The age-herald., 1900-10-07
Strong Letter from Senator John
 I, Morgan, URGES PASSAGE OF THE BILL Encloses an Able Communication from William L. Merry, Minister to Ni- carauga and Costa Rica,
 on the Subject.

The following letter from Senator John T. Morgan enclosing a letter from Hon. Will Ham l.. Merry, minister to Nicaragua and Costa Rica, presents strong reasons for the passage of the Nicaragua canal bill, of which Senator Morgan is the able cham pion3
 Annston, Oct. 4, 1900. To the Editor of the Age-Herald:
 The enclosed letter from Hon. William L. Merry, our minister to Nicaragua and Costa Rica, addressed to Senator Perkins of California, Is so complete an answer to many questions that are asked me about the canal that I hope you will publish 1t for the information of our people.
 The Senate, by unanimous consent, has made the canal bill, which passed the House by a majority of more than eight to one at the last session, the order of busi- ness for the 10th day of December when I expect it to be taken up and passed. In this expectation I am not so sanguine as to ignore the weight of the opposition to the canal that is being pressed from three powerful antagonists.
 The first and strongest of these Is the combined power of the transcontinental railroads, including those in Panama and in Canada (six or seven in alb, with an annual gross income of near S400, 0o0 This combine Is no mean or idle antag- OHlSt us power ndS, so Tar, been dple tO crush the will of the people which has been distinctly expressed In four separate votes of the houses of Congress in favor of the canal
 This combination is now hiring Pacific coast publications to publish anything canal.
 The second combination is that of cor porations in New Jersey and New York, chartered for the purpose of capturing and combining in great monopoly all the passable waterways across the isthmus of Darien thereby making the commerce be- tween the great oceans subject to the con trol of few persons.
 Nothing could exceed the audacity of this combine or its danger to the worlds commerce. In its claims of power and in the purpose to accomplish its success this combination stops at nothing, and spurns the power of the United States to check its operations Its claim Is that the United States shall not own and control an isth- milan canal, but that 1t shall be private property under the control of a private cor poration I am merely stating these claims and efforts and the obstruction they pre- sent to the effort of our people to accom- plish this great and indispensable work, without discussing them.
 The third obstruction comes from the efforts of the Panama Canal Company 10 unload upon the United States their re- maining assets of a bankrupt corporation at an enormous cost with a line that is not practicable at any reasonable cost and Is so involved in claims of French stockholders and so tied up in the courts of France that we could not afford to take 1t as a gift. This company having expend- ed H,600000 in the city of New York in lobby fees and having caused a former Secretary of the Navy to resign his great office in order to accept from 1t an agency at salary of S2S,o00 a year, is again press ANv1y1a anV7t a.zd don the Nicaraguan route and adopt this old Panama scheme that has made a record for criminal frauds that shook the people of France and that government with an ague of apprehension and dis gust The furtive activity of this move ment Is extremely dangerous to our vital interests.
 l do not ignore the power of these vast and dangerous movements, and cannot therefore assure our people that the canal Is safe from their machinations. It has won on every vote that has been taken in the Senate and the House on the merits of the question, but so far the people have been foiled in this grand work by the pressure that opposing interests and politi- cal intrigue have applied at the conven- lent moment.
 The appeal of the whole world and of posterity Is now addressed to the Ameri- can people, that they will demand of Con- gress final and conclusive action in secur- ing ship canal across the isthmus of Darien to correspond with the Suez canal In its benefactions to mankind.
 l believe that in December the Senate will respond to this appeal and establish the work. l cannot conceal from myself however, the apprehension that if this matter is allowed to drift, at the pleasure of spectators and politicians an indig- nant people will be ready to resort to any measures that may be found necessary to provide for the safety and welfare of the United States. Very respectfully,
 JOHN T. MORGAN.
 Minister Merry's Letter
 Following is the text of Minister Merrys letter;
 Legation of the United States of America, San Jose, Costa Rica, Central America
 September 15, 19OO Hon. George c. Perkins, United States Senator, San Francisco, Cal.
 My Dear Sir:-Your valued favor of Au- gust 23 requests me to contest the argu- ment of a mutual friend entitled to our personal esteem, in regard to the Nicaragua Canal, to the construction of which he ob- jects. The admission made by him that his argument Is not made on very broad lines would indispose me to reply, as the Nicaragua Canal is national undertaking, not to be considered from narrow stand point. But, confident that even his narrow premises will not stand impartial investi- gation, shall contest his arguments first from his restricted platform, and subse- quently in the brief manner necessitated by the limits of this paper, on broader and more patriotic basis
 In examining his statement of navigable distances note some serious errors, con- sequence you will find herewith a state inent thereof for which I can vouch as emanating from the United States Hydro graphic office. During my Central Ameri- can residence have visited various United