Daily inter mountain. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1881-1901, 1899-12-05

lations. however, came as the personal
representative of President Diaz and in
that high character was duly honored.
BERING SEA CLAIMS.
Claims growing out of the seizure Of
American sealing vessels in Bering Sea
have been under discussion with the gov
eminent of Russia for several years,
with the recent happy result of an agree
ment to submit them to the decision OF
a single arbitrator. BY this act Russia
affords proof of her adherence to the
beneicent principle of arbitration which
her plenipotentiary conspicuously favor
ed at The Hague disarmament confer
ence. when it was advocated by the rep
resentatives of the United States.
A suggestion for a permanent EXPOSE
ton of our products and manufactures
in Russia. although not yet fully shaped.
has been so cordially welcomed by the
imperial government that it may not
inaptly take a fitting place in whatever
legislation congress may adopt looking
to enlargement of our commercial OPP
portunities abroad.
THE SAMOAN QUESTION.
Important events have occurred in the
Samoan islands. The election. according
to the laws and customs of Samoa. of Il
successor TO the late King Malietoa Tau
pepa developed q contest as to the val
idity of the result. which issue, by the
t Ills " liz n Il y q ~ DC *"
cided by the chief justice. Upon his rem
dering a Judgment in favor of Malietoa
Tanu, the rival chief Mataafa took up
arms. The active intervention Of Amer
lean and British Warships became i'm
perative to restore order at the cost of
sanguinary encounters. In this, erler-
gency a joint commission of representa-
tives of the United States. Germany and
Great Britain was cent to Samoa to in
vestigate the situation and provide Il
temporary remedy. BY it's active efforts
a peaceful sOlutiOn was reached and for
the time being the Eingship was abol-
ished. Recommendations unanimously
made by thecommission for q permanent
adjustment of the Samoan question were
taken under consideration by the three
powers. parties to the general act. But
the more they We're examined the more
evident it became that a radical change
was necessary in the relations Ct the pow
ers of Samoa. The Inconvenience and
possible perils of the tripartite scheme OF
supervision and control in the Samoan
group by powers having little interest in
common in that quarter beyond CONNER
cial rivalry. has been once lnorc empha-
sized by the recent events. The
ed remedy of the joint commission like
the scheme it aimed to replace amounts
to what had been styled a tri-dominlum.
being the exercise of the functions OF
sovereignty by an unanimous agreement
of three powers. This situation had be-
come far more intricate and embarrass-
ing from every point of view than 1T was
when my predecessor in 1894 sulnmed up
it's perpleXities and condemned the par
ticipation in it of the United States.
The arrangement under which Samoa
was administered had proved Impractical
BILE and unacceptable to all the powers
concerned. To withdraw from the agree
ment and abandon the Islands to Ger
many and Great Britain would not be
e. -Oy,,r,nt;hta with n jlinfnCfG i'm the ar
chipelago. To relinQuish our rights in the
harbor of Page Page, the best anchorage
in the Pacific ocean,, the occupancy OF
which had been leased to the United
States in 1878 by the first foreign treaty
ever concluded by Samoa, was not to be
thought of, either as regards the needs
of our navy nor the interests OF our grow
ing with the east. We ould
; not awe considered any proposition for
the ~abrogation of the ~tripartite control
which did not confirm us in all our rights
and safeguard all our national interests
in the islands.
Our views commended themselves TIC
the other powers. A satisfactory ar
Management was concluded between the
governments of Germany and England
by virtue of which England ~retlres from
the Samoas, in view of compensationS IN
other directions, and both powers re-
nounctd in favor of the United States al
their rights and claims over and in re-
spect to that portion of the territory
lying to the east of the one hundred and
se~venty-frst degree of west longitude
embracing the islands Of Tututla. Ofoo
Olosenga and Manua. 1 TRANSMIT to tbs
senate for it's constitutional action there
on. whereby the provision above mon
toned also guarantees us the same priyi-
leses and conditions in respect to COM
merce and commercial vessels in all OF
thn IL ~, of & p, oS r. hnrn JanscnccnI
by Germany.
Claims have been preferred by white
residents eff Samoa on account of injuries
alleged to have been suffered through the
acts of the treaty governments in putting
down the late disturbances. A onven
ton has been made between the three
powers for the Investigation and settle
merit of these claims by Il neutral arbi-
trator to which the attention of the SEN
ate will be Invited.
THE WAR WITH SPAIN.
My annual message of last year was
necessarily devoted in great part to a
consideration of the Spanish war and OF
the results it wrought and the conditions
it imposed for the future. l am gratifed
to announce that the treaty of peace has
restored relations of peace between the
nations. The effect has been given to its
most important provisions. The evacua-
ton of Porto 1llcO having already been
accomplished on the 18th of October, 1898,
nothing remained necessary there but tC
continue the provisional military control
of the island until the congress should
enact a stable government for, the ceded
territory. OF the character and scope of
the measures to that end | shall treat in
another part of this message.
AUTHORITY IN CUBA.
The withGraW wal of the authority OF
Spain for the island of Cuba was effected
by the first of January. SO that the full