The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1904-02-10
MAYOR EXPRESSED
THANKS TO CLAY
OTHERS WROTE SENATOR.
cRATIFIED AT STAND HE TAKES
ON CANAL QUESTION.

senator CIay's Position on the Pana-
ma Canal Treaty Pleased Savan-
,ahians-MayOr Said Canal win
Re of More BENEFIT to Savannah
Than Any other south Atlantic
port - Business Men Generally
pleased With Action of GeOrgia
Senators-Chamber of Commerce
deceived Letters on Resolutions.
The announcement by Senator Clay
that he will support the pending
Panama treaty was received with great
favor in Savannah yesterday. Mayor
MYERS. Capt. D. G. Purse, president of
the Board of Trade, and a number of
business men wrote the Senator con-
graduating him on the position which
ne has taken.
While there has been no doubt here,
among those interested in the adoption
of the treaty. that there would be Il
efficient number of votes to ratify
if the people of Savannah were
very anxious to have their representa-
tives in the Senate support
the treaty. 1t is a recognized fact
that the completion of the canal will
mean much to Savannah and the peo-
nile were anxious not to place any OBJ
struction in the way of the adoption
of the treaty.
The Chamber of Commerce adopted
resolutions two weeks ago indorsing the
treaty and calling on the United States
senator's from Georgia to support it.
A reply was received from Senator Ba-
con yesterday thanking the Chamber
of Commerce for the resolutions and
acknowledging that he realized there
was an overwhelming sentiment in
Georgia in favor of adopting the treaty.
The announcement of Senator Clay
was not a surprise to the business men
of Savannah, as they have believed all
along that when the Georgia senators
fully realized the sentiment of their
constituents they would support the
treaty. Senator Clay said that the
great desire the Southern people felt
for the contamination of the canal deal
did much to cause him to arrive at
conclusion somewhat at variance with
his own ideas
Mayor Myers yesterday wrote Sen
ator Clay, congratulating him,
in the name of the people
of Savannah, on his announced
intention to vote for the treaty. Mayor
Myers has taken the position all along
that the Georgia senators were in
position to know more about the al
legged scandal in connection with the
recognition of the Panama Republic,
and he believed the senators should
be left free to vote on the treaty as
they thought best. He was very much
pleased when he read Senator Clay's
announcement in the Morning News.
The letter written by Mayor Myers fol-
lows:
My Dear Senator Clay: Allow me
to express my hearty Endorsement of
your announced determination to vote
for the Panama treaty, and thus lend
your valuable aid to the construction
of the canal without further delays l
believe l speak for this business in
terests of Savannah, and of Georgia,
when 1 say that the construction of the
Panama canal is of vital Importance
to our future development and pros
perity.
Savannah is especially PECULIARLY
situated to derive an enormous trade
advantage as soon as the canal is open
for traffic. We are the nearest Attain
tic port of any consequence to the
canal; we have railroad facilities to all
parts of the country; we are nearer
the great Middle West than any other
port and the cotton manufacturing in
dustries of the South are all within
our territory.
There is no reason why Savannah
should not be the doorway through
which our cotton, cotton manufactured
goods, coal and iron, find their way
to the world at large, nor why through
this port the food products of the West
and its manufactures likewise should
not be shipped.
I'VE have everything to gain by the
building of this canal You can ac-
cordingly appreciate what a satisfac-
ton it was to read in the papers your
statement that you would vote for the
treaty that renders the beginning of
work at an early date practicable.
Your course has been, to my mind,
sincere and manly throughout, and
your final decision indicates plainly
to the business interests of the state
mat you are looking to the promotion
OF their welfare. l am sure that your
stand will meet with the approval of
the thinking people of Georgia and
cannot possibly be misconstrued. With
pest wishes, Herman Myers,
Mayor"
Board of Trade CongratuIatiOns.
President Purse of the Savannah
Board of Trade. addressed the
Iollowing letter to Senator Clay
the Morning News:
I was delighted to see it an
nounced through the Associated
Press dispatches that you would
vote for the Panama treaty now