Devils Lake inter-ocean and Devils Lake free press. (Devils Lake, Ramsey County, N.D.) 1905-1909, 1908-12-25

what the new Panama Canal company
aid with the money which it received.
''@ Money Divided by French. Court,
AS matter of fact the! New pan
anna Canal company did distribute the
money between it's shareholders and
the shareholders of the preceding
Panama Canal company in accordance
with the decree of French court and
the records of the French court show
VINO were the shareholders who re-
celved the money. But that is no
concern of ours.
| l call your attention to the accom-
panying statement as to the attempt
| to form an American company in 1899
for the purpose of taking over the
property of the French company. This
attempt proved abortive. There was
no concealment in it's effort to- put
through this plan, its complete failure
and abandonment being known to ey-
cry one. The important points set
4 forth in the accompanying papers
and in the papers to which have re-
ferred you are as follows: The inves-
| tigation of the history of physical con-
dition and existing value of the enter
prise by the congress, resulting in the
enactment of the law of 1909 authoriz-
ing the president to acquire the prop
erty for the sum of $40,O00,000, upon
securing satisfactory title and there
upon to undertake the work of con-
struction; the failure of the Ameri-
canization of the enterprise in 1899;
the transmission by me to the con-
gress from time to time of full in.
formation and advice as to the rela-
lions of this government to transit
across the isthmus and under the
treaties; as to the negotiations and
final acquisition of the title and later
as to the progress and condition of
the work of construction; the previ-
GUS authorization of the sale to the
United States by the stockholders Of
the new company and their subse-
quent ratification; the examination
and approval of the title by Mr..
Knox; the arrangement for payment
through J. P. Morgan & Co. as the
fiscal agents of this government, and
the payment accordingly at the Bank
of France upon proper official re-
ceipts to the liquidators acting under
the decree of the French court, the
French government and body having
Jurisdiction in the matter; and, f.
nally, the subsequent apportionment
I and distribution of the fund to the
| ero1ffnY.c onI ~ of SuyC
companies under that decree.
Knox Managed the Deal.
The canal transaction was actu-
ally carried through not by either the
+ secretary of state, Mr.. John Hay, or
the then secretary of war, Mr.. Elihu
Root, both of whom, however, were
cognizant of all the essential features,
but by the then attorney general, Mr..
! p. G.. Knox, at present senator from
i Pennsylvania. directed or approved
every action and am responsible for
all that was done in carrying out the
will of the congress and the provi.
tsions of the lawsenacted, by congress
after exhaustive examinat ion and dis
cussion were scrupulously complied
with sby the executive. While the
transaction was pending I saw Mr..
Cromwell but two or three times and
my communications with him were
limited to the exchange of purely for
malsscourtesies. Secretary Hay occa,
4 sionally saw him in the same manner
/ I doubt whether Mr. Root held any
conversation with him. The attorney
general saw him frequently, as he was
counsel for the Panama company, and
their communications were official as
representa-: the two sides. enclose
copies OF, my correspondence with Mr.
| William Dudley aFoulke, who first
brought these scandalous stories to
I my attention, and which Senator Knox
and Mr.. Cromwell, to. whom I wrote
in response to the request of a gentle
man who. wished to know about. the
stockholders in the. Panama Canal
4 company The title to the Panama
Icanal properties was vested in the
.sIneW Panama Canal company Of
i France. which was. the legal owner
4 thereof, and the old or so called De
i Lesseps company had q large equity
THEREIN. The title was not in a New
! Jersey company nor. any other Amer.
flican company, nor did this govern
Iment have any dealings with any
4 :Amerieants company through the If
+ fair The exact legal status, to the
most minute details, appears in the
i exhaustive opinion of Attorney Gen
7Eeral Knox, approving the title to be
II given to the United States, which
Il clearly established that the only
Il party dealt with was the new Panama
a Canal comp any Of France with the
sEconcurrence of the liquidator OF the
u old company and not any American
i corporation or syndicate. A 81. 5 *.i: ~
Mot / interested in: Shareholders. =
The action of the United States
4 government was. OF course, wholly
uninf iueneed by, and had nothing: tc
/ do hateYei N 18th, any question as e
81 Who were, on who had been, the Sc
curity holders Of eitheT the new or the
SOld company. ATlao such ~ security
8