Bismarck weekly tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1884-1943, 1895-08-23
NICARAGUA CANAL
St. James Gazette Sees Trou-
BILE ahead Between This
Country and England.
ARE HEADING FOR A CRISIS
And There Will Be Diplo-
matte Deadlock or an Eng
liSh BaCkdOWn,

LONDON, Aug. 22.-The St. James
Gazette publishes scare article ask
ing how Great Britain stands with the
United States government in the mat.
ter OF the Nicaraguan canal, and says
that it will be we'll if the Rt. Hon.
George N. Curzon, under secretary of
state for foreign affairs, is asked to
give some explanation on the subject
i'll the house Of commons. Continuing,
the St. James Gazette remarks:
Heading Straight for a Crisis.
GAS far as can be seen, we are head
ing straight for crisis and there will
be either a diplomatic deadlock be-
tween the two countries or the English
will surrender important treaty
rights. The deadlock can be avoided
by discreet handling of the facts by the
foreign Office, and surrender need
never occur. Should a situation be
brought about in which the United
States finds it can ignore the United
States of Central America, then good
bye to any hope of retaining, much less
extending, our commercial hold of the
republics OF the Spanish main, a mar
ket in which we already suffer from
uncommonly sharp competition from
the Americans and Germans.
Rehearses Nicaraguan Canal History.
The st. James Gazettee then pro-
ceeds to rehearse t:le history of the
Nicaraguan canal, claiming that the
accedence of the United States to the
request Of the American Canal com.
pany to guarantee further capital for it
would be an infraction of the Bulwer-
Clayton treaty. The st. James Gazette
then quotes President Cleveland's ref
erence to the canal in his message of
1894, and says:
'These carefully weighed words
were designed to create minimum Of
distrust in the foreign Office and when
read in relation to the consistent moral
support given by the United States to
the company's enterprise and the in.
sistent demand Of the United States
people that their government guarantee
the entire capital, come what may, it
is plain that the ultimate object is not
so much the cutting of the canal as the
Ill Ill tl1u AA1teA Cooe1UA1SulueuG Ol UuC
United States Authority
in Central America. With the canal
completed, wholly by the United
States, the independence OF the repub-
lies would be mere nominal 1t is true
that English financial assistance was
sought by the American syndicate, lest
the United States government falter in
giving the guarantee, but these nego-
tiations have collapsed because it is
not proposed to allow the English cap.
italists their due share of control,
which IS sufficient Indication of the ex-
elusive power the Americans mean to
exercise Oh the isthmus.
The Cardinal Point.
The cardinal point of the whole mat.
ter is, does the government mean to
enforce the Bulwer. Clayton treaty? If
SO, will she join the United States
guarantee of capital? II not, what
steps have been taken to secure the
neutrality of the canal and the equal
ity of rights and opportunities of Brit
ish subjects? It is conceivable that
events may so shape themselves in the
near 1uture that the United States will
be practical masters Of Central Ameri.
ca, but before we consent, any abroga-
tion of the Bulwer Clayton treaty
must be made by ourselves"