Clarke courier. [volume] (Berryville, Va.) 1869-1997, 1904-01-06
FROM WASHINGTON
Special Correspondents ofthe oounrnn.
Washington. Jan. 8

Washington. Jan. 8.
The leaders of the republican
party in Congress are attempting
to make the people of the country
believe that the democrats are op-
posed to the construction of an
lsthmian canal, simply because
they are criticising the action of
the present administration in its
relation TO the recent secession of
Panama from the parent govern
ment of Colombia. In their OPP
position of President Roosevelt
course at Panama the democrates
of the Senate are not opposing or
antagonizing the construction of
an lsthmian canal. The most ear
nest advocates of the waterway.
who have proved their devotion to
this great enterprise by years of
effort, are among those who most
earnestly condemn the course of
the administration. The position
taken by the democratic Senators
relates more to the governmental
condition of the United States than
to our relations with any foreign
power or our interest in the con-
Struction of the canal. If no other
law be passed or no treaty with
either Colombia or Panama be rat
flied there will still be no retarda-
ton in the construction of an Is
thmian canal unless the President
of the United States refuses to ex-
ecute the law already on the statute
books, which provided both the
authority for negotiation and the
money for the construction of lhe
Nicaragua Canal, the negotiations
with Colombia having failed. To
assume that the failure of a treaty
with Panama means the failure of
the canal project is to assume that
the President of the United States
will refuse To execute a law already
on the statute books, which is as
mandatory upon him as is any pro-
vision of the criminal code upon
any citizen of the United States.
The position and contention of
the demOcrates i'm the Senate is
simply this:
That the President of the United
States has no right to make war
upon s foreign power, that being
solely within the province of Con-
gress; and that the President of
the United States cannot refuse TO
execute law duly enacted by Con-
gress and approved by the Presi-
dent.
This is the whole matter in a nut
shell. If, after a full and impart-
ial investigation the democrats
find that this administration did
have guilty fOreknOwledge of the
secession of Panama, and did assist
her and have hindered n friendly
power from compelling the recall
citrant state to come back into the
Colombian union, thus performing
an act of war, the democrates may
vote to reject the treaty and demand
that the President execute the law
now on the statutes to build the
Nicaragua Canal. They may also
then vote to impeach the President
when he refuses TO execute the law.
They are not against the canal per
sc and all the howlings of the re-
publican majority cannot make
them occupy any such attitude.
Addressing Yale students, Rev.
DIR. Rainsford said:
Mr.. Roosevelt has earned the
thanks of this country for the good
he has done in telling the truth.
The men who tells the truth
and sticks to it does the most last
ing good, whether he tells that
truth at the dinner table or in pub
lic,''
Did Mr., Roosevelt tell the truth
when, in his life of Thomas III.
Benton" he agreed with political
economists that protection us Wis
cious in theory and harmful in
practicev Then did he stick to it
when he advocated protective
tariff wherein the duty should be
more than" equal to the cost of
wages abroad and at homer
Did he tell the truth in his Gin
cinnati speech on September 20,
1902, when he said that the tariff
did not foster trusts, and asserted
that the anthracite trust was not
protected by tariff dutiesl Did he
stick to it when in his message OF
Decembr, 1902, he admitted that