Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1903-11-16
EVERYONE is LAUGHING
At the Boosting Assertions Made by
Marroquin and Followers.

Panama, Nov. 15.-President Marro-
gums statement as conveyed in a
.cablegram to Gen. Plaza, President of
Ecuador, that Gems, Reyes, Caballoros.
Ospina and Holguin are now marching
on the isthmus to suppress the 18TH
milan traitors has set the entire pop
ulation of the isthmus laughing. Pro-
tected by the impenetrability of the
land and the many leagues of coast
line separating the isthmus from Co
lombia, and confident that the United
States intends to prevent the landing
of Colombian soldiers from the sea, the
isthmians feel that their security is
absolute.
The loss of the iSthmian territory is,
CT course, a tragedy for Colombia. The
government at Bogota is probably
ignorant of the attitude taken by the
government of the United States in the
last two weeks. In a frenzy to appease
an angry and disappointed populace'
and to satisfy the public demand for
some appearance of ctivity and an at
tempt to save the honor and the terri
torial integrity of Colombia, the gov
eminent is no doubt promising and
threatening to send forces to the coast
and to take other aggressive steps. The
realization by the Colombian govern
ment of the impossibility of sending
troops to the isthmus would not neces-
sarily deter it from taking these steps
which are intended merely to satisfy
the people.
Well-informed people on the isthmus
believe that the Colombian government
is going through all these forms of or
ganizing expeditions not merely for the
foregoing reasons, but owing to the
necessity of forestalling or of weaken
ing the threatened revolutionary out
break in Bogota.
The growing feeling against Presi-
dent Marroquin is believed to be due
to the fact that he did not show SUM-
cient determination to effect the rati
fication of the canal treaty, which
would have saved the isthmus to Co
lombia. and because he appointed Gen.
obaldia governor of the department of
Panama after Obaldia had declared
that he would remain a Colombian if
the treaty were ratified, but that other
wise he would only be q Panamanian.
Gen. Obaldia was born in Chiriqui, in
the state of Panama.
Miners and other familiar with the
coast on both sides of the isthmus de-
clare that any attempt to march an
expeditionary army from any part of
Colombia to the isthmus would be flu
tile. Both coasts cona4wt of impossible
jungles and swanps and rivers, with
out towns or roads or any means for
the provisioning of an army. The MEM
bers of the iunta have not the slightest
fear that any such expedition Will be
ATTEMPTED and they receive the reports
of such expeditions with equanimity.
What is described here in Panama as
the United States broad interpreta-
ton of the clause OF the treaty of 1916,
regarding the protection of traffic
across the isthmus," is deemed ample
for the prevention of the transporta-
ton of troops by sea and of consequent
hostilities
The Pacific Steam Navigation Co,
British concern, plying between Pana-
ma and Buena Ventura, has a clause
in its contract with the Colombian gov
eminent which says that it must 'un-
der normal conditions transport gov
eminent troops. 1T can, however, be
said authoritativcly that the company
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