Martinsburg herald. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1881-1920, 1891-04-25
THE ITALIAN AFFAIR.

THE ITALIAN AFFAIR.
Another Instalment of Diplomatic
Correspondence.
| Vigorous Letter of Mr.. Blaine in Reply
| to the Rudini Despatch of April 3D.
Some hisapprehensions Cleared.
The Following is the correspondence be-
| tween Secretary Blaine and the Italian Gov
eminent since the Secretary's note to Marquis
Imperinli, acknowledging notice of Baron
| Fayas departure:
PREMIER RUDINI's CABLE DESPATCH.
ROYAL LEGATION OF ITALY,
WASHINGTON, APRIL 3 1891.
Mr.. SECRETARY OF STATE: hasten to ac-
knowledge the receipt of the note which your
excellency did me the honor to address to me
on the LIST instant in reply to that whereby
Baron Fava informed you of his departure on
leave. / have laid the contents of your Excel
lency's Aforesaid note before the Government
Of the King, and his Exceleney, the President
OF the Council, his Majesty's Minister for For
eign Affairs, has just directed me to address
the following communication to you:
The Government of the King of Italy has
asked nothing beyond the prompt institution
of judicial proceedings through the regular
channels. 1t would have been absurd 10 claim
the punishment of the guilty parties without
the warrant of q regular judgement The
Italian Government now repeats the same de-
mand Not until the Federal Government
shall have explicitly declared that the aforesaid
proceedings shall be promptly begun can the
diplomatic incident be considered as closed.
Meanwhile, his Majestys Government takes
note of the declaration whereby the Federal
Government recognizes that an indemnity is
due to the families of the victims in virtue of
the treaty in force between the two coun-
tries"
have, therefore, the honor to bring the fore
going to the knowledge of your Excellency,
and | avail myself of this occasion to offer you
Mr.. Secretary of State, the assurance of my
highest and most respectful consideration.
IMPERIALI.
His Excellency, James G. Blaine, Secretary
of State.
SECRETARY BLAINE's REPLY.
DEPARTMENT OF STATE,
WASHINGTON, April IA, 1891.
The Marquis Imperid6, Chargedi "A fairs, DC,
SIR: have the honor to acknowledge the
receipt of your note, dated Thursday, April q
1891. 1t contains second telegram from
the Marquis Rudini, part of which | here
quote:
The Government of the King of Italy has
asked nothing beyonTthe prompt institution of
judicial proceedings through the regular cham
nels. 1t would have been absurd to claim the
punishment of the guilty parties without the
warrant of regular judgement The Italian
Government now repeats the same demand.
Not until the Federal Government shall have
explicitly declared that the aforesaid proceed
ings shall be promptly begun can the diplo.
matte incident be considered as closed.
The Government certainly had no desire
whatever to change the meaning of tue Mar
quis RudiniS telegram of March "a. 1t was
delivered at the State Department by Baron
Fava in person, written in his own hand, and
expressed in the English language. The fol-
lowing is the full text of the telegram:
ROME, March a. 1891.
Italian Minister Washington:
Our requests to the Federal Government are
very simple. Some Italian subjects, acquitted
by the American magistrates have been MUIR
dered in prison while under the immediate
protection of the authorities. Our right there
fore 10 d 'n,dI,d and obtain the punishment of
the murderers, and an indemnify for the nc
Tins is unquesttonabie. / wish to add that the
public opinion in Italy is justly impatient,
and if concrete provisions were not at once
taken | should find myself in the painful ne
cessity of showing openly our dissatisfaction
by recalling the Minister of his Majesty from
a country where he is unable to obtain JUS
tice. RUDiNI
The words underscored are precisely those
which | quoted in my former note and | am
directed by the President to express the salts
faction of this Government with the very ma
terial qualification of the demand made by the
Marquis Rudini on behalf of the Italian Gov
eminent
You quote in your note another part of the
Marquis Rudinis telegram of April O. in these
words
Meanwhile his Majesty s Government takes
note of the declaration whereby the Federal
Government recognizes that an indemnity is
due to the families of the victims in virtue of
the treaty in force between two countries.
If the Marquis Rudini will carefully exam
inc my note of April |, he will discover that [
did not recognize that an indemnity is due
to the families of the victims in virtue of the
treaty in force between the two countries"
What did say was in answer to Baron Favas
assertion that the United States Government
refused to take this demand for indemnity into
consideration. L quote my reply:
The United States, so far from refusing, has
distinctly recognized the principle of indem.
nifty TO those Italian subjects lobo may hare
been cronged byd pi0ldtifn Of me rights@ cured
to them under the treaty nth The United States
concluded Feb. 26, 1871.
The Marquis Rudini may be assured that
the United States would recompense every
Italian subject who might ''be wronged by a
violation of treaty" to which the faith of the
United States is pledged. But this assurance
leaves unsettled the important question
whether the treaty has been violated. Upon
this point the President, with sufficient facts
placed before him, has taken full time for de-
cision. He now directs that certain considera-
tons on the general subject be submitted to
the judgment of the Italian Government.
As precedent of great value to the case
under discussion the President recalls the con-
clusion maintained by Mr.. Webster in 1851,
when he was Secretary of State under Presi-
dent Fillmore. In August of that year mob
in New Orleans demolished the building in
which the Office of the Spanish Consul was To-
Gated, and at the same time attacks were made
upon coffee houses and cigar shops kept by
Spanish subjects. American citizens were in
volved in the losses, which in the aggregate
were large. The supposed cause of the mob
was the intelligence of the execution of fifty
young Americans in Havana and the Danish
ment to Spanish mines of nearly 200 citizens Of
the United States. The victims were all mem
bers of the abortive Lopez expedition.
In consequence of these depredations of the
mob upon the property of the Spanish Consul,
as well as against the Spanish subjects. Don
Calderon de la Parca the Minister of Spain,
demanded naturalization for all the losses,
both official and person. Mr.. Webster ad-
mitted that the Spanish Consul was entitled to
indemnity, and assured the Spanish Minister
that if the injured Consul, Mr.. Laborde, shall
return to his post, or any other Consul for New
Orleans shall be appointed by her Catholic
Majestys Government, the officers of this
Government resident in that city will be in
structed to receive and treat him with courtesy,
and with national salute to the flag of his
ship, if he shall arrive in Spanish vessel, as
demonstration of respect, such as may signify
10 him and to his Government the sense enter
tanned by the Government OF the United States
of the gross injustice done TO his predecessor
by lawless mob, as well as the indignity and
insult offered by it to a foreign State with
which the United States are and wish ever to
remain on terms of the most respectful and
pacific intercourse"
But when pressed by the Spanish Minister
to afford indemnity TO Spanish subjects injured
by the mob in common with American citizens
Mr.. Webster declined to aecede the demand,
and gave his reasons as follows:
This Government supposes that the rights
of the Spanish Consul, public officer residing
here under the protection of the United States
Government, are quite different from those of
the Spanish subjects who have come into the
country to mingle with our own citizens, and
here to pursue their private business and OBJ
siects- The former may claim special indem
nifty, the latter are entitled to such protection
as is afforded to our own citizens. While,
therefore, the losses of individuals, private
Spanish subjects, are greatly to be regretted,
yet it is understood that many American citi-