The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1895-12-19

What have the States of America TO dc
with the vast armies and fleets of Europe
and why should they be impoverished
BY wars in which they have no direct
concern: The moral interests OF t1e
Ouestion are peculiar TO her and entirely
adverse from those which are peculiar
TO America. Europe is, with single
important exception, committed to the
Monroe principle. America - devoted
TO the idea that every people has an
unalienable right of self government
ANY European control of our interests
is necessarily both homogeneous and IN,
furious. and if tine forcible intrusion OF
European powers in American politics Is
TO be deprecated the resistance must
come from the United States, the only
mower with strength adequate t. the
exipency. There can be but one answer
10 the question. whether the safety ana
welfare of the United States are CON
cerned with the maintenance OF the ihde-
pendence of every American state as
against any European power 10 such an
extent as TO Justify and require our III
terposition whenever that independence
is endangered.
'sTbese States are our friends and
allies. commercially and politically, ana
TO allow the subjugation OF any one OF
them by any European power heFersGS
the situation and signifies q loss OF an
the advantages incident TO their nat
relation 10 us. But that is not all. Inc
De0ple of the United States nave a great
interest in the cause of the popular sell
Government which they have secured at
4he infinite cost of blood and treasure.
rho age of crusades has passed; they
ara content with such assertion ana de-
fense of rights of self government as
their own security and welfare demand
1t is in that view, more than any 0 tHer;
that they will not tolerate the polltlcal
control Of the American States by the
forcible assumption Of a European
power. The mischiefs to he appre-
hended from such a source are none the
less real because not Immediately lIhml-
nent in any specific case.
"The United States is practically
sovereign on this continent, and lts nat
is law. The principle could be easily
ayailed of and any power doing so would
Immediately secure basis for military
operations against us, and II Is not IN
conceivable that the struggle now gong
on for the ACQUISITION of Africa might be
transferred TO South America. The
weaker countries would be absorbed and
subsequently America would be part-
toned by European powers. r-.
''Thp consequences to the lnlted
States would be disastrous: loss of pres
tige would be the least of them. our
relations in peace, as well as III war
would be located at our very doors. we
must be armed to the teeth. convert the
flower of our male population into sol
diers and sailors and thus annihilate
large portion of our productive energy.
These countries will not soon forget IN
their hour of distress all their anxiety
and burthens were aggravated by the
demonstrations against their NATIONAL
life on the part of powers with WhOm
they had long maintained the most mar
monious relations. They have, yet III
mind that France seized upon the appa.
rent opportunity of our civil war TO SET
ND n monarchy in Mexico, and had
France and Great Britain held impor-
tant South American possessions 10
work from and get benefits, the tempta-
ton to destroy our predominance by. fur-
thering our dismembership might have
been irresistible. From that grave point
we were saved in the past and may be
saved in future, through the perpetuatlon
of the sure but silent voice OF the doc,,
trine proclaimed by President Monroe.
"There is. then" continued Secretary
Olney. "a doctrine of American public
law, well founded in principle and a6und-
antly sanctioned by precedent which en-
titles and requires the United States to |
treat as an injury to herself the forcible |
assumption by an European power of po- |
litical control over an American State
,r, ton of the doctrine to the |
h line app'tdi DISPUTE between Great Britain
and Venezuela remains to. se i'iiue anu
presents no real difficulty" ,
The secretary shows that though rela-
fling TO the boundary line the question IS
one of political control over territory OF |
great extent, the British claim apparently |
expanding in two years from 3o,VoO
square miles to directly involving the com
mand of the mouth of the Orlnoco, mat
ter of immense consequence IN connection
with the whole river navigation OF the III
terror of South America
He dismisses as valueless the contention
that British Guiana may in this contro-
versy be regarded as an American state
like Venezuela. He suggests that while
Venezuela might possibly not object to
settling the matter directly with British
Guiana if this contention was once al
lowed, every European power with a
South American colony might extend It's
possessions indefinitely, while other pow
ers might do the same by procuring a |
voluntary cessOn of a small tract of soil. |
Ii b not admitted and therefore can not !
be assumed that Great Britain is in fact |
usurping dominion over Venezuelan soil. |
While Venezuela charges such usurpa-
ton, Great Britain denies it and the
United States, until the merits are author
itativey ascertained, can take sides with
neither but it may demand that the truth
shall be ascertained Being entitled to re-
sent and resist and sequestration of Ven
ezuelan soil by Great Britain, it is neces-
sarily entitled to know whether such Sc
:nestration has occurred or is now going
on.
There is but one feasible mode of deter
mining the merits of the question and that
Is practical arbitration.
Great Britain admits there is CON
troyersy which should be adjusted by arbi-
tration. but nullifes this admission by
her insistence that the submission shall
cover but a part of the controversy. If
it were to point to boundary which both
parties either expressly or tacitly had
ever agreed to. the demand that the ter
ritory within that line should be excluded
from the dispute might rest upon reason
able basis, but there is no such line.
Great Britain has shown in several in
stances that she was willing TO arbitrate
her political and sovereign rights when
the interests of territory involved were
not of controlling magnitude Thus she
arbitrated the extent of her colonial pos
session with the United States, twice with
Portugal, once with Germany and perhaps
in other instances.
The secretary quotes from some of
these arbitratiOns in the past to sustain
his assertion that the British demand
for recognition of rights to portion of