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away with a complete understanding of how I stood with regard to the matter. That was the purpose of that statement.
The Chairman. Had you any purpose, or did you suspect any purpose on the part of any person concerned in this movement, either the United States minister, the United States consul, Capt. Wiltse, or any other official to establish a provisional government, or to dethrone the Queen?
Mr. Swinburne. Not at all.
The Chairman. You were not aware of any such purpose existing at all?
Mr. Swinburne. No.
The Chairman. At the time the troops disembarked—went on shore—do you know whether Mr. Stevens was on board the ship?
Mr. Swinburne. My impression is that he had gone on shore. I am not certain of that; but I am pretty sure.
The Chairman. When did you next see Mr. Stevens after you saw him on board the ship?
Mr. Swinburne. I do not remember to have seen him again until the day of his daughter's funeral, which must have been about four weeks from the date of our landing, though I can't be certain. It was not until the day of his daughter's funeral; I can not recall when that was, but it was while we were on shore.
The Chairman. Did Mr. Stevens interfere in any way with the management of the troops on shore?
Mr. Swinburne. Not at all.
The Chairman. Did he give any directions as to what they should or should not do?
Mr. Swinburne. All the directions that came to me were given to me by the captain.
The Chairman. I believe you have already stated what you know about the transaction, commencing with the time you landed. That is in your deposition?
Mr. Swinburne. Yes.
The Chairman. And up to the time you left----
Mr. Swinburne. Left Arion Hall.
The Chairman. And went down to Camp Boston?
Mr. Swinburne. Yes.
The Chairman. How long did you remain in Camp Boston?
Mr. Swinburne. A portion of the troops was there until the 1st of April—up to the time the flag was hauled down. I was detached on the 20th of March.
The Chairman. I want to call your attention to some remarks made by Mr. Willis in his reports or letters. In his letter of December 20, 1893, to Mr. Gresham, Mr. Willis says:
- "The delay in making any announcement of your policy was, as you will understand, because of the direct verbal and written instructions under which I have been acting. Under those instructions my first duty was to guard the life and safety of those who had by the act of our own minister been placed in a position where there was an apparant antagonism between them and our Government. As I understood from the President and from you, the sole connection with our Government had with the settlement of the Hawaiian question was the undoing of what, from an international standpoint, was considered by the President to have been a wrong to a feeble, defenseless, and friendly power. In undoing this wrong I was, however, instructed first of all to see that proper safeguards were thrown around those who had been
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- probably misled as to the position of our Government and the wishes of our people."
I understand that the protection Mr. Willis speaks of here has reference to those persons who were of the party of the Queen. Now, I wish to ask you whether, while you stayed upon that island, you saw or was informed of any demonstration whatever of a hostile character toward the person of the Queen or any of her supporters?
Mr. Swinburne. Not that I ever heard of, any further than the dethronement of the Queen—no attempt of a personal nature against the Queen or her followers.
The Chairman. Of course, I am speaking of their personal safety and protection.
Mr. Swinburne. Not at all; they had the same protection that any other person had.
Senator Frye. Did they not have more; did not the Provisional Government furnish the Queen with half her guard?
Mr. Swinburne. Yes.
Senator Frye. And did they not pay off the guard to the first of the month, when they were discharged?
Mr. Swinburne. Yes; she had more protection than anyone else during the revolution. I never heard of a revolution carried on in that style.
The Chairman. Here is a statement in Mr. Willis's letter to the effect that the Japanese and English legations were guarded by the marines of their respective vessels, "and no American soldier has been stationed here and none will be." Do you recollect whether the Japanese and English legations were guarded during the time you were there?
Mr. Swinburne. Not at all. The Japanese asked permission to land a guard at the legation, and the Provisional Government, while they did not refuse, informed the minister that they were perfectly able to give them all necessary protection; and it was currently reported that the Provisional Government had given the Japanese minister permission to have a guard on shore if he wished it, but none were landed.
The Chairman. This permission of which Mr. Willis speaks must have occurred after you went back to the ship?
Mr. Swinburne. Yes; no foreign troops were ashore at all except our own.
The Chairman. At the time you withdrew and went on board that ship, will you say that the people of Honolulu were in a state of quietude, or in an agitated and insurrectionary state?
Mr. Swinburne. They were perfectly quiet; all the agitation was the conspiring of a few professional politicians belonging to the Queen's party. We could see that going on all the time.
Senator Gray. Were there any professional politicians belonging to the other party?
Mr. Swinburne. When I used that expression I referred to two or three men who never seemed to have any other means of existence except as a part of the Queen's party. The Queen being out of power, they had no visible means of support.
The Chairman. I want to read you some more extracts from Mr. Willis's letter, the one I quoted from a moment ago, to see whether you can concur in the opinions he has expressed and indorse the facts which he has brought to the attention of the Secretary of State.
Senator Gray. I will ask whether Lieut. Swinburne was in Honolulu at any time during the time that Mr Willis was on shore?