The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1903-12-28

responsible for the sudden revolution
J III the political status of Panama, one
may wander away down a stretch of
not uninteresting inquiries. Were the
| people of the other provinces consult
| ed as to what it was proposed by the
secesslonists to do? They were not.
We're the people, speaking in general
terms, of the provinces of Colon and
Panama let into the secret? They
We're not. They knew, by general ru-
NOR, that revolution was on the
tapls: but they had not been consulted
nor their advice asked as to the wis
dom or unwisdom of what was con-
tempiated. Was provisional congress
composed of delegates from the several
provinces, held for the purpose of de-
patlng the project and framing a bill
OF separation? Nothing of the kind
was ever thought Of How. then, was
the affair carried through? In this
simple and unique manner
Done by NJ Municipal Council.
The little band of secessionists let
the members of the City Council of
Panama into their secret late in Oc-
/ tober, when it became evident that
/ blow would have to be struck very
{ soon or forever withheld These CITY
councilmen-eleven in number-were
willing to further the project, so that
when the public meeting was held in
the Cathedral Plaza, Panama, on
Nov. 4, they were all in attendance
They, too, were the first to sign the
declaration of independence, and imme-
diately after that formality they ad-
Journed across the street to the mu-
nicipal building, and went into session
behind closed doors. Their first act
then was to pass the declaration,
which had already been engrossed in
hook of record and n anTien1 fhaiY
( names to the engrossed copy. This
! done, the City Council appointed the
| three members of the provisional gov
| erning junta authorizing them to take
| charge of the affairs of the new re-
! public. The junta assembled at once
| and named the members of the provi-
! sional cabinet, and the new republic
became a fact On the same day Por-
| fflio Mollendes had taken charge of
! affairs at Colon as provisional governor
| appointed by the junta; but outside
of the cities of Panama and Colon, and
along the line of the Panama Railroad,
the people of the new republic were in
entire ignorance of the fact that they
were no longer subjects Of Colombia.
1t seems almost incredible that the
municipal council of a city of fewer
than $4,000 people should take unto
themselves the right to create a re-
puOllC Oul VI d ltIIllOly CQudl III area
to the state of Indiana; but that was
what was actually done in this case.
Instead of a provincial Congress, the
City Council of. Panama passed the
act of independence. Every legislative
formality incident to the creation of
this republic was performed by these
city councilmen, no portion of the new
republic except the city of Panama
having a voice, by representation, in
H.
portion of the new republic had such
voice to this day. No Congress had
been called to ratify the secession, nor
has any one of the seven provinces
been requested to assemble, in Council
or by mass meeting, to pass an act of
ratification. There might be a parallel
for this procedure if the municipal
council of one of our own cities-In-
dianapolis, for instance, since the area
of Indiana is about the same as that
of Panama-should pass an ordinance
declaring the state of Indiana a free
and independent nation; but the aver
age American imagination is impotent
to summon such a spectacle as that
into being. But it was that very thing
which was done here, when the munic
ipal council of Panama legislated for
the 100000 inhabitants of this terri
tory in severing all their obligations
Oh IGdlly 10 OOIOtIlDletg lldhiIlS llCkll
free and independent and doing these
things without consulting any of those
300, 900 inhabitants save an insignificant
minority, restricted in numbers prac
tically to the original band of seces-
sionists.
How 1t Was Proclaimed.
1t is not intended by the foregoing
to impeach or compromise the eX-
| istence of the new republic. Such an
attempt would be fatuous, for the
new republic is actual. The purpose
is merely to show the incongruity of
the procedure, although no Panama
ian can be brought to see that there
! is any thing national incongruous or
contradictory in the fact that a re-
public has been created by an ordinance
! passed by a City Council. This in
| ability of the Panamaians to realize
| what impresses Americans as little
! short of ludicrous is doubtless due to
| the fact that measures have been taken
though not by legislative steps, to
j bring the whole territory to accept the
new form of government. Immediate
! ly after the creation of the republic
| and the appointment of the junta by
the City Council of Panama, the junta
| took steps to this end. Emissaries
were sent into the different provinces
| to proclaim the establishment of the
republic. These emissaries were effec-
| tive orators-as are nearly all the
people of these Southern countries.
| They toured along both coasts, east
| and west, stopping at the principal
| cities Their coming was unannounced
in these cities which, until the ar
rival of the emiSSaries, were without
| knowledge of the fact that Panama
! had seeded from Colombia. David.
| Chiriqui, Santiago and other cities and
| towns along and adjacent to the Pa
cific coast Bocas del Toro, Nombre
| de Bots, Porto Bello, ETC., on the Carib-
| bean shores, were visited in this way,
| and reports have been received from
! all of the emissaries, although some
of them have not yet returned to
| Panama.
In each of these cities the emissary
would. upon his arrival, employ the To-
! cal band of musicians. Taking a stand
| in the principal plaza, he would draw
| his crowd by the bands efforts, and
when a number sufficient for his pur-
pose had assembled, he would read the
| declaration of independence. Follow
! ing the reading would come his ha-
rangue. the burden of which was that
| the establishment of the republic
meant the construction of the ship
canal by the United States across the
! isthmus, and that the construction of
| this canal meant that the United
States would pay to the republic a
| sum of money sufficient to make all
| of the people rich and prosperous.
This was done in every instance, and
| the orators argument, being addressed
to a people among whom poverty IN It's
most abiect form prevails, never failed
| IN elicit enthusiastic responses In APP