The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1872-06-13

The Treaty Question I'm tho British
Parliament-What Remains To BE
Done.
When the British Ministry, on Tuesday last,
in accordance with notice previously given,
made an explanation to the two houses OF
Parliament Of the present condition of the
treaty negotiations with our government
the Marquis of Salisbury insisted that the
Lords and Commons of that august body
had been fed too long on scraps of information
supplied from this side of the Atlantic through
4 the corruption or indiscretion of American
officials. We can pardon the ill-temper and
bad taste displayed by the noble Marquis in
= his allusion to our own people in considera-
ton of the severe test to which the patience of
) the English nation must have been put by the
singularly deceptive and unfortunate state
ments so repeatedly made by the British gov
eminent in relation to the treaty question and
the disagreements connected Herewith. The
dexplanaion-for however little they may ex-
plain, these official utterances are dignified
with that ttle-made by Lord Granville in
one house and Mr.. Gladstone in the other,
1 just prior to the HERAID's publication of the
! entire correspondence between the two govern
ments and of the text of the supplemental
rule demanded by England, represented
the controversy as so near a satisfactory
lated the Ministry on its success, and even the
bilious Earl Russell did not venture to mar
the occasion by more than a passing sheer.
= 1t was not many days before it became evident
that the end had not yet been reached, and
the ministerial congratulations turned out to
have been premature Last week Mr.. Glad
stone again surprised and delighted the Com
mons by the sudden announcement, on the
alleged authority of Minister Schenck, that
our government had Internationally with
drawn the claims for indirect damages from be-
: fore the Geneva Tribunal, and the news was
received with cheers from both ministerial
and opposition benches. This gratifying ex-
PLANTATION, however, was soon discovered to be
equally unsatisfactory with the others, and the
singular controversy was restored to its for
mer justification and middle. On Tuesday /
last came yet another explanation" and it /
consisted of the bare announcement that q
proposition had been made on behalf Of Eng
land to the American government for an eight
months adjournment of the Geneva Court of y
Arbitration, which is to meet on Saturday
next and for the postponement Of the time for (
filing the arguments of the contracting parties (
- c,-&,, l,xo 80, khak ,x~th
efforts may be made to harmonic
the differences still existing between the
two governments. Neither Mr. Gladstone
in the Commons, nor Earl Granville In the
Lords, alluded to any refusal on the part of
I our government to consent to such adjourn
ment and postponement, but, on the contrary,
rather encouraged the inference that the ar
rangement had met the views of the admins
tration at Washington. The latter in particu-
Lar is reported by the cable as saying that che
i had consented to the idea Of an adjournment
Of the Geneva Board to give time for the re-
moval Of the difficulties, thus clearly imply
| ing that the idea had originated with the Amer
leans, and not with the English. No state
ment was made by the Ministry of the instruc-
tons that had been given to the British agent
and representatives in the Geneva Conference,
although the diplomatic announcement was
: vouchsafed that they had been armed with full
powers, and nothing at oil was mentioned of
any letter addressed by Earl Granville to the
4 American Minister on the subject.
This meagre, unsatisfactory and somewhat
: deceptive explanation being all that the
British Parliament could obtain at the hands
; of their government on Tuesday last, we fear
: that the ire of the Marquis Of Salisbury will
again be excited when he receives some more
..scraps of information from this side of the
! Atlantic Yesterday the HERALD published
q exclusively the text Of the note of Earl Gran
Vile to Minister Schenck and of the instruc-
a tons of the English government to their agent
z at Geneva, and to-day we are enabled to give
q the substance of the much-discussed Senate
: amendments to the English supplemental
s article. This important budget Of informa-
ton presents officially the exact situation of
the negotiations between the two governments
at the present moment, and clears away
the fog and confusion raised by the
British Ministry in their last attempt
at explanation. II will dispel the illusion said
to be still prevailing in England that the treaty
4 is to be saved, and will reflect unpleasantly
upon the recent course of Mr.. Gladstone and
y his associates, who, If not amenable to the
charge of corruption or indiscretion in giving
correct scraps of information to the public,
are at least open to the suspicion of disingenu-
Gus concealment of the truth in their official
+ utterances Indeed candid review Of the
the policy Of the British Ministry throughout
: this entire controversy has been one Of pro-
j cmstination, insincerity and deception. The
conclusion is irresistible that Mr.. Gladstone
has all along desired to destroy the Treaty Of