Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1897-09-18

Secretary Chamberlain Criticises At
titude of United States on Sealing.
RECALLS some PREVIOUS HISTORY
Charges That the NobIest Tradi-
tons Have Been Abandoned.
CITES CASE OF HARRIET

LONDON, September 1S.-The secretary
| CT state for the colonies. Mr. Chamberlain,
| in the long letter from the colonial office
| 10 the foreign office, signed by Mr.. Edward
! Wingffeld, one of the assistant under-sec-
| retaries of state published by the Times to-
| day, and dealing with Secretary Shermans
| dispatch to the Marquis of Salisbury on the
| Bering sea controversy, also says:
| Mr.. Chamberlain cannot pass Mr.. Sher-
| mans attacks unnoticed, because his si-
| 1ence might be construed as an admission
that the dispatch was unanswerabla.
| From perusal Of Mr.. Sherman's dis
| patch, 1t might be inferred that the protec-
| tion and preservation of the fur seal is
| identical with the suppression of pelagic
sealins,a and this view is consistent with the
! attitude the United States have maintained
| from the outset. In support of their views
| the United States government have depart
4 Ell from the nobleSt traditions of their coun-
| try, which had earned universal ,:cnor by
] their efforts to vindicate the freedom of the
! high seas. The nation which is now Jealous
Tor prohibiting peiagic sealing was, i'm 1S;..
| with equal zeal asserting the claim of the
| rlSht Tor its citizens not only to kill seals
on the high seas, but to land and slaughter
| them on the shores of friendly nation"
| Mr.. Chamberlain elaborates on this point
| at some length. relating the incident nf the
seizure of the scaling vessel Harriet at
Buenos Ayres, in 1Si2, and adding:
Incident at Buenos Ayres.
THE shores of the Pribyloff Islands today
are equally as uninhabited as the shores of
| the Falkland Islands and Terra Del Fuego
| were fifty years ago, but no British subject
| has ever claimed the right to land and kill
| seals there, as the United States did ,,n the
| south Atlantic, under the protection of the
guns of American mau-nf-war''
r~ Mr.. Chamberlains letter quotes and an
| swers most minutely all the points OF Sec
retary Shermans dispatch.
1t is said at the State Department that
there is nothing in the Bering sea cor
respondcnce published in London this
morning that had not been already made
public IN this country, except the note ad-
dressed by Lord Salisbury to Ambassador
Hay. dated July 2S, in partial response to
Secretary Shermans famous shirt sleeve
the seal question.
VIII Meet Here in October
In the letter referred to Lord Salisbury
stated that the British government was
| willing to agree 20 a meeting of the experts
in October, preferably in Washington, and
| that other portions of Mr.. Shermans dis
| patch, in so far they required any reply
| from her majesty's government, had been
answered by anticipa ion in dispatches he
Q1ord Salisbury had addressed to Sir Ju-
lian Pauncefote on April ~ and May 4,
winch had been communicated to the gov
ernment of the United States on July 26
The LONDON publication of the corre-
spondence was accompanied by memo
randum prepared by Mr.. Chamberlain II
points out that Mr. Sherman's contention
that the determination of fur-bearing seals
has been practically accomplished cannot
have come to pass, as in that case there
would be nothing at ali to form the SUBJ
Ject matter of negotiation. The document
proceeds:
Enslish Interests Superior.
Lord Salisbury pointed cut in May that
the English intel ests had for some years
exceeded the American in the fur-sealing
industry. 1t cannot, therefore, be for the
advantage of the British government or
those whom it represents that the seals
should be extermirated. The dispatch ex-
plains that the object of the conference Is
to arrive, If possible, at correct conclu-
sions respecting the numbers, conditions
ard habits of the seals frequentirg the
Pribiloff Islands at the present time, ds
compared with several seasons previous to
and subsequent to the Paris award.
But 1t must be clearly understood that
this limited inquiry does not involve an as
sent to MIR. Sherman's strange misconcep-
tions." Mr.. Chamberlain contends that
Great Britain has taken adequate meas
ures much more complete in some direc-
tions than those adopted by the United
States, for securing the enforcement of
the Paris regulations, and says it was
never intended by the tribunal of arbitra-
tion that United States officers should have
the power Of supervising and controlling
the action of British naval and customs
officers with regard to the inspection OF
skins.
He contends that the British government
mas even exceeded the limits of its strict
obligations as far as was possible without
in i1.ry the interests of fhnSa
bound to protect. The government, he
continues, had not omitted 10 enact legis-
lation necessary to secure the conviction
of the guilty, but it has refused to pass
legislation certain to embarrasS and in
jure the innocent. 1t has refused to seek
legislation authorizing tha inspection of
skins because it doss not believe such in
spection would serve any useful purpose.
Protest Against interference.
The British government. ne asserts has
performed with the utmost rigor all the
requirements of the award, but it has had
to make continual unavailins protests
against the attempts of the United States
to hamper and embarrass the operations of
British subjects pursuing their lawful yo-
cation.
But the fact" continues Mr.. Chamber
lain, that jim spite of these embarrass-
ments British sealers have been able to
prosecute the industry successfully has led
TO continual effort by the United States
to obtain such further regulations as would
effectively prevent that result without re-
gard to the objects of the award"
The dispatch concludes follows:
1.-The government has never argued that
the regulations are perfect. but 1t mas main-
tanned that before thay can be scientifically
revised accurate information as to the in
crease or decrease of the herd must be
made available. Such information is only
obtainable by accurate observations extend
ing over a Period sufficient to enable ac-
cidental circumstances to be eliminated.
LAS soon that is at hand the govern
nent Is ready to enter IT On discussion of
the question in the impartial and friendly
spirit with which the goeernment can con-
fdently claim it has acted throughout the
entire controversy"
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