The Montgomery advertiser., 1905-07-15
PRESIDENT IS
 AXJSY MAN Day y Conferences at Xoyster Bay: PEACE AND THE CANAL Details of Both Subjects Are
 Considered. Miuiuter Takahira, Chairman Shonts, Chief Engineer Stevens and Au- ditor Hynes Guests of Exec
 tive at Luncheon.

ant details concerning the forthconlns peace conference between plentlpoteh- taries representing Russia ana Japan and matters relating to the construc- ton of the Panama canal. were undel
 con sideration today by President Roosevelt.
 He and Mrs. Roosevelt had as guests at luncheon at their Sagamore Hill home Minister Kogoro Takahira of Ja- nan: Theodore P Shonts. chairman and John F. Stevens. chief engineer of the Isthmian Canal Commission. and Thomas w. Hyues. auditor ot
 Porto Rico.
 The Japanese minister arrived here ta 1920 o'clock from New York AS
 surance was given that the ministers | visit was not of notable significance He discussed with MT. Roosevelt some points about the approaching con1er- ence, but it is announced that no oate
 was agreed upon for the reception or the Russian and Japanese envoys oy
 the president. - Baron Komura, the Japanese minis
 ter of foreign affairs, who Is the prin- cipal envoy of Japan to the cohler
 ence, is ell route now from Japan and 1 is expected to reach New York about the 3oth inst If NJ Witte. the chief
 plentipotentiary of Russia. shaU nave arrived by that time the reception to the envoys by the president probably
 will take place at Sasamore Hill on August 1st.
 Minister Takahira expressed his per sonal qualification at the designation
 of M. Witte as the leading plentipoten- tiary of Russia. He said that NJ. Witte
 was one of Russia's most eminent
 statesmen and his appointment would lend confidence and weight to the con clusions of the conference. lie salo
 that arrangements for the conference
 were moving along smoothly. and ex-
 pressed the hope that a satisfactory l agreement would be reached. Minister
 Takahira, after taking luncheon with
 the president, left Oyster Ray for New York on the 2:1s train.
 Discussed the Canal.
 | Chairman Shonts and Chief Engineer l Stevens remained with the president
 some time after the departure of Min
 ister Takahira. This was the first opportunity the president has had to discuss canal matters with Mir. Stevens and they went over the subject pret- ty thoroughly. As both MT. Shonts and MT. Stevens expect to sail for Pan anna on the goth instant, the president desired to consult with them before their departure.
 It Is not likely that MT. Stevens will be made, in the near future, a member of the executive committee of the Pan anna Canal Commission. position oc- cupied by his predecessor, MT. Wallace. It can be said that MT. stevens has been given particularly a free hand to do construction work on the isthmus.
 He has his own ideas about the meth
 nds to be pursued and will not be in- terfered with in the work of his de-
 partment His desire Is to dig the canal and to that great undertaking he will devote all. his energy and abil- ity, leaving the executive and admin istrative details to be worked out by Chairman Shonts, Governor Magoon
 and the commission.
 After the conference with the pres ident, Chairman Shonts talked frankly about the work of the commission and about canal conditions.
 Our talk with the president today" he said, was of general character on canal matters. The president de- sired to see MT. Stevens before we left for the isthmus and to discuss with both of us the progress of the work Just now we have about 12.000 men at work on the canal. That Is about as many as we could employ under exist ing conditions. <.~...: @... s- Isthmus Organization.
 We have our executive staff thor
 oughly organized now, but the organi- ation has not been completed on the Isthmus. That Is part of the work Mir. Stevens will have to do. His engi- neering staff must be organized and It's work mapped out. We must make ar rangements for the housing. feeding and general care of our employees, in itself a great task, and complete the sanitary arrangements in the American zone. All this will require time and energy and hard work, but 1t will be accomplished successfully. l have IAI ntd Vytt n man who Is to go to the Isthmus to ar range for the recreation of the canal employees. We will have readin g rooms, amusement halls and all that sort of thing, by means of which the
 men may pass their idle hours pleas
 antly and profitably." :~ -s.
 No" continued Chairman Shonts in
 response to an inquiry. the sanitary conditions of the Isthmus are not so bad as they have been reported to be. A lot of people have become frightened by the yellow fever. but 1t Is not so bad
 as might be expected In fact. the re- ports from the Isthmus regardin g health conditions have been grossly ex- aggerated Judge Magoon has sent re- ports that present the exact conditions and they have been made public pre- cisely as he sent them, He and I agreed before we went to Panama that the | exact conditions should be made public and that agreement has been Kept both by him and by me. Out of twenty cases of yellow fever in May we lost 1 but two, and in June out of more than ! that number we lost only four. The | sanitary conditions are being bettered
 all the time and as soon as we com l plete arrangements for adequate sup | ply of pure water we shall have little | or no difficulty.
 AccIimated Labor.
 | .AT,, haIfaf Ia continued n l Shonts, that the actual digging of the 1 canal will haze to be done by the la . l borers inured to the tropical climate l The labor we shall be able to get I be- ! lieve without any serious trouble. :" Asked whether fl was his idea to Lse
 Chinese labor on the canal to any ex- tent he replied that some Chinese fir, m
 the rice fields of Southern China prob
 ably would meet the labor require
 ments on the isthmus, but he doubted
 whether the Northern Chinese could 1 live and work well in the tropical cl- l mate of Panama.
 | Adverting to the Panama Railroad he said: We have been devoting a good II Ta.-