Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1892-09-07
GOOD, IF IT is LONG.
The General Opinion of the Presi-
dents Letter of Acceptance
AMONG THOSE In WASHINGTON.
Great Britain's Argument on the Bering
Sea Arbitration.
UNCLE SANS CHANCES NOT THE BEST
trnoM A STAFF coRRss poSpExr.,

ter of acceptance of Presidential nomina
ton on record has been read with far more
than usual care by more people than usually
read such dry productions, judging from the
number of individuals who were able TODAY
to give an opinion in regard to the merits Of
the essay of Mr.. HarrisoR
OF course it goes without saving that all
of the Republicans think highly of the let.
ter But the feeling is something more
than one of ordinary commendation. There
is an air of triumph about them when they
refer to the paper if to say that it is i'm
possible for Cleveland to meet it success,
fully. This seems to be the one thought
that Harrison has given to the public an
impregnable argument upon these questions
that are more vital to the prosperity of the
country, occasionally quoting Democratic
authority in support of his assertions in re-
gard to the tariff.
What the Democrats Have to Say.
On the other hand, the Democrats are
convinced that the document is weak. They
compare it with the briet, terse and pointed
letters of acceptance of Grant and other
famous candidates of the Republican party,
and say that the very fact that the Presi-
dent had to take 5000 words to make good
his arguments is infallible proof of the
weakness of his case. At the headquarters
of the Democratic Congressional Commit
tee to-day the letter was the main topic of
conversation, and the critics of that manu-
factory of campaign thunder, after exbaus-
tive analysis, discovered that if this were
intended to be the one and only utterance
OF the Republican candidate during the
and fhaf If he raStad hia on
this plea, the difficulty of defeating him
with fact and logic would not be very great
The third party people are also convinced
that the letter is a weak one, containing lit
tie more than the usual partisan clap-trap
that has been the stock in trade of the old
party candidates for long years. Cleveland
will come back at him, they feel sure, with
similar clap-trap for the opposing side, and
then the people of the whole country will
be able to see beyond question that the only
party that is keeping progress With the
march of reason is the Peoples party.
Fir.;-Rate Lett-Hsnded Comp imenr.
Perhaps not the least welcome compli-
ment to Mr.. Harrison is that which is heard
from the less partisan and more literary
class, who express much dlspleasure at
reading a State paper dealing with the
greatest questions that are before the people
for political dispute in language so simple
that persons of the most ordinary education
and understanding can have no difficulty In
reaching the meaning of the writer. This
however is an oft-repeated compliment to
the productions of President Harrison, that
while his English occasionally has slight
favor of the Hoosier of the prairies the
dicton is charming almost to the point of
the monotonous, aud commonplace in its
severe simplicity.
Much curiosity is exhibited on all sides to
know how Mr.. Cleveland will meet this
strong and explicit production of his oppo-
nent A politician OF national note who has
recently paid q visit TO the country resi-
dence of the ex-President, predicts that Nj.
Cleveland will make his letter sharp con-
trast TO that of Mr. Harrison in the matter
OF length, and that it will have much more
of vitality and SNAP in it One thing he
is certain to do is to produce statistics from
authorities of some weight that will coun-
teract the assertions of Mr. Harrison in re-
gard to the tariff, and certainly that will
lake all the sting out of the report of Com
missioner Peck, which report is so promi-
nently used by the Harrison letter. At
Democratic headquarters it is stated that
the Cleveland letter is expected to appear
within q week or ten days
EnglaDd's Answer q Berine Sea.
The argument of the United States in the
matter of the Bering Sea arbitration has
been forwarded to the British arbitrators
and to-day the argument of the counsel for
he British Government was received at the
State DEPARTMENT, and copies of it w.re
distributed to the American arbitrators, the
counsel, aud to those officials of the State
Department who have bourne a prominent
hand in the preparation of the brief. In a
guarded conversation to-day with one of
the most prominent of the gentlemen who
have been engaged at this exhaustive work |
tor months past but who can speak with
entire impartiality in regard to the merits |
of the legal work, 1t was stated to the cor
respondent of THE DISPATCH that while |
the British side of the case is well prepared |
itwould not compare with the American |
brief in clearness and in elaborate and |
methodical arrangement
While perfect secrecy is maintained in !
regard to the character of the arguments, it !
is learned that both sides admit that the /
pivotal point of the dispute is as to whether /
animals which roam the high seas, but |
whose exclusive spot for bringing forth and |
rearing their young is on the territory of a
certain country, can be claimed as the prop
erty of that country, even on the high seas |
Claims Tor the American Rrirt
Tt is claimed that the American briet |
shows conclusivelv the affirmative of this /
question as matter of natural right which |
has been recognized and asserted bv the |
Government of Great Britain, just as the |
right to extend police jurisdiction beyond /
the three-mile limit, as in the case of our |
vessels of the revenue marine, which may |
sail out to q distance of II miles or more |
upon the high aeas and compel a vessel /
suspected of an infraction of the revenue |
laws to heave to and submit to search.
1t is a curious fact that the prevailing |
opinion is that the arbitration will go |
against the United States, regardless of the |
weight of argument Whether this is /
merely on account of the fact that three |
Erbitrators who must be the court of last |
resort are all Europeans is not patent, but |
1t is an opinion among not only the un-
official class RIO have been most closely as
sociated with the case officially. All of
the countries who furnish these three arbi-
traitors are somewhat Jealous of the amazing
development OF America, and all of them
have expressed displeasure, through their
press and the mouths of their legislators at
the unfavorable manner in which their
commerce has been affected by the opera
tion OF the tariff law of the United States.
No one can tell whether the personal feel
ings OF the arbltrators will have any weight
Leanings of the Arbitrator
1t has been said that the Baron de Cour-
celles belongs to an old family whose tradi-
tions would suggest that his personal affec-
tions might lean toward America rather
than toward Crest Britain, but how far the
tender and patriotic associations of his an
cestors will sway the present Baron no one
attempts to guess
Nothing is known here of the personality
or international feeling of the Scandinavian