The Montgomery advertiser., 1905-01-19
TREATIES OF
 MCPHERSON
 -7 Senator MOrgss Talks of
 Conversions. :.
 -$ DOUBT OF THEIR WISDOM Matter Which Should Be Handled with Great Care. Question of suits For Payments of Bonds of Southern states Which Were Repudiatee After Re-
 constructions Times.
DOUBT OF THEIR WISDOM

constructions Times. | Washington, Jan. 1s.--(special.)-l An absorbing topic among United States Senators especially from the South on account of intimations fiat the South ern States were to be concerned in the Issues involved has been the several arbitration treaties pending in the Sem ate. There have been intimations that the arbitrations would revive agita- ton for the payment of the moribond l indebtedness of the Southern State in- cured during the reconstruction period but to the thoughtful members of the Senate from the Southern State there has been something more in the pro- posed treaties than concerned the H. nancial credit of the Southern States. | Senator John T. Morgan of Alabama. long a member, or the foreign rela- tions committee of the Senate and wall known as a pre-eminent Ameri- can authority on international law. whose advice has been courted by ev- cry administration during the twenty seven years he has been a senator, In response to a request for his views said today:
 "The treaties with several European powers pending in the Senate are very | far reaching and of great importance. Senators who are anxious to introduce peaceful means of settlement In cases of differences with foreign powers are l studying these treaties to ascertain whether they are more likely to se- cure peaceful settlement than they are to provoke additional strife. unrest and contention.
 Dfvision of OpiniOn. l There Is a division of opinion as to their effect upon our future that leads to careful consideration by the Senate. The pressure of instructions from persons who at least are not bet | ter informed on these dangerous sub jects than the Senate is. will not probably be of service to the general welfare.
 l 'The views or wishes of particular | administration, leading to urgent de- fmands for the ratification of these | treaties are not of overwhelming
 force, even when they are supported
 by public meetingA
 These treaties enter Into the na- tional policy which will effect the peo- pie of the government for ages to come, while the administration and | its advocates are only the breath of moment as compared with the life of treaties, and the life of the repub- I lie. have not seen an occasion in which there has been a greater need of careful and cautious action by the tSenate.
 T am not permitted at this time to state my attitude on any question presented in these treaties When I am at liberty to discuss those matters in public I hope I will be able to give sound and satisfactory reasons for any vote l may cast in respect to them. The language of the. arbitration I ea.-. | been made public by order of the Sem ate so that the people of the United States can read for themselves what these treaties are aud what they are designed to accomplish.
 Many thinking men wonder why the
 autocrat of the Russians invited the nations to meet and form a general
 arbitration court at The Hague to A. | bitrate international quarrels and som me
 citizens of republics think it most l probable that republic could not ob-
 tain In fair and impartial trial in 9
 court controlled by emperors. A Permanent Court. l Many statesmen who favor arbitra- | tfon when controversy arises. and when 8 competent and fair board of l arbitrators can be selected by the par l ties, deny the wisdom of contracting, in
 advance of any controversy, to submit
 
 of the future quarrels of their country
 with other countries and especially | when their country is a republic. l "AS the United States is a republic 1 of limited power many men doubt and
 some deny the authority of this gov
 ernment to make a law by which g. l permanent court located in European | capital Is created to decide for us l questions of international law, espe- cially when that authority is by our constitution vested in our Supreme Court.
 Some of the States refuse to pay bonds fraudulently issued in the name of the States particularly in recou-
 struction days and 1t is believed by l many that one of the purposes of | these treaties is to organize a court in
 which the holders of these bonds could
 sue and thus avoid the effect of that | clause of the Federal Constitution
 which prohibits such suits being | brought in the Federal courts by for
 eigners against any of our States.
 These treaties put these questions 1 into the power of permanent court of arbitration at The Hague and whatev- ] CT may be said as to the purpose or 1 disposition of our powers to refuse to agree to submit such claims to arbi-
 tration.' The Senate should not sur l render it's right under the Constitution 1 to decide that matter. It was to pre- vent any such possible occurrance that the Constitution provided that such
 agreements should be certified by a
 vote of two-thirds of the Senate" l Washington. Jan 1S.-(Special. )-The House Committee on War Claims met today and non-concurred in all of the Senate amendments to the omnibus claims bill, amounting to &2,I5S,00O. The House Committee, in lieu of the Senate amendments, inserted in the bill claims abounting to about $25O, 900. These claims consist briefly of claims arising under the Bowman-Tucker act. which were reported by the Court of Claims as valid since the bill passed the House at the last session, and q number of miscellaneous claims. The bill will now go to conference. Will Come Up this Week. It is anticipated that the bill will be called up for conference about Friday or Saturday of this week and the friends Of the bill are of opinion that the conference will report the measure back favorably to both houses with both the Senate and House amendments. l