Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1927-01-14

| l ne text 81 SPndtpE f1oIHH SN
dress on the policy OF the..Cnitec
States in Nicaragua follows:
Nh. President ! am gratified that
/ the opportunity is now presented 10
! discuss in the open what is known
as the Nicaraguan situation This
/ is a subject which has been before
! the Senate in one way aud another
| since 1910. but there has never been
! an opportunity heretofore afforded of
! discussing the matter in open SEES
! sion. When the treaties were here
| for considera ton the Senate, in It's
| wisdom. declined To permit open dis
| cussion. | am pleased that at last
| the matter may he discussed where
f! | think all these questions which in
volye a question of policy should be
| discussed.
Il am also sratified that the ad-
ministration has had the opportunity
OF presenting in fnll the facts and
, principles upon which ii bases its
action. II was entirely proper and
il was certainly satisfa Glory to me
TO have the matter presented 10y
those who are Immediately response
BILE prior to the discussion here upon
my part.
This is not a personal controversy
between the President and myself nor
between the Secretary of State and
myself AS I view il. it involves pro-
foundly question of national policy.
: 1t is not TO be confined to the mere
question of recognition of this or that
particular individual. but must neces-
sarilv take on the problem of under
what circumstances and under what
principles and according to what pol
icy we should proceed to deal with
affairs not only in Nicaragua. but
Central America.
Sees No Foreign Menace.
"In passing. / want to say that | do
not see at this time the application of
the Monroe doctrine to the situation.
There Is at this time no hon-American
power, no European power, seeking
| to acquire territory in Central Ameri-
ca. There is no foreign power, non
American power, seeking in any way
| to overthrow the government OF Mica
ragua.
II know that it is often claimed that
all these matters in Central America
are of peculiar concern to us. | do
not challenge that proposition at all.
They are Of peculiar concern to us,
not by reason Of the Monroe doctrine,
but by reason Of the propinQuity OF
those countries to the United States.
But under the Monroe doctrine we
have no right to interfere with the
intendments of any Central American
eminent in Central America.
az understand perfectly. of course.
not only the right, but the duty of
the United States as any fother
power to protect the rights of its citi-
zens or their property, at whatever
place they may find themselves, or
their property may be located. 1t is
only when that doctrine is used for
the purpose of establishing a policy
which reaches far beyond the mere
protection Of the rights or the prop
erty, and which interferes with the
sovereignty of q people, which results
| in carving on war against the people,
that 7 find myself in discord with
some Of those who are responsible for
constituting these policies"
Reviews Nicaraguan Events.
The Senator took up a chronology.
cal discussion Of Nicaraguan events,
beginning with the dictatorship Of Ze'
| lava in 1909 and the revolution OF that
| wear, which ended with the election
| Of President Estrada and Vice Presi
| dent Diaz. The American Minister
there at the time, Thomas c. Mofi1tt,
advised the State Department that
| the Estrada government was friendly
! to American interests.
'I ask those who may be interested
| in this history" continued Mr.. Borah,
Ito 20 into the details as they are now
| to be had. and they will arrive at the
conclusion that Mr.. Moffitt aided and
abetted the revolution Of 1909; that
he advised our Government in ad'
| vance Of 1t; that he had helped to Sc
| lect the men who were to be at the
head Of It, and that he was from the
beginning to the end a part Of the
movement. This Government in
dorsed them to overthrow their gov
| eminent.
1--WE landed the Marines in Mica
ragua and began that practice OF de.
/ clartng neutral zones, and declared
the neutral zones where they would
| interfere with the forces with which
we were not friendly.
"The first business transaction
upon the part Of these people was to
apply for a loan. I trust that the
senate will also note the appearance
| for the first time of Diaz in the his
tory of Nicaragua. Diaz at that time
was clerk of an American corpora
tion at 81 a. year. He contributed
4
some $1,000 to the revolution of
Estrada.
Minister Asked for Warship.
Estrada soon got into trouble,
however, and resigned, whereupon
Diaz became President. The Ameri-
can Minister represented that the loan
negotiations were in danger, because
the people opposed the plan. The Min
| lister asked for q warship.
THAT loan was obnoxious, as our
own representative stated, to so per
| cent of the people Of Nicaragua. l
do not care whether it was beneficial
or detrimental: the only people who
! could determine that fact were the
people of Nicaragua themselves. IL
| this means that we are to establish
a protectorata over the Central
American countries and force upon
| them loans which they do not desire
| for economic policies which they
| think unwise, then let US have 1t out
in the open, and, before we adopt the
| policy, let the American Congress
| speak in regard to it.