The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1895-04-25
Three English War Ships Now at CO.
rinto to Collect Indemnity for
Hatch's Expulsion.
MARINES TO BE PUT ASHORE
CUSTOM HOUSES SEIZED AND A PAR
TIAL BLOCKADE ENFORCED.
President Cleveland Evidently Deter
trine Oyerboard-No Protest.

information has been received here as to
Great Britains belligerent steps in Mica
ragua. British troops are to be landed at
Corinto; the custom houses are to be occu-
pied by the British forces and British Off
GERS are to exercise the functions of col
lectors of customs. At the same time Mica
raguan local commerce is to be crippled by
a blockade The limit of time allowed Mica
ragua to yield expires tomorrow (Thurs-
day. and the blockade, landing of troops
and seizure of custom houses is to begin
Immediately thereafter. There is good rea-
son to believe that Nicaragua is not likely
to yield, but will allow British troops to nc-
cupy Corinto in order that conspicuous at
tention may be drawn to what is regarded
by Nicaragua an invasion of the Monroe
doctrine. DR.. Guzman, the Nicaraguan min
lister, was inaccessible to-day. Nicaragua's
hopes now are almost entirely centered on
Washington. 1t is not believed, however,
that Dr. Guzman has succeeded, as yet in
eliciting the intervention of the United
states
Corinto is the best port of the Central
American States on the Pacific coast. 1t is
most important to Nicaragua, as it is the
terminus of the line of the Central railroad.
1t is very old place and formerly
called Raelejo. This was one of the best
Spanish-American harbors in the old days,
but it is becoming filled up and is
somewhat smaller to anchorage There
is no difficulty, however, in the entrance,
and there is depth of eighteen feet of
water in the harbor at low tide. Between
the island of Carbon and the point of Cas-
tanones there is dangerous bar. The port
of San Juan del Sur has harbor of aver
age size and there is sufficiently good an
chorage. 1t is filling with sand, however,
and the entrance is becoming choked max
ing shipping more difficult. San Juan del
Sur is in communication with Lake Nicara-
qua by a macadam road, built by the New
York and California Transit Company.
Corinto is the heaviest import point in
Nicaragua. The imports there for 1922
were $6. ,e05, while all imports to other
points did not exceed 100000. 1t is evident
from this why the British chose Corinto for
their strike. Almost one-half of the imports
at Corinto are from Great Britain, so that
the British seizure of the custom houses
will result in their receiving the customs
dues from British merchant ships. The Brit
ish imports for 1912 were s., 1872 601; those
of the United States come second at ST.
497 $40; Germany, s1042O5 France s99S, IA
The rest of the import trade was with neigh
boring South and Central American coun-
tries. The imports of San Juan del Sur
were $13S, $40. AS the Corinto imports aver
age 100000 monthly, it would not take long
for Great Britain to appropriate the $4,000
indemnity demanded. The tariff rates OF
Nicaragua are such that the $6,OO6, sos of i'm
ports in 1891 yielded s1,O5S,91S in customs
duties. Most of this was collected at Cor
into. AT this rate the receipts at Cornto
would reach $4,000 within thirty days, un-
less commerce was diverted to other ports
A NEW PHASE.
1t is significant fact that the largest
part of Nicaragua's foreign debt is repre-
sented by bonds held in London and payable
there in 1919. This foreign debt aggregates
s2,iO3 227 The London holders have thus far
received their interest on the bonds very
promptly. IT, however, Nicaragua is Grip
pied by the seizure of her custom receipts,
it may react by a failure to meet the inter-
est on the bonds held in London. The dip
lomatic representatives of the Central and
South American republics are very much
disturbed by this late feature of the case
Qhe meeting of bond obligations), for they
fear that 1t opens vista of endless trouble
and aggression in the future. Their idea Is
that once Great Britain has been permitted
indemnity, she will avail herself of the ex-
cuse offered by the failure of Nicaragua to
meet her interest payments on her foreign
debt to assume the task of collecting this
forcibly in the same manner, notwithStand-
ing the fact that the failure may be brough hit
about by her own seizure of the customs re-
ceipts which were to be applied to the pay
ment of this interest. OF course, this would
the original indemnity shall have been col
lected, which would only add to the financial
distress ct e1v and should % she be
last demand, the occupation may be pro-
longed so indefinitely as to amount to a
permanent occupation of the territory. This
is the reasoning of the South Americans
and they find individual cause for appre-
hension in the fact that almost all of these
little rpnublicS sums OF money to Euro
pean bondholders on account of interest or
principal of national debts, and they fear
laid down and enforced that a European
government may assume the collection of
debts owing to it's citizens individuals
and not to the European ration, doctrine
which, they assert, would be particularly OBJ
the American Union which have defaulted
in their debts to foreign bondholders.
The outcome of this Nicaraguan incident
is also felt by the same diplomatists to be
full of significance to Venezuela, and it is
feared by them that having once driven in
the wedge Great Britain can scarcely be
expected to refrain from pressing forward
with very vigorous measures in the matter
of the Venezuelan boundary dispute and at
once establishing herself as the mistress of
the Orinoco 1t is felt here that the present
situation is one 1ust1fying apprehension and
While it is not expected that the Mica
raguan government will offer any armed
forces still it is feared that during the time
the town of Corinto is occupied by the for
piCnPrS
difHcuIty and the close contact into which
the two discordant elements will certainly
he brought might at any moment lead to
an outbreak winding UP in a general war
The tenure of the present Nicaraguan gov
ernmeut is none too secure. and 1T is felt
that IT would be expecting almost too much
from il to hope that it could resist success
fully an impulse of the people towards war,
even should the cause be without probable
success for their side in the end. 1t is evi-
dent that out State Department has not lost
sight of this possibility, for Secretary
Gresham has been in consultation with the
President and the Nicaraguan minister on
the subject, and it is believed that he has
been using his best efforts to prevent a re-
sort to extremes by intimating that the in
demnity had better be paid.
VIEWS OF DIPLOMATES.
In the best posted diplomatic circles opin-
ion is divided as to the final outcome of the
troubles. The British view. as stated by
one in a position TO speak with authority
is as follows; Great Britain wants no
more territory in Nicaragua and has given
assurances to that effect. Her only interests
there have been to afford protection TO
Clarence. the Mosquito chief, and his
Indian subjects are well nigh extinct. the
policy Of the Foreign ONCE has been to