The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-05-08

of prestige by reason of his having been
President of the United States and man
of thorough legal ability, was called To
New York and engaged as chief counsel
for Venezuela. There was an immense
task before him. The documentary evil
dence extends over four centuries Gen.
Harrison at the time knew little more OF
the case than many other readers of news
papers and periodicals. Though Nene-
zuela had for number of years Appealed
to the United States for ass stance IN her
dispute with Great Britain and though
Secretary Blaine, like other Secretaries or
State, had had some correspondence with
Great Britain on the subject yet the case
was only minor incident in Harrison
administration and did not take on any
thing like that acute form which II be-
gan 20 assume early in the administra-
ton of his successor. President Cleveland.
How Harrison Has Worked on the
Case.
From the date of his employment as
counsel for Venezuela, something over
fifteen months ago, until the present cen
Harrison has given his entire time TO this
great case His law Office in 1ndianapo-
lis has not been used by him, and he mas
worked az his home. Scarcely day has
'nassed on which he has not spent the
usual business hours of lawyer from .
to 4 o'clock, On this case. CONSIDERING
that he is a public man, with many ur-
gent requests for use Of his time IN poil-
tics. and other business affairs, he has LED
almost a secluded life. His soJourh an
the Adirondacks last summer was only
change of work shop. not vacation
In this boundary dispute the Venezue-
lans and the British are the successors
respectively, of the Spanish and the
Dutch. The controversy touches many
points of historic and romantic interest
beginning with the times of the Spanish
discovery and conquests in South Amer
lea. The disputed territory itself was the
much-sought Eel Dorado of the Spanish
and English adventures. The Dutch, IN
the long struggle of the Netherlands
against Spanish tyranny and inquistion,
attacked their enemy along these far
away coasts and cut off many of the
treasure ships that carried TO Spain the
means of maintaining her long and cruel
wars. II was by settlement in territory
claimed by Spain and while at war with
that country that the Dutch got a foot
hold in Guiana, and by treaty of Munster
i'm l6lS, after the thirty-year's war In Eu-
rope, received a grant from Spain of ter
ritoral rights in Guiana. What is now
British Guiana was held for l66 years
by the Dutch. BY conquest and treaty
It was finally coded to Great Britain In
1874
Evidence in Three Languages.
The evidence submitted in this interna-
tional lawsuit is particularly voluminous
for the two and a half centuries since
the treaty of 1913, which gave no well de,
fined boundary between Spanish and Dutch
possessions, and thus started all the
trouble. There are Dutch documents. COM
plete and well connected, from The Hague;
Spanish documents incomplete, scattered,
gathered with great labor from archives
without index, at Seville. There was a
search also I'm the vatican at Rome among
reports of the Spanish mission settlements
in the disputed territory. Material, also,
had naturally been gathering in the Vene-
zuelan archives at Caracas. Then there
were the English blue books, supplement-
ed in the research on Venezuela's behalf.
by unofficial publications about geographi-
cal subjects and travel not always in har-
mony with the official documents.
Twenty-Thrcc Volumes of Evidence.
All the documents in foreign languages
have been translated and the whole pro-
ceedings ere in English. All the evidence
is IN. Everything submitted has been
printed, and copies OF the many volumes
have been furnished to the five arbitrators
and the respective counsel. What Is
called the ease" or the opening state
ment of facts, for Great Britain, takes up
one volume with seven volumes of appen-
dices or exhibits The case for Venezue-
In takes up one volume, with two volumes
of appendices. Each side also submitted
with its case" an atlas OF maps bearing
on the controversy The "countercase'
of Great Britain takes up one volume and
a volume of appendices, and the Counter
case" Of Venezuela one volume, with two
volumes of appendices. Each side with
it's counter case submitted another atlas.
Then came the printed argument, filling
two volumes, or about 800 pages, for Ven
ezueia, and only one volume Of about
sixty-fve pages for Great Britain. Thus
far therefore. twenty-three printed vol
umes have been submitted Further pro
ceedings are to be by oral argument,
though such things as the arbitrators
may call for will be submitted in printing
and the other side will have leave 10 print
replies
Assisting Gen. Harrison as counsel for
Venezuela are Benjamin Il. Tracy, who
was Secretary Of the Navy In his cabinet,
S. Maaet-P Provost and James Russell So
ley, all of New York S. MaIIet- Provost
was secretary OF the United States com
mission on this boundary dispute and had
done much work for the commission in
placing evidence III shape. he was, tnere-
fore, familiar with the details of the dis
pute and was especially valuable IN max
ing up the Venezuelan case in the short
time between January, 1898, and March
IS of the same year. when the case was
submitted. There Is no citizen of Vene-
zuela among the counsel for that coun-
try, but j. NJ. de Rojas Of Venezuela is
agent for his country in the litigation.
Gen. Harrison. engaged in case for a
Spanish-speaking country and one an
which documents translated from foreign
languages are numerous. Is familiar only
with the English language He is. fur
Their, making his first trip to Europe In
going to Paris to plead for Venezuela in
this case.
Immense Territory in Dispute.
The territory in dispute between Vene-
zuela and British Guiana covers over
60, 900 square miles. and Is greater than the
combined areas Of the states of New York,
Connecticut and Massachusetts Vene-
zuela contends that all the territory west
of the Essequibo river belongs to the re-
public. Lord Salisbury, In correspondence
with Mr. Olney opposing the submission
of the dispute about certain parts of this