Nelson Evening Mail. WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 23, 1907. THE KINGSTON INCIDENT.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume XLII, 23 January 1907, Page 2

Nelson Evening Mail. WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 23, 1907. THE KINGSTON INCIDENT.

THE PITY OF IT. IT is hoped that the very regrettable incident at Kingston, Jamaica, referred to at length in the recent cables f4^»l' the condition of the town since' ,the' eaiitfctqsajke and fires, will be closed by mutual explanations and assurances. It is difficult at this distance and with the necessarily meagre and disconnected details cabled, to gauge the true extent or the full meaning of the leme^t&bjp and unexpected friction that has arjqen be^jyeen Sir- A. Swettenbam,, the Governor ojf JiDj/lJcft, and Admiral.Davies, of $>fee yysii^g African war^ ships. But ali rajisj "agre£ isa£ $g the i intervention from. (»JB- r A'W^ e W ! S^?' s with pillagers at; King*toft was ly dictated by the mp^Mmoae motives, no plausible ulterior", objects can be suggested or conceived, and umbrage at a slight broach of diplomatic etiquette should not nave been taken. It may be assumed that had there been a really great, British Pro-Consul "at the head of affairs in Jamaica, instead of one of the small men who . even in b£her places has come into collision wit^i popular sentiment, ' -the help in dire need preferred by the American -Admiral eve* is> $y> extent of intimii.dating ■ escaped convicts and loolers, would have been welcom^, je^peclsdjiv , under the unprecedented conditions now ruling at Kingston. »nd jn ttie absence of British warship*. But Sir | A. Swettenham has chosen to stand on

diplomatic dignity at a most inopportune time, and he has alienated from those who so greatly need it the sym-' pathy and material assistance promised and preferred by America. • ••••• The position, so far as it can be understood" from the cables, is as follows :— While the unruly and base among a mixed population, consisting largely of African negroes, mulattoes, and probably Indian coolies, were fast getting out of hand in co-operation with convicts who had been released owing to the destruction of the gaol by the earthquake and fires, the American Admiral Davis arrived with a couple of his warships, and fired a salute, so as to intimidate the low-down villagers and body-snatchers who were availing themselves of the temporary loosening of the bonds of British authority. The American preferred cousinly and neighbourly help, doubtless without thinking of redtape and hidebound British officialdom. Subsequently, a file of American bluejackets was landed to look after the American Consulate, and incidentally their services were offered for the maintenance of order. The British Governor, one of the minor diplomats and pro-consuls who never rise above the command of West Indian Island or an African coast station, takes umbrage and trails the tail of the British lion something like the pugnacious . Irishman who invited all and sundry to tread on the tail of his coat just to get hi minto fighting humour. At a time of national disaster, of human agony, of a local cataclysm, when law and order were tottering and friendly assistance no matter from where should have been gratefully welcomed, the Governor of Jamaica rise only to a consideration of his own petty dignity which he chose to consider outraged. If at the back oi his mind he thought to uphold British prestige by assuming that a foreigner should not give unasked armed aid although it was greatly needed, then he has made a disastrous mistake, which will probably break his career. U is not for the mere onlooker to judge the man or his motives. Probably, overwrought and succumbing to the strain of a great responsibility, Sir A. bwettenham has done that which under normal conditions he never would have dreamt of doing. Let it rest at that. • • • * • So far as the relations, between England and America are likely to be strained by the Kington incident, the supposition may be dismsised at once. A very little explanation will set matters right, and all may be sure that the springs of American benevolence and generosity are not going to dry merefy because a small British pro-consul lost his head and made himself pathetically ridiculous. In the course of a few days we may hear of a complete adjustment, and that an early closing of the incident will be recorded The whole unpleasant affair is the outco^ of an overwrought man's irntabihly, a -Sue tin god's" exaggerated notion fully heard. But of a. surety, both the British and the Americans are too great good- order of the civilised world.