River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1904-01-07

nary Intelligence who read TIE neWzpa-
pers ana kept UP q current acquaintance
After thus treating extensively the
| events leading up to and during the revo-
luton the president refers TO the recc8nl,
ton of the new government by the United
States, and in this connection he says:
! by the unanimous action of lis peo-
pie, without the firing of a shot-with a
| unanimity hardly before recorded in any
| similar case-the people of Panama de-
| cIared themselves as independent repub-
lie. Their recognition by this government
was based upon. state Of facts in no
| way dependent for it's justification upon
| our action in ordinary cases. / have not
denied, nor do l wish to deny, either the
validity or the propriety of the general
| rule that a new state should not be REG
ognaeSdi as In tn it has aow
This rule is derived from the principle of
nonln terventlon, and as a corollary Oh tEat
the United States But. like the principle
! from which it is 6educed the rule is SUD-
ject to exceptions: and there are in my
opinion clear and imperative reasons why
! a departure from it was justified and even
| required in the present instance. These
| reasons embrace, first, our treaty rights;
second, our national interests and safety;
| and, third, the interests of collective ciyili-
cation"
Reasons for Ratification.
lie reviews these reasons at considerable
length and juSrifieS the speedy recognition
on either and all of them. He refers 10
| with one nation are binding upon the sue
cessors of that nation, thus the treaty Of
1916 with New GranaGa was transferred
| first to Colombia and now to Panama. Of
tn second reason he says:
| This recognition was, in the second
place, further justified BY the highest com
| siderations of our national interests and
safety. In all the range of cur interna-
! tional relations, | DO not hesitate 20 a.
firm that there is nothing Of greater or
more pressing Importance than the con-
struction OF an interoceanic canal. Long
acknowledge TO be essential to our com
mercial development, it has become, as
the result of the recent extension of our
| territorial dominion, more lnan sw@- es-
! sential to our national self-defense. :. :.
In the light Of our present situation, the
establishment of easy and speeGy cCm-
munication by sea between the Atlantic
/ and the Pacific presents itself not Simply
| as something to be desired, but as an OBJ
ject to be positively and promptly at
tanned. Reasons OF convenience have been
superseded by reasons of vital necessity,
which do not admit Of indefinite Decays.
In the same connection he charges Co
lombia with attempting to so delay the
place that government in a position not
only to secure the $l0,000,O00 offered it as
secure the $40,00O,000 promised the Panama
Canal company for it's franchise and
rights as wen. BY waiting Until Octo-
Der 81, 1904, the franchise OF the Panama
company would have expired, and the
Colombian government be in post on
to seize it's property and rights on the
mand of the United States the payment
to that government of both sums. In
this connection he says:
| "Such is the scheme to which 1t was
proposed that the United States should
be invited to become a party. The con-
struction of the canal was to be, reie-
gated to the indefinite future, while Co
| lombia was, by reason of her own delay,
to be placed in the more advantageous
of 70 h nag b no eT9y the
for the privilege of completing the canal,
but also the $4o,00000o authorized by the
act of 1902 to be paid for the property of
the New Panama Canal company. That
the attempt to carry out this scheme
would have brought Colombia into con-
not be doubted; nor could the United
States have counted upon immunity from
the consequences of the attempt, even
apart from the indefinite delays to which
the construction of the canal was to be
subjected. On the first, appearance OF
/ danger to Colombia. this gov7"7' a I
! would have been summoned to fnterpose,
| in order to give effect to the guarantees
of the treaty of 1876; and all this in sup
port of a plan which. while cha to"-
lied in its first stage by the wanton dis
regard of our own highest intereS"e y. $
fifty to end in further injury to the cit
liens of a friendly nation. whose enor-
nous losses in their generous efforts 70
pierce the isthmus have become mat
| ter of history
Of the third reason for speedy recog-
milton the president says in. part:
''In the third place. I confidently main
| tain that the recognition of the roDuht'c
of Panama was an act justified by the
interests of collective civilization. If ever
a government could be said 70 have re-
ceiVed mandate from oiv,iiZaton to
| effect an object the accomplishment OF
which was demanded in the interest Of
mankind, the United States holds tfat
position With regard r to the j mia the
canal was definitely announced. there
have come from all quarters assuran ces
of approval and announcement, in which
herself time
ticipa ted; and to general assurances We're
added specific acts and DECLARATIONS. In
order that no obstacle might stand IN orr
! wav Great Britain renounced import ant
rights under the Clayton Bulwer treaty
and agreed to its abrogation. re9eiv',,~ IN IN
to build the canal and protect it as an
open highway.
Justified by Collective Civilization.
THAT our position as the mandatory Of
| civilization has been by no means mis-
conceived is shown by the promptltude
with which the powers have, one after
another, followed our lead IN recognizing
Panama as an independent state Our
! action in recognizing the new republic
has been followed by like recognit OF on
the part of France, Germany, Denmark,
Russia. Sweden ana Norway, Ntcetrs,s -
| Peru, China, Cuba, Great Britain, italy,
Costa RIGA, Japan and Austria hungary
''In view of the manifold consideTat .ons
of treaty right and obligation, of national
interest and safety, and of collective civ
ilization, by which our governlne
constrained to act I am at loss to
comprehend the attitude those who
can discern in the recognition of the re-
public of Panama only a genera 20
prevail of the principle of revolution by
which given government IS oVe4 ~urHcd
or one portion of country separated
from another. Only the amplest justi-
fication can warrant a revolutionary
movement of either kind. But here =
no fixed rule which can be applied to all
such movements. Each case must be
| judged on its own merits. Th a
Deen many revolutionary movements
of countries. which were evil, tried by
any standard. But in my Opinion S
interested and fair minded observer ac-
quainted with the circumstances can fail
to feel that Panama had the anplest jas
LITIGATION for separation from Colombia
under the conditions existing, and, more
over, that it's action was in the highest
degree beneficial to the interests of the
entire civilized world by securing the
immediate opportunity for the building
of the interoceanic canal : The
people Of the isthmus and as I firmly
believe of the adjacent parts of Central
and South America, will be greatly bene-
fitted by the building of the canal and the
| line; and hand in hand with the benefit
to them will go the benefit to us and to
mankind By our PROMPT and
| action, not only have our interests and
those of the world at large, been con-
served, but we have forestalled connpil-
cations which were likely to be fruitful
| in loss to ourselves, and in bloodshed and
suffering to the people of the isthmus.
Instead Of !, USING 4a eur forces, as we
twofold purpose of defeating our own
rights and interests and the 5n+e~a~t-
| the civilized world, and of compelling the
submission of the people of the isthn1us
to those whom they rega rded
| loH in I11fxy hon =,