The Indianapolis journal., 1902-12-08
SEEKING PATOS ISLAND
BRITAIN CLAIMS A PORTION OF
VENEZUELAN TERRITORY.
Dispute That Has Been Pending Many
Years and May BE Settled at
Coming Demonstration.

WASHINGTON, Dec. I'm Venezuela's
yellow book for 1901, a copy of which has
been received in Washington recently from
the Foreign Office at Caracas, are the ex-
changes between the London and Caracas
governments last year in regard TO the
ownership of Patos island, which has been
in dispute between the two countries for
many years. Significance attaches to this
correspondence in view of the approach
ing crisis between Venezuela and Great
Britain. as it is not improbable that in the
settlement of the claims of British and
German citizens against Venezuela the
the Patos dispute also will be involved.
Reopening of the Patos question was
caused by the action of the Venezuelan
gunboat Augusta in January, 1901, in cap
turing certain British subjects on the
island. When the Caracas authorities were
called to account by the London Foreign
Office, the former replied by renewing
their long standing claim to Patos and
diplomatic controversy extending through
out the year was the result. Venezuela
based her claims to the island on its
proximity to the coast of Guayara, from
which II Is distant only three miles, claim
ing that ii is a tenet OF international law
that a country commands waters within
a marine league of its coast; that the In
ternational Law Institute has defined the
territorial sea as six miles, whereas the
island of Patos is more than ten miles
from Trinidad, the nearest British posses
sion. Further, that the treaty OF Marcn,
1S46, explicitly confirms the title OF Vene-
zuela over all the islands near her coast
which were under the dominion OF Spain IN
pendence." In support or this contention
the Venezuelan authorities produce let
state in 1878 in which he denies that royal
sanction ever was given to the concession
alleged to have been made to the Ayun-
tamiento of Trinidad by the Governor Oh
Patos, Huevos and MOnos.
Great Britain, through her charge daf-
faires at Caracas and later through her
minister, advanced the contention tnat
when she conquered the island of Trinidad
in 1877 sovereignty over Patos also was
obtained and so recognized by the Madrld
government: that Patos has remained in
the peaceful possession of Great Britain
for more than a century, during seventy
years of which time Venezuela advanced no
counter claim, and that the official map
of Codazzi colors the island of Patos the
same as Trinidad. Indicating that both be-
long to the same country.
To this last contention Venezuela replied
by stating that the map of Codazzi was SO
old as to make it impossible to distinguish
the various colors and produced other
maps by the same author which place
Patos as belonging to Venezuela. Being
unable to agree on even the minor points
Of the controversy, the British minister
near the close of last year informed the
Venezuelan Foreign Office that he would
make no further representations in the
matter, as there was nothing to be gained
in continuing the correspondence.
1t is understood that President Castro
will ask that the question be settled by
arbitration, a proposition to which the
British government will hardly accede in
view of its contention that the ownership
of Patos is so clearly British as not to
furnish suitable subject for arbitration.