New-York tribune., 1902-12-12

law theory that all sovereign States are equais-
| Great Britain and Germany, it may De saiu'
| would not attempt thus TO deal with s'rons
State. To that il may be replied tnal suohS
| and self-respecting States are not III the hapit
| of acting as Venezuela has acted. As matter
of fact there have been wars between great
| States on a smaller basis Of provocation than
/ that which Venezuela has given. \ strong
State has no right TO disregard law just De-
cause it is strong and a weak State has no
| right to claim immunity from legal penaltles
| inst because it is weak. What We SAID some
| time ago in commenting upon MI Castro
| peace proclamation may appropriately Dc re-
| peated that the best way for State to make
| its sovereignty respected is so to behave itself
| as to make its sovereignty worthy OF respect
| The seizure of the Venezuelan fleet was
explica ble by a desire to keep 1t OUT OF HIS
chief The deliberate destruction Oh 1t is
another thing. 1t would have been easy 10
take it away to some neighboring British port
and hold it there until the end of the contro'er
sy, or TO sell it, or to appraise its value ana
keep it, for partial satisfaction OF pecuniar!
claims The destruction of it caused heavy loss
TO Venezuela and did not put penny into the
German or British pocket. There is thus room
for regarding that act with surprise and with
regret On the other hand, 1t seems 1ndlspul-
able that President Castro put himself mucn
in the wrong by ordering the arrest OF all BTU
ish and German subjects at Caracas Ills quar-
rel is with the two governments not Win pri-
yate and disinterested Individuals He had no
right to molest the latter, unless FOR cause
which was lacking, or unless he had declared
war which he had not done, and even IN the
latter case he should have given them req
sonable time in which TO quit the country. ana
not have thrown them into jail like common
felons In that order of arrest Mr. castro dls
played the dictatorial and lawless spirit which
his critics have so often ascribed to hlin ana
which has so largely alienated from him the
sympathies of the world.
Even in the present critical state OF AFFAIRS
it is earnestly TO be hoped that Germany anu
Great Britain will act with the moderauon
which is so worthy attribute of great power
and which is not at all incompatible with even
the most inexorable resolution. Their just
claims against Venezuela ought to be satlshed
and they are iustifiable in seeking satisfacton
but it would not be agreeable to this country
nor creditable to them for them to treat Ven
ezyela I'm a needlessly or wantonly oppressive
manner. It is to be assumed that they will not
do so, and that our government is amply as
sured of that fact AS for Venezuela, the only
counsel that can be offered TO her is to agree
with her adversaries quickly, lest worse thing
befall her II months ago she had in good
faith sought a settlement of pending contro-
versies in precisely the way in which she is at
this very moment affecting settlement with
France we have no doubt that all would have
gone WELL and she would have avoided the
present invasion of her sovereignty. But she
would not or. at any rate did not, do so, and
now she must pay the penalty.