The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1897-09-20
BUT UNCLE SAM WINS.
British Criticism of the Agreement
to Discuss Fur Seal Questions.

LONDON, Sept Accommodating on
the fronn the colonial
Office to the foreign office, on the dis
patch Of Secretary Sherman to Ambas-
sador Hay, the Standard says: The
correspondence shows the British gov
eminent has perfect right to make
complaints. of the government at
Washington, and the careful reader
can easily discover in Mr.. Chamber
lain's exposition the basis of serious
indictment against the United States
not only on account of it's underhand-
ed and unwarrantable treatment OF
British sealers, but also on account Of
it's obvious desire to compass the de
struction of British industry ana TO
overturn the Paris award.
Whether in these circumstances 1t
was wise to agree to a conference,
time will show. Possibly some good
will come Of a friendly consultation.
In the meantime the Mckinley admin
istrationi will, perhaps, cultivate a
more coneiliatory toneoin it's commune
cations with European states.
The Daily News, dealing with the
blue book, says:
eve receive the gift of the blue book with
some nlisglyIng and with the suspicion that
It's contents are highly provocative. MI.
Chamt Grain, in writing his fcpl! 10 MI:
sherinan dispatch had. not been >ostralnec
by any of those concerns of dip. Nna;ic cur
tesv which Mr.. Sherman has bssn 50 freely
cansured for neglecting. Why has the presen:
m>1,frt been chosen for thu .pubii' tlnn CT
st:ngnr TecrimiI. ations and ranking lmFu-
ta.ions of bad faith? The present exGlbi'leh
OF ind eratln is either too late or TO sen )
or there is some contemplated lf.Gh N me
negotiations requiring revival OF The healed
controversy just when we all thought the
combatants were cooling down. There Is no
other sign Of hitch, and we do not be-leVe
there is a hitch Either the dispatches OF
MT. Chamberlain have been allowed to come
out inadvertently, simply beca Use the printer
was ready-in which case bluniar mas Deen
committed almost as serious as the pupllca-
+ ton Of Mr.. Sherman's dispatch n July-or
there has been a foolish desire to crafty per
sonal vanity, or to show the Canadians that
| they had a valiant defender; in which case
| the blunder was nearly the proportions OF a
crime. for 1t would be a crime to imperll a
friendly negotiation at the moment when d
settlement was almost IN view.
WASHINGTON, Sept. 1s.-The Of
ticials of the state department are not
d;sposed to comment on the fur seal
CORRESPONDENCE given out by the British
foreign office and summarized in the
London Times further than to say thai
| it shows the object sought by the gov
| eminent of the United States for the
past three years has been attained by
| the agreement of Great Britain to par
ticipate in the conference to be held IN
| OCTOBER. Inc BLUSH iielo
seen fit to limit it's part in the confer
ence to an ascertainment Of the facts
| in dispute as to seal life. 1t was pre-
cisely this result which was contem-
plated by Secretaries Gresham and OIL
ney when they proposed the creation
| of a commission of scientists to ascer-
tain whether under the operation of
| the existing regulations the seals were
or were not on the road to eXterm1na-
| ton. If such a commission should re-
port in favor of the, contention OF the
| United States this government did not
doubt that Great Britain would con-
sent to such modification of the reguia-
! tons as would save the seals from ex-
termination This continued refusal OF
| the British government to consent to
such a. commission and conference led
to the transmission to Ambassador
Hay of Secretary Sherman's note Of
May 10, which was followed by Lord
Salisbury's reply agreeing to confer
| ence. -gsa,,
Surprise is expressed at the state de-
partment that the London Times
| should publish only the concluding
paragraph of Secretary Sherman's note
| and devote four columns to commu
| nication from the colonial office, Which
is referred to as Chamberlain's an
swer to Secretary Sherman, paper
which has not been communicated to
the state department, and, therefore, tt
which an official replydcannot be made.