The Montgomery advertiser., 1906-02-27

Cromwell Declares That for Services
 He Has Rendered Panama Cow
 ern,nent He Has not Been
 Paid a Cent.
 washinkton, Feb 2s.--The examina- tion of William Nelson Cromwell, who has figured largely In connection with the sale of the Panama Canal prop 2 erty to the United States. was begun by the Senate Committee on Inter oceanic Canals today.
 His testimony has been looked for ward to with much interest and near Iy all the members of the Committee were present There were many spec tators Many of the. questions asked MT. Cromwell related to the interview at the Manhattan Hotel in New York regarding the resignation of Mir. Wal lace when Secretary Taft, Mir. Wallace and Mir Cromwell were present There were frequent tilts between the wit ness and Senator Morgan because the former was not more specific in his an- swers to questions by the Senator. It culminated dramatically at the close of the day when Mir. Cromwell refused to answer various questions asked by the Senator and the latter declared he would deal vita the witness in the Senate when the facts regarding the resignation of NIT. Wallace came out.
 MT. Cromwell replied with some warmth that that was The only safe place to do it.
 MT. Cromwell in his statement de- elared that every penny of the money paid by the United States Government for the pur- chase of Panama Railroad stock and for the French Canal property had be sn accounted for. He stated that he had declined to accept the position of counsel for the Canal Commission and that his activity had been largely upon the invitation of the President and the Secretary of War.
 Interests in Panama.
 He said that his only financial in- terest on the Isthmus or in the Re- | public of Panama was a personal in- vestment in the capital stock of the l Panama-American Cooperation, of I which h eowneds $51, 800 out of a total capitalization of. s229.Oo0, This com pany, MT. Cromwell said. was engaged in supplying he city of Panama with electric light, ice and telephone ser ] vice. It was a local and private af- | fair and he was induced to take stock l tn the corporation in order to assis' ! q local enterprise.
 | Another statement which Mir Crom. ! we'll made that attracted much inter est was that in all his relations witf the government of Panama and ever | In the acquisition of the outstanding minority shares of the Panama Rail way for the United States which wal brought about through MT. Cromwell: activity and labor, not cent was re- ceived by him for his services. Ht | stated that his final account, with tht vouchers of payment audited by th' government department, was in th' | government files and every share oi i stock was now in the treasury of thu United States.
 A feature of MT. Cromwelrs state ment and upon which ne was closely questioned was with reference to thu retirement of Chief Engineer Wallace and the testimony which Mir. Wallace | had given before the committee. H' said that the explanarIon which MT l Wallace gave the committee was radi cally different from thaI which he gave at the time he retired. which was tha he had been offered a larger salary | that his reasons given after the Man haitian Hotel interview made no refer ence to Cromwell; that in letter tt Chairman shonts the day after the in terview, no allusion was made t' Cromwell. Mir Cromwell quoted from
 
 Letters From Wallace.
 '"The business proposition that havt now under consideration Is of such ar important character and opens out sucl a wide field for future prosperity tt me that I cannot possibly see how
 would be justified in declining 1t. M! family and those of Iny friends witt whom have consulted with regard t' 1t have been absolutely H unit in urging me ot form the new connection.
 ''There were so many sides to thi matter that I thought it best for th' Secretary of War and myself to dis cuss ik in all its features at length also did not feel 1t would be fair t' the secretary to let the matter go owe until after he had left rhe country. Or the other hand. the situation was sucl that I would have had 70 let the op portunity go by if iS should becom Il necessary 10 postpone it until his re turn from the Philippines"
 Mr Cromwell also gave letter ad dressed to him from Mir. Wallace dated at Panama, May 26, 1905, saying tha his mind repeatedly turned to thu words of advice and counsel which have received from yon;'' also that tn more thought he gave the matter "th more I am impressed with you words of wisdom" Later he refers t. MT. Cromwell as the skilled and pol ished diplomat" and in closing h'
 :'Permit me, my dear MMr Cromwell to lift my hat to you"
 'Permit me. my dear Mir. Cromwell the committee that his decision wa arrived at while on the voyage to tn Isthmus in May, but this letter wa written two days after his arriva there. -,
 Mir. Cromwell stated that he was au .torizad to give an account of the dis nnsition of the S1O,0OO. .00O paid to Pa mama which was as follows: Investe
 ,,a New York real estate $5.165.5 500 hopds of the Panama Railroad Com , oonS, sS34. S4s; cash on deposit with tn
 Sayt work Trust Company, $1,l5O,O00 cash on deposit with bankers Trus
 Connnanv New York, S300,00O; cash O danosit with the above and J. F. Mor . ssp and Company $71.2SO; cash on de Soostt Tn London with Compton Nation . al d,Escompte $632, ,690; cash on de : nosit with bankers at Panama $l5O,
 0O0 in the Banco Hipolycario Panam, , $500. GOO; on Appropriation for pupil , works in the Provinces of the Repuh . Lie S1.625,OOO; drafts by the Republi 5 on J P.'Morgan and Company, $622 6l5, miscellaneous expenses SSfo' Interrupted by Morgan. 3 During this statement Senator Mol : gan interrupted several times to com 5 Del the witness to be specific. Tn ? was particularly true when MT. Crom 3 well asserted that the reasons given b Mir. Wallace for resigning his positio sas chief engineer and member of tt