Chapter VI: Appendix: I. Report of House Committee on Foreign Affairs 221 (3)

In welcoming the distinguished visitors, President A. Barton Hepburn said:

When this country was struggling to win a place in the sisterhood
of nations, without facilities for manufacturing the necessary
means for defense, or money to purchase the same, at war with
one of the most powerful nations of Europe, supplemented by the
inspired hostility of the then powerful tribes of surrounding
Indians, poor in purse, rich only in patriotic resolve to win
their freedom, with credit shrouded by the gloom of possible, if
not probable failure—at this critical juncture France came to our
support, with soldiers and ships of war, and rendered the greatest
aid in winning our independence.

In addition, France loaned us money. The amount was not large,
indeed it was small, compared with present day loans or
transactions, but the loan was made at a time when our continental
currency was so depreciated, that it has given to our language an
expression of worthlessness,—“not worth a continental.”

It was real, metallic money, and the ring of that money resounded
throughout the colonies; it strengthened credit and renewed
confidence. It was tangible evidence that a great nation believed
in us—believed in our future.

At the Battle of Yorktown, which was the crowning victory that
assured our independence, France furnished thirty-six ships of
the line—the colonies none; of the land forces engaged, France
furnished 7,000 veterans—the colonies 5,500 regulars and 3,500
militia. The French fleet, under De Grasse, had previously defeated
the British fleet and driven them from the Chesapeake, thereby
depriving Cornwallis of all hope of reinforcements from New York,
and also cutting off all hope of escape.

We won our independence, but in our self-gratulation, let us
not forget the magnitude of the service, and the extent of our
obligation to France. Hostility to England, as well as love for
America, may have inspired her action, but even so, it does not
lessen the service rendered to us.

This powerful alliance kindled anew the fires of patriotism, and
roused a countrywide feeling of gratitude and love for France,
which has ever since continued. May this feeling grow in intensity
with succeeding years!

God grant that these two great commercial nations may find
prosperity and happiness in the paths of peace, and side by side,
shoulder to shoulder, may their joint influence make for peace and
happiness throughout the world. (Applause.)

I have read that the figure upon the coins of France—a woman
sowing—symbolizes the idea that France sows while others reap.
That is eminently true of the United States and eminently true of
North America. When we recall that Canada, the Ohio territory and
Louisiana once belonged to France, and recall how relatively small
the Spanish province of Florida and the British colonies along the
Atlantic Coast were, we realize what an empire on this continent,
extending from the Gulf of St. Lawrence to the Gulf of Mexico, was
once the territory of France.

Her intrepid explorers, her patient priests and devoted
missionaries sowed the seeds of civilization in this great
territory, and the harvest of their labors we are reaping year by
year.

The magnificent statue of Liberty, that ornaments and
dignifies our harbor—the creation of a great French artist and
sculptor—Bartholdi—was a gift from France.

Our guests visit this country at the present time to place a
bas-relief, “La France”—the creation of another great French artist
and sculptor—Rodin—upon a monument erected by the states of New
York and Vermont, at Crown Point Forts, in memory of the great
explorers in this western world, chief among whom ranks Champlain.

Our country was born amid the martial airs and chivalric heroism of
the arms of France, and consecrated with the blood of her soldiers
and sailors, and ever since she has given continuing proof of her
friendship, both actual and sentimental—witness the presence of
this distinguished delegation.

Surely our hearts ought to go out to France, as they do, in
reciprocal good will, and our prayers be offered, as they are, for
her peace, prosperity and happiness.

It is a pleasure and privilege for the commercial representatives
of this state to receive and welcome you gentlemen, and I appeal
to your kindly imagination to conceive the cordial greetings which
we all feel, but which my language fails to express. (Applause.)

President Hepburn then introduced the French Ambassador, J. J. Jusserand, who spoke eloquently on the importance of the extension of the commercial relations between France and the United States and also in appreciation of the hospitality shown in this country to the French delegation, comprising distinguished officials and civilians from the Republic of France.

President Hepburn then presented His Excellency, Gabriel Hanotaux as follows:

“He has won fame as a statesman and as a scholar. For many years he
was Minister of Foreign Affairs in the government of France, and in
the world of letters has achieved that most enviable distinction—a
member of the French Academy. I have the pleasure of presenting M.
Gabriel Hanotaux.”

M. Hanotaux was greeted with loud applause and spoke in French.

ADDRESS OF M. ALBERT AUGUSTE GABRIEL HANOTAUX

_Monsieur le Président_: Si je jette les yeux autour de moi, ma
pensée et celle de la délégation tout entière se porte vers les
énergies humaines que vous représentez autour de nous. C’est
la puissance des États-Unis d’Amérique, c’est cette activité
inlassable qui a couvert de ses oeuvres et de ses conquêtes un
continent et la planète entière se détournant de ses travaux pour
nous faire un splendide et chaleureux accueil. Cette réunion, ces
fleurs, ces drapeaux, tout se réunit pour faire sentir à la France
combien elle est chère à cette vaillante cité new yorkaise. Mais il
y a quelque chose de plus chaud et de plus précieux dans l’accueil
que vous nous faites, c’est le mouvement du coeur. Comment vous
exprimer notre reconnaissance?

D’ailleurs n’est-ce pas la générosité américaine qui a déterminé le
voyage de la Délégation française?

Il y a quelques mois notre éminent ambassadeur, Monsieur Jusserand,
qui veille avec tant de compétence à tout ce qui peut rapprocher
les deux pays, nous avait signalé la prochaine érection sur les
bords du lac Champlain d’un monument en l’honneur de notre
vaillant compatriote. Il pensait avec raison que la France ne
pouvait rester indifférente à ce beau geste qui en continue tant
d’autres analogues. Mais comment la France manifesterait-elle sa
gratitude, comment participerait-elle à cette glorification d’un de
ses enfants?

Seul, un appel au public et un appel à l’art pouvaient avoir
une portée suffisante pour répondre. Par les soins du comité
France-Amérique que nous représentons ici, les deux manifestations
simultanées se sont produites: le public français a compris et
a rapidement souscrit les listes en tête desquelles il trouvait
le nom vénéré de Monsieur Fallières, Président de la République
Française. En même temps l’art avait fait son oeuvre, et le
sculpteur Rodin avait conçu et exécuté l’image de la “France” que
nous avions sollicitée de son génie.

C’est cette image que nous avons apportée ici pour qu’elle soit
scellée au pied du monument de Champlain, comme un cachet et un
sceau authentiquant une fois de plus la fidélité de nos sentiments
communs et nos souvenirs.

Vous avez bien voulu arrêter au passage dans cette grande ville
la délégation qui va porter le bronze au lieu où il est destiné!
Vous savez qu’elle appartient aux diverses grandes institutions
et corporations françaises, au Parlement, à l’Académie et à
l’Institut, à l’Armée, à l’Université, au Conseil d’État, à
l’Industrie, au Commerce, et qu’elle contient trois membres
descendant des familles qui ont combattu ou servi à l’époque de
la guerre de l’Indépendance, Choiseul, Rochambeau, Lafayette,
dont nous avons ici le petit-fils, le Comte de Chambrun. Celui-ci
a reçu, en outre, une délégation spéciale de M. le Président
du Conseil, Monsieur Raymond Poincaré, et il le représente
personnellement.

Ainsi, par-dessus les Océans, une même pensée nous unit. Les
États-Unis élèvent un monument à un Français. La France vous
envoie, par nous, son tribut de gratitude: une fois de plus les
deux grandes démocraties pensent et agissent à l’unisson.

Je ne veux pas tenter ici un parallèle presque impossible entre les
deux Républiques, l’une vaste, puissante, jeune, pleine d’élan et
de grandeur, l’autre plus à l’étroit sur son territoire resserré
dans la vieille Europe, mais elle aussi, active et toujours jeune,
éprise d’action, amante de la beauté, apportant à la réalisation
de son idéal la plus noble culture peut-être qu’il y ait au monde,
puisqu’elle remonte à deux mille ans en arrière aux temps où
César conquit la Gaule et où le Christ naquit. Ce qui caractérise
toutefois les relations toujours cordiales et toujours fidèles de
ces deux pays, c’est que, se développant parallèlement, ils ne se
heurtent nulle part. Je crois exprimer un fait réel, à la fois
très simple et très fort, en disant, qu’entre la France et les
États-Unis d’Amérique, il y a plus d’aptitude à se connaître et
à se comprendre qu’entre deux autres pays du monde, quels qu’ils
soient.

Et, si l’on me demande pourquoi, je répondrai en employant la
formule d’une des proclamations de la Nouvelle-Angleterre, avant
la guerre de l’Indépendance, parce que ce sont deux pays “où l’on
ne connaît ni suzerains, ni seigneurs, ni princes, mais seulement
le peuple.”

Tout donc porte les deux Républiques à l’entente et à l’union: des
souvenirs communs, un objectif pareil, une conception semblable
de la vie publique. La République américaine et la République
française sont les deux filles aînées de la liberté. 1787, l’année
de la Constitution américaine et 1789, l’année qui inaugure l’ère
moderne en France, ce sont deux grandes dates de nos histoires, et
deux grandes dates de l’histoire du monde.

Avec un point de départ presque simultané, les deux pays out suivi
leurs voies diverses, l’un occupé à se saisir d’un territoire
immense, pliant aux nécessités de cette vie énorme et dispersée
ses institutions à la fois fédéralistes et unitaires, ouvrant au
vieux monde un asile tutélaire et développant sur son sol, grâce
à cet afflux permanent du trop plein des forces humaines, une
civilisation qui est l’héritière de toutes les civilisations;
l’autre plus unitaire et plus centralisé; plus ramassé et plus
fondu, plus traditionnel, mais plus alourdi par le poids du passé,
travaillant à faire entrer, dans ses vieux cadres historiques,
les puissances d’énergie que la vie moderne exige des sociétés
qui veulent garder leur place et leur rang dans la grande famille
humaine.

Après cent ans de cet effort parallèle, les voici donc qui
apparaissent toutes deux en pleine possession de leur valeur, et
avec la conscience de ce qu’elles sont et de ce qu’elles doivent
être. N’est-ce pas le moment pour elles deux de se considérer
mutuellement et de s’apercevoir, une fois pour toutes, que dans
cette marche parallèle, elles se complètent souvent et ne se
contrarient jamais?

Puisque je parle ici devant les représentants les plus autorisés du
commerce américain, il me paraît facile de prendre le commerce en
exemple.

Le commerce est entre les peuples le premier et le plus
indispensable des biens. Qui dit commerce dit bon vouloir
réciproque, confiance mutuelle et paix. Il est incontestable, qu’à
l’origine de toutes les civilisations se trouve le _commerce_, et
quand les premiers navigateurs européens, à commencer par le plus
grand de tous, Christophe Colomb,—ont été vers l’Occident à la
recherche des terres nouvelles, que prétendaient-ils, sinon trouver
des chemins et des débouchés nouveaux? C’est du commerce qu’on peut
dire avec raison “Mens agitat molem.”

Or, précisément, dans le commerce franco-américain, une heureuse
entente de nos intérêts réciproques nous conduit à cette conviction
que, là aussi, bien peu de choses nous séparent, tandis que
beaucoup nous rapprochent. L’Amérique produit en abondance des
matières premières dont notre industrie a besoin; la France produit
des substances alimentaires, et des articles où se distingue
spécialement le goût français, et dont le luxe croissant des
Amériques aura sans doute toujours besoin. Sur ces bases, les
conditions d’une harmonie bien équilibrée peuvent sans trop de
difficultés se dégager. Aussi voyons nous que la France est de
toutes les nations de l’Europe (l’Angleterre exceptée), celle qui
fait le plus d’affaires avec les États-Unis proportionnellement
au chiffre de sa population et à l’étendue de son territoire,
confirmant ainsi l’observation que je faisais tout à l’heure, à
savoir que les lois de l’histoire doivent combiner nos efforts, et
que, seule, une erreur inexcusable pourrait les séparer.

C’est pour étendre et appliquer cette opinion,—j’irai jusqu’à dire
cette doctrine,—que le comité France-Amérique s’est fondé à Paris,
et qu’il est venu devant vous pour travailler au développement des
bonnes relations si heureusement existantes entre les deux pays.
Dans tous les ordres de manifestations cordiales, on nous trouve
et on nous trouvera. C’est là notre rôle et nous le revendiquons
hautement.

Relations économiques, relations intellectuelles, relations
sociales, relations artistiques, dans tous ces ordres d’idées, nous
travaillons dans le même sens et c’est à cette initiative de notre
part que nous vous prions de répondre par des sentiments et des
actes analogues. Nous sommes venus vers vous; venez vers nous à
votre tour.

On dit, de la pensée américaine, qu’elle se formule en termes
d’action “to think in terms of action.” Eh bien! nous, nous avons
formulé notre sentiment en termes d’action, en venant vingt bons
compagnons j’ose le dire, appartenant aux diverses activités
françaises, vous apporter pour une grande commémoration, une chose
éminemment française, une _oeuvre d’art_.

Nous avons mûrement réfléchi avant de prendre ce parti et nous
vous prions d’y réfléchir à votre tour. Nous n’avons aucun titre
officiel; nous sommes de simples particuliers, mais nous nous
sommes choisis (si vous me permettez cette expression ambitieuse)
dans le désir de ne pas être trop indignes de vous et de votre
confiance.

Il y eut un temps où pour la découverte des pays transatlantiques,
les premiers pionniers sont partis volontairement de nos rivages:
Champlain fut le plus glorieux parmi ces Français: ceux-là étaient
_les volontaires de la foi et de l’espérance_. Il fut un temps
où d’autres volontaires partirent pour servir une cause juste et
légitime: ceux-là furent _les volontaires de la Liberté et de
l’Indépendance_. Les temps sont changés; les grandes oeuvres sont
accomplies. Cependant, nous aussi nous venons spontanément, pour
maintenir, du moins, ce qu’ont fait nos aïeux, et nous sommes _les
volontaires de l’Amitié_.

Comment cette amitié qui est un sentiment et qui est la fleur
de l’âme s’exprimerait-elle mieux que par une oeuvre d’art,
c’est-à-dire la fleur du goût et du génie humain?

L’art, en effet, est l’essence du travail des siècles et ses
oeuvres seules survivent aux siècles. Une civilisation achevée
s’exprime par l’art: l’art résume toujours ce que l’humanité sent
et pense.

Par quoi connaît-on la grandeur de l’âme artistique, sinon par les
monuments artistiques, l’Egypte, la Grèce, Rome, le Moyen-Age nous
ont transmis leur pensée par cette langue universelle et immortelle
qui s’appelle l’art. Ce que l’humanité veut faire connaître
d’elle-même à l’avenir, elle le confie à l’art.

Et c’est pourquoi, comme un symbole de l’amitié franco-américaine,
nous avons choisi une belle oeuvre d’art due à notre grand
sculpteur Rodin.

A bord d’un bâtiment nouveau et qui s’appelle “La France,” une
délégation française est venue pour vous remercier de célébrer un
Français.

Par la pensée, par le commerce, par le goût du grand, du beau, du
juste, par une foi identique dans la paix entre les hommes, les
deux grandes démocraties que l’Océan seul sépare, sont faites pour
s’aimer, se comprendre et s’unir.

Nous demandons aux Chambres de Commerce américaines de seconder
l’oeuvre d’union que nous avons enterprise.

Merci aux Chambres de Commerce américaines. A tout jamais
prospérité, grandeur, bonheur et gloire, à la grande République des
États-Unis d’Amérique! (Loud applause.)

President Hepburn introduced the next speaker as follows: There are few homes in this country in which the benign face of Washington does not look down upon the family activities. Serious contemplation of the face of Washington must soon bring into perspective the face of that great Frenchman with whom he was so closely associated, whom he so highly esteemed, Lafayette. We are fortunate in having with us to-day a direct descendant of the great Lafayette, his great-great-grandson. He is upon this delegation as the personal representative of the Premier of the present government of France. I take great pleasure in presenting Count de Chambrun.

Count de Chambrun spoke in English.

ADDRESS OF COUNT DE CHAMBRUN

_Mr. President and Gentlemen_: The very character of the present
solemnities which have brought this delegation to America awakens
with us in France a peculiar feeling of sympathy and grateful
retrospection. Our intellectual world, our literary men—all who are
versed in historical research and who cherish the great memories
of the past—look back with love and pride upon the one time humble
heroes whose venturous spirit and whose wonderful foresight made of
their own mother country the glorious promoter of civilization.
Indeed, the ties uniting France and America have always been
popular with us, and our public men have ever justly prized their
great and valuable importance; but, in the present instance, the
Prime Minister of the French Republic has desired to be personally
represented. He, also, a patriot and a man of letters, cannot
refrain from emotion when he recalls that page of our common
history, when a countryman of ours with scanty means, but with
vast courage and genius opened new lands and new prospects to the
achievements of humanity.

And this is why M. Raymond Poincaré wishes that his own tribute
should not be lacking where honors are bestowed upon our brave
Champlain; it is my good fortune, gentlemen, to be the bearer of
this heartfelt tribute in memory of the early traveller now famous
among our great explorers.

Curiously enough, at different stages, it has been the destiny
of Frenchmen to play on this proud continent a decisive part in
the interest of the world’s progress. Whether as pioneers in the
northern and western dominions, at a remote period when these lands
were yet unknown, or later on, in time of need, when the United
States sought freedom and independence, was it not Frenchmen who
came again with helping swords in a new American cause, where, as
volunteers and soldiers, their hearts became enlisted.

But on the other hand, we citizens of France do not forget that it
was upon your virgin soil that free institutions were first sown of
which we in turn were able to fully harvest.

The declaration of the American Independence preceded the
declaration of the Rights of Man, and Republican Government in
America preceded the establishment of Free Government in France.

Mutual action at decisive moments, as we see, has blended together
the histories of France and of the United States with ever
beneficial effect, leaving to-day in the hearts of both nations
an unparalleled feeling of esteem and constantly well-wishing
affection. (Great applause.)

President Hepburn said: “Only a few years ago we wanted the world, but now we want the air above it. We have with us to-day one of the pioneers in navigation of the air, the man who first crossed the English channel in a heavier than air machine. I present to you M. Louis Blériot.” M. Blériot said:

He had been carried away on the wings of the eloquence to heights
where it was imprudent for an aviator to risk himself, and he
would express simply, but with profound sincerity in behalf of
French industry the great admiration which they, the workmen of old
Europe, had for the great and daring efforts of America to conquer
the air. That work brought men together, and united especially the
citizens of America and France, already brothers by ancient bonds.
Thanks to science and industry, distances were diminishing. They
admired Edison and did not forget Fulton, as they recollected all
those who had contributed by their invention or their initiative to
widen the field of the activity of humanity. He looked forward to
the time when the birds of France and the birds of America would
settle on each others’ shores. (Applause.)

Addresses were also made in French by M. Louis Barthou, formerly a member of the French Cabinet, and others. They were enthusiastically received. At the luncheon which followed the meeting a toast was given in honor of the President of France which was responded to by M. Hanotaux, after which Baron D’Estournelles de Constant made an eloquent address. Since their return to France and the election of M. Raymond Poincaré to the Presidency of that Republic, M. Louis Barthou has been made President of the Council of Ministers. It is very gratifying to the many friends in America of M. Barthou that he has been so signally honored by the French nation.

VI. FRENCH VISITORS AND CHAMPLAIN COMMISSIONERS ENTERTAINED AT TICONDEROGA, LATER INSPECT CHAMPLAIN MEMORIAL LIGHTHOUSE AT CROWN POINT, WHERE THEY FORMALLY PLACE THE BUST “LA FRANCE” AND THEN JOURNEY TO PLATTSBURGH. REPORT TO PARIS

The members of the New York and Vermont Lake Champlain Commissions accompanied by His Excellency, M. Jusserand, the French Ambassador, Governor Mead of Vermont and the members of the French delegation left New York on the night train, May 2d, in special cars, which were detached from the train the next morning at Fort Ticonderoga station. The French visitors were entertained at breakfast by Mr. and Mrs. Stephen H. P. Pell at “The Pavilion,” their summer home, while the members of the Joint Commissions were entertained at breakfast by Commissioner Howland Pell in the Block House, rebuilt by him in the Germain Redoubt overlooking the Lake. Several hours were spent in looking over the ruins, fortifications and restorations, the details of which were explained by Mr. and Mrs. Stephen H. P. Pell, who own Fort Ticonderoga and Mount Independence. The visitors were greatly interested in all they saw, and especially the French lines, the scene of Montcalm’s victory in 1758 and the place where the battle occurred. The ancient flag of France with the Fleur-de-lis was displayed together with the Tri-color and each was saluted with formality.

Members of the delegation and Ambassador Jusserand called on Commissioner Pell at the Block House in the Germain Redoubt, where light refreshments were served.

General Lebon and other members of the delegation were quick to see the strategic importance of Ticonderoga as a military fortification to command the passage of vessels up and down the lake as well as the passage of troops through the valley. In their judgment France made no mistake in taking possession of Ticonderoga and taking her stand there and at Crown Point in her efforts to control this entire territory. The history of the struggle has been graphically described by Parkman and others and the thrilling events, culminating in and about this “Gateway of the Country,” have been given realistic settings by Ira Allen, Hon. Lucius E. Chittenden, Rev. Joseph Cook, Dr. Hamilton W. Mabie, Percy MacKaye and others. These were well known to most of the visiting savants, who were profoundly impressed with Ticonderoga and the overtowering Mount Defiance on the southwest and the commanding position of Mount Independence across the narrow lake on the southeast. All these were occupied by military forces at times during the struggle for the control of the territory.

The Commissioners and visitors left on a special train at 11.30 A. M. for Port Henry, where they were met by Commissioner Walter C. Witherbee, Hon. Frank S. Witherbee, Lieut.-Gov. Thomas F. Conway and others. While going from Ticonderoga to Port Henry, lunch was served on the train, so that upon their arrival at Port Henry, while they were being escorted to the steamer, the Witherbee band played the Marseillaise, and to the delight of the French guests, it also played the airs of several French folk songs familiar to the visitors and known to their grandparents. They proceeded directly to Crown Point Forts. This was their first experience on Lake Champlain, their first view of the memorial in the process of construction. It was far enough along, however, to reveal its stateliness and artistic design. The impression it made on M. Fernand Cormon, President of the French Academy, and on M. René Bazin, M. Étienne Lamy, M. Gabriel Hanotaux and other members of the French Academy may be drawn from the remarks of M. Hanotaux and others. Suffice it to say here that the visitors were pleased with the artistic memorial lighthouse, which, in addition to its utilitarian uses, is designed to symbolize the illumination of the light of civilization first shed in the valley by Champlain and his followers. After inspecting the memorial they suggested the permanent location for the bust “La France,” which had been temporarily placed in position and was inspected by the people from all parts of the Champlain valley. The bust was draped with the flags of the United States and the Tri-color of France and from all parts of the memorial lighthouse floated pennants and the Stars and Stripes in profusion.

By courtesy of the Troy Times]

Chairman H. Wallace Knapp presided at the formal exercises and in his opening address said:

_Gentlemen_: The course of the Tercentenary observations has
received an interruption by a voice from across the sea. It is a
friendly voice. It is a voice that is heard wherever men struggle
to be free or seek to advance their welfare. It is the voice of
France that spoke to us in the dark days of our early history, and
bade us be of good cheer.

All through the critical periods of our history the French people
and their Government have been our friends. They join us to-day in
memorializing our past. They have the right to do so, for France
and America have suffered and triumphed together for the same high
cause and the memory of our debt to this liberty-loving people can
never be forgotten. It is fitting that they place the Memorial
Tablet here. It expresses to us love and friendship and they may be
assured that we will guard it with proud and zealous care.

I now take great pleasure in introducing to you the acting Governor, Lieutenant-Governor Conway.

Lieut.-Gov. Thomas F. Conway in the course of his address of welcome said:

_Gentlemen_: I had the pleasure on Wednesday evening of extending
to you on the part of the State of New York the appreciation of its
citizens at your coming to our shores, but it is a double pleasure
to welcome you to Lake Champlain, rich in French history and the
pride of every one who may rightfully claim the Champlain valley as
his birthplace. We believe that you will find this one of the most
charming lakes you have ever visited and we trust that you will
appreciate its beauties as do its inhabitants and its many visitors.

Chairman Knapp then introduced Gov. John A. Mead of Vermont.

Governor Mead in welcoming the visitors said:

The people of the Green Mountain State join with the people of
the Empire State in welcoming the members of the distinguished
delegation from France who have come to bring the seal of the
Mother-Country to the memorial of one of her most distinguished
sons. The Vermont Commission in order to do honor to that
distinguished son, Samuel Champlain, united with the New York
Commission in erecting this stately joint memorial to commemorate
his memory, which is revered by the people of both states. We count
it the greatest privilege that can fall to the lot of any man to
be born along the shores of this beautiful lake, which Champlain
considered worthy to bear his name.

Chairman Knapp then presented the French delegation, saying: Many Commissions have come from France to us, but all of France has never been so well represented as it is by our guests to-day. They bring in their hands the gift that has been contributed by all the classes of all the French people.

I have the pleasure of introducing to you the Chairman of the Delegation, M. Gabriel Hanotaux.

ADDRESS OF ALBERT AUGUSTE GABRIEL HANOTAUX

The states of Vermont and New York raise this monument,
torch-bearer to the glory of the first Europeans who saw their
territories and who foresaw their future prosperity. A French
delegation has come to thank the constructors of this magnificent
monument and to seal upon its base, as a sign of gratitude, an
image of France.

This work of one of our greatest sculptors, Rodin, is of modest
size, but it certainly expresses well what we have wished to say;
it will bear testimony among you of the quality of French taste;
it will depict to you France, such as we Frenchmen conceive it,
such as we love it. See this countenance, smiling and at the same
time grave, these delicate and pure features, these full cheeks
indicating health, this firm look expressing resolution and
sincerity. It is France as she wishes to be and as she is.

The France of the Crusades, the France of Joan of Arc, of Louis XIV
and of Napoleon, of the Revolution, the France of the Richelieus
and of the Champlains, that France cannot forget those who have
worked and suffered for her, she gathers together their memory, she
thanks those who remember. To the friendships and smiles that
are offered her, she replies by a smile and a sincere and faithful
friendship.

To mention only the most recent events: In 1910, a statue of
the great Washington was offered to Versailles by the State of
Virginia; in December, the Surrender of Yorktown, by J. P. Laurens,
was solemnly inaugurated in the Court House of Baltimore. In 1911,
commemorative monuments were erected at Savannah, at Annapolis, at
Mobile. Everywhere we find memorable proofs of American sympathy.
How could we do otherwise than respond?

And it is for this reason, these acts and so many similar ones
having been noted through the vigilance of the Ambassador of France
at Washington, that the Committee of France-America, encouraged
by the French Government, took the initiative of a subscription
in order to bring to the lighthouse of Champlain a souvenir of
French gratitude. The subscription includes, in the first rank,
the President of the French Republic, Mr. Fallières; the President
of the Council of Ministers, Raymond Poincaré, the Ambassador of
France at Washington, Mr. Jusserand, the majority of the French
ministers and a great number of our fellow-countrymen, anxious to
express their gratitude and their sympathy to the American Republic.

The delegation here present bears no official character, but Mr.
Jusserand accompanies it as the representative of the French
Government and the Count de Chambrun appears in it as the
representative of the President of the Council. The greatest French
institutions also have their representatives therein; The Institut
de France, the Parliament, the French army, the State Council, the
University, Industry, Commerce, the Press; finally, the descendants
of three of the families that have, from the very beginning, shown
their sympathy for the Franco-American cause.

Friendship—it is with this word that I wish to close, as it
expresses the real character of the sentiment that animates the
Committee of France-America and which its delegation has endeavored
to convey in coming to you. We are friends of the great American
democracy; we come toward it with outstretched hands, saying:
Accept this friendship that is offered you and in return grant us
yours. We have nothing more to offer you than this image of that
which we love best in the world, France; and we ask nothing more
of you than to understand how lively, spontaneous and sincere this
sentiment is.

Since the American democracy is at the head of the great human
civilizations, since it always marches forward, without, however,
forgetting the bonds that bind it to the past; since it has a noble
heart, a generous soul, and since, according to the word of the
Latin writer, nothing human is foreign to it, we come to remind
it that these sentiments are also those that animate the French
democracy; and, as the two ideas are to-day united in the same
monument, so may the two words be drawn closer together in the
name of our Committee, France-America. We beg of you not to allow
the memory of this ceremony to be effaced from your hearts, since
the memory of Champlain is commemorated by you. We now confide to
you the image of our beautiful France. Watch over it as over an
eternal pledge of gratitude, of devotion, and of friendship. (Long
applause.)

Commissioner Louis C. Lafontaine was then introduced and received the gift in the following manner, speaking in the French language:

_Excellence, Messieurs de la Délégation Française, Mesdames,
Messieurs_: C’est un grand honneur pour moi, comme membre de
la Commission du Troisième Centenaire de la découverte du Lac
Champlain, et au nom de mes collègues, de recevoir le buste “La
France” dont vous avez mission du peuple Français de venir déposer
au pied du Mémorial Champlain.

La Commission se plaît à voir dans ce beau geste de la mère-patrie
de Champlain le couronnement de ses efforts pour la glorification
de l’un des plus illustres fils de la France.

Votre mission est maintenant remplie, mais nous vous prions de
vouloir bien en accepter une autre, celle de transmettre à la
nation française, les remerciements les plus sincères et les plus
cordiaux de la Commission Champlain pour l’honneur qu’elle lui a
fait en choisissant un si grand nombre parmi les plus illustres de
ses enfants pour leur conférer l’honneur de venir apposer ce cachet
d’amitié au Mémorial Porte-Lumière destiné à perpétuer le souvenir
du Grand Champlain!

This concluded the formal exercises.

The visitors were then shown the ruins of Fort St. Frédéric and of the English Forts, now included in the state reservation known as the Crown Point Reservation, which are among the best preserved original fortifications of the country.

The discoveries which are being made in and about the old French Fort under the direction of Annie E. (Mrs. Walter C.) Witherbee, are such as may lead to the rewriting of a description of these forts. She has located the ovens and found the oven doors, candle-sticks, snuffers, glassware, blue and white china of Fort St. Frédéric, built in 1731, the underground drain, from the English Forts, built of stone two and one-half feet high, resting on a solid rock and twenty inches in width in perfect condition. She has also found the casemate and bastions around the English Forts, which were built in 1759 by Amherst. She has opened up the old forge and found many relics such as a gun-carriage, chairs, knives, spades, iron bars, bolts and other articles. The most remarkable discovery from a geological point of view was that of a glacier mill 14 feet and 7 inches in depth, containing spherical stones, unknown in the vicinity. Mrs. Witherbee has procured copies of old charts and maps from British archives relating to the region. She is also making a valuable historical collection of books, manuscripts and autographs of persons, who have written about or have been occupants of the forts now in ruins, but included in the State Reservation. These will throw new light on the history of the region to the lasting credit of Mrs. Witherbee, who intends to continue her researches in this hitherto unexplored field.

At three-forty o’clock, P. M., the Commissioners, accompanied by His Excellency Ambassador Jusserand and the French delegation, boarded the special train for Plattsburgh under the escort of Hon. John H. Booth and Hon. John B. Riley. Upon their arrival at Plattsburgh, they were officially welcomed by Mayor Andrew G. Senecal, the Guard of Honor, and St. Jean Baptiste Society in full uniform. The depot was trimmed with the American and French flags and the U. S. Reservation at Plattsburgh Barracks had been put in readiness by Colonel Cowles, Post Commandant, for the reception of the visitors to witness a dress parade in their honor. As they entered the Reservation, a national salute was fired and the regimental band played La Marseillaise and the Star Spangled Banner. The Fifth Infantry in full dress uniform was drawn up and saluted the distinguished visitors with military honors. Colonel Cowles and his staff were formally presented by Hon. H. Wallace Knapp to Ambassador Jusserand, M. Gabriel Hanotaux, General Lebon, Count de Chambrun, M. Étienne Lamy and others. The visitors were escorted to the temporary platform, whereupon the Hon. V. F. Boire, speaking in French in behalf of the people of Plattsburgh, welcomed the visitors. The English version of his address is substantially as follows:

_Gentlemen_: It is a great pleasure as well as a special privilege
to welcome you to the city of Plattsburgh and the county of Clinton
on this important occasion of your peace errand. It is a pleasure
to welcome you for many reasons. The personnel of your delegation
has so many illustrious and honored names; so many of them dear to
the hearts of the American people, that we welcome you individually
and personally, and we feel that you should be at home here. In
the average American heart, there is enshrined on either side of
George Washington the memory of Rochambeau and Lafayette, so no man
bearing either name is a stranger in the country of Washington, nor
is he a stranger here, who is accredited from their native land.

As representatives of the great French Republic, you are welcome to
the nation that the old France sustained and befriended in the hour
of its almost hopeless struggle for liberty. You are twice welcome
in this particular spot; discovered and explored by the great
Champlain, trodden by the intrepid foot of Montcalm, and sought out
by the zealous heart of Jogues. It would be impossible to honor us
more than to permit us to see and hear representatives of so many
branches of French activities and learning, of men and institutions
that have made for the progress and enlightenment of the world; and
in this particular locality, where there are so many descendants of
the French, this occasion affords an entirely distinct and peculiar
pleasure to the people.

Significant at this time and indirectly connected with your visit,
and of interest in connection with your visit, are the great peace
projects now planned between the United States and the British
Empire. One is the Quebec-Miami International Highway which is an
assured fact, as a result of which a great International Highway
is actually being built, connecting the southern part of Florida
with the city of Quebec, and linking Canada and the United States
with a strong bond of friendship and good will. This road will
pass through the city of Plattsburgh and its length will be dotted
with monuments dedicated to peace. And it is intended that all
travellers of this highway between Canada and the United States
will pass beneath an arch dedicated in the hope that no hostile
foot will ever tread beneath. This we believe to be a practical
peace pact.

The monuments and arch just referred to are part of the second
and most widely known of the peace projects. By that I mean, the
celebration of the one hundredth anniversary of peace between the
English speaking peoples (which also seems to be an assured fact),
to occur in 1914. By a singular coincidence, the year 1914 will
also mark the one hundredth anniversary of the last war between
French speaking and English speaking peoples. It would seem to me
a most lamentable thing if this celebration were not made a double
celebration in commemoration of the one hundred years of peace
between the great French speaking peoples and English speaking
peoples as well as between the English speaking peoples. And let
us hope that the year 1914 will also witness the adoption of all
the Arbitration Treaties under French speaking nations and English
speaking nations;—and thus we may hope that the year 1914 will not
only be as a monument to the century of peace in the past, but that
it will also be a monument for the peace of the centuries that are
to come.

The visitors demonstrated their pleasure over his remarks by vigorous applause. M. Étienne Lamy was then introduced and, speaking in French, told of the pleasure of himself and his associates at the hearty reception they had received at every place they had visited since coming to America and said that at no place was the reception more cordial than at Plattsburgh. General Lebon was the next speaker and his remarks were also in French. He spoke of the great achievements of the French people in all walks of life and especially in the military sphere. Count de Chambrun spoke in English and told of the great friendship which has existed between France and the United States ever since the first blow was struck by the colonies for liberty; how the Republic of the East, through him and his associates, sent greetings and promises of everlasting friendship to the Republic of the West. M. Gabriel Hanotaux spoke briefly in French and Ambassador Jusserand made a few remarks in both English and French, expressing his pleasure in again visiting Plattsburgh. The Saranac Chapter of the D. A. R. turned out in force with their regent. Mrs. George F. Tuttle, and were accompanied by the Nathan Beman Chapter of the Children of the American Revolution bearing the American colors. The D. A. R. delegation was seated on the grandstand at the left of the French visitors.

Mrs. George F. Tuttle, the regent of the Saranac Chapter, D. A. R., and president of the Nathan Beman Chapter, D. A. R., of Plattsburgh, both of which organizations took part in the reception of the French Delegation, expressed her pleasure and that of her Chapter at taking part in welcoming the visitors, and also said:

The Saranac Chapter, Daughters of the American Revolution and
Nathan Beman Society, Children of the American Revolution wish
to extend greetings to the French delegation who have so
honored us by their presence. It may be of interest to one of
this distinguished company, the Count de Chambrun, to know that
among the Daughters who listened with delight to his remarks,
was one whose mother, Mrs. Frederick Sailly, had the pleasure of
entertaining, as the wife of Major Russell, at Fort Niagara, the
Count’s honored ancestor, General Lafayette.

After regimental dress parade the visitors were returned to the depot by automobile and left for Montreal on the regular 6 o’clock train, expressing themselves enthusiastically in appreciation of the festivities arranged in their honor in this country.

One of the French delegation, M. Gaston Deschamps, on May 3, 1912, reported to _Le Temps_, published in Paris, the exercises at Crown Point and Plattsburgh, which is a graphic description of the impressions made upon the visitors on that occasion. From that report we excerpt the following, giving the English instead of the French original:

People have come from all the cities and towns about Port Henry;
from all the villages and hamlets near the Canadian frontier, to
greet the French delegation. A band of musicians advances and
plays the “Marseillaise”—a Marseillaise slow, sweet, as though
languishing from the affectionate and cajoling tenderness of our
friends in the United States and New France. Our Marseillaise lends
itself admirably to that metamorphosis, and the warlike march
of the Army of the Rhine easily becomes, when one beats _adagio
maestoso_ time, a hymn of solemn measure and touchingly religious.

Hon. Walter C. Witherbee, one of the most distinguished citizens
of Port Henry, is the President of the Inauguration Committee of
the Champlain Monument at Crown Point. For several years he has
devoted the best part of his time and his efforts to the work of
the American and French commemorations of which we to-day see
the happy outcome. He has applied himself with all his heart to
this intellectual and moral enterprise, and he has brought to
the service of his tenacious idealism all the practical judgment
of an excellent business man. I have learned—not from him, for
Mr. Witherbee is modesty itself—all that he has done for the
celebration of the third centenary of Champlain. Treasurer of the
New York Commission, he is the one especially who, with Senator
Henry W. Hill and Mr. John R. Myers, put through the necessary
measures before the Government at Washington, to the end that the
commemorative festivities might be exceptionally brilliant.

Mr. Clinton Scollard has sung the glory of Champlain:

A valiant son of that intrepid line
Which gave fair lustre to the fame of France.

Another poet, Mr. Percy MacKaye, has celebrated in his “Ballad of
Ticonderoga” the heroic defenders of Fort Carillon. Dr. Daniel
L. Cady has dedicated a whole bouquet of lyric verses to the
picturesque beauties of Lake Champlain and to the bravery of the
good sailor of Saintonge:

The Brouage sailor * * *
* * * Long live the Xaintongeois * * *

It seems to me that at certain times “Young America” is in truth
“Old France.” This impression is strengthened still more after we
have embarked on the steamer which is to take us to the opposite
shore of the lake, to the promontory where the monument to the
heroes of this magnificent fête is erected. This monument is not
yet finished. But the figure of the “Lord of Champlain, geographer
to the King, and captain of the Navy of the West,” is present in
all minds because on the pedestal of granite, under the gleam of
the lighthouse, it is visible from top to toe in the eyes of all
sailors in quest of a good route in these parts. Here he is, with
his good face, a trifle broad, and very strong, his moustache
curled up at the ends, and his small pointed beard in the fashion
of Louis XIII.; his lips, prompt to reply, but skillful in keeping
a secret; his large, thoughtful forehead, his eyes full of
dreaminess, and at the same time skilled in the exact knowledge
of men and things by the habit of his profession of watching the
caprices of the inconstant sea, of the changing heavens, and of
the varying breezes. His lake, that “Sea of the Iroquois,” whose
Odysseyan distances he skimmed in birch-bark canoes paddled by
tattooed Hurons, with whom he felt at home—being, in the words of a
narrator of his voyages, “a man who was astonished at nothing, and
a ready talker, knowing how to accost these people tactfully and
to accommodate himself to their ways”—his lake we overlook to-day
from the bulwarks of a steamer decorated with all the splendor of
holidays. His work is finished. What he foresaw, what he predicted,
what he prepared, has been realized. Civilization has laid hold
upon all these countries where he was the first explorer and of
which he foretold in his writings the future harvest. Here is
the landscape whose picture he has described so vividly that one
can, after having read his “Voyages and Discoveries”, easily find
one’s way and recognize the different points; the immensity of
this lake, whose fertile shores stretch in endless perspective;
the hillsides covered with forests; the islands “where there are
plenty of walnuts and vines and pretty meadows.” * * * In place
of the encampments stockaded by the Iroquois or by the Mohegans,
filled with the noise of the tom-tom and the war dance, there are
now pleasant country houses where men and women of a less turbulent
race can henceforth enjoy a happiness which is no longer menaced by
the unreasoned impulses of a primitive and barbarous humanity.

As our steamer pulls out from the port and traverses the waves,
gilded by the sun, in the track which the achievements of
Champlain have traced, we see the buildings of Port Henry rise
one above the other like an amphitheatre among the forests in
the woodland clearing. On the battlefield where the conqueror,
peaceful and brave, was forced to use his blunderbuss, there are
now shipbuilders’ yards, warehouses, factory chimneys. * * * The
horizon, under the vast dome of the blue sky, is beautified by the
whiteness of the snows, which shine with a silvery splendor on the
tops of the Adirondack Mountains and of those Green Mountains which
have given their ancient French name to the American State Vert
Mont (Vermont).

The weather is marvellous. This is the most beautiful day of our
trip; a day of brightness and of glory; what the Americans call a
“glorious day.” A fine breeze which comes from afar makes the gay
colors of the oriflamme flutter from the halyards of the ship.
The French delegation is gay. We are happy to see this admirable
scenery, which was discovered by the eyes of a Frenchman. One
of our number is especially captivated by the beauty of this
spectacle; it is the great painter Cormon, appointed more than
any one else, as one who could understand and feel the charm of
this vision, because his art is exercised and triumphs by turns in
the magnificent understanding of primitive times and in the fine
meaning of the beauties imagined by the modern æsthetic. We are
happy to see that his ready and true pencil has caught in passing
some of the scenes from the fairyland before us. Our notes on the
trip will thus be much more accurate because of a true, exact and
sincere illustration, which would have been the delight of honest
Champlain.

In honor of the heroes of this festival, and to please us, Mr.
Witherbee’s musicians play the airs which were most pleasing to
the good mariners who came with Champlain from Saintonge or from
Aunis—the old songs of Old France. “C’est le roi Dagobert,” “J’ai
du bon tabac dans ma tabatière,” “La bonne aventure, ô gué.” * * *

Apropos of this, a Canadian whom I met at this delightful festival
of French remembrance told me that these songs, brought by
Champlain’s sailors, preserved by Montcalm’s sailors, still exist
among “our people” all through the country.

“Among us are still played on the hurdy-gurdy those refrains of
long ago. We transmit them in the family, from father to son, like
a charming echo of the far away mother country. If you come to
our French villages in Canada, Monsieur, to Beauharnais, to Saint
Hilaire, to Maisonneuve, to Sorel, to Trois-Rivières, you will hear
all sorts of pleasant couplets which come in a direct line from
Angoumois, from Normandy, from Saintonge, from Poitou—and I, too,
come from Poitou.

“So, then. Monsieur,” adds my Canadian questioner, laughingly,
“We will sing you some Poitevine songs, which will recall your
childhood days and the quaint melodies of the country-folk over
there. We have a good collection of them. You will only have the
embarrassment of choice.”

And that good Frenchman of Canada begins to name over for me a
whole string of ancient sayings, which have retained the perfume
and, as it were, the melancholy softness of the gardens of the
past. First of all a “danse ronde”:

Dans ma main droite y-a-t-un rosier
Qui fleurira, manon lon la,
Qui fleurira au mois de mai.
Entrez en danse, joli rosier!
Et embrassez, manon lon la,
Et embrassez qui vous plaira.

Indeed, I have heard that ingenious melody at home. To hear again,
so far from home, the words and the spirit of our old rural France,
hard-working all the week and always ready to dance and to “baller”
during the Sunday leisure, is an impression not to be forgotten and
which at first seems like a dream.

“We also have,” my Canadian said to me, “the ‘Clear Fountain.’
Everybody in Canada knows that romance, which came from
Normandy. We also have some ‘chansons de filasse’ (flax songs)
sung in tremulous voice by our good grandmothers: ‘En filant
ma quenouille.’ Our Bretons have preserved their sea songs: ‘A
Saint-Malo, beau port de mer.’ Or ‘Dans les prisons de Nantes.’ And
also:

Fringue, fringue sur la rivière
Fringue, fringue sur l’aviron.”

While thus, in that fine light, on the limpid water, under the
tender blue of a crystal sky, the heroic and charming soul of our
ancestors was evoked, our ship, surrounded by a whole fleet of
decorated barks, draws near the pier at Crown Point and stops in
front of the monument of Champlain. This monument is a lighthouse,
of gray granite, sparkling with grains of mica which shine in
the sun like the facets of precious stones. The location of
that edifice is well adapted to the calling and the glory of him
who was in these parts the guide of navigators. In front of that
lighthouse, on the prow of a symbolic vessel, there stands upright
the figure of the good pilot whose wake we have followed. * * *
While awaiting the completion of the statue, which has been begun,
we have fastened to the pedestal the image of France, modelled
with infinitely delicate love by the strong hand of the sculptor
Rodin. That will be a token and, as it were, the sign of the mother
country on the monument which commemorates and consecrates a French
achievement.