The Owosso times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1897-1926, 1903-12-18
ONE Juror TOLD A War PREVENTED
Prompt Action of United States
Averted Bloody Conflict.
ON IsTHMUs OF PANAMA
Assistant Secretary LOOMS Explains
Presidents Motives-Boaota Put Up
Scheme to Fleece France-War
Would Have Resulted.

New York, Dec. 16.-The conditions
which resulted in the recent establish
ment of the republic of Panama were
discussed last night at the banquet of
the Quill club, held at the Hotel Man
haitian, by Francis b. Loomis, assist
ant secretary of state of the United
States, and M. Philippe Bunau-Varil-
la, minister for Panama. The Rev. e.
S. Typple, ID. d., president Of the club,
presided and among those present
were Albert Shaw, editor OF the Re-
view OF Reviews, and President Fris-
sell of Hampton Institute.
Assistant Secretary LOOMS, in pre-
senting his views on Panama and our
relations with other Latin-American
countries, said:
eve have not desired to annex Pan
anna, and we have not done so. The
president simply executed the will OF
the American people with due regard
to international law and rights. He :
was instructed by congress to secure
canal route on the isthmus of Pan
anna, if possible. He waited until the
adjournment of the Colombian con-
gress and gave the government of
that country every opportunity to rat
ify the treaty or to propose some
proper method looking to the ratifica-
ton of new treaty, and the Colon
bian congress, in utter bad faith, re-
jected the treaty and adjourned.
No Apologies to Offer.
"In less than weeks time and be-
fore the president could be reasonably
expected to turn to grave considera-
ton of the Nicaragua route, the long
expected and inevitable revolution in
Panama came to pass. The president
promptly recognized the de facto gov
eminent. The administration, l am
sure, has no apologies to offer for it's
course.
1T occurred to certain men in b.
gotta that the United States could be
made to pay twenty or twenty-five
millions of dollars instead of ten, or
better still, as has been disclosed by
recent published official correspond
ence, if the treaty were rejected or no
action taken upon it and the whole
pOSlpOutu lOI duOlu6I year, JuC
concessions Of the present French
canal company, having expired by that
time, the renewal of that concession
would be declared invalid and all the
rights, privileges and work of the
French Canal company be practically
confiscated and disposed of to the
United States for forty million dollars,
in addition to the ten millions as pro-
posed, and the annuity of "a quarter
of a million. This was radiant and
alluring prospect and the temptation
proved too strong.
Would Have Sent Warships.
Reflect for a moment on the grave
possibilities which confronted this
government as it peered into the fu-
ture. l may safely assert, without fear
of contradiction by any well-informed
person, that the government of France
would not have stood serenely by and
witnessed the pillage of thousands of
her people through the act which Bo-
gotta politicians devised for the loot
ing of the French company of $4,000,
000
"A French squadron from Martinique
would have borne down upon the 18TH
mus and perhaps landed marines at
Colon and sent them across the 18TH
mus to Panama and along the line of
the canal to protect the interests and
property of French citizens. There
would, in all probability have been an
armed conflict between France and
Colombia, or France at least would
have felt herself compelled to hold
the isthmus for long period. This
would have wrought Immediately and
poignantly upon the sensibilities of
the American people in respect to the
Monroe doctrine, and we should no
doubt have found ourselves viewing
France with annoying apprehension.
The French warships might easily
have been followed by those Of Eng
land and Holland and Panama, like
the Balkan states, might well have
been expected to furnish the spark to
set half the world in flames.
"This situation, which / have de-
scribed, fraught with real and mo-
mentous dangers, furnished one Of
the very serious possibilities which
the administration had to reckon with
in dealing with the revolution in Pan
anna"