No. 168.] BOUNDARY BETWEEN NICARAGUA AND COLOMBIA. Mr. Baker to Mr. Gresham. LEGATION OF THE UNITED STATES, Managua, December 7, 1893. (Received January 3, 1894.) SIR: I beg to transmit herewith copies of a note addressed by me to his excellency the minister of foreign affairs of Costa Rica, in relation to the boundary question between Costa Rica and Colombia, dated September 1, and a copy and translation of his reply thereto, just received. I am, etc., LEWIS BAKER. [Inclosure 1 in No. 168.] Mr. Baker to Mr. Jimenez. LEGATION OF THE UNITED STATES, SIR: I am instructed by the President of the United States to open correspondence with the Government of Costa Rica upon the subject of the arbitration of the long-pending boundary dispute between Costa Rica and Colombia. Under the convention between those States of December 25, 1880, and the additional convention signed at Paris, January 20, 1886, an arbitration was agreed upon and initiated with the acceptance of the office of arbitrator by the Queen Regent of Spain on behalf of His Majesty King Alfonso XIII; but I am instructed a coutention has arisen touching the date from which to compute the twenty months prescribed by the convention for the presentation of the cases of the respective parties to the arbitrator. It has been alleged by Colombia that the cases have not been presented within the stipulated term. and that the power of the arbitrator to act in the premises has lapsed. The cases have not, in fact, been presented, as I am informed, and the Queen Regent's Government has accepted the position of Colombia, although not without expression of its view that the prescribed period was still open, and with expression of cordial readiness to resume the function of arbitrator should the Governments of Costa Rica and Colombia compose their differences in this regard and request continuance of the arbitration. The Government of Costa Rica has on several occasions solicited the good offices of the United States toward continuing the arbitration, and requested this Government to represent to that of Colombia the propriety and advantage of so doing. The Government of the United States, maintaining the friendly and impartial consideration for both the parties to the dispute which it has consistently shown since the settlement thereof by arbitration was first broached, is as indisposed to support the claim of Costa Rica that the arbitration is still validly open as it is to accept the converse claim of Colombia that it has lapsed. Not being in any sense a party to the arbitration, and moved only by the desire to preserve the rights of its citizens in the territory of dispute and to fulfill the international obligations of existing treaties, the Government of the United States has consistently testified its lively interest in the controversy and its earnest desire that a settlement be reached. It is especially led in this course by the fact that the United States are, by the treaty of 1846 with New Granada, now Colombia, guarantors of the rights of sovereignty and property which Colombia has and possesses over the terri Government of Nicaragua as soon as the peace of this Republic shall be disturbed and any invasion shall take place from that of Nicaragua. Given in Tegucigalpa on the 30th of October, 1893. V. WILLIAMS, There are many Nicaraguan fugitives here, among whom, ALBERTO RIVAS. No. 148.] Mr. Baker to Mr. Gresham. LEGATION OF THE UNITED STATES, San Salvador, November 18, 1893. (Received December 12.) SIR: I have advised you, under date of November 3, of impending troubles between Honduras and Nicaragua. I learn here from reliable source that Salvador has been appealed to by Honduras to intervene against Nicaragua, and that the Honduranean Government is recruiting troops. The Government of Salvador has replied to Honduras by wire, asking that hostilities be suspended until it may communicate by mail. In this connection, I desire to call your attention to the treaty of peace and arbitration, which was signed in this city on May 23, 1892, by the commissioners from Guatemala, Salvador, Honduras, and Nicaragua, and ratified since that time by the Governments of Salvador, Honduras, and Nicaragua. Article 11 of that treaty provides that "it is not indispensable for the validity of this treaty that it be ratified completely by all the Republics who sign it. The one who may approve it shall communicate the fact to the Government of Salvador, so that it may be communicated to the other contracting powers. This procedure shall serve in lieu of exchange of ratifications between the parties who may have approved it." And, therefore, the fact would be valid in so far as the Republics of Salvador, Honduras, and Nicaragua are concerned, although the latter, while it approved the treaty, never advised Salvador of the fact. The President of Salvador considers the treaty in force between the three nations, and, in accordance with that view and in the interest of peace, he has communicated by wire with the Governments of Honduras and Nicaragua, asking them to send each a commissioner to La Union of Salvador to meet there a commissioner from this country who will offer the friendly offices of this Government in an effort to submit to arbitration the questions at issue between Honduras and Nicaragua. To this Honduras has replied that, while the Government appreciates the friendly intervention of Salvador in this matter, it desires to await the reply of the other Central American Governments to its communication, similar in tenor to that sent to Salvador, mention of which was made above. Nicaragua has replied, thanking the Government of Salvador for its intervention, and advising that a minister would be sent. I am informed also by a private letter from Costa Rica that that Government has offered its friendly offices to Honduras and Nicaragua in the interest of This was a peaceful settlement of the matters at issue between them. done, in all likelihood, in reply to the communication of Honduras to the administration at San Jose, of which I speak in the preceding paragraph. I beg, etc., LEWIS BAKER. [Inclosure in No. 148.-Translation.] Treaty of peace and arbitration of San Salvador. MAY 23, 1892. The Governments of Honduras, Nicaragua, Salvador, and Guatemala, represented in the Central American peace congress, through their respective plenipotentiaries, viz: Dr. Don Adolfo Zuñiga for Honduras, General Isidro Urtecho for Nicaragua, Dr. Don Manuel Gallardo for Salvador, and Dr. Cayetano Diaz Merida for Guatemala, wishing to insure the benefits of peace between the Republics of Central America and to strengthen at the same time the sentiments of brotherhood which must serve as basis for the settlement of the disputes which may arise between them, have agreed to enter into a treaty covering these points, and to that end, after having exhibited their respective full powers, and after conferences and discussions on the subject, have agreed upon the following stipulations: ART. 1. The high contracting parties recognize and guarantee to each other, as a basis of their international public law, the following principles: (1) Nonintervention in the internal affairs of the respective Republics. (2) The strictest neutrality in the questions or difficulties which may occur between two or more of the contracting Republics. Notwithstanding this, if any of these Republics shall permit, encourage, or protect the organization of factions within its territory, or shall invade another state, causing a "de facto" rupture, then the neutral Republics shall make common cause and shall constitute themselves into a defensive alliance with the state offended or invaded, until they shall obtain the reestablishment of peace; and (3) Arbitration as the sole method of settling or solving all questions or difficulties which may arise between the signatory Republics, whatever their cause, nature, or object may be. ART. 2. For the safeguard and application of these fundamental principles a periodical delegation is established, composed of five plenipotentiaries, one being named by each of the Governments of Central America. This delegation shall be called the "Central American Diet," and it shall hold its inaugural session on the 1st of January of the year 1893. The sessions of the Central American Diet shall last ninety days, which may be extended, at the will of said diet, when the affairs of which it must take cognizance or the public interest demand it; and it may adjourn before the expiration of the term mentioned if it should deem it expedient. The meetings of the Central American Diet shall take place, in turn each year, in the capitals of the contracting Republics, Guatemala, Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Costa Rica. ART. 3. The Central American Diet has the following functions: (1) To offer its pacific mediation when there is danger of any disagreement between the contracting Republics. (2) To settle, as arbitrators, questions which may be submitted to it if pacific mediation should not suffice to end the dispute. ART. 4. The Central American Diet has moreover the following functions: (1) To draw up all the treaties involving private international law in criminal, civil, commercial, and judicial matters. (2) To draw up treaties for the Central American customs, monetary, postal, and telegraphic union. ART. 5. When the signatory Republics wish to submit their disagreements or ques tions to the arbitration of the Central American Diet, the Republic believing itself menaced or offended shall present to the diet, through its plenipotentiary, a memorandum stating the grounds of complaint. The plenipotentiary of the Republic against which the memorandum shall have been drawn up shall present one of explanations. If in that one there should also be complaints, the plenipotentiary who took the initiative shall reply. With these documents before them the plenipotentiaries of the Republics not directly interested in the question shall deliberate in regard to the means of conciliation which may appear the most equitable and efficacious, and shall submit them to the consideration of the plenipotentiaries of the differing Republics, in order to try to reach an agreement. If such agreement can not be attained, the competent plenipotentiaries shall name arbitrators to complete the diet from among the ministers of the friendly nations, residing in Central America. The majority of votes shall constitute a decisive award. ART. 6. If when the Central American Diet is not in session any question should arise between two or more of the contracting Republics, the Governments having no interest in the dispute shall, upon hearing thereof, interpose their friendly offices to bring about a settlement. If this should not be possible, they shall advise the contending parties to submit their disagreements to the arbitral award of the diet or of any friendly nation. If the Governments concerned should express the desire that the diet settle the pending question or disagreement, the latter shall be called together, without any loss of time, by one or more of the mediating or neutral Governments. In this case the diet shall proceed in conformity with the provisions of article 5. ART. 7. If the disagreeing Governments should not wish to submit their disagreements to the arbitration of the Central American Diet, the designation of the arbitrator, the terms of the question, and the rules to be observed until the rendering of the award, shall be the subjects of a special treaty. Such treaty shall be signed within the term of four months after the grounds of disagreement shall have become known. ART. 8. Until the contracting Governments shall agree upon special treaties regulating asylum and the recognition of their public documents, it is provided that the removal from the frontier of political refugees, stipulated in the treaties, shall take place without any further proceedings than the demand of the Government of the nation whence they come, to the Government of the nation in which they took refuge. And it is also stipulated that the verification of the authenticity of public documents issued by any of the contracting Republics shall be sufficient to establish the validity and force of such documents and their effectiveness in securing in any of the Republics the results inherent to their nature as if they had been issued by that Republic itself. ART. 9. The treaties and conventions entered into heretofore by and between the Republics of Guatemala, Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Costa Rica in matters relating to peace, friendship, commerce, and extradition, and in any other matters not in conflict with the present stipulations, are considered valid and in force in conformity with the internal constitutional law of these countries. ART. 10. The present treaty shall be submitted to the Government of Costa Rica for its adhesion. ART. 11. It is not indispensable to the validity of this treaty that it be formally ratified by all the Republics who sign it. The one who may approve it shall communicate the fact to the Government of Salvador, so that it may be communicated to the other contracting powers. This procedure shall serve in lieu of exchange of ratifications between the parties who may have approved it. In testimony whereof the respective plenipotentiaries sign this treaty in quadruplicate, at San Salvador, on the 23d day of May, 1892. ADOLFO ZUNIGA, CAYETANO DIAZ MERIDA. No. 195.] Mr. Baker to Mr. Gresham. LEGATION OF THE UNITED STATES, Managua, January 12, 1894. (Received February 2.) SIR: I beg to inform the Department that I am in receipt of a communication of the minister of foreign relations of the Republic of Nicaragua advising me that on the 25th ultimo the Government of Nicaragua decreed that ART. 1. Nicaragua, for the purpose of providing for its exterior security, recognizes as the sole legitimate power of Honduras the provisional Government established in Los Amates, yesterday, under the presidency of Dr. General Policarpo Bonilla. ART. 2. The Government of Nicaragua will act as ally of the provisional Government of Honduras. Given at Managua, December 25, 1893. I beg to remain, etc., J. S. ZELAYA. LEWIS BAKER. No. 168.] BOUNDARY BETWEEN NICARAGUA AND COLOMBIA. Mr. Baker to Mr. Gresham. LEGATION OF THE UNITED STATES, Managua, December 7, 1893. (Received January 3, 1894.) SIR: I beg to transmit herewith copies of a note addressed by me to his excellency the minister of foreign affairs of Costa Rica, in relation to the boundary question between Costa Rica and Colombia, dated September 1, and a copy and translation of his reply thereto, just received. 1 am, etc., LEWIS BAKER. [Inclosure 1 in No. 168.] Mr. Baker to Mr. Jimenez. LEGATION OF THE UNITED STATES, SIR: I am instructed by the President of the United States to open correspondence with the Government of Costa Rica upon the subject of the arbitration of the long-pending boundary dispute between Costa Rica and Colombia. Under the convention between those States of December 25, 1880, and the additional convention signed at Paris, January 20, 1886, an arbitration was agreed upon and initiated with the acceptance of the office of arbitrator by the Queen Regent of Spain on behalf of His Majesty King Alfonso XIII; but I am instructed a coutention has arisen touching the date from which to compute the twenty months prescribed by the convention for the presentation of the cases of the respective parties to the arbitrator. It has been alleged by Colombia that the cases have not been presented within the stipulated term. and that the power of the arbitrator to act in the premises has lapsed. The cases have not, in fact, been presented, as I am informed, and the Queen Regent's Government has accepted the position of Colombia, although not without expression of its view that the prescribed period was still open, and with expression of cordial readiness to resume the function of arbitrator should the Governments of Costa Rica and Colombia compose their differences in this regard and request continuance of the arbitration. The Government of Costa Rica has on several occasions solicited the good offices of the United States toward continuing the arbitration, and requested this Government to represent to that of Colombia the propriety and advantage of so doing. The Government of the United States, maintaining the friendly and impartial consideration for both the parties to the dispute which it has consistently shown since the settlement thereof by arbitration was first broached, is as indisposed to support the claim of Costa Rica that the arbitration is still validly open as it is to accept the converse claim of Colombia that it has lapsed. Not being in any sense a party to the arbitration, and moved only by the desire to preserve the rights of its citizens in the territory of dispute and to fulfill the international obligations of existing treaties, the Government of the United States has consistently testified its lively interest in the controversy and its earnest desire that a settlement be reached. It is especially led in this course by the fact that the United States are, by the treaty of 1846 with New Granada, now Colombia, guarantors of the rights of sovereignty and property which Colombia has and possesses over the terri |