The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1906-03-22

tract. Secretary RooT was not respon-
sible for the position taken by our Gov
eminent at the time, and it is therefore
possible that he doubts whether u
aoquiescence in the protracted confis-
cation Of a Latin American republics
revenue can be ~reconciled with the
Monroe Doctrine, which forbids us to
countenance any act on the part OF a
European Power that may injuriously
affect the destiny of an American COM
monwealth. If a foreign Power can
take a third of Venezuela's customs
revenue, it can take the whole and II
it a take the whole for ten years, it
can take it for a hundred. The expert
nee Of Egypt has shown that those
who collect and administer a country's
revenues are practically its rulers, under
whatever guise they may exercise
authority.
Has, then, the creditor of a Latin
American republic no remedy il money
lent by him is not repaid? We answer
that he has exactly the same remedy
that a citizen of the indebted country
would have-no more, no less. He must
seek redress from the courts Of that
country. If he objects that the courts
Of that country are,notoriously corrupt
or unfair TO foreigners the fact should
have been recognized by him at the time
when the loan was made. He should
have taken to heart the maxim cduedt
emptor. As a matter of fact, the maxim
always is kept in view by European
creditors, and the m rate of inter-
est exacted by them bears witness to
their suspicion Of the quality Of the
security. 1t is unreasonable that, after
extorting a huge rate of interest, a
European creditor should call upon his
Government to compel the payment of
his principal by force. How iniquitous,
for instance, would it be for a European
Power to- seize the customs revenue of
Santo Domingo in order to collect a
debt not one-tenth part Of which stands
for value received, That there are
equities which a debtor may plead is
recognized in the treaty which Mr..
ROOSEVELT concluded with Mr.. Mo-
RALEs, the Dominican Executive; for
although the former agreed to reserve
about half of the Dominican customs
revenue for the benefit Of foreign credi-
tors, he declared that the validity of
every claim would be made the subject
Of rigorous investigation.
There are, in a word, just four ways
Of dealing with the debts arising out of
contract which are due from Latin
American republics to European cred
itors. The debts may be paid when due
and in full. That is the ourse pursued
by Chile and some other Latin Amer
lean countries. They can be %repudiated
and the European creditor defied, That
is the course pursued at this time toward
France by Venezuela. They can be paid
in instalments by a mortgage of customs
revenue This was the course which
Venezuela was compelled to pursue in the
case of the debts due to British, German
and Italian subjects. The fourth solution
of the problem is, Of course, that adopted
by Mr.. ROOSEVELT in the proposed treaty
with Santo Domingo. BY that treaty
the United States, unwilling to see a
sister republic coeroed, and equally
unwilling to see just creditors wronged,
offered to act for a time as a receiver of
the indebted commonwealth, applying
a portion Of the customs revenue to the
liquidation of debts the justice Of which
shall have been determined.
The Santo Domingo solution OF the
problem is likely to form a topic Of
discussion at the coming Pan-American
Congress.