Bluefield evening leader. [volume] (Bluefield, W. Va.) 1906-1911, 1908-10-21


mote transportation between the Pa
chic coast and the east n the days
or the gold discoveries.
Cromwell bought SOM stock in
this railroad In 1893 and became its
counsel. 1t was In that way he be-
came first identified with the Pana-
ma canal affairs and had worked
himself into commanding position
when the French Panama Canal
company was organized and took
over everything that the original De
hesseps company owned. He be-
~ame counsel for the new canal
company and conceived the scheme
OF selling II to the United States In
the late nineties.
In gong over the affairs OF the
Panama Railroad, Gen. Davis dis
covered that, after the United States
had agreed to buy all OF the prop
erty OF the French Canal company
to' s4u. 100, and while the title
was being examined William Mel
son Cromwell and his fellow di-
rectors and stockholders of the Pa
mama railroad declared and paid to
themselves a large dividend out OF
the funds of the company which
had not earned during the preceding
year. and which, 1t is claimed, had
been set aside for repairs on the
road and the steamships 1t owned.
CLAIMED MONEY FOR GOVERN
MENT.
Gen. Davis held that this money
morally If not legally belonged to
the United States, as this govern
ment had to at once spend several
hundred thousand dollars to make
repairs which this iund should have
betrayed. 1t was held that the
money being IN the treasury of the
company at the time the United
States contracted for the purchase
IL was as much the property OF the
government as the cars, locomotives
and roadbed.
In a report he made to his fell
low members OF the Isthmian COM
mission, Gen. Davis devoted consid-
erable attention to the exposing of
what he regarded as questionable
methods on the part OF Cromwell
in depicting the treasury of the Pa
mama road after its sale to the
United States had been agreed upon
These adverse references to Crom
well in an official report which was
TO become a public document in
censed the New York lawyer greatly
1t is said, and also brought Secre-
tary Taft and President Roosevelt
to his rescue. Gen. Davis was arbi
trarily ordered to eliminate from
his report all OF the offensive refer
5nces to Cromwell. He was told
chat what had happened prior to the
actual acquisition of the canal prop
critics by this government did not
come within hiS scope and that the
matter did not belong in the re-
port.
OBEYED SUPERIOR ORDERS
Obedient to the orders of his su-
periors, the old soldier did as he
was told. and took out the referen-
ces ch had so offended Cromwell
and the mutllated report was placed
on file. Then Gen. Davis commit
ted a great sin In the eyes of Crom-
well, Tat and Roosevelt.
There Is an army regulation
which calls upon all officers to re-
port to their superiors anything
that comes under their observation.
and which they belive should be
known to the government. This
rule applies to the retired officers
as well as those in active service.
Knowing this rule, Gen. Davis.
in his capacity as a retired officer,
but still subject to army regula-
tions, made a detailed report to the
secretary of war of the very matters
which he had been compelled TO cut
out of his report to the Isthmian
commission. That report had to be
received, but pains were taken to
keep It from the public and It was
pigeO6holed in the archives of the
var department.