Complex sentence: In 1901, Secretary of State John Hay pressed the Nicaraguan Government for approval of a canal.Nicaragua would receive $1.5 million in ratification, $100,000 annually, and the U.S. would "provide sovereignty, independence, and territorial integrity".
Split into simpler sentences: In 1901, Secretary of State John Hay pressed the Nicaraguan Government for approval of a canal. The deal was that Nicaragua would receive $1.5 million in ratification, $100,000 annually, and the U.S. would "provide sovereignty, independence, and territorial integrity".