Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-10-19

no help from any other nation, but never
theless they went on. They began dig
ging in 1859, and 1t was Just about ten
years later that the waters of the Medi-
terranean were allowed to flow through
into the Red sea. The canal was opened
in November, 1869, and in the following
year about 100000 tons Of shipping went
through 1t. In less than five years this
had increased to more than 100000 tons
and the gross income to almost 5000 600
per ennum.
The British then saw that 1t was a
good thing and cast about to find some
method of getting control. They sue
ceeded through Ismail Pasha, who was
then on the throne of Egypt. Old Ismail
was one of the most eXtravagant tyrants
who has ever squeezed money out of an
oppressed people He had aided the
French in building the canal, and had
spent something like 100000 on the
ceremonies by which 1t was opened He
had borrowed money at 80 and 40 per
cent interest, and was head over heels in
debt. In the allotment of shares 176 900
out of the 100000 had gone to the Egyp-
tian government, and when the khediVe
became hard up he concluded to put them
on the market The English cabinet got
wind of the matter, and at the same time
the French minister at Cairo telegraplIed
Paris that unless France bought the
Egyptian shares tomorrow they would e
purchased by England"
At that time parliament was not in
session. but Lord Beaconsfield and one or
two others took the responsibility of max
ing the trade. They borrowed $4,000, COO
from the Rothschilds, and before the
world outside had any idea that the bar
gain was pending they had the whole of
1smail's stock in the British treasury and
John Bull had the control. He had not,
it is true, 81 per cent of the entire capt.
tai stock, but the other holdings were
SO scattered that the seven-sixteenths
which he owned gave him the whip hand,
and that he has held ever since.
AS 1t is now, no large block of the
common stock appears to be held by any
individual corporation or other govern
ment. Indeed, at a meeting of some
years ago, the largest shareholder, out
side of Great Britain, was a Frenchman,
who had little more than 1900 shares
That $40 OOO, 600 was one Of the best in
vestments John Bull has ever made. At
its present market value his stock is
worth $3.50 ,000, 600 and 1t has gone ND
more than 81 900, 600 during the past year.
He has already received from 1t more
than s60,000,OOO in dividends, and by his
control of the canal has enormously in
creased his power and prestige among the
nations Of the world. His money gain.
however, Is not quite as great as that of
the original stockholders. They paid
only about 500 per share. while he paid a
little more than s113. If the Panama canal
turns out anything like as well Uncle
Sam will have money to burn.
Panama Versus Suez
l know the Panama canal well. /
visited 1t in 1898 when it was in the
hands Of the French, and 1 have spent
several weeks there since the Americans
have been in control. l have gone over
1t from end to end with our engineers
have watched the new steam shoyels
gouging the earth out of the Culebra
cut and have Travelled in canoe down
that part of 1t which is to run through
the bed of the Chagres river. l have
also gone through the Suez canal at