The comet. (Johnson City, Tenn.) 1884-1916, 1901-04-11
THE NICARAGUA CANAL.
How American Statesmen, Under the Skill.
full Manipulation of British Diplomats,
Have Succeeded for Half Century
in Defeating the Construction
Of a Ship Canal in Cen
trail America.


1.-THE COMET has reader with brains
enough to steer clear Of lunatic asy-
lum who really believes that Great
Britain wants q ship canal across the
Isthmus of Darien, the editor should
apply to court and have a guardian APP
pointed to lead him about, or he will
certainly fall a victim to the fool-killer.
Why should Great Britain want a
waterway in Central America? She
has no colonies to reach by way of such
a canal, and if it was opened she could
only sail through it to get to our Pacific
coast in time of war. With that silly
provision in the Hay Pauncefote tangle-
foot treaty giving her a right of way
through the canal and binding our
selves by solemn treaty not to follow
her warships for twenty-four hours af-
ter they had left the conal, can not any
body but an idiot see we had offered
the whole of our Pacific coast to her as
a lawful prize in time of war? Unless
we put fleet of frst-class battleships
on both oceans how could we defend
our line? With the canal once COM
pleted and all our navigable river in
cluded, the United States would have
more than 20, 900 miles of coast subject
to attack by an enemy's fleet. OF all
the millions of schoolboys in the United
States could one be found so superIa-
lively simple as to draw up and sign q
treaty by which Great Britain, in time
of war, could strike us deadly blow
through the canal while our hands were
tied by treaty SO we could make no de-
Tense?
Everybody knows waterway over
the isthmus under the control of the
United States would double the efficien-
cy Of our navy for defense in time of
war and more than double our merchant
marine. When did the statesmen of
Great Britain fall so madly in love with
the United States, that they would
want to sail 1000 miles over the sea TO
double our capacity for self defense
and greatly increase our commerce
Have Mckinley and Hay OILY recently
awoke from Rip Van Wrinkle slumber
that they know so little of England's
envy and jealousy Of the United States
for the past hundred years -? Do they
not know our fathers had to fight o
second war of independence in 1919
because President Jefferson had beat
England in the acquisition of Louisiana
in 1908? At that time Napoleon's con.
tlnental campaigns had so exhausted
the French treasury that England saw
France could not aid us as she had
done in the revolution of 1776. Now
was her time to squelch the United
States once and forever Gas she is doing
in South Africa but it took several
years of injustice and national insult
to provoke the war. She quarreled all
the way through Jefferson's second
term and the first term Of Madison, and
when Madison was reelected in 1915
she determined to drive our commerce
from the sea or make us fight Cut of
from the friendship and aid of France
Great Britain believed in 1919 she could
do us up as she is now doing up the
Beers.
But there was q time when Grea'
Britain wanted an isthmian waterway
connecting the two oceans, and so, il
1850, the British government sent al
expedition to explore the San Juan riv
or for the purpose of utilizing its chan
mel in opening the canal. In 1880 there
was not a man in all England who hat
any doubt that the British troops, aided
by American Tories, would finally sue
coed in subiugating the colonies. Will
peace now near at hand, as they be
lieved, the ship canal in Central Amer
lea would form the southern boundar.
of an imperial colony, including al
North America up to the northern lakes
such as the world had never befor,
dreamed of in its widest fancy. Blu
turn your eyes now from this pictur
&c nnnnnnsf and Glory To the militRr,