The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1908-12-09
LIGHT SHED ON
PANAMA CANAL
TRANSACTIONS
New York World Quotes Testi-
mony Taken by the Sen
ate Committee.
DOES NOT AGREE WITH
LETTER OF PRESIDENT
DEMAND MADE UPON CONGRESS
TO INVESTIGATE QUESTION
ABLE TRANSACTIONS.

New York. Dec, S.-The New York
World, TO which Delavan Smith, editor
Of the Indianapolis News. referred in
his reply to President Roosevelt's at
tack upon him as the authority for the
article on the Panama canal which APP
peared in his paper and called for the
presidents letter. says today;
In view of President Roosevelt
misstatements of fact in his scandalous
personal attack upon Delavan Smith,
editor of the indianapolis News the
World calls upon the congress of the
United States TO make Immediately a
full and impartial investigation OF the
entire Panama canal scandal
The Investigation of 1906 by the SEN
ate committee of the interOceanic ca
nails was blocked by the refusal of Will
liam Nelson Cromwell to answer the
most pertinent questions Of Senator
Morgan of Alabama. Since that time
nothing has been done. because after
Senator Morsans death there was no
successor to carry on his great work
Of revealing the truth about Panama
corruption.
''Who Got the Money!"
The Indianapolis News said in the
sails Mr.. Smith:
1t has been charged that the United
States bought from American citizens
for $4O,000,000 property that cost those
citizens only $12,000.0O0. There is no
doubt that the government paid $40, OOO,-
600 for the property. But who got the
money?
President Roosevelt's reply to this
most proper question is for the most
part string of Abusive and defama-
tory epithets. But he also makes the
following statements as truthful infor-
NATION to the people:
:. The United. States did not pay a
cent OF the s40.000000 to any American
citizen. The government paid the S40,-
900 900 direct to the French government,
getting the receipt of the liquidator ap-
pointed by the French government to
receive the same.
The United States government has
not the slightest knowledge as to the
particular individuals among whom the
French government distributed the
same.
AS far as I know. there was no
syndicate; there certainly was no syn
dictate in the United States that to my
knowledge had any dealings with the
government. directly or indirectly
Presidents Veracity Questioned.
ITO the best of the Worlds knowl-
edge and belief. each and ali of these
statements made by Mr.. Roosevelt and
quoted above are untrue, and Mr.
Roosevelt must have known they were
untrue when he made them.
''As TO the detailed distribution of the
Panama loot. only one man knows it
all. And that man is William Nelson
in Mr.. CrOnlwell's confidence are Theo-
dore Roosevelt. president of the United
States. and Elihu Root. former secre-
tary OF war and now secretary of state.
Ii was they who aided Mr.. Cromwell
in concentrating the Panama revolu-
ton. arranged the terms for the pur-
chase of the Panama canal made the
agreement TO pay $4,000 600 on the ca
nal properties and.san additional So
100000 fer a manufactured Panama re-
public, every penny of both of which
sums was paid by check on the United
States treasury to J. p. Morgan a Co.
not to the French government. as
Roosevelt says. but TO ]. P Morgan &
Co.
THE natural query of the India5yk 4
oils News as To who got the motley p
was based on the Worlds historical
summary OF Nj cfomWells connection
with the Panama canal. The inquiry
was originally thek Worlds. and the
World accepts Mrs< leposevelt's chal-
lenge. If congress~-gkn have all the
documents in the esfsnkgas Mr. Roose-
welt says, let congress- makes a COM
piete investigation OF the Panama ca
nal affair. and in particular of Will
liam Nelson Cromwelrs relation with
the French company. with Panama and
with the government OF the United
States. Let congress officially answer
this question: Who got the money!
The old French company organized
by Ferdinand de Lesseps in 1879. failed
Continued on Page 2.