St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1893-03-29
NO RIGHT OF ASYLUM
Could Be Given to Political
Offenders Under the Rus
sian Treaty.
Injunction Of Secrecy Will Be
Removed in a Few
Days.
One Clause Which Would Give
Russia Power in This
Country,
Hidden in the Text, Was
Overlooked by the Sena-
tors.

WASHINGTON, March 28.-No treaty
that has come before the senate in late
years has received more public atten-
ton than that which was recently con-
Guided between the government of the
car and the United States. 1t has been
severely criticised, and it is said by its
opponents to he the first stroke against
the liberty of those who flee to America
to escape political prosecution. In the
past two or three executive sessions of
the senate there has been quite debate
OH the proposition to release the in
junction of secrecy, and permit the peo-
pie to know exactly what it contains.
A resolution was introduced yesterday
to remove this injunction of secrecy, but
it was referred to the committee on
foreign relations, and that committee has
not yet reported. The majority of the
senators want the matter made public
for the reason that the text of the treaty
has been wrongly stated by the public
prints, and the senate has, as they
claim, been unjustly criticised by reason
of this transformation. The state de-
partment is also willing that the text of
the treaty should 90 out, but there is
not such a unanimity of sentiment con-
corning the propriety of publishing the
Accompanying correspondence.
The committee on foreign relations is
in communication with the officials OF
the state department. and as soon as an
agreement is reached the resolution to
remove the injunction of secrecy will
be favorably reported to the senate.
The criticism of this treaty is princi-
pally directed against the article which
is said to make the commission of politi-
cal offenseS eXtraditable. The language
of this clause is Identical with that
found in the treaty with BEGUN.
In that treaty it is provided
that the provisions of this con-
vention shall not be applicable to
persons guilty of any political Offense
or crime, or of one connected with such
crime or offense." 1t also provides
that ian attempt against the life of the
head of foreign government or against
tfat of any member of his family,
act either of murder or assassina-
ton, or of poisoning, shall not
be considered political otfense or an
act connected with such an offense."
In the public prints there has appeared
at the end of such clause the words
land shall not be eXtraditable." No
such affirmative statement appears in
the treaty.
The Little Joker.
1t is not the clause of this convention
relative to attempts to assassinate the
car or any member of his family that
has aroused the opposition to the
treaty so much as another matter that
has been found hidden away in the
text, and of seemingly innocent pur-
port, SO far as anything political is
concerned. The treaty makes the
forgery of any government paper or
document an OffenSe for which the
guilty person may be eXtradted. 1t is
we'll known that no political suspect
can escape from Russia without
the aid OF a passport, and that he
cannot secure that coveted document.
Necessarily, he Is compelled to re
sort to the eXpediency of forgery
and the instrument that passes him
through the frontier is forgery-the
forgery of government paper. The
treaty contains no explanatory foot
notes, but makes extraditable the Of
tense that has been in every such case
committed. By this means it is argued
that the Russian government has,
by virtue of the treaty, ratified
by the United States veritable drag
net with which it can pull back to its
boundary every man who makes his
escape and punish him-not for the
political Offense, but for the act Of
forgery. The result, it is claimed, will
be the same, for it removes the individ-
ual from every right of asylum which