Akron daily Democrat. [volume] (Akron, Ohio) 1892-1902, 1902-12-15
THE VENEZUELAN MUDDLE.

1t is not improbable that the present
situation in Venezuela may soon be-
come acute enough to put TO the test
some Of the strenuous" exhortations
of President Roosevelt.
The pacific blockade" with which
Great Britain and the German En-
pire say they are going to discipline
the little South American republic and
teach it to pay its debts, has taken the
very unpacinc form Of destroying sew
eral Venezuelan war-ships in their own
harbors and the capture OF another
riding peacefully ut anchor in Trinidad,
port which belongs to nation pro-
fessodly at peace with Venezuela.
This warlike beginning Of what
purports TO be only Il peaceful mode
OF coercion is sufficiently strange TO
warrant a suspicion that an ulterior
purpose beyond that Of collecting a
just debt Is contemplated by the two
powers who have initiated II.
The inference is not lesscned when
we consider the little likelihood of the
end ostensibly proposed being reached
by means OF 'pacihc blockade" with
out more.
The debt claimed by the powers is
large one on the face Of 1t, how
ever small may have been the original
consideration OF It moving to the
Venezuelan borrower 1t Is proposed,
outwardly at least, that the custom
houses of that republic shall be seized,
and the revenues OF the country enter
ing these sequestrated and applied to
the payment Of the claims in question
If such is the only purpose Of the
remarkable conduct of these two ma.
tons during the last week, n still more
reasonable ground for suspcctlng the
sincerity of 1t arises from the hopeless
inndequacy of the means adopted to
reach this end
If the duties coming 10 Venezuela
alone are TO he subjected to seizure,
then II is to be said that the entire
revenues from this source at all the
ports of entry which could he the sub
jects of blockade, for the six months
now ending, are only about four million
bolivars, which mt twenty cents to the
bolivar would not realize enough to
pay the running expenses Of the allied
fleets now In those waters, to say
nothing Of satisfying the debt for
which the enterprise Is outwardly he,
ing prosecuted And blockade
whether pacific" or hostile, Is hardly
calculated to Increase trade with the
blockaded country, A pacific
blockade" cannot go further than this
n indeed suoh thing Is allowed as
internationally legal or defenslble In
any view. IL cannot subject cargoes
sven OF. Venezuelan bottoms, to cup
ture or detention TO do this would
require that they he contrabnnd OF
war, and pacific blockade" cannot
at once he 'pacIGc" ana bclligerent
There can beno contrahand OF war when
there Is no war, and both the powers
are, ayowedly and in theory at pro
found peace with tha state whose
ports they are thus bIockading. The
very name seems indeed to be a hope
less contradiction In terms, but, un
fortunately, history is not quite barren
OF examples OF similar situations.
Three out of the six instances In
which resort has been had to this os
tenslbly peaceful remedy to redress
international grievances, have ended IN
actual violence, Notwithstanding the
protestntlons of pacific intentions OF
the part OF the blockaders, To the very
FIRST OF these Great Britain was Z
party, when she led the allied powers
In beginning what she called n "pacihC
blockade OF the coasts of Greece, ant
ending with the sinking of the Turkish
feet at Navarlno, while still processing
to be at entire peace with Turkey.
Taking into account then, the ap
parent Inadequacy OF the mean
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