Eagle River review. [volume] (Eagle River, Wis.) 1890-1927, 1902-12-27
CAUSE OF THE TROUBLE.
Efforts by Venezuela to Avoid Paying
Her Debts.

Her Debts.
The troubles between England end
Germany on the one side and Venezuela
on the other arose ever the latter's fail
ure to liquidate. certain debts which it
owes to the former. Some of the claims
held by England against Venezuela are
those of harbor and railway improve
ment companies, which complained to
their government Of defaults of interest
guaranteed by Venezuela. There are
other claims for damages to railways
and other property of British citizens
during periods of revolution as also
claims based on interference with Brit
ish trading vessels and on the imprison-
ment and i'll treatment of British sub
jects. The claims of Germany are of n
similar nature, the principal one being
that of German railroad, built at
cost of $10,000,000, on which Venezuela
guaranteed Z per cent interest, a figure
reduced in 1895 to 5 per cent, and on
which Venezuela has defaulted for sew
eral years.
For considerable time England and
Germany have been pressing those
claims to the consideration of the Ven
ezuelan government-which in that coun-
try happens to be at the present time
Gen. Castro, President and dictator-but
Castro paid little attention to them. In
stead of meeting the demands, which are
perfectly valid in international law, fair
ly and squarely and trying to agree upon
basis of settlement, President Castro
lodged them and in effect told the rep
resentatives of England and Germany
that he would not pay and that they
could not collect. He fancied that in
this attitude he would be sustained by
the Monroe doctrine proclaimed by the
United States, evidently oblivious of the
fact that this doctrine as applied to the
southern republic does not extend to as
sisting any one of them in repudiating
honest debts voluntarily contracted.
Just what this doctrine stands for was
recently set forth by President Roosevelt
The Monroe doctrine has nothing to
do with the commercial relations of any
American power, save that in truth it
allows each of them to form such as it
desires. In other words, it is really
guarantee Of the commercial indepen-
dence of the Americas. We do not ask
under this doctrine for any exclusive
commercial dealings with any other
American State. We do not guarantee
conducts itself, provided that punish
ment does not take the form of the ac-
QUESTION of territory by any non-Ameri-
can power"
Evidently both England and Germany
accepted this definition of the famous
doctrine and that they might not take
any steps offensive to the United States
government they acquainted President
1 Al -, l,ns
purposes and plainly stated to him the
limit of the action they proposed to take.
The failure of President Castro to
meet the demands of England and Ger
many or even to reply to their repre-
sensations, naturally led to the issuing
by the latter of an ultimatum, which
was delivered at the capital, Caracas.
The British minister, w. III. D. Hag-
gard, and the German charge d'affaires,
Won Pilgrim altazzi, left Caracas and
boarded warships of their respective
countries in the harbor of La Guayra,
| thus severing diplomatic relations with
Venezuela. United States Minister Bow
ell took over the charge of English and
! German interests.
No reply having been received to the
ultimatum, the combined English and
German fleet seized the Venezuelan war
vessels at La Guayra, destroying some of
them and converting the others to their
own uses. Another Venezuelan vessel
was seized by a British cruiser at Port
of Spain, Trinidad, an English Island.
opposite the mouth of the Orinoco river.
The seizures were made so that the YES
sells might not interfere with the plan
of taking possession of Venezuelan Gus
tom houses and blockading the Venezle-
Ian coast, with the view of preventing
smuggling and laying embargo on all
imports until the claims held by Eng
land and Germany are satisfied. cou-
pie of days later two other Venezuelan
vessels were seized in the Gulf of Para
by a British cruiser and taken to Port
of Spain. Naturally the action IF the
European powers created crisis in
Caracas.