Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1902-03-08

Washington. March G-Thr action of
the senate subcommittee on fihrr-
oceanic canals in voting that the legal
complications in the way of Il transfer
of the title and property of til" Pnnamh
Canal company to the United States
are insurmountablc will ii is said, lave
no practical effect upon the canal nlrS-
tion in the senate. II is learned that
this report WAS decided upon 10y the
subcommittee in the most pcrfunrt"ry
way and without investigation into the
merits of the ease.
The testimony of General Abbott. L.
$. A., retired, formerly chief of en-
gineerS, and IL member Of the intcrlh-
tional board that met in Paris and
passed upon the question of til" p;nc-
ticabilty of the Panama canal 1t the
time De I.eSsepS was nj the head of the
company, was taken inconncction 18th
the report of the Paris board. General
Abbott said that he still believed the
Panama route to be the most feasible
and practicable of any, and thinks the
United States should accept the of er of
the Panama company to sell its prop
erty for S4O.0OO,oOo.
What gives the friends of the Pan
ANA route more concern than the op-
position of the senate committee is the
report from Paris that the Colombian
government announces that it must I've
dealt with before any transfer Of title
tn thn Initial IL ,pnln Tho
friends of the canal project think that
this new feature of the controversy
may cause some trouble and delay, and
lead the people of the United States gen
orally and persons in congress parlicu-
larly. to eXagg"rnte the difficulties that
stand in the way Of a bargain between
the United States and the Panama
Canal company.
Apparently no official notice has been
taken Of the dispatch from Colon that
an Anglo-French syndicate has Of
fercd the Panama Canal company $780,
OOO.OOO for what the United States has
been asked to buy for S4O.OW.0 900. and
the Colombian minister and the counsel
for the Panama Canal company in this
city do not believe it. At any rate. the
United States has an option for one
year.
The report has been in circulation for
some time to the effect that Senator
Hanna and other leading senators are
advocating the Panama route. merely
for the purpose of befogging the stu
~ MI l. 4 tni
canal bill will become law ut this scS-
sion. All Of these senators deny this.
however, and say that they think II
bill ought to be passed, and that it will
be passed. They confess that they are
ut sea us to the particular route that
should be chosen. but are almost uIan-
nous in the opinion that ii would I've to
the interest of the United States tc ac-
ccpt the offer of the Panama COM
pany, provided perfect title can be
transferred
If this cannot he done, then the scna-
tors as Il rule favor the adoption of the
SpOOner amendment to the bin passed
by the house and known AS the Hepburn
bill. which he offered in the senate on
Jan. %. This amendment provides for
the acceptance Of the canal mpany's
offer, ''provided Il satisfactory title to
said property can be obtained" and the
construction of the canal by the Pan
anna route at a cost not to exceed S135-
100000, otherwise the president shall
be authorized to direct the secretary of
war TO construct n canal nv thp \ic-
hraguan route at an expenditure not to
exceed S1SO,OO0,OO0.
This proposition of Senator Spooner
is the one that all of the senators. except
those who are irrevOcably committed
to the Nicaragua route are expected to
advocate and vote for, and is. therefore.
one most likely to be passed.