Los Angeles herald., 1892-09-25
A LINK BETWEEN TWO OCEANS,
An Instructive Lecture on an
international Highway.
Capt. Merry's Interesting Discussion
on the Isthmian Canal.
Tripartite Concession From Three
Great Commercial Nations The
Credit Mobiller Episode
Cannot Be Re epeated.

The audience which greeted Captain
Merry's lecture on the Nicaragua canal
last night, at the chamber OF commerce
was not as large as the Importance o
the subject or the ability OF the speaker
should have demanded from the com
mercial portion Of the public. Never
thelese, he had several hundred people
In the house, including many ladies
and kept them in good humor through
out the so minutes OF his well.wordet
discourse. His appearance was all in
his favor, and to the front of very
manly man he added clear tenor voice
that could be heard in all parts oi
the hall without any approach toward
vociieration. The subject was one, he
said, to the details of which he had
given many years Of patient study, both
while resident OF Nicaragua and dur
ing his % years sojourn in this state.
And since his residence in California,
two OF the most earnest advocates of the
canal, as business proposition affect
ing the welfare of every firm in the
state, were two citizens OF Los Angeles,
now passed on to the higher life-the
late J. E. Hollenbeck and Ed
ward f. Spence. The former, hav-
ing amassed his fortune on the
isthmus of Nicaragua, beheld the pros
perity of California from and after the
compile ion of the canal, with q
prophets eye; and the latter, ever
awake to everything calculated to bene-
fit this beautiful land, took up the la hor
where Mr.. Hollenbeck had laid it down.
Following is Captain Merry's speech,
reported verbatim:
Gentle nen of The Chamber Of Commerce.;
Addressing Los Angeles audience for
the first time, my mind reverts to two
good friends of the great and beneficent
work l shall present to you this even
ing. J.E. Hollenbeck and Il. f. Spence
were both citizens OF euch personal
merit that our country, mankind and
the world have few like them to spare.
Mr.. Hollenbeck was an intimate friend
twenty-five years ago, in Nicaragua,
whence he came to your city, believing
then, as when he died, in the great
canal. From his acquaintance with Mr..
Hollepbeck and his knowledge of the
merits OF the work, Mr.. Spence was also
made warm friend. Both have gone
to their rest in honor and peace. But
the world moves on, and while much
regret that both should not have lived
to realize their anticipations, / have
confidence that, with prophetic vision,
they gauged the future correctly. Peace
to their ashes, and honor to their mem.
cries du not propose, this evening,
to describe to you the Nicaragua canal
that might alone occupy an entire even
ing. If descriptive information is
wanted, l have it at your service in
printed form, to be read at your leisure,
when you can appreciate the genius of
modern engineering which has evolved
the splendid and minute surveys to be
used in construction. propose, instead
to make plain to you, If can, the con-
ditions which surround the enterprise;
what your people and the Pacific coast
may expect from it; and under what
conditions it can be constructed cheaply
and for the advantage OF our country
and our commerce. You are aware that
the Maritime Land company, of Nicara-
qua, has been chartered by the United
States government, and has to make
sworn annual report of its condition
and finance once year to the
interior department at Washing
ton. These reports are printed and
accessible to the public. You are thus
already dealing with government
work, 60 far as it's origin is concerned.
It has it's existence by authority of our
government, which can, b. it's provi-
sions, "alter, amend or repesP the do
cument which gives it life. Mr.. Cleve-
land signed this charter. The company
also has another charter or concession
from the republic of Nicaragua for 1913
years, and with two and half million
acres of valuable lands. with all minerals
found thereon. This charter from Mica
ragua contains 55 articles, and provides
effective checks against excessive or
discriminating tolls. II has third con-
cession or charter from the republic of
Costa Rics, much the same in character,
made necessary by the rights of navi-
CATION possessed by Costa Rca in the
navigation of the San Juan river, part
of which is to be tranformed into an ex-
tension of the lake, producing slack
water-navigation, to use an engineers
term. This Maritime Canal company, of
Nicaragua, has made contract with the
Nicaragua Canal Construction company
to build the canal, payable in its securi-
ties. Hon. Warner Miller, who ad-
dressed you last spring, is the president
of the construction company. This con-
struction company has, by the few enc
mics of the enterprise, some of whom
have experience in such matters, been
compared to contract and finance
company" or "Credit Mobilier."
What was the basis of the Credit Mobi-
lier? Unnecessary increased mileage,
dishonest contracts, division and 81
lence There is nothing of this kind in
the canal construction contracts-they
are of record at the departments of the
interior, and go far from the construc.
tion company, being close corpora tion,
it today offers you it's bonds and, if you
want it's stock you can purchase it. If
it makes money in construction, it will
earn it for it's stockholders, and you will
not complain of this in justice or equity.
1 beg here to state that shall be
pleased to answer any questions that
gentlemen may desire to ask relating to
any branch OF the subject; there is
nothing to be concealed.
The political conditions connected
with the canal are of great interest to
American citizens and necessary to a
fair understanding of the question.
During the Arthur administration
treaty was negotiated with Nicaragua,
called the Zavalla-F a-Frelinghuysen treaty,
from the names of the respective states
men who made it. This treaty provided
for the construction of the canal by the
United States government as govern
ment work. 1t secured ioint eover-