Iron County register., 1898-12-15
THE TREATY Is signed.
The War with Spain Officially
Brought to Close by the
Peace Commissioners.
THE CLOSE WAS A SCENE FOR A PAINTER.
The Document was Signed at S:45 p. M, ON
the Night Of the 1Oth-IG Consists OF
Seventeen Articles, Making 500 Words
Tho spaniards were Sadly Depressed
Over the Final Action.


joint sessions of the peace commits
sions Saturday, one lasting from
$40 p. m, to 5:15 p. M, and
the other opening at p. m. The long
session in the afternoon and the SUBJ
sequent recess were due only to the
fact that each article of the treaty had
to be carefully read and compared in
Spanish and English, and to the fact
that the engrossing of the last article
in Spanish was incomplete. During
the wait the commissioners were pho
tographed.
The treaty was signed at S:45 p. m.
A SCENE FOR A PAINTING.
The signing of the treaty would have
afforded subject for great historic
painting. The group gathered about
the table in the stately chamber of the
foreign Office was impressive in itself,
while the fact that the sense of the
momentousness of the issues which
the act decided was deeply felt by all
| the participants gave an impressive
and solemn tone to the scene. Around
| the great mahogany table sat the ten
arbiters of the destinies of an old and
| young nation. Ranged, standing be-
| hind them, were numerous attaches of
| the American commission. The jets
| from the crystal chandeliers above the
| heads of those present magnified the
| brilliant green and scarlet of the up
| holstering in their gaudiness. There
| was the attraction of a contrast be-
| tween the black clothed actors and the
scenery.
To the Americans it was a happy
ending of the epilogue of war; for the
| Spaniards it was plainly a bitter trage-
| dy, none the less painful because long
foreseen. They sat silently, as though
| almost crushed, and none could with
| hold sympathy for Senior Montero
| Rios, the president of the Spanish COM
mission, who, coming from his bed,
was bundled in a great overcoat,
though logs were burning in the fire.
| place near by. The spirits of the two
| bodies were symbolized by the clothes
worn by the members of the commits
sion, for the Americans were attired
| in evening dress for the dinner given
| them Immediately after the meeting
| by the Due d'Loubat, and the Span
iards wore black frock coats.
Although the commissions met at
$3.50 o'clock, expecting to finish their
work in half an hour, the engrossing
of the treaty on parchment was found
| to be so troublesome that it delayed
the signing of the document until
500 o'clock. Clerk Martin, of the
| American commission, worked all day
without even stopping to eat. When
he came into the chamber at 1880
| ho he
missioners waiting. The Spanish
copy had arrived half hour earlier.
ORDER OF SIGNATURES.
Mr.. Arthur Ferguson then proceed
ed to read first the English, and after
that the Spanish, version of the
treaty. This finished, two copies
were passed around the table, the
commissioners signing them in the
order of their rank-William R. Day,
Senator Cushman K. Davis, Senator
William P. Frye, Whitelaw Reid and
Senator George Gray; Senor Montero
Rios, Senior Abarzuza, Senior Garnica,
Senor Villaurutia and Gen. Cerero Y
Saons, each commission signing it's
opponents treaty. Both were tied
with the Spanish and American col
ors.
When the seals We're affixed, at
tendants were sent scurrying for rib
bons of the French tri-color, with
which the documents were sealed, in
compliment to the French hosts of the
commission.
Many officials interested watched
every detail of the proceeding. The
last seal being impressed, the COM
| missioners rose, and, without formali-
| ty, each member shook the hands of
all his antagonists, and each gave as
surances of sincere personal esteem.
The Spaniards afterward comment
ed acridly upon what they termed the
bad taste of the Americans in muster
| ing a crowd of attaches to gloat over
| the contamination of their downfall
and to scramble for relics.
The signing was finished at S:45.
| At that time the door of the chamber
opened, and Senior ViIlaurutia appeared
spondents who were waiting in the
corridor: "C'Est Ffni." The other
members of the Spanish commission
followed Senior Villaurutia and passed
silently through the vestibule to their
waiting carriages. The American COM
mission strolled out, chatted compla-
Gently, and as the descended the
steps the lights in the chamber were
darkened.
Hobson to Leave San Francisco for Hong
| Enn0