Evening star., 1923-12-06
j. s. Wins 8CASES
IN MIXED TRIBUNAL
Spanish War Cable Claims oil
British Dismissed Despite
Plan to Pay Them.
By the Associated Press.

by the Associated Press.
LONDON. December 6.-The United
States achieved a signal victory over
Great Britain before the international
pecuniary claims tribunal in the matter
of claims brought by citizens Of the
United States against British interests
and similar claims by British subjects
against American principals. Out of the
ten cases heard by the tribunal, which
has just closed its sessions in London.
eight were decided in favor OF the
United States. None of the British
sustained.
Some Of the cases were Of more than
100 years standing and had previously
been argued by soma of the greatest
American and British lawyers. The
total sum involved in the litigation runs
into the millions Of dollars.
Frenchman Preaides.
The tribunal, which adopted the prirs-
ciple Of arbitration as a basis for Its
decisions. was composed Of a Briton,
an American and a Frenchman, pre-
sided over by VI. Fromageot an eminent
French legal authority on the Ruhr.
one or the most important cases in
which the American contentious were
sustained was that involving claims
for war damages. by British cable
companies against the American gov
ernment for the action of Admiral
Dewey in cutting the Hongkong-
Manila cable in 1893, and similar ac-
tion by the American naval forces In
points In Cuba during the Spanish
American war Although similar
claims by French cable companies
Tor war damages were paid by appro-
priations from Congress. the tribunal
sustained the argument of Frederick
X. Nielsen. counsel for the American
government, that the United States
was under no legal obligation to
make compensation in the British
case.
Victory Remarkable.
The success Of the American at
torney was all the more remarkable
In view of the fact that the execu-
tive department of the government
at Washington had already recon-
mended to Congress that payment be
made to/the British companies.
The tribunal awarded $4,000 darn
ages to the heirs of an American cit
izen who were Improperly deprived
of land in the Fiji Islands prior 70
Great Britain extending her sovereign
ty over those islands.
The tribunal dismissed q British
claim for several million dollars
damage against the United States for
alleged improper Interference by the
federal authorities with large irri-
cation project In New Mexico. which
is popularity known as the Rio Grande
case.
Only one claim of all the compli-
Gated cases reviewed remains to be
decided, and this will be heard in
Washington when the tribunal reas-
sembles next winter. From the stand =
point Of variety and the number of
cases listed for adjudication. Ameri-
can lawyers regard the scope of the
arbitration as considerably greater
than that of any other arbitration be-
tween two governments
The prompt results achieved are
pointed to as a vindication of the
principles of arbitration as a means
of settling disputes between two
countries. as opposed to diplomatic
compromise or other methods not
based on the strict legal merits Of the
various litigations.
Frederick X. Nielsen and his asso-
ciates. Frederick d. McKenny and
William c. Dennis. are leaving for
New York on the Leviathan.