The Bemidji daily pioneer. [volume] (Bemidji, Minn.) 1904-1971, 1908-10-15
CASTRO 70 SEND
VIGOROUS reply
Not at All Scared by Hol.
/. 3zstss 5t
]. lands Ultimatunn.
DEMANDS AN APOLOGY

Venezuelan President Believes The
Netherlands Should Give Repair alton
for Insulting Letter of Its Expelled
Minister Before Making Threats.
Coast Defense Guns Being Made
Ready to Resist Invasion. .ss
Caracas, Oct. 1.-THE revocation
Fof the decree of May IA is demanded
in the most energetic manner-the
government of Venezuela must from
this moment without delay fulfill the
protocol of 1894 and not prolong the
fntolerable state of affairs which it
has created by the decree of May H..
; Those are the words of the minister
for foreign affairs of The Netherlands
~ his note in which he answers Ven
tekuela's communication telling of the
SUMMARY dismissal of Minister de
|Rels from Caracas. --. ~. S.. -. =.
NJ. Van Swinderen, the foreign min
lister of Holland, began his reply to
President Castro by acknowledging
the gravity of the offense committed
by n. de Reus, and saying that The
Netherlands government would imme-
adiately have recalled him of it's own
initiative If it had seen the offensive
publication, but that President Castro
had taken justice into his own hands
by violating International custom by
summarily expelling the minister with
out asking for his recall. ~. =.
President Castro was away at Valen-
~cia when this note was presented by
Baron Won Seckendorf, the German
minister, and he told Dr.. Paul, his
foreign minister, to acknowledge re-
ceipt and to await the second note
from Holland, which it was known
was soon 10 arrive. This second note
has arrived, but because of General
Castro's illness it has not as yet been
answered, although it is generally I'M
derstood here that Venezuela will not
give in to any of Hollands demands
Holland Must Apologize.
Venezuela will take the stand that,
until a satisfactory apology and in
domination is forthcoming from The
Netherlands government for the in
sultiRg letter of the late Minister de
Reus and for the stoning of the Ven
ezuolan consul by the Curacao mob,
Holland has no right at all to make
any demands of this country, espe-
cial1y in the nature of those made in
the Dutch note, which interfere with
the right enjoyed by free nations to
make their own commercial laws. It
is very generally admitted in Caracas
that if the Venezuelan government
wishes to have the transhipment- of
merchandise for Maracaibo done in
Venezuelan ports that it has a per-
feet right to do so, although Curacao
may be sufferer thereby.
Although The Netherlands note asks
for the immediate revocation" of the
transhipment decree it has been re-
ported that the second note fixes the
date of Nov. 1 as the time when this
must be done, thus giving the note the
nature of an ultimatum. Nobody who
knows General Castro believes that
this demand will have any other effect
than still further to incense Venezu-
elias executive against Curacao and
nobody would be at all surprised if
his answer was more vigorous and de-
termined than The Netherlands gov
eminent expects or will like. That
Venezuela is being prepared to resist
invasion and that the many big coast
defense guns have been made ready
for an emergency is common knowl-
edge down here. - : :