Page:The Presidents of the United States, 1789-1914, v. IV.djvu/85

Rh  unfriendly purpose of Japan, either in respect to the dispute or to the proposed annexation, the good offices of the United States were successfully employed with the Hawaiian republic to compose the controversy by the payment of a money indemnity to Japan, which amicably closed the incident before the final annexation of the islands to the United States. This was effected on August 12, 1898, by the act of the Hawaiian president in yielding up to the representative of the government of the United States the sovereignty and property of the Hawaiian islands, in accordance with the terms of a joint resolution of congress, approved July 7, 1898, whereby the purpose of the annexation treaty was accomplished by statutory acceptance of the offered cession and incorporation of the ceded territory into the Union. A prominent incident in foreign affairs was a despatch sent by Secretary Sherman to Ambassador Hay regarding the Bering sea seal question, which was criticised because of the recital of the facts of the preceding award of the Paris Bering sea commission and the discussion which followed in order to show that Great Britain stood committed to a revision of the Paris rules for the regulation of seal-catching. On July 15 it was announced that Great Britain had finally consented to take part, with the United States, Russia, and Japan, in a sealing conference in Washington in