The Montgomery advertiser., 1908-10-27

 Minister. when the United States broke on diplomatic relations. Amsri- can affairs were entrusted to The BraT gillian legation. Later. the French Government asked the Brazilian Minis ter toJ perform a similar service Tor France. The Minister of Foreign At- fairs, Dr. Paul. gave the consent of Venezuela, but it was later revoked by Castro. himself England sliu mas a minister to Caracas. but the British representations to Castro are being more insistent all the time and break in the near future Is not improbable. But of all the quarrels Castro mas kicked up. that one with the United States is most ungrateful The. united states. maintaining the Monroe -Ioc- Urine, stands before the world as the protector of Venezuela, yet Castro plays with his hands with the fea- lures of the face of Uncle sam Under the presidency of Grover cleveland. the United States risked war with England to protect Venezuela's rights and sto force submission or boundary disputes between England and Venezuela to arbitration. Five years ago. when, the navies of three Euro pean world powers blockaded me ports of Venezuela. it was the United States that saved Castro and his peo- pie from a severe drubbing. Yet, Ill spite of these things. it appears enat Castro has more contempt for | ''yanquiF Spanish for Iankee), than for ahy other foreigner.
 The United States has been insist ing that Venezuela submit to interna- tional and impartial arbitration five claims which the Amercan Government presents op behalf of its citizens. Those claims are. first. for $25,0o0 dam ages for the improper expulsion rom 1 Venezuela of A. F. Jaurett. an Ameri- can citizen; second for an arbitration of the claims of Orinoco Corporation. a company having a concession to de- velop certain lands at the delta of the Orinoco River; third, the resubmission | to arbitration of the claims Of the Orionoco Steamship Company. owners of an abrogated concession: fourth. for arbitration of the rights of the New York and Bermudez Company, the famous asphalt case; and fifth, that the Venezuelan Government shall with draw it's opposition to the right of the United States and Venezuela Company to do business under the contract 9fanl" ed to one Crichfield. or that the Crich- field matter be submitted to arbitra- tion.
 The Venezuelan Government has re- fused to reply favorably to these re- quests for arbitration. After many refusals, and after the incident of the opening of the mail bags addressed to the U. s. S. Tacoma. sent in care of The United States Consul at La Guayra. the Washington Government withdrew Its legation from Caracas on July 30. of this year.
 Huch has been written about the American claims and there are many Americans who believe that Castro Is right in his attitude toward some of them. The participation of the asphalt company In revolution. the fact that the Orinoco Steamship case has alreauy been the subj ject of arbitration. and the charges that Jaurett Is not bona fide American citizen-all these things have been aired. There is no doubt of the strength of the other two claims. But the Washington Government has asked nothing more than arbitration by an imperial tribunal. and now that the Government has demanded that satis- faction 1t cannot do otherwise than to insist upon the arbitration of all five claims. When John Hay was Secre- tary of State he sent what was prac- | ticalIy an ultimatium to Castro. This l note, although couched in the lan- guage of diplomacy. said to MT. Castro 'You must arbitrate or fight" Castro renIted that he would do neither Whereupon the United States did noth- Ing.
 There is hardly a foreign ofice in the world but Is worried by Castro. Just now the interest all centers In tne quarrel with The Netherlands. The Dutch are acting as if they meant business, and by this time 1t has been proved that Castro will not quit be- fore a bluff. The diplomatic world recognizes the weakness of the Dutch case in some of It's essentials, but at the same time 1t looks on with com placency. If the Dutch pull the chest nuts out of the fire for the big na- tions while fighting for their own in- terests, so much the better for the big nations. And if. when the Dutch make war on Castro, the Venezuelan people rise and overthrow Castro-well, that would be good news to the foreign of icers.
 CCopyriEht, 1908. by Frederic J.
 Haskin.)
 TOmoxrOw--TrOubIes of Venezuela /. TX. The OrinOcO Corporation Case. |