Evening journal., 1891-11-11
AGREED ON ARBITRATION
The Behring Sea Negotiations
Have Been Concluded.
A SURPRISE IN THE sAYwARD CASH

Attorney oenefhi Miller Let's Out a State
secret During Solicitor General Tart's
Argument Before the United states su.
preme Court.
WASHINGTON, Nov. 1.-THE important
announcement made in the supreme court
Of the United States by Attorney General
Miller during the argument in the Say
ward or Behrng sea case, that the United
States and Great Britain had agreed to
submit the Bshring sea controversy to ar
bitration, was the hrst intimation that
the correspondence had at last resulted in
q satisfactory agreement. Both sides had
agreed to submit the matter to arbitra.
tion II an agreement could be reached as
70 what points should be laid before the
arbitrators, but there did not seem to be
much prospect Of a unanimity OF opinion
on this subject Attorney General Miller
refused TO talk about his revelation further
than to say that an agreement as to the
questions 70 be submitted for arbitration
had been reached aud only awaited the
sanction Of the senate before being placed
before the persons that will. be selected by
Great Britain and the United States 10
settle the matter.
Solicitor Taft's Argument.
When the argument was resumed before
the supreme court Solicitor General Taft
claimed that Jurisdiction over the waters
accompanying the grant Of Alaska TO this
country by Russia and all waters Of Alaska
over which the emperor of Russia had
jurisdiction was conveyed by the grant, as
the waters OF Alaska included Behring
sea- The question at issue being polit.
ical one the executives decision was con.
elusive unless congress took action, and
II any claim were to be made concerning
territorial sovereignty the president was
vested with power 20 make IL, and his de-
cision would be correct. How could the
president decide, asked Mr. Taft, what
were the waters OF Behrlng sea II he could
not carry out the seizure actf IL would be
an edifying spectacle, II an armed conflict
had arisen out OF the controversy, for the
president to be powerless to decide what
action should be taken until after the case
had been decided by a court of admiralty
or by the federal supreme court.
The Presidents Power Supreme.
The president exercised the right to de.
eide political questions. and from his de-
cision there was no appeal The counsel
/ Of the British government had said thar
the United States had no direct claim to
| Jurisdiction over Behring sea In this they
differed from their client, Lord Salisbury,
who construed the positlon Of the United
! ssttat.es Just as this goYefnment did. Re.
ferrlng To Secretary payAfd's release Of
British vessels seized Tor illegal sealing in
Behrikg sea ID tsea Mr.. Taft contended
that this was done without walving the
r'sn. OF seizure. Hw
The Interesting Announcements.
Then came the interesting disclosure OF
the day, The United States, he said, had
2eeQ hsked TO submit the matter 70 ar.
bitratloh and bad agreed to the PROPOSE.
tion, and now the other side asked for an
opinion in advance Of this arbitration.
Perhaps arbitration had not been agreed
upon, but az least the correspondence mat
ter was leading up to arbitration.
| Not only that" interjected ATTORNEY
General Miller, but il has been agreed
upon in the correspondence
The announcement Of the attorney gen.
eral, important as il was, did not create
that amount of visible interest that it
would have created il made outside the
supreme court chamber. Very few present
seemed 20 recognize the significance OF the
statement, and Mr.. Taft went on with his
argument as IL nothing had happened.
The Attorney General speaks.
Attorney General Miller followed Mr..
Taft In continuation of the argument for
the United States He thought the juris-
diction Of the supreme court had been set
tied. The Alaska court, he said. was not
an inferior court authorities proved il
was superior court and its findings were
just as conclusive on the supreme court as
on anybody else. The decision Of the Alas
ka courts could not be attacked unless a
statement Of want OF jurisdiction ap-
peared on its face, aud he quoted Chief
Justice Marshall in support of this con-
tention.
Rap for the Lions Knuckies.
The attorney general made an ironicai
allusiOn to the foreign policy Of Great
Britain, adding that the British govern
ment had not always shown that touching
regard for international law of which Mr..
Carlisle had spoken so highly in its inter-
national dealings. The question OF boun-
daries, he said was not question for the
courts, because the courts did not make
boundaries. In conclusion the attorney
general said an agreement had been ar
rived at as to the terms Of arbitration Ia
the Behring sea question, and now the
other side asked that the supreme cours
should decide the question, and not only
decide it, but decide it against the United
States.
Attorney choate's Argument.
Joseph II. Choate, Of New York. fol-
lowed Mr. Miller He made the closing
argument for the British government.
The three-mile limit law, he said, had
never been disputed until now.
The Sayward when seized ffty-nine
miles from land, was fifty-six miles out
side Of all possible jurisdiction Of the
United States. 1t was the duty and power
Of the supreme court to search the pro-
ceedings Of the Alaska district court to
fad what jurisdiction it had in finding
that the Sayward had taken seal illegally.
Continuing, he said that the position Of
the United States concerning sovereignty
over Behring sea did not hold Why woula
Il not be proper then for the president to
extend the territorial jurisdiction Of this
country hundred miles out to scar He
claimed that the United States had nos
even made the claim Of national sovereign
ty brought forward The state depart
ment had over and over again openly dis
ayowed the ground on which contention
was made; that from the 193d parallel
east to the American shore was mare
clausum. With the conclusion Of Mr..
Choate's argument the case was closed
Firemen Charged with Incsndiarism.
KINGSTON, n. Y, Nov iI-John Kou-
bout, twenty-four years old, and John Nc
Cam ninatpan vaara old both local fire.