The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1897-02-18
THE SENATOR GIVES REASONS
WHY THE SENATE SHOULD
PROCEED CAUTIOUSLY.
TOO IMPORTANT 70 Be RA|LROADED
Treaty Should Be Carefully Examined
for Flaws Before Ratiication-No Oc-
casion for and Nothing to Be
Gained by Haste.

was requested to furnish the Associated
Press with reasons for seeking to post
pone the consideration of the Anglo
American arbitration treaty, and in re-
Spouse he furnished the following signed
article:
"There has been great deal of criti-
csm of the senate because it does not at
once ratify the treaty of arbitration be-
tween the United States and Great Brit
ain by those who forget that the exec
utive department has been four years in
negotiating it. BY the constitution of
the United States, the senate is made a
part of the treaty making power. The
trainers of the constitution, jealous Of
the executive power, were not willing that
the president should have this power, so
they provided that the president should
have power by advice and consent of the
senate to make treaties, provided two
thirds of the senate concur.
"The treaty is then the act of the SEN
ate and president.
ut is quite apparent that the senate's
should not be Il mere perfunctOry duty
and the requirement of two-thirds ma
jority was inserted because the trainers
of the constitution were impressed with
the Importance of the treaty making
lpower.
1.-The senate having been made a part
of the power which makes treaties, can
not rid itself of the responsibility of seeing
that they are properly made. 1t is as
incumbent upon us to give treaties due
consideration as upon the executive to do
so. We hear of no complaint of delay
on the part of the executive department,
but no sooner did it go to the senate than
there was a demand for immediate action
by the senate.
The senate being charged with this
duty of advising in the construction of u
treaty, can not transfer that duty to the
president or any one else.
"The friends of the treaty in the senate
all admit that it must be amended and
the committee on foreign relations has
recommended certain amendments which
Twill, without doubt, be adopted. But
what will be the condition of the treaty
if the friends of it do not agree rs to the
purport of the proposed amendments?
Some of them assert that each con-
troverted question for consideration by
the arbitrator must be acted upon by
the senate and the house of representa-
tives before the question can go before
the arbitration tribunal. If this is cor
rect we will be required to make Il new
treaty or agreement on each question as
it arises and have the assent, not of the
senate alone, but of the house also, and
instead of having avoided causes for dis
agreement and friction between the two
countries, it will be found we have null
tiplied the causes of dispute and delayed
the determination of controversial ques-
tons. If the treaty does not require
action on the part of congress, as some
contend it does not, then we are leaving
the question whether the subject of con-
troversy should be arbitrated on not to
the president alone. 1t is true we put
limitations of u definite character on the
executive in providing that he must not
arbitrate n question affecting our foreign
or domestic policy. but if the president
thinks such submission does net affect
that policy he can not be held responsible
for his action if he makes a mistake.
why should we not make this treaty
definite and exact? Why should we
leave so important question as to who
has the power of submission in doubt ?
If we consider we are to submit a given
iquestion to arbitration through congress.
and Great Britain thinks it ought to lie
in the power of the president, we create
friction, not only between ourselves but
with Great Britain as well. If the pres
ident thinks he should have control and
congress assumes jurisdiction of the mat
lter, then we have a home difficulty and
Ia foreign one at the same time.
1.-THE treaty is not capable of self
eXecution and there must be legislation
TO carry it into execution. Congress
must fix the term of the two arbitrators
to be appointed on OUT part and also de-
termine their compensation. This can
not be done at this session of congress.
1.-THE treaty ought to be gone over and
carefully examined by the committee,
which has already prepared sundry
amendments, and by the senate when
other matters are not pressing on that
body. 1t is almost impossible at this
late period of the session to give Il matter
of this kind that serious attention which
it requires. There can be no doubt that
the great body of the people of the
United States favor arbitration, but that
fact does not remove the necessity of
care in the preparation of a treaty to
carry out that idea. If the treaty is
carelessly made and there is difficulty in
determining what ought to be submitted
and feeling that after the treaty goes
into effect doubts would arise as to the
fairness of its operation, the people
would be prejudiced against the principle
Of its operation, so that instead of pro-
noting the cause of arbitration we may
destroy it by hasty action.
PERSONALLY, / am decidedly in favor
of arbitration of all questions that can
be arbitrated, but this is no reason why
should join in ratifying a treaty that
lacks the greatest essential Of a treaty
certainty as to what it means. There
is no threatened danger of war hanging
over IFS. We have no occasion for haste
and nothing can he gained by premature
action. When the treaty is put in proper
form, as hope it will be, it will be rati-
fed. ] regret that the agreement has
not been considered in open session, so
that the people could see the defects in
| il. H. NJ. TELLER"
WILL BE RATIFIED.
Washington. Feb. 14.-Information has
been received here from Venezuela to
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