Arizona republican., 1914-03-03
The Trial of
 M. De. Lesseps

Of especial interest at the present time, with the Panama canal so nearly completed, is the ill-starred attempt to ditch the Isthmus begun by Ferdinand de Lesseps in 1881, his failure, and subsequent trial and conviction. In 1876, De Lesseps, with the glory of having dug the Suez canal still untarnished became in terested in the Panama situation. He and his friends had so far agitated the question favorably that in 1879 d congress assembled in the rooms of the Geographical society at Paris, under the presidency of Admiral de la Ronciere le Noury. which voted in favor of digging the canal
 De Lesseps was chosen to head the project He was 74 years old at the time. Politics. which De Les seps always avoided. was his greatest enemy in this matter Capital for liberally provided, not by rich Frcnchmen. but by the middle classes. The French press grew more and more sanguine and people rushed with their money into what they supposed was going to be q very profitable enterprise
 Little by little. reluctantly acknowl- edging the task greater than he expected, De Lesseps kept calling for new support. and in some way or other kept getting it. He continued color the Panama horizon a roseate hue, but it was sunset and not sunrise.
 At the end of 1888 night fell upon the hopes of the dupes. while day broke upon their senses. Panama was fatally malarial: the cost of eX- cavation was greater than was sup posed. Gross mismanagement marked every turn. Interest was paid ou' of the capital stock. Locomotives ordered from Belgium were of the wrong gauge and could be seen rust | ing by the railroad tracks. Worse was the unparalleled corruption re sorted to by the desperate directors
 to keep the facts from publicity, en-
 deavors which eventually failed. The
 populace of Paris was furious at thu cumulative revelations.
 over one hundred members of tn
 French national legislature were
 smirched, five ex-ministers beinl
 among those arrested Enemies 0
 the French republic. seeking for ;
 scandal that would imperil the gov
 ernment, forced the prosecution o
 the directors Their attacks were s' Vigorously made that the governmen
 was obliged, in self defense. to hav'
 judicial proceedings taken against d. Lesseps. his son Charles, and tw' ico-workers, Fontane and Cottu. ] Charles de Lesseps, in order t
 protect his aged father, tried to di lert the storm upon his own head
 He managed to draw down upol
 himself all the burden of the con
 denmation pronounced. One of tn consequences of the prosecutions, o which he was the object, was to oblig
 him to spend three years. iron 1896 to 1899, in England.
 The French had spent in all abou s260, 900, 900 and sacrificed about 200
 French lives before they drew thei fires from their dredges. left thei steam shovels in the jungles an' , turned the task over to the United
 States. Out of the sum expended tn |. contractors and others had reaped
 rich reward at the expense of tn | poor people of France.
 De Lesseps was firecely attacke' on all sides on account of the woe
 full exhibit that came with tn
 breaking of light into the project Tens of thousands of people wh
 had trusted in him were ruined. D Lesseps. his son. Fontane, COttu am
 Eifel were indicted in effect, fo eu,indlinn and hrihinp lepiSlatOrS. D