The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1900-03-30
THINKS IT WITHOUT EQUITY.
Daily MaiHs and other Views of Del
agOa Bay Award.


London, March 3O.-The Daily Mail COM
menting upon the award at Berne, says:
THE boundless procras tination of the
tribunal, it is difficult to explain, for not
the smallest trace of equity can be dis
covered in the award of the beggarly $780,
600 awarded as compensation for a con-
cession valued at $600O,000. We fear the
arbitrators allowed themselves to be pref
udiced against British interests by the
irrational Anglophobia which has seized
upon the Swiss people. BY their conduct
the arbitrators have struck a deadly blow
at arbitration"
The Daily Chronicle says:
THE award corresponds with the gen
eral anticipation, Portugal is condemned
to pay, including interest, nearly a mil
lion sterling. Probably the ingenuity of
Pretoria was a fertile contributor to the
inexplicable delay of the arbitration. We
wonder whether the diplomatists at Lis
bon think they have had the value of
their money"
The editorial then proceeds TO reproach
the British government with doing moth
ing to stop President Krugers open in
trigues in the Delagoa bay affair, and says:
y 1--WE would not be surprised to fnd that
President Kruger had thoughtfully. banked
a nice sum to enable Portugal to pay the
indemnity and so to provide against the
March, 1888. On the other hand, President
Kruger has had all the value he is likely
to, get out of the Delagoa bay. and he is
not the man TO pay for favors received, IL
they can be had for nothing. In this state
of uncertainty we should be glad to have
some announcement from Lord Salisbury"
The Daily News says:
"The sum awarded Is a great surprise,
as has been the time taken by the arbitra
tors In arriving a a decision 1t has
been estimated at between two and two
and a half millions sterling at least
would be the amount of the award, and
upon the financial obligations thus to be
laid upon Portugal a great deal of political
speculation has recently turned. Thus
speculatons will probably have to undergo
a good deal of modification"
The Daily Graphic says.
"The award is profoundly unsatisfactory,
for. if ever there was a high-handed and
unjustihable raid on private property ii
was the confscation of the Delagoa Bay
Railway"
The Times says:
"The company and it's creditors will
doubtless consider the sum awarded far
from adequate, but it is probably as mucn
as they can reasonably have expected TO
recover and as much as Portugal can
manage to raise without assistance
After commenting upon the needless de-
lay in the proceedings, the Times goes
on to say:
"Tt Is believed that Portugal some time
AGO made provisions for meeting the
greater part of the sum awarded. She
has done a wrong to British and Ameri-
can subjects, but it is manifest that she
did not do 1t of her own free Will. She
was acting under degree or pressure
which verged upon duress-pressure con-
sistentlv applied, it may be noted. for OBJ
iacts avow,dly polite and avowedly hos
tlo to British influence, not from the time
If the Jameson raid, but from the time
when Mr.. Kruger was negotiating the
London convention.
"Should Portugal in these conditions un-
expectedly experience difficulties in max
ing the necessary payments, there can be
no doubt that British capital would gladly
corne 10 the assistance of our old ally.
The Standard says:
"tt would be asking too much of human
nature 10 expect that the aggrleVed par
ties will submit to their fate cheeTfully.
Tha biU of costs will make large hole
in the award. and It is safe to say that
for oyerv sovereign the claimants will
receive. they had'built hopes on at least
three and probably more.
"The whole thing is most unfortunate,
especially as there Is no compulsIon 10
resort to arbitration. Great Britain and
the United states might simply have
presented a bill OF damages at LIS
hon. and required It's prompt hquidation.
Resistance would have been out of the
question and our moral case was so TN
assailable that no power would have pre-
sumed TO intervene 10,
81 T,ooking at all sides Of the South Afr-
oa, question. we sacrificed much for the
sake of supporting the principle Of ar
hltratlon. IL IS probable that Portugal
viii be able 10 raise the sum awarded
voithout alternating any part Of her colo
MAI possessions. still we do not regar1
the question as finally setlleo. 'ienu,y la
course 10 arbitration has failed TO accom-
plish"