The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1897-02-12
TURPIE FAVoRS THE TREATY.
STRONG SPEECH IN ITS SUPPORT IN
THE SENATE.

sherman GettinS scared over the
Delay in Taking Action on 1.-THE
Attempts without Success to Sc
cure an Agreement as to the Time
on Which a Vote on the Measure
Shall Be Taken.
Washington, Feb. Ex-senator Sherman,
who is in charge of the general treaty or
arbitration with Great Britain, now un-
der secret discussion in the Senate, is be-
ginning to show some uneasiness. Just
before adjournment this afternoon he no
titled the Senate that it was time an agree
ment was reached when the final vote
should be taken. Mr.. Sherman asked if
unanimous consent could not be had for
some day next week.
Mr.. Morgan, the most persistent oppon-
ent of the treaty demurred
A colloquy followed between these two
senator's with others occasionally putting
in a word, in which it was apparent that
Mr.. Sherman would be unable to secure
any kind of an agreement, and he thereI
fore gave up the effort. Beginning with
next week. Mr.. Sherman will repeat his
request from day to day, and insist that
action be taken before the week is over
But two speeches were made on the
treaty to-day. Mr.. Turpie of Indiana
whose position has hitherto not been
known by his associates, came out strong
ly for the convention as negotiated, and
took the ground that the amendments of
the committee were wholly unnecessary,
and tended but to confuse the public and
cucumber the instrument itself. In the
outset Mr.. Turpie produced a recent state
ment in New York newspaper by ex-
Senator Edmunds. The presentation of
the case by Judge Edmunds was so con-
cise so convincing and so unanswerable
that Mr.. Turpie said he could do not bet
ter than adopt it as his own. No an
guage that he might use could present
the case from his point of view before the
Senate in a stronger light.
Mr.. Turpie read this article paragraph
by paragraph and spent possibly half an
hour commenting upon it, He eulogized
Judge Edmunds as one of the most brill
liant men in the United States, whose opin--
weight and whose reputation as
lawyer versed in interna-
tional questions was second to none Judge
Edmunds had pointed out the strong points
in the treaty and it only remained for him,
Mr.. Turpie said, to add thereto little of
his own personal opinion.
The Indiana senator then proceeded to
pay his respects to Senator Morgan and
reply to the speech that senator made on
Tuesday, when he advocated the abroga-
pooh-poohed the idea that Great Britain
had set a trap for the United States as
Mr.. Morgan had contended, and denied
that we were about to enter into that trap.
He had no fear of any secret pitfalls in
this treaty, but asserted that it was a
plain, straightforward effort on the part
of the tive great nations speaking the
same tongue to enter into an agreement to
settle their disputes without recourse to
war. The Nicaragua canal would not
come within this treaty and would, there
fore, cause no friction. Even if il did, Mr.
Turpie contended that when that ques-
tion arose the Senate could deal with it as
an independent proposition. 1t would not
do for the United States Senate to amend
the life out of this treaty, nor could the
United States refuse now to become a
party to a general arbitration scheme. The
treaty before the Senate was the result of
an invitation made by this government to
various other powers to enter into such
an arrangement, and England alone had
accepted that invitation. The United
States could not afford to be charged with
inconsistency, much less the serious
charges that might be made were we now
to repudiate the doctrine of arbitration
Arbitration, said Mr.. Turpe, was simply a
means for the peaceful settlement of in
ternational disputes. 1t did not prevent
war, but tended largely to decrease the
chances of war.
In the course of his speech, Mr.. Turpie
referred to the whole treaty as an ad-
mirable production and eulogized Secre-
tary Olney for the skill he had displayed
as one OF the constructors of the instru-
Hent Inc cflLlclSm tnat nad been aimed
at article of the treaty, and the follow
ing articles, based thereon, was Mr. Tur-
pie said, unsound. That article was per-
feet and Mr.. Turpie proceeded to show
that in no way could il be construed that
questions affecting the national policy of
either of the contracting parties were to be
submitted to arbitration under this general
treaty. The committee had added nothing
to the convention by its amendment, and
Mr.. Turpie urged the Senate to repudiate
them and accept the treaty as originally
framed.
Mr.. Morgan replied to Mr.. Turpie, but
when the Senate adjourned he had not
concluded. He went over much of the
ground that he had previously covered.
and again emphasized the necessity for a
declaration i'm this treaty of the abroga-
tion of the Clayton-Bulwer convention.
Mr.. Turpie's position on the treaty under
discussion appeared to show him to be a
the Indiana senator on the Cuban ques-
tion did not. Mr.. Morgan said, bear out
this conclusion. Before he concluded for
the day, Mr.. Morgan gave notice of an
amendment which he would offer to the
effect that all matters intended to be sub
mitted for arbitration under this treaty
shall be submitted after the manner now
required by the constitution for the rat
ification of new treaties. This means that
every question shall be submitted by the
President to the Senate for it's approval
before its submission to the tribunal OF ar
bitration.
Mr.. Teller asked that all the correspond
enCe bearing upon this treaty be made
public but no action was taken. and the
matter will probably be disposed of at
the next session. There is nothing new in
this correspondence, as it has been here
tofore published in these dispatches
--s-e-s
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