to Mr. Hunter, and I take pleasure in furnishing the requested explanation.

In his note, with a copy of which, under cover of No. 237, I am favored, Mr. Preston reports his government as affirming that Boisrond Canal and his brother were in the habit of showing themselves "at the windows and even under the balconies of the house of Mr. Bassett;" that "they even received their friends there, and have constant visits in the presence of the minister, so that the residence becomes as it were a rendezvous where the enemies of the government conspire openly."

At daylight, on the morning of the 3d of May last, I gave the refugees a suit of three rooms over my gallery. Neither Boisrond Canal nor his brother ever left these rooms during all the five months they were in refuge at my house, except on two or three occasions: once when during a terrible tropical rain late one evening, an American gentleman and myself being the only other persons in the house, which then had every door and window firmly closed, we invited him to come down into the saloon, where he spent a half hour in conversation on ordinary topics, and again when he and his brother came down stairs to proceed to their embarkation, just after midnight on the morning of the 4th of October instant. In addition to this, my family, with some emotions of dissatisfaction at the occurrence, informed me that once, when I was in town at my office, he came down stairs, as if by a strange fancy, and went to the other dwelling upon my premises, a few yards off, occupied by the family of the late. Emperor Solouque, who have for years lived on terms of intimacy with my own family. There is a gallery fronting the suite of rooms alluded to, but the refugees were never, as far as I know, in the habit of going there except after nightfall. The windows and doors on three sides of the suite of rooms lately occupied by the refugees are shaded by trees. The other side opens upon the roof of the main building and upon the yard between the two dwellings. The entrance from the high road to the house is, I should judge, at least fifty yards from the balcony. After receiving your No. 237, I went on the upper balcony several times expressly to satisfy myself if any one could be seen from that position outside of the habitation. Perhaps some sharper eyes than I have could do so, but I could see no one on the street from any point on the upper balcony. Mr. Preston himself knows perfectly well the location and surroundings of my residence, and could not fail to recognize the substantial correctness of this statement. That a very few persons who called on me and my family at my house went up stairs to see the refugees is true. But no one was allowed to see them without the special permission of myself, my wife, or our housekeeper. With the exception of our family physician I do not remember a single instance in which any male citizen of the country not connected with my habitation, visited them. Indeed the absurdity of this part of the charge contained in Mr. Preston's note becomes apparent when the truth is told, that no citizen of the country, and for that matter seldom any one else, was allowed to enter my premises while the refugees were there, without the formal permission of the military authorities.

*

My action in all these particulars was dictated by a sense of delicacy toward this government in its irritation and sensitiveness relative to the affair of Boisrond Canal and his brother, and not by any disposition to cede my right, as I understood it, to invite, if I should wish to do so, a gentleman like General Canal, who might find himself, under whatever circumstances, at my house, to a seat at my table, which he has never had, or to mingle with my household, which he has never done.

What Mr. Preston writes in his note is not half the story. This gov

ernment has many times fallen into paroxysms of displeasure at reports from spies in its employ, some of them my own servants, as I was informed, as to the alleged conduct of the refugees. One report was that Boisrond Canal, in smoking his cigar, was in the habit of spitting upon the soldiers, whereas the truth is that he never smokes at all. Another was that he had the custom of talking with them to win them over to his control, whereas no soldier while on guard around my premises was ever within fifty or sixty yards of his apartments. Another was that he was accustomed to promenade at pleasure in my yard and swim in my bath, whereas he has never yet done either the one thing or the other.

But I will not continue these details. I may say, in one word, that there is, to the best of my knowledge and belief, no foundation whatever for the allegations in Mr. Preston's note. These allegations are only another illustration of the manner in which conduct on our part, dictated by a sense of delicacy or by a desire to pursue a generous and liberal line of policy toward this particular people, may at times be expected to be received by them.

I am, &c.,

EBENEZER D. BASSETT.

No. 399.]

No. 338.

Mr. Bassett to Mr. Fish.

LEGATION OF THE UNITED STATES,

Port au Prince, October 12, 1875. (Received October 29.)

SIR: On the morning of the 5th instant I had the honor to telegraph to you, via Colon, in these words, namely:

HAMILTON FISH,

State Department, Washington:

HAYTI, October 5.

Refugees amicably embarked and soldiers withdrawn from around my premises yesterday.

BASSETT.

Presuming that you duly received this welcome information, I desire now to outline to you proceedings which resulted in relief from the embarrassment growing out of the presence of two refugees under our flag here.

After having received your No. 238 of the 7th of September ultimo, I called, the afternoon of the 28th, upon the minister of foreign affairs, and informally conveyed to him the last two sentences of that dispatch in which it is stated that you had determined to apply to the Navy Department to order a man-of-war to Port au Prince with a view to protecting me from insult, and that you much desired that the embarrassing question of the refugees might be adjusted upon the arrival of that vessel. I then went on to talk to him, in an informal and friendly sense, of the great desirability of terminating the trying difficulty at once. The minister seemed cordially to accept my arguments and views. And I was afterward authentically informed that he dispatched a courier the same evening to His Excellency President Domingue, who was then at Miragoane, to convey to the latter an outline of my friendly arguments in favor of embarking the refugees without delay, and in consequence His Excellency thereafter immediately returned to the capital

without fulfilling his contemplated visits in the south. I learned that on his return the President had said that when I had lately called upou him, it seemed to him as if I had usually refrained from speaking to him freely about the case of the refugees. Accordingly when I went to the palace on the 2d instant, I said to him, alluding to the case:

"You may have remarked, President, that I have never, as a rule, introduced any matters of business in my conversation with you. A sense of delicate consideration for you personally and for your high official position had led me always to defer to your preference in this regard. I addressed myself in these affairs to your secretary of state." "I thank you," said he, " for your motives in this line of conduct; but really you and I so well understand each other that I can see no good reason why we should not talk over this affair of Boisrond Canal."

I then repeated my friendly arguments in favor of the immediate termination of the embarrassing case of the Messieurs Canal. He said, in reply, "Well, you are probably right. I will see what I can do. I will call together my cabinet at once."

Somewhat to my surprise, about 8 o'clock that evening the general in command of the forces around my premises, Seid Thélémaque, a most respectable and honorable man, sent for me to come to his headquarters. On arriving there I found the ministers of foreign affairs and of war iu waiting for me, both in full dress. "Well, gentlemen," said I, "I am glad to see you; what is your pleasure?" The minister of war quickly responded, his colleague assenting:

We have come to announce to you formally that the government has decided to embark Boisrond Canal and his brother. Their embarkation now depends upon you.

I responded that the announcement gave me great pleasure, and that I should be glad to conform to the government's wishes as to the details of the embarkation. It was finally agreed that I should talk over this point with the minister of foreign affairs the following day, which was Sunday, between 11 and 2 o'clock. I found him alone that day at noon. He said the President was much pleased at my disposition to defer to the government's wishes as to the details of the embarkation, and that His Excellency wished to see me. We therefore went together to the palace, where I met the President and all his ministers. We talked the matter over freely, and finally agreed that the general of the place and of the police should come with a guard of four men each to my house at 4 o'clock the next morning to accompany me and the refugees to the wharf. The interview was pleasant and agreeable in every way, no allusion whatever being made to the unpleasant part, and on separating, His Excellency warmly shook my hand saying that our old friendship was, in his view, fully re-established. I bowed in response and retired. I did not forget, however, that I was the only witness present at the interview on my side of the affair, and I therefore, about sundown, wrote a note in French to the minister to draw from him a writing about the embarkation, saying that according to agreement I had made all my arrangements for the embarkation at 4 o'clock the next morning, and asking him if the government had made its own arrangements in that sense. His answer was entirely satisfactory, and we were upon the point of retiring for the night at my house, when General Thélémaque again sent for me. It was about ten o'clock. On reaching his headquarters, I found the generals of the place and of the police there with their guards ready to proceed to town with the refugees. There had been so much feeling here about these latter-named persons that I was slow to accept their proposals to embark them at any other hour than the one fixed upon with the President and his ministers. But General Thélémaque showed me the favorable orders which he had received on the subject, and I finally said that I would embark the refugees at once, provided that time

were given me to invite my colleague the French chargé d'affaires, who lives in my locality, to accompany me. This was agreed to, and a little after midnight the guards, on my invitation, entered my yard, the refugees, my secretary, the French chargé d'affaires, and myself, all mounted horses in waiting for us, and at the gate we were joined by the commanders of the line around my premises, so that we were altogether a sort of cavalcade of about twenty-two persons. In the stillness of the midnight we rode about three miles to the city, hardly a word being spoken or a person met on the route. Arrived at the wharf, we found a boat in readiness, and I went on board the American brigantine “Varnum H. Hill," with the refugees, who embraced me, and then allowed us to retire, scarcely a word having been exchanged. During the night all the guards were withdrawn from my vicinity, and we had quiet at our house for the first time in exactly five months. The next morning I learned that several persons were intending to visit the Messieurs Canal on board the vessel, and I thereupon passed word to the master through the consignee, Oliver Cutts, to allow no one to communicate with them from the shore, and to move out of the harbor as soon as possible, which he accordingly did, the vessel being all ready for

sea.

The city was full of exclamations of satisfaction at the intelligence of the safe departure of the refugees, and many prominent persons called at my office to express to me both their felicitations at the removal of the immediate cause of irritation, and their conviction that all parties must alike be satisfied and rejoiced over it. A note of congratulation from our consular agent at Jacmel says that it "is a satisfactory termination of this difficult matter. Many parties here approve of your firmness in this delicate affair."

So much feeling had been shown by the government about this case, that it was natural for it to seek some means to justify its action before the country. Accordingly in the official journal of the 9th instant is inserted a decree (inclosure A) signed by all the cabinet, and commuting the sentence of death against the Messieurs Canal to that of perpetual banishment.

I owe it to truth to say that in my opinion the embarrassment would never have been thus happily terminated if it had not been for the strong ground taken in the Department's notes to Mr. Preston, and for the announcement in those notes and in the American journals of the determition to send a national vessel to this port.

I am, &c.,

EBENEZER D. BASSETT.

[Inclosure A in No. 399.-Translation.]

Decree.

Michel Domingue, President of Hayti, considering the judgment of the special court (council) of Port an Prince, under date of the 6th of July last, which condemns to capital punishment the persons named Boisrond Canal and Canal, jr., called young Canal;

Considering article 4 of the law of the 22d of November, 1860, and making use of the right which article 125 of the constitution accords to him, decrees as follows: ARTICLE 1. The sentence of death pronounced against the above-named Boisrond Canal and Canal, jr., called young Canal, is commuted to that of banishment for life.

ARTICLE 2. The secretary of state of police and the secretary of state for foreign relations are charged with the execution of the present decree, which shall be published and executed.

Done at the national palace of Port au Prince the 2d of October, 1875, 72d year of the independence. (Signed)

By the President:

DOMINGUE.

Washington, June 25, 1875. (Received June 26.) The undersigned, minister plenipotentiary of Hayti, referring to the recent conversations which he has had the honor to have with the honorable Secretary of State in relation to the asylum granted by Mr. Bassett, minister of the United States at Port au Prince, to M. Boisrond Canal and his accomplices, who are implicated in the political conspiracy of the 1st of May last, and who are charged with the commission of one or more murders while engaged in resisting armed force, desires to lay aside, for the present, the grave questions of international law raised by the exercise of the privilege of granting asylum, and to confine himself to recapitulating a few of the circumstances connected with the case which has recently presented itself in Hayti.

In the first place, it does not seem doubtful that Boisrond Canal and his accomplices have taken refuge, with arms and ammunition, at the house of the minister of the United States.

In the second place, it is within the knowledge of the undersigned that his government has addressed Mr. Bassett in vain, for the purpose of obtaining from him an official list of the persons to whom he has granted asylum.

The undersigned brings these facts once more to the notice of the honorable Secretary of State, knowing the spirit of justice in which they will be considered by him. He has, moreover, full confidence in the instructions which the Department of State has already given to Mr. Bassett in relation to this difficult matter, and the sense of which the honorable Secretary of State has been pleased to make known to the undersigned.

The undersigned cannot, however, refrain from expressing the fears which he entertains in consequence of the prolongation of the state of things created by the presence of Boisrond Canal and others at the legation of the United States at Port au Prince. He apprehends that the