Evening star., 1898-12-24
THE PEACE TREATY
Its Friends Sure Of Adoption by the
Senate.
OPPOSITION TO IT DYING OUT
No Amendment to the Text Will
Be Allowed.
BRYAN'S COURSE CRITICISED

The President learned early this morning
OF the arrival of the peace commissioners
in New York, and was informed by wire
that they had taken special train for
Washington. The peace treaty it is ex-
pected, will be laid before him this after
noon at . o'clock. when the commissioners
Will be received in the blue room.
1t is the present plan of the President to
lay the treaty before the Senate imme-
diately on the reassembling of Congress
1t Will then be referred to the committee
on foreign relations. which will go over it
carefully. the members of the commission
explaining it point by point. A week or ten
days, the President is advised by prominent
senators who have talked with him. will
be long enough for the committee. When
the treaty gets before the Senate its friends
will insist upon its consideration in execu-
tive session to facilitate business.
A Proposed Amendment.
The only obstacle likely to be placed in
the way of its ratification, it is said, is an
amendment disclaiming in effect any pur-
pose on the part of the United States to
retain sovereignty in the Philippine Islands.
This proposal the friends of the treaty, un
der the direction of the President, are pre-
pared to insist shall not be a part of any
the Senate in the form of a resolution after
the treaty has been agreed to. Such
disclaimer, they declare, would be a purely
domestic concern, and not one which should
be Incorporated in the agreement with
Spain. This and other amendments will be
rejected on similar grounds, and the treaty
will be pushed resolutely for a decisive vote
The friends of the treaty feel more con-
fident than ever before of success.
The President believes the backbone of
the opposition has been broken. Only This
morning a prominent democratic senator
called upon the President and said that he
felt that the case against the treaty was
ended; that as a peace measure it should be
promptly ratified.
Effect When 1t Comes to Vote.
By insisting upon keeping the disclaimer
of any purpose to retain sovereignty sep
arate from the treaty, the expansionists
expect to defeat the proposal They show
that whereas third of the Senate might
by holding out for such a pronouncement
as part of a treaty secure its adoption,
it would take a majority of the Senate to
carry it through an independent propo-
sition. Such majority, they believe, can
not be found, and the shortness of the ses-
sion is such that if the treaty is once rati-
fled, with appropriation bills pressing on,
they believe no other action in relation to
the Philippines will be taken.
Secretary Hay told the President this af
ternoon that the peace commissioners
would call and hand him the treaty at
o'clock.
Members of Congress Interested.
The greatest interest is manifested among
members of the House and Senate in the
arrival of the peace commission in New
York and the prospect of their being here
today. The experience the senators of that
commission have had in trying to withhold
their confidence from newspaper men in
Paris Is nothing to what they will go
through when they come in communication
with their colleagues. Nearly every man in
the House and Senate Is eager to know
Just what IS in the treaty, and how far this
country has been committed to a definite
line of policy. They are afraid to rely on
the publications purporting to state the pro-
visions Of the treaty. which have been tele
graphed from abroad, because so much that
has come from that source has been unreli-
able The general desire among men in
Congress is to devote much of the time of
the holiday recess TO preparation to sustain
the position they have taken, respectively,
regarding the question of expansion and In
order to be sure of their ground they want
to know exactly what are the terms of the
treaty.
The belief is growing every day that un-
less. contrary TO expectation, the treaty
commits this government to a definite
policy for the future, the opposition in the
Senate will be very slight and the treaty
will surely be ratified after considerable
discussion.
In a general way the line of policy ad-
yocated by Mr.. Bryan is being adopted by
many of the democrats, but the disposition
to follow his suggestion is more general in
the House than in the Senate, where the
question must be settled.
Bryan's Course Criticised.
number of democrats who are earnest
supporters of the Chicago platform and of
Mr.. Bryan as the exponent of il are speak
ing privately in disapproval of Mr. Bryan's
resumption of unreserved public discussion
OF public questions which are as yet SO
indefinitely presented as leave ii a matter
OF doubt how party lines may be drawn
Some apprehension is expressed among sill
yer men that by the too free discussion of
the expansion question end of the military
enlargement he is in danger of obscuring
the silver question. The suggestion is yery
freely made that he can afford to be very
clrcumspect in talking publicly until the
situation has more definitely developed.
Commission to He Discharged
1t Is the impression at the State Depart-
ment that when the commission submits
the treaty signed at Paris to the President
the official existence of that body will have
terminated. Even should there be occasion
which Is scarcely conceivable. for further
negotiations on any of the subjects touched
by the treaty. It is said that this will either
be done by direct negotiation with the Mad
rid government or through an entirely new
commission. 1t Is a rather remarkable fact
that the commissioners were enabled to
complete their work in Paris in almost ex-
actly the time predicted by Judge DAY.
the president of the American commission,
before he left the United States, although
there was complete change in the instruc-
tions relating to at least one most impor-
tant subject included in the treaty while
the commissioners were in Paris.
PEACE COMMISSIONERS COMING.