The San Juan islander. [volume] (Friday Harbor, Wash.) 1898-1914, 1905-06-17

note, the text Of .which, BY suthority'
Of the president, was made public lase
last night at the White House By SEQ
retary Loeb, has been forwar1ed % tho
governments Of Russia and Japan, By
President Roosevelt. In tn interest
Of humanity the president Ntge4she
warning nations to conclude peace.
It 10 suggested BY the president that
tho negotiations for peace be conduct
ed ''direotly and exclusively" between
the belligerent nations. Tho note in
dicates the presidents belief that an
intermediary.-ma not be necessary to
effect conclusive negotiations. but like
wise expresses the presidents willing
ness to do all that he properly may do
to promote the preliminary arrange
nents, for time and place~of meeting
for the representatives OF the Russian
and japanese governments.
Text OF Dispatch.
Following is the text Of the dispatch
given out:
s'On June the following dispatch
was sent by the president through dip
lomatic channels to the japanese and
Russian governments:
s'The president feels that the time
has come when in the interest Of all
mankind he must endeavor to see il it
is posi- BILE to bring to an end the terri
BILE and lamentable conflict now being
waged. With both Russia and Japan
the United States has inherited ties Of
friendship and good will. 1t hopes for
the welfare and prosperity of each. and
it feels that the progress Of the world
is set back by the war between these
two great nations. The president &C.
cordingly urges the Russian and jap
anese governments not only for their
own sakes, but in the interest Of the
whole civilized world, to open direct
negotiations for peace with one another.
''The president urges that these peace
negotiations be concluded directly and
exclusively between tho belligerents;
in other words that there may be q
meeting of Russian and japanese
pleni potentiaries or delegates without
any intermediary, in order to see if it
ia not possible for these representatives
of the two powers to agree to terms Of
peace. The president earnestly asks
that the (Russian) (Japanese) govern
ment do now agree to such meeting
and is asking the (Japanese) (Russian)
government to agree likewise.
"While the president does not feel
that any intermediary should be called
with regard to the peace negotiations
themselves, he is entirely willing to do
what he properly can, il the powers
concerned feel that his services will be
of effect, in arranging the preliminar-
les as to the time and place of meeting.
But if even these preliminaries can be
arranged directly between the two
powers, or in any other way, the pres
ident will be glad, as his whole pur-
pose is to bring about q meeting which
the whole civilized world will pray
may result in peace"
Proposition Is Welcomed.
Tue foregoing note was forwarded to
the Russian and Japanese governments
Thursday. It is rendered especially
significant by the fact that it was pre-
pared and sent only after assurances
had been received from Tokyo and st.
Petersburg that such q proposition
would be welcomed. While the repre-
sentatives Of both the Russian and Jap
anese governments in this country were
cognizant Of the nature Of the note it
was not sent to their respective govern
ments through them. It was oabled
by direction Of the president to st. Pc
tersburg and Tokyo and there delivered
directly to the Russian and Japanese
governments by Ambassador Meyer
and Minister Griscom.
First Decisive Step.
A formal reply to the note may not
be received for several days, but az al
ready made clear, informal assurances
that it would be welcomed are already
at hand. In view of the significant
character Of the document and the at
titude toward it which both Russia
and Japan have assumed, it is regarded
in official and diplomatic orioles as the
first firm and decisive step toward ul-
innate peace. s.