The Washington herald., 1911-08-04
THREE COUNTRIES
sign PEACE PACTS

Continued from Page One.
British Embassy. who witnessed the Sig
natures for their government. Chandler
Anderson, counselor of the State Depart
ment, and Sidney Smith. chief Of the
diplomatic bureau, were also In the group
about the table, while ranged about the
room were a dozen or more officials and
newspaper correspondents.
Bryce Signs First.
Secretary Knox had provided a special
pen for the occasion. but Mr.. Bryce
picked up one at random from the table,
and. finding its point not to his liking.
reached for another. Then he bent over
the treaty. and Secretary Knox followed
his example. There was no other sound
in the room as the pens scratched over
| the parchment. Mr.. Bryce laid his pen
down first. nodded in his quaint way,
and extended his hand to the President
Mr.. Taft grasped 1t heartily.
Secretary Knox then laid aside the
copy of the Anglo-American treaty and
nodded to Viscount de st. Phalle. The
latter moved up closer to the desk and
witnessed the signature as Mr.. Knox s
pen scrawled over the second document
Taft's face, and he turned toward the
French representative. This time the
President was congratulated with an
impressive bow.
Secretary Knox rose and started to
hand the pen with which he had signed
the treaties to President Taft.
Il should like to have this pen in
scribed, Mr.. President" said he. ''and
present II to you"
D,,t Jo
claring that the Secretary himself should
keep the pen for the principal part
which he had played in negotiating the
conventions.
Photographer Snap Group.
The photographers were on hand A
whole squad OF them. The little interna-
tional party at the table devoted a few
minutes to them. The full battery of
cameras clicked the pictures after the
Secretary and Ambassador had been bid
den to adopt suitable poses, pens in hand.
President Taft Immediately after the
signing OF the treaties affixed his sigma
ture to the messages of transmittal which
completed arrangements for sending the
pacts to the Senate. This would have
been done yesterday afternoon had the
Senate been in session. The treaties will
be sent TO the upper branch OF Con-
gress to-day. and Secretary Knox will
ask that the Senate remove the ban
OF secrecy usually imposed upon treaties
submitted in executive session.
The entire ceremony did not last over
half an hour. There were not many
scraps left on Mr.. Tafts study table
after the treaties were signed. Ambas-
sador Bryce put the pen which he had
used in his pocket, and even the first
pen which he had taken up, and which
sputtered ink, was carried away as
souvenir.
The sealing-wax lead from which the
seals had been dripped upon the parch-
ments. the hlotting paper which Presi-
dent Taft and Secretary Knox used to
dry the ink of their signatures, and all
the stationery knick-knacks had disap-
peared. The breaking up of the party
was as informal as the ceremony had
been. Though II was raining, Mr.. Knox
was the only one to drive away in
carriage.
President Taft walked out on the front
porticO of the White House with Am
bassador Bryce to say good-by. The
Ambassador raised his never-absent UNI
brella and walked off in the rain as
though he had done no more than en-
Joy an afternoon cup of tea with Presi-
dent Taft
May Act This Session.
The probability is that the treaties will
be ratified by the Senate at this session.
Some slight opposition has been stirred
up by Irish-American appeals against
the treaty with Great Britain, but these
are not considered serious. The only
stand which the Senate could take
against the English or the French trea-
ties would be on the question Of an
abridgment of the Senate's treatymak
ing powers. This defeated the general
arbitration treaty drawn between this
country and Great Britain in 1897.
Under existing arbitration treaties,
which do not include questions of vital
interest. the protocol stating the ques-
tionS at issue goes to the Senate for
ratification. The Senate passes not only
upon the propriety of arbitrating any
question. but also upon the manner in
which the questions to be submitted to
The Hague Court are stated.
Under the conventions signed yester-
day, however, which will supersede the
present limited arbitration treaties. all
disputes will be arbitrated or settled by
direct negotiations, and the Senate will
not have an opportunity of passing upon
the propriety of arbitrating any dis
putes. The State Department believes,
however, that the rights of the Senate
in this regard have been conserved Dy
retention of power to approve of disap-
prove the statement of the questions at
issue.
The administration is hopeful Of ac-
ton on the treaties at this session. For
this reason, special arrangements were
made to have the signing of the first
treaty here witnessed by representatives
of that government. and the signing of
the American copy at Paris witnessed
by Ambassador Bacon.
No Delay in Execution.
By this arrangement both treaties were
fully executed yesterday without the de-
lay incident to an exchange by messen-
ger between Washington and Paris. Am
bassador Jusserand signed the French
copy of the Franco-American treaty in
Paris. Because the Senate was not in
session yesterday, Secretary Knox