The age-herald., 1900-05-17
MORGAN REPORTS
 THE CANAL BILL Takes Strong Position Against
 the Panama Route. WOULD NOT BE PRACT|CABLE The Committee Decides that the Ownership of the Waterway Should Be Amercan-Ni -Nicaraguan Route
 Has Many Advantages
WOULD NOT BE PRACTICABLE

Washington May 16.-The senate conn., mittee on inter-oceanic canals today, throgh it's chairman, Senator Morgan, pre- scented its written report upon the Nicara- qua canal bill. The report includes the statesments of Admiral Walker and other members of the commission appointed to investigate the various routes for an inter- oceanic canal, and also the conclusions of the committee with reference to both the Nicaragua and the Panama routes
 The committee takes strong position against the proposition to build the canal via the Panama route paying for the work already done by the French. The decara- ton Is made that the Panama company Is practically without assets except those in cluded in the Panama railroad.
 "They say,' says the report, they have assets that a committee of experts has val ued at $90000,0O0 They make no offer or suggestion as to what they would take for it. The lowest sum at which they estimate the cost of completing their canal is $9j,000,- GOO. So that in entering the combine we would go in on the basis of $1S5, 600 for the completed canal on the plan of three levels, if that plan is adopted against $13S,- 000,000 which is the highest estimate any engineer has placed on the Nicaragua ca nal. The difference is $47, 900 in favor of Nicara qua. =5l
 Field Wcrk is Done
 The committee takes position against holding the pending bill unless the Walker commission can report saying:
 All the commission's field work is done and all their working parties have returned to the United States except a party of photographers left there to ascertain the rainfall and the lamentations of the Chag- res river. If this Photographic work is to be prosecuted hereafter as long and thoroughly as it has been heretofore, 1t will be half century before we can determine the practicability of the Pan-American ca nal so far as depends on the rainfall and the fluctuations of the Chagres river.
 Tt is evident that the report to be made by these photographers is not vital factor in the question of the practicability of the canal
 Our enigneers have come to no conclu- sion on the point of difficulty and have rele- gated the decision of the whole matter to the French engineers to be determined by further experiments. When these engineers are in possession of all the facts that are known and are not able to determine the level at which the canal shall be built if We wait until they have settled this vital PNiiS' "S put OURSELVES at tHelT mercy ana can only provide for the wants of our gov ernment and people when they have decided what is the best for their own interests
 Congress owes higher duty than this to the American people,
 Ownership Must Be American
 On the general question of the construc- ton of canal, the committee takes the position that whatever canal is construct ed its ownership must be American, and that delay may be fatal to the success of the enterprise. It is argued by the com mttee that delay in construction cannot possibly advance the settlement of any question as to the canal after it's comple- tion. The committee therefore announces it's conclusion to be that congress should provide means and authority for construct ing canal by the Nicaragua route and leave it to the president to deal with any questions of a diplomatic sort that may be raised by other nations in the progress of the work
 After the bill becomes law, it is de- clared to be our first duty to agree with Nicaraguans to the terms, leaving to the future all dealings with other powers as to the privileges they shall enjoy in the canal.