The citizen., 1914-04-03
REPEAL FREE SHIP TOLLS OF
PANAMA CANAL.

The bill to repeal the free tolls OF the
American Coastwise ships through
the great Panama Canal is now be-
fore Congress, and is creating wide
spread attention and interest. 1t was
passed recently by the House of Repre-
sentatives by majority of eighty six,
and it will be now introduced into the
Senate of the United States. This was
bill passed by Congress granting free
tolls to American Coastwide ships.
The toll charged on all ships going
through the canal is $l.20 per ton on.
cargo This was claimed by England
and all foreign nations to be violation
of the Hay. Pauucefote treaty, which
they claim guaranteed to all nations using
the canal was to be on equal terms If
that ageement is contained in that treaty,
then this nation made a great big blum
der in making any such treaty. All of
the nations of the world claim that the
treaty contains an agreement, and the
only dispute as to it is in the United
States. The bill which is to settle this
dispute is now before Congress. There
is no question about the fact that the
canal has been built through American
territory 1t has been built through
the Panama Strip, which ex Pres ident
Roosevelt publicly declared that he took
from Colombia. 1t is also true that we
have never paid Colombia for this ter
ritory thus forcibly taken, and the honor
of this nation requires us yet to pay for
it. We built this canal, the greatest
one in the world, and the greatest canah
that has ever been constructed, exclus-
lively with the money of the American
people, at cost of $400, 600, 900 and
we have fortified it at cost of many
millions more, and now the tolls paid by
the ships going through it is to main
tain the Notifications, and to repay the
United States Treasury for the cost of
Its erection. 1t is not expected ever to
pay back to the people what it has cost,
nor is it at all certain that it will Justify
the expense and labor that it has cost
the people, but this is aside from the
question involved in the bill now before
Congress. That bill deals alone with
the question of our treaty agreement
with England as to the question of tolls.
This country cannot afford, nor will it be
desirable if it couI6, to violate an agree
ment with nation as friendly to us as
England. But there is another question
that makes it imperative that the Dem
ocratic President and Democratic
Congress should repeal the free tolls to
American ships. The difficulty arises
mainly from the fact that the Demo
cratic Convention at Baltimore City that
nominated President Wilson, adopted
plank in its platform exempting coast
wide ships of America from paying toll.
This plank was put in the platform by
sub committee of the Committee on Res
olutions, consisting Of eleven men, of
which Secretary Bryan was one and
United States Senator O'Gorman was
another. 1t is not known, or if known,
it has not been told to the people, who
put that plank in the platform. The PEI
pie are deeply interested in knowing who
was responsible for that plank, and the
people have right to know. That
plank is a violation of the cardinal prin.
ciple of the Democratic party from its
earliest history up to this time, and yet
this plank was adopted by thesconven
ton, and Mr.. Wilson after his nomina.