On Tuesday the United States delegate brought forward his proposal
that the Powers should take no forcible action to recover debts owed by the Government of one country to the subjects of another until arbitration has been offered by the creditor and refused or ignored, or until arbitration has been called in and the _debtor has failed to conform to it. This proposal, which is supported by Great Britain, does not apply apparently to debts due from one State to another. It is indisputable that trade may be much injured—and with it the likelihood of other debts being recovered may be lessened—by unrestricted intervention by nations on behalf of their clients. The United States has sometimes spent a great deal in forcibly recovering very little. As though to point the difficulty of the whole matter, Venezuela has just renounced the award of 1903 by which she is condemned to pay 2400,000 to Belgian creditors. If Venezuela is allowed to throw off her responsibilities in this way, after having agreed to abide by the judgment of a specially appointed Court, she will strike a serious blow at the whole principle of arbitration. No doubt acting on instructions from Caracas, the Venezuelan delegate at the Hague proposed on Tuesday that the use of force should be absolutely prohibited in the recovery of all debts. In other words, Venezuela defies the Hague Con- ference and invites it to make a new rule for her benefit at the same time. Is President Castro at the bottom of this impertinence, we wonder ?
