CARL SCHURZ'S POLITICAL CAREER
“popular” among the members of Congress and thus secure its accomplishment. In the spirit of this pledge, a series of urgent interviews with Senators was promptly begun and continued until the Dominican question was decided.
At this session Fessenden, an important member of the committee on foreign relations, died, and Sumner, the chairman of this committee, promptly brought about the succession of Schurz to the vacant place. The intimate friendship between Sumner and Schurz made this closer association highly agreeable, while the cosmopolitan character of Schurz's experience and philosophy insured valuable help in dealing with international problems. On no other regular committees did Schurz continue to serve to the end of his senatorial term. For short periods he was a member of the committees on military affairs, on pensions and on territories, but he apparently found nothing in the duties involved to warrant an effort to retain his membership in any one of them.
Mr. Schurz has above described the President's appeal to him in behalf of the Santo Domingo enterprise. Grant called on Sumner at his house about New Year's day, 1870, and requested his support for the ratification of the treaty with Santo Domingo. The experienced Senator was thrown off his balance by this surprising and unprecedented method. Evading a direct answer, he proclaimed himself at the same time “an administration man.” Grant probably heard or remembered nothing of the reply save this phrase; for he always afterwards asserted that Sumner had promised his support. But Sumner soon made up his mind that annexation was quite undesirable. Schurz had from the earliest intimation of the project strongly antagonized it, and he now became Sumner's most ardent and industrious coadjutor in preventing ratification. One night many years later, as he was leaving the Arlington Hotel, in
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