Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-04-01
claims are again reviewed, and MI Hoo'
closes his letter as follows:
Arbitration Proposed.

Arbitration Proposed.
LAS to each and every one of the afore-
said cases in case you shall not receive a
prompt and favorable reply from the gov
eminent of Venezuela. you will expressly
and formally propose to the government
Of Venezuela that the claims against that
government in respect thereof be sub
mitted to arbitration Before the permanent
court of arbitration at The Hague, or, II
Venezuela shall prefer, before a tribunal
| of three jurists. not members OF The
Hague tribunal, to be selected in the usual
manner"
February 10. 1903. Secretary Root dis
patched a cablegram to Minister Russell.
instructing him to ascertain whether the
refusal Of Venezuela to accept our pro-
posal Of arbitration is designed to apply
to each and every one Of the five claims,
and II she is ready to arbitrate any Of
those claims, which one she is willing to
arbitrate."
The reply of Minister Russell to this
| cablegram is the final paper in the mass
OF correspondence relating to the whole
subject Of the efforts of the United States
government to secure an amicable adjust
ment Of the claims Of American citizens.
M. Russell's cablegram, sent from Will
lemstad February %, 1905 is a follows:
THE Venezuelan government answered
today my note. sent in accordance with
your cable instructions Of February IL.
Minister for foreign affairs states that
Venezuela refrains from considering for
the present the question Of arbitration,
because l have not as yet refuted the
arguments In notes of July and Sep
TENDER 20. in which notes Venezuela
plainly stated the grounds for refusing to
arbitrate. The note concludes as follows:
| Consequently. as the case referred to
cannot be considered as being comprised
among those which call for diplomatic
action, the government Of Venezuela
t-f, o$t1 !,
eminent of the United States would con-
slider this question closed, the parties
| interested always having the right of re-
course to the tribunals of justice OF the
republic should they deem fit.
Facts in the Cases.
A memorandum compiled by Solicitor
Scott OF the State Department gives ex-
| haustively the facts and law in each of
the five subjects Of dispute between the
American and Venezuelan governments.
This memorandum. which occupies nearly
two hundred printed pages. forms a part
of the voluminous record Of the five cases
which Secretary Root transmitted to the
I Senate in response to a resolution of
Senator Lodge.
! The claim of the Orinoco Corporation
which the State Department contends
should be the subject of international ar
bitration, arises from repeated conces-
sions granted by Venezuela to various
strangers of the territory which the
Orinoco Corporation possesses under a
concession granted in 1888 The conces-
sion granted c. c. Fitzgerald. an Ameri-
can. the exclusive right for ninety-nine
years to develop the resources of certain
portion Of the delta of the Orinoco. These
resources consisted of iron mines and
asphalt deposits. The opinion of the de-
partment on this case is that the action
Of the Venezuelan executive is ''in deroga-
ton OF repeated judgments Of the Ven
ezuelan court Of last resort and OF the
| international court Of claims. For. this
tort willfully committed by the executive.
there can only be diplomatic redress UNI
less the Venezuelan executive should
abide by the decision Of the courts and
cease to modest the vested rights OF the
corporation"
In the next case. that of the Ornoco
Steamship Company. a New Jersey cor
poration. the broad question Is involved
when may the decisions Of tribunals of
arbitration be impeached?" The claim
of this company. amounting to 81 .4O1 $50.
| was submitted to mixed tribunal for
arbitration, in accordance with an agree
nent with the American and Venezuelan
governments. The umpire who presided
over the arbitration tribunal disallowed
| the major portion of the claim and grant
ed an award to the company OF $2S224.
| This decision is declared by the State
! Department to abound in errors of law