The Birmingham age-herald., 1903-01-11
COMPLICATED PHASES
 OF VENEZUELAN AFFAIR

without delay, the German credits, which amount to 1,71S,S15 bolivars 67 centavos.
 "Furthermore, the manner in which the German claims consequent on the present civil war were treated led the imperial government to think that the other claims of It's subjects are also in need of sup port To arrive at a just conclusion. therefore the German claims consequent on the present civil war and the credits Of the German houses occasoned by the construction of a slaughter house in Ca racas and the amount due from the Great Venezuelan railway must be considered in the same light. I am ordered to ask Venezuela to make a declaration immedi- ately that 1t recognizes in principle the correctness of the demands and Is willing to accept the decision of mixed commis- sion with the object of having them de- termined and assured in all details. The imperial government hopes that the re- public will satisfy the just demands of Germany and will not oblige the imperial government to enforce their satisfaction" :"
 The Venezuelan government met these demands with direct refusals, and there upon the ministers withdrew from Ven ezuelan soil and the blockade and bonn bardment followed.
 It will be observed that with the excep- tion of the one German demand for im- mediate payment of a special claim of 1,1S,S15 bolivars, or about $343, 763. the proposal was that all claims should be referred to a mixed commission, such as that which was agreed upon between France and Venezuela. That was reason able, and was indeed practically what is now to be done in the arbitration pro- ceedings. It would seem that Venezuela might have done well to accede to that demand. But, on the other hand, it Is essential to observe that the powers re- quired, as prerequisite to such submis- sion to a tribunal, that Venezuela should at once recognize in principle the just ness of the claims.'
 To that Venezuela demurred, and not without reason. It may be that all the claims are just in principle It is highly probably that most of them are. Never theess, 1t did seem arbitrary to require Venezuela to admit the fact offhand It was much like asking an accused person to plead guilty and leave nothing for the court to do but to determine the magni- ture of the sentence. In cases of arbitra- tion of claims the practice has been to determine first the validity of the claims and afterward to fix their amount. That was the course pursued In the British case against the United States over the seizure of her sealers in Bering Sea, and in our more recent case against Russia for seizure of our sealers, and in Ger many's case against the United States and Great Britain for damages in Samoa.
 Apparently that is the course now to be pursued in the trial before the tribu- nal at The Hague. The validity and the amount oi claims are both to be arbi- trated. The one exception may be the German claim of $S43, 76S already referred to- It is now explained, however, that the figures quoted, and that it is one the validity of which has been passed upon by Venezuelan courts, and is fully ae- knowledged by the Venezuelan govern ment. If that be true, it Is not unrea- sonable to expect Venezuela to pay 1t promptly and before the other claims are submitted to arbitration. 1t Is thought to be possible for President Castro to do that. He has for some time been in sore 1 straits. literally menaced at once by | "fghtings within and foes without" and the resources of his treasury have been | considerably drained. But Venezuela cannot be so nearly bankrupt as to be unable to raise even so much as several | hundred thousand dollars to redeem her honor and to put herself upon basis of