The Brunswick news. [volume] (Brunswick, Ga.) 1901-1903, 1902-07-15
AMBASSADOR CLAYTON
RUDE TO RRUNSWICkIAN
the extent of mis- power.

which the ambassadors good will and
office were invoked in behalf of the
widow, whose weeds mad been so re.
Gently thrown about her
These letters l forwarded to Mexi.
co. accompanied by as good a state
ment as | knew now to frame and
| had not the slightest doubt that !
mad done my friend Reeds wife and
boy good turn-had not the sligot-
est doubt that Ambassador CLAYTON. a
southern gentleman, would be over
joyed at the opportunity of this sery-
ing a southern lady commended to
him by the senators Of Georgia. as
well as the common instinct of self
respecting manaood
One day the stricken widow appears
before the ambassador and seeks aid.
What does she want? Merely that
the ambassador of the United States
will give her certificate that in the
state of Georgia, where she was born.
the law does not require that the
birth of child snail be officially reg
istered Is Mr. Clayton willing to Ger,
tify to that? BY no means. Querru-
lously objecting That ne is not ac-
quainted with the laws of one of the
states of the union which he is sup
posed to represent and refusing TO
take the trouble to inform himself as
to Georgia law, the ambassador fatty
refuses to sign the paper.
Again, Mrs Reed asks: "Will YOU
not then, sign a certificate that in
some Of the states Of the union tae
birth OF child is not required to be
officially registered?"
No. Ambassador Clayton will not
sign that statement either. Why not?
God only knows. If he has the slight
est acquaintance with the laws of the
states which compose the government
he represents, he is certainly aware
that tao certificate spoke nothing but
the truth. If he does not know taat
much about the laws Of his country
he is an ignoramus who has no bust
ness to represent it abroad. IT, on
the otner hand, he is familiar with the
laws, he must have known tnat the
certificate was the truth, and his re-
fusal to sigqA can only be explained
.on the supposition that he was utterly
unwilling to do his country woman
service, or upon the theory that he
was interested in obstructing her in
her efforts to establish the legal
rights of herself ana her boy to these
Mexican mines.
Either explanation leaves the am.
bassador in a disgraceful plight. The
certificate which Mrs. Reed requested
of Mr. Clayton would have been of the
utmost service to her because it
would have convinced the Mexican au.
thorities that the original evidence did
their law required did not exist and
thus Mrs. Reed would have been al
lowed to use secondary evidence, Of
whicn She had an abundance.
TO prove to the Mexican courts that
no such records as tney demanded
certified copies from were in existence
was the purpose of Mrs. Reed S ap
plication to our ambassador.
Mr.. Clayton had written to me as
suring me that he would cheerfulIy
aid the lady. If / am not mistaken,
he had also written to the two sena
tors that he would do so
Why did he cAange front so sud
denly? Why was it that upon Mrs.
Reed first visit to tae embassy Mr
Clayton gave her such a cool recep
tion and contemptuously inquired.
WHO is this Clay?' when he had read
the senator's letter and dropped it
upon his desk.
do not know But this frosty
first interview was the proper pre-
lude to all the others, and from first
to last, amid all her struggles and
troubles, this American lady secured
no aid from the American ambassa-
dor All the help she got came from
others. The certificate which he
could have signed and should have
signed, would nave saved her immense
worry and work, much time and much
money. aS
She succeeded at last, and secured
full control Of the mines, but owed no
thanks to the representative Of her
own government.
Was it asking too much of Mr.
Clayton to request him to aid fe-
low citizen in her business entangle-
ments with Mexican authorities?
Senator Bacon and Senator Clay
did not think 80, for they urgently
asked nim to 90 it. ! do not think
so-having heard Of things of that
kind being done in sundry parts of
the globe-and l urgently asked MIN
to 10 it And Ambassador Powell
Clayton did not think so, for he wrote
me a letter in which he unqualifedly
promised to do it,
And he broke his word Why?
Was he in collusion with the rival