The daily morning journal and courier., 1898-12-02
PROGRESS WITH PEACE TREATY.
Spanish Commissioners Making Hard
 Flight for Commercial Privileges,

Spanish Commissioners Making Hard
 Fight for Commercial Privileges,
 Paris. Dec, Anxious as both are to conclude their work the United States and Spanish peace commission CTS did not hold joint session to-day. Their next meeting will be held at 2 o'clock tomorrow. This delay arose from the fact that the Spanish com missioners at yesterdays session of- fered several urgent propositions which called for special deliberation upon the part of the Americans. Spain asks the United States to grant for term of five years to Spanish ships carrying Spanish goods or products to Porto Rico and Cuba the same privileges as American vessels, engaged in the same trade, may have, and she qualities this request by a proviso that trade priV1- leges be extended to Cuba as long as the United Stautes government is dom- inant over that island.
 In support of this request, the Span- ish commissioners assert that Spain cannot without vital harm, immediate ly abandon or cut off the business re- lations so long maintained between the mother country and the West Indies. They declare that family ties and social relations, added to affairs of trade maintained through centuries require gradual dissolution. They invoke the terms of the treaty of 1919 by which the United States took over Florida from Spain and which in the fifteenth article granted Spain for twelve years the right to send her goods and pro- ducts to Florida in Spanish ships on the same terms as the ships carrying thither goods and products of the Unit ed States. The Spanish commissioners cite further the fact that the treaty of 1903 with France, for the cesson Of Louisiana, granted French and Spanish goods and products the same terms as American in New Orleans and other ports in the ceded territory.
 Finally Spain points to the American proposed "open door" policy in the Philippines and asks a guarantee of the same advantage in her late West h. dian colonies, until trade relations can by degrees accustom themselves to the change of sovereignty. This proposition and the arguments by which 1t was supported are considered strongly stated, and the American commissioners de- sire time for deliberation. Thus, though busy until nearly 2 o'clock this after noon they were not fully prepared and Judge Day sent message to Senor Montero Rios requesting that the joint session fixed for this afternoon be post poned until tomorrow. Meanwhile the Spanish commissioners had been pre- pairing a list of subjects for negotiation, supplemented by suggestions counter to and amendatory of the subjects the Americans submitted yesterday. This came to the American commissioners to-day in Spanish, rendering it even more desirable to postpone the joint session in order to give time for trans lation and consideration.
 The translation is being made this evening and the subject will be laid be- fore the Americans tomorrow. Now that the first gust of grief and chagrir has passed, the Spanish commissioners are meeting the Americans in frank spirit that is helpful to an early com pletion of the negotiations. It is ad- mitted that the American commission CTS have no power to enforce their dc nands on points not covered by the protocol. Before Spain does yield, Ilit negotiations are likely to be prolonged and the United States may have to give a substantial quid pro quo.