The Birmingham age-herald., 1909-01-27
RAINEY RIPS UP THE
 PANAMA CANAL DEAL
 IN SCATHING WORDS
CONTINUED FROM PAGE l.,

that there is nothing to investigate. It Is not the part of sound statesmanshil and true patriotism to attempt to revive the obsolete common law remedies of 20i years ago and to employ all the tremen- dous agencies of the government in at tempting to crush newspapers who have had the courage to cal attention to a questionable transaction in connection with the canal"
 He submitted for record various papers and documents in support of many ale gations contained in the speech.
 Cromwell Denounced.
 Mir Rainey was particularly bitter in his denunciation of MT. Cromwell, general counsel for the New French Panama Ca nal company. and counsel and director of the Panama railway, which is owned by the United States government. He charged that through the manipulations of MT Cromwell the French Canal com pany was permitted to steal from the United States government S3,000,000 or $4,- Oo0,O00," and that after he had become an officer in fact of the United States, he became a party to an attempt to col lect from the United States a fraudulent claim on the part of the canal company of SPOOL OOO."
 He also was unsparing in his attack upon Don Jose Domingo de Obaldia, pres ident of Panama, who, he said, repre- sented "as no other Spansh-American statesman in his generation all that is corrupt in Spanish-American politics"
 Without Obaldia." he stated "Crom- wells career would have been impossible. Without Cromwell Obaldia would have been impossible"
 Taft and Obadia.
 Against Presdent-elect Tat, now en route to the canal zone. MT. Rainey di- rected the accusation that on the occa- sion of his last trip to Panama in May ''he did nothing on the isthmus except to openly push the candidacy of Obaldia for the presidency" He asserted that very thinly yelled threat to seize the republic if Obaldia was not elected was contained in letter written by MT. Taft to the then President Amador and that to prevent this Arias. Obaldlas opponent, withdrew.
 Reference to President Rooseyelts re- cent attack on Senator Tillman was made by MT Rainey in asserting that Senator Lodge of Massachusetts was responsible for the expenditure on January l last of over $1,OO0,000 for the purchase of the steamships Shawmut and fremont for the Panama Railroad company, which the canal commission did not want, and Qiu nOL neeu, Dul NlllCu WSAS pOuSAl pC- cause the constituents of the senior sen ator from Massachusetts wanted to sell them
 Tillman Investigated.
 He said that for some weeks the se- cret agencies of the government have been at work Investigating the senior senator from South Carolina. They have, he said. discovered that he used his frank inadvertently in private correspon- dence and so deprived the government of revenue to the amount of two cents, and the matter was considered important enough to be embodied in a special mes sage from the President to congress. The senior senator from Massachusetts, I be- lieye, is still invited to the White House dinners, is the Presidents friend and adviser and the cabinet maker for the incoming President. l have not heard of any secret service agents disturbing the senior senator from Massachusetts, and yet he is directly, individually. and solely responsible that there was taken out ol the treasury of the United States over 100000.
 A year or two after the independence of Panama" continued MT Rainey "the officials of the little republic commenced to absorb Ideas of patriotism peculiar ly distasteful to MT Cromwell. MT Cromwell determined to displaee pr. Ana. dor and the other leaders of the con stitutional party of Panama and put ir as president some more pliant parsonage less devoted to high ideas and of course in such an emergency as that his atten tion was directed to his old friend ant ally, Obaldia. He was a man after Crom wells own heart. So it was determined that Obaldia was to become president o Panama Cromwell and his friends haC developed certain methods for despoilins and robbing the little country, and they did not propose to be interrupted in any way by the awakened public patriotism and honesty of Dr. Amador and hil friends.
 Obaldla's Elevation. Subsequently" he said, "Obaldia's op ponent withdrew on account of the inter | ference of Secretary Taft in the cleo tions." and Obaldia was elected. In Pres ! idert Amador's farewell message to th' 1 general assembly, said Mir. Ralney he al rectly charged Mir. Taft with forcing tn, ! election of Obaldia.
 "The plan of Mir. Cromwell and hi 1 associates" he declared, was to abso ! lutely appropriate to their own use tn revenues of the republic and to steal tn, | forests and the public lands The neces | sity for MT. Taft's interference and tn l election of Obaldia becomes now as plaii as day.
 | MT Rainey referred to the fact tha 1 there were pending and about to be adopt | ed in the general assembly of Panama 'the most infamous railroad proposition ever submitted to any government" b, which Randolph G. Ward of New Yorl was to be largely the beneficiary. H called attention to what he said was tn failure of Arnold Shanklin, the American 1 consul general at Panama, to make report requested by the bureau of fores try last year because "he evidently feel he owes his position there to William | Nelson Cromwell" and charged that cer tain interested parties were seeking tt levy tribute upon the people of Panam, and indirectly the people of the United States in connection with these timbe land deals.
 Tt will be interesting to know wh' the gentlemen are who are attempting in this way to impoverish the Republi' of Panama he said, and he mentioned