340 WRIGHT— POWER TO MAKE AGREEMENTS. 



177. Consent to the Ratification of Treaties. 



The need of Senate consent to treaties is absolute, consequently 

 the Senate may reject a treaty altogether, though, according to Jay, 

 such action would be improper if it had consented to the full powers 

 and instructions of the negotiators and these instructions had been 

 faithfully observed.'^ But with the present practice of presidential 

 negotiation and signature, this limitation is unimportant. Of about 

 650 signed treaties the Senate has refused consent to ratification of 

 about twenty.'" Among the more important treaties thus vetoed 

 may be mentioned commercial and reciprocity treaties with Switzer- 

 land, 1835; with the German Zollverein, 1844; with Great Britain 

 for Canada in settlement of the fisheries question, 1888; and the 

 Kasson reciprocity treaties of 1899; annexation treaties with Texas, 

 1844; Hawaii, 1855; San Domingo, 1869; and Denmark for the 

 Virgin Islands, 1868; arbitration and claims treaties including the 

 Johnson-Clarendon treaty for settlement of the Alabama claims, 

 1868; and the Olney-Pauncefote general arbitration treaty with 

 Great Britain, 1897; canal treaties with Colombia, 1869 and 1870; 

 the Knox financial administration treaties with Nicaragua and Hon- 

 duras, 191 1 ; and the Treaty of Versailles, 1920. It is to be noticed 

 that in most of these cases, the end sought was eventually achieved, 

 though in the cases of annexation of Hawaii and the Virgin Islands, 

 and settlement of the Canadian fisheries question, not until many 

 years later. This practice appears to conflict with the assertion of 

 John Quincy Adams as Secretary of State, that the King of Spain 

 was under an absolute obligation to ratify the Florida purchase 

 treaty of 1819 on failure of which the United States would be 

 entitled " to compel the performance of the engagement as far as 

 compulsion can accomplish it." ^^ Other Secretaries of State have 



^^ Crandall, op. cit., p. 79, supra, sec. 25. 



'■^ Crandall, op. cit., p. 82 ; Moore, Digest, 3 : 26 ; Latane, U. S. and Latin 

 America, N. Y., 1920, p. 283 ; Jones, Caribbean Interests of the U. S., N. Y., 

 1916, pp. 170, 179. For resolution rejecting Treaty of Versailles, see Cong. 

 Rec, March 19, 1920, 59: 4916. For summary of Senate Proceedings on this 

 treaty see League of Nations (World Peace Foundation), vol. 3, No. 4. For 

 Proceedings in cases of treaties rejected by the Senate see 66th Cong., ist 

 Sess., Sen. Doc. No. 26, pp. 80 et seq. 



s" Moore, Digest, 5 : 189-190. 



