The San Francisco call., 1898-12-06

to make appropriate arrangements for transferring the sovereignty of the isl ands to the United States. This was sim ply but impreSSively accomplished on the 12th day of August last by the delivery of a certified copy of the resolution to Presi- uent Dole, who thereupOn yielded up to the representative of the Government of the United States the sovereignty and pqbllc property of the Hawaiian Islands Pursuant to the terms of the joint reso- lution and in exercise of authority there by conferred upon me- I directed that the clvll. Judicial and military powers there toIore exercised by the officers of the Government of the republic of Hawaii should continue to be exercised by those o1llcers until Congress shall provide a government for the incorporated terri tory. subject to my power to remove such officers and to fill vacancies The Presi- dent, officers and troops of the republic tnereupon took the oath of allegiance to the United States, thus providing for the uninterrupted continuance of ali the ad- mlnlstrative and municipal functions of the annexed territory until Congress shall otherwise enact
 Following the further provision of the Jolnt resolution, l appointed the Honor a ables es shelby M Cullom of Illinois, John T., T; Morgan of Alabama Robert R. Hit of Illinois, Sanford B. Dole of Hawaii and Waiter F. Grier of Hawaii as Commits Sloners ae 10 confer and recommend to Con SIeSS suCn leglSlat1on concerning the Ha- Wallan Islands as they should deem necessary or proper. The Commissioners hSavlng fulfilled the mission confided to them, their report will be laid before you at an early day. It is believed that their recommendations will have the earnest consideratlon due to the magnitude of tne responsibility resting upon you to give such shape to the relationship of those mid-Paciic lands to our home 9nlon as will benefit both in the highest degree, realizing the aspirations of inc community that has cast its lot with us ana elected to share our political herit- age Whlie, at the same time, justifying t.,'e oIe ioreslght or those who for three quarters of century have looked to the assimilation of Hawaii as a natural and inevitable consummation in harmony with ished traditions.
 The questions heretofore pending be- tween Hawaii and Japan. growing out of the alleged mistreatment of Japanese sleaty ere, immigrants, were, am pleased to say, adjusted before the act Of transfer py the payment of a reasonable indem- nlty to the Government of Japan.
 ,,,t,n unuer the provisions of the joint reso- luton the existing customs relations of the Hawaiian Islands with the Tinted states and with other countries remain unchanged 1iied until |, legislation shall other here and in foreign countries. continua to 1ulnll their commercial agencies. while the United States Consulate at Honolulu, tsinng an tr.d for all proper services per would be desirable that all foreign Con suis in the Hawaiian Islands should re- celVe new exequaturs from this Govern ment.
 The attention of Congress is called +o the Tact that our consular offices havino ceased to exist in Hawaii and being ahorf 10 cease Tn other countries coming under the sovereignty of the United States the provisions for the relief and transporta- = ton of destitute American seamen in these countries under our consular regl- iatlons VIII Tn consequence terminate Tt is proper, therefore that new leeisIo+ +io,, snoulo De enacted upon this subject in order to meet the changed conditions. The interpretation of certain provisions oL the eAtradltlon convention of December
 II, 1851, has been at va
 rlous times the occasion Controversy of controversy with the xry:4L Government of Mexico. WiIh An acute difference Mexico. arose in the case of the Mexican demand for the delivery of Jesus Guer- rera, who, having led marauding expedi- tion near the border with the proclaimed purpose of initiating insurrection against President Diaz. escaped into the United States EXtradition was refused on the ground that the alleged offense was politi- cal in it's character and therefore came within the treaty proviso of non-surren- der. The Mexican contention was that the exception only related to purely political offenses and that IS Guerrera's acts were admiXed with the common crime of mur- der, arson. Kidnapping and robbery, the option of non-delivery i became void, I able to admit, in view of the received in ternatonal doctrine and practice in the matter The Mexican Government. in view of this. gave notice on January "A 1898, of the termination of the convention to take effect twelve months from that date, at the same time inviting the con clusion of a convention toward which ne- gotiations are on foot.
 Toward this relation I may refer to the necessity of some amendment of our ex- isting extradition statute. It is com mon stipulation of such treaties that neither party shall be bound to give up its own citizens with the added proviso. in one of our treaties, that with Japan. that it may surrender. if it see fit 1t is held in this country by an almost uni form course of decisions that where a treaty negatives the obligation to surren- der the President is not invested with le- gal authority to act. The confirming of such authority would be in the line of that sound mortality which shrinks from afford ing secure asylum to the author of henous crime. Again, statutory provi- sion might be well made for what is styled extradition by way of transit whereby a fugitive. surrendered by one conveyed across the territory of the United States to the Jurisdiction of the