The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1908-12-18
HIS FINAL MESSAGE
Continued from page one. >
old company and not any American
corporation or syndicate.
Not Interested in shareholders.


The action of the United States
government was, of course, wholly
uninfluenced by, and had nothing to
do whatever with, any question as to
who were, or who had been, the Sc
curity holders of either the new or the
old company. Who such security
holders were was not our affair. If,
as matter of fact, the canal COM
panies, either or both, had been owned
by American citizens or by citizens
Of any other nationality it would not
have altered in the slightest degree
the action taken by this government
Our concern was to get the canal
property which was owned by the
French company and to see that the
title was clear. Our transactions were
carried on openly and were published
in detail and we. dealt solely ESQ far
rs the interests of the old Panama
company were concerned) with the
liquidator appointed by the proper
French governmental body, the civil
tribunal of the Seine, and in accord
ance with the decree of this same
tribunal, with the new Panama Canal
company, which also went into liqui-
dation upon the sale to the United
States. All our transactions were
carried on openly and were published
in detail.
The distribution of our payment of
SAC, 100000 follows the award of arbi.
traitors chosen by the new company
and the liquidator authorized by the
decree of the same civil tribunal Of
the Seine and providing for a deter
mination of the proportionate division
between the new and old companies.
We paid the money through the New
York banking house of Messrs. J. P.
Morgan & Co., acting as fiscal agents
of this government, into the Bank OF
France in Paris. The receipts and
accounts of our treasury department
show the payment of the money into
the Bank of France and account for
the money being pai0 over to the
liquidator appointed by the civil
tribunal of the Seine and to the new
Panama Canal company of France,
the proportion of the $40,000,000 being
12S, 100000 francs to the liquidator of
the old company and 77,40O,OO0 francs
to the new Panama Canal company OF
France in liquidation.
Followed Decree of French Court.
In these payments we followed to
the letter the decree of the govern
mental tribunal of France which had
the authority to make such decree,
the civil tribunal of the Seine. We
had neither desire nor authority to
governmental body, as all the con-
fiicting rights of the security holders
of both companies had been settled
by the decree of said court by ratifi-
cation of the arbitration which result
ed in that division ! wish to make as
clear as possible, and as emphatic as
possible, the statement that we did
not have anything to do with the dis
tributiOn of dollar of the $40,00O,O0O
we paid as regards any stockholders
or bOndholders of the French COM
panies, save that we followed out the
award of the arbitratOrs appointed in
accordance with the decree of the
French court which had dealt with
the subject in awarding certain pro-
portion to the old company and GER
tain proportion to the new company.
Any question concerning the stock
holders, bondholders or other bene-
ficiaries of the proceeds of sale was
purely question for the civil tribunal
of the Seine, the French governmental
body, with which this nation has moth
ing whatever to do.
Under these circumstances there
was not the slightest need for Mr..
Cromwell to give any information on
the subject of the companies for
which he had been counsel. This
government. has no concern with Mr..
Cromwell's relation to these COM
amount of his professional compen-
sation; it was not the affair of this
government to inquire who were the
security holders of the companies.
Nevertheless. Mr.. Cromwell, of his
own accord has submitted to me, to-
gether with a copy of his statement
published on the 18th inst, and which
transmit herewith, full list of the
stockholders of the new Panama Ca
nal company of France on Jan. Is,
1900 (numbering over $1,000, and a
list of all stockholders who were pres
ent at special meeting of the COM
pany held Feb. %, 1902, Immediately
after the cable offer of the company
was made to the United States Jan.
Gil, 1922 to accept the appraise-
ment of $40.000,O00 made by the 18TH
milan canal commission and to sell
for said sum the Panama canal con-
cessions and other property and the
shares of the Panama Railroad COM
pany. He has also furnished me
certified copy of the final report OF
the liquidator of the old company,
which was filed on June 25 last and
formally approved by the civil tribunal
of the Seine, together with sum-
mary account prepared and signed
by said liquidator as late as the oath
ult
Resolutions Ratifying Sale.
7 also transmit translation of the
two resolutions, with the vote upon