No. 254.
Mr. Turner to Mr. Fish.
Monrovia, Liberia, Oct. 30, 1871. (Received Dec. 12.)
Sir: I have the honor to report with reference to my dispatch No. 18, conveying to the Department of State information of the existence of a revolution in Liberia, that the circumstances giving rise to that official declaration by the President of Liberia are, as near as I can ascertain them, about as follows:
During the legislative session of 1868-’69 the friends of Hon. James S. Payne, then the President of this country, with the desire to extend his term to four instead of two years, petitioned the national legislature, requesting that body to submit to the people a proposal to so amend the constitution as to increase the presidential and representative terms of office to four instead of two years. The legislature acquiesced in the request of the petitioners and voted to submit the proposal to amend: it seems, however, that the people were indifferent as to the fate of the amendment. The vote for and against was comparatively meager, standing 350 for and 2 against amending the constitution. I am informed that the official record will show this vote to have stood as above stated, but as to the accuracy thereof I am uninformed. At all events, the house declared the constitution amended, and the senate declared that it was not. Upon the occurrence of this disagreement, it was decided by the legislature to resubmit the proposed amendment to the constitution. Subsequent to the second submission thereof it seems to have been impossible to procure the necessary two-thirds vote of both houses for a determination of the count of the vote. The speaker of the house and president of the senate were deposed, and thus a vote declaring the constitution not amended was secured. The bill making this declaration was vetoed by his excellency E. J. Roye, which gentleman had been elected to the presidency as a result of the election to which the amendment was originally submitted. President Roye, as a result [Page 325] of the second-failure of the legislature to agree as to the fate of the amendment, assumed that the constitution was not only amended, but that it was amended by the vote of the election to which it was at first submitted, and that he was, therefore, president for four instead of two years, and proceeded to proclaim accordingly. Incited by this action of the president, the legislature issued what is known in this country as a “declaration” to the effect that the constitution was not amended; and, therefore, President Roye was not elected for four years.
Thus the legislative and the executive branches of the government became opposed to each other. If the organic system was not amended at either of these elections, then the regular period for the election of President would have occurred in May of 1871. Therefore, those that favor the declared opinion of the legislature proposed the usual presidential election, and proceeded to nominate Ex-President J. J. Roberts. President Roye declared there could be no election at that time, the constitution, agreeable to his opinion, having been amended. The party claiming that the organic law was amended refused to enter into this presidential election; as a consequence, all the votes cast were in favor of Hon. J. J. Roberts. Immediately subsequent to this election Hon. J. J. Roberts left this country to spend the summer months in England. Meantime President Roye, remaining in the country, labored to convince the people of the correctness of his views, and to establish the realization of the issue upon which he had been elected, to wit, “the securing of a loan, with which to redeem the currency of the country, and thus furnish the people with a circulating medium, which they have not had for years.”
Now, to come within my own official observation and experience, President Roye claims to have, and publishes that he has, accomplished the successful negotiation of a loan in favor of the Liberian government upon the markets of England, amounting to $500,000. This statement or publication seems rather to have increased than to have decreased the unpopularity of President Roye’s administration. He, about two months ago, first affirmed the accomplishment of the loan. From that time until the present the party opposed to his views has steadily increased in numbers and determination. They at one time became so resolute that they compelled the attorney-general to leave the capital under threats of death if he should return. By reference to one of my former dispatches, the Department will remember the assassination of the postmaster-general, claimed by the government to have been committed because of his fidelity to the administration. Two men, besides, have been shot, the last in retaliation for the death of the first. Upon the 22d day of this month, Hon. J. J. Roberts returned from his visit to England, on which occasion he was received by the anti-administrationists with a salvos of twenty-one guns, a dinner, and other demonstrations of public honor. Upon the evening of that same day, or rather during the night thereof, a cannon loaded with grape-shot was fired into the residence of President Roye by unknown parties. The charge, striking the building about the second story, passed through his rooms of reception, through his own and his children’s bed-rooms. A portion of it passed out through the roof. Nine of the shot were found in the rooms, and shown to me by the President. Meetings were called by the citizens of Monrovia, and held in this place on the 23d and 24th days of this month, with the avowed purpose of determining the best course to pursue with reference to securing the greatest safety to the country. At the meeting of the 24th resolutions were passed requesting the President to resign his office [Page 326] without delay, and condemnatory of the firing of a cannon into the residence of said gentleman.
Neither of those meetings has taken any steps to discover the perpetrators of the deed, or to prevent the recurrence of the same, nor the occurrence of a similar act. The committee appointed to acquaint the President of the desire expressed by the meeting received in reply a positive refusal to resign. Upon hearing the report of the committee, the meeting accorded to the President one hour during which to inform the citizens of Monrovia at what time he would resign. As a result of the second visit of the committee to the President, the meeting received the promise of President Roye to resign on Thursday, the 26th day of October. This intelligence seemed satisfactory to the people of Monrovia.
During the interval President Roye declared the country in a state of revolution, much to the exasperation of those who favored his resignation. On the morning of the 26th October President Roye, without having complied with his promise to resign, attempted by stealth to effect an escape from the country, on board an English mail-steamer then lying in this harbor, but was apprehended and arrested by an armed guard, stationed at the landing in anticipation of the President’s attempt to escape. The guard was ordered to return him to his residence. A meeting of the citizens of Monrovia was immediately called, which meeting passed a resolution summarily deposing the President and the several heads of governmental departments, and creating a provisional government to assume the charge of matters, until the arrival of the vice-president, which latter gentleman, it seems, was impeached for maladministration during the last session of their legislature, and is awaiting trial by the legislature, to be assembled next December.
Thus matters stood until the 28th day of October, when a writ was issued, of what nature or by whom I do not know, for the apprehension and arrest of the deposed President, his secretary of state and secretary of the treasury. Not being acquainted with the nature of the charge preferred against these gentlemen, I assumed the liberty of being present during a part of the preliminary examination, and thereby discovered the fact that the charge is based upon the fact that the President is accused by the provisional government of having drawn, before deposal, and of retaining in his possession since deposal, money and drafts in favor of the Liberian government against the English loan to the amount of $75,000. The result is that the President was held to $20,000 bail, and each of the other gentlemen $7,500, in default of which the three gentlemen are now closely imprisoned, under the surveillance of an armed guard. I have omitted to state that if not thus deposed, the official term of President Roye would have expired the 1st of January, 1872. I have the honor to inform the Department that in all this matter I have been careful to adhere closely to a “strictly neutral” attitude.
Venturing to hope that the Department will consent to accept the peculiar situation of affairs in this country as my apology for the great length-of this dispatch,
I have, &c., &c.,