The free press. (Southern Pines, N.C.) 1898-19??, 1904-01-08

and disapproval upon any connection
of any European government with the
construction or control OF any snip
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 iner-
ests of the United States and as
menace to their welfare.
Under the Hay-Pauncefote treaty
it was explicitly provided that the
United States should control, police
and protect the canal which was to be
built, keeping it open for the vessels
of all nations on equal terms. The
United States thus assumed the posi-
ton of guarantor of the canal and OF
it's peaceful use by all the world. The
guaranty included as a matter OF
course the building of the canal. The
enterprise was recognized as re-
spending to an international need;
and it would be the veriest travesty
on right and justice to treat the gov
ernments in possession Of the lsthmus
as having the right, in the language
of Mr.. Cass, ito close the gates of in
tercourse on the great highways OF the
world, and justify the act by the pre-
tension that these avenues of trade
and travel beong to them and that
they choose to shut them"
When this Government submitted to
Colombia the HayHerran treaty three
things were, therefore, already settled.
One was that the canal shold be
built. The time for delay, the time for
permitting the attempt to be made by
private enterprise, the time for permit
ting any government of anti-social
spirit and of imperfect development
to bar the work had pass
ed. The United States had
assumed in connection with the
canal certain responsibilities not only
to it's own people, but to the civilized
world, which imperatively demanded
hat there should no longer be delay in
beginning the work.
Second. While it was settled that
the canal should be built without I'M
necessary or improper delay, 1t was
no less clearly shown to be our pur-
pose to deal not merely in spirit OF
Justice but in a spirit of generosity
with the people through whose land
we might build 1.-THE Hay-Herran
treaty, if it erred at all, erred in the
direction of an Oyer-generoslty TO-
wards the Colombian government. In
our anxiety to be fair we had gone to
the very verge in yielding to weak
nations demands what the nation was
helplessly unable to enforce from US
against our will. The only criticism
made upon the administration for the
terms of the Hay-Herran treaty were
for having granted too much to Colon
bia, not for failure to grant enough.
Neither in the Congress nor in the
public press, at the time that this
treaty was formulated, were here COM
plants that it did not in the fullest
and amplest manner guarantee to Co
lombia everything that she could by
any color of title demand.
Nor is the fact to be lost sight OF
that the rejected treaty, while gener-
ously responding to the pecunlary de-
mands of Colombia, in other respects
merely provided for the construction
VI IHG CdIIdI III COulOl unity NACii WV D@h
pressed requirements of the act OF
Congress of June %, 1902. BY that act,
as heretofore quoted, the President
was authorized to acquire from CO.
lombia, for the purposes of the canal
perpetual control of certain strip
of land and it was expressly required
that the control" thus to be obtained
Shout include jurisdiction" to make
police and sanitary regulatlns and to
establish such judicial tribunals as
might be agreed upon their enforce
ment. These were conditions prece-
dent prescribed by the Congress; and
for their fulillment suitable stlpula-
tions were embodied in the treaty. 1t
has been stated in public prints that
Colombia objected to these stipula-
tons, on the ground that they involv-
ed a REIMBURSEMENT Of her sovereign
| ty;" but in the light of what has
taken place, this alleged objection
must be considered as an after
| ibouvht Tn raalitv tho treaty in