New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1900-01-22
TRANsVAAL RECOGNITION.

sensational prominence through Senator Hale'S
! impassioned advocacy Of the Boer cause in the
present war. The latter circumstance Is not,
however, to be taken into account in consider
ing the main question involved Indeed, sympa-
thy on either side has nothing to do with the
case. Senator Hale seems to be as much i'll
sympathy with the Beers he two or
| three years ago out of sympathy with the Gu
| bans and opposed to United States action In
! their behalf. But the Transvaal is not to be
| automatically recognized simply because of
| sympathy with it in this war, is such recog-
milton TO be withheld simply because of lack Of
| sympathy or because Of friendship for Great
Britain. Either of such courses would be in vio-
lation of the true spirit of neutrality Recogni-
ton of sovereignty is TO be given on the ground
of fitness and merit and on no other Such rec
IGNITION is very different thing from recogni-
ton Of belligereney, for belligerent Is by no
means necessarily a sovereign. And even if
State be undeniaby sovereign it still remains
optional with another State whether it will enter
into diplomatic relations with it. Any State has
a right to send a diplomatic representative to
another, but the latter is under no compulsion to
receive him.
The question of the Transvaal's claim upon
diplomatic recognition is not however, the pres
ent issue; yet the propriety of its recognition
by this country. The real question is, Who is,
under our system of government, to be the judge
of such matters? The Constitution, it will be
remembered, says ARTICLE II, Section y the
President shall nominate, and by and with the
advice and consent of the Senate shall appoint
Ambassadors, other public Ministers" etc, and
also (Article II, Section 81 'he shall receive Am
bassadors and other public Ministers" Now, in
the quoted paragraph of Section are enumer-
ated Presidential powers to be exercised only i'll
conjunction with the Senate But in Section 3,
quoted are enumerated powers to be exercised
by him independently of either branch of Con-
gress, and indeed in certain cases against their
will The inference is therefore drawn that it
lies within his discretion whether or not 20 re-
ceive the diplomatic representative of another
State and thus to grant it recognition rs
sovereign State, and that in the exercise Of that
discretion he is not to be called to account I'M
less through process Of impeachment.
This seems, indeed to have been the interpre
tation of the Constitution adopted by this Gov
eminent In 1911 a resolution was intro
duced into the House of Representatives
Offering to cooperate with the President
In establishing diplomatic relations with
the new republics in South America. But,
though it recognized fully the sole right of the
President to take the initiative and to act upon
his own discretion in such matters, 1t was
deemed even still a slight reflection upon the
| Presidential prerogative and accordingly was
not pressed to vote. Six years later the Presi-
| dent recognized the bellgerence Of those repub-
lies on his own sole authority, and Congress ac-
| quesced in his right to do so. Henry Clay, how
| ever, thereupon moved the appropriation OF
| money for payment of the salary of Minister
| to those countries. This was intended as hint,
if nothing more to the President that Congress
| thought he ought 10 open diplomatic relations
with the republics. Mr.. Clay supported his mo-
| ton with one of his greatest speeches, but it
was overwhelmingly defeated, on the ground
that it would be an unwarrantabe infringement
| upon the Presidential prerogative Again, in
! April, 1920, Mr. Clay moved that, in the opinion
| of the House, it was desirable to send Ministers
| TO South America, but the motion was allowed
| to drop without action. Nearly year later he
| renewed it in a much milder form, but again 1t
was defeated Five days later he moved, in
| the most moderate terms pledge Of "consttu-
| tional support" to the President whenever he in
! his own discretion, might see fit to send such
| Minister'S Even this was deemed by many to
! be an infringement upon the Presidents prerOg-
atives, and it was finally adopted by a vote of
only 81 TO g. The President did not resent it,
but neither did he act upon it. He merely
pigeonholed it! Some time later, upon his own
| initiative he declared the republics to be en-
titled to recognition, and asked for funds to
| send Ministers to them, which Congress duly
| voted
| If thus the President be recognized as having
the sole right of initiative in case in whiclfhis
| action can be fulfilled only through Congress
| sionaI cooperation and Senatorial approval, it
would certainly seem that he has at least equal
| right in q case in which no such cooperation or
approval is required. 1t is not without interest
10 recall that more than one occasion the
President has dismissed foreign Minister who
was unacceptable to him without consulting Con-
| Gress. Such were the cases of Senior Yruio, the
| Spanish Minister, In 1906; of Mr.. Jackson, the
British Minister. in 1909, and Of Mr.. Catacazy,
the Russian Minister, in 1871. These cases were,
| il is true discussed in Congress- But no one
| successfully questioned the right OF the Presi-
| dent TO act according to his own judgment. Nor
| will 1t be forgotten that in the recent case of
Cuba the same ground was taken. So good an
authority SIS Senator Hale, discussing the ques-
ton of Cuban recognition, on May 10, 1897, ar
gued that mot every revolt is in the direction of
human liberty" and urged that the President
should be left unhampered by any act of Con-
gress and again. on April IS, 1885, when war
with Spain was seen to be inevitable, he de-
plored action on the question of Cuban recogni
ton by Congress on the ground that II would
bring the Senate into a deadlock with the Presi-
dent 1.-The President has told u.s." he said
that the conditions in Cuba are not such as will
permit our recognition of the Republic of
CUBA: and he urged that the Presidents word
should be taken as final These various prece-
dents are worthy 20 be taken into consideration
at the, present time In connection with ths