Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1900-01-02
SECRET TREATY MADE.
Negotiations Between Great Brit
ain, Germany and Portugal.
CEDE DELAGOA BAY.
Possibility that President Kruger
will Now Declare War ON
Portugal.

zeiger publishes the contents Of the Ger.
English-Portuguese secret treaty
This double treaty will have executive
force as soon as the Swiss jurists,
AIessrs. Blaesi, Hensler and Goldau have
given decision in the Deiagoa arbitra-
| ton. The decision, it IS expected, will be
given in January or February and will
probably be in favor of England, III
which case Portugal must pay to Eng
land and America an indemnity Of II,
9OG,00O sterling
England obtained in 1891 from Per
tugal the right OF presumption in Delagoa
bay. The ceSSion of Delagoa bay to Eng
| land may. therefore, be expected in
March next.
War with Portugal.
1t is possible that President Kruger
may now declare war on Portugal and
attack Delagoa at once.
In order to prevent any interference by
France or Russia, England concluded Il
secret treaty with Germany regarding
the complete partition of Portuguese colo
NAL possession. Germany is to receive all
Portuguese possession in ASia-that is 70
say TimOr, Goa, DamaiO, Macao. and
Diu, 10000 square miles Of territory and
100000 inhabitants.
Germany further receives in Africa all
Portuguese territory north of Mozam-
bique except strip of land three miles
wide for Cecil Rhodes Trans-African
railway For this the German govern
ment will pay Portugal 25,000,000 marks
The surprising part in the statement of
the Lokal Anzeiger is that it refers to
Asia when it has repeatedly been assert
ed at the foreign office that the treaty
only refers to Africa and did not refer 10
Asia 1t must, however, be remem bered
that the Lokal Anzeiger was in position
to publish the Samoa treaty twenty-four
hours before the official publication took
place.
England receives the remaining At
rican possessions OF Portugal, which con-
tain 100000 square kilometers and
have 13.000.000 inhabitants.
Portugal Consents.
The consent of Portugal to this ar
rangement has already been obtained in
principle.
The Lokal Anzeiger declares it has
news from such a source that no de-
mentI Is possible.
That Great Britain Will ultimately be-
come the pOssessOr of Delagoa bay has
long been expected. 1t has been known
for some years that negotiations for the
transfer have, with more or less secrecy,
been carried on between Portugal and
Great Britain for Il transfer. Domestic
political considerations have deferred
Portugal from parting with one of her
most valuable possessions. 1t would not
be surprising II Great Britain, under
stress of present circumstances. acted up
on the negotiations Of the last few years
and pr SSed for the execution of the UNI
Outstanding between the two countries.
The present town of LourenZo Marquee,
not infrequently termed Delagoa bay,
dates only from 1861. 1t is built Oh the
site of an old village named in honor Of
the navigator who in 1874 planted the
first Portuguese flags there. The harbOr
has been compared with two of the finest
in the world, Rio and Sydney, and prop
crly developed it would become the mari
time port OF the whole of the basin Of the
Limpopo river and Of the states occupy
ing the D ateau CT South Africa. Great
Britain from 1920 onward disputed the
claims of Portugal TO the ownership of
Delagoa bay and based its own claims
upon an occupation by the Dutch of
which the reversion fell, to her. Capt.
Owens, carrying out surveys, in. 1923, OBJ
tanned Il concession from the native
chefs concerned in. its shores.
Decided by Arbitration.
The dispute was ultimately referred to.
the arbitration of the President of the
French republic Marshal MacMahOn,
whose award in 1875 was given in favor
Of Portugal. Britain, however, did not
reinuuish her aims and she conSoled her
self for the loss of the actual ownership
by obtaining Il right Of presumption I'M
der the AngloP Portuguese agreement of
1891.
Under this instrument Great Britain,
and Portugal agreed that in the event
of ''one OF the two powers proposing to
part with any of the territories to the
south of the Zambesi the other shall be
recognized as possessing a preferential
right to the territories in question:, or
any portion of Them
This is held to give to Great Britain
the right of prescription whenever Portu-
gal is in such financial straits as to need
to sell her rights in the bay. She was
said to be i'll such difficulties last year
and only domestic political considera lions
in Lisbon then prevented her acting upon
the agreement.
Not Credited in Paris.
Paris Dec 2S.-The publication by the
Lokal Anzeiger of Berlin of the secret
treaty between Germany, Portugal and
Great Britain, providing for the partition
of the Portuguese colonies, meets with
10 credence. in official circles here. A
foreign office official said to a representa-
tive Of the Associated press that their
adyices from Portugal and Germany left
ly invention. They could not believe
Portugal would sign 4 treaty stripping
herself of her colonies and SO. far-reach-
ing and harmful to Portugal
Notwithstanding the denial of the
French foreign office, it is believed in
other quarters that an agreement be
tween Great Britain and Germany may
exist outside of the understanding ar
rived at between them this year as an
outcome of the negotiations to build q
telegraph line connecting Capt Town
Berlin, Dec. oS.-A German official
agency issued statement last evening
to the effect that the assertions of the
IozaI Anzeiger were arbitrary and err
roneous guesswork." Official circles in
Berlin describe the statements made as
''quite inaccurate.
Tin News in Washington.
| Washington, D. c., Dec. 2S.-On the
| subject Of the possible assumption OF au-
thority over Delagoa bay by Great Brit
ain the state department is not inclined
| to venture an opinion. Not word con-
| corning such an intention has been re-
ceived officially or otherwise. 1t has been
| known in diplomatic circles for over a
dozen years that England has been ne
gotiating with Portugal for the purchase
of that particular section of the African
! coast. 1t also is known that Portugal
| has favored such British advances to
such an extent as to give Great Britain
! moral option, if not an actual one, on
| Delagoa bay.
| The possibility of the territory being
4 - 1865 .t-A-x Il