The Mt. Sterling advocate. (Mt. Sterling, Ky.) 1890-current, 1896-05-12
EXCLUSION or
AMERICAN CATTLE.
Talk of a Policy of Retaliation
Against the French Govern
ment.

the WnOle correspondence Wnlci
the United States had during tn,
last year with the countries o
Europe, which correspondence il
just now becoming public property
though advance sheets of thu
United States red book, is there ex
hibited more vigorous insistenc'
upon the rights of Americans thar
in the course of the negotiations
with France respecting the exciu
sion by the Government of that
country of American cattle. The
President himself dictated small
but most important portion of the
correspondence in it's earlier stages,
and the concluding chapters, con-
tributed by Secretary Olney, sweep
away like cobwebs the specious ex-
plantations put forward to justify
the exclusion, and make it plain
that retaliation may be expected If
the unjust restrictions are not
abated or justified.
As far back as March of last
year, just after the fact that the
exclusion ordered had been issued
was made known to the State De-
partment through Mr.. Vignaud,
our Charge at Paris, Secretary
Gresham cabled that officer that he
had failed to state the reason for
it's issue; that the Secretary of Ag-
riculture had asserted that our cat
tie were entirely free from disease
and that in "view of these state
ments, the President directs that
you inform the French Government
that the United States regards this
prohibition as needless and I'M
friendly interference with an i'm
portant branch Of legitimate trade
and that you demonstrate against
it's enforcement"
The Charge was apparently dis
mayed at the strength of the mes
sage, and sought to delay its de-
livery until an opportunity could
be had to consider the propriety of
modifying it, on account of other
factors entering into the negotia-
tions, but another cable message
from Secretary Gresham, three days
later, left him no recourse, and
when he did submit it, even the
French Minister of Foreign Affairs,
who happened to be then, as now,
in office admitted "that the protest
was little fiery" Negotiations at
length ensued, in the course of
which our Ambassador, Mr.. Eustis,
by instruction of the State Depart
ment, pressed the French Govern
ment for a statement of its reasons
for the issue of the order of eXclu-
sion, and when showed that these |
reasons were not based on actual
bona fide cases of disease in any
American cattle that had entered |
France, but apparently were found
ed on desire to eXclude American !
cattle from competition with the
French farmers.
Finally Secretary Olney summed
up the position of his Government
n letter dated October II last, |
showing that the French argument
was based almost entirely upon
newspaper publications; that this
Government had Just ground for
on that score in view of
the care it had exercised to secure
the inspection of the cattle export
I'd, and finally winding up by an
ntimatlon that if the French Gov
persisted in regarding it as
necessary for the protection of their
cattle to exclude the herds from
jhe United States, the same process
If reasoning would make it equally
to the protection of the
cattle of the United States that
French cattle, especially the Nor
nan breed, which is now attracting
10 much attention here, should be
from the United States.
From tho pOrraSpnndanoa which |