The Logan Republican. [volume] (Logan, Utah) 1902-1924, 1914-03-05

| N''>"a pNopiO VI dDOul ylO,VpV,yVV PCi
annum out of the treasury Of nUi-
ted States. 1t is an institution which
was not only constructed, as have
suggested by American ingenuity and
American energy and American mon
ey, but is an institution built on Avn.
erican soil; and the American people
have just rs much right to control 1t
without the violation OF any treaty.
as they have to operate the canelo on
the navigable waterways Of this coun-
try without charging any toll.
II this policy of the government.
which has been recognized for hun
dred years, OF the maintenance Of
these canals and their use without the
payment Of tolls is to be reversed.
then we are simply making the rever-
sal at the demand, first, of the Cnn-
adam Pacific Railway Col know
that that is Northumberland, II you
please, by the American transcon,i.
mental railway systems. We fnow,
Mr.. President, that 1t is a matter Of
history that the railway companies
of this country, and particularly the
transcontinental railway companies,
prevented the construction OF the
Panama Canal for years; and when
the question Of granting coastwise
vessels freedom from tolls wss under
discussion here in the Senate, those
of us who knew who the lobbyists OF
the railway companies were could
look up in amy of the galleries and
recognize the faces Of Mr.. Schwerin
and other men who were lobbying for
the railway companies here and OPP
posing this part of the Panama Canal
act, just as they had opposed in the
past every measure that looked to
the construction of such a canal.
Having failed to defeat the building
of the canal, having failed in thwnrt-
ing legislation, they now invade the
field Of diplomacy.
Mr.. President, I say-and I feel
authorized in saying 1t here and
think 1t proper to say It nere-that
at the time the Clayton Bulwer treaty
was adopted and at the time the Hay
Pauncefote treaty, which superseded
1t, was adopted. an entirely different
situation, and entirely different con.
dition existed in this country from
the condition which existed when the
Panama Canal was built; in other
words the subject which was chen
under consideration was the construc.
ton of a canal across foreign terri
! tory. Through the activity and energy
whether rightly or wrongly exerteG.
of President Roosevelt, 10 mile strip
Of territory was acquired by the Uni.
ted States across the Isthmus of Pan
anna and the canal was constructed
on American territory. The question
was discussed once before as to
whether or not that strip of American
territory. I say 1t is American ter
ritory to all intents and purposes, and
the United States has the right to con
struct canal over 1t and to main
tain 1t and to use 1t just exactly as
We see fit.
In all this l do not mean to criti-
else the views of the President; rot
at all. The President has right TO
make this insistence IL he pleascs
but, now IL we are going to yield 10
the demands of anybody with refer
ence to the free of tolls clause I'm
the Panama Canal act, where are we
going to stop? Are we going to listen
to an insistence which may be here.
after made by some foreign power
and say that We will allow American
railroad owned ships to pass through
this same canal? To prevent that Is
just as much violation OF the so called
treaty as any other condition that we
have insisted on in the past, Are
we going to dismantle our forts that
are built for the protection OF the
Panama Canal? Their maintenance
is just as much a violation Of the
49, l.. A narf-