The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1870-06-23
THURSDAY, JUNE 90, 1870.
FAREWELL TO ST. THOMAS.

YESTERDAY we published the pathetic pro-
clamation of King Christian TX of Denmark
to the people of st. Thomas and ST. Johns,
announcing the final collapse of the scheme
for annexing these appendages of the Danish
crown to the United States, and this morning
we have from Havana a cable telegram giving
the substance of a proclamation recently
issued by the Governor of st. Thomas, de-
clarine that the island is again placed under
the exclusive protection of the mother coun-
try. And thus ends the wild scheme of MIR.
Seward for the acquisition of these petty
territories at an expenditure of some
$4,000, 900 in gold. The scheme was
fayorite one with the ex-Secretary of
State. and it was not less dear to the heart
of King Christian, who longed to get
his fingers on the $1O,OOO,0OO, as a
means of tightening the heavy burdens in
Cured by the war with Prussia over the
Schleswig- -Holstein dispute. 1t was also
favorite scheme with the people of st.
Thomas, who appreciated quite as fully as
did the King the important advantages"
which the transfer of their allegiance to the
United States would bestow on them. If the
people of the United States had been equally
disposed to close the bargain, the islands
would long since have been part ndparcel of
our territory, and in very few years they
would have become thoroughly Amerieanized.
But, from the very outset, the annexation
project was regarded with such disfavor in this
country that the Senate could not even be
brought to q vote upon the question of the
ratification of the treaty. If the Senate had
condescended to come to a vote, and had re-
jected the treaty outright, even by unani-
NOUS voice, it is probable that Denmark would
have been better pleased than she has been,
the studied neglect which the measure en-
countered being taken, and with some show
of Justice, as an intentional affront. Not
withstanding the complacent manner in which
the failure of the project is treated by King
Christian, his proclamation displays cons-
derable temper, and his expression of salts
faction at being relieved from making the
painful sacrifice of parting forever with a few
thousand faithful subject is tinged with a
slight vein of sarcasm.
His Majesty, in the first sentence, asserts
that the treaty of cession was entered into on
his part in answer to ''the repeated and urgent
requests of the North American Government, -
and on this assertion has been based the
grievance of Denmark. General Raaslof,
who negotiated the treaty while residing at
Washington as ambassador, recently resigned
his position in the Danish Cabinet because of
the seeming bad faith of our Government in
the matter, which 80 preyed upon his mind
as to cause him to lose both confidence in
himself and courage to face his countrymen
in everyday official intercourse. Yet General
Raaslof and King Christian know, or ought
to know, that the Secretary of State is not
the Government of the United States, and
that any project which he may
see fit to inaugurate or entertain,
especially when it involves heavy expendi-
ture of money, is not binding upon the other
branch of the treaty making power, and places
the Senate under no moral or legal obligation
to regard it with equal favor. Although this
is the case, it would still have been more
creditable to the Senate if that body had been
gracious enough to give the treaty the atten-
ton which its unquestioned Importance de-
manded. By so doing, the Senate would not
have sacrificed any of its dignity, and the
sensitiveness of the Danish Government
would not have been so thoroughly aroused.
There is no help for it now, however, and
since the Senate has for nearly three years
the treaty was dated October "a, 1867-per-
sistently ignored the annexation scheme, it is
well for both countries that it has at last been
definitely abandoned.