The daily morning journal and courier., 1898-08-25
INTERNATIONAL COMMISSION
WILL HOLD 4 JOINT MEET TO-DAY
 AT QUEBEC.
Public Meetings Are Not to be Held but Matters ofInterest Will be Considered
 and Expert Testimony Taken-It is Probable That the Building of War ships on the Lakes Xyin be Discussed.

Quebec, Aug. 24,-No meeting of the Joint arbitration commission was held to-day, Both the American and Cana dian commissioners are at work on plans for procedure, and will compare notes and decide upon a plan at the joint meeting tomorrow. One ponit, however, has been determined, nothing In detail of the commissions work will be given to the press until after its work is finished. The reason for this Is to prevent as far as possible the de- mands for hearings before the commits sion.
 Sir Wilfrid Laurier and Senator Fair banks have both stated that 1t would be impossible for the commission to grant general hearings They say the work of the commission would never be commenced if this were done. Both the Americans and Canadians have great amount of data and official information upon all questions to be considered and whatever additional information is de- sired will be obtained from available sources. On the most important ques- ttons expert testimony will be heard and where local interests are to be se- riously affected a single representative of the interests may be heard. Beyond this the commissioners say they will be unable to grant any requests for hearings. Briefs and documents on all questions will be received and given at tention.
 Sir James Winter, the representative from New Foundland, arrived at noon and will be present at the joint session tomorrow. Tonight Sir Wilfrid Lau- rier gave dinner to the commissioners at the Carlson club and in all the speeches was expressed the sentiment that the work of the commission would be of lasting benefit to the two great nations.
 Yesterday a rumor was going about here that the conference would at the joint meeting tomorrow adjourn for an indefinite period to meet at Washing ton. There appears to be no foundation for the rumon It is quite possible that the commission may take a recess, af- ter two or three weeks, but the com- missioners on both sides stated tonight that no adjournment would be taken until after the work had been carefully looked over and both sides had become satisfied as to what could be accom- plished in the way of general adjust ment of all questions to be decided
 The state election in Maine in which Congressman Dingley is interested, will occur about the 18th of September, but MT. Dingley says that he will be able to attend to all his duties in connection with the commission. Senator Fair banks and Senator Gray also are Inter- ested in the elections in their respective states, but do not intimate that 1t will become necessary for them to postpone the work of the commission because of elections. If an adjournment be taken early in September 1t will be with the mutual consent of the commissioners on both sides.
 Hon. Don M. Dickinson, who has been before the American commissioners in the interests of Michigan 1umbermen, left to-day for Omaha. Before leaving he brought to the attention of the American commissioners the advisabil- ity of changing the old treaty of 1877 under which neither Canada nor the United States are permitted to "build and maintain" war vessels on the great lakes. In behalf of the ship builders in Buffalo, Cleveland Detroit and other lake cities, he asked that the word 'build'' be stricken out of the old treaty, and that the ship builders be permitted to compete with other parts of the country. He did not ask that the provision prohibiting the mainte- nance of more than 9ne cruiser by either government upon the lakes be changed