The Bennington banner. [volume] (Bennington, Vt.) 1858-1894, 1889-01-24
THE SAMOANMUDDLE.

WASHINGTON. Jan. % The Senate
Committee on Foreign Relations will
morrow discuss the Samoan question at
length, Printed copies of the testimony
of Consul General Sewali have been
placed in the hands of the memb .rs
Sewall criiicises severely the conduct of
the State Department The committee
will probably rep to the Senate arts.
o uiion condemning tie attitude and
nOn-action of the State department.
From conversations with members of
the committee aud others a full lyno.
sis of the testimony of Consul-General
sewaII, which probably will be made
public tomorrow has been obtained.
Sewall testified that the natives were
peaceable and law-abiding. All Chris
tians were very favorably impressed
with the attitude of the United States
toward their country when the existing
treaty was negotiated. He expressed
regret that the treaty should ever have
been negotiated as since then the atti
tude Of the United States toward them
had MOI been the same, and they had
been made h. suffer for it. Sewsll quot
ed extensively from the correspondence
between himself and the state depart
ment, showing that the British Consul
had been acting with the Germans for
three years. He expressed the opinion
freely that there was an arrangement
lie ween the two governments, by which
Great Britain was to keep her hands off
in this fight. His underst inding always
had been, that the German government
under this arrangement was to take pos
session of Samoa. the British govern
| ma nf IlIa d nd haf
tuslly Great Britain was to come into
possession of Hawaii. He believed if
these operations were not checked. they
would soon extend to Hawaii, which is
to be the northern resting place Of the
cable between Vancouver and New Yea.
land, When he arrived at Samoa,
Sewall found rebellion encouraged by
the Germans, while the Samoan had
been assured by the representative OF
the United States that they would be
protected by tins government and they
had remained quiet in the belief that
this protection would be afforded. Ga
the day after his arrival. Sc wall rece V d
a dispatch from the State Department
instructing the natives not to resort to
force as the treaty powers were e1deaV-
oring to obtain native government for
Samoa. When this dispatch was shown
to the Samo tns, they seemed much inn
pressed. Mtlietoa was ready to put
down the insurrection, but with the un-
Outstanding that the United States
claimed joint right in the settlement
OF Samoan affairs, and nothing lasting
would be done without the knowledge
and consent of this government.
BAYARD's SHELLY sHALLY POLICY.
Secretary Bayard is quoted as saying
that the State Department has gone to
the limit of its discretion in endeavOT-
ing to settle the Samoan difficulty, and
that it remains for the Senate to deter
mine the policy to be pursued.
This evidence of INDIGESTION and desire
to shift responsibility stands out more
significantly when it is known that Mr..
Bsyard admits that in 1887 he, with rep
resentatives of Germany and England
signed protocol establishing the
Samoan Island as neutral territory, with
the provision that the agreement thus
entered into should remain secret until
consent for publication should be given
by each party to it.
So, it appears that Mr., BIyard did not
hesitate to sign an International agree
ment amounting to treaty with prom
Use to keep 1t secret from the Senate,
which under the constitution is a par,
Of the tresty-making power Of the
United States, but now, when the flag
has been insulted, he is so rery careful
not to go Beyond the limits of his dis
erection that he asks the Senate for fur
ther instructions before he feels justified
in taking further action.
A father would feel like repudiating
his son who, having been slapped in the
face by an overbearing playmate, asked
for parental advice before resenting the
outrage; and it is gratifying to remem-
Der that Mr.. Bayard was ,epudiated by
the American people on Nov. 6, 1888.