Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1895-04-22
MONROE DOCTRINE.
Senator Hill Not a Believer in
Late interpretations.
ITS MEANING MUCH MIsC0NsTRUED


And IT'S Author Given . Reputation He
Doesn't Deserve and Did Not Desire
Tho Much-Ouoted Doctrine Never AT.
frmed by Congress and Its Features Re.
jeeted When Put In . Trcaty-some In.
teresting Remarks.
ALBANY. April Am interview with
Senator Hill on the Venezuelan question
was given ous last night. Senator Hill
was asked whether experts in public law
think the Monroe doctrine has given to
the United states a special right to inter.
vene between Great Britain and Vene-
zueia in the pending boundary dispute, or
assume protectorate over Spanish
Amer,cat He answered tha. he had never
thought so.
But does not the Monroe doctrine de.
clare thatthe United States cannot Per-
nit any Spanish-American republic on
this continent to be oppressed or its des-
tiny controlled by European state?"
Does Not Change the Law, of Nations.
THAT would not have referred" the
senator said. TO legitimate dispute
might have tomorrow with a Spanish
American state. 1t protested against
using such controversy with an inten.
tion 20 increase European political do.
Ininion on this hemisphere or control the
destiny of an American state or transfer
colony like Cuba TO a new European
owner, tut did not change what was then
the law of nations"
congress n guarantee of cur intervention,
torcib!e. if need be. in behalf of each
Spanish-American republic which, in our
opinion. was oppressed by a European
statef"
Declined to Ratify II in a Treaty.
Think not. Not otherwise certainly
than If Chill shall oprress Peru or
Mexico shall be unreasonable in dealing
with Guatemala. Congress has never af
frmed the Monroe doctrine. In 1865 Presi.
dent Johnson projected treaty with
Colombia, which was signed, embcdying
the Monroe doctrine but neither the
Colon 5ian senate, nor our own senate
ratified it You remember that when two
years after President Monroe made his
declaration a congress was convened by
Bolivia at Panama for the consideration
and discussion of an American alliance
TO enforce the QecldratlOn tnero was SUD-
stantial concurrence of opinion between
President John Quincy Adams, who had
formulated the Monroe doctrine, and the
members of the senate and house-es-
peciaily the Democrats, including Sena-
tor Van Buren,. of New York-partici.
pating in long debate. that the declara-
tian did not pledge tEe United States to
forever thereafter prevent European
power from interfering wi h the inde-
pendence or form of government of Gen.
tral American State"
Monroe Not Properly Understood.
do you think that President Monroe
has the reputation of having given his
name to a rule CT condition by the United
States for which neither ne nor Adams
contenaedf'
Precisely that" the senator answered.
'The doctrine cannot be formulated in
a treaty a statute, but its moral infil-
ence has been is, and ought to be very
great. Discrimination should, however.
be made between legitimate disputes and
illcgitimate purposes behind the disputes,
sach imposing by force European po-
litical control over the destiny of reluc-
tant Spanish-American state. Presidcn
Lincoln must have felt that some thirty
yeaIs ago"