Edward L. Pierce, Memoir and letters of Charles Sumner: volume 4

[442] don't want any of those islands just yet, with their mongrel, cut-throat races and foreign languages and religion.

Sumner completed his speech on the second day, and was followed by Morton, who maintained that the acquisition was desirable as the key to the West Indies; and that if not made by the United States, England or France would shortly have the prize. This a familiar argument in such cases; but an interval now of more than twenty years has shown it in this instance to have been misapplied. The ratification was then supported by Cole, Nye, and Stewart, and opposed by Schurz, Patterson, and Casserly. After a few weeks' debate the Senate laid the subject aside, and did not take it up again till late in June.

There was no popular demand for the annexation outside of a ring of speculators and adventurers. Here and there a journal, which was under their influence, or was quick to respond to the President's wishes, favored it.¹ Sumner's colleague voted for it finally, confession that nine-tenths of his constituents were opposed to it; and he was governed in his vote only by fear of a rupture with the President. A polpular demonstration in its favor was attempted at Cooper Institute in New York, evidently stimulated from Washington. Moses H. Grinnell, collector of the port, took the chair, and the speakers were two members of Congress,—Banks of Massachusetts, and Fitch of Nevada. Fabens, the speculator, already mentioned, was on the platform. The conservative patriotism of the city kept aloof from the affair.

One of the incidents of the San Domingo controversy was the investigation by the Senate of the imprisonment by the Baez government of Davis Hatch of Connecticut, described by Senator Ferry from that State to be ‘as high-toned and honorable a gentleman as any in the Senate.’ The charge against him was that he was a partisan of Cabral; but the real purpose of his illegal confinement was to prevent his coming to the United States, where he was likely to exert influence against the annexation. Babcock, who was the chief support of Baez's power, and two speculators who were co-operating with him (W. L. Cazneau and Fabens), were charged with being privy to the illegal detention. Senator Ferry brought Hatch's petition to