Lord Rosebery's instructions to define the boundary. Negotiations once more renewed. Lord Rosebery's proposal. of north latitude; thence west along the same parallel of latitude until it cuts the boundary line proposed by Schomburgk, and laid down on the map before mentioned; thence to follow such boundary along its course to the Accarabisi, following the Accarabisi to its junction with the Cuyuni; thence along the left bank of the River Cuyuni to its source, and from thence in a southeasterly direction to the line as proposed by Schomburgk to the Essequibo and Corentyne." Lord Rosebery added: You will add that instructions have been sent to the Governor of British Guiana authorizing him to grant licenses forthwith for gold-mining within the territory, which will be at once marked as British territory, and without requiring him to withhold the issue of such licenses until the completion of the line of demarcation." t After the sending of these instructions, the presence of General Guzman Blanco presented an opportunity to once more enter into negotiations; and after some preliminary correspondence, Lord Rosebery, on July 20, 1886, submitted to General Guzman Blanco the following basis of negotiation: "Boundaries.—It is proposed that the two Governments should agree to consider the territory lying between the boundarylines respectively proposed in the 8th paragraph of Señor Rojas' note of the 21st February, 1881, and in Lord Granville's note of the 15th September, 1881, as the territory in dispute between the two countries, and that a boundary-line should be traced within the limits of this territory, either by an Arbitrator or by a Joint Commission, on the basis of an equal division of this territory, due regard being paid to natural boundaries. Her Majesty's Government attach special importance to the possession by British Guiana of the mouth of the River Waini, and they desire, therefore, to stipulate that the line should start from the sea-coast westwards of that point, due compensation being found in some other portion of the disputed territory for this departure from the basis of an equal division. The question of the cession Appendix to Case, iii, 160. Appendix to Case, iii, 160. * to Venezuela of the Island of Patos will be considered in connection with the boundary negotiations. The River Orinoco to be entirely free to commerce and navigation.* General Guzman Blanco made no immediate reply to this proposition, but on July 28, 1886, addressed a strong note to the Earl of Rosebery, rehearsing the diplo matic history of the preceding forty years, reminding Lord Rosebery especially of the agreement of 1850 whereby both countries had declared that they would not occupy nor encroach upon the disputed territory, calling attention to recent flagrant violations of this agreement by British officials, and demanding reparation therefor and the re-establishment of the status quo ante.+ On the following day, July 29, 1886, General Guz. man Blanco addressed a second note to Lord Rosebery, in answer to the latter's note of July 20. In this second note General Guzman Blanco declined the proposition of the British Government to draw a conventional boundary somewhere between the line proposed by Señor de Rojas on February 21, 1881, and that proposed by Lord Granville on September 15, 1881. He reiterated the statement, made so many times by him and by his predecessor, that the Venezuelan Constitu tion forbade the alienation of territory; and he once more spoke of arbitration as the only way out of the difficulty. General Guzman Blanco's departure for Venezuela interrupted negotiations. Meanwhile, on October 21, 1886, the British Government caused the following notice to be published in the London Gazette: *Appendix to Case, iii, 54. Appendix to Case, iii, 234-246. Appendix to Case, iii, 247-252. Lord Rosebery's proposal. Gen. Guzman Blanco's answer. Nogotiations interrupted. Notice published by Great Britain. COLONIAL OFFICE, Downing Street, October 21, 1886. THE COLONY OF BRITISH GUIANA. WHEREAS the boundary-line between Her Majesty's Colony of British Guiana and the Republic of Venezuela is in dispute between Her Majesty's Government and the Government of Venezuela : And whereas it has come to the knowledge of Her Majesty's Government that grants of land within the territory claimed by Her Majesty's Government as part of the said Colony have been made, or purport to have been made, by or in the name of the Government of Venezuela. Notice is hereby given, that no title to land, or to any right in, or over, or affecting any land within the territory claimed by Her Majesty's Government as forming part of the Colony of British Guiana, purporting to be derived from or through the Government of Venezuela or any officer or person authorized by that Government, will be admitted or recognized by Her Majesty or by the Government of British Guiana; and that any person taking possession of, or exercising any right over, any such land under colour of any such title, or pretended title, will be liable to be treated as a trespasser under the laws of the said Colony. A map showing the boundary between British Guiana and Venezuela, claimed by Her Majesty's Government, can be seen in the Library of the Colonial Office, Downing Street, or at the Office of the Government Secretary, Georgetown, British Guiana.* On March 1, 1885, more than a year prior to General the Amacura in Guzman Blanco's departure from London, the British Minister commissioned a Rural Constable for the Amacura River. In August, 1886, a British Post was erected on that river.† Rural Constable Commissioned for 1885; and post erected in 1886. Venezuela's pro test. These facts coming to the knowledge of the Venezue lan Government, and that government despairing of any settlement of the boundary question with Great Britain, proceeded to erect a light-house at Point Barima, and sent Commissioners to the Amacura, the Barima, the Appendix to Case, iii, 161. Appendix to Case, iii, 253. Appendix to Case, iii, 163. * Waini, and to Georgetown, to protest against the encroachments of Great Britain, and to warn British settlers that they were on Venezuelan soil.* Upon its return to Caracas, the Commission reported to the Venezuelan Government that two British Commissioners were on the right bank of the Amacura, acting there as Rural Constables under the authority of the British Government. Thereupon, on January 26, 1887, the Venezuelan Minister of Foreign Affairs addressed a note to Mr. F. R. St. John, the British Minister at Caracas, informing him of the above facts, protesting against such acts, demanding the immediate evacuation of the territory between the Orinoco and Pomaroon Rivers, and stating that, in case of either no reply or of a refusal, diplomatic relations would be broken off. † After some further fruitless interchange of notes diplomatic relations were, on February 20, 1887, suspended by Venezuela. § Negotiations for renewal of diplo In 1890, the Venezuelan Government received an intimation from Sir Andrew Clarke and Captain Low- matic relations. ther that Great Britain was disposed "to evacuate the invaded territory, and to submit the case to the arbitration of a friendly Power, provided Venezuela would declare diplomatic relations to be re-established between the two countries." In consequence of this, on January 10, 1890, Señor Urbaneja, Venezuelan Minister at Paris, addressed a note to the Marquess of Salisbury, stating that Venezuela was desirous of renewing diplomatic relations, and had empowered him to negotiate and sign a treaty for that purpose. In the reply of the British * Appendix to Case, iii, pp. 162–163, 183–185, 252, 253. Appendix to Case, iii, 255. Appendix to Case, iii, 255–260. Appendix to Case, iii, 272. Appendix to Case, iii, 273–274. Negotiations for Foreign Office the following condition was laid down: renewal of diplomatic relations. Señor Urbaneja's proposal. Great Britain's reply. Negotiations suspended. As regards the frontier between Venezuela and the Colony of British Guiana, Her Majesty's Government could not accept as satisfactory any arrangement which did not admit the British title to the territory comprised within the line laid down by Sir R. Schomburgk in 1841. They would be ready to refer to arbitration the claim of Great Britain to certain territories to the west of that line.* Señor Urbaneja, in reply (February 13, 1890), referred to the statement which had been made to his government by Sir Andrew Clarke and Captain Lowther, and stated that, it had been upon the faith of those representations that Venezuela had "thought fit to ap point a Confidential Agent to conclude a Preliminary Agreement for the re-establishment of diplomatic relations with the Government of Her Britannic Majesty."+ Señor Urbaneja then proceeded to discuss the condi tions laid down by Lord Salisbury, and concluded by proposing "an arbitration which shall include all the territory from the Essequibo, and the evacuation of the invaded territory from the Pomeroon onward in the direction of the Orinoco." + Replying to this note, on March 19, 1890, Sir T. H. Sanderson repeated that "Her Majesty's Government cannot admit any question as to their title to territory within the line surveyed by Sir R. Schomburgk in 1841." § This attempt on the part of Venezuela to re-establish diplomatic relations thus proved abortive. In June of 1890, Señor Pulido, appointed Plenipotentiary ad hoc of Venezuela, arrived in London, and through him Venezuela again made an effort to bring *Appendix to Case, iii, 274. |