The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1904-01-05

:
canal across Panama, and that wheth-
er the republic granting the title was call
ed New Granada, Colombia, or Panama
mattered not one whit. As events turned
out, the question of reasonable time
did not enter into the matter at all. AL
though, as the months went by, 1t be-
came increasingly improbable that the
Colombian congress would ratify the
treaty or take steps which would be equi-
valent thereto, yet all chance for such
action on their part did not vanish until
the congress closed at the end of October;
and within three days thereafter the revo-
luton in Panama had broken out. Pam
anna became an independent state, and
the control of the territory necessary for
building the canal then became obtain
able. The condition under which alone
we could have gone to Nicaragua thereby
became impossible of fulfillment. If the
pending treaty with Panama should not
be ratified by the senate this would not
alter the fact that we could not go to
Nicaragua, The congress has decided the
route, and there is no alternative under
existing legislation.
When in August it began TO
appear probable that the Colombian
Legislature would not ratify the
treaty, /, 1t became incumbent upon
me to consider well what the situation
was and to be ready to advise the con-
gress as to what were the various alter
natives of action open to US. There were
several possibilities One was that Colom-
bia would at the last moment see the un-
wisdom of her position. That there might
be nothing omitted, Secretary Hay,
through the minister at Bogota, repeated
ly warned Colombia that grave conse-
quences might follow from her rejection
of the treaty Although it was a con-
stantly diminishing chance, YET the posi-
bility of ratification did not wholly pass
away until the close of the session of the
Colombian congress.
Not Reasonable Lapse.
second alternative was that by the
close of the session on the last day of Oc-
tober, without the ratification of the
treaty by Colombia and without any steps
taken by Panama the American congress
on assembling early in November would
be confronted with situation in which
there had been failure to come 10 terms
as to building the canal along the Pana-
ma route, and yet there had not been
Lapse of reasonable tme-using the
word reasonable in any proper sense
such as would Justify the administration
going to the Nicaragua route. This stu
alton seemed on the whole the most like
w, and as matter of fact | had MADE
the original dFdIl pl my iH1Sa5f ~ NiS
congress with a view to its existence
1t was the opinion of eminent interna-
tional iurists that in view of the fact that
the great design of our guarantee under
the treaty of 1916 was to dedicate the
isthmus TO the purposes of interoeeamc
transit and above all to secure the con-
struction of an interoceanic canal, Colom-
bia could not under existing conditions
refuse to enter into a proper arrange
t1tA AA N
without violating the spirit and substan-
tally repudiating the obligations of
treaty the full benefits of which she had
enjoyed for over fifty years. My intaniion
was to consult congress as to whether
under such circumstances 1t would not
he proper to announce that the canal was
to be dug forthwith; that we would give
the terms that we had offered and no
others: and that IL such terms were not
agreed to we would enter into an arrange
ment with Panama direct. or take what
other stems we're needful IN order to begin
the enterprise,
A Third Possibility.
A third possibility was that the people
Of the isthrnus. who had formerly consti-
frted an independent state. and who until
recentlv we're united to Colombia only by
a loose tie OF federal relationship, might
take the protection Of their own vital in
terests into their own hands, reassert
their former rights, declare their indepen-
,fenea uuon lust grounds, and establish a
government competent and willing to do
its share in this great work for civiliza-
tion. This third possibility is what actu-
alIv occurred. Everyone knew that 1t was
a possibility. but 1t was not until towards
the end of October that it appeared to be
an imminent probability Although the
administration, of course, had special
means Of knowledge, no such means were
necessary in order to appreciate the posi-
biHty, and toward the end the Likelihood.