The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1900-05-14

1t Is probable the arrival of the Boer
commissioners, who will reach New York
I'm a few days. will be followed by a sys-
tematic effort to create popular clamor in
their behalf For its support this effort
will have a certain amount of genuine
popular sympathy with the Boer cause.
based on ignorance OF facts and super
fetal view of the situation. together with
all of the anti-British sentiment in the
country and a desire to make political cap
ital out of the occasion. These elements
combined can make considerable noise, but
they will not succeed in causing the gov
eminent to swerve from the course of
1t has pursued in relation to the South
African war up to the present time. Those
who are clamoring for such interference
or an official expression of sympathy with
the Beers forget that, aside from the re-
spect we owe to Great Britain as friendly
power. we are estopped by the agreement
of The Hague conference from meddling in
the matter. That agreement was accom-
panied by the following declarations:
Nothing contained I'm this convention
shall be so construed as TO require the
United States of America to depart from
its traditional policy of not intruding upon,
interfering with or entangling itself in the
political questions or policy or internal
administration of any foreign state.
Nothing could be palmer than that, and 1T
amounts to a solemn pledge on our part
not to NEEDLE in such a war as that now
going on in South Africa
1t has been intimated that the Boer COM
missioners will ignore the government and
appeal directly to the people by methods
analogous to those of Moody and Sankey."
That is not probable. and it would be a
blunder on their part to do so. If they
are authorized to make any official COM
munication to the United States they had
better make it to the official representa-
tives of the government at Washington
and abide by such answer as they may
receive. An appeal from the government
to the people would be resented by all
patriotic Americans. The French minister.
Genet, who came to this country in 1898,
party in the United States then as there is
a Boer party now, and Thomas Jefferson.
then secretary of state. was one Of its lead
ers. The Democratic party of that day
was in favor of extending active aid to the
French revolutionists. Citizen" Genet
thought the party was strong enough to
justify him in ignoring the government and
appealing to the people. The Democratic
party received him with open arms. and
he was feted and banqueted from one end
of the country to the other. Washington
treated him very coldly and maintained an
attitude of strict reserve. Finally Genet
went so far as to denounce the President
as unfaithful to the wishes of the people
and declared he would force him TO call
Congress together to express sympathy
with the French revolutionists. The in
science of Genet shocked the national
pride, and ii was not long before public
sentiment demanded that he leave the
country Then Washington requested the
French government to recall him, and it
was done. Although the Democratic party.
for political purposes, is now sympathizing
with the Beers it would be a great mis-
take for the Boer commissioners to at
tempt to appeal from the government to
the people.