Democratic Sentinel, Volume 13, Number 3, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 8 February 1889 — GERMANS DECLARE WAR [ARTICLE]

GERMANS DECLARE WAR

THEY WILL NOW PROCEED TO MAKE THINGS HUM IN SAMOA. President Cleveland’s Message to ConIP e » i Strong Talk in the Senate, in Which It Is Argued that Uncle Sam Should Act Promptly—Biunsrck’s Views. [Washington (D. C.) special.] An Auckland telegram states that Samo i advices say that the Germans have declared war against King Mataafa and that probably all the Samoans will join against the Germans. President Cleveland sent to Congress add t onal correspondence relative to Samoan affairs, accompanied by the following message: To the Congress: I had the honor on the 15th inst. to commnnicato to your honorable body certain correspondence and documents in relation to affairs in the Samoan Islands, and having since received further dispatches from the Vice Consul at Apia and the commander of the United fctates naval vessel Nipsic in those waters, 1 lose no time in laying them before you. 1 also transmit herewith the full text of instructions irom Prince von Bismarck to the German Minister at this capital, which was communicated on the afternoon of the 28th lust. This appears to be an amplification of prior telegraphic instruction on the same subject, communicated through the same channel, and which, being set forth in the note of the Secretary of State to Count von Arco Valley, the German Minister, of the 12th inst., was duly laid before Congress with my last message in relation to Sarnoun affairs. It is also proper to inform you that on Monday, the '.-Bth inst., the occasion of the communication of the n ;te of the Prince Chance llor. the Secretary of Slate was given to understand by tho Go.’man Minister that a proposition from his Government to that of the United States for accnftrence on the Samoan subject was on its way by mail, having left Berlin on the 2Jth inst., so hat its arrival here in due course of mail can be looked for in a very short time. In reply to tho inquiry from the secretury of State whether the I r,.position referred to was for a renewal of the ,i< int conference between the United States, Germany, and Great Britain, which tvt:3 suspended in July, 1887, or for the consideration of Samoan affairs ab novo, the German Minister stuted his inability to answer until tho proposition which left Berlin on the 2. th inst. should have been received. I shall hereaitor < ommunicato to the Congress all information before me in relation to the i amoan status. Grover Cleveland. The correspondence accompanying the message gives an amplified account of recent events in Samoa. It opens with Vice Codbul Blacklock’s accouut of the maltreatment of natives and the beating of the marshal of the Consul’s office by 150 drunken sailots from a German man-of-war on Dec. 15 and 16. On Dec. 20 and 22 the Consul arranged a meeting of the threo Consuls at the German consulate, but nothing could be done, as the German Consul said he had lost soman} men he must now take the matter in his own hands and revenge their losses. On Jan. 1, the Vice-Consul says, Capt. Mullan, having written to the captain of the German vessel 'which seized the American boat the other day, received a reply to the effect that there was no flag flying on the boat; th s is not true, as the boat was seen from this office, also by others in other parts of town, plainly flying the American flag. This is the usual way the Germans adopt for straightening out the outrages they commit. The last letter is ouo from Prince Bismarck to Count you Arco Valley, detailing the “unprovoked attack” of natives under the leadership of the American, Klein, upon a German naval force “which had landed ft the requisition of the imperial consul for the ptotectiou of German settlements which were endangered by the conflicts between the native parties. ” The letter continues; In consequence of this we have been transplanted from tho territory of mediatorial negotiations by which the imperial consul in Apia was trying to reconcile the contending parties, and for which he sought the co-operation of his English and American colleagues, into a state of war with the assailants, to our regjet. We shall ca.ry on the col test t'nut lias been forced upon ns by Mataafa aud bis f- flowers with the utmost consideiaticn tor English aud American interests. Our military measures have in view only the punishment of t e murders of German soldiers and the protection of our countrymen and their property. As they on their part are at war with Tamasese our interference will necessarily assume the character of assistanci to Tamasese. In the endeavor for the just punishment of a murderous crime we hope tor Che cooperation of the treaty powers in Samoa in friendship with us, and we ask the Government of the United States to be good enough to furnish the consuls and the commanders of its ships of war in b'atnoa with suitable instruct Otis. Our armed forces there are instructed to avoid and to prevent all injury to neutral commerce and property, and to adopt measures of reprisal and destruction only ugainst the followers of tne party which initiated the contest against our troops by a murderous attack. We shall, of course, abide by the agre, ments with America and England with respect to Samoa, and pay due regard, under all circumstances', to the rightß of those powers as established by treaty. Ihe Samoan amendments to tho Consular bill were discussed in the Senate by Messrs. Dolph and Keagan. Mr. Dolph said the question was one of local interest to the people of the Pacific coast, and argued that the treaty of 1884 between Germany and Samoa gave tho German Government powers which weie incompatible with the autonomy of the native government and inconsistent with American tieaty rights in the islands. If Congress were to interfere in the matter at all, the Piesident should be directed to insist t pon a restoration by the German Government of tho status quo at the time of the Washington conference, and to notify the German Government that the Urdu d States would not permit the Samoau islands to pass under the control of any foreign nation, and that their independent autonomy must be maintained. He saw no good reason why, if necessary, and if requested by the Samoan people, an American protectorate should not be established over them.

Mr. llcagau declared that no American cit zen could read the correspondence without feeling humiliation to see the rights of the United States brutally overridden and trodden down by German subalterns while ihe German Prime Minister was professing friendship and a desire to maintain proper relations with tho Government of the United Statos. He thought the proposed amendments were too feeble to vindicate the rights of the American people in the matter, and added: It we believe that wo have rights which have been violated we should assert those rights as becomes a great and powerful nation. lam not in favor of war. But the humiliation of a great nation in the face of an arrogant power is worse than war. I would give the President power to determine what our rights in tho matter are and the i ower to assert those rights in a way that could not be mistaken. I would suggest tho addition to the pending amendment of tho words, “and Jor the protection of the rights of American citizens residing in said islands and to preserve ths neutrall y and independence of their people." Then we will have s-bd someth ng. But if we do not put in some deelara.ion we leave the President exactly where he is now —in a position where be regards himself as powerless to vindicate the rights of the United States.