Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1903-11-07
OUR ACTION DEFENDED
This Country's Attitude To-
ward Panama, Republic.
TREATY OBLIGATIONS
DUTY OF THIS GOVERNMENT TO
KEEP PEACE ON THE 1sTHMUs.
Historical Documents Quoted by the
Secretary Of state-course of the
Administration justified.
TREATY OBLIGATIONS

The Secretary of State has made the fol-
lowing statement in regard to affairs on the
Isthmus Of Panama:
The action of the President in the Pana-
ma matter is not only in the strictest &C
cordance with the principles of justice and
equity, and In line with all the best prece-
dents of our public policy, but it was the
only course he could have taken In COM
pliance with our treaty rights and Obliga-
lions By our treaty entered into with
New Granada in the year 1916 New Ora
NADIA guarantees that ''the right Of way
or transit across the Isthmus of Panama,
upon any modes of communication that now
exist or that may be hereafter constructed,
shall be free and openoto the government
and citizens of the United States"
Reciprocal Obligations.
This is right which we acquired by the
treaty, not gratuitously conferred, but IN
return for an important compensation, for
in the same article the government Of the
United States guarantees positively and
efficaciously to New Granada by the pres
ent stipulation the perfect neutrality Of the
before mentioned isthmuS, with the view
that the free transit from the one to the
other sea may not be interrupted or en-
barrassed in any future time while this
treaty exists and, in consequence, the
United States guarantees In the same man
ner the rights of sovereignty and property
which New Granada has and possesses over
the said territory
The close connection thus created between
the two governments was well set forth by
President Polk in his message transmitting
the treaty to the Senate. He said: 1.-THE
Importance of the concession to the COM
mercial and political interests of the United
States cannot be OVerrated. The route by
the Isthmus of Panama is the shortest be-
tween the two oceans, and from the in
formation herewith communicated it would
seem to be the most practicable tor a rail-
road or canal. The vast advantages to our
commerce which would result from such a
communication not only with the west coast
of America, but with Asia and the islands of
the Pacific. are too obvious to require any
detail. Such passage would save us from
long and dangerous navigation of more
than nine thousand miles around the Horn,
and render our communication with our
possessions on the northwest coast of
America comparatively easy and speedy
The treaty does not propose to guarantee
treaty to a foreign nation in which the
United States will have no common interest
with that nation. Onathe contrary we are
more deeply and directly interested in the
subject of the guarantee than New Granada
herself or any other country
Right to Control the Isthmus.
These considerations. the controlling ma
ture of which were at once recognized so
long ago. have become more and more i'm
portant in every year that has elapsed since
the treaty was written. Our acquisition of
Hawaii and the Philippines has given them
greatly enhanced validity. The control in
the interest of the commerce and traffic of
the whole civilized world of the means 1of
undisturbed transit aerosssthe Isthmus of
Panama. has become of transcendent inn
portance to the United States.
The right to this control we have never
forfeited by any laxity of our own, either in
the assertion of our rights or In the per-
Torrance of our duty under tho, treaty. In
1853 Mr.. Everett assured the Peruvian min
lister that we should not hesitate to MAIN
tain the neutrality of the isthmus in the
case of war between Peru and Colombia. In
1864 Colombia, which has always been vigil
liant to avail itself of its privileges con-
ferred by the treaty, expressed its eXpecta-
ton that in the event of war between Peru
and Spain the United States would carry
into effect the guarantee of neutrality.
There have been few administrations of the
State Department in which this treaty has
not, either by the one side or the other,
been used as basis of more or less I'M
portant demands. 1t was said by Mr.. Fish
in 1871 that the Department of State had
reason to believe that an attack upon Co
lombian sovereignty on the isthmus had on
several occasions been averted by warning
from this government. In 1856, when Co
lomba was under the menace Of hOstilities
from Italy in the Cerrutf case, Mr.. Bayard
expressed the serious concern that the
United States could not but feel that Eu-
rOpean power should resort to force against
a sister republic of this hemisphere as to
the sovereign and uninterrupted use of
part Of whose territory we are guarantors
under the solemn faith of treaty. The
United States has not only constantly pro-
tected Colombia from foreign invasion on
the strength of the rights and the duties
created by the treaty of 1s46, but has time
and again interviewed to preserve the free
dom of traffic from disturbance in the
course of domestic dissensions. In these
cases we have interviewed sometimes at the
suggestion Of Colombia. sometimes on our
own impression Of the necessities of the
case, but always to the profit of Colombia
as well as Of universal commerce.
MI. Stewards Statement.
The position of the United States was
clearly set forth by Mr. Seward in these
words:
THE United States have taken and will
take no interest in any question of inter-
nal revolution in the state of Panama, or
any state of the United States of Colom-
bia, but Will maintain perfect neutral
ity in regard to such domestic contro-
versies. The United States will, never
theless, hold themselves ready to protect
the transit trade across the isthmuS
against invasion of either domestic or
foreign dlsturpers or the peace OF the
state of Panama..
There has never been any doubt of the
validity of the treaty Of 1916 to guaran-
tee free and open transit either for
American citizens or for the government
of the United States We have used the
isthmus for the transit of troops and Of
fugitives from justices and protocol was
signed at Bogota on the 22d of February,
1879, acknowledging this right of transit
for troops and extradited fugitives be-
longing to the United States, right, as
Is declared In the protocol, (which Is es-
tablished in compensation for the-euar-
antee of the sovereignty and property of
the isthmus, to which, the same govern
ment is bound" J.!
1t must not be lost sight of that this
treaty is not dependent for it's efficacy
on the personnel of the. .signers or the
name of the territory It AFFECTS. 1t is a
covenant, as lawyers say, that runs with
the land. The name Of Naw Granada has
pa sed away its territory has been di-
dures the great geographical fact keeps
alive the solemn compact which binds
the holders of the territory to grant us
freedom of transit. and binds us in re-