The Washington times., 1924-08-25
j. S.PUZZEEDBY
N|CARAGUAN
TANCLE
FIouted in Effort to Assure
Fair Election Under Law
Drafted Here
By JONATHAN wTCKw1RE.

Two gallant gentlemen today are
speeding seaward from Washington
but God speed them, this writing
has nothing to do with personalities.
rather, 1t Is an uncolored presefita.
tion of undisputed facts, sifted care.
fully from d maze Of contradictory
statements of prime imminent in.
terest to the people Of the United
States.
The people Of Nicaragua are fac.
ing the problem Of giving effective
expression to their national will
through Presidential elections to be
held the first Sunday Of october
without exciting the dlspleasurA of
the International banking conibirla.
ton Brown Bros. and J. q w.
Selignan & Co., Of New. York, In.
curing the disapproval Of Mr.. Sec.
rotary Hughes. Of the Department
OF State, and the promptly subse
quent wrath Of the United States
Marines. It is an old problem.
somewhat modified by a recent in.
terposition Of Providence, that Mica
raguans twice in the past dozen
years have attempted. but failed TO
solve.
Under New Dictatorship.
The problem arose early In the
past decennium when the United
states recognized the Chamorro fac.
tons succession to the dictatorship
OF Nicaragua, wrested from the
hands Of Jose Santos Zelaya. This
was before the historic policy of
the United States relating to the
recognition Of de facto govern
ments and non.intervention in the
internal affairs of other nations
had been amplified by the Wilson
dictum in the Huerta case, and
later in the case of Russia, that
this country would not recognize a
government or ruler achieving to
power by assassination or armed
revolution.
The United States not only leeog.
nfzed the revolutionary government,
but, sickened by the conditions un.
der the seventeen.year Zelaya rule
and the untoward Incidents of the
revolt which overthrow him, under
took In a properly friendly spirit to
aid the Nicarausuans, through the
Chamorristas, to organize a stable
government. Nicaragua was i'm
poverished by the long economic
exploitation Of the Zelaya dictator
ship and the ensuing revolutionary
struggle, so Don Emiliane Cha
MORO, whose adherents, Estrada
and DiAz, were clothed with the
symbol OF supreme authority, was
not averse to a bit OF international
coddling that brought prospects of
some ready cash with no imme-
date threat to his supremacy.
Aided By Treaty.
The State Department, informally,
Of course, went quite some distance
inside the course prescribed by
precedent In tits efforts to help
Nicaragua to firm national foot.
ing at that time. Advisors from
the United States aided Chamorro
in the formulation Of q constitution.
They helped the new government
to draft an ir0n-clad election law.
New York bankers were advised
that anything they could do to help
the Nicaraguan people out OF their
dismal financial norass would be
appreciated at Washington.
A new treaty was drafted and,
after most interesting secret hear
ings, approved by the United States
Senate, securing to the United
States for 100000 the exclusive
right ever to build an interoceanic
canal across Nicaragua; incident
ally securing to the Bankers,
through a clause relating to the
landing and maintenance Of
United States Marines in the re.
public and at the capital, adequate
protection FOR any agreements they
might enter into with the Chan1orro
government for the benefit OF the
Nicaraguan people. Sufficeh 1t to
say here that the bankers entered
into profitable contracts which still
are in force.
FalT Election Impossible.
1t 10 with the United States made
election law that the NicafaguaYi
people have their greatest difficulty.
It's a rather ordinary election law,
on its face, though somewhat cum.
bersome. II 1t were administered
as 1t perforce must be in the United
States, It might be expected to work
more or less fairly. Even in
Nicaragua, were the law ad.
tninistered by non. partisan election
board, such as might be appointed
by the State Department which
drafted IT,, the people Of Nicaragua
might be able to get results, though
n confidential observer, after a
thorough investigation on the
ground, recently has reported to the
department the existence OF fCinda-
mental defects in the law that are
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