St. Paul daily globe., 1895-12-26
GRAB THE ORIN0CO
Is WHAT ENGLAND WOULD LIKE
TO DO IN VENEZU-
Ella.
GEN. CLAPP'S LUCID TALK
AS TO JUST WHAT HAS GIVEN
RISE TO THE PRESENT DIS
PUTE.
BEGAN MANY YEARS AGO.
When 1t Was Then Understood
the EssequibO Was the D1-
viding Line.
GEN. CLAPP'S LUCID TALK
BEGAN MANY YEARS AGO.

Gen. Moses E. Clapp, who has been
acting as counsel for Donald Grant
of Faribault, in his Venezuelan IN
terests, is back from New York, where
he was called on business connected
with the interests in question. Gen.
Clapp spent a part Of last summer IN
Venezuela, and has given good deal
of his time, during the last year or
more, considering questions that are
really d part of the controversy over
the disputed line. He is probably
as we'll posted on the subject, there
fore, as any man in the Northwest.
Yesterday he was seen at his resi-
dence by a reporter for the q / o e j.:
and in reply to questions said:
Venezuela, while by no means the
largest or most populous of the Latin
American republics, is, all things con-
sidered, probably the most important.
When her wonderful resources are de-
veloped she will be recognized as
very important country. The govern
ment is modelled after OURS, federal
union of states The federal union and
the states each have the three depart
ments of government, executive, legls-
lative and judicial. The federal eNecu-
tive, a president, has more ample pow
ers, in some respects, than ours, but he
does not possess the veto power. If he
wishes to veto any act of the congress
he refers it to the states, by whom 1t
is rejected or affirmed. The president
and judges must be natives, all other
offices can be held by alien-born, duly
naturalized. Their public land and
mining laws are somewhat like ours
except they have coupled with their
land laws a system of assisting i'm
migrants by paying their passage and
granting them certain exemptions. NO
Asiatic or citizen of the British or
Dutch Antilles, or person over 70 years
of age can receive aid under their i'm
migration laws. Under their conSti-
tuition contract labor can be brought
into the country.
1.-The population is mixed, and are
very friendly to Americans. At Cara
cas- they have a park named after
Washington, adorned with his statue.
There are not many foreigners in the
country, and at present there are more
English and German than American
but lately Americans are settling there
more than formerly. 1t might be of
interest to know that the officer in
charge of the troops on the English
frontier, whom we met on the Orinoco,
is named Gen. Mcpherson, a relative
of Senator Mcpherson, of New Jersey.
His grandfather went to Venezuela in
1872 to aid them in their revolution
against Spain.
1.-The dispute between Venezuela and
England is one of long standing. In
16iS Spain ceded certain colonies to
Holland, which were by the latter
country ceded to England in 1914. At
the time of the latter cession they were
not described by boundaries, but SIM
ply designated by name, but as Spain
had always successfully repelled every
attempt of the Hollanders to get west
of the Essequibo river, that river was
naturally regarded as the western
boundary of the territory ceded to
England, and, consequently the eastern
boundary of Venezuela, for, after Sc
curing her independence that country
succeeded to all the rights of Spain,
and has always claimed the Essequibo
as her eastern boundary.
"As late as 1886 the British charge
d'affaires at Caracas requested Fene-
zuela, in the general interest of naviga-
ton to place a lighthouse on a point
known as Barima point. This point is
far west of the Essequibo river and on
territory claimed by Venezuela, and
Venezuela claims this was a recogni-
ton of her ownership of the point in
question. But about fifty years later
England claimed that the request was
made without the knowledge or ap-
proval of the home government. In
1871 line was marked out under the
direction of the English, known as the
Schomburgh line. This line was west
of the Essequibo river and the act
raised such Indignation among the
Venezuelans that it is claimed the
British government ordered the remov-
al and obliteration of the marks set
to indicate the line.
Three years later steps were taken
looking to the negotiation of a treaty,
Venezuela expecting that England, as
they claim, having voluntarily remov-
ed the marks of the Schomburgh line,
would recognize the Essequibo river as
the boundary. England, however,
claimed to the Morocco river, about one
hundred and twenty miles west of
the Essequibo, insisting that this would
still give Venezuela both banks of the
Orinoco. Venezuela would not accede
to what she felt was an unjust claim.
''Six years later Venezuela becom-
ing aroused at what she thought was
evidence of the intention of England to
take possession of the territory be-
tween the Essequibo and Morocco rivers,
made protest and were assured by
the English charge d'affaires that such
was not her intention, apd pending the
question Venezuela was not to take
possession. Matters remained in this
state for tWenty-siX years, when, in
response to a request of Venezuela to
have the matter settled, England pro-
posed a new line about thirty miles
east of the Barima river, but west
of all former claims. Venezuela re
fused to entertain the proposition and
seven years later, in 1SS3 the matter
was taken up again, and Venezuela
claims the English government then
entered into written promise to arbi-
trate the question, but before the treaty
was formerly drawn and signed a
change of ministry occurred, and the
new ministry declared that England
could not arbitrate questions of limit,
although she had done so with us In
1927 and 1871. In 1856 England pre-
sented still another proposition which
Venezuela regarded as more unjust,