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CORRESPONDENT FOR ‘ÜHE "COURRIER HJ1ITIEN" 0%CAN OF NATIONAL “DEFENSE

108 W e s t I4lst S t r e e t

KEW YORK CITY

l Août,29,1926. / r 4

Secrétaire de la ligue des HATIONS s

Genève, Suisse. Z

Monsieur le Secrétaire: Par 1*autorisation du peuple Haitien,cLont je suis le représentant,ici,aux Etats Unis, g ’ai l ’honneur de vous écrire pour vous informer que depuis la prise de possession injustifiée de notre territoire par l ’Oncle Sam,dont 1 ’1mperialism n'est à l ’heure ac­ tuelle ignoré de personne,une politique de destruction systématique fut mise en vigueur dans l ’Ile. Ce même Oncle Sam, qui prétend faire l a morale du m o n d e , a commis et commet en ce moment même des actes tellement barbares, que, s’il était donné aux honnêtes Américains d ’en savoir quelque chose,ils se pendraient de honte. J’attire votre attention spéciale sur ce que l ’Oncle Sam choisit toujours ses victimes parmi les peuples faibles et sans défense. Nous ne doutons pas que la ligue des Nations,pour jus­ tifier sa raison d ’être,ne manquera pas d'élever la voix pour faire comprendre à ce moralisateur d’un genre nouveau que,Assassinat,In­ cendie, Pillage,ne sont pas l ’équivalent de Moralité.

J’ai 1 ’honneur de vous envoyer sous pli séparé un exem­ plaire du discours de l ’Honorable Sénateur William H.King,sur 1 ’oc­ cupation d ’Haiti.

J’ai 1 ’honneur d ’être,Monsieur le Secrétaire, Votre dévoué .serviteur. 53920

AMERICAN OCCUPATION OF HAITI

The H aitian question is not one of dollars and cents or of trade and commerce ; it is one which relates to justice and international morality and the duty of a powerful Nation toward a weak and Aefenseless people. It involves principles touching the liberty and freedom of a people and the independence of what was once a sovereign State. IN I REG.! S TRY. I SPEECH 1-VSEM926 OF HON. WILLIAM H. KING OF UTAH

IN TH E

SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

WEDNESDAY, MAY 12 (LEGISLATIVE DAY OF MONDAY, MAY 10), 1926

WASHINGTON GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 1926 ■ 4475—3068

SPEECH OP HON. WILLIAM H. KING

In support of th e resolution (S. Bes. 202) c allin g fo r legislation for the removal of the m ilitary forces from Haiti and the restoration of the government of that country to the Haitian people, which had been sub­ m itted by Mr. King, April 5 (calendar day of April 16), 1926. Mr. KING. M r. President, several weeks ago I asked to have read to the Senate a statement which had been handed to me by Mr. Perceval Thoby, at one time th e chargé d’affaires, if not the minister, from Haiti to the United States. After it had been read, objection was made by the Senator from New York [Mr. W adsworth], I shall not go into the reasons of the objection, but merely say that during the discussion I stated that at a later date I should call the attention of the Senate to the salient parts of the article, and I also stated to the Senator from Nevada [Mr. Oddie] when he put into the R ecobd a report recently submitted by General Bussell that I should feel constrained to make some reply to the statements of General Russell and to discuss the situation in Haiti. Pur­ suant to that statem ent, I propose this m orning to discuss the Haitian question, and as preliminary to that, I ask that Sen­ ate Resolution 202, heretofore submitted by me, may be read 8.t tti6 desk The VICE PRESIDENT. Without objection, the clerk will read the resolution. The Chief Clerk read the resolution (S. Res. 202), s u b m itte d b y M r. K in g A p r il 16, 1926, as follows : Whereas it is claimed that the following statement contains some of the important facts relating to Haiti and its occupation by military forces of the United States and also some of the important occurrences following such occupation, together with facts relating to existing con­ ditions in Haiti, which said statement is as follows, to wit : That the people of Haiti achieved their political independence in 1804 and established a republican form of government, under which the Haitian people controlled their political affairs without interruption or interference from foreign powers until the military seizure and occu­ pation of Haiti by the United States on July 28, 1915, which occupation has continued to this day without the consent of the Haitian people ; That there was no sufficient reason for the American occupation of Haiti, the disturbances in said country being purely of an internal character and in no wise affecting the lives and liberty of Americans or other foreigners ; That after the seizure of Haiti the admiral in charge of the Ameri­ can forces of occupation declared martial law and took control of the Government of the Haitian Republic, interfering in the election of the President of Haiti in August, 1915, and exerting military pressure «and other influence, which resulted in the election of Dartiguenave as President of H aiti ; That the United States presented to said Dartiguenave and to the National Assembly of Haiti, consisting of two legislative bodies pro- 4475—3068 3 vlded in the constitution of Haiti, a proposed convention giving to the United States control of the revenues, police, public works, and sanitary administration of Haiti, which convention the national assembly was unwilling to ratify, whereupon the admiral in command of said Ameri­ can forces cut off the salaries of the opposing members of the assembly and announced that if the tendered treaty was not ratified the United States “ has the intention to retain control of Haiti until the desired end is accomplished, and that it will forthwith prôceed with the com­ plete pacification of Haiti,” under pressure of which threat the national assembly accepted sucli convention, which had been signed on the 16th day of September, 1915 ; That a new National Assembly of Haiti was elected in 1916, and upon the convening of the same the United States presented to said assembly a proposed new constitution for Haiti, whereby the provisions of the then Haitian constitution which forbade foreigners and foreign cor­ porations from owning Haitian lands were substituted by provisions which authorized the holding of Haitian lands by foreigners and foreign corporations, and made other changes in the constitution, all of which, and particularly the provisions permitting the holding of lands by for! eigners, were not acceptable to the National Assembly of Haiti, which refused to accept such new constitution, whereupon the military forces of the United States summarily and arbitrarily dissolved the national assembly, took forcible possession of the legislative chambers, and locked the same against members of the assembly, and when the houses of the assembly met in other places they were summarily and forcibly dis­ persed by American m ilita ry power ; That thereupon an election was called for the alleged purpose of having said new constitution submitted to the people for ratification ; that there was in fact no election or true expression of the people; that a few votes were cast under the supervision and control of the military forces of the United States and conditions and circumstances which clearly indicated that the wishes of the people of Haiti were not expressed and that said new constitution was not in fact ratified by the people ; That upon the dissolution of said national assembly said Dar- tiguenaye, by dictatorial decree, set up a so-called council of state, appointing all the members thereof, which was an extraconstitutional and illegal body and w hich usurped and attem pted to take over and exercise the legislative powers of the National Assembly of Haiti, and it has continued from that time until the present to exercise said usurpatory authority in defiance of the will and desire of the people of Haiti ; That the term of office of said Dartiguenave expired August 12, 1922, and thereupon, as it is claimed, the United States selected Louis Borno to be his successor ; that said council of state had no power or authority to act in the premises, but the members of said illegal organization, with the support and under the direction of the American military occupation, pretended to elect as President of Haiti said Louis Borno, although said Borno was not eligible for the Presidency of the Haitian Republic because he is not a son of a Haitian citizen, as prescribed by the constitution of Haiti ; That under the new constitution of Haiti, as well as the void and unratified constitution, the two legislative bodies of the Haitian Government were empowered to meet as a national assembly and to elect, at the time designated in said old constitution as well as tat the time provided in said new constitution, the President of the H aitian Republic ; 4476—3068 That said council of state, in the manner stated and in defiance of said provisions, pretended to elect said Borno for the terra of four years, the period prescribed in the so-called new constitution, which the National Assembly of Haiti had refused' to accept ; That the constitution of Haiti, as wqll as the new constitution sought to t?e imposed on the Haitians,, provides for the election of the members of the two legislative bodies of the Haitian Republic, but since the suppression of said bodies no elections have been held or permitted to be held by those in control of Haiti, as a result of which no national assembly existed to choose the President of Haiti, as pro­ vided in said constitutions: That under the terms of the new constitution a President of Haiti was to have been chosen by the national assembly on the 12th day of April, 1926, but s a id . assem bly, having been abolished by the military forces of the United States and the dictatorial decree of Dartiguenave, said council, of stated, with the approval and support of the military forces' of the United States, pretended on said day to reelect said Borno as President for a further term of four years ; that it has been understood for many months that Borno aspired to another term as President and was supported for such position by General Russell, if not the State Department of the United States, and to bring about that result said Borno has within the last year appointed 18 of the 21 members of the council of state from among his relatives, personal friends, and retainers in order that he might be assured of his reelec­ tion on April 12 of this year ; That theterm of said convention of September 16, 1915, expires on September 15, 1926 ; that if the United States had any right under said convention to occupy Haiti and control its Government and the people of Haiti, such right no longer exists, and the further presence of the United States in Haiti means continued usurpation of the con­ stitution, laws, and Government of Haiti and the subversion of the civil liberties of the H aitian people by superior military forces ; That it is claimed that the actual Government of Haiti is in the hands of General Russell, whg is supported by the military forces of the United States; that Borno and said council of state are subject to his will and act in accordance with directions given by him ; that the liberties of the people are restricted, the freedom of the press abridged, the independence of the courts interfered with, the voice of the people in the matter of levying taxes and expending them silenced, the right of franchise denied, and the people of Haiti subjected to a foreign dictatorship which attempts to screen its power behind Haitian agencies which it has set up and through which it operates ; That there will be no correction of these conditions and no restora­ tion of civil government and constitutional authority in Haiti until the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate shall be elected by the people of Haiti, and Shall, in turn, as an electoral body, elect the President of Haiti under the terms of the Haitian constitution ; That the suppression of civil authority by military power is con­ trary to the Constitution of the United States and those principles of political and civil liberty which are professed by the Government and the people of the United States: Now therefore be it Resolved, That the Committee on Foreign Relations is directed to consider the statements and claims herein set forth and report to tfie Senate measures which shall permit the Haitian people to. Sét up and establish a government of their own choice and assume control of their own Government arid their own civil and political affairs, and whicll shall provide for the withdrawal from Haiti of all military forcés of 4475—3068 the United States and all officers—military, naval, and otherwise__ except only regularly accredited diplomatic representatives or consular agents as may be agreed upon by the Government of the United States and the Government o f th e Haitian Republic. Mr. KING. Mr. President, the Haitiap question Is not dead, nor is it moribund. Congress may affect to believe that it is an unimportant question and refuse to adopt any measures for its solution, and the American people may look upon it with indifference and utterly disregard the matters referred to in the resolution which has just been read. But I do not hesitate to say that the question is one which we can not afford to ignore, and one which we w ill be compelled sooner or later to con­ sider and determine. The Haitian question is not one of dollars and cents or of trade and commerce ; it is one which relates to justice and international morality and the duty of a powerful Nation toward a weak and defenseless people. I t involves principles touching the liberty and freedom of a people and the inde­ pendence of what w as once a sovereign state. Unfortunately, questions affecting the liberties of individuals, the independence of sm all and weak states, the dealings and relations between powerful nations and nations and states of but little influence or physical and military strength, are not as appealing to the strong and wealthy and imperialistic na­ tions and their inhabitants as are questions of utilitarian or materialistic or commercial character. Most people are more interested in objective than in subjective questions ; in prac­ tical and material things than in academic and ethical ques­ tions. The American people are greatly interested in the building of railroads and factories and in finding markets for their surplus products. They seem wholly indifferent to the cries of the Filipinos for independence and the appeals of the Haitians for the rig h t to govern themselves. Mr. President, I doubt whether thefre are a hundred thousand people in the U nited States' who know th a t this powerful Government has taken possession of Haiti by force of arms, and that it exercises complete political control over the people of that state by m eans of American bayonets. In my opinion there are persons holding responsible oflicial positions in the Federal Government who do not know why American marines are upon Haitian soil or the character of government which we have superimposed upon the Haitian people. There are too many Americans _ who look with unconcern upon feeble states, and particularly if their inhabitants are different racially from the controlling races inhabiting this Republic. The Declaration of Independence by many Americans is forgotten. Its sacred and immortal principles are regarded as “ glittering generalities ” not to be applied in our own or in other lands. Wealth is a powerful factor in the government and control of this and other countries. Its voice is powerful in domestic and in foreign policies, and its mighty influence brings within its embrace the greater part of the people of our oWn land. There are some Americans who would welcome an imperialistic foreign policy and who would rejoice to see the flag of this Republic float over territory controlled by other 4475—3068 governments. The lust for empire and territorial expansion has not been wholly extirpated from the hearts of the American d g o d Ig This Republic should be the standard bearer of liberty. It should be free from every taint of imperialism, from every de­ sire for territorial conquest, from every ignoble ambition ; it should aspire to moral leadership and to the creation of a spir­ itual and fraternal force for the unification and peace of the world. Wherever there is oppression, its interest and sympathy should be aroused; wherever there is injustice, its voice for liberty and justice should be heard. It should be more inter­ ested in peace, in justice, national and international, in the freedom and independence of peoples and S tates than in wealth or material power. The moral grandeur of a nation is infinitely more important than military triumphs or material gains or the glittering gold which the ages have produced. If the A m erican people are ever deaf to the cries of those who are in bondage, or pursue policies which infringe upon the rights and liberties of the humblest and w eakest peoples of the earth, then this Republic will be in danger and its security jeopardized. The recitations contained in the resolution just read should arouse the Senate and the American people. They reveal a course of conduct upon the part of the United States which can not be defended, and a situation in its relation to the Haitian people w hich demands immediate attention. Mr. President, from a study of the matters referred to in the resolution, I sincerely believe that the statements and recitals contained therein are substantially correct. There should be an immediate investigation by the Committee on Foreign Re­ lations of the matters referred to in the resolution, and that committee should report at an early date such measures as will compel the United States to withdraw from Haiti and surren­ der control of the H aitian Government to th e people of Haiti. I invite the attention of the Senate to some of the facts and circumstances attending the occupation of H a iti by the military forces of the United States, and conditions in H aiti since we have forced upon them a foreign military rule. In the summer of 1915 Admiral Caperton, in control of war vessels of the United States, was ordered into Haitian waters. There was no reason for any part of the A merican Navy being sent to Haitian ports. That the mission of our naval vessels was hostile to the H aitian Government subsequent events soon demonstrated. . Various pretexts have been given to ju stify the sending of our war vessels and thousands of marines to take possession of Haiti and overthrow the existing government and set up a government under the control and direction of the United States, supported by the bayonets of American marines. I have examined the reasons assigned, but in my opinion none is valid. It is possible that we were justified in having marines land in Port au Prince in August, 1915, b u t the subsequent conduct of our Government in dealing w ith the Haitian people and their government and their territory can not, in my opinion, be justified. 4475— 3068 Mr. President, I submit that advantage was taken of the weakness and lack of military strength of the people of a friendly and struggling republic. It has been claimed that the united States w as justified in invading H aiti because Germany and France had designs against the independence of that country. I have attempted to ascertain the facts, and I assert that no external force menaced Haiti or the integrity of its government. Even if the European w ar produced a situ­ ation which called fo r the assertion of the Monroe doctrine by this Republic it did not justify the forcible overthrow of the Haitian Government and the setting up of a military rule backed by the arms of naval forces of the United States. The statement that Germany intended to use Haitian ports as submarine bases does not, in my opinion, find support nor do the facts support the rumors that France intended to occupy Haiti But I repeat that if both Germany and France hail intended to execute the plans just referred to our Government acted prematurely in landing military forces, and its subse­ quent conduct in w aging w ar against the H aitian people and in compelling them to accept a treaty which robbed Haiti of its independence and reduced it to a condition of vassalage under American military rule was not only reprehensible but can not be justified. The Haitian people were not allies of Germany Indeed their sympathies were with the allied nations. The French language, as Senators know, is spoken in H aiti, and much French blood is found in the inhabitants of Haiti. Thousands of Haitian boys and girls have been educated in schools in France, and strong ties united Haitians to the French people France had no purpose to make war upon Haiti or to annex one foot of Haitian soil. France, in 1915, was fighting for her Ve-S existence. She knew that the United S tates would look with disfavor upon any plan contemplating the annexation by France of Haiti. It is absurd to contend that the reason for our occupying Haitian ports and landing military forces upon H aitian soil arose through fear upon the p a rt of the United States that the liberty of the Haitian people was endangered by any foreign power, or th a t the possession of H aitian soil was threatened by any country in the world. In July, 1915, a revolution occurred in Port au Prince the capital of Haiti, against the then president, Guillaume Sam. His official conduct can not be defended and some of his acts We?6i,erue* anc* inhuman. His conduct infuriated the people, and he was taken from the French Legation and killed by the populace. But neither public nor private property was molested or destroyed. No foreigner was interfered with, nor were the lives or property of any foreigner, including Americans, placed m jeopardy. Nevertheless, Admiral Caperton, commanding our naval vessels, landed m arines in August, 1915, and took com­ plete control of the Government and of the State. He dis­ tributed his military forces at strategic points in Haiti, de­ clared martial law, and set up a military government. I repeat, there was no justification for tills course. It is tiue the Haitian people did not enjoy as good government as many other countries possessed. In the life of the Haitian Re­ public, revolutions had occurred, Presidents had been deposed, and at times disorder and confusion had ensued. But it must be remembered th a t the Haitian people h ad lived in slavery for several centuries. Christian nations had forcibly taken from Africa large num bers of the Negro race and sold them into slavery in various parts of the world. Thousands of these unfortunate people had been brought to Haiti, where they had been subjected to cruel slavery for many years. Finally they rose against their masters, and after bloody conflicts won their independence under T oussaint L ’Ouverture and established a Negro republic. Obviously, they were not fitted for the great work which they essayed. They had not been trained in the a r t of government. They knew nothing of democracy, and yet they had some leaders of vision, of strength and power, who aspired to lead their emancipated countrymen from the degradation of slavery to the heights of freedom. Slowly, but painfully, the Republic so established moved for­ ward. Its progress has been slow and its achievements dis­ appointing to those who ignore the principles of evolution, which, as Spencer h a s shown, govern in the social structure as in the biological world. It is a fact, however, that progress has been made in Haiti and that for more than 110 years an independent government was maintained. Cities were built, schools established and maintained, and men and women of culture and education played important and conspicuous parts in carrying forward the work of redemption and political and moral salvation. It is charged that revolutions have occurred and that a great majority of the people are illiterate. That may be said of Mexico ; it may be said of some of the South American Republics. Mexico has had many revolutions, presidents have vanished, and administrations have been over­ thrown, but no one would justify an attempt by this Nation or any nation to attem p t the conquest of Mexico. Mexico will make progress ; she will doubtless make many mistakes and commit many transgressions against her own people, and fail in her international obligations, but the forces of progress will operate there as th ey are operating in all p arts of the world. The ascent of individuals and nations from darkness and slav­ ery and ignorance to the summits is an epic and a tragedy, but only by suffering and struggle can the ascent be made and the summit reached. Peoples may not in a day nor a year, even by some superhum an power—certainly not by military force—be lifted from lowly bondage to lofty heights. The Haitian people must win their way to freedom and glory by their own efforts. Friendly nations can aid them and ex­ tend sympathy and help, and by example incite them to valor­ ous deeds, and inspire them with courage to meet the vicissi­ tudes which in th e long struggle before them they will en­ counter. This much America can and should do. But naval vessels and m ilitary forces will only provoke resentment and ineradicable animosities. We may not judge every people by our own standards ; nor can we impress upon alien races whose country we occupy by military force our standards and our cul­ ture. The mistakes of the Haitian people and their difficulties in maintaining democratic government do not warrant the United States is seizing th e ir territory or controlling their Government. Notwithstanding Haitian revolutions and the backwardness of most of her people, a government which met the require- 4475— 3068------2 ments of the people had been maintained for more than a century. A government was maintained which met its inter­ national obligations, and its diplomatic representatives were received in all countries to which they were accredited. There is a disposition upon the part of some persons who live in countries of wealth and power to depreciate weaker nations and to treat with contumely backward races and peoples. The condition of sm all states and backward peoples has been assigned by strong states as sufficient reason for their con­ quest. But the world is growing better. I t is being guided by nobler ideals, by m ore humane principles, and by a broader and more catholic spirit. The ugly spirit of imperialism which too long ruled the w orld is being exorcised from the hearts of men, and the binding spirit of Christianity is drawing nations into closer relationship and driving from th e hearts of the people those rivalries and animosities which have wrought so much of evil and sorrow throughout the world. Mr. President, I am pleading to-day for a w eak and defense­ less people, but a people, nevertheless, who desire to be free, who have aspirations for freedom, who believe in their com­ petency to govern themselves and to work out their own politi­ cal salvation. As an American citizen I here and now protest in their behalf against the action of this country in maintain­ ing military forces upon Haitian soil and subjecting the H aitian people to alien rule. I now return to a discussion of the events leading up to our military occupation of Haiti and our dealings with the Haitian people from th a t time until the present. It must not be understood that the occupation of Haiti by our naval forces in 1915 was entirely provoked by the internal difficulties through which H aiti was passing. Our Government had been contemplating for more than a year taking over the political and fiscal administration of Haiti. . In the latter part of 1914 the Haitian Government was ad­ vised that recognition of the newly elected president would be accorded by the United States providing a “ satisfactory protocol ” on the model of the Dominican convention of 1907 was entered into. Senators will recall that th a t convention deprived Santo Domingo of the right to control its own reve­ nues and subjected it to other restrictions of its sovereign rights. To this proposal made by our Government, the Haitian Government, speaking through its Secretary of Foreign Afiairs, promptly replied on December 15, 1914, as follows : The Government of the Republic of Haiti would consider itself lack­ ing in its duty to the United States and to itself if it allowed the least doubt to exist of its irrevocable intention not to accept any con­ trol of Haitian affairs by a foreign power. This was a courageous and proper reply to make to the unwarranted proposal of our Government. In November, 1914, Mr. A. Bailly Blanchard, American minister to Haiti, presented to the Haitian Government a proposition for a convention which called for the appointment by the President of the United States of a financial advisor and a general receiver for Haitian customs who should be in charge not only of the collection of customs but of public accounts generally. 4475—3068 The proposed convention also called for th e settlement of the Haitian debt and contained stipulations that Haiti should not increase its public debt except by agreement with the United States nor change its customs duties w ithout the con­ sent of the President of the United States. The Haitian Gov­ ernment, unwilling to abdicate its powers and knowing that an acceptance of the proposed convention would meet with the universal disapproval of the Haitian people, advised the Ameri­ can minister that it could not accept his proposition notwith­ standing the friendly sentiments which it entertained for the United States. The American m inister, obviously for the purpose of forcing the Haitian Government to accept the convention, attempted to deprive the Government of its financial resources ; and under his directions, or at least with his approval, American marines landed in Haiti and entered the National Bank of the Republic of Haiti and carried away and placed on board the gunboat Machias $500,000 belonging to the H aitian Republic, and which was a p a rt of the reserves of the Government for the redemption of its paper currency. Explanations were demanded by the H aitian Secretary of Foreign Affairs, but neither the United States legation nor the United States vouchsafed any reply. I t is apparent th a t the United States was determined to get control of the coustomhouses and the revenues of Haiti. The conduct of our Government in causing marines to be landed and in forcibly removing from the National B ank of the Re­ public of Haiti funds belonging to the Government can not be defended. It was an act of war against a weak state, and resorted to for the purpose of compelling it to submit to the humiliating and unwarranted exactions presented by the Amer­ ican minister. In April, 1915, a commission consisting of Messrs. Ford and Smith was sent by our Government to Port an Prince to con­ fer with the American minister in regard to the signing of ths proposed convention. In May, 1915, Paul Fuller, jr., was dispatched to Haiti by the State Department, and upon his arrival in Port au Prince on the 22d of May he submitted another d ra ft of a conven­ tion. Fuller appeared in the capacity of a United States com­ missioner, with the rank of envoy extraordinary and minister plenipotentiary. The Fuller project for a convention included a guaranty by the United States to protect the Republic of Haiti from the aggressions of any foreign power, and to em­ ploy the Army and the Navy of the United States for this purpose. Fuller’s proposal demanded that Haiti should not alienate Mole St. Nicholas, an important naval and m ilitary base, or permit its use by an y other country. It also required that means be provided for the settlement of all claims alleged to be due to American nationals as well as to the nationals of other countries. The proposal (offered as an alleged quid pro quo) provided that the United States should aid Haiti in suppressing insurrections and for that purpose would employ its military forces. In my opinion, the proposals submitted by F uller were wholly unworthy of this Republic. We had no right to make such demands upon this sm all nation or to submit demands which 4475— 8068 because of its lack of military strength we knew it would be compelled to accede to. Mr. President, on the 2d of June, 1915, the Haitian Secretary of State for Foreign Relations submitted to Mr. Fuller a counter proposal, to which on the following day the latter sub­ mitted certain material amendments. On June 15, 1915, Mr. Fuller acknowledged receipt of the communication submitted by the Haitian Secretary of State. While these negotiations were pending the military forces of the United States took possession of Port au Prince on July 27, 1915. M artial law was proclaimed by Admiral Caperton, and American marines soon occupied all strategic m ilitary points in the country. The landing of our marines and the entry of our naval vessels into Haitian waters synchronized with the sending of plenipo­ tentiaries by the U nited States with papers in their pockets which the Haitian officials were required to sign, proposing th at the Haitian Government should renounce its sovereignty and permit the United States to assume control over the Haitian people and to take charge of their Government. The Haitian people were unprepared to meet this military invasion and display of military force. They realized their in­ ability to resist successfully the occupation of their country by the military forces of this powerful Nation. Nevertheless, within a short time a fte r we had seized the country there were sporadic military outbreaks by Haitians, in which between 2,500 and 3,500 H aitians were killed. In August, 1915, th e United States Legation submitted a re­ vised project for the convention to the Haitian people, and this project became the definitive text of the convention between the United States and Haiti which was signed at Port au Prince on December 16, 1915, by Robert Beal Davis, jr., chargé d’affaires of the United States, and Louis Borno, Secretary of State and Foreign Relations of Haiti. It is apparent that the signing of this convention was the culmination of negotia­ tions which had been pending formerly since December 10, 1914, and which had been the subject of preliminary pour­ parlers prior to that date. This convention provided that the President of Haiti, upon the nomination of th e President of the United States, should appoint a general receiver of all their customs, and also a financial adviser, who should have control of the revenues and disbursements of the Haitian Government. Public works and sanitation were to be placed under American supervision. The Haitian constabulary was to be organized by officers of the United States M arine Corps. Taxes w ere to be levied, revenues collected, and disbursed by Americans ; a constabu­ lary force was to be organized by American officers and Ameri­ can marines ; and our military forces w ere to continue to occupy Haitian territory. The treaty, in other words, sub­ jected the Government of Haiti to the domination and control of the United States. The so-called treaty was to exist for 10 years, but, as I shall show later, within a very short time after it was negotiated, it was extended by another treaty for a further period of 10 years. This latter treaty has never been sub­ mitted to the Senate of the United States for approval, nor 4475— 3068 has it been approved by the people of Haiti, and, indeed, was not known to them until within the past few months. This so-called tre a ty was forced upon the H aitian people and upon the so-called Haitian Government which existed only in form and as the agent of the United States to carry out its will. It was signed when the guns of our battleships were trained on the capital of Haiti and several thousand of our marines were occupying strategic positions in various parts of the country. This convention was ratified by the national legislature, under pressure from Admiral Caperton, our naval commander, who cut off the salaries of the opposing officials. Admiral Caperton, with his marines in charge of the Government offices and the capital and the important strategic points of the coun­ try, announced that if the treaty were not ratified the United States— has the intention to retain control in Haiti until the desired end is accomplished. It is not difficult to determine what this th re a t implied— And that it will forthwith proceed to the complete pacification ot H aiti. What did that mean? It meant that it—the United States— would make war upon the Haitian people and “ pacify ” them ; that is, reduce to submission any recalcitrant Haitians who were unwilling to put their heads under the American yoke. I hold in my hand a report of the hearings of a Senate com­ mittee appointed in response to a resolution which called for an inquiry into the occupation of Haiti and Santo Domingo. On page 7 of the report, which w'as signed by a num ber of Senators, one of whom is the junior Senator from N evada [Mr. O d d ie], and another of whom was the late Senator Medill McCormick, the following language appears : The American representatives in the opinion of your committee in­ fluenced the majority of the assembly in the choice of a president. That is, we forced the election of Dartiguenave as president, though he was not desired by the people. The Senate commit­ tee further say “ we influenced the assembly in the choice of a president.” We know the character of the “ influence ” ex­ erted when the country was under martial law and our marines occupied the land an d our ships of war the ports. Later they— That is, the m ilitary forces— exercised pressure to induce the ratification by Haiti of the conven­ tion in September, 1015, precisely as the United S ta te s had exercised pressure to induce the incorporation of the Platt amendment in the Cuban constitution, thus to assure the tranquillity and ropsperity of Cuba. At about the same time representatives of the United States Navy took over temporarily— And we are still in control, may I add— the administration of the Haitian custom houses, which were then an­ swerable to no central control, of which the revenues were disposed of at the discretion of the various local customs officers. 4475—3068 The Senate committee admits that the United States exer­ cised “ pressure ’’—th a t means, of course, m ilitary pressure—to force a convention or treaty upon an unwilling people, and to force upon them as President a man whom they did not want and who was to be a puppet of our Government and its mili­ tary commanders stationed in Haiti. Later we prepared a constitution for Haiti and our military forces compelled the H aitians to accept it. I t provided for the election in 1910 and biannually thereafter of members of the two national legislative bodies. I might add in passing that the Haitians for many years had a written constitution which contained some of the features of the Constitution of the United States. It had a national legislature corresponding to the House and Senate in the United States. These two legis­ lative branches constituted the national assembly, which was made the electoral body to choose the President, whose term of office was fixed at seven years. When the national legislature convened those having charge of our military forces in Haiti presented a new or revised con­ stitution, which had been prepared in Washington. The Hai­ tian people had not asked for a new constitution. They were satisfied with the one which they had adopted many years before. It contained liberal provisions and was similar to con­ stitutions found in progressive countries of the world. But the United States determined to force upon the H aitian people a different constitution. The one presented for their adoption carried important changes, the principal one being that for­ eigners and foreign corporations might acquire and hold lands in Haiti. Senators w ill perceive how revolutionary this change was. Most of the H aitian people are agriculturists and own and occupy the lands which they cultivate. The government has large holdings, but for generations much of the government- owned land has been occupied by Haitians who regarded them­ selves as the owners of the tracts of land which they cultivated and which had been occupied by their ancestors. Alienation of lands to foreigners was prohibited under the old constitution. Such a provision was absolutely necessary if the Haitian people were to remain freeholders and not pass under the control of foreign capitalists. The Haitian people, knowing that they were weak and that strong financial foreign interests might seek to acquire their lands, incorporated in their constitution for their own pro­ tection a provision that aliens might not acquire lands in Haiti. But we forced upon them a new constitution with that provision eliminated, the effect of which has been to enable aliens to acquire large holdings and American corporations to purchase tens of thousands of acres of the most valuable and productive land. T his has contributed to th e exodus of thou­ sands of Haitians who, fearing that their inheritance would be taken from them and that they would again pass under the yoke of foreign landlords, migrated to Cuba and Santo Do­ mingo and near-by countries. If we do not change this policy and cease our im perialistic course in H aiti, her inhabitants will become a nation of peons. They will be subject to Ameri­ can landlords living in New York, who will add to their woes and in time produce a condition of servitude and bondage hate­ ful to the people and disastrous to Haiti. 4475—3068 Mr. President, it is becoming rather common under our new diplomacy for American capitalists, and particularly New York banks, to secure some sort of assurance from the State Department that th e ir investments will be protected. Of course, all governments owe a duty to protect the lives and property of their nationals, but there may be qualifica­ tions to this broad statem ent. What such duty is has been the subject of discussion by lawyers of eminence and states­ men and diplomats of recognized standing. However, the obligation resting upon governments to collect loans made by their nationals is not as broad as many affirm. There are some bankers and capitalists in the United States who regard the Federal Government as an agency to promote their inter­ ests and to aid them in their enterprises, though some of them may be exploiters. They seek investments in foreign coun­ tries from which they derive or expect to derive enormous profits. In some instances they loan to foreign governments at rates of interest so high as to be usurious and take the bonds of the debtor countries at from 80 to 90 per cent of their face value; and in some cases they seek arrangements or understandings with the State Department hoping that these foreign obligations will be protected and collection en­ forced by the United States. I shall show th a t the National City Bank of New York acquired control if not the ownership of the National Bank of Haiti, and thereby, in association or collaboration with the United States, controls the fiscal affairs of that country. In my opinion the State Department has m ade promises to the National City Bank, or shaped its Haitian policy, so as to protect the investments of the National City Bank. Mr. President, I regard as unwise, and indeed dangerous, a course of conduct w hich puts our Government back of loans made by American capitalists to foreign countries, and places our Government in th e attitude of being a protector or guaran­ tor of such loans. Such a policy will embroil th e United States in controversies with other nations. It will provoke interna­ tional resentments and prove injurious to this Republic. When the United States presented the new constitution to the Haitian Senate and House of Deputies they refused to accept it, notwithstanding the pressure exerted by the military commanders in charge of our forces of occupation. In the meantime, th e United States had sent a high commis­ sioner to Haiti. He was a military commander, and our mili­ tary forces were subject to his orders. T his high commis­ sioner, backed by the marines and naval forces of the United States, compelled a dissolution of the national assembly when it refused its assent to the new constitution. It was an uncon­ stitutional act. Indeed, it was an act of war upon the part of our Government ag ain st a defenseless and friendly people. The high commissioner compelled the president whom we had forced upon the people to dissolve their national legislature. An armed body of American marines, under the direction of Gen. Smedley Butler, of whom we have h eard much during the past year, forced its way into the legislative chambers and prevented the members of the senate and house of deputies, who had been elected by the people, from holding sessions or occupying the same. 4475—3068 After General Butler and the marines had driven the national legislature from the legislative halls it attempted to meet at other places, but General Butler and the American marines prevented it from so doing. Upon the dissolution of the national legislature, a so-called council of state was created under the direction of the American military commander by dictatorial decree of President Dartiguenave. There was no reason for this extraordinary act, unless it was for the purpose of camouflaging the dictatorship which our Government had set up and providing a screen behind which the autocratic and military rule established might hide. The government which the United States set up was military; all power was in the hands of the high cor missioner, who was a military man and under whom the military forces operated. Our military forces, as I have stated, dissolved the national legislature, forced a treaty upon the people, designated who should be President, and then required him to set up a body, to be known as the council of state, which w as wholly without power, but which, as stated, was to assist in hiding the despot­ ism imposed upon the people and in gilding the hypocritical fiction that a legislative body existed. Since the dissolution of the Senate and House of Deputies in 1916 there has been no election or meeting of this national legislature. Haiti has been ruled by the military forces of the United States through mere puppets which our Government set up and whose conduct they control. Our m ilitary forces have prevented the Haitian people from holding elections, and have during the entire tim e since they landed upon Haitian shores subjected the .people to military rule. Before the dissolution of the national assembly, as stated, it had refused to accept the constitution which had been prepared in the United States. It is to the credit of this legislative body that the military forces of the United States were unable to coerce it into accepting the new constitution fram ed by American officials. Those in charge of the military forces, after failing to secure the ratification of the constitution, attem pted to give some form of legality to their proceedings. Accordingly they made a gesture which to the credulous and those unacquainted with conditions appeared to evince a disposition or purpose to regard the wishes of the people. A proclamation was issued to the effect that on June 12, 1918, the constitution would be submitted to the people for their approval. T here were Haitians occupying positions in the Government, but under the direction of the m ilitary forces, and some of them, for reasons not difficult to understand, voted for the constitution. The polls were under the control of the ma­ rines and gendarmes. There were two classes of ballots at the polls, one white and the other pink. The la tte r were kept in the background and in m ost of the balloting places not even opened. A Haitian upon coming to the polls would be handed without request a white ballot, which was an affirmative vote for the constitution. If he desired to vote against the constitution he would have to ask for the ballot and would receive a pink one. For nearly two years the Haitians had been under military rule. Thousands of marines had occupied their cities and towns and various parts of their country. The efforts which they had made to free their country from foreign invaders had resulted disastrously. As I have stated, between 2,000 4475— 3068 and 3,500 Haitians h ad been killed. Marines had penetrated all parts of the Country, hunting down any armed forces or those who were opposing the military rule of the United States. The warfare carried on by American troops had re­ duced the Haitians to submission, and they sullenly accepted American rule. They felt that they were subjugated and realized that further resistance would be unavailing There were approximately 2,500,000 inhabitants in Haiti, but a few only attempted to vote. When they perceived that the noils were controlled by the military forces which had made w ar upon them they accepted the situation, and the few that presented themselves for the purpose of voting did not ask fftr pink ballots. They accepted the white ballots tendered them ; and 98 294 votes were cast in favor of the constitution ana 7bJ against it. The entire vote, of course, represented but a small minority of the Haitian electors, indicating, beyond any ques­ tion that the constitution had not been accepted by the Haitian people; that it was not and is not their constitution, but an instrumeat which the United States has attempted to foist upon them. This statement is corroborated by the Rev. L. Ton Evans, who spent manv years as a missionary in Haiti. For a number of years he was pastor of the First Baptist Church, Bdwardsvilie, Pa. In 1908 he resigned his pastorate and went to Haiti for the purpose of engaging in missionary activities. He remained there until some time after the American occupation of Haiti. He presented to Senator Hitchcock, who was a t th at time chair­ man of the Foreign Relations Committee of the Senate, tis well as to other American statesmen, protests, some of which ap­ peared in the Senate hearings, against the course of our Gov­ ernment in Haiti. ^ _ In his statement to the committee he referred to the— deliberate ana ruthless violation of the treaty, both in letter and iu spirit. And declared that our Government had forced a new consti­ tution on the people— under military pressure. He further stated that— The intelligent Haitians connected with the Government of American occupation, who, in tear and trembling— Were compelled to vote for the constitution or be dismissed or imprisoned if they refused and he aptly described these humiliating processes as— thrusting a dagger at the very heart of the Republic. He referred to the closing, upon two separate occasions, of the doors of the senate and chamber of deputies , at Port au Prince, and the turning out of the members thereof by mili­ tary force, gendarmes. He then states th a t the senate and chamber doors were locked against them—- Exactly as the late Czar did with the Russian people’s duma. This he declared, was done because they—referring to the • members of the senate and chamber of deputies—protested against a step th a t was illegel and unconstitutional, a changt, 4475— 3068------3 which they felt to be vital in their constitution, which per­ mitted the acquisition of Haitian lands by foreigners and American speculators. He also declared that Haitian judges who referred to these illegal acts were either driven out of office or imprisoned. The Reverend Mr. Evans also referred to the brutality of the forces of occupation and the corvée system, under which natives were held in semislavery and forced to work upon public roads. He declared that natives were arrested in large numbers by military forces at their homes and on their farms and taken to places remote therefrom where they were re­ quired to work under armed gendarmes for 20 cents a week. Speaking of the election to which I have referred, he stated that— The day of so-called voting arrived and passed off quietly enough on the 12th of June, 1918— And that but a very small fraction of the real voting power of Haiti participated, and that nearly all of fliose who voted were— in the official and financial pay and in some way or another employed by the American occupation and weekly receiving their salaries or wages through the hands of the United States as official receiver in H aiti. He further stated : Each voter was watched with an eagle eye and guarded by the poor native gendarme (negro police) who were everywhere In evidence, and specially officered by A m erican marines of the occupation for this special occasion, and consisted of American generals, colonels, majors, captains, and lieutenants— And others who w ere a t the polls, and— whose presence and influence were requisitioned, for no risk must be taken. He also stated th a t : On entering the court (the voting place) a small white paper, stam ped with police ad m in istratio n , bearing the d a te Ju n e 11, 1918, and with the French word oui (yes), was placed in the trembling hands of the native, who was signed— Signaled by motion o f the hand— no word spoken as to slip or anything else, to the box directly under and in front of a white American marine and dummy native assistant, who sat on a dais. The bundle of pink slips with the French non (no), curious enough and most significantly showing the fraudulent nature of this whole scandalous business, remained on the other side of the table tied to­ gether, the poor native in charge, as well as so-called voters, knowing these packets were meant for mere show ; for even If cut loose, their terror-stricken brother Haitians dared not refuse the oui (yes) and ask for the non (no) at the risk of being imprisoned and shot as an enemy of the occupation and foe of the United States Government. Thus terrorized and helpless to resist, these people sorrowfully were made to slavishly and tremblingly submit as brought in from small country villages and mountain sides, guarded and closely watched every step and turn by armed n ative gendarmes, under strict supervision of marine officers. 4475—3068 This comedy, or rather rape and, indeed, tragedy, is best described by the intelligent heartbroken natives (nearly all of whom, except those mentioned, abstained in face of being blacklisted, imprisonment, etc. ), as follows : “ We were compelled to-day by the United States Government to take a dagger, then forced by the military occupation to plunge it into the very heart of our own Negro Republic; and so that, like Pilate of old, they might wash their hands and say hereafter that Haitians themselves actually did the slaughtering. When Mr. Evans w as testifying before th e committee Sena­ tor Pomerene, who w as a member of the committee, asked the following question : Senator P o m e r e n e. Do I understand from your statement that these native citizens were intimidated so that they would not vote against the adoption of the new section of the constitution. Is that the fact? To which Mr. E vans replied as follows : Mr. E vans. Yes; most emphatically so. They were terror stricken, or as Colonel Russell himself admits in his report to General Barnett, referred to, “ They were scared by rumors and became almost hysterical with fear ” of imprisonment, of being clubbed to death, or shot down by gendarmes and marines. Mr Evans also testified that notices were posted at the polling places and signed by American m arine officers who, he testified— Have power over life and death in the black Republic that no Ameri­ can can possibly realize. He submitted one of the notices, which reads as follows : R e p u b l i c o f H a it i, Port de Paix, June 11, 1918. In accordance with the decree of his excellency, the President of the Republic, published in the Monitor of May 8 last, all the citizens of this commune of Port de Paix are asked to be present to-morrow at the Hotel Communal to vote on the new constitution, published in the Monitor of the same date. Any abstention from such a solemn occasion will be considered an unpatriotic— that is, anti-American occupation—act. Maintenance of order will be assured by the gen­ darmerie (under chief, General Williams, A m erican marine officer), and the ballots will be distributed by a member of the administration of finances (an A m erican m arine officer) opposite th e voting offices, etc. H e r m a n H . H a n n ek in , Lieutenant Gendarmerie d3Haiti, American Marine Officer. E. L e s c o t , Government Commissaire, Northwest. Mr Evans testified that he was at the polling place at St. Marc, which is a city of about 6,000 people with about 12,000 or 15 000 inhabitants within a radius of 10 or 12 miles. He stated that there was only one polling place for St. Marc and the dis­ trict referred to. H e further testified th a t the same conditions in regard to the election existed wherever polling places were provided. ,. . Mr Evans also said that the election was a mere farce; that the ballots were taken to Port au Prince and there pub- 4475— 3068 Hshed. The whole proceedings he denounced in his testimony

the greatest mockery I ever saw in m y life. And he condemned in bitter terms the m arine officers who participated m the proceedings. Prior to the American occupation, Haiti was a Republic with a constitution which liad been prepared and adopted by the Haitians. One of the fundamental provisions of this ancient constitution was that lands in Haiti could not be legally held which provision assured the occupation of I ,^y. H aitian people and prevented the ex- rltlnt “ti their country'by alien proprietors and alien corpo- îh l tv!*' Tllls.P™Ysl° n . o t the Haitian constitution was one of fSSn, a stood m the way of the designs and interests back of the American occupation and has been one of the causes of the subversion of the Haitian Government under the legitimate constitution of that country. The new constitution contains a recognition of the council ol state, an illegal body, an extra constitutional body forced upon them by our Government, and our Government placed in the constitution a legalization of this usurpatory organization and compelled the H aitian people to submit to it. The new constitution contains recognition of the council of state as a legislative authority in Haiti until the Senate and House of tinn l68’ fj°.vlded ° r.,m ,the old as well as in th e new constitu­ tion, should be elected ; but we have never perm itted an elec­ tion to be held, and have compelled the people to live under a dictatorship, which this Republic set up and continues to main­ tain. I lie national assembly, by the ancient law as well as by the new constitution of Haiti, is constituted an electoral col­ lege or body for the election of the President of Haiti, in which particular the national assembly is not exercising legislative but electoral power, th e same as Congress becomes the electoral body to count the votes th at are transmitted from the respec- ÏY® states. It is the legislative power which the new con- of state* recogDizes as being temporarily reposed in the council I h e new constitution is a document handed down by a for­ eign military power and can not be said in a proper sense to have been accepted by the people of H aiti. I t has never concerns i Tf-e5eCt SC1 far as the nationaI affairs of Haiti are concerned. It has only been put into effect as far as permit- iT7,lfii! e,lgn!irS n,!ld foreign corporations to acquire and hold L “ f"d- Th,at was the main purpose of the new con­ stitution, to provide and legalize such holdings, and, of course to give us control of H aiti, so that we could take care of the loans which the National City Bank and other American cor­ porations had made or might make in Haiti. „ J ih h m 0°r£e °f are Patrl°tic, they love their country, and bitterly resent the proposed change in the fundamental law which permits foreigners to have and to hold land in that e attitude of the Haitian people is thus put by one observer who was there a t the time : Behold, one great but subdued cry from one end of the republic to the other, even the most remote. The cry is “American deceit ! American oppres^o^06 The occupation is going to force us to change our con- Btitution so as to give our richest and our best lands to American corporations and white, wealthy profiteers and to force us again as slaves to work exactly as we were warned by our friends they would do the moment they put their feet on Haitian territory. I hope that Senators will not be oblivious and insensate to the statements I now make, that American corporations have acquired some of th e richest lands in H aiti ; their holdings amount to jjiany thousands of acres ; many H aitians are now working for landlords where formerly they were independent proprietors ; that m ore than 150,000 of H aitian people have left Haiti and gone to Santo Domingo and Cuba. Some of them, as well as other Haitians, fear that under American rule they may lose both their lands and their liberties. The Haitian people have refused to accept the provisions of this American-made constitution which gives foreigners the right to own H aitian land. To them this is the most vital right of their nationality. The term of President Dartiguenave, whose election was forced by the United States, expired in August, 1922. Under the constitution an election of senators and deputies should have occurred in order that a constitutional body, to wit, the national assembly, m ight have been in existence to elect Dar- tiguenave’s successor. But the national legislature had been driven from its chambers by General Butler after Dartigue- nave’s election had been forced, and under the policy of our Government, no election of the national legislature has been permitted since. The new constitution called for elections in January every two years. There should have been an election in 1920, an­ other in 1922, another in 1924, and an election in January, 1926. However, we ignored the constitution, forced upon the Haitians and determined, apparently, to continue the military rule of the United States under such shadowy forms as we might create. Of course, everyone knows that Borno is a mere figurehead, a creature of our Government, and that he acts only as General Russell tells him to act. Our Government is now keeping hundreds of marines in H aiti at a cost annually of several millions of dollars to the United States. Genetal Bussell ig there in control of Haiti, and our marines act under his orders. To camouflage his mili­ tary power and position, he is clothed with the title of “ high commissioner and envoy extraordinary and plenipotentiary of the United States to the Republic of Haiti.” The President may nominate am bassadors and ministers, bu t their appointment must be confirmed by the Senate. General Russell’s appoint­ ment has never been confirmed by the Senate. He is not an ambassador or m inister, but he is a m ilitary officer in control of American troops, and the military ruler of Haiti. Haiti is no longer a republic or an independent state, but it is governed by American m ilitary forces commanded by General Russell. It is time that we should get rid of this pretense. The Haitian people know that they have no government of their own ; that Borno is not their president ; that they have only such liberty as th e m ilitary forces of the U nited States who occupy their country permit them to enjoy. They know that the liberty of the press is abridged ; that the right of free 4475—3068 speech is limited ; that their constitution has been overthrown ; tnat they are governed by a foreign power. In January of this year an election should have been called lor the purpose of choosing senators and members of the House or Deputies. Under the Haitian constitution the national assembly should have met on the 12th day of April of this year for the purpose of selecting a president for the ensuing lour years. _ General Russell and our State Department know of the provisions in the Haitian constitution. They knew that an election should have been called in Jan u ary and that the national assembly should have convened in April ; but they persevered in their unconstitutional course and determined to maintain an unconstitutional government and dictatorship in H aiti ana to continue to employ Borno as a passive and plastic instrument to execute the purposes of our Government as they made known to Borno through General Russell. The constitution does not recognize electoral powers in the Moreover, even the new constitution prescribes that the President of H aiti shall be the son of a H aitian eitizen. However, m the face of this provision, our Government has im­ posed^ upon the H aitian people as president a man who was ineligible under their old constitution as well as under their new constitution. Both constitutions provide that the President of Haiti must be born of a father who was himself a citizen of Haiti. Borno’s father was not a citizen of Haiti, and therefore he was never ■eligible to the office of president. i have referred heretofore to the fact that an illegal and •unconstitutional body (council of state) w as created by a decree of President Dartiguenave under the direction of our Government. This unconstitutional body, as I have stated, acts as a screen, and gives color to the claim th at there is a legisla­ tive body functioning in Haiti. As a matter of fact this council of state is appointed by the so-called president, and its members hold their positions at his will and pleasure. The council of sta te does not possess the powers of an elec­ toral college, and in assuming to so act it merely carries out the will of the P resident and the American officers of occupa­ tion. This illegal body pretended to name Borno as president to succeed Dartiguenave, and on the 12th of this month it pre­ tended to elect him fo r a further term of four years. Mr. President, I have talked to a number of persons who were in Haiti in January of this year when an election for senators and members of the House of Deputies should have been held. They say that many Haitians went to the usual places where the elections prior to American occupation had been held, but were dispersed by military forces. General Russell and Borno, our puppet, would not perm it an election They defied the constitution of Haiti. They planned and in­ trigued to keep Borno as the paper head of Haiti to act as the willing tool of th e United States. During the last year Borno has appointed 18 new members of the 21 who constitute the council of state. It is absurd to contend that an election of the president by persons whom he names and who hold office at his pleasure is legal or is ex­ pressive of the people’s will. 4475—3068 Borno prior to his reelection on the 12th of this month, made m a n y changes in the council. This illegal body pretends to act as an electoral body and choose Borno s successor. It pre­ te n d s to act as a legislative body and registers the dictatorial decrees which he promulgates under the direction of General RTtS and have used him and an illegal and unconstitutional body (the council of sta te ), which was c r e a te d by an illegal decree, to conceal the mailed hand of the United States. We have forced upon Haiti as president a man who is in­ eligible to office even under the constitution piepared in the United States; we have prevented the P e o p e from electing a national legislature and have now forced upon them for an other period of four years as president a m an whom me peop ^ n o t want and in whose selection they w ere not permitted

t0 IPnroneCiseanse it is amusing to see the « ^ g e d bv our Government, operating through Geneial Bussell, to give the appearance of’legality to the dictatorial and ~ t i ^ tional policies w hich have been adopted m H aiti ana carrieu forward by General Bussell, backed by the marines and bayo nTn°order to^nsu^e^the election of Borno for another term of four years, lie has, as I have stated, during the Past year» Qptino- of course in harmony with General Russell, removed

sucwssors'116 These ££ ïïST E T l f * S M S of^selecting the president, consisted of the following. Dieudonne Charles, a nephew of Borno’s wife— He is one of the council whom Borno has named to elect him— Pasquier, a nephew of Borno’s first wife ; General Salgado, his chief of staff ; Gen. Marcel P rezeau , his assistant chief of S t a n , Placide David, his secretary ; Amilcar Duval, his undersecretary ; Ch. Fombvun, his secretary of interior ; Louis Propriété, his secretary of agriculture All named by Borno— Doctor Lescouflalr, his secretary of public instruction , Emmanuel Cauvin, his law partner ; , Gen. Alfred Memours, Haitian chargé d’affaires In Brussels He has him out of the way in Brussels— Georges Gentil, H aitian chargé d’affaires in Berlin ; Pinchinat, a government attorney at St. Marc , e Edmond Montas, chief clerk of the foreign regulations department, Damase Pierre-Louis, chief clerk, interior departm ent ; 4475—3068 Doctor Calice, another clerk in the interior department ; Doctor Beauvoir, inspector general of education ; Joseph Lanoue, president of the land commission ; and James Thomas, Ernest Eigaud, and Charles Rouz’ier. The three men last named were appointed by Borno a year or two ago. It will be seen, therefore, that the entire 21 are his appointees—18 selected within the p ast year All are selected from among liis relatives and official staff, and all are amenable to his will. What a solemn farce this is and yet our Government is back of it and with solemn assevera­ tions endeavors to m ake the people believe th a t the people of Haiti are enjoying liberty and the benefits of a republican form of government and that the acts of Borno and the council of state are indorsed by the Haitian people and are in accord­ ance with the letter and spirit of the Haitian constitution. I received word th is morning that 1 of th e 21 members of the council of state refused to vote for Borno a t the so-called election on the 12th day of this month and was promptly lemoved. Mr. President, the plan here outlined assures one of his election as president. A few days ago there were many eloquent criticisms in this Chamber of the conduct of Mussolini. It was charged that the Italian people were goverened by a dictator, and some Senators opposed the Italian debt settlement because it was alleged that Italy was under the control of a dictator. Yet our Government forces upon a friendly people and upon a sm all state a dictator It destroys their constitution, overturns their republic and subjects them to a military government masquerading behind a figurehead whom we selected and crowned with the title of president. I hope that some Senators who were so loud in their de­ nunciations of Italy and the so-called dictatorship of Musso- llft their voices in eloquent protest against the con­ duct of our Government in establishing a dictatorship over an alien people. We have sent a military officer to rule two and one-half millions of people. We maintain m ilitary forces upon foreign soil. We impose upon these two and one-half million people a military form of government against their will and without their consent. Our military commander is a dictator. He rules Haiti. His will is law. Though Borno may speak it is the voice of General Russell which is heard ; though Borno s hand may move, it is the military hand and power of s e | States, directed by General Russell, th a t the people Mr. President, _ I know that my words in behalf of the Haitian people will be in vain and that my protest against the imperialistic and illegal course of our Government in dealing with Haiti will find but little support in this Chamber I realize that what may be said here to-day will find but little response throughout the length and breadth of this Republic because of the engrossment of the people in their private affairs. Oui capitalists are spending their millions in order to acquire additional millions. With their great accumulations they must find foreign fields fo r exploitation, and m any of them are willing to use the State Department and our diplomatic repre- 4475—30.68 . r sentatives and the A rm y and the Navy to enable them to secure benefits and privileges and material gains in other lands. There are some selfish Americans who are willing to exploit foreign countries and to make investments which will subordi­ nate the political and economic policies of weak states and people to their will. Mr. President, I condemn such a policy and solemnly protest against it. The people of Haiti and all other small countries are entitled to work out their own des­ tiny, and neither the United States nor any other country has a right to force upon them alien rule. Mr. President, fo r years we controlled Santo Domingo, but public sentiment finally forced us to withdraw. Our military forces are still in Haiti, and I read in yesterday’s press that in Nicaragua we have landed our marines. In my opinion the United States has too often landed military forces upon foreign shores and has interfered in the internal affairs of friendly peoples. Mr. COPELAND. Mr. President, will the Senator from Utah yield ? Mr. KING. I yield. Mr. COPELAND. How does the Senator from Utah feel about the Philippines? Mr. KING. Mr. President, upon many occasions I have criti­ cized this administration and the preceding administration for failing to carry out the pledges made in what is known as the Jones Act. The Filipinos won their independence from Spain and established a republican form of government. Without reason or justification we made war upon the Filipinos, over­ threw the government which had been established by them, and for years subjected them to military rule. The Philippine archipelago is distant from our shores thou­ sands of miles. T he Filipino people differ from us racially and culturally. There are 11,000,000 inhabitants in that far- off archipelago. They have made great progress materially, culturally, and spiritually. They have shown their capacity for self-government and have conducted themselves in such a manner as to compel the United States, if it has regard for its promises, to withdraw from the Philippine Islands and permit the Filipinos to establish a government of th e ir own choosing. Upon numerous occasions I have ofEered resolutions calling for the withdrawal of the United States from the Philippine Islands as soon as a constitutional convention had been called and a constitution framed and adopted and the machinery provided in the adopted constitution put in shape for the po­ litical control of th e people. But there are some Americans who are determined to retain the Philippine Islands. They ignore the promises which we made and desire to hold the Philippine archipelago for ex­ ploitation. Mr. President, I denounce this selfish and, I was about to say, “ perfidious ” policy. The last Democratic platform con­ tains a plank I had the honor to prepare, which pronounced in favor of the independence of the Philippine Islands. If we be­ lieve in the Declaration of Independence and are guided by the spirit of democracy then we must withdraw from the Phil­ ippine Islands and permit the Filipinos to establish a govern­ ment which meets th eir wishes. 4475— 3068 It is evident that General Wood and the Republican admin­ istration are determined to prevent the independence of the Fi^pinos. General Wood has been highly critical of the Fili­ pinos. His administration lias been a failure. He has the same point of view that most military men possess. It is not remarkable that most military leaders have been unsuccessful administrators. They carry into their civil duties the military spirit. They antagonize the people and exercise their authority in a harsh and often in a brutal manner. General Wood has provoked the Filipinos. His course has produced irritation and resentment. He should be recalled, and if the administra­ tion is determined that the Filipinos shall not have their inde­ pendence, and that we shall violate our pledges to them, the least that it can do would be to send as governor some person who has the elements of statesmanship and can appreciate the situation which exists in th a t far-off country. We have been advised that the President has selected Carmi Thompson to go to the Philippine Islands as a special com­ missioner. The papers state that he is to be accompanied by experts and economists and business men. The President has not advised the country of the true purpose of this expedition. Some persons see in this mission a desire to undo the mischief which General Wood has done and to some extent whitewash his administration. Others see in the Thompson mission a scheme to further exploit the Philippine Islands. Mr. Hoover has recently stated that rubber can be produced in great quantities in the Philippine Islands, and some of the business men of the U nited States have been active in opposing Philippine independence, contending that the United States should retain forever the Philippine Islands because of the commercial and m aterial advantages which the American people would derive therefrom. I received a letter yesterday from a distinguished citizen of California who was in the Philippine Islands for a number of years. I learned from him and from other sources that Mr. Firestone, the American manufacturer of Firestone tires, is in the Philippine Islands reconnoitering for the purpose of establishing rubber plantations. I have seen reports to the effect th a t Americans who have recently been in the Philippines announced that they will invest $200,000,000 in the various industries in the Philippine Islands. I hope President Coolidge is not sending Mr. Thompson upon this mission for the purpose of supporting the materialistic claims of some selfish Americans. I hope th a t he does not be­ lieve that the voice of the American capitalists should be more appealing than the voice of the Filipinos when they ask for independence and liberty. I confess that I do not like the Carmi Thompson mission. I look upon it with grave suspicion. The announcement of this mission synchronizes with the loud demands made by these capitalists that we should retain the Philippine Islands and exploit them for the benefit of American trade and commerce. President Coolidge could give no stronger evidence of his devotion to the principles of justice and liberty than to recall General Wood and send to the Philippine Islands as governor a man who is familiar with history, with the de­ velopment of races, with the progress of the people, with the causes which move humanity forward—a man who loves democracy and who is unwilling that the United States shall 4475— 3068 become an imperialistic nation or be governed by selfish and materialistic policies. If President Coolidge should pursue this course he would win the plaudits of the democratic forces throughout the world, and furnish convincing proof that this Republic has no selfish aims, no lust for territorial gains, no desire to superimpose its power upon other peoples, and that it will remain a steadfast friend of the downtrodden and oppressed everywhere, and will worthily wear the crown of leadership among all nations which march toward the summits of liberty and justice and righteousness. While it is not pertinent to the matter under discussion, it is not inappropriate to briefly call the attention of the Senate to the treatment which our Government has accorded the inhabit­ ants of the Virgin Islands. The Virgin Islands, as Senators recall, w ere owned by Den­ mark for many years. The inhabitants of the islands enjoyed liberty and an autonomous form of government. They expected when the sovereignty of the islands passed to the United States that they would enjoy the benefits of democratic government and a greater degree of liberty than that which they enjoyed under a monarchical government. But they have been disillusioned and many of those who live in the Virgin Islands would welcome a retrocession of their homeland to Denmark. We sent naval officers to govern them. Some of these officers have acted in a most inhum an and brutal manner. I think that some of them should be court-martialed and punished for their transgressions. Our treatment of the people of the Virgin Islands has been oppressive and dis­ graceful. We should at once enact measures that will protect these people. Naval officers should be withdrawn and a civil form of government provided for the islands. The Senator from Wisconsin [M r. L e n r o o t ] a few days ago referred to the misgovernment of the inhabitants of Guam. I t would seem th a t our naval ofiicers u tterly failed in their duties to the people in that far-off Pacific land. Certainly those who live under the flag of this Republic should enjoy the blessings of liberty. It is a crime against the principles of this Republic to tre a t the people of the V irgin Islands and Guam as the evidence shows they have been treated by the United States. Mr. President, I think I had rath er be a slave than live under a m ilitary dictatorship. Mr. President, I now return to the m atter under discussion. I referred to the convention between Haiti and the United States adopted September 16, 1916. This treaty was to be in force for 10 years only. I t contained a provision, however, that its life might be extended for another period of 10 years. On the 28th of M arch, 1917, by an agreement made at Port au Prince this extension was granted. It w as not made public. I doubt whether a half dozen Senators know that such exten­ sion was made. T he treaty of extension w as never published in the United States until recently, so far as I can learn, and only recently did th e H aitian people learn of its existence. The Senate of the United States has not ratified this new convention, nor has it been ratified by any constitutional au­ thority in Haiti. Except for this agreement, notwithstanding 44Î5—3068 fceptenmerSeptember lb, 1925. The convention U W°?d haye of September e*PIred by16 limitation iqi^ Hivi stftutionTndYaws'of H V r Sh°UU1 b° a susPension of the’con- m Ï Ï f H Ï w u Haitl or any supercession of the Govern­ ment of Haiti by the agents of the United States or otherwise «rond nffi the,treat,y the United States was required to us Jits exercise an unjustuniut? andW arbitrary ^ Halti dominion for 10 over^ars, the but Ha Z if t innto people or over their public affairs. There w a 7 L reason for or ?*-“ d th- The Haitian People dtoTot ask r 11 ■ «deed, they were unawarestuzrsj; that it was donegixji Thov

. me control of their country indefinitely and tn o-nx^rn them in an arbitrary and unconstitutional manner ugTy pictu™0 tt showsb?h0nrte the Senate committee presents an T-infti? , shows that c-ruelties were practiced upon tho Haitian people, and that military officers of the United Stifps drS vF —autocratic, and arbitmlyUp ^ r not andbe d v ü aprow°e®Ceri S T a? tTtiïVohPt Tu°sst irB

shall only say that the hearings reveal the fact that not justified in overthrowing the H aSL Government Tnd^T S d t epeopleby mUitary f°rCe °f th0 country of a helpless and Mr. President, I have before me a report prepared by em irw Amencans who recently visited Haiti for the purpose of^todv mg it intensively. I t corroborates what I have said and iust'i

SSteS'bSS'toSsg SKSKt JSJ2S& imprisoned by He W8S müitarye1o“ esy “ & SeV6r6 indictment of the conduct of our “ is, not ^relevant to state at this point that the argument made by many in justification of our making war upon the H aitian people, that H a iti had suffered from revolutions d ,r g " s o e r °f inMMtants wei'e ™ed:7o°ses muchUorf its force when it is known that the American military forces killed between 2,000 and 3,500 Haitians. I have been told th a t the number of H aitians killed by American troops in tw o years far exceeded th e number killed in the revolutions which occurred in Haiti in 50 years preceding American occupation. We justify our war upon the Haitians upon the ground that they resisted the A m erican military forces. I think it is true that many of these poor ignorant people, w hen they saw our warships in their ports and our marines upon their soil, be­ lieved that we were there to conquer their country. They believed that they had the right to defend their homes against w hat they believed to be a foreign foe. I t w as an unequal contest and they w ere soon conquered. P erhaps some of us would have joined the Haitian forces and fought against American troops occupying their land if we had been Haitians. Senators must know that the foreign policies of our Govern­ ment have excited the apprehension of some Latin-Americans and some inhabitants of the Caribbean Islands. The United States is known as “ the Colossus of the N orth,” and some American statesmen and writers have not been wise or con­ siderate in their statements concerning our neighbors on this hemisphere. Mexico lost an em pire through the treaty of Guadelupe Hidalgo; Cuba was lost to Spain ; Porto Iiico has been an­ nexed by the United States ; and the Philippine Islands are under the flag of this Republic. Some flambuoyant Americans have declared that the flag of this Republic must float from the Arctic to the Antarctic Oceans and over the entire Western Hemisphere. Of course, we protest that we are not imperialistic, th a t we desire no additional territory ; and yet there are people beyond our borders who are skeptical as to our intentions and do not give full credit to our repeated asseverations. When we landed our military forces upon H aitian soil, proclaimed m artial law, took over the government, and declared that we would remain there for an indefinite period, it was to be expected that such conduct would arouse the fears and suspicions and indeed the resentments of the H aitian people. When we overthrew their constitution and forced upon them measures which contra­ vened their constitution and subjected them to military rule it is not to be wondered at that military outbreaks occurred and conflicts occurred between our armies of occupation and the Haitian people. Mr. President, it will soon be 11 years since we went there ; and in the perspective of these years we may make a proper appraisal of the effects of our intervention in Haiti and of our suppression of the Haitian Government and of the political liberty of the Haitian people. It is claimed by well-advised persons th a t the material, moral, and intellectual condition of the Haitian people has not improved under the American occupation. I know that that will be denied by the men whom we have sent there and who are drawing salaries to the extent of more th a n half a million dollars annually out of the Haitian funds wrung from the toil­ ing masses of that country. The general condition is one of poverty. Thousands of Haitian laborers have emigrated to 4475—3068 Cuba and Santo Domingo in order to obtain employment, thereby reducing agriculture in Haiti to a condition of decay and disorganization. But little if any progress is being made in education. The secondary schools have been closed in a num ber of towns, and the students there who have completed their primary educa­ tion are unable to continue their studies unless their families possess sufficient m eans to send them away from home to attend the more advanced schools. It is frequently charged that the Haitian people are illiterate. I think it is true that a majority of them are illiterate. A concordat with the Pope more than 50 years ago placed education in the hands of the Catholic clergy and it is believed by many that considering the difficul­ ties under which they have labored, the scattered condition of the people, and the lack of resources of the country that no inconsiderable progress has been made. It is to be regretted th a t there is illiteracy in H aiti and that the educational system is defective. But th a t can be said of some European countries. It is true of Russia, where 85 per cent of the population are illiterate. In Mexico and in some of the Central American and South American countries there is great illiteracy. We may deplore this condition and regret that greater interest has not been taken in the education of the people of these various countries. Haiti has labored under many disadvantages. Her resources are extremely limited and the wealth of the en tire state would not equal the wealth of some of the smaller cities of the United States. When the Haitians won their independence in 1804 there was not a single schoolhouse in Haiti. The people had been slaves for centuries. To establish order, set up a government, and prepare an illiterate and enslaved people for citizenship was a task of supreme difficulty. But a republic was established which soon entered the family of nations. Schools were estab­ lished in all parts of the country and an attempt made to have a free system of education. At the time of the American occupation there were more than 300 rural schools in th e country. These have not been improved under American occupation. Indeed, some have been sup­ pressed and discontinued. One difficulty in the school system grows out of the fact that a considerable part of the population live in the mountains, where there are no towns or communities. A considerable part of the population is so isolated that the establishment of schools is a most difficult task. At the time we took over the control of H aiti there were 860 schools of all degrees. The number is less now. There were 65,000 pupils in the various schools, and it is estimated that more than 20,000 children were taught at home by the family and private teachers in accordance with a custom which had prevailed in Haiti. There should be added to this number more than 300 students who were studying in France, Ger­ many, and England, and there were also a considerable number who were receiving educational training in business institutions in France. There w ere more than 85,000 persons of school age receiving education in private and in public schools in Haiti in 1915. Some of these schools, as I have stated, have been closed. In the city of St. Marc the secondary school for boys and the 4475—3068 secondary school fo r girls have been closed since American occupation, leaving only the primary schools. Since our control of Haiti the teaching of the classics and Latin has been suppressed in the lyceums of Cape Haiti, Gonai- vez, Jacmal, Jercmie, and dux Cayes. However, because of the protests of the people of St. Marc, the order of suppression has been withdrawn. The claim has been made that only 2 per cent of the Haitians are able to read and write. Port au Prince, the capital of Haiti, has approximately 100,000 inhabitants, and 80 per cent of the population read and write. Other leading cities, Cape Haiti, Port Liberte, Port de Paix, Gonaivez, Saint Marc. Jac­ mal, Petit Goave, M irazoane, Jeremie, les Cayes, Anse-a-Veau, Leogane, and^ also in some of the small towns of the inland, a large proportion of the people have received prim ary education and many an academic education. A number of H aitians have been educated in leading univer­ sities of Europe. Haiti has lawyers of international reputa­ tion, and there are men and women of culture in various parts of the country/ Those familiar with. H aiti state that the literacy of Haiti is a t least 35. per cent. From an American standpoint, that is a low standard of education. But it is superior to that found in some other countries. My informa­ tion is that little has been done for the education of the Hai­ tians under American control. Indeed, residents of Haiti have informed me that there has been retrogression instead of pro­ gression along educational and cultural lines since the United States assumed control of Haitian affairs. leather large sums of money have been spent for agricultural education, but it has largely been a waste of money. Doctor Freeman, who went there to teach agriculture has accomplished but little. A number of American professors were sent to Haiti to instruct the people in agriculture. None had any knowledge of the French language. They w ere obliged to have interpreters to translate their instructions and the students and those whom they attempted to teach resided in Port au Prince and were following courses in other high schools in the city and were not interested in agricultural instructions. It is impractical to impart instruction in agriculture in the English language when the people speak the French language ; and to send people to Haiti, as our Government has, as agri­ cultural instructors who can not give instruction in French, is of no utility. Haiti is a small and mountainous country with live small plains. Its principal and remunerative products are coffee, cotton, and sugar cane. Many of the Haitian people reside in the mountains and their principal crop is coffee. More than 70 per cent of H aitian exports consists of coffee, which is sold almost exclusively in France, and by reciprocal arrangements Haitian coffee pays only a small import duty in France, and French wines pay only a moderate duty in Haitian ports. Our Government has interfered with all that. The raising of the duty on wine is an impediment to Haitian trade, and particu­ larly to the export of coffee to France, from the export duty on which practically the entire revenue of Haiti is derived. When the French were in control of Haiti, there were coffee plantations, but few now exist. But these coffee plantations 4475—3068 have extended themselves by natural propagation, so that the coffee plant or tree exists now in many p a rts of the country. Its production is th e principal source of revenue, not only for the Government b u t for the people. Nothing has been done since the American occupation to improve or increase the other products of the country. Last year was a favorable season for Haitian products, as a result of which the coffee crop was larger than in some other years. Apologists for American occu­ pation claim credit for what nature has done. I have referred to the change in the constitution under which foreign corporations can acquire Haitian lands. The effect of this new law has been most injurious to the people and to the country. Already American corporations have acquired large tracts of land for the cultivation of pineapples, sugar, and other products. Its effect upon the morale of the people is most de­ pressing and has contributed to the great exodus to Cuba and Santo Domingo of native-born Haitians. More than 30,000 H aitian laborers are emigrating every year to Cuba and Santo Domingo owing to the economic condi­ tions in Haiti and in part due to the occupation by American military forces and the control of their country by a foreign power. Many well-advised persons contend that the material, moral, and intellectual condition of the Haitian people has not improved under A m erican occupation. The general condition is one of poverty and the migration of Haitians tends to reduce agriculture to a condition of decay and disorganization. There has been an increase in the revenue from imports due to the increased volume of imports. This, however, is not a normal increase, but has resulted from the apprehension that the new tariff imposed upon the Haitians without their consent will increase the duty on raw imported articles, and in order to avoid the higher duties which are imminent Haitian merchants have purchased large stocks which they have obtained on credit. This will be the cause of financial depreciation as soon as the merchants do not meet their obligations, which, under present conditions, it appears they will be unable to do. The increased value of Haitian exports reflect in part the de­ preciation of the French franc, and does not mean that there has been an increase in the volume or quantity of imports, but merely in their valuation in terms of the depreciated cur­ rency of the country. Haiti imports from the United States from 70 to 80 per cent of the value of her total imports. On the other hand, her exports to the United States are negligible. It means that Haiti has large payments to make in this country, with no direct or immediate means of creating the credit necessary to make liquidation. Furthermore, the Haitian treasury will pay $1,324,311 interest to corporations and individuals in the United States, together with a commission on bonds of Series A, issued to refund the foreign debt, all of which will aggra­ vate the subordinate position of Haiti in her fiscal relations with the United States. Our military authorities in Haiti have compelled her to authorize the issuance of $40,000,000 of bonds and have caused to be issued bonds of the value of more than $23,000,000. Sub­ stantially all of these bonds have been acquired by the Na- 4475— 3068 tional City Bank of New York. Parenthetically, I may add that many persons believe that American marines will remain in Haiti until the last penny of these bonds h as been paid. I wonder if this Republic is to be a debt collector and the guarantor of the paym ent of bonds which have been issued by a foreign country pursuant to the orders of the United States. I t is contended by the Haitian people th a t the fiscal affairs of Haiti have been mismanaged by the American occupation and the financial burdens of Haiti have been greatly increased. The external loans of Haiti, prior to American occupation, had been negotiated with France, and the later loan in 1910 had been made upon exceedingly advantageous terms to the Haitian Government through the Bank De L’Union Parisienne, which had acted as the le tte r’s fiscal agent. With the decline in the value of the French franc, it was evident that Haiti would profit greatly in meeting this foreign loan during such period as the franc w as a t a low value, measured by gold. The principal of the H a itia n foreign debt in June, 1915, was 127,811,000 francs. I m ight add that Haiti’s first bond issue w as to indemnify French colonists for losses sustained following H a iti’s independence. T his loan was fully paid. Following the A m erican occupation, A dm iral Caperton sus­ pended the payments on H aiti’s foreign and internal debt, and it was not until 1920 that the interest and amortization due were paid. Haiti had not defaulted during her independence in meeting her obligations. In September, 1922, H aiti’s foreign debt, in American currency, amounted to $6,971,874, or stated in francs, 87,023,425. At the time of American occupation, Haiti’s in­ ternal debt was $2,278,886.20, her floating debt was $2,477,182, and her internal obligations and claims preferred against her aggregated $5,000,000. Some of these claims were subject to revision, as was a portion of the internal and floating debt. The internal bonds were almost entirely in the hands of Haitians. It will be observed that the entire debt of Haiti, foreign and domestic, with a portion of the domestic debt and the claims subject to revision, amounted to but $16,727,932.51. The American occupation, as stated, authorized the issue of bonds amounting to $10,000,000, divided into three series— series A, external bonds, $16,000,000 ; series B, internal bonds, $5,000,000 ; and series O, external bonds, $2,660,000, making a total of $23,660,000. Haiti did not owe the United States when the latter overthrew the Haitian Government and could have discharged her obligations within a few years without resort­ ing to a new foreign loan. It is insisted by the Haitian peo­ ple that there was an improvident use of the loan negotiated by the United States, through the National City Bank of New York, who has in effect been placed in charge, under the United States, of the fiscal policies of Haiti. Under the agreement forced upon Haiti by the United States in 1919, the control over Haiti was given to the latter during the life of the $16,000,000 loan. This m eant, of course, the control of Haiti by th e United States until 1952. An American professor of standing, who is also a student of economic and fiscal questions, recently visited H aiti to examina 4475— 3068 conditions there, and he has stated that this transaction in effect was a guaranty on the part of the American Government to collect the customs and to deduct the interest upon the $16,000,000 loan. I t is worthy of note that in the bungling, if nut unfair, methods adopted by the American occupational forces m dealing w ith H aitian fiscal affairs, the National City Bank pays no interest upon the bank deposits of the Haitian Government, although the aggregate amount which should have been paid would at the present time approximate $1,000,000. The National City Bank of New York lias acquired the owner­ ship and control of the Bank Nationale of the Republic d’Haiti, which has a monopoly of the note issue and the exclusive service of the Treasury. In other words, this American bank lias the control of the banking facilities of Haiti as w ell as the fiscal affairs of that country. It can contract or expand the currency. It has entirely suppressed the old national currency and has issued and circulated notes to the amount of 15,000,000 gourdes of the nominal or redemption value of 20 cents. The bank notes of this bank to the amount of $3,000,000 constitute the entire paper currency of H aiti a t the present time. T he nominal value of the Haitian gourde was $1, American standard, but the Na­ tional City Bank has reduced this value to 20 cents. The National City Bank having acquired the ownership of the Banque Nationale de la République de Haiti, a new contract was prepared, under which the bank obtained 1 per cent upon the receipts and expenditures for acting as fiscal agent of the Government. The Government, of course, uses the bank as a depositary for its funds, but, as I have stated, the bank refuses to pay interest upon such deposits. Recently the financial adviser—who is an A m erican and who was forced upon Haiti_ has transferred approximately $3,000.000 of the surplus to the National City Bank of New York, which presum ably loans the same out at a high rate of interest and makes no payment therefor to Haiti. This deprives Haiti of the interest to which she is entitled and innures to the National City Bank and the Bank Nationale d’Republic d’Haiti, which it owns. The Amer­ ican professor to whom I have referred makes the following statement : The latter bank also obtains a profit from the monopoly of note issue. It is able to make commercial loans by loaning bank notes as well as creating deposits. Commercial loans are, as a matter of fact, generally made by giving the borrower bank notes rather than by creating a check­ ing account for him. The ordinary rate of interest on these loans is approximately 9 per cent. The bank has to maintain against these bank notes a reserve of one- third in American money. Half of this, however, may be on deposits outside of the country where it may, of course, be loaned out and con­ sequently draw interest. A reserve of 16.7 per cent is, therefore, the maximum that is legally required. But this reserve, it will be noted, need not be in gold but in any type of lawful American money. Federal reserve notes can consequently be used as a reserve, but these are also in part based upon commercial paper and arise out of commercial trans­ actions in the United States. It is therefore theoretically possible for the Rank Nationale d’Republic d’Haiti to make not far from $10 worth of commercial loans upon a gold security of approximately $1. This, it will be observed, gives a possibility of great profits to the bank. The only share which the Republic of Haiti secures in these gains is the 4475— 3068 provision that the Government shall be paid 1 per cent on all circula­ tion above 10,000,000 gourds— $2,000,000. The National City Bank and its Haitian bank have attempted to further strengthen their monopoly of th e fiscal affairs of Haiti by attempting to obtain the exclusive right to import specie and foreign money into the country, which would, of course, give the la tte r a complete monopoly of banking, as well as of note issue ; with the advantages which it possesses it prac­ tically controls the banking and fiscal affairs of Haiti. It has but one competitor, the Eoyal Bank of C anada, but its power, by reason of the monopoly above referred to, enjoyed by the National City Bank interests is greatly restricted. Mr. President, I have here a very full and complete analysis of the fiscal affairs of Haiti, the disposition made of the loans negotiated under American occupation, the receipts during each successive year, and the disbursements. I shall not take the time of the Senate to present this analysis, but feel war­ ranted in stating that the record made by our Government in handling the customs and in controlling the fiscal affairs of H aiti is not without blemish. Indeed, it w arrants, in my opin­ ion, severe criticism. The interest and commissions on the Haitian debt are more than one-third of the national budget; and if an additional loan is negotiated and forced upon the Haitian people, and I am advised that this is the purpose of General Russell and our Government, then the burdens of the Haitian people w ill be increased far beyond the necessities of the situation and to a point which can not be justified. It is stated by Haitians of standing, and also by persons who have investigated conditions in Haiti, that the National Rail­ road Co. of Haiti, a New York corporation, has received bonds aggregating more th a n $2,660,000, being a p art of the $40,- 000,000 authorized bond issue which I have just mentioned, and that this corporation was not entitled to payment because it had utterly failed to carry out its contract. Moreover, the short segments of railroad constructed are of no utility and of but little if any value. This so-called railro ad parallels the seacoast, and from the beginning has been a complete failure. It is charged that enormous salaries were paid to officials, par­ ticularly Rodger L. Farnum , of New York. To compel payment of the claims of this company, as have been done by the United States, through the issuance and delivery of bonds, is an act of injustice. I submit that it is wrong to compel Haiti to make this payment. It would seem that one of the purposes of the United States in Haiti is to enable the National City Bank to control the fiscal affairs of H a iti and to enforce the paym ent of unjust claims such as those preferred by the American Railroad Co. which I have just mentioned. There are those who assert that Wall Street and speculators of Wall Street are to be protected and their investments made secure, and th a t the United States is to spend millions in maintaining military forces in Haiti to accomplish that result. Mr. President, there are many Americans given important positions in what might be called the civil and administrative positions in Haiti. The Haitians complain bitterly because of “ carpetbaggers ” being sent to their country and because of the high salaries paid them. My information is that some 4476--3068 officers of the United States Navy and Marine Corps, in addi­ tion to receiving their regular salaries as officers of the Navy, are paid from the Haitian treasury for the services claimed to be rendered by them. My information is that more than $400,000 is annually taken from the Haitian treasury to meet the charges of ' Ameri­ can civilians and officers of the Government and Marine Corps who are maintained by the United States in Haiti. Many of these Americans whom th e H aitian people are forced to receive and pay have no knowledge of the French language and it is claimed by the Haitian people that they have no proper sympa­ thy for the Haitians, nor do they understand their situation and their ideals, nor do they have a proper regard for the wishes and aspirations of the Haitian people. . Some American officers have been detailed as financial ad­ visers and controllers in Haitian municipalities, so that the fiscal affairs of the entire country are dominated and con­ trolled by the occupational forces of the United States. The constabularly or gendarm ery have been placed under the com­ mand of American marines, and are trained as a military organization and are employed as instruments to control the public affairs in Haiti and to enforce the will of General Russell, who presumably is speaking for our State Depart­ ment and the Government of the United States. My in­ formation is that the American officers in charge of the' gen­ darm ery have in some instances been given commissions as prosecuting attorneys w ith powers not only to arrest alleged offenders but prosecute them ivfore the courts, and that they also use their military authority to compel judges to punish political offenders taken before them. The convention of September 16, 1915, contemplated that a protocol providing for th e settlement of claims against the Haitian Government be entered into between the United States and Haiti. This protocol was signed October 3, 1919, and set up a commission to settle these claims. It was secret and not officially published in Haiti until 1924. The commission, how­ ever, did not actually organize until April, 1923. It was re­ quired to complete its w ork in two years. It is, however, still functioning, but in a manner not satisfactory to the Haitian people. Mr. President, General Russell has indicated his opposition to the judicial system and to the courts of Haiti, and he and Borno have, in violation of the constitution of Haiti, attempted to remove judges whose tenure of office was for life. Judges who were independent and who sought to enforce the law have been the objects of their displeasure and the victims of persecu­ tion. There have been servile judges, who sent more than 23 journalists to prison during the last two or three years because they criticized through the press the military occupation of their country and the usurpations by Louis Borno, claim ing to be President of Haiti. The freedom of the press has been de­ stroyed, and men have been imprisoned who have been dis­ charging their duty to their country and protesting against the alien military forces occupying their country and con­ trolling their government. Borno has assailed the people of Haiti; he has denounced them as ignorant and unworthy to 4475— 3068 exercise the rights of franchise or participate tn the affairs of government. This position seems to be indorsed by General Russell and upheld by the present administration in the United States. The hypocrisy of this position is apparent when reference is made to the fact th a t our Government, as w ell as Borno, claim that the constitution under which they are pretending to act was adopted by the votes of the Haitian people. They were sufficiently literate to vote for a constitution, but are wholly unworthy to vote fo r officials to serve under such constitution. Our Government having abolished the national legislature by military force and having set up an executive branch, sup­ ported and directed by military forces, has sought and now purposes to overthrow and destroy the judiciary and thus sub­ ject the people to th e absolute control of m ilitary forces. Numerous Haitians have been arrested and imprisoned when they criticized American occupation and the government of their country by foreign military force, and protested against the usurpations of Borno, the suppression of the national legis­ lature, the policy which is permitting American capitalists to acquire valuable landed interests in Haiti, and generally the unsatisfactory condition of their country by reason of the inter­ vention of the United States and its subsequent and present unwarranted control over Haiti and her people. Journalists whose criticisms have been entirely warranted have been de­ nied their liberty and have been imprisoned for periods rang­ ing from a few m onths to 10 months. Complete freedom of speech does not exist, and freedom of the press has practically been destroyed. More than 40 journalists have been arrested w ithin the past year. Some are still incarcerated. A letter which I have just received states th a t two have been liberated within the past few days. Conditions have been so deplorable that even Senator McCormick, whose untimely death we so much de­ plore. a short time before his demise offered a resolution in the Senate which, in p a rt, is as follows : Whereas martial or military law was proclaimed in the territory of the Republic of Haiti by the commander of the American military forces landed there in 1915 ; and Whereas such military law continues effective throughout the territory of a friendly Republic by the authority of the President of the United States ; and Whereas under such military law citizens of Haiti are liable to arrest by the armed forces of the United States and to trial before military tribunals of the United States, nine years after military law was first proclaimed to the end that anarchy might be checked and civil order restored : Therefore be it Resolved, That the continuance of such military or martial law and the liability of Haitian citizens throughout the Republic to trial before military tribunals of the United States is undemocratic, unrepublican, and contrary to the American ideals and the policies of Warren 6. Harding, late President of the United States. Senators will recall that Senator McCormick was chairman of the committee appointed to investigate Haitian conditions. The resolution just read is a damning indictment of the conduct of the United States in Haiti. He declares that there is still mar- 4475— 3068 tial law and that Haitian citizens are subject to trial before military tribunals. This he denounces as “ undemocratic and contrary to the ideals and policies of President Harding.” I am not able to determ ine whether the distinguished Sena­ tor intended to condemn President Coolidge and the present administration for continuing the military occupation and sub­ jecting the Haitian people to military rule. During President Harding’s administration, however, martial law existed and the H aitian people were subjected to the same m ilitary rule as that which existed when the resolution was offered in 1924 and which still exists in H aiti. Mr. President, it is not to be wondered at that the Haitian people protest against the course of this Republic and the op­ pressive measures which it has adopted and still enforces to control the Haitian Government and rule the H aitian people. Mr. President, I desire to call to the attention of the Senate by P a u l Y. Anderson, staff correspondent of , ® . ■ ^ouis Post-Dispatch. Mr. Anderson is a journalist of ability and standing. His article is based upon an interview given with Rev. Father Raymond A. McGowan, assistant to Dr., John A. Ryan, a noted social authority and director of the division on social w elfare of the National Catholic Welfare Council, which is composed of all the Catholic bishops in America. I read from Mr. Anderson’s article as follows : Father McGowan recently returned from a trip of Inspection ana study in Haiti. He declared to the writer that the outstanding con­ sequences of the occupation were the following : 1. Free government and civil liberty have been destroyed. 2. The National City Bank of New York, a Rockefeller institution, has acquired complete domination over Haitian finances, 3. A nation of independent farmers is rapidly being transformed into a nation of plantation laborers, and their farms are being ab­ sorbed into plantations owned by American corporations. Minor consequences, he went on, included the compulsory adoption of a new constitution, written in the Navy Department at Washington, the imprisonment of hundreds of Haitian leaders for protesting against the occupation, and the killing of hundreds of Haitians by the marines a n d the marine-officered gendarm erie. Under the occupation, he said, the civil Government of Haiti has become an ignominious shell, without power except to concur in the recommendations of the American high commissioner, Brig. Gen. John H. Russell, of the marines. The national revenue is collected by an American official, who designates the purposes for which it may be spent. And the first purpose to which it is applied is the payment of interest and principal of the Haitian debt, to New York bankers. The salaries of Haitian officials who refuse to carry out orders are withheld until they submit.

f r e e s p e e c h denied Under a renrarkable order issued by former Secretary Denby of the Navy—an order which strongly resembles a law against lese majesty—any Haitian who criticizes the American occupation may be tried before a provost court, composed of marines. Haitians who resisted the occupation have heen hunted down by the marines. A Senate committee which investigated the occupation in 1921 estimated the number of Haitians killed by the marines at about 1,500, ineludins 4475— 3068 many women, children, and noncombatants. However, it justified the killings as necessary for the preservation of order. Many of the facts alleged by the critics are not denied by the Navy Department, but a different face is placed upon them. It contends that all these measures were necessary for the rehabilitation of the country and the restoration of order, and that there has been no unnecessary force. It points, moreover, to the many material im­ provements that have been made in the island under marine control. That many physical improvements have been made seems proven. That there has been wanton tyranny or unnecessary cruelty save in isolated instances seems improbable. What has happened appears simply to have been the inevitable consequences of the occupation of one country by the armed forces of another country. Military occupa­ tions have never been celebrated for their nice consideration of the occupied country’s rights or feelings. This question of whether the Americans have any right there colors every opinion concerning the occupation. The justice or injustice of the conduct of the force; of opposition hinges largely on it. Thus, to the marines, the rebellious natives are “ bandits,” and their revolutionary attacks are “ bandit raids.” To the Haitians who want their independence restored the rebels are patriotic heroes, sacrificing their lives in the cause of freedom. The State and Navy Departments say the marines are there to preserve order and restore peace. The Haitians and their American friends say it is no business of the State and Navy Departments to preserve order or restore peace in Haiti. The Marine Corps officers say that the punishments imposed on the Haitians were necessary for the protection of the occupationary forces. The Haitians reply that the Germans made the same defense of their conduct in Belgium. The merits of the criticisms therefore depend largely upon the justification of the occupation itself. The history of that occupation is the subject of a chapter in a new book called “ Dollar Diplomacy,” by Scott Nearing and James Free­ man, noted liberal writers and lecturers, who criticize it at length in the most scathing language. Father McGowan told the writer that his observations had uniformly confirmed the statements in the book. It is the conclusion of all three that the occupation resulted from two converging policies. One was the determination of the United States Navy to get a base there ; the other was the determination of the National City B an k to acquire control of th e co u n try ’s finances. Mr. Anderson in his article quotes from F ather McGowan concerning the charge that American corporations are acquiring real estate, particularly in the rural districts : The American officials are now recommending laws by which the banks will be able to foreclose without the consent of native judges. Generally speaking, these judges have been hostile to foreclosures. Hence their pay has been kept down, sometimes to as low as $10 a month, by the Americans holding the pursestrings. With interest rates at 15 to 18 per cent, the banks working with the plantation companies, and the farmers denied the protection of the native courts, the business of expropriating the native farmers will proceed much more rapidly and easily. Mr. Anderson’s interesting and enlightening article concludes with a statement by F ath er McGowan, who says that conditions in Haiti are quiet : The Haitians have learned that they can not do much against the machine guns of the marines. They are dejected and helpless. 4475—3068 Mr. Perciyal Thoby, to whom I have referred, and who was former Haitian chargé d’affaires at Washington, and is now the representative of the Patriotic Union of Haiti, which seeks the independence of their country, states that— for more than 100 years it has been a Haitian policy to grant to the Haitians sfnall lots of the public land by concessions free of cost or by nine years' lease with a moderate rent paid to the State. It was an act of social justice. The chief agricultural products of Haiti pay heavy export duties and it is the peasants who bear the burden of the duties. Mr. Thoby states that the Government rents have, been raised on the lands, and in order to get rid' of the H aitian farmers a new procedure has been established, under which—• the courts are not permitted to grant to a tenant more than eight days to quit and 40 days if the latter has built on the lot. The tenant has no right to oppose the procedure or to appeal to a higher court. The administration is, also, forcing the peasants to produce their land titles. But most of these titles have been destroyed oy damp, insects. Are, etc. ; and according to the people’s custom a suc­ cession is settled, ordinarily by family agreement, each one receiving his lot without any title, and that to save the expenses of a settle­ ment by notary or by the court. Those who can not produce their titles are expelled from their lots. Large tracts of Government land are to be given to American companies to start rubber plantations in Haiti. The result will be that the peasants will emigrate in number. In 1924, 21,013 went to C uba. L ast year they numbered about 30,000, Large groups of families are crossing the Dominican border, deserting the plain of Culdesa-c, in the Port au Prince district. The exploitation of Haiti is the main causes of the sad misery of its masses and of the expatriation of its best workers. _ I might add that Mr. Thoby is a man of ability and educa­ tion. He is a diplomat who has served his country in honor­ able positions, and who now represents 61 committees of the Petriotic Union of H aiti, which comprises thousands of the citizens of Haiti. It is the purpose of these Haitian organi­ zations to present to the American people the deplorable con­ ditions existing in Haiti and to appeal to this Nation to with­ draw its military forces and to restore to the Haitian people the control of their own government. Mr. President, a number of Haitians have called on me dur­ ing the past year, and quite recently several intelligent and representative Haitians visited me here in Washington. They submitted reports and memoranda as to conditions in Haiti, and presented facts and figures which furnish convincing proof of the wrong which our country has done to the H aitian people. I n my opinion, the situation demands that the U nited States withdraw from Haiti. Notwithstanding the “ helpless and de­ jected condition ’’ to w hich Father McGowan referred, there is a growing resentment am ong the people against th e course of the United States, and an increasing demand that American m arines be withdrawn an d the Haitian people perm itted to again have their own government. In my opinion, the situation in Haiti, while not critical, is such as to demand immediate consideration by the United States. The recent election of Borno as President has aroused 4475— 3068 thé people, and the unconstitutional and oppressive merhoils em­ ployed by him under the direction of General Russell and the United States, are bound to provoke irritation and resentments which may culminate in consequences of a most serious character. I have just received a letter from Haiti from a man of honor and integrity, in w hich he refers to the anger of the people when Borno was forced upon them again a few days ago by General Russell and Borno’s henchmen and satellites. The letter proceeds : Borno was reelected as President. The fact is that the whole proceed­ ings were a farce. Borno is not President, and his pretended election was a fraud upon the people and was brought about by the military forces and the bayonets of the United States. On the day of the so-called election a large num ber of Hai­ tians came to Port au Prince, the capital of the country, to protest against what the writer of the letter just referred to declared to be— The infamy that was about to be perpetrated. They protested against the election of Borno and the usurpation of their national legis­ lature. When they made these protests drastic military measures were taken. Nobody was allowed around the building (referring to the capitol) without a pass, and very few passes were given, and no one could enter. All th e streets leading to the build in g were closed and guarded by squads of constabulary and American officers. Thou­ sands of the citizens, women and children, were crying “ Down with B orno.” The people wanted a president of their own choice. They were unwilling to submit to the tyranny that we are imposing upon them. At half past 10 in the morning the farce was played in 10 minutes in the’ presence of the American extraordinary commissioner and am­ bassador with plenipotentiary powers. A military officer sent to Haiti by the President of the United States and maintained there by the Executive of the United States. The writer states that— When the people heard that Borno was declared elected they became infuriated and protested against the farcical and fraudulent election. An American officer, while trying to arrest a citizen who was protest­ ing with stones, fired two shots, and, following that signal, members of the constabulary also fired. Soûle bystanders were wounded, and the crowd, especially the women and children, answered by stoning the police and protesting loudly against the so-called election. A moment after there began again the wholesale arrest of citizens. The day before a certain number of nationalists had been imprisoned. The letter from which I am reading continues : 1 am inclosing you a clipping from the semiofficial newspaper Le Matin admitting that the police had fired, but to maintain order, said that paper. You will also read in the same clipping a semiofficial statement about the so-called reelection. I send you also a clipping of Le Courrier Haitian, an antioccupationist paper, with its statement about the Russell-Borno farce. 4475— 3068 The clipping from Le Matin, under the head of “ Firing,” states : Yesterday alter the session of the national assembly in order to maintain order and to stop the extravagancies of certain manifestants the police caused to be fired a few shots. Order was restored immediately. Senators will observe that this paper, which is controlled by General Russell and Borno, the so-called President, denomi­ nates the council which selected Borno as “ the national assem­ bly." Of course, th at is not true, as the national assembly was abolished by the United States several years ago and the Haitians have been prevented since that time from holding elec­ tions. The Courrier Haitian’s account of the incident is quite différ­ ent. It states that when the news was given out that Borno was reelected “ the anger of the people who w ere powerless manifested itself." T here were cries of “ Down with Borno and the reelection." A n officer of the gendarm erie drew his revolver and fired tw o shots and thereupon shots were fired from two sides by the gendarmerie. A number of the populace, all of whom were unarmed, defended themselves and threw some stones at the armed gendarmerie and marines. Mr. President, our Haitian experiment in imperialism has been a costly one. I think it has proven a tragic one. The situation is unbearable and can not long be continued without consequences of the gravest character. The Haitian people have their own problems and it is the Haitian people who must solve them. It is obvious they can not solve their problems without a restoration of their political institutions. The United States, can not deny the Haitians the benefits of the brand of political liberty and responsibility which our Government pro­ fesses and which we have declared to be the inalienable right of every people. It is incumbent upon the United States to give serious atten­ tion to the making of immediate arrangements to withdraw our naval forces from Haiti, to release our control over the political and fiscal affairs of th e H aitian Government, and to accord the people of Haiti th e ir inalienable and constitutional rights. The Haitian people can not be held responsible for conditions in Haiti unless they have complete liberty to deal with these responsibilities and to accept the consequences of their free and independent acts. In my opinion, if th e executive department refuses to do its duty and to withdraw our military forces, Congress should enact such legislation as will bring about that result. Mr. President, our course is clear, our duty is plain, Haiti belongs to the Haitians, not to the United States or the banks of Wall Street, or exploiting American capitalists. The H aitian people should immediately be permitted to hold a con­ stitutional convention and form an organic act which meets their desires. We forced upon them a constitution, materially changing the one which was in force when we seized their territory and their Government. They should be permitted to return to their old constitution or to adopt one which meets their views. When an election shall have been held under such constitution, and officials are chosen to take over the Govem- 4475—3068 ment, the United States should immediately withdraw its mili­ tary forces and surrender control of the Government to the chosen representatives of the people. Mr. President, I ask that the resolution which I had read at the beginning of m y rem arks may be referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations. The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. La F o l l e t t e in the chair). The resolution will be so referred. 4475— 3068 o SOCIETE DES NATIONS, LEAGUE OF NATIONS,

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4189 ' 6-25 - 10000 DATE OF REGISTRATION

11.SEP.1926

POLITICAL: 11

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