The Red Cloud chief., 1890-09-05
~BARRUNDIA'S CASE.
Tho 0toto Department Awaiting
Further AdvjCo0.
LIMITED RIGHTS Of IERCHAyIlu
Prso ,Asaas Whessss Rsssgess sevs Hsss
OossOo1oeod - Lseal !Aseessssbse
-oeesssasy 0ay.ed's CAss
- PosoG

WAS0IS0IONs O0Ye WV
partment has taken Measure to secure
fall particulars Of the shooting Of Gem
oral Barrundia ON board IN American
vessel lying In tho port Of San joss.
BY officers Of the Guatemaian Govern
meat and until the exact facts n Gu.
eumstanoes connected with the suass
arc known. IL does moi care 10 express
any opinion OF the case or OF the course
Of Minister Miner.
A Ease involving the identical psin'
ciple with that Of General Barrundia
occurred In Nicaragua in 1855. Ind In
that case Secretary Bayard informed
our Minister to Central America that
the N~icaraguan Government had . right
TO take . man wanted from on board an
American merchant vessel, provided she
were in Nicaraguan waters
The case was that Of jose Gomez In
. letter dated Guatemala. February 10
1885, Minister Hall informed Secretary
Frelinhuysen that he had been informed
that the Guatcmalan Government pro-
posed to take from o board b Pacific
Mail steamer Honduras then lying in
San Juan del Sur. . passenger named
Gomez. In transit for Panama, but
wanted in Nicaragua TO answer . charge
Of being implicated in . recent insurrec-
ton in that country. Minister Hall
said that he had directed u Consul at
Managua 20 inform the Nlcaraguan Gov
eminent that ''our Government has never
consented. and will never consent.
to the removal from An American vessel
in . foreign port OF any passenger In
transit much less II the Offense IS pO-
l~itical." The captain Of the vessel did
not give up the man and sailed out OF
port without securing proper clearance
papers lie "a tried and convicted for
this by the N:caraguan authorities
The case came before tho State Depart
mont in this way and 1t held that Min
ister Hall had not acted according 70
Law. In his letter to the Minister.
which Is dated March IL 1851. Secretary
Bayard says:
1T appears that Gomez voluntarily
took passage on the vessel. knowing
that it would enter en- route a Nicara.
guam port
1T may be safely affirmed that when
q merchant vessel OF M country visits
the ports Of another for the purpose Of
trade it owes temporary allegiance and
is amenable to the i~ur.sdict.o On OF that
country and is subject TO the laws which
govern the port 1t visits so long rs 1t re-
mains, unless 1t is otherwise provided
by treaty. Any exemption or immunity
from Jurisdiction must be derived from
the consent Of that country"
1t is said that cases have frequently
occurred in which revolutiOnists and
others wanted for offenses of n charac-
tor or another have been seized by the
Hawaiian government, while the British
merchant ships and Great Britain had
not protested. thus establishing diplo-
mat c precedents. Had the vessel been
q man-of-war, Barrundia would not have
been subject to the jurisdiction. as wal
vessels carry everywhere the jurisdiction
Of the country whose flag they fly. The
Barrundia affair differs from the Others
In that the man was shot but the righ,
to seize being conceded the right TO kill
| II resistance Is made is an old established
principle Of law.
The principal criticism made in diplo
matte circles Of Minister Miners course
Is that Of unnecessary interference. II
is suggested that he might have simply
| stated to tho Guatemalans that they
bad seized the man ut their own risk.
But IN this point it Is thought we'll Il
await knowledge Of exactly what the
Minister said and did before pr OnOunc
ing Judgment upon his conduct