moment would lose popularity, and that the party in power is fully aware of this fact. The party, however, is, I believe, still desirous of maintaining friendly relations with Great Britain, and is still as desirous in settling all questions with Canada, which have been unfortunately reopened since the retraction of the treaty by the Republican majority in the Senate, and by the President's message, to which you allude. All allowances must, therefore, be made for the political situation as regards the Presidential election thus created. It is, however, impossible to predict the course which President Cleveland may pursue in the matter of retaliation, should he be elected; but there is every reason to believe that, while upholding the position he has taken, he will manifest a spirit of conciliation in dealing with the question involved in his message. I enclose an article from the New York Times of August 22, and remain,

Yours faithfully,

L. S. SACKVille West.

From the New York Times, Aug. 22. There is this further consideration in favor of supporting the Administration on this issue. It will leave the question still open for friendly means of settlement of some kind, while a support of the Senate's position would close all avenues of future negotiations, and bring upon the country the disastrous consequences of retaliation, hostility and possible war. It would put an end to all prospect of improving the commercial relations of the United States and Canada. This is one of the questions which the people will keep in mind in casting their votes next November.

The correspondence was made much of by the Republicans. President Cleveland, on the ground that the British Minister was interfering with the internal politics of the country, called the attention of Lord Salisbury to the matter, and, the British Premier taking no action, the President directed that the British Minister be informed that he was no longer persona grata, and that his passports were ready for him. No other Minister was appointed by Great Britain to take the place of Lord Sackville West during the remainder of Mr. Cleveland's administration. The incident, which was perhaps unduly magnified, undoubtedly made votes for the Republican candidates, as it emphasized the contention that the Democratic party in its Tariff views were favorable to British and hostile to American interests. Mr. Blaine took an active part in the canvass, speaking to large audiences, not only in his own State but in

Campaign of 1888.

203

the West. The popular and electoral vote will be found on the following page, as given in Stanwood's History of the Presidency, the totals being approximately correct, though in the various published tables there is a slight difference between the total vote given for the different candidates. Stanwood

says:

The count of electoral votes following this election was the first to take place under the act of February 3, 1887, and the first in the history of the government under the Constitution which was regulated by a general law, and did not require previous concurrent action by the two Houses of Congress for the time being. The joint convention for counting the votes was held in the hall of the House of Representatives on February 13, 1889. The proceedings were devoid of striking incident. Mr. Cox, of New York, called attention to a slight deviation from the precise requirements of the law. It appears that Mr. Ingalls, the President pro tempore of the Senate, who presided, did not "call for objections, if any," after the reading of each certificate, as directed by section four of the law. The official report of the proceedings does not state whether or not the presiding officer changed his method after attention was called to the matter. When the vote of Indiana was reported, the vote of the President-elect's own State, there was applause, which was quickly suppressed. Mr. Manderson, the first of the Senate tellers, reported the state of the vote in detail, and in a summary ; the presiding officer repeated the summary, and added a formula, drawn from the law, that this announcement of the state of the vote "is, by law, a sufficient declaration" that Benjamin Harrison, of the State of Indiana, had been elected President. and Levi P. Morton, of the State of New York, Vice-President for the ensuing term.

With the success of the presidential ticket the Republicans were also successful in the congressional elections, and it was found that Mr. Harrison would have with him a Republican Senate and House of Representatives in the Fifty-first Congress.

CHAPTER IX.

ADMINISTRATION OF HARRISON-THE MCKINLEY BILL-SHERMAN SILVER PURCHASE AND ANTI-TRUST LAWS.

B

EFORE leaving the first administration of Mr. Cleveland there should be mentioned the unsuccessful attempt of the Democratic party to fasten upon previous Republican administrations the taint of corruption. During the campaign of 1884, the Republican party had been charged with financial dishonesty, and the Democratic orators promised that if their candidates should be successful startling revelations would take place. No doubt these assertions carried considerable weight and influence with some voters,—perhaps enough to defeat Mr. Blaine and elect Mr. Cleveland.

The Republican party had been in power since 1861, a period of twenty-four years. It had been a period of most important legislation, of vast transactions by the Treasury, and of many minor scandals in the different departments. As soon, then, as Mr. Cleveland and his Cabinet could get to work a most remarkable examination and auditing of financial accounts took place in all the departments. This examination covered the whole period from March 4, 1861, to March 4, 1885. Experts were employed for many months in the most minute examination of accounts and vouchers, and though the search was made with untiring zeal and an unconcealed anxiety to discover some sign of administrative crookedness, yet when every possible search was concluded and the reports were made, it was found that not a single penny had been stolen or misappropriated. Most of the measures of Mr. Cleveland's term had originated under previous administrations. The law which

required the restoration of public lands forfeited by certain railroads was enacted during President Arthur's administration, June 28, 1884, and yet the Democratic platform of 1888 mentioned it as if it had originated during Mr. Cleveland's administration. This is a single instance of many similar claims for the first administration of Cleveland, which should be credited to previous administrations.

The second session of the Fiftieth Congress convened on Monday, December 8, 1888. President Cleveland in his fourth annual message called attention to the fact that "with the expiration of the present session of the Congress the first century of our constitutional existence as a nation will be completed. A few paragraphs were given to the "iniquities" of the Tariff by asserting that a few were favored at the expense of the mass of workingmen. The President showed evidence of his disappointment at being defeated for re-election in almost every paragraph of his message. Portions were clearly contradictory to truth and fact, but for the most part it passed unheeded to the archives of similar papers. The most important action of this session of Congress was the admission of North Dakota, South Dakota, Montana, and Washington as States.

Benjamin Harrison was inaugurated as President of the United States on March 4, 1889, the civic display equalling if not surpassing all former demonstrations. The following Cabinet appointments were submitted to the Senate and promptly confirmed: Secretary of State, James G. Blaine of Maine; Secretary of the Treasury, William Windom of Minnesota; Secretary of War, Redfield Proctor of Vermont; Postmaster-General, John Wanamaker of Pennsylvania; Attorney-General, William H. H. Miller of Indiana; Secretary of the Navy, Benjamin F. Tracy of New York; Secretary of the. Interior, John W. Noble of Missouri; Secretary of Agriculture, Jeremiah M. Rusk of Wisconsin.

The following diplomatic and consular appointments were made during the year: Minister to Great Britain, Robert T. Lincoln of Illinois; Minister to France, Whitelaw Reid of New York; Minister to Germany, in the first place Murat