Minister Bowen to the Secretary of State.

[Telegram.—Paraphrase.]

(Mr. Bowen reports he has just received the answer to his note. The President declines to arbitrate the four American cases and to submit to arbitration whether pending questions are diplomatic or not and finally to permit a tribunal of arbitration to fix the sum that should be paid out of the customs revenues. He asks again for a treaty of arbitration for settling questions that may become diplomatic.)