La Junta tribune., 1916-05-27
HOW ROOSEVELT
kept PEACE
BY WILLIAM HARD
h METROPOLITAN MAGAZINE


dent. We would have been plunged
into this terrible war straight on" In
truth heard this remark SO frequent.
! ly that I determined to go over the
diplomatic records OF the two Roose-
welt administrations.
| find that Roosevelt had many
bully opportunities to plunge the
I United States into foreign conflicts
. I find that he was obliged to face and
, handle three great crises with three
OF the greatest countries In the world
4 ! find that he was Obliged to take =
hand. a decisive future-fiIing hand. In
/ the affairs OF three small countries
small but nearby and turbulent and
dangerous TO the worlds peace. | md
thar he Was Obliged to have dealings
with many other countries In matters
/ capable OF bearing fruit either OF
friendship or OF hatred. find that
he wrote on visiting card tn. terms
on which a violent European contro-
versy was settled ind that for.
eigners think OF him as great his
| torical figure not because OF the part
he took In railway legislation or In
4 pure.food legislation or In conserva.
I ton legislation or in any other actiy-
i,y OF domestic politics but because of
I the part he took In international poll
/ ties the politics OF the world at
I large ! fnd that Europe and Asia
regard him as having been primarily
/ for good or for IA diplomat.
! This IN the Roosevelt least known
20 Americans.
The Alaskan Boundary Question.
| His FIRST difficulty was with Great
/ Britain I, was acute II had to do
with the Alaskan boundary. The
/ British put forth a claim which. as
| Roosevelt remarked. was Just as In.
d.fensibls as II they should nov sud
denly claim the island OF Nantucket"
Alaska IL a kite II has = main body
and then, nutterins southwark along
the PacIrc cozs, toward tn. state OF
Washington. = tail The dimensions
OF this tail we're determined. long be
fore Alaska passed from Russia to the
United States, by . treaty OF the year
/ 1875 between Russia and Great Bri.
tain. II provided that tn. boundary
between Alaska and the British pos
sessions should run along the crest OF
tn. mountains by which the coast vas
parAll-led The United States accord.
insly occupied the coast region with
out resistance
In 1898. however there was Q dis
eoy~ry OF considerable quantity OF
gold In tn. Klondik- The Canadians
Immediately Insisted on also discover,
| Ing a semi, submerged coastal noun.
tain range which spent a large part
/ OF its time under the waters OF the
Pacific and which. when II rose to the
surface. rose principally In the form
OF scattered h-sdlands- Her. was the
boundary. along the crest OF this alb
surd range. leapinE from headland TO
hezdland across great bodies OF nssi.
gable water Tn. United States
would get . succession OF h.adlsni.
tips and Canada would get a success
sion OF de.p.~ater inlets. on on. OF
which ~zs situated Skagwsy. the best
entrance TO the klondik- Eoldnrlds
This line. calculated to fsiten the
part OF any vaudeville performer b.
came automatically serious In tn. -h
IRENE. Under Mckinley . Joint
Commission" WAS appointed to con.
slider twelve topics In dispute between
the British Empir. and tn. American
Republic One OF the t~.ly. vas the
Alaskan boundary The representa-
tiy.s OF the Empir. refused TO cone
10 terms on any OF the others until
their version OF the Alaskan BOUNDARY
hAG been conceded to them II could
not be conceded. and tn. Joint Com
mission" collapsed
A. this point Roosevelt, became
president Quietly, In the routine OF
diplomatic intercourse. he refused sb
solut.ly TO accept Great Britain's am.
phlbious mountsin.rsng. line and re
fused also. with equal absoluten.ss TO
arbitrste II. John Hay. as Secretary OF
State. pointed gu, the fatal tendency
OF arbitrator to compromise" This
matter could not b. compromised. As
Roosevelt said on another occasion
Uncle Sam does not intend TO wrong
any one. but neither does he intend
n his pocket Is picked or his fac.
slapped. 10 'ArbitrAte' with the wrong
dosr" What them A Commission was
erected II Vas not . Commission
with = hird.party arbitrator on II. II
was Commission equally divided b..
tween the two countries Tn. repre-
sentatis.s OF the United States were
Lodge OF Massachusetts and Root OF
New York and Turner OF Washington.
The representatives OF the British
Empire w-r. two Canadians and on.
EnglishmAn. The Englishman was
England's Lord Chief Justice
s,ona
This Commission me, In London In
1908. Its purpose was Indicated both
by Roosevelt and by Hay Roosevelt
said Through strictly diplomatic chan,
neisi: Il wish to make one last effort
TO bring zbou, an agreement which
Will enable the people OF both eeur
tries TO say that the result represents
the feelings Of the representatives, o.
both eountrles."
In the meantime Roosevelt, moved
United States troops into ALASKA ~.
let n he strictly automatically known
that thos. troops. II the Commission
should fail. would b. used to reInc.
the country to possession" lie paused
On October 20. 1908. IN. Comml.
sion uttered ia decision. Lord Al
verston~ voted with the three r.pr.
s-ptativ-s Of the United States against
his own two Canadian colleagues
Great Britain bowed to the applaus.