New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1896-04-27

.ro.da fr,end- Of the Indians and told them he had
come TO deliver them from their Spanish conquerors
| and oppressors
"In 1886 Raleigh sent Captain Keymis. compan-
ion NJ his first VOYAGE to the search for the
I tabled FL Dorado with a view of planting COL
| ony' Keymis returned to England in June OF the
same year and reported that the Spaniards already
| occupied the country. and had established settle
| ments at the mouth Of the Caronf and at other
| places with men gent out from SPAN
a, ..In June 1917 Raleigh fitted out another expe-
don of eleven vessels and 431 men. his son. Walter.
| and Captain Keymls being of the number The ex-
pedtion was resisted by the Spaniards at ST. Ihome'
! in which engagement young Walter was killed..
| Keyms continued the search for the fapied III
Dorado. but was met and defeated by the Spaniarus
before he had proceeded very far southeastward IN
what Is the mining region OF the Yuruary. he To-
turned to ST. Thome for reinforcements, but became
| despondent and committed suicide. The next year
usls) Raleigh beheaded at the instance OF the
Spanish King. who had been onehoed at these mou-
! dlesome incursons.
~-. .,e PROOF BY EXTRACT"
"And vet II is gravely asserted in the Blue Book
I that in 1896 the Spanards did not then hold any
part OF Guayana and a carefully selected q viii
not say earbie) extract from letter OF Don Rogue
de Monies the Spanish Colonial Treasurer al
Cuniana. is produced to prove this But even this
carefully selected extract proves just the contrary
The writer says he had instructed Captain FeHpe
de Santiago of the Spanish service. to ascend the
River Orinoco End arrest two Englishmen whom
Raleigh had left there spies and informers. and
to advise the Indian chiefs not to admit or receive
any foreigners except Spsniards; that these nstruc-
t,ons faithfully carried out: that the only sur
viving Enrtshman had been arrested. and that the
Indians were warned against the intrusion OF any
more foreigners He closes by recommending better
facilities for navigating the Ornoco. as 1t was the
great nuv.at.le highway to western and southern
Ouayana and rhe other Spanish provinces II the
ric mott hon in
lower Ornoco and In fact Of the whole of western
Guayana how were they able to arrest the only for
eigner found there. and to warn the Indians against
similar spies and informers in the future?
IN 1919 two Spanish colonial military expeditions
we're SEM out from ST. Thome to the Essequibo ana
Veryce rivers TO punish the Aruacls. The last OF
the two was ntrusted to Captain Geronemo de
Grades and composed OF but thirty soidiers'
yet 1t marched right through the whole region by
way Of Baruina. TO the banks of the Essequibo ana
returned without encountering any Dutch or
other European settlements or forces. and no men,
! ton Is made of any having been even heard Of.
1T is stated that early in the seventeenth CEN
fury various Dutch companies (afterward merged
into the great West India Company were employed
fr 'colonizng Guyana. and had established several
settlements there before 1914 But all these trading
companies wer, merely private commercial corpora
lions Not one of them ever. I'm any sense.
State Not one of them possessed eminent DO
main Moreover, up to 1913. they were all unuer
Spanish a1Ieyiances as was Holland itself. There
fore any grants they may have made conveyed no
sovereignty and jurisdiction. Nor can any tenn
porary inability of Spain or her colonies TO ade-
ouatcy defend the Ornoco delta and the coast west
! Of the Essequibo against pirates and smugglers
Dutch English or other) be deemed an abandon
! ment of domain and jurisdiction.
NOT AN ABANDONMENT.
..In 1s71 the island Of Trinidad and the Orinoco
| delta being threatened by the Dutch and CARDS
| the Home Government was recommended TO cause
an inspection Il the most important forts. ana 10
for,ify the island itself against possible attack 1t
I was also recommended that an additional fort be
established the narrowest part of the Orinoco "a
the Dutch said to be already near the entrance
of said river But why this should be gravey cited
| In the Blue Book to show that the Spanards had
| abandoned. the Ornoco delta is difficult to con-
| lecture.
| The Caribs ard other native Indian tribes had
often been melted to .nsurrection by the Dutch anc
| English during the seventy years war which ended
in the general peace of westphala. The Dutch and
afterward tn. English. made annual presents TO
| these savage tribes, sought alliance with them
against Spain. and finally claimed to have estab-
lished some sor. Of 'protectorate' over them But
| in reality this so-called 'protectorate' never
| amounted to anything. shall see further on.
| 1t certainly conveyed eminent domain and juris-
| diction. The Dutch never claimed that II did.
AT the time Of the general peace OF Westphilia
| uG4s the Dutch had four establishments or set
| Elements, they were alternately termed. on the
Atlantic between the Corentyn and Essequibo
rivers BY the treaty OF that date. usually referred
to the Treaty OF Minister. these four establish
| ments' ceded by Spain to Holland. The first
| extended from the Corentyn to the Surnam: the
second from the Surinam TO the Berbice; the third
from the Berbice TO the Demerara. and the fourth
| from the Demerara to the Essequbo. The cession
| embraced no others. Indeed, there were then no
others in existence There had been frequent preda
tory raids into the Orinoco Valley as there had
been in other parts OF what Is the Republic Of
| Venezuela, but there certainly no permanent
Dutch establishments west of the Essequbo River
| or at the very furthest west Of Cape Nassau and
| the Pumaron.
CITING THE WRONG THING.
| 1.-THE citation OF the Treaty Of Utrecht. OF 49,
| was probably inadvertence on the part OF the
| compilers Of the Blue BOOK That treaty, 50 far
from strengthening the English case. Is almost fatal
| to 1t. In that treaty England obligated herself
article Wild to aid the Spanards TO recover their
| ancient possessions In Guayana in other por
tons OF the West Indies and the Americas. as they
stood in the time OF Charles H. that is. as they
stood from 1861 to 100; that is. they stood just
| twenty-three years before the enforced temporary
abandonment by the Spanish forces of the coast b.
| tween the Essequibo and Ornoco, upon which so
much stress seems TO be laid by the compilers Of
| the Blue Book.
| 1.-The correspondence between the Governments
Of Spain and Portugal OF 1854. Is cited TO strength
| en- the English case. The correspondence however.
| shows nothing beyond effort on the part OF
| Spain to arrange with Portugal (who owned adj
jacent territory rid the Spanish and Portuguese
| Guayanas OF Dutch interference with the Indian
| tribes whom they constantly melting to in
| surrection and pllage. Spain had become so ex-
asperated at these meddlesome interventions and
at the frequent raids into Spanish territory by Dutch
Adventures and freebooters. that she had wellngh
| resolved to try to find some means OF Kidding the
| whole Atlantic Coast of them.
| THE refusal by Spain to permit the Dutch to fish
the mouth of the Orinoco In 175S has been often
cited In support OF the Venezuelan claim. but never
before in support OF the British contention. Just