The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1894-01-05
THE NEWS IN WASHINGTON.
Much Doubt Expressed That Willis
Made the Demand.

Much Doubt Expressed That Wills
Made the Demand.
WASHINGTON, Jan. 5, 1S94.-The Homo
lulu news to December % transmitted by
way of Auckland, New Zealand, and con-
veyed to that point by the officers of the
steamer Alameda. was discussed at the State
apparent credence this morning.
In truth, as nearly as diplomatic reticence
would permit, the information given out by
the Alameda's officers as to Mr.. Willis having
at that late date made formal
demand for the surrender of the Pro-
visional Government was almost doubted
in view of the assurance contained in the
last paragraph of the Presidents special
message sent to Congress dated December
IS, in which he distinctly turned over the
matter of the further course to be
pursued to the discretion of Congress in these
words =
'sIn commencing this subject to the ex-
tended powers and wide discretion of Con-
gress, desire to add the assurance that /
shall be much gratified to cooperate in any
legislative plan which may be devised for the
solution of the problem before us, which is
consistent with American honor, integrity
and morality" y
Still. up to December 22d, when the Ala
media left Honolulu, Mr.. Willis was acting
under instructions from Secretary Gresham,
which left San Francisco by the revenue
cutter Corwin, on December 4, and which
were transmitted to Congress with the Presi-
dents message. These instructions, which
were telegraphed under date of December 8,
were as follows:
GRESHAM TO WILLIS.
swAsHINGToN, d. c., Dec. 8, 1898.
''Your dispatch, which was answered by
steamer on the 25th of November, seems
to call for additional instructions. Should
the Queen refuse assent to the
written conditions ho +hay you tha VII es;asat at
will cease interposition in her behalf, and
that while he deems it his duty to endeavor
to restore to the sovereign the constitutional
government of the islands, his further
efforts in that direction will
depend upon the Queens lin-
qualified agreement that ali obligations
proper course of administration shall be as
sumed, and upon such pledges by her as will
prevent the adoption of any measure of pros
ecution or punishment for what has been done
in the past by those setting up or supporting
the Provisional Government. The Presi-
dent feels that by our recent interference,
and what followed, we have incurred
responsibilities to the whole Hawaiian COM
munity, and it would not be just to put
one party at the mercy of the other.
s'Should the Queen ask whether, if she ac-
cedes to the conditions, active steps will be
taken by the United States to effect her
restoration or to maintain her authority
thereafter, you will say that the President
cannot use force without the authority of
Congress
''Should the Queen accept conditions, and
the Provisional Government refuse to sur
render, you will be governed by previous in
structions. If the Provisional Government
ask whether the United States will
hold the Queen to the fulfl1nent of
stipulated conditions, you will say, that the
President, acting under dictates of honor
and duty, as he has done in endeavoring to
effect restoration, will do all in his constitu7
tional power to cause observance of the con-
ditions he has imposed GRESHAM"
AWAITING NEWS FROM WILLIS.
1t IS pointed out that there was nothing
in these instructions to prevent Mr.. Willis
from asking the Provisional Government to
abdicate All that was necessary towards
taking this action was the consent
of the Queen to an act of amnesty
All interest now centers in the cutter Cor
win, whose arrival at San Francisco has
been expected for several days The Corwin
is at the disposal of Mr.. Willis, and will
sail from Honolulu at his pleasure. Her
arrival at San Francisco will mean that
something definite has been injected into the
situation, for it Is learned at the State De-
partment that Mr.. Willis would hold the
vessel until he had something important to
communicate, either of positive action on
his part or of the small chance for speedy