The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1908-12-18
PRESIDENT BRANDS THE CANAL
STORIES FALSE and LIBEL0US
IN A RED HOT MESSAGE TO CONGRESS HE DENoUNCES
NEWSPAPER PUBLISHER SEVERELY.
Considering
Of Procedure; History
the Sena and House

Now, these stories, as a matter of
fact, need no investigation whatever.
No shadow of proof has been, or can
be, produced on behalf of any of them
They consist simply of string of in
famous libels. In form they are in
part libels upon individuals, upon Mr..
Taft and Mr.. Robinson for instance.
But they are in fact wholly and in
form partly libel upon the United
States government. | do not believe
we should concern ourselves with the
particular individuals who wrote the
lying and libelous editorials, articles
hom correspondents, or articles in
he news columns The real offender
is Mr.. Joseph Pulitzer, editor and
proprietor of the World While the
criminal offense of which Mr.. Pulitzer
has been guilty is in form libel upon
individuals the great injury done is in
.blackening the good name of the
American people; it should not be left
to the private citizen to sue Mr.. Pulit-
ger for libel He should be prose-
cuted for libel by the government au-
thorities. In point of announcement
of iniquity, in point of infamy, of
wrong doing, there is nothing to
choose between a public servant who
betrayS his trust, public servant
who is guilty of blackmaiI, or theft,
or financial dishonesty of any kind,
and man guilty as Mr.. Joseph Pu-
liter has been guilty in this instance.
1t is therefore a high national duty to
bring to justice this villifier of the
American people, this man who wan
tonly and wickediy and without one
shadow of justification seeks to
blacken the character of reputable
private citizens and to convict the
government of his own country in the
eyes of the civilized world OF wrong
doing of the basest and foulest kind,
when he has not one shadow of JUS
LITIGATION of any sort of description
for the charge he has made. The at
torney general has under considera-
ton the form in which the proceed
ings against Mr.. Pulitzer shall be
brought.
History of Whole Transaction.
Meanwhile / submit to you all the
have before you complete information
on the subject. | call your attention
to my communications in my mes
sages to the congress of Jan. 20, 1902;
March IL, 1903; Dec. Z, 1903; jan 4,
1904, and Dec. II, 1906, in which set
forth at length the history of various
phases of the whole transaction.
/ recall your attention to the report
and opinion of the attorney general
rendered to me, dated Oct %, 1902,
with the accompanying documents
and exhibits. | call your attention to
the correspondence of the officers and
agents of the Panama company with
the president and other officers of the
United States printed in senate docu-
ment No. "a, Dec. 10, 1902; also to
the copy of the official proceedings of
the new Panama Canal company at
Paris on Dec. 80, 1903, together with
a report of the council of administra-
ton of that company, printed in SEN
ate document No. 1873, jan %, 1904;
and to the copy of the general con-
veyance by the new Panama Canal
company to the United States, also
copies of certain kilograms from the
president of the company making an
offer of sale and Attorney General
Knoxs cablegram in response, print
ed in senate document No. 2S5, March
%, 1906. | call your attention further
more to the exhaustive testimony
recorded in public document, senate
document No. 401, Fifty-ninth con-
gress, second session, which contains
the searching investigation into the
whole transaction made by congress
for its information and fully consid-
cred by the congress before it took
action.
Authority Granted by Congress.
In the act approved June 20, 1902,
ITO provide for the construction of
canal connecting the waters of the
Atlantic and Pacific oceans" the con-
gress provided as follows:
THAT the president of the United
States is hereby authorized to ac-
quire, for and on behalf of the United
States, at cost not exceeding S40,-
100000 the rights, privileges, fran
chises. concessions, grants of land.
right of way, unfinished work, plants
and other property, real, personal and
mixed, Of every name and nature,
owned by the new Panama Canal COM
pany of France on the isthmus of
Panama, and all it's maps. plans,
drawings and records on the isthmus
of Panama and in Paris, including all
the capital stock, not less, however,
than $3.50 shares of the Panama
Railroad company, owned by or held
for the use of the said canal COM
pany. provided satisfactory title to
all of said property can be obtained"
1t thereupon became the duty of the
president, in execution of this statute,
to purchase the property specified
from the new Panama Canal company
of France, provided he could obtain
satisfactory title. The department of
justice was instructed to examine the
title and after such examination At