New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1890-08-17

tion which the military appear pOWerleSS 10
suppress bids fair to spread throughout the
country, unless a compromise is speedily et-
fected between the Legislature and the tx
ecutive
ENGLISH CRITICISM or Mr.. BLAINE.
Our London correspondents dispatch TINS
morning contains some recent comments from
"The London Standard" Lord Salisbury
special organ, and from 1.-The Times upon
the Behring Sea controversy. The BRUSH
Government has issued a Blue Book, present
ing the correspondence already made public III
this country. and this has furnished the occa-
sion for these remarkable outburSts OF offensive
talk. 1t needs to be said that the british
Journals and the Ministry, too, are gong
altogether too far in their charges that
the President and Mr.. Blaine are nsincere III
the position they have taken, and that this
position is attributable to domestic politics and
particularly to a desire to please the lrlsh. VI
course. if Great Britain is bent upon making
her Irish subjects active allies of America III
this dispute we shall not object, however much
we NAV be astoniShed at her folly. But the
allegation of dishonest motives against our
Government can have no other enect Ill
America than to awaken bitter reSentmentS
and to embarraSs still further negotiation
which Lord Salisbury has already made Sufi-
GENTLY difficult and doubtful
Except in this light the charge does not call
for serious consideration. The position OF this
Administration differs in 10 respect whatever
from that assumed by the Cleveland Admin
istration when the seal poachlng first began
Mr.. Bayard, it is true, did not assert American
rights with any boisterous vehemencs ne
| London Times indeed has accused HIM OF
timidity, but we cannot indorSe thls Wow.
There is no reason why he should have as
played any particular force in his demands, for
his first statement of them was promptly
| met with all the promises he could have wished.
| So long as the prospect of Just and friendly
settlement by international arrangement was
held out TO him, what occasion was there Tor
strong language? But Lord Salisbury'S eX-
traordnary disregard of Lis agreements with
Minister Phelps compelled Mr. Blaine to pUr-
sue a different course in his assertion OF our
rights. England, having committed herself 10
the details of treaty by which the poachers
were to be shut out of Behring Sea so long as
! they could do any great damage 10 seal llie
suddenly turned her back upon her promises
many of them voluntary, and shut OF the ne
potiafion. When she asked 10 have 1t re-
opened She could scarcely expect to find us III
as amiable humOr as we had been.
| If Mr.. Blaine's course is TO be criticised at
all. ii is for its moderation. lie might well
have begun by demanding an explanation ol
what England meant by repudiatng the as
surances she had given again and again not
only to Mr.. Phelps and Mr.. White bnt 10
NJ. de Staal also and he might have lntlmated
that until Lord Salisbury convinced us oil his
actual intention 10 make good his pledges IL
was scarcely worth our while 10 waste time IN
negotiation. Indeed, we are almost inclined
10 say that this would have been the bet
ter plan, for the experience which our
Minister and the Russian Ambassador had
had in London in 1883 with Lord salisbury
was repeated with scarcely variation al
Washington in the present controversy. NH
ister pauncefote came here full Of mild hopes
,pd gentle PROMISES. lis early interviews
with Mr.. Blaine gave the largest prospects OF
n satisfactory treaty. At meeting between
Mr.. Blaine, the Russian Minister and himself
Sir Julian laid down the lines Tor close season
in Rehrine Sea almost exactly a. they had been
agreed to by Lord Salisbury, Mr. Phelps and
NJ de Staal, and his suggestions were inscribed
upon maps now in the possession OF the
American State Department and the RUSSIAN
Legation. No obstacles 10 such an agreement
were then or are to-day presented by our Gov
ernment But before Sir Julians proposals
could be worked into a binding contract Can
ada stepped in, as she had done before anC
vetoed Sir Julian as she had vetoed the Marquis
of Salisbury.
Now, whose sincerity is asSailed? Eng
land has twice through her Premier and hi
Minister admitted the full justice Of the Amer
can demand a demand which this Premier
; newspaper organ now describes 10 the British
public as "pretensiOn without a shred o
. plausibility" Whose motives does this stat
of things mpugn? Whose integrity does /
e reflect upon? Here are the two great Anglo
' Saxon nations of the world brought int
l strained relations BY Minister who twice con
cedes his want Of confidence in his case b.
distinctly Offering To grant all that the othe
I, side demands, but who finally refuses to carr
ont his own proposals because he is afraid o
= the political effect that action may have in hi
l. ! cmpire In this situation Americans will no
u patiently hear such language as the Tony or
= cans are using. They and the Government
they echo arc rapidly creating Il sentiment i
J. this country which will be intolerant Of an
i issue of the controversy based upon interna
" tionsl agreement.