The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1913-09-11
WHAT WISDOM" 1T Isl

We see good deal Of applause gwen
in the Eastern newspapers to the WIS
DOM Of "President Slocum of Colo
rador in fdisposing OF the Panama
Canal ISSUE at The Hague peace con
ference There was nothing calling for
any action by that conference on the
Panama Canal question. No action
taken at that conference could posi-
bly, bind anybody; but the meddlesome-
ness Of il might easily put the United
States in a false position, thereby max
ing it difficult for our Government to
right itself later on if the matter ever
came up in practical form by arbitra.
tion at The Hague.
Great praise is given to President
Slocum because of what is announced
to be his accomplishment, and the al
truistic American declaration which he
submitted to that conference, and
| which that conference gladly adopted,
The Slocum declaration doDounces the
fortifying OF the canal, holding that
| it is unnecessary If we would seek the
peace idea and ask other nations to
protect us, and also that Great Brit
ain and the European nations must be
given the ''benefit Of the doubt - with
| regard to the vague language used IN
the Hay-Pauncefote treaty, and there
fore that all other nations must be al
lowed to use the canal on precisely the
same terms that we use il ourselves,
In his address in support of his propo-
sition, President Slocum appealed to
the press and people Of Europe to rec
ognize that the people Of the United
States were not actuated by "sordid
motives in building the canal, but by
| the purpose to deal fairly with every
nation, this fair dealing consisting of
doing great work and expending money
| lavishly for the benefit OF other ma
tions. Tt is stated thereupon that
President Slocum 'has rendered a
great service to this country in putting
the nation right in the eyes Of those
who wanted to know the truth, and
further "fthat nothing could have been
done more than this action of the
American delegate to help the move.
ment for international peace. -
/ That is to say, that President Slocum
undertook TO commit the United States
to the proposition that it is not TO get
any advantage out of the expenditure
of $400,000,000 in building the canal
| that it is building that canal In effect
not for itself but for the world, and
that the world has just as much right
not see that President Slocum sug-
gested that the management and con,
troll of the Panama canal should be
turned over to international commits.
soners. with the United States having
mere fractional voice therein, vet
that is The logical issue Of President
Slocum S declaration
There can be no doubt but that the
action of President Slocum is mischev-
Gus in the highest degree, and that the
United States will be called upon to
rcpudiate it later on cannot be doubted
| If we should ever arbitrate the point.
1t is stated that President Slocum IS
resolution and remarks were ''received
with enthusiasm by the European
peoples. No doubt that would be the
case. Any country would receive with
enthusiasm a proposition that some
! other country was atrustiCally to
spend $400,000,000 for It's use and bene,
fit, ignoring its own interests. But
how about the country that makes the
expenditure? Why should il not have
It's say with regard 10 the management
and control Of its own property? Why
should we build canal for the world
and share with us on the same terms
as ourselves? The thing is so cxasper-
atingly absurd that it is hard TO deal
with such silly nonsense as this move
of President SIocum 5 with any pa
| tience at all Besides, why should such
a commitment Of the United States to
tins notion be sought at this time 4?
! Evidently, to meet the frownlne face
of European hostility. But do we oh
tain immunity from that hostility be
cause Of the concessions thus made +?
BY no means. That hostility would
merely speed on to further aggressions
and further demands. 1T is 4 sad mis-.
take TO yield anything in the face of
the hostile clamor Of unfriendlv M.
tiops, and the United States cannot but
4 be put in false position by such
moves.