White Pine news weekly mining review. [volume] (East Ely, Nev.) 1910-1920, 1912-10-06
SENATOR MASSEY
WINS BY DEBATE
MaSIERLY DEFENSE OF UNITED
STATES CONTROL OF PANAMA
CANAL, MEETS APPROVAL OF
EUROPEAN NATIONS.


Tie open threatening, the powers oil
Europe have at last capitulated and
now agree that the attitude of the
united States in its relation to the
Panama canal not only should, but
does meet universal approval. Ameri.
can yigor is commended in the Eu.
ropean press for the success of the
tremendous undertaking now near
Ing completion. Even the imposi-
ton of tolls and the regulation of the
passage of commerce and the nayies
OF foreign countries, is openly COM
mended and acquiesced in.
Time was. and not so very long
ago, when it looked as though the
rights of the government of the Unit
ed States to protect and prescribe
rules for the use of its own property
might be disputed and an appeal TAX
en- to the arbitral court at The
Hague. Our friends across the wa
ter, who had seen Uncle Sam de-
l~iberately and intelligently perform
Ing a task which all the nations of
the world had hoped some day to see
accomplished, become suddenly
possessed of a desire to share equal
ly in all the benefits to be derived.
They began to realize that the com
pletion of the canal would necessitate
greater notifications of established
systems of foreign commerce
than were forced by Suez.
They realized that no greater change
could have taken place had nature
shifted the course of her trade
winds.
One London journal refers to the
canal as the browning achievement of
American force and enterprise. 1t
adds this most significant para
graph: The best minds of the
British empire are concentrating
upon the commercial revolution
which is imminent, in order that, ir-
respective of the willingness of Am
orleans to arbitrate concerning tolls,
we may use the new waterway t o the
full and may begin to use it the day
1t is opened"
In the senate of the United States,
a few months ago. when the actual
crisis in the affairs of the canal was
reached, a strong tendency was APP
parent, voiced by the opponents of
the administration, to yield to the
demand of foreign nations regard
ing tolls and the right to fortify.' On
July -, Senator W. A. Massey, of
Nevada. speaking upon the bill pro-
viding for the opening. maintenance.
protection and operation of the canal
took this sentiment as his text: I'VE
own the Panama canal and the ter
ritory through which is is construct
ed" 1t was Senator Massey's
maiden speech in the senate, but in
1t he struck the keynote and won
many warm words of commentator.
The final vote on the bill showed
that his clear cut and incisive ar
gument had its effect.
Senator Massey approached the
subject from the standpoint of a
master of international law. He
showed himself thoroughly familiar
with past battles in the framing and
signing of Anglo-Ameriean treaties.
His mastery of the situation carried
the force of conviction. He dealt
with the acumen of a trained adyo-
cate with Great Britian's efforts to
seek protection behind the Hay
Pauncefote and the Clayton-Bulwer
conventions, establishing the I'M
e~auivocal c~onslusion that the great
waterway as laid out and constructed
did not come within the purview of
any of the provisions of either of
those compacts. Dealing with the
right of sovereignty, Senator Massey
said:
Now, just one word about o V
ereignty. so far as the canal is con-
cerned. | have heard disputed upon
the floor of this chamber the charac-
ter of authority that we have in Pan
anna upon the line of the canal. |
call the attention of the senate to the
expressed words in the treaty which
are an absolute grant of a power and
not only of power but of territory,
in so far as the strip of country in
cluded within the boundaries men,
toned in that treaty is concerned,
Not only that, but words of exclusion
were used in one of the paragraphs
of that treaty which intended to con
an conway ca far &C fha IN.