The Savannah morning news., 1901-12-13
The MORGAN REPORT
yoLUMINoUs BUT INTERESTING
DOCUMENT.
BOASTS PANAMA COMPANY.
SOME SPICY STATEMENTS AS TO
ITS METHODS.

Says Its Agents Have Been Aggres-
sive in Their Attempts to Unload
on the United States-The British
Government, Aided by COmbina-
tions in France and United
states, Including the Transconti-
mental Railroads, Charged With
Failure of Former Canal LegisIa-
tiOn.
Washington, Dec. 12.-The Senate
Committee on Isthmian Canals to-day
authorized a favorable report upon
Senator Morgan's BILL providing for
the acquisition from Nicaragua and
Costa -Riea -Sf the right of Wey- via the
Nicaragua route. Senator Morgan
later presented this report to the Sen
ate accompanying the return of the
bill with voluminous report upon the
general subject of a canal across the
isthmus Action upon the bill pro-
viding for the construction of the canal
was deferred.
Senator Morgan's report covers more
than 500 pages of printed matter, and
deals with many of the questions con-
nected with the construction of the
canal including a thorough inquiry
into the attitude of Great Britain upon
the subject of the different canal
routes. He also discusses the rela-
tionship of the Panama Canal Com
pany to the construction by the United
States of a waterway across the 18TH
mus, and while he makes reference to
a letter written. by President Hutin
of the Panama Company, he does not
give the text of the communication
which was written to Secretary of
State Hay.
Referring to the Panama Canal Com
pany, Mr.. Morgan says:
This company, in a previous admin
istration, had succeeded in obtaining
the resignation of a Secretary OF the
Navy to accept a nominal position In
their service at a large salary, and
expended $1,50O,000 in New York, chief
ly in acquiring the aid of leading busl-
ness houses IN promoting the DeLes-
seps plan without dollar or STOCK
being subscribed in that city.
THE desperate financial straits OF
the new. Panama Canal Company COM
PEELED them to make overtures to the
United States to unload their enter
prise on the United States, and their
agents became accordingly aggressive
in this effort
Senator Morgan again refers to the
letter to Secretary Hay of last No
vember, saying that Mr.. Hutin had
previously made an unmistakable pro-
posal to sell the Panama property to
the United States, and adding:
Yet, M. Hutin, in his correspond
ence with Admiral Walker and in his
letter, and the accompanying mem
orandum' sent to Mr.. Hay, first as
sumes and then states and argues and
finally insists, that the United States
offered to purchase their property, and
that when the company agreed to sell
it the isthmian canal commission re-
fused to enter into a scheme of arbi-
tration to ascertain the value of ii.
He imputes bad faith to the commits
sion and severely criticises their deal
ings with the canal company"
Panama Company Desperate.
The conclusion with reference to this
point of the controversy is set forth
in the following language:
The motive for tins unseemly and
unprecedented misconduct must be
either that this canal company is
desperate in its purpose to unload its
property upon the United Safes be-
cause the French stockholders have
lost faith in it's success or that it is
endeavoring to prevent the competi-
ton of any canal with its Panama
railroad, the shares of which they
value at $780, the face value being
800 per share, on accounts of its enor-
nous earnings"
The Introductory pages of the re-
port contain a general review OF the
Importance of the construction of an
isthmian canal, and in the second par
agraph of the report it is stated that
the failure to accomplish this work
would create a feeling of national de-
spair."
Senator Morgan attributes the fan
ure to construct the canal in the past
TO the attitude of other nations, say
ing:
For the. past fifty years the power
and influence of the British govern
ment, aided by combinations in the
United States and France, has de-
feated all efforts to open an Ameri-
can isthmian canal.
The combinations at home and in
France that have assisted in sup
pressing the demands of our industrial
classes for a canal to connect the
great oceans are chiefly the trans
continental railway in Canada, and in
Panama, and those in the United
States-eight great corporations that
now control almost the entire trans
portation service between the oceans
that wash the coasts of the western
hemisphere"
Why Part of Britnin's Policy.
In further discussing the attitude Of
Great Britain, Senator Morgan says:
1t ds clear that an overruling neces-
sty of imperial, commercial and mil
hary policy connected with her policy
es to the Suez canal. forced Great
Britain TO adhere to the Clayton Bull
Wer treaty as a means of preventing
the construction of a canal through
Nicaragua by the United States,
While she would continue to hold the
vantage ground of occupation and in
creasing authority in the territories
OF Nicaragua and Honduras, which
sAe had agreed to abandon. Her inten-
uon TO control both canals was then
evidently fixed"
He asserted that Great Britain's con-
trol of the Mosquito coast was used as
pretense to hold VA until she had ac-
complished her greater policy relating
10 the Suez canal.
We WERE" he says held In the
leash by British rulers until they could
aooomplish the control of the Suez
canal"
An Advance in Civilization.
The major portion OF the report was
made before the new Hay-Pauncefote
Treaty had been promulgated. But in
IN appendix the following reference Is