Grand Rapids herald. [volume] (Grand Rapids, Mich.) 1892-1959, 1892-12-30
III MAY PROVE TRUE
Oelesseps' Attemptto Swindle
the Government.
PHASE OF THE PANAMASCANDAl
Congress Apt to Investigate Hs Actions
With Us in rs7o-A Navy
Officer Suspicious.

WAsHISGroS, Dec. 29.-Following tho
allegations of wrong doing on the part
of Count DeLesseps growing out Of the
Panama canal scandal, comes the as
sertion that suspicion OF his entire
honesty was excited as far back as 1879
In the minds of members Of congress
and when the fact that suspicion did
exist cannot be verified, some interest
ing Information that until now did not
have its significance, may be obtained
from revlewof the history of the canal
project IN the congress of the United
States. On December 10, 1879, the
house of representatives adopted res
olutlon empowering q select commit
tee TO examine into the subject of the
selection of a suitable route for the
construction of an lnter-oceanic ship
canal across the American isthmus.
OF the eleven members who served on
tue committee, some are dead, while
others have retired into obscurity,
leaving only one remaining in congress,
Senator Frye of Maine.
When asked today concerning his
impression OF the trustworthiness of
Count DeLesseps and his sssociates In
the matter, as gained from the testI-
mony of Delesseps and others before
the select committee, Senator Frye
said MS impressions OF the inquiry
were very indistlnct, but he was certain
that ne had no suspicion at the time
that DeLesseps was not the honorable
man ne had always been represented
TO be.
Suspicious Navy Officer.
al have 10 suspicion that he was not
entirely what he represented him.
self to be-" said the senator,
"until he changed the plan of
the canal to one requiring the
use of locks after he secured his sub
scrlptions on the representation that 1t
would be constructed on the simple
Lieutenant Kimbail of the navy, who
had spent some time on the isthmus,
first placed suspicion on my mind.
Count De Lesseps had been called on
for report showing progress and
Lieutenant Kimball told me that he
had represented the true conditions of
the work of construction. The men,
Oers OF the comTnittee were not, | am
sure, suspicious of De Lesseps at the
time; they were, like myself, anxious
to discover the best route for . ship
canal connecting the Atlantic and
the Pacific oceans. The inquiry devel-
oped in my mind only one CONCLUSION
and that was that the Nicaragua canal
project was the better; in fact, the only
practicable one. Other members of the
committee were impressed with the
Eads ship canal plan"
Possible Investigation.
But whatever may have been the
opinions of the individual members of
toe committee IN reference to the re-
spective projects considered, the ir,-
quiry resulted In nothing more than
the presentation to the house of a
series of resolutions, reaffirMlng the
Monroe doctrine and making no recon-
mendation concerning tire merits of
this or that project. Whether this
negative action Was the result of doubt
as to the honesty of promoters of the
Panama project, has not appeared to
this day and judging from Senator
Frye's belief, the members of the COM
mittee were not suspicious, although II
is reported that some other members of
congress were satisfied that DeLesseps
purposely misled the committee.
Agitation of the American status of
the canal project may result in an in
vestigation that will bring out more
fully the workings of the promoters in
this country, and with the growing
propensity Of the house of representa-
tives for investigating, every subject
concerning the national government
that has suspicion of corruption at
tached TO it, it is not improbable that
eome such inquiry may follow.