The sun., 1895-03-22
Does Cleveland Mean to Knuckle to
Spain?


1t begins to look as If the outburst Of
patriotic spirit evoked from our State De-
partment by the Spanish insult to our flag
would prove flash in the pan. Since Mr..
CLEvELAND's return from his duck-shoot-
ing excursion there are signs Of an in
cl;nation to adopt the paretic view OF the
question and make light Of the Allianca
outrage. For instance, while the text of
Mr.. GREsHAM's demand for prompt
apology, instead of being cabled back from
Madrid, as it has been falsely asserted, was
communicated directly to the press from
our State Department. the responsive COM
munications from Spain are withheld. On
che other hand, we are informed that Mr..
CLEVELAND finds grave discrepancies be-
tween the chart and the affidavit
OF the Captain of the American mer-
chant steamer which was chased and
fired upon by Spanish gunboat. We are
also told that, pending the receipt of
formal and final reply by Spain to our de-
mand, diplomatic usage would not counte-
nance the despatch Of war ships to Cuban
waters by way of precaution against repe-
tition OF the indignity. Lastly, the few re-
naming organs Of the Administration as
sert, with IN assumption Of magnanimity,
that 1t would be ungracious on our part to
uphold the honor OF the American flag just
now. when Spain is in the throes of a Minis
terial crisis Lee lis see what substance
there is in these pretexts for an intention
to crawl out of the sturdy American posi-
tion assumed by our State Department
while Mr.. CLEVELAND was absent.
The difference between Capt. CHEESEMAN'S
chart and his affidavit of which Mr.. CLEvE-
LAND Is said to complain, relates to the dis
tance of the Allianca from the Spanish coast
at the time when she was fired upon. Now,
II the alleged detection Of discrepancy
amounted to anything more than a dishon-
est pretext for remissness and pusillanimity,
Capt. CRossMAN would, of course, have been
summoned to Washington to explain the
imputed inconsistency. He declared himself
ready and eager to go, but the State Depart
ment expressed no wish to see him, and suf-
fered him on Wednesday to depart on his
return voyage to Colon. Let us sup
pose, however for the sake of argu-
ment, that it should turn out that
the Allianca, when rounding the east
end of Cuba. was for brief period within
the three-mile limit. What of that Mr..
GRESHAM, in his published despatch to the
Madrid Government, explicitly and properly
refused to recognize the right of Spanish
war vessels, in times of peace, to stop even
within the three-mile limit ships flying the
American flag and carrying the United
States mails No discrepancy, therefore,
between the chart and the affidavit respect
ing the precise course taken by the Allianca
could have the slightest bearing on the
claim for apology and reparation rightly
made by the State Department.
Where does Mr.. CLEVELAND find his au-
thorty for the view ascribcd to him and
announced through the Naval Department,
that diplomatic usage would not warrant
him in taking precautions against fresh in
suit by sending war ships to Cuban waters,
while negotiations are in progress to secure
redress for an indignity already incurred
Does he find precedents in the history of
Great Britain, the country whose approval
he is 50 anxious to secure, that he urges
Congress to permit the landing of British
submarine cable on one OF the Hawaiian
islands, and advises the payment OF a large
snm in block to pretended Canadian sealers,
without waiting for their claims to be
!udicially exaInncd' Docs he not know
Dy what uniform and unfinching con-
duct the British ensign has been
made to COMMAND respect OH every sea-
il he not aware that the invariablc practice
OF Great Britain, when her flag has been
inSulted, has been, simultaneously with a
peremptory demand for an apology, to de-
Spatch Instantly her war ships to the place
where the outrage was inflicted, Has he
forgotten--or can it be that the news never
reached him in his haunts In Buffalo-that
when the British mail steamer Trent was
boarded by the commander Of an American
cruiser in 1861, Lord PALMERsTON did not
wait for Mr.. SEWARD to make up his mind
whether he would apologize for the act
and release tho captured Confederate Com
missioners, but Mt once despatched Brit
ish troops 10 Canada and placed II British
WIT feet under sailing orderss What
is the difgcrence in international Law be-