St. Paul daily globe., 1892-12-30

nents to. his American commit
Tee. The first payment was 3, ,l00.-
GEO FRANCS. year following
Il payment of 100000 francs
was to be made, and subs eouently pay
ments of 1,5O0.000 francs year for five
years. Thus it WAS that about $500, 600
was provided by the head of the Panama
canal scheme to influence the people of
the United States and their govern
Inent. Here was corruption fund that
was capable of accomplishing great re-
suits. The organization of the commit
tee was negotiated by New York bank
ers. The purpose was to secure for the
chairman distinguished American
whose name would inspire confidence
and lend uster to the Panama project.
The first chairman suggested was
Gen. U. S. Grant The position was
rendered the distinguished citizen
through the banking house of q. w.
Seligman u Co., the annual compenSa-
ton offered being S25. 900, and the gen.
eral was assured that the
Duties Would BE Light.
'Gen. Grant saw through the inten-
tions of the committee. A friend of Gen.
Grant informed the writer that. in the
course OF a conversation on the subject,
the general said he was not satisfied
with some things which he had seen and
heard, and did not view favorably the
work done in Washington by some of
those associated with the committee"
Continuing, the article says that GER
tain public officials in the American
committee received $25, 600 a year for
their services.
''The corruption which followed the
organization of the American commit
tee and the income of the hard-earned
money of the French subscribers to the
canal company are still fondly remem-
bered at Washington by some of those
who received some of the Doodle. A
certain newspaper i'll New York re-
ceved liberal subsidy to favor the
canal. Two congressman were brIbed.
and the money of the French peasantrv
ran like water at the national capitol.
An article in the Financial News, of
London, described the situation as fol-
lows:
THE American syndicate is one of
the most shameful corruption funds
ever recorded in the history of official
enterprises. Imagine the expenditure
of $4S0,000 so that
AFeyy Mem in Neyy Work
might represent the company in Amer
lea, and cooperate with it when re-
quested. To that fund is due the sue
cess which attended NJ. de Lesseps' in
vitation to the then secretary of the
navy Of the United States to accept
the presidency OF the syndicate, and
no respectable bankers should ever
have participated in that costly fraud
upon the shareholders of the Panama
Canal company. These men are chal-
ensed to show that they ever did any
thing tor the company, except to lend
their names SO that in Europe NJ. de
Lesseps might say that "America was
ali right" The attitude of congress
was decidedly unfrlendly when the
committee was formed and the press
quite generally was then adverse to the
canal under French control. A change
soon occurred. When DeLessep returned
TO France he announced that the United
States favored his project. He claimed
that he had refuted all scientific objec-
tionS to the Panama plan and that "fhe
Americans have now recognized that
the work to be undertaken has no polit-
ical bearing and is particularly for their
own benefit" And Count de Lessep5
naively added: "The full cooperation
of great and powerful American bank
ing houses shows the results of my trip
to the United States" -