The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1900-05-02
THE DANISH WEST INDIES
GERMANS ALLEGED TO BE INTRIGU-
ING FOR THEIR POSSESSION.
Story Said to Have Been Told Secre-
tary Hay-Standard Oil Man
After Commission.


Secretary of War Roots address at the
Grant dinner last Friday night, in which
he limited at the possibility of war to MAIN
tain the Monroe doctrine, was called forth
by an intrigue concerning the Danish West
India islands. 1t appears that III. III. Rog-
ers. of the Standard Oil Company. made
verbal agreement with Denmark that If he
should negotiate sale of the islands he
should receive a commission of 10 per cent.
of the purchase price. Captain w. Won
Christmas Dircknck- Hohenfield has also
been acting agent of the Danish gov
eminent. All accounts agree that Denmark
is very anxious to get rid of her West In
dian possessions. Mr.. Rogers and Captain
Christmas having quarreled. and the for
mer having declared that it was in his
power to defeat any negotiations that did
not recognize his rights as agent, Captain
Christmas advised Secretary Hay of the
plan to exchange the islands with Germany
for territory in Europe. He states that un-
less Congress acts on the Danish West In
dia islands matter before June / a scheme
will be carried out to exchange the islands
with Germany for the whole or a part of
North Schleswig. which. with Holstein, was
taken from Denmark by Germany in 1867
and which country it has always been the
fondest hope of all Danes to recover.
The sudden appearance in this country of
Secretary White, of the American embas-
sy In London, has also to do with this mat
ter of the sale of the Danish West India
islands, according to the Times. Mr.. White
was the agent of the United States I'm Dem
mark during the negotiations and to him
the Danish government named the price it
wanted for the islands. between 100000
and s4.O0o,O00. Mr.. White, it is said failed
to tell the State Department that the
United States would have to buy the
islands during this session of Congress or
abandon all hope of ever getting possession
of them, and that he also did not impress
upon the State Department the fact that,
failing in the negotiations with the United
States, Germany was sure to get possession
of the islands either through cession or
lease. IT is to make these matters more
clear to the State Department while Con-
gress is still in session that Mr. White was
summoned here.
1t was not until the early part of 1899 that
negotiations concerning the Danish West
Indian islands were taken up. At that time
Captain Christmas was sojourning in Ger
many as a retired captain of the Danish
navy. He had just returned from trip to
the Danish West India islands, where he
had been making maps of the harbors and
Notifications there. He was approached
by a syndicate of Germans who asked him
to use his influence in Copenhagen to OBJ
tain from the Danish government a con-
tract with Germany by which the latter
could purchase the island of St. John. Capt.
Christmas was not slow in asserting that
this would be next to impossible. for the
reason that the United States would neither
allow Denmark to sell the island to a for
eign power, nor would 1t allow Germany to
purchase IL because of the Monroe doctrine.
In his report to the Danish government
Captain Christmas attaches the proposition
of the syndicate to his papers. This shows
that the head of the syndicate was Admiral
Won Zirzow, of the royal German navy,
had. in anticipation of the ceding or sale
of the island to Germany, bought up op-
lions on all the land adjacent to the har-
bors, and so, in the event of the acquisition
of the island by Germany, he and the men,
bers of the syndicate stood in the position
of virtual owners of the land and could die
tate terms to the purchasing power. When
the impossibility of this scheme was point
ed out to Admiral Won Zirzow he asked
Captain Christmas to obtain other conces-
sions for the syndicate, among them TO
form a German colony on the island I'M
der the Danish flag and permission to use
the harbor as a coaling station for German
war vessels. Captain Christmas. while APP
parently falling in with their scheme, laid
the whole matter before Minister Hoerrig
in its true light. The outcome of this was
that the permission was denied on diplo-
matte grounds, the Danish government rec
ognizing that, should any such complica-
tions arise, the sale of the islands TO the
United States would be next to impossible
This led to Captain Christmas coming to
America.
Captain Christmas, according TO the
Times had an interview with President
Mckinley and pointed out the Importance
of purchasing the islands. AS conse-
quence Secretary White was sent from
London to negotiate directly with Den
mark. His mission became known to Mr.
Rogers Insisting on his 10 per cent. COM
mission and declaring that he would pre-
vent a sale to the United States unless he
received $500 900, Rogers became involved In
a quarrel with Captain Christmas. There
upon the captain revealed TO Secretary Hay
the entire story of German intrigue. 1t
seems that Denmark is now disposed to
make the deal with Germany. 1t has been
said by those who are close to the Danish
allow the United States TO plead the Mon
roe doctrine as bar TO negotiations with
Germany for the ceding of the islands to
other countries. He will maintain that he
has already given the Monroe doctrine
sufficient consideration In that he offered
a number of times to sell the islands to
the United States, and every time the ne
gotiations have fallen through on account
OF the failure OF Congress to ratify the
agreement.