The Montgomery advertiser., 1903-07-15
PETITION MAY
 NOT BE SENT Desire is Not to Offend
 Russia. JEWS SEE THE PRESIDENT They Appreciate Difficulties
 in the Way. Administration Hopes to End the Matter Quickly to Prevent the Embarrassment of Other
 Negotiations with csar.
JEWS SEE THE PRESIDENT

Oyster Bay. l.. l., July 1A-An import ant conference was held at Sagamore Hill today between the President and rep- resentative Jewish citizens of the Society of the B'Nai B Rith regarding the peti- ton to the Russian government on the Kishineff outrages. Besides the President. parties to the conference were Simon S. Wolf of washingtn. Oscar S. Strauss and Leo N. Levi of New York.
 The administration has been enbarrass- ed by the delay oe the representatives of the B'Nai BRith Society in presenting the petition. The draft of the document was handed to President l. hoosevelt sev- eral weeks ago by MT. Wolf and 1t was decided to modify the text of the petition before presenting 1t formally to this gov- ernment for transmission to Russia. Time was desired. too. to obtain to the petition the signatures of representative citizens of the United States of all the religious faiths.
 May Not Be Forwarded.
 As a result. the document was not placed in the hands of the President until today. The result of the conference at Sagamore Hill has not been disclosed yet. but a strong intimation is given that the petition may not be forwarded to the Rus sian government. The desire of both the President and Secretary Hay is that the Kishineff incident be closed as soon as possible. as further delay in it's consider ation might prove embarrassing to this government in other diplomatic negotia- tions with Russia.
 Inasmuch as the Russian government has indicated by the adoption of severe measures a genuine disposition to punish adequately the perpetrators of the. Kishi- neff murderers and in addition those who instigated them, 1t is a problem for the President and Secretary Hay whether their representations concerning the inci- dent are now either deeirable Or neces' sary.
 It Ia suggested that the whole matter may be resolved into brief statement through diplomatic channels to the Rus sian Foreign Office that such petition !s in the hands of the United states. thus leaving 1t to Russia to say whether it would or would not receive the document if 1t were presented. It would close the incident. without subjecting the United States relations with Russia to strain. and 1t is regarded without doubt as ef- fective as the actual presentation of the petition.
 Members of the Jewish committee. to- gether with Dr. Albert Shaw, editor of The Review of Reviews, and his friend from England, Maurice Sheldon Armos. were the guests of the luncheon.
 Result Not Announced.
 Messrs. Wolf, Levi and Strauss con- cluded their conference with the President and left for New York by the AIS train. Prior to their departure they announced that while their conference had been em- inently satisfactory. they were not in position at this time to discuss the re- suit of the interview. The petition in its modified form was presented to the Pres ident, and it is understood that sigma lures to 1t are yet being added and will probably continue to be added for sev- eral days.
 While many citizens of Jewish faith have signed the petition, a majority of the signatures are those Of persons of other religious beliefs.
 It is learned that a statement soon will be made by the State Department in Washington, which will disclose the steps taken and to be taken by this Govern ment, but there are reasons why publicity at this moment should not be given to the precise method of procedure.
 Both MT. Wolf and MT. Strauss have served the Government in a diplomatic capacity, and MT. Levi has been identi- fled from the first with the movement for the amelioration of the condition of the Jews in Russia. All of them, 1t can be said, are delighted with the position taken by this Government. They real ize fully, however. the limitations which surround the State Department in a mat ter so delicate as the Kishineff incident.