Presidents -- United States -- Messages; United States -- Politics and government -- Sources
After this extension of uniform Nicaraguan administration to the
Mosquito Strip, the case of the British vice-consul, Hatch, and of
several of his countrymen who had been summarily expelled from
Nicaragua and treated with considerable indignity provoked a claim by
Great Britain upon Nicaragua for pecuniary indemnity, which, upon
Nicaragua's refusal to admit liability, was enforced by Great Britain.
While the sovereignty and jurisdiction of Nicaragua was in no way
questioned by Great Britain, the former's arbitrary conduct in regard
to British subjects furnished the ground for this proceeding.
A British naval force occupied without resistance the Pacific seaport
of Corinto, but was soon after withdrawn upon the promise that the sum
demanded would be paid. Throughout this incident the kindly offices of
the United States were invoked and were employed in favor of as
peaceful a settlement and as much consideration and indulgence toward
Nicaragua as were consistent with the nature of the case. Our efforts
have since been made the subject of appreciative and grateful
recognition by Nicaragua. The coronation of the Czar of Russia at
Moscow in May next invites the ceremonial participation of the United
States, and in accordance with usage and diplomatic propriety our
minister to the imperial court has been directed to represent our
Government on the occasion.
Correspondence is on foot touching the practice of Russian consuls
within the jurisdiction of the United States to interrogate citizens as
to their race and religious faith, and upon ascertainment thereof to
deny to Jews authentication of passports or legal documents for use in
Russia. Inasmuch as such a proceeding imposes a disability which in the
case of succession to property in Russia may be found to infringe the
treaty rights of our citizens, and which is an obnoxious invasion of
our territorial jurisdiction, it has elicited fitting remonstrance, the
result of which, it is hoped, will remove the cause of complaint. The
pending claims of sealing vessels of the United States seized in
Russian waters remain unadjusted. Our recent convention with Russia
establishing a modus vivendi as to imperial jurisdiction in such cases
has prevented further difficulty of this nature.
The Russian Government has welcomed in principle our suggestion for a
modus vivendi, to embrace Great Britain and Japan, looking to the
better preservation of seal life in the North Pacific and Bering Sea
and the extension of the protected area defined by the Paris Tribunal
to all Pacific waters north of the thirty-fifth parallel. It is
especially noticeable that Russia favors prohibition of the use of
firearms in seal hunting throughout the proposed area and a longer
closed season for pelagic sealing.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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