The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1904-10-31
OPENING OF
vIG0 INQUIRY
Gar Wants Light on North
Sea incident.
FLEET TO BE WATCHED
Credit for Settlement Belongs to
Delcasse, French Foreign
Minister.
FLEET TO BE WATCHED

LONDON, Oct GA dispatch from
Madrid says that the Russian inquiry
into the North sea affair opened at vi.
go yesterday.
st. Petersburg advices say that For
eign Minister Lamsdorff's telegram tc
Count Benkendorff, the Russian am
bassador to Great Britain, and the
ambassadors reply thereto has been
published and is as followsi
"In desire to bring everything that
occurred in the North sea into the
clearest light possible our monarch
considers 1t beneficial to submit the
affair to an international commission
of inquiry, on the basis of The Hague
convention, for thorough investigation.
Your eXcellency is directed by imperial
command to propose this means of set.
Element of the question to the British
government"
To this Count Benkendorff replied:
Il have communicated your excellen-
cy's telegram to Lord Lansdowne. The
British government accepts the pro
posal to submit the North sea incident
in all its extent to examination by an
international commission, as provided
for by The Hague convention"
\ Tangier dispatch says that five
Russian torpedo boat destroyers have
put to sea from that port. The re-
mainder of the fleet is coaling and pro-
visioning there.
A Copenhagen report says that the
North sea affair caused the deepest
anxiety to King Christian of Denmark.
who declared that should an Anglo
Russian war result II would be the
cause of his death. The dowager EN-
press of Russia promised her father,
the king to use her greatest efforts to
prevent conflict. 1t is stated that
hundreds Of dispatches were exchang-
ed between the dowager empress and
the queen of Great Britain during the
week and that the two sisters render
ed great service In the cause of peace.
The world will doubtless take par
ticular satisfaction In according EN-
peror Nicholas, to whose initiative The
Hague convention owed its existence,
the honor and credit of having propos-
ed an honorable solution of the North |
sea incident, which might have plung- |
ed Russia and Great Britain into war,
by an appeal to its rules. Neverthe-
less it is learned on very high authori-
~ that this diplomatic triumph be- |
longs to NJ Delcasse, the French for |
eign minister
The British cruiser Lancaster which |
was at Nigo for some time on Satur- |
day, departed in the evening after her |
commander had conferred with Vice |
Admiral Rojestvensky on board the |
Russian flagship Kniaz Souyaroff. She |
returned on Sunday, and there was an
other conference between the British |
and Russian naval commanders on |
board the flagship of the latter. Sub !
sequently Admiral Rojestvensky went
on board the Lancaster before she sail
ed for Villagarcia, where, it is suppos-
ed, the British channel fleet has as
sembled.
Gerald Balfour, president of the
board Of trade. has appointed Admiral
hAi WI DiioSt AS
pinall, barrister-at-law, who practices
mainly in the admiralty court, to con-
duct the North sea inquiry at Hull.
There are FIVE British warships cruis-
Ing off Vigo, evidently keeping within
observation of the Russian vessels
there
Naval reports show that British war
vessels are so disposed as to keep a
sharp watch on all movements along
the proposed route OF the Russian Bal
dc squadron, including the Canary is
lands, where the Russians have pre-
pared elaborate arrangements for coal
Ing from German steamers. Admiral
Rojestvensky's four battleships remain
1t Vigo; but, according to some re-
ports, tho firing in the North sea was
lone by Admiral Voelkersam's squad
ron which ia now at TanUiar