The herald-advance. (Milbank, S.D.) 1890-1922, 1902-12-12
SEIZURE or CUSTOMS TO FOLLOW
UNLESS SATISFACTORY SETTLE
MENT OF CLAIMS is
MADE.
MINISTERS LEAVE The CAPITAL
BRITISH AND GERMAN DlPLO
MATS GO ABOARD WAR;
SHIPS.

London, Dec. 10.-Great Britain an,
Germany have presented ultimatum'
to Venezuela which will be followe,
up by the seizure of the customs unles,
a satisfactory settlement shall b.
forthcoming within a brief period.
The ultimatums have a time limit
but the exact date cannot be ascer
tanned here. The foreign Office states
with regard to the time:
1T is a reasonable time in which
Venezuela a satisfy the injured gov
ernments. Both notes are practically
Identical, although the amounts of the
claims differ. The notes merely re
iterate the continued disregard by the
Venezuelan government of all our rep
reservations, specify all our claims
and demand immediate action on the
part of President Castro's government
in connection herewith"
The British governments case is
practically identical with the state.
ments made in previous dispatches
from London in which it was first an.
nounced that the present action was
contemplated. Should the British ulti.
matum meet with a hostile reception,
the British minister, w. H. d. Hag.
gard, has been instructed to
Go Aboard 4 British Warship
or, if that is impracticable, to go into
the neighboring British colony. The
foreign Office, however, does not ap-
pear to anticipate such a contingency,
nor, indeed, does it look forward to
any startling development within the
next few days.
Premier Balfour's announcement in
the house Of commons is regarded as
merely the obvious elimination to
the situation which has daily been be.
coming more critical for the past three
months. The Associated Press cor
respondent learns that a complicating
circumstance has arisen in the inabil-
lty q the foreign office to communicate
with Minister Haggard. The officials
here believe that he is still in Caracas.
but owing to the reported break Of
the cable, they are ignorant as to what
steps he is taking or what the Ven
szuelan government intends to do.
The foreign Office says: There is
not the slightest desire to coerce Ven
eZuela, and if any answer had been
made to our repeated protests and
demand, no such action as taken now,
would have been proceeded with. 1t
was the persistent and insulting dis
regard of all representations which
compelled us to move"
Ministers Leave Caracas. -.
Caracas, Dec. 10.-The British min
lister, w. r. D. Haggard, and the
German charge d'affaires, Won Pill
grim-Baltazzi left Caracas at 3 o'clock
yesterday afternoon for Lagaard,
where Minister Haggard went to board
the British cruiser Retribution and
Herr Won Pilgrim altazzi boarded the
German cruiser Mineta. Both the
British and the German legations have
been closed.
Uncle Sam Is Watchfui.
Washington, Dec. 10. - Officials il
the navy department are watching
with keen interest the situation in tn.
Caribbean. This is not because any
friction is expected between the Unit
ed States naval force and the var
ships of foreign powers who are inten
on coercing Venezuela, but becaus,
the embroglio shows that the Carib
bean division of the North Atlanti,
SOUS Iron, under command of Rear AID
miral Coghlan, was created none tot
SOC However, If foreign warship.
gather for a program of coercion
there will be at least mi or two Amer
lean war vessels to keep an eye on tn
progress of affairs. 1t is felt that THU
Caribbean division should be as stron,
as any fleet of warships any othe
country may order to South American
waters.