The silver state. [volume] (Winnemucca, Nev.) 1909-1925, 1912-08-01
MASSEY DELIVERS
MAIDEN SPEECH

WASHINGTON, Aug. 1.-The right
of Great Britain to participate in an
understanding for the control of the
Panama canal was denied in the SEN
ate Tuesday by two advocates of the
measure to give American coastw;se
shipping the preference in canal tolls.
Senators Bradley, of Kentucky, and
Massey, of Nevada, contendcd not only
that the United States had the right
under the treaty to regulate its own
affairs, but the purchase of the canal
zone removed the entire subject from
international control
Senator McCumber, of North Dako-
ia, took an opposite view in his speech
opening the canal debate. Senator
Massey declared the Hay-Pauncefote
treaty of 1901 could be ignored by the
United States as far as the canal was
concerned. The operation OF that wa
terway had become a domestic prob
lem, he said, and one not properly re-
viewable by an international court.
Senator Bradley held that, even un-
der the treaty, the United States had
simply made the rules of equality
which were to apply to all other ma
tions. As the maker of these rules
and nation at whose expense the canal
had been built, he declared the Unit
ed States was not bound by the regu-
lations of the treaty so far as it re-
quires "equal treatment" to all
ships.
Rights Of War Vessels.
Senator McCumber, speaking against
the provision for remission Of tolls to
American ships, said he believed such
action would violate the spirit of the
treaty with Great Britain.
Senator Cummins asked if the treaty
with Panama guaranteeing free pass
age of Panama's war vessels would
not require the United States to give
free passage to the war vessels of all
nations. Senator McCumber said he
believed the strict terms of the treaty
war vessels.
Senator McCumber declared the
treaty proposed absolute neutrality for
the canal, but Senator Cummins said
it was impossible to conceive that
to pass through the canal in time of
war the battleships of hostile ma
tion.
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The fortifcation of the canal, Sen
ator .McCumber said, is for police pro-
lection.
IF we should publish to the world
that we had fortified it as a war
measure and not for police protec-
tion,'' he said, :" it would cost us ten
times as much to protect it in time of
war as we would derive in benefit
from it, 1t would become a source of
weakness, not strength.
All nations would combine against
the United States, he insisted, if it
should attempt to close the canal in
time of war to any foreign ships. The
canal would then face the danger of
destruction, he said, from "the sur
reptitious bomb of some foreign pow
err
Senator Bradley said the American
people would not have sanctioned the
spending of $400,000,000 to build the
canal had they believed they were to
have no exclusive rights there. The
pledge of "equality" to all nations,
Senator Bailey said, meant that the
United States would give equal treat
ment to all nations in use of the canal,
while reserving the right to protect it
itself.
The fact that England had entered
no protest against fortiication of the
canal, Senator Bradley said, was evi
dence that she recognizes the right of
the United States under the treaty to
protect it's own interests.