examination, and many other matters connected with its execution. Thus the rules and regulations adopted by the Commission have much to do with the practical usefulness of the statute and with the results of its application. The people may well trust the Commission to execute the law with perfect fairness, and with as little irritation as is possible. But, of course, no relaxation of the principle which underlies it, and no weakening of the safeguards which surround it, can be expected. Experience in its administration will probably suggest amendment of the methods of its execution, but I venture to hope that we shall never again be remitted to the system which distributes public positions purely as rewards for partisan service. Doubts may well be entertained whether our government could survive the strain of a continuance of this system, which upon every change of administration inspires an immense army of claimants for office to lay siege to the patronage of government, engrossing the time of public officers with their importunities, spreading abroad the contagion of their disappointment, and filling the air with the tumult of their discontent. The allurements of an immense number of offices and places exhibited to the voters of the land and the promise of their bestowal in recognition of partisan activity, debauched the suffrage and rob political action of its thoughtful and deliberative character. The evil would increase with the multiplication of offices consequent upon our extension, and the mania for office holding, growing from its indulgence, would pervade our population so generally that patriotic purpose, the support of principle, the desire for the public good, and solicitude for the nation's welfare would be nearly banished from the activity of our party contests and cause them to degenerate into innoble, selfish, and disgraceful struggles for the possession of office and public place. Civil service reform, enforced by law, came none too soon to check the progress of demoralization. One of its effects not enough regarded is the freedom it brings to the political action of those conservative and sober men who in fear of the confusion and risk attending an arbitrary and sudden change in all the public offices, with a change of party rule, cast their ballots against such a chance. Parties seem to be necessary, and will long continue to exist. Nor can it be now denied that there are legitimate advantages, not disconnected with office holding, which follow party supremacy. While partisanship continues bitter and pronounced and supplies so much of motive to sentiment and action, it is not fair to hold public officials in charge of important trusts, responsible for the best results in the performance of their duties, and yet insist that they shall rely in confidential and important places upon the work of those not only opposed to them in political affiliation, but so steeped in partisan prejudice and ranker that they have no loyalty to their chiefs and no desire for their success. Civil service reform does not exact this, nor does it require that those in subordinate positions who fail in yielding their best service, who are incompetent, should be retained simply because they are in place. The whining of a clerk, discharged for indolence or incompetency, who, though he gained his place by the worst possible operation of the spoil system, suddenly discovers that he is entitled to protection under the sanction of civil service reform. Represents an idea no less observed than the clamor of the applicant who claims the vacant position as his compensation for the most questionable party work. The civil service law does not prevent the discharge of the indolent or incompetent clerk, but it does prevent supplying his place with the unfit party worker. Thus, in both these phases, it seemed benefit to the public service, and the people who desire good government, having secured this statute, will not relinquish its benefits without protest, nor are they unmindful of the fact that its full advantages can only be gained through the complete good faith of those having its execution in charge, and this they will insist upon. I recommend that the salaries of the civil service commissioners be increased to a sum more nearly commensurate to their important duties. It is a source of considerable and not unnatural discontent that no adequate provision has yet been made for accommodating the principal library of the government. Of the vast collection of books and pamphlets gathered at the Capitol, numbering some 700,000, exclusive of manuscripts, maps, and the products of the graphic arts, also of great volume and value, only about 300,000 volumes, or less than half the collection, are provided with shelf room. The others which are increasing at the rate of from 25 to 30,000 volumes a year are not only inaccessible to the public, but are subject to serious damage and deterioration, from other causes in their present situation. A consideration of the facts that the library of the Capitol has twice been destroyed or damaged by fire, its daily increasing value, and its importance as a place of deposit of books under the law relating to copyright, makes manifest the necessity of prompt action to ensure its proper accommodation and protection. My attention has been called to a controversy which has arisen from the condition of the law relating to railroad facilities in the city of Washington, which has involved the commissioners of the district in much annoyance and trouble. I hope this difficulty will be promptly settled by appropriate legislation. The commissioners represent that enough of the revenues of the district are now on deposit in the Treasury of the United States to repay the sum advanced by the government for sewer improvements under the Act of June 30th, 1884. They desire now an advance of the share which ultimately should be borne by the district of the cost of extensive improvements to the streets of the city. The total expense of these contemplated improvements is estimated at one million dollars, and they are of the opinion that a considerable sum could be saved if they had all the money in hand, so the contracts for the whole work could be made at the same time. They express confidence that if the advance asked for should be made, the government would be reimbursed the same within a reasonable time. I have no doubt that these improvements could be made much cheaper if undertaken together and prosecuted according to a general plan. The license law now in force within the district is deficient and uncertain in some of its provisions and ought to be amended. The commissioners urge, with good reason, the necessity of providing a building for the use of the district government which shall better secure the safety and preservation of its valuable books and records. The present condition of the law relating to the succession of the presidency in the event of the death, disability, or removal of both the president and vice president is such as to require immediate amendment. This subject has repeatedly been considered by Congress but no results have been reached. The recent lamentable death of the vice president, and vacancies at the same time in all other offices, the incumbents of which might immediately exercise the function of the presidential office, has caused public anxiety and they just demand that a recurrence of such a condition of affairs should not be permitted. In conclusion, I commend to the wise care and thoughtful attention of Congress the needs, the welfare, and the aspirations of an intelligent and generous nation. To subordinate these to the narrow advantages of partisanship, or the accomplishment of selfish aims, is to violate the people's trust and betray the people's interests. But an individual sense of responsibility on the part of each of us, and a stern determination to perform our duty well, must give us place among those who have added in their day and generation to the glory and prosperity of our beloved land. Grover Cleveland, December 8, 1885. End of Section 3. Section 4 of State of the Union addresses 1885 through 1888. This is a LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain. For more information or to volunteer, please visit LibriVox.org. Section 4, Grover Cleveland, December 6, 1886, Part 1. State of the Union address. Grover Cleveland, December 6, 1886. To the Congress of the United States. In discharge of a constitutional duty, and following a well-established precedent in the Executive Office, I herewith transmit to the Congress that it's reassembling certain information concerning the State of the Union. Together with such recommendations for legislative consideration, as appear necessary and expedient, our government has consistently maintained its relations of friendship toward all other powers and of neighborly interest toward those whose possessions are contiguous to our own. Few questions have arisen during the past year with other governments, and none of those are beyond the reach of settlement in Friendly Council. We are as yet without provision for the settlement of claims of citizens of the United States against Chile for injustice during the late war with Peru and Bolivia. The mixed commissions organized under claims conventions, concluded by the Chilean government with certain European states, have developed an amount of friction which we trust can be avoided in the convention which our representative at Santiago is authorized to negotiate. The cruel treatment of inoffensive Chinese has, I regret to say, been repeated in some of the far western states and territories. In acts of violence against those people, beyond the power of the local constituted authorities to prevent and difficult to punish, are reported even in distant Alaska. Much of this violence can be traced to race prejudice and competition of labor, which cannot, however, justify the oppression of strangers whose safety is guaranteed by our treaty with China, equally with the most favored nations. In opening our vast domain to alien elements the purpose of our law givers was to invite assimilation and not to provide an arena for endless antagonism. The paramount duty of maintaining public order and defending the interests of our own people may require the adoption of measures of restriction, but they should not tolerate the oppression of individuals of a special race. I'm not without assurance that the government of China, whose friendly disposition towards us I am most happy to recognize, will meet us halfway in devising a comprehensive remedy by which an effective limitation of Chinese immigration joined to protection of those Chinese subjects who remain in this country may be secured. Legislation is needed to execute the provisions of our Chinese convention of 1880, touching the opium traffic. While the good will of the Colombian government toward our country is manifest, the situation of American interest on the isthmus of Panama has at times excited concern and invited friendly action looking to the performance of the engagements of the two nations concerning the territory embraced in the inter-oceanic transit. With the subsistence of the Ismanian disturbances and the erection of the state of Panama into a federal district under the direct government of the constitutional administration at Bogota, a new order of things has been inaugurated, which although is yet somewhat experimental and affording scope for arbitrary exercise of power by the delegates of the national authority promises much improvement. The sympathy between the people of the United States and France born during our colonial struggle for independence and continuing today has received a fresh impulse in the successful completion and dedication of the colossal statue of liberty enlightening the world in New York Harbor, the gift of Frenchman to Americans. A convention between the United States and certain other powers for the protection of submarine cables was signed at Paris on March 14th, 1884 and has been duly ratified and proclaimed by this government. By agreement between the high contracting parties, this convention is to go into effect on the 1st of January next, but the legislation required for its execution in the United States has not yet been adopted. I earnestly recommend its enactment. Cases have continued to occur in Germany, giving rise to much correspondence in relation to the privilege of sojourn of our naturalized citizens of German origin revisiting the land of their birth, yet I am happy to state that our relations with that country have lost none of their accustomed cordiality. The claims for interest upon the amount of tonnage dues illegally exacted from certain German steamship lines were favorably reported in both houses of Congress at the last session and I trust will receive final and favorable action at an early day. The recommendations contained in my last annual message in relation to a mode of settlement of the fishery rights in the waters of British North America, so long a subject of anxious difference between the United States and Great Britain, was met by an adverse vote of the Senate on April 13 last, and thereupon negotiations were instituted to obtain an agreement with her Britannic Majesty's government for the promulgation of such joint interpretation and definition of the article of the Convention of 1818 relating to the territorial waters and inshore fisheries of the British provinces as should secure the Canadian rights from encroachment by the United States fishermen and at the same time ensure the enjoyment by the latter of the privileges guaranteed to them by such convention. The questions involved are of long standing of grave consequence and from time to time for nearly three quarters of a century have given rise to earnest international discussions, not unaccompanied by irritation. Temporary arrangements by treaties have served to allay friction, which however has revived as each treaty was terminated. The last arrangement under the Treaty of 1871 was abrogated after due notice by the United States on June 30, 1885, but I was enabled to obtain for our fishermen for the remainder of that season enjoyment of the full privileges accorded by the terminated treaty. The Joint High Commission by whom the treaty had been negotiated, although invested with plenary powers to make a permanent settlement, were content with a temporary arrangement after the termination of which the question was relegated to the stipulations of the Treaty of 1818 as to the first article of which no construction satisfactory to both countries has ever been agreed upon. The progress of civilization and growth of population in the British provinces to which the fisheries in question are contiguous and the expansion of commercial intercourse between them and the United States present today a condition of affairs scarcely realizable at the date of the negotiations of 1818. New and vast interests have been brought into existence. Modes of intercourse between the respective countries have been invented and multiplied. The methods of conducting the fisheries have been wholly changed and all this is necessarily entitled to candid and careful consideration in the adjustment of the terms and conditions of intercourse and commerce between the United States and their neighbors along a frontier of over 3,500 miles. The proprequenity community of language and occupation in similarity of political and social institutions indicate the practability and obvious wisdom of maintaining mutually beneficial and friendly relations. Whilst I am unfainedly desirous that such relations should exist between us and the inhabitants of Canada yet the action of their officials during the past season toward our fishermen has been such as to seriously threaten their continuance. Although disappointed in my efforts to secure a satisfactory settlement of the fishery question negotiations are still pending with reasonable hope that before the close of the present session of Congress announcement may be made that unacceptable conclusion has been reached. As at an early day there may be laid before Congress the correspondence of the Department of State in relation to this important subject so that the history of the past fishing season may be fully disclosed and the action and the attitude of the administration clearly comprehended. A more extended reference is not deemed necessary in this communication. The recommendation submitted last year that provision be made for a preliminary reconnaissance of the conventional boundary between Alaska and British Columbia is renewed. I express my unhesitating conviction that the intimacy of our relations with Hawaii should be emphasized as a result of the reciprocity treaty of 1875. Those islands on the highway of Oriental and Australasian traffic are virtually an outpost of American commerce and a stepping stone to the growing trade of the Pacific. The Polynesian island groups have been so absorbed by other and more powerful governments that the Hawaiian islands are left almost alone in the enjoyment of their autonomy which it is important for us should be preserved. Our treaty is now terminable on one year's notice but propositions to abrogate it would be in my judgment most ill advised. The paramount influence we have there acquired once relinquished could only with difficulty be regained and a valuable ground of vantage for ourselves might be converted into a stronghold for our commercial competitors. I earnestly recommend that the existing treaty stipulations be extended for a further term of seven years. The recently signed treaty to this end is now before the Senate. The importance of telegraphic communication between those islands and the United States should not be overlooked. The question of a general revision of the treaties of Japan is again under discussion at Tokyo as the first to open relations with that empire and as the nation in most direct commercial relations with Japan. The United States have lost no opportunity to testify their consistent friendship by supporting the just claims of Japan to autonomy and independence among nations. A treaty of extra tradition between the United States and Japan the first concluded by that empire has been lately proclaimed. The weakness of Liberia and the difficulty of maintaining effective sovereignty over its outlying districts have exposed that republic to encroachment. It cannot be forgotten that this distant community is an offshoot of our own system owing its origin to the associated benevolence of American citizens whose praise worthy efforts to create a nucleus of civilization in the dark continent have commanded respect in sympathy everywhere especially in this country. Although a formal protectorate over Liberia is contrary to our traditional policy the moral right and duty of the United States to assist in all proper ways in the maintenance of its integrity is obvious and has been consistently announced during nearly half a century. I recommend that in reorganization of our navy a small vessel no longer found adequate to our needs be presented to Liberia to be employed by it in the protection of its coast wise revenues. The encouraging development of beneficial and intimate relations between the United States and Mexico which has been so marked within the past few years is at once the occasion of congratulation and a friendly solicitude. I urgently renew my former representation of the need or speedy legislation by congress to carry into effect the reciprocity commercial convention of January 20 1883. Our commercial treaty of 1831 with Mexico was terminated according to its provisions in 1881 upon notification given by Mexico in pursuance of her announced policy of recasting all her commercial treaties. Mexico has since concluded with several foreign governments new treaties of commerce and navigation defining alien rights of trade property and residence treatment of shipping counselor privileges and the like. Our yet unexecuted reciprocity convention of 1883 covers none of these points the settlement of which is so necessary to good relationship. I propose to initiate with Mexico negotiations for a new and enlarged treaty of commerce and navigation in compliance with a resolution of the Senate I communicated to that body on August 2nd last and also to the house of representatives the correspondence in the case of AK cutting an American citizen then imprisoned in Mexico charged with a commission of a penal offense in Texas of which a Mexican citizen was the object after demand had been made for his release the charge against him was amended so as to include a violation of Mexican law within Mexican territory this jointer of alleged offenses one within and the other exterior to Mexico induced me to order a special investigation of the case pending which mr. cutting was released the incident has however disclosed a claim of jurisdiction by Mexico novel in our history whereby any offense committed anywhere by a foreigner penal in the place of its commission and of which a Mexican is the object may if the offender be found in Mexico be there tried and punished in conformity with Mexican laws this jurisdiction was sustained by the courts of Mexico and the cutting case and approved by the executive branch of that government upon the authority of the Mexican statute the appellate court in releasing mr. cutting decided that the abandonment of the complaint by the Mexican citizen agreed by the alleged crime a libelous publication removed the basis of further prosecution and also declare justice to have been satisfied by the enforcement of a small part of the original sentence the omission of such a pretension would be attended with serious results invasive of the jurisdiction of this government and highly dangerous to our citizens in foreign lands therefore i have denied it and protested against its attempted exercise as unwarranted by the principles of law and international usages a sovereign has jurisdiction of offenses which take effect within his territory although concocted or commenced outside of it but the right is denied of any foreign sovereign to punish a citizen of the united states for an offense consummated on our soil in violation of our laws even though the offense be against a subject or citizen of such sovereign the mexican statute in question makes the claim broadly and the principle of conceit it would create a dual responsibility in the citizen and lead to inextricable confusion destructive of that certainty in the law which is an essential of liberty when citizens of the united states voluntarily go into a foreign country they must abide by the laws they are enforced and will not be protected by their own government from the consequences of an offense against those laws committed in such foreign country but watchful care and interest of this government over its citizens are not relinquished because they have gone abroad and have charged with crime committed in the foreign land a fair and open trial conducted with decent regard for justice and humanity will be demanded for them with less than that this government will not be content when the life or liberty of its citizens is at stake whatever the degree to which extraterritorial criminal jurisdiction may have formally allowed by consent and reciprocal agreement among certain of the european states no such doctrine or practice was ever known to the laws of this country or of that from which our institutions have mainly been derived in the case of mexico there are reasons especially strong for perfect harmony in the mutual exercise of jurisdiction nature has made us irrevocably neighbors and wisdom and kind feeling should make us friends the overflow of capital and enterprise from the united states is a potent factor in assisting the development of the resources of mexico and in building up the prosperity of both countries to assist this good work all grounds of apprehension for the security of person and property should be removed and i trust that in the interests of good neighborhood the statute referred to will be modified as to eliminate the present possibilities of danger to the peace of the two countries the government of the netherlands has exhibited concern in relation to certain features of our tariff laws which are supposed by them to be aimed at a class of tobacco produce in the dutch east indies comment would seem unnecessary upon the unwisdom of legislation appearing to have a special national discrimination for its object which although unintentional may give rise to injurious retaliation the establishment less than four years ago of allegation at tehran is bearing fruit in the interest exhibited by the shaw's government in the industrial activity of the united states and the opportunities of beneficial interchanges stable government is now happily restored and peru by the election of a constitutional president and a period of rehabilitation is entered upon but the recovery is necessarily slow from the exhaustion caused by the late war and civil disturbances a convention to adjust by arbitration claims of our citizens has been proposed and is under consideration the naval officer who bore to cyberia the testimonials bestowed by congress in recognition of the aid given to the genet survivors has successfully accomplished his mission his interesting report will be submitted it's pleasant to know that this mark of appreciation has been welcomed by the russian government and people as befits the traditional friendship of the two countries civil perturbations in the samoan islands have during the past few years been a source of considerable embarrassment to the three governments germany great britain and the united states whose relations and extra territorial rights in that important group are guaranteed by treaties the weakness of the natif administration and the conflict of opposing interests in the islands have led king maleatoa to seek alliance or protection in some one quarter regardless of the distinct engagements whereby no one of the three treaty powers may acquire any paramount or exclusive interest in may last maleatoa offered to place samoa under the protection of the united states in the late consul without authority assumed to granted the proceeding was promptly disavowed and the overzealous official recalled special agents of the three governments have been deputed to examine the situation in the islands with a change in the representation of all three powers and a harmonious understanding between them the peace prosperity autonomous administration and neutrality of samoa can hardly fail to be secured it appearing that the government of spain did not extend to the flag of the united states in the antilles the full measure of reciprocity requisite under our statute for the continuance of the suspension of discriminations against the spanish flag in our ports i was constrained in october last to rescind my predecessors proclamation of february 14th 1884 permitting such suspension in arrangement was however speedily reached and upon notification from the government of spain that all differential treatment of our vessels in their cargos from the united states or from any foreign country had been completely and absolutely relinquished i availed myself of the discretion conferred by law and issued on the 27th of october my proclamation declaring reciprocal suspension in the united states it is most gratifying to bear testimony to the earnest spirit in which the government of the queen region has met our efforts to avert the initiation of commercial discriminations and reprisals which are ever disastrous to the material interests and the political goodwill of the countries they may affect the profitable development of the large commercial exchanges between the united states and spanish antilles is naturally an object of solicitude lying close at our doors and finding here their main markets of supply and demand the welfare of cuba and portorico and their production and trade are scarcely less important to us than dismay their commercial and financial movements are so naturally a part of our system that no obstacle to fuller and freer intercourse should be permitted to exist the standing instructions of our representatives at madrid and hirvana have for years been to leave no effort unassayed to further these ends and at no time has the equal good desire of spain been more hopefully manifested than now the government of spain by removing the council their tonnage fees on cargo ship to the antilles and by reducing passport fees has shown its recognition of the needs of less trampled intercourse an effort has been made during the past year to remove the hindrances to the proclamation of the treaty of naturalization with the sublime port signed in 1874 which has remained inoperative owing to a disagreement of interpretation of the clauses relative to the effects of the return to an sojourn of a naturalized citizen in the land of origin I trust soon to be able to announce a favorable settlement of the differences as to this interpretation it has been highly satisfactory to note the improved treatment of American missionaries in turkey as has been attested by their acknowledgments to our late minister to that government of his successful exertions in their behalf the exchange of ratifications of the convention of December 5th 1885 with Venezuela for the reopening of the awards of the Caracas commission under the claims convention of 1866 has not yet been affected owing to the delay of the executive of that republic in ratifying the measure I trust that this postponement will be brief but should it much longer continue the delay may well be regarded as a recession of the compact and the failure on the part of Venezuela to complete an arrangement so persistently sought by her during many years and assented to by this government in a spirit of international fairness although to the detriment of holders of bona fide awards of the impugned commission I renew the recommendation of my last annual message that existing legislation concerning citizenship and naturalization be revised we have treaties with many states providing for the renunciation of citizenship by naturalized aliens but no statute is found to give effect to such engagements nor any which provides a needed central bureau for the registration of naturalized citizens experience suggests that our statues regulating extradition might be advantageously amended by a provision for the transit across our territory now a convenient thoroughfare of travel from one foreign country to another a fugitive surrendered by a foreign government to a third state such provisions are not unusual in the legislation of other countries intend to prevent the miscarriage of justice it is also desirable in order to remove present uncertainties that authority should be conferred on the secretary of state to issue a certificate in case of an arrest for the purpose of extradition to the officer before whom the proceeding is pending showing that a requisition for the surrender of the person charged has been duly made such a certificate if required to be received before the prisoners examination would prevent a long and expensive judicial inquiry into a charge which the foreign government might not desire to press I also recommend that express provision be made for the immediate discharge from custody of persons committed by extradition where the president is of opinion that surrender should not be made the drift of sentiment in civilized communities towards full recognition of the rights of property and the creations of the human intellect is brought about the adoption by many important nations of an international copyright convention which was signed at burn on the 18th of september 1885 in as much as the constitution gives to the congress the power to promote the progress of science and useful arts by securing for limited times to authors and inventors the exclusive right to their respective writings and discoveries this government did not feel warranted becoming a signatory pending the action of congress upon measures of international copyright now before it but the right of adhesion to the burn convention here after has been reserved I trust the subject will receive at your hands the attention it deserves and that the just claims of authors so urgently pressed will be duly heeded representations continue to be made to me of the injurious effect upon american artists studying abroad and having free access to the art collections of foreign countries of maintaining a discriminating duty against the introduction of the works of their brother artists of other countries and I am induced to repeat my recommendation for the abolition of that tax end of section four section five of state of the union addresses 1885 to 1888 this is a liberal box recording all liberal box recordings are in the public domain for more information or to volunteer please visit liberal box dot org president grover cleveland december 6 1886 part two pursuant to a provision of the diplomatic and consular appropriation act approved july 1 1886 the estimates submitted by their secretary of state for the maintenance of the consular service have been recast on the basis of salaries for all officers to whom such allowance is deemed advisable advantage has been taking of this to redistribute the salaries of the offices now appropriated for in accordance with the work performed the importance of the representative duties of the incumbent and the cost of living at each post the last consideration has been too often lost sight of in the allowances here to form aid the compensation which may suffice for that decent maintenance of a worthy and capable officer in a position of onerous and representative trust at a post readily accessible and where the necessaries of life are abundant and cheap may prove an inadequate pittance in distant lands where the better part of a year's pay is consumed in reaching the post of duty and where the comforts of ordinary civilized existence can only be obtained with difficulty and at exorbitant cost I trust that in considering the submitted schedules no mistaken theory of economy will perpetuate a system which in the past has virtually closed to deserving talent many offices where capacity and attainments of a high order are indispensable and in not a few instances has brought discredit on our national character and entailed embarrassment and even suffering on those deputed to uphold our dignity and interests abroad in connection with this subject I earnestly reiterate the practical necessity of supplying some mold of trustworthy inspection and report of the manner in which the consulates are conducted in the absence of such reliable information efficiency can scarcely be rewarded or its opposite corrected increasing competition in trade has directed attention to the value of the consular reports printed by the department of state and the efforts of the government to extend the practical usefulness of these reports have created a wider demand for them at home and a spirit of emulation abroad constituting a record at the changes occurring in trade and of the progress of the arts and invention in foreign countries they are much sought for by all interested in the subjects which they embrace the report of the secretary of the treasury exhibits in detail the condition of the public finances and of the several branches of the government related to his department I especially direct the attention of the congress to the recommendations contained in this and the last preceding report of the secretary touching a simplification and amendment of the laws relating to the collection of our revenues and in the interest of economy and justice to the government I hope they may be adopted by appropriate legislation the ordinary receipts of the government for the fiscal year into June 30 1886 were three hundred thirty six million four hundred thirty nine thousand seven hundred twenty seven dollars and six cents of this amount one hundred ninety two million nine hundred five thousand twenty three dollars and forty one cents was received from customs and one hundred sixteen million eight hundred five thousand nine hundred thirty six dollars and forty eight cents from internal revenue the total receipts as here stated were thirteen million seven hundred forty nine thousand twenty dollars and sixty eight cents greater than for the previous year but the increase from customs was eleven million four hundred thirty four thousand eighty four dollars and ten cents and from internal revenue four million four hundred seven thousand two hundred ten dollars and ninety four cents making a gain in these items for the last year of fifteen million eight hundred forty one thousand two hundred ninety five dollars and four cents of falling off in other resources reducing the total increase to the smaller amount mentioned the expense at the different custom houses of collecting this increased customs revenue was less than the expense attending the collection of such revenue for the preceding year by four hundred ninety thousand six hundred eight dollars and the increased receipts of internal revenue were collected at a cost to the internal revenue bureau one hundred fifty five thousand nine hundred forty four dollars and ninety nine cents less than the expense of such collection for the previous year the total ordinary expenses of the government for the fiscal year and in June thirty eighteen eighty six were two hundred forty two million four hundred eighty three thousand one hundred thirty eight dollars and fifty cents being less by seventeen million seven hundred eighty eight thousand seven hundred ninety seven dollars than such expenditures for the year preceding and leaving a surplus in the treasury at the close of the last fiscal year of ninety three million nine hundred fifty six thousand five hundred eighty eight dollars and fifty six cents as against sixty three million four hundred sixty three thousand seven hundred seventy one dollars and twenty seven cents at the close of the previous year being an increase in such a surplus of thirty million four hundred ninety two thousand eight hundred seventeen dollars and twenty nine cents the expenditures are compared with those of the preceding fiscal year and classified as follows for the current year to end June thirty eighteen eighty seven the ascertained receipts up to October one eighteen eighty six with such receipts estimated for the remainder of the year amount to three hundred fifty six million dollars the expenditures ascertained and estimated for the same period are two hundred sixty six million dollars indicating an anticipated surplus at the close of the year of ninety million dollars the total value of the exports from the United States to foreign countries during the fiscal year is stated and compared with the preceding year as follows the value of some of our leading exports during the last fiscal year as compared with the value of the same for the year immediately preceding is here given and furnishes information both interesting and suggestive our imports during the last fiscal year as compared with the previous year were as follows in my last annual message to the congress attention was directed to the fact that the revenues of the government exceeded its actual needs and it was suggested that legislative action should be taken to relieve the people from the unnecessary burden of taxation thus made apparent and view of the pressing importance of this subject I deem it my duty to again urge its consideration the income of the government by its increased volume and through economies in its collection is now more than ever in excess of public necessities the application of the surplus to the payment of such portion of the public debt as is now at our option subject to extinguishment if continued at the rate which has lately prevailed would retire that class of indebtedness within less than one year from this date thus a continuation of our present revenue system would soon result in the receipt of an annual income much greater than necessary to meet government expenses with no indebtedness upon which it could be applied we should then be confronted with a vast quantity of money the circulating medium of the people hoarded in the treasury when it should be in their hands or we should be drawn into the wasteful public extravagance with all the corrupting national demoralization which follows in its train but it is not the simple existence of this surplus and its threatened attendant evils which furnished the strongest argument against our present scale of federal taxation its worst phase is the exaction of such a surplus through a perversion of the relations between the people and their government and a dangerous departure from the rules which limit the right of federal taxation good government and especially the government of which every American citizen boasts has for its objects the protection of every person within its care in the greatest liberty consistent with the good order of society and his perfect security in the enjoyment of his earnings with the least possible diminution for public needs when more of the people's substance is exacted through the form of taxation than is necessary to meet the just obligations of the government and the expense of its economical administration such exaction becomes ruthless extortion and a violation of the fundamental principles of a free government the indirect manner in which these exactions are made has a tendency to conceal their two character and their extent but we have arrived at a stage of superfluous revenue which has aroused the people to a realization of the fact that the amount raised professively for the support of the government is paid by them as absolutely if added to the price of the things which supply their daily wants as if it was paid at fixed periods into the hand of the tax gatherer those who toil for daily wages are beginning to understand that capital though sometimes wanting its importance and clamoring for the protection and favor of the government is dull and sluggish till touched by the magical hand of labor it springs into activity furnishing an occasion for federal taxation and gaining the value which enables it to bear its burden and the laboring man is thoughtfully inquiring whether in these circumstances and considering the tribute he constantly pays into the public treasury as he supplies his daily wants he receives his fair share of advantages there is also a suspicion abroad that the surplus of our revenues indicates abnormal and exceptional business profits which under the system which produces such surplus increase without corresponding benefit to the people at large the vast accumulations of a few among our citizens whose fortunes rivaling the wealth of the most favored in anti-democratic nations are not the natural growth of a steady plain and industrious republic our farmers too and those engaged directly and indirectly in supplying the products of agriculture see that day by day and as often as the daily wants of their households recur they are forced to pay excessive and needless taxation while their products struggle in foreign markets with a competition of nations which by allowing freer exchange of productions than we permit enable their people to sell for prices which distress the american farmer as every patriotic citizen rejoices in the constantly increasing pride of all our people in american citizenship and in the glory of our national achievements and progress a sentiment prevails that the leading strings useful to a nation in its infancy may well be to a great extent discarded in the present stage of american ingenuity courage and fearless self-reliance and for the privilege of indulging this sentiment with true american enthusiasm our citizens are quite willing to forego an idle surplus in the public treasury and all the people know that the average rate of federal taxation upon imports is today in time of peace but little less while upon some articles of necessary consumption it is actually more than was imposed by the grievous burden willingly born at a time when the government needed millions to maintain by war the safety and integrity of the union it has been the policy of the government to collect the principal part of its revenues by attacks upon imports and no change in this policy is desirable but the present condition of affairs constrains our people to demand that by a revision of our revenue laws the receipts of the government shall be reduced to the necessary expense of its economical administration and this demand should be recognized and obeyed by the people's representatives in the legislative branch of the government in readjusting the burdens of federal taxation a sound public policy requires that such of our citizens as have built up large and important industries under present conditions should not be suddenly and to their injury deprived of advantages to which they have adopted their business but if the public good requires it they should be content with such consideration as shall deal fairly and cautiously with their interests while the just demand of the people for relief from needless taxation is honestly answered a reasonable and timely submission to such a demand should certainly be possible without disastrous shock to any interest and a cheerful concession sometimes a verts abrupt and heedless action often the outgrowth of impatience and delayed justice do regard should be also accorded in any proposed readjustment to the interests of American labor so far as they are involved we congratulate ourselves that there is among us no laboring class fixed within unyielding bounds and doomed under all conditions to the inexorable fate of daily toil we recognize in labor a chief factor in the wealth of the republic and we treat those who have it in their keeping as citizens entitled to the most careful regard and thoughtful attention this regard and attention should be awarded them not only because labor is the capital of our working man justly entitled to a share of government favor but for the further and not less important reason than the laboring man surrounded by his family in his humble home as a consumer is vitally interested in all that cheapens the cost of living and enables him to bring within his domestic circle additional comforts and advantages this relation of the working man to the revenue laws of the country and the manner in which it palpably influences the question of wages should not be forgotten in the justifiable prominence given to the proper maintenance of the supply and protection of well-paid labor and these considerations suggest such an arrangement of government revenues as shall reduce the expense of living while it does not curtail the opportunity for work nor reduce the compensation of American labor and injuriously affect its condition and the dignified place it holds in the estimation of our people but our farmers and agriculture is those who from the soil produce the things consumed by all are perhaps more directly and planly concerned than any other of our citizens in a just and careful system of federal taxation those actually engaged in and more remotely connected with this kind of work number nearly one half of our population none labor harder or more continuously than they no enactments limiter hours of toil and no interposition of the government enhances to any great extent the value of their products and yet for many of the necessaries and comforts of life which the most scrupulous economy enables them to bring into their homes and for their implements of husbandry they are obliged to pay a price largely increased by an unnatural profit which by the action of the government is given to the more favored manufacturer i recommend that keeping in view all these considerations the increasing and unnecessary surplus of national income annually accumulating be released to the people by an amendment to our revenue laws which shall cheapen the price of the necessaries of life and give freer entrance to such important materials as by american labor may be manufactured into marketable commodities nothing can be accomplished however in the direction of this much needed reform unless the subject is approached in the patriotic spirit of devotion to the interests of the entire country and with a willingness to yield something for the public good the sum paid upon the public debt during the fiscal year ended june 30 1886 was forty four million five hundred fifty one thousand forty three dollars and thirty six cents during the twelve months ended october 31 1886 three percent bonds were called for redemption amounting to one hundred twenty seven million two hundred eighty three thousand one hundred dollars of which eighty million six hundred forty three thousand two hundred dollars was so called to answer the requirements of the law relating to the sinking fund and forty six million six hundred thirty nine thousand nine hundred dollars for the purpose of reducing the public debt by application of a part of the surplus in the treasury to that object of the bonds thus called one hundred two million two hundred sixty nine thousand four hundred fifty dollars became subject under such calls to redemption prior to november one eighteen eighty six the remainder amounting to twenty five million thirteen thousand six hundred fifty dollars matured under the calls after that date in addition to the amount subject to payment and cancellation prior to november one there were also paid before that date certain of these bonds with the interest thereon amounting to five million seventy two thousand three hundred fifty dollars which were anticipated as to their maturity of which two million six hundred sixty four thousand eight hundred fifty dollars had not been called thus one hundred seven million three hundred forty one thousand eight hundred dollars had been actually applied prior to the first of november eighteen eighty six to the extinguishment of our bonded and interest bearing debt leaving on that day still outstanding the sum of one billion one hundred fifty three million four hundred forty three thousand one hundred twelve dollars of this amount eighty six million eight hundred forty eight thousand seven hundred dollars were still represented by three percent bonds they however have been since november one or will at once be further reduced by twenty two million six hundred six thousand one hundred fifty dollars being bonds which have been called as already stated but not redeemed and cancelled before the latter date during the fiscal year ended June thirty eighteen eighty six there were coined under the compulsory silver coinage act of eighteen seventy eight twenty nine million eight hundred thirty eight thousand nine hundred five silver coins and the cost of the silver used in such coinage was twenty three million four hundred forty eight thousand nine hundred sixty dollars and one cent there had been coined up to the close of the previous fiscal year under the provisions of the law two hundred three million eight hundred eighty two thousand five hundred fifty four silver dollars and on the first day of December eighteen eighty six the total amount of such coinage was two hundred forty seven million one hundred thirty one thousand five hundred forty nine dollars the director of the Mint reports that at the time of the passage of the law of eighteen seventy eight directing this coinage the intrinsic value of the dollars thus coined was ninety four and one quarter cents each and that on the thirty first day of July eighteen eighty six the price of silver reached the lowest stage ever known so that the intrinsic or bullion price of our standard silver dollar at that date was less than seventy two cents the price of silver on the 30th day of November last was such as to make these dollars intrinsically worth seventy eight cents each these differences in value of the coins represent the fluctuations in the price of silver and they certainly do not indicate that compulsory coinage by the government enhances the price of that commodity or secures uniformity in its value every fair and legal effort has been made by the treasury department to distribute this currency among the people the withdrawal of united states treasury notes of small denominations and the issuing of small silver certificates have been resorted to in the endeavor to accomplish this result in obedience to the will and sentiments of the representatives of the people in the congress on the twenty seventh day of November eighteen eighty six the people held of these coins or certificates representing them the nominal sum of one hundred sixty six million eight hundred seventy three thousand forty one dollars and we still had seventy nine million four hundred sixty four thousand three hundred forty five dollars in the treasury as against about one hundred forty two million eight hundred ninety four thousand fifty five dollars so in the hands of the people and seventy two million eight hundred sixty five thousand three hundred seventy six dollars remaining in the treasury one year ago the director of the mint again urges the necessity of more vault room for the purpose of storing these silver dollars which are not needed for circulation by the people i have seen no reason to change the views expressed in my last annual message on the subject of this compulsory coinage and i again urges suspension on all the grounds contained in my former recommendation reinforced by the significant increase of our gold exportations during the last year as appears by the comparative statement herewith presented and for the further reasons that the more this currency is distributed among the people the greater becomes our duty to protect it from disaster that we now have abundance for all our needs and that there seems but little propriety in building vaults to store such currency when the only pretense for coinage is the necessity of its use by the people as a circulating medium the great number of suits now pending in the united states courts for the southern district of new york growing out of the collection of customs revenue at the port of new york and the number of such suits that are almost daily instituted are certainly worthy the attention of the congress these legal controversies based upon conflicting views by importers and the collector as to the interpretation of our present complex and indefinite revenue laws might be largely obviated by an amendment of those laws but pending such amendment the present condition of this litigation should be relieved there are now pending about 2500 of these suits more than 1100 have been commenced within the past 18 months and many of the others have been at issue for more than 25 years these delays subject the government to loss of evidence and prevent the preparation necessary to defeat unjust and fictitious claims while constantly accruing interest threatens to double the demands involved in the present condition of the dockets of the courts well filled with private suits and of the force allowed the district attorney no greater than is necessary for the ordinary and current business of his office these revenue litigations cannot be considered in default of the adoption by the congress of a plan for the general reorganization of the federal courts as has been here too far recommended i urge the propriety of passing a law permitting the appointment of an additional federal judge in the district where these government suits have accumulated so that by continuous sessions of the courts devoted to the trial of these cases they may be determined it is entirely plain that a great saving to the government would be accomplished by such a remedy and the suitors who gave honest claims would not be denied justice through delay the report of the secretary of war gives a detailed account of the administration of his department and contains sundry recommendations for the improvement of the service which i fully approve the army consisted at the date of the last consolidated return of two thousand one hundred three officers and twenty four thousand nine hundred forty six enlisted men the expenses of the department for the last fiscal year were thirty six million nine hundred ninety thousand nine hundred three dollars and thirty eight cents including six million two hundred ninety four thousand three hundred five dollars and forty three cents for public works and river and harbor improvements i especially direct the attention of the congress to the recommendation that officers be required to submit to an examination as a preliminary to their promotion i see no objection but many advantages in adopting this feature which has operated so beneficially in our navy department as well as in some branches of the army the subject of coast defenses and fortifications has been fully and carefully treated by the board on fortifications whose report was submitted at the last session of congress but no construction work of the kind recommended by the board has been possible during the last year from the lack of appropriations for such purpose the defenseless condition of our sea coast and lake frontier is perfectly palpable the examinations made must convince us all that certain of our cities named in the report of the board should be fortified and that work on the most important of these fortifications should be commenced at once the work has been thoroughly considered and laid out the secretary war reports but all is delayed in default of congressional actions the absolute necessity judged by all standards of prudence and foresight of our preparation for any factual resistance against the armored ships and steel guns and mortars of modern construction which may threaten the cities of our coast is so apparent that i hope effective steps will be taken in that direction immediately the valuable and suggestive treatment of this question by the secretary of war is earnestly commended to the consideration of the congress in september and october last the hostile apaches who under the leadership of geronimo had for 18 months been on the warpath and during that time had committed many murders and been the cause of constant tear to the settlers of arizona surrendered to general miles the military commander who succeeded general crook in the management and direction of their pursuit under the terms of their surrender as then reported and in view of the understanding which these murderous savages seem to entertain of the assurances given them it was considered best to imprison them in such manner as to prevent their ever engaging in such outrages again instead of trying them for murder fort pickens having been selected as a safe place of confinement all the adult males were sent thither and will be closely guarded as prisoners in the meantime the residue of the band who though still remaining upon the reservation were regarded as unsafe and suspected of furnishing aid to those on the warpath have been removed to fort maryon the women and larger children of the hostiles were also taken there and arrangements have been made for putting the children of proper age in indian schools the report of the secretary of the navy contains a detailed exhibit of the condition of his department with such a statement of the action needed to improve the same as should challenge the earnest attention of the congress the present navy of the united states aside from the ships and course of construction consists of first fourteen single turreted monitors none of which are in commission nor at the present time serviceable the batteries of these ships are obsolete and they can only be relied upon as auxiliary ships in harbor defense and then after such an expenditure upon them as might not be deemed justifiable second five fourth rate vessels of small tonnage only one of which was designed as a war vessel and all of which are auxiliary merely third twenty seven cruising ships three of which are built of iron of small tonnage and twenty four of wood of these wooden vessels it is estimated by the chief constructor of the navy that only three will be serviceable beyond a period of six years at which time it may be said that of the present naval force nothing worthy the name will remain all the vessels here to for authorized are under contract or in course of construction except the armored ships the torpedo and dynamite boats and one cruiser as to the last of these the bids were in excess of the limit fixed by congress the production in the united states of armor and gun steel is a question which it seems necessary to settle at an early day if the armored war vessels are to be completed with those materials of home manufacturer this has been the subject of investigation by two boards and by two special committees of congress within the last three years the report of the gun foundry board in eighteen eighty four of the board on fortifications made in january last and the reports of the select committees of the two houses made at the last session of congress have entirely exhausted the subject so far as preliminary investigation is involved and in the recommendations they are substantially agreed in the event that the present invitation of the department forbids to furnish such of this material as is now authorized shall fail to induce domestic manufacturers to undertake the large expenditures required to prepare for this new manufacturer and no other steps are taken by congress at its coming session the secretary contemplates with dissatisfaction the necessity of obtaining abroad the armor and this gun steel for the authorized ships it would seem desirable that the wants of the army and the navy in this regard should be reasonably met and that by uniting their contracts such inducement might be offered as would result in securing the domestication of these important interests end of section five