The Kimball graphic. (Kimball, Brule County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1905, 1904-01-08
PRESIDENT TELLS
PANAMA HISTORY
Special Message to Congress
Defends Course Of the
Administration.
DID NOT FORCE MATTERS

gEE3E -rEE---E =[H. Et.-ra. . Hu.F5.E EE 80 r.
No Aid Was Given to the Revolution
and on the Other Hand hi
Country Only Followed Its
Traditional Policy.
washington, Jan. 5.-The president
has sent a special message " Son
gress, setting forth the aetails u
the history OF the United States rela-
tions to the Panama revolution. ~
substance the messags says:
To the Senate and House of Representa-
tiyes: / lay before the congress Ior ie
information a statement OF my ac snt.i ~
to this time in executing the aet ensa.4e &c
An act to provide i t%e e wat egnse Of the At
lantic and Pacific oceans" approved june he
%, 1902.
The president was authorized to secure
the property of the Panama Canal com
pany and perpetual control of q strip SIX
miles wide across the isthmus. 1t was pro-
yided that should the president pe ~ "
able to obtain a satisfactory tltle 10 .tno
and the territory of the REPUBLIC of Co
lombla = So within q reasonable tme
and upon reasonable terms, then the presl-
dent" should endeayor to prov ,Eha n nue z
dent was authorized to go to the MICA
ragua route If he could not obtain territory
of Colombia. This has been obtained; the
act has been comp,ied with; II is no ionset
This act marked the climax OF the ef-
fort to secure an interoceanic canal, the
position for the United States to assume
eass p IN ls5 sles seere ia. fe eass s Said nee'sA''
while the rights Of sovereignty OF the
states occupying this region Central
America) should always be respected, we
in a spirit betting the occasion and the
wants and circumstances that have arisen.
sovereignty has its duties as well as It's
rights, and none of these local govern
ments, ever if administered with more
regard to the just demands of other ma
tons than they have been, would be per-
mitted, in a spirit. of eastern isolation, TO
close the gates of intercourse on the great
highways OF he world, and justify the
act by the %pretension that these avenues
of trade and travel belong to them and
that they choose to shut them, or, what is
almost equivalent, to cucumber them with
such unjust. relations as would prevent
their general use" Ell
The principle was sound then and is now.
The United States has taken the position
that no other government is to build the
canal. In 1889, when France proposed to
aid the French company by guaranteeing
bonds, the senate passed a resolution as
fellows: E
THAT the United States will look with
serious concern and disapproval upon any
connection OF any European government
with the construction or control of any
ship canal across the Isthmus Of Darien
or across Central America, and must re-
gard any such connection or control as
injurious to the just rights and interests
OF the United States and as a menace to
Under the Hay-Pauncefote treaty 1t was
explicitly provided that the United States
should control, police and protect the
canal, keeping it open for all nations on
-pn1al | farrnc ~ VNIop- <hic n,,+ .,,l,
mitted to Colombia the Hay-Herran treaty
three things We're, therefore. already set
tied. One was that the canal should be
bullt. Second, our purpose to deal in
through whose land we might build it.
The Hay-Herran treaty. if it erred, erred
IN the direction of o~yer-generosity towards
lombia objected to stipulations, that they
involved a REIMBURSEMENT of her "sov-
ereignty::" but in the light of what has
taken place, this objection must be an
knowledged, confirmed and preserved her
sovereignty. The exercise by the United
States, subject to the local sovereign, Of a
substantial control over the canal and the
q fundamental part of any arrangement.
Colombia never intimated that the re-
quirement by the United States of control
tainable the construction of a canal. nor
We're we advised, when legislation of 1902
was pending, that the terms would render
negotlatlons with Colombia impracticable.
the neutrality of the canal with less con-
troll thar was stipulated for in the Hay-
Herran treaty. A refusal to grant such
degtee OF control was necessarily q refu-
Such refusal therefore squarely raised the
question whether Colombia was entitled
to bar the ransi Of the worlds traffic
That the canal was "a perJv da,,o,a
ed by the people Of the locality through
winch 1t was to pass, is shown by the unan-
imityinthePa nama republic. Furthermore,
Colombia. after having rejected the treaty
when It vas in her power to accept 1t, has
since shown the utmost eagerness to ac-
E the same. One Of the men standing
dressed the American minister, saying
that il the United States would preserve
Colombian sovereignty Colombia would
mdeclare martial law; and, by virtue of
lie order Is disturbed, (would) approve by
decree the ratification of the canal treaty.
as signed: or, II the government of the
United states prefers. (would) call extra
friendly members-next May to approve
the treaty" l pass by the question rs 10
what assurance we have that they would
now keep their pledge.
Third. Finally congress settled the cana,
was to be across the Isthmus Of Panama.
II, after reasonable time, 1t proved
iiiipossiDle 10 secure such treaty We should
go to Nicaragua. The treaty has been
made; for the intent of congress was 10
insure q canal across Panama. and wheth-
er n republic granting the title was
called New Granada, Colombia or Panama
mattered not. Although it became i'm
probable that Colombia would ratifv the
treaty, yet all chance for such action did
not vanish until the closed at tha
end Of October: and within three DAVIS
thereafter the revolution in Panama Mad
broken out. Panama became an fndenend-
ent state, and the territory necessary he
came obtafnable. The condition Under
which alone we could have gone to Mic.
aar1agua thereby became impossible Of full
niment. II the pending treaty with Pan
anna should not be ratified by the senate
TINS would not alter the fact that we could
not go to Nicaragua. Congress has de-
clqeo the route, and there is no alternative
When in August it began to apnear
probable that the Colombian Legislature
would not ratify the treaty, there were
several possibilities. One was that ca
lomeia. would at the last moment gee fha
unW1sdoM1 of her position. Secretary EaV
repeatedly warned Colombia that grave
might follow rejection az
the treaty. -
a second alternative was a situation IN
which there had been a failure to come 70
terms as to building the canal along the
Panama route, and yet there had not been
a lapse OF a reasonable time-using the
word reasonable In any proper senseSslch
as would Justify going to Nicaraeua. This
uati Ion seemed mast III ~, II -" 80.