Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-03-22
OFFICIALS CpNFER WITH THE
PRESIDENT.
Acting Secretary Adee and Secretary
Taft at the White House Going
Over the Situation.

Assistant Secretary Loomis has thrown
upon Mr.. Adee the duty of handling this
important question for the State Depart
ment. When he goes to the White House
he takes his ear trumpet along in one hand
and his portmanteau in another, and the
President finds that his visitor is most in
diligently and thoroughly posted on all
affairs belonging to the State Department.
Senator Culom, who is chairman of the
Senate committee on foreign relations,
spent short time with the President this
morning. and it is probable that he had
brief talk on the 'deings and possible undo
ing of President Castro. Mr.. Cullom is one
of the number of public men who feels that
castro has proven nuisance and Is likely
to be menace to satisfactory relations and
conditions among the various countries of
the world There is a strong feeling that
Castro is being given a great deal of rope
by this country and other countries, and
that he Is likely to hang himself before he
goes much further. Just how he will do
this or when is not known. 1t is known,
however that the United States will show
as much patience with him as the dignity
and reasonableness of the government will
permit. and then the circus will begin.
The President will soon be getting away
on his western trip and would like to have
the demands upon Venezuela settled by
that time, but if they are not and the stub
born Castro continues TO give trouble the
President will keep in touch with Washing
ton right along and issue instructions from
his train, wherever he may be- The absence
of Secretary Hay and of Assistant Secre-
tary LOOMS throws more of the personal
responsibility of handling details upon the
President. While he is in Washington Sec
rotary Taft will no doubt be consulted as
the different phases are reached. He was
with the President today
No News at State Department.
The State Department has heard nothing
from Minister Bowen to indicate that the
Venezuelan government has made answer
to his proposition to arbitrate the American
claims, and it isssupposed that the answer.
when it does come, will be to the effect
that the Venezuelan government insists on
awaiting the final action of its courts upon
the pending asphalt case. 1t will then re-
main for the State Department to determine
how longydt is prepared to await this
judicial ACTION. The difficulty is that the
Venezuelan government has refused the
application'Sof the asphalt company, sup
ported by Minister Bowen, to revert to the
status existing before the appointment of
receiver inlthe asphalt case and allow the
company tot repossess itself of it's property.
AS it is, the receiver is taking out large
quantities of asphalt from Bermudez lake,
the proceeds from which are going into the
Venezuelan treasury, to the great financial
loss of the cotnpany, which is making daily
representa- lions on the subject to the State
Departments. - Il ,fIrs- .-.-e4 ..st
{ the firstnewsl that thesofficials here had
sneeting the RfenchacableC oTnpany's case
was contained I in he Associated Press
Fans dispatch to the effect that the court
lad ordered the postponement sine die.
While this proceeding is peculiar to Span
ish law practice. the officials here regard I
as being equivalent to a practical dban-
dcnment of the attempt to obtain by de-
cree a forfeiture of the company's con-
cccsion.
, Therefore it-appears that the action of
the French minister of Caracas as re
ported by Minister Bowen to Washington
last Monday, in demanding a discontinue
alton of the proceedings against the
company has been effectual, SO there will
be in all probability no occasion for a re-
sort by the French government to other
measures to protect the company's in,
terests. ~
While the effect of this action is to dim
Irish at once the strain upon the relations
between France and Venezuela, it is point
ed out here that by reason of the exclusion
OF the French claims from the Velutina ar
rangement about to be concluded tomor-
row between the British and German bond
holders on the one side and Venezuela on
the other the French government will prob
ably still retain lively interest in that
projected settlement.
Notwithstanding the statement from Lon
don that the council of foreign bondholders
contend that this settlement is entirely in
accord with the Washington protocol of
1893, the officials here utterly fail to find
in that protocol any warrant for that agree
ment, which they regard as likely to Sc
riously affect the claims of all other ma
lions than Great Britain and Germany
against Venezuela, and it is a fact that
some of the foreign representatives here
have cabled that view of the matter to
their own governments. The protocol in
article v provided. in part, that:
I'm order to pay the total amount of the
claims to be adjudicat ted aforesaid, and
other claims of citizens or subjects of other
nations, the government of Venezuela shall
e., 4;
no other purpose, beginning with the month
of March, 1903, thirty per cent in monthly
of the customs revenues of La
Guaira and Puerto Cabello and the pay
ments thus set aside shall be divided and
distributed in conformity with the decision
Of the Hague tribunal.
1t is presumed that the council of bond
holders take the ground that because they
have not attempted to touch the customs
receipts of La Guaira and Puerto Cabello,
mentioned in the protocol, they are at lib
erty to levy upon the receipts at the re-
naming Venezuelan ports without regard
to the effect of such action upon creditors
of other than German and British nation
aIities. OF course. in such case the bond
holders are clearly within their rights in
seeking to get what they can. but it is re-
garded as the duty of the United States
government to look after the interests of
it's citizens having claims against Vene-
zuela which certainly could never be met
IL all of the revenues of the country are
II
The Presld, ent, foresaw just such a state
of affairs as this in Santo Domingo, which
he feared would extend to other American
republics, when,I lin transmitting the Do
minican treaty to the Senate, he said
'If the treaty is ratified creditors belong
ing to other nations will have exactly as
good treatment as creditors who are cit
lie ms of the United States, and at the same
time Santo Domingo will be protected
against unjust and exorbitant claims
"If it is not ratified. the chances are that
pared with those of other nations: for for
eisn nations. being denied the opportunity
10 get what'is rightfully due their citizens
lett to collect the debt due their citizens
as they see fit, provided. of course, there
Is rot permanent occupancy OF Dominican
territory As in such case the United
States will have nothing to say as to WIN.
debts should or9should not be collected
= in such event whatever Is col
lccted by means of forcible intervention
viii be applied to the creditors of foretgn
nations in preference to creditors who are
citizens of the United States.