Pike County press. (Milford, Pa.) 1895-1925, 1895-12-20
A RINGING MESSAGE.
CLEVELAND ADDRESSES CONGRESS
ON THE MONROE DOCTRINE.
The President Notifies Great Britain In
Vigorous Terms That She Must Keep Her
Hands on venezueia-A Great Principle
Involved.

Involved.
WASHING TO =, Dec 1s.-The president
has sent TO congress the following message
on the Venezuelan boundary d,spute, ac-
companied by the correspondenco-Se
tary Olney's lettor of inquiry and She
British premier's answer
To the Congress:
In my annual mescage addressed to the
congress on tho 9d inst l called attention
to the pending boundary controversy be-
tween Great Britain and the republic OF
Venezuela and recited the substance Of a
representation made by this government
TO her Britannia maiesty's government
suggesting reasons why such dispute
should be submitted to arbitration for set
tloment and inquiring whether 1t would
be so submitted.
The answer of the British government
which was then awaited has since been
received and together with the dispatch
to which it is reply is hereto appended.
Such reply is embodied in two Commu.
niCations addressed by the British prime
minister to Sir Julian Pauncetote, the
British embassador at this capital. 1t
will be seen that one of these communca-
tions is devoted exclusively TO observn-
tions upon the Monroe doctrine, and
claims that in the present instance a new
and strange extension and development Of
this doctrine are insisted on by the United
States; that the reasons iustifying an ap-
peal to the doctrine enuncinted by Presi-
dent Monroe are generally inapplicable
"to the state of things in which we live
at the present day" and especially inap-
plicnbe to a controversy involving tho
boundary line between Great Britain and
Venezuela.
Without attempting extended argument
in reply to these positions it may not be
amiss to suggest that the doctrine upon
which we stand is strong and sound be-
cause its enforcement is important to our
peace and safety as a nation and is essen
tial to the integrity of our free institutions
and the tranquil maintenance of our dis
tinctive form of government.
The Monroe Doctrine Applies.
1t was intended to apply TO every stage
Of our national life and cannot become
obsolete while our republic eudures. II
the balance of power is justly cause for
Jealous anxiety among the governments
of the old world and a subject for our alb
sOlute nonnterference, none the less is an
observance of the Monroe doctrine of vital
concern to our people and their govern
ment. Assuming, therefore, that we may
properly insist upon this doctrine without
regard to "the state of things in which
we live " or any changed conditions here
or elsewhere, it is not apparent why its
| application may not be invoked in the
present controversy.
If European power, by an extension of
| it's boundaries, takes possession of the ter
rtory of one of our neighboring republics
| against its will and in derogation of its
] Irfv t. Ifn1o,,1N t,, y,-I, 20 hot
extent such European power does not
thereby attempt to extend its system Of
government to that portion of this conti-
nent which is thus taken This Is the
/ precise action which President Monroe
declared to be dangerous to our peace
and safety" and it can make no difference
whether the European system is extended
| by an advance of frontier or otherwise
1t is also suggested in the British reply
that we should not seek to apply the Mon
roe doctrine to the pending dispute be-.
cause it does not embody any principle of
international law which "is founded on
the general consent of nations" and that
"no statesman, however eminent, and no
nation, however powerful, are competent
to insert into the code of international
law a novel principle which was never
recognized before, and which has not since
been accepted by the government of any
other country"
Practically the principle for which we
contend has peculiar If not exclusive rela-
tion to the United States.
Oar Plain Rights and Claims,
1t may not have been admitted In so
many words TO the code of international
law, but since i'm international cOunsels
every nation is entitled to rights belong
ing olt If the enforcement of the Monroe
doctrine Is something we may justly claim,
It has its place in the code of international
law as certainly and as securely as If il
were specifically mentioned, and when the
United States is a suitor before the high
tribunal that administers international
law the question to be determined is
whether or not we present claims which
tho justice Of that code of law can find to
be right and valid
The Monroe doctrine finds its recogni-
tion in those principles of international
law which are based upon the theory that
every nation shall have its rights protected
and its just claims enforced.
OF course this government is entirely
confident that under the sanction of this
doctrine we have clear rights and un-
doubted claims. Nor is this ignored in
tho British reply The prime minister,
while not admitting that the Monroe doc.
trine Is applicable to the present oondi-
tions states "In declaring that the Unit.
cd States would resist any such enterprise
II It was contemplated, President Monroe
adopted policy which received the entire
sympathy Of the English government OF
that date. %
He further declares, Though the Ian
guage of President Monroe is directed tC
A..H. . L 4 n u
Englishmen would agree to be salutary Il
is impossible to admit that they have beer
inscribed by any adequate authority in thC
code OF International law" Again hi
says, "They cher majesty's government
fully concur with the view which Presi
dent Monroe apparently entertained thai
any disturbance of the existing territorial
distribution in that hemisphere by any
fresh acquisitions on the part of any Eu
ropean state would be a highly inexpedi
ent change" "
, Involves Our Safety and Welfare.
In the belief that the doctrine for which
Ee contend was clear and definite; that 4
was founded upon substantial considera
p tions and involved our safety and welfare
that it was fully applicable to our present
p conditions and to tho state of the world
| progress, and that it was directly related
to the punding controversy and withou
, any conviction as to the final merits O
the dispute, but anxious to learn in sat
isfactOry and conclusive manner whether
Great Britain sought under a claim O
= boundary to extend her possessions OF
| this continent without right or whethe
she merely sought possession of territor,
I fairly included within her lines Of owner
ship, this government proposed to tn
government OF Great Britain a resort L
arbitration as the proper means of set