I 'owe' you nothing, particularly since the 'source' isn't even the Secretary of State that I thought he was. He was just a Senator...like Jacob Howard. You know, the one that co authored the 14th Amendment Thomas F Bayard WAS a Secretary of State.
U.S. Secretary of State Thomas Francis Bayard points a rifle towards his successor, James Gillespie Blaine, who is climbing over the fence of "neutrality." During this time, Germany was expanding into Samoa, and the United States was trying to counter this expansion.
Term of office March 7, 1885--- March 6, 1889.
Thomas F Bayard WAS a Secretary of State. LOL! Thanks again for the info!
I guess some background with a direct and viable third-party source when the assertion was made would have been too much to ask!
/s