Evening star., 1914-12-27

Client. which was
Provisions signed at Client. Bel
~ T,..<, GUM, December "a.
OF treaty. 1914, between the
United States and England. terminal
ing the war known as the war of
1912" The chief features of the treaty
were the restoration of all territories.
places and possessions taken by either
party from the other during the war.
excepting certain islands: Article "
provided for the appointment Of a COM
mission to decide to which of the two
powers, according to the boundaries
stated in the treaty of 1883, certain
islands in and near Passamaquoddy
bay belonged: the commission failing
to come to a decision, the subject was
to be referred to some friendly SOW
ereign or state; Articles v and VIII
provided for commissions to settle the
line of boundary as described In the
treaty of 1888. the commission to set
tie the line from the rivers st. Croix
to where the forty-fifth parallel en-
ters the River st. Lawrence. called the
Iroquois or Cataraqua in the treaty;
another commission would determine
the middle Of the water communica-
tion from that point to Lake Superior,
to adjust the limits from the water
and Superior to the most northwestern
point Of the Lake of the Woods; Ar
ticle TX bound both parties to use
their best endeavors to abolish the
slave trade as being irreconcilable
with the principles Of humanity and
justice.
The treaty failed to mention the i'm
pressment Of American seamen and
the right of search, which had been
the main cause of the war. nor did it
mention the claims Of the United
States to participate In the Newfound-
land fisheries, recognized in the treaty
OF 1888, nor the question as to the
maintenance of British and American
nava! forces on the northern lakes.
nor the question of neutrals. All these
questions. especially that concerning
the fisheries, became the subject of
much subsequent negotiation.
Inc explanation given as to these
failures to insist upon the first instruc-
tions of the American commission is
that the termination of the Napoleonic
wars SO altered the conditions that the
stringent instructions. both as to i'm
pressment and fisheries, were permitted
to lapse.
The British on their part claimed the
establishment of the boundary fixed by
the Indian treaty of Greenville" In
1875 as permanent line. beyond which
neither party should acquire territory,
thus cutting off the entire northwest
from the United States; the cession of
the mouth of the Niagara and Sacketts
harbor; prohibiting the United States
from maintaining land or naval forces
on the lakes; the free navigation of the
Mississippi.
Briefly, the Ghent treaty was in real
fty little more than an agreement to
suspend hostilitles
Practically an and leave the dis
A.:.4: puted points to the
A''1'e' future. The British
minister. Castlereagh,, adopted a pol
icy of watchful waiting for the
fortune of battles in America, which.
favoring England, would permit
that country to impose its will
upon America. After the arrival of the
American commissioners at Client there
was premeditated delay. The news of
the burning of the Capitol at Washing
ton by the British, under Gen. Ross.
was received in Client October l, 1914.
but after that came the tidings of the
American victories on Lake Erie and
at Baltimore. This changed situation
caused Castlereagh to instruct his
commissio ners to act. The negotiations.
begun August 8, were term mated De-
cember "a by the signing of the treaty
in the re ectory of the Cartlusian mon
astery. writer says that the British
reverses, after the Washington affair.
were in reality a piece of good fortune
gent, afterward George w" and he
adds:
'If the treaty Of peace had not been
signed in December the American ma
ton was in the mood to have made
good the threat of the conquest and
definite annexation of Canada and the
British northwest. A little more than
a month after the victory at New Or
leans, before the signing of the Client
treaty was known at Washington, a
remarkable pamphlet, which has been
attributed both to Madison and to Mon
roe, was issued to the extent of a mil
lion copies, making a strenuous appeal
to the people of the United States of
America to prepare for new campaign
in 1915 against the British and to
sweep them from the continent of
North America 1t proposed a levy of
100000 men,"
The American negotiators were John
Quincy Adams, James A. Bayard, Henry
Clay, Jonathan Russell and Albert Gal
latin.
The British representatives were
Lord Gambler. Henry Goulbourn and
William Adams. The mediocre charac-
ter of the British negotiators indicated
the indifference. If not contempt. of
England to the outcome of the negotia-
t1ons. Lord Gambler was an ex-naval
captain and a junior lord of the ad-
miralty. wholly inexperienced in for
eign affairs. Henry Goulbourn was a
young under secretary of state, narrow.
'mpertinent and devoid of the qualities
OF diplomats to whom England usually
intrusted serious missions. The errors
and omissions Goulbourn would commit
might serve England, if necessary, to
formulate pretexts for reopening the
negotiations.
On the other hand the United States
selected her best representatives. The
names Of Adams, Bayard. Clay, Russell
and Gallatin were too well known in
America and in Europe to require re-
hearsal of their pre-eminent capacity
Albert Gallatin. the last named, al
though distinguished In both conti-
nentS, was not SO well known to the
American public, which seemed to have
already imbibed prejudices against peo-
pie of Latin origin.
= y
James Bryce. former British ambassa-
dor to Washington, in the introduction
to book recently
Diary Of published. entitled "A
c.,,.4;, Great Pea e m k r."
oallatAn. being the diary of
James Gallatin, son and secretary to
Albert Gallatin. 1s13-1S27. writes: This
Diary, given many years ago by James
Gallatin to his grandson, is now pub