Daily Kennebec journal., 1898-11-17
ASK ARBITRATION.
Another Dodge Tried by Span
ish Peace Commissioners.
Want Some Foreigner to Tell Us What
We Mean by the Protocol.
Will Doubtless Be Given Yankee laterpreta.
tion at an Early Dste.

of the Spanish and American peace
commissions began at 2.15 and ended
at 3 r. M. The Spanish commissioners
at the joint session, this afternoon
presented a long document in answer
to the American argument, which was
submitted, last week.
By mutual consent the memorandum
of today was handed to the Americans
without being read and the meeting
adjourned to Saturday next.
The Spanish communication will be
translated, this evening. and it's con-
tents will be discussed by the United
States commissioners at their usual
daily session.
The Spaniards, in their communica-
tion, today, re-affirmed the position
which they had assumed against the
discussion here of Spain's Philippine
sovereignty.
They insist that the words shall de-
termine the control, disposition and
government of the Philippines" in ar
ticle 8 of the peace protocol, do not
warrant any reference to Spain's with
drawal from the Philippines, except on
her own terms; and therefore the
construction to be placed in the words
the control, disposition and govern
ment."
In signifying her willingness to sub
init the Philippine articles of the pro-
tocol to third party for construction,
the Spanish commissioners urged, that,
as there is obviously a difference of
opinion regarding the phrase 1.-The con-
troll, disposition and government of the
Philippines possibly the result of
misunderstanding. the Spaniardss should
no more be asked to surrender their
view than the Americans to surrender
theirs.
The memorandum points out that
deadlock exists which might be broken
by arbitration on the contending views,
to which the Spanish commissioners
are quite ready to submit. The latter
declare that they have no idea of sug-
gesting arbitration as to the main is
sue, which touches the national honor
of both sides, but they are willing to
accept exterior aid to clear the path of
negotiations.
1t safe to say that American commits
sioners will not consent to invoke any
exterior aid to construe the terms of
their own protocol.
Another part of todays Spanish
memorandum fatty asserts, upon the
authority of M. Cambons reports of
the protocol negotiations between
Washington and Madrid through him,
that President Mckinley at no time OBJ
jected to Spain's reservation of her
sovereignty in the Philippines.
This allegation is directly opposed to
the American record on the same sub
Ject. The American commissioners
hold that the protocol itself was born
of Spain's attempt to reserve her Phil
ippine sovereignty, though the Spanish
memorandum, today, sQuarely chal-
lenges the contention.
Moreover the Spanish commission
ers. today, have alleged that President
McKinley's objections to Spain
phraseology in accepting the peace
terms was based solely so far as was
made known, upon this sentence in the
Spanish acceptance: "They accept the
proffered terms subject to the approval
of the Cortes of the kingdom, as re-
quired by their constitutional duties''
The Spanish memorandum of today
holds that M. Canbon answered the
American objection to this by point
ing out that the American terms were
profferred subject to the approval of
the American Senate, but that Presi-
dent Mckinley replied that he did not
desire to involve the internal affairs
OF Spain in the proceedings in hand.
The Spanish memorandum asks also
why, if the United States objected to
Spain's reservation and that the
protocol was necessary to prevent
misunderstanding on that point.
On Saturday, the date fixed for the
next meeting, the Americans viii
make their response in the course of
which it is not unlikely that the exact
terms and precise time limit of their
acceptance will be communicated