The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1914-03-01
QUOTES WILSON FOR
FREE SHIPSIN CANAL
Ante-Election Speech FavOring
Exemption Is Put Into
House Record.
HIS VIEWS As CANDIDATE
knOwland Of California Reads
What Gov. Wilson Said
TO Jersey Farmers.
HIS VIEWS As CANDIDATE

NOTION. Feb 2s.--The speech de.
livered by Woodrow Wilson At Washing.
ton Park. N. j.. August IS. 1919. indors-
Ing the provision in the Panama Cana
act granting American coastwfse vessels
free passage through the Isthmian water
way. was put In tho Congregational Reoor.
to-day by Representative Knowland OF
California
Mr.. Wilson began his speech by depre.
eating the non existence Of an American
merchant marine and directed attention
20 tho Panama Canal which, he said
would allow the farmers 70 ship their
products 70 the Pacific by way Of Atlantic
ports In coastwiss steamers. He then re-
ferred to the free toll provision;
You see the object OF that. don't your
Mr.. Wilson said in his Washington Park
speech. We don't want the railroads to
compete with themselves. because we un-
derstAnd that kind OF competition. We
want water carriage 70 compete with land
carriage 20 ~ 70 be perfectly sure you
are going 10 get better rates around the
canal than you would across the cont.
nent.'
Representative Knolwand called atten.
ton. too. to the fact that on July ~. 1912
the Democrats asse rnbed In national con
ventiOn In Baltimore adopted \ platform
that contained plank commenting the
provision admitting American cOastwiss
vessels to the Panama Canal. Then the
California Representative quoted this
paragraph from Mr.. Wilson's Washington
Park speech to the farmers.
In Pvatse Of TIE Platfsvs.
"Our platform is not molasses 10 catch
flies. II means business II means what
II SAYS. II In the utt~rsnce Of earnest
and honest men who intend to do business
along those lines and who are not wait
ing to see whether they can catch votes
with those promises before they determine
whsther they are going 10 act upon them
or not. They know tina American people
whtrh they never took notice before. and
gentlemen vino talk one way and vote
another are going to he retired to very
quiet ana private retreat"
The text OF Gov. Wilson's Washington
Park speech shows paa iny that he wanted
to convey tine thought TO the farmers
that the free tolls clause was good
thing for thern and that the policy would
not be abandoned II the Democratic can.
didats WAS elected President.
II 10 the purpose of Representative
knowland ana those associated with
him In the fight on the bin repeating
tho exemption clause Of the Panama
Canal act to contrast the language of
Candidate Wilson's Washington Park
speech with President Wilson'S present
attitude on the FREQ toll question.
Hero is, in part, what Mr.. Wilson said
In his Washington Park speech:
"One OF the greatest objects In cuttjns
that great ditch across the 1sthmus OF
Panama b TO allow farmers who are
near the Atlantic to ship 10 the Pacific
by way Of the Atlantic ports TO allow
all the farmers on what 7 may. STANDING
here, call this part ~ the continent, 10
f,nd an outlet 81 ports Of the gulf or the
porta Of the Atlantic seabosrd. ana then
have coastwiss steamers carry their prod
ucts down around through the canal