Evening bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1895-1912, 1901-01-02
NOT To ANGER BRITAIN
SENATOR LODGE EXPLAINS
The TREATY AMENDMENTS
Necessary in Order to Clinch Full
American Control -AmendmentS
Dealt With in Detail and
Reason Given.

Washington. December 81. =
Senator Lodge, who mad charge of the
Hay.Pauncefote treaty in the Senate,
today made the following statement:
The Senate amendments were not
dictated by hostility toward England,
and still less were they in any degree
a reflection upon the Secretary If
State. The amendments were made
by the Senate solely because in it's
opinion they were necessary for the
interests of the United States, for the
avoidance of any question as to the
control of the canal ana conse quentlv
for the sake Of peaceful and harmoni-
Gus relations win the rest of the
world on that subject in the future.
The first amendment is simple de.
claration that the Clayton.Bulwer
treaty ceases to exist and is super
seeded by the Hay Pauncefote treaty.
The object Of the latter was to re.
move the former as an obstacle to the
construction of the isthman canal.
Some good judges thought that the
nav.paunccfote treaty did this com
pletely as II stood. Others believed
that certain portions of the CLAYTON.
luIwer treaty still remained in force.
To allow this doubt to continue would
have been grave, mistake. The Am
erican people desired to be rid of the
CLAYTON Bulwer treaty finally and be-
yond question.
Under article II of the Hay.Paunce-
fote treaty ms II stood we were clearly
bound, II engaged in war. to permit a
hostile fleet. II II succeeded in getting
| @ N fhrnn.nttln 20
uAmolested through the canal. This
may or NAV not be a practical ques.
ton. and IL Is of no consequence
whether It Is or not II was a solemn
promise to permit hostile fleet TO
use the canal. That promise we eth
er intended to keep or else we made
II knowing that under the stress of
war we should break II. II we meant
to keep II. then It was a promise no
nation ought to make. II we knew
that we should not keep 1t in time If
war. then 1t was only honest and fair
to relieve ourselves of the obligation
in the treaty itself. This was the pur.
pose of the second. or Davis amend.
ment. which entirely disposcs of any
such promise. and which follows cx.
actly in principle and almost exactly
in words, article Y of the Suez con-
veution. which reserved similar rights
to Turkey. whose interest in the Suez
canal is trivial compared to ours IN
that proposed in Nicaragua.
The third amendment strikes out
article III, by which we engaged to in.
vite other nations TO adhere to the
treaty and thereby become parties TO
90. Had there been no Clayton-Bulwer
treaty we should have negotiated
WILD no one except Costa Rica and
Nicaragua as to building the canal.
WITH England. owing to the Clayton
Bulwer treaty. we We're Obliged to
treat. but as we expect Europe to keep
, out of this hemisphere, II seemed 70
the Senate unwise. however excellent
and liberal the intention, to invite Eu-
| ropean nations to share In an Ameri-
can treaty and thus give them the
right to NEEDLE in American affairs ut
anv point.
| We desire to dispose of the Clayton
Bulwer treaty In the most friendly
way possible. We are most averse to
any other disposition of II. England
does not intend to go to war with rs
to prevent our building the canal. and
II Is physically possible to build II.
We mean in any event to do so. Under
these circumstances we are very clear
that II is as much for England's inter.
est as for ours to accept the new pro.
positions in the friendly spirit in
which they are offered and thus end a
controversy over WORKOUT treaty
which is only stumbling block ia
both nations. II Is not to be doubted
that the English Ministers. whose abil
ity. experience and reputation are
known to all the world. will duly
weigh all these considerations and
rightly comprehend the purpose of tn,
senate amendments and the spirit In
which they are presented