The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1915-05-02

scope Of the edltOrS Us well inulcdteu
in the review Of the diary Of james
Gallatin.
Governing the Panama Canal Zone.
An official address to his employers.
the American people, is presented by
Gen. GEORGE w. COCKTAILS, Governor
Of the territory through which pa. ses
the interoceanic highway built Cor
Uncle Sam by Col Goethals and some
others. In Government Of the Canal
Zone princeton University Press).
The book embodies the Stafford Little
Lectures for 1915 at the New Jersey
college: a foundation for discourses
on public affairs. by public men. that
opened with Mr.. Cleveland's notable
addresses on Executive independence,
the Intervention of the Federal Cow
eminent in the Chicago strike Of 1881
and the Venezuelan boundary ContrO-
versy. and continued with Joseph "
Choate on the Hague conferences
Elihu Root on the American Consti-
tuition and Jacob Could Schurman On
the Balkan wars of 1912 and 1913.
This Is distinguished catalogue
and roll cal. II will not he thought
an act Of fiattery TO place the nama
OF Gen. Goethals along with its adj
mira bic predecessors on tho Princeton
iostrum: and in respect of immediate
, vitality of interest 10 the public NJ
topic in the list rivals his. In fact
We should not hesitate to say that
1t would be extremely difficult To name
| a subjec, and an cXpos.tor more
trcn chant,y influential upon the pub
! lie mind Of this nation in this day.
! The only competition We can suggest
would be a revelation Of tho prophetic
workings OF the mind Of Culcbra !.
which can bc spoken Of in terms SO
human because it seems 10 he per-
| sonal sort Of devil. with disquietinS
ambitions to partisanship with the
Governor Of the zone in the official
! capacity Of Regulator OF Traffic. Il
is not the genius OF Culebra but II
Sispher Phillips that declares t'Pani-
ma and other Poems" 1850:
| All sings orchestral % the dining rod
OF Goethals. and obcys his potent nod.
! In the absence OF a reporter quail
/ fled to communicate the ina ginabl"
musings Of the monster, the Cover
| nors account of the problems o.
zone government and the machinery
| of their solution is of paramount m
tcrest. He places IL on an equal foot
| ing. in respect Of meritcd though no:
accorded public recognition and ad-
miration. with tho engineering and
sanitary performances OF Uncle Sans
army officers ana doctors. OF the for
mer he says: The construction II tho
canal involved The solution Of no new
engineering problems, simply the app
plication Of known principles and
methods which experience had shown
| would give satisfactory results, 70!
the very magnitude Of the work pre-
cluded trying out anything new or
experimental" And of sanitation
with SIR Ronald Ross discovery OF
the cause OF malaria. which led him
to adopt means for its reduction and
eradication in Egypt and India, and
with Reed Lazear and Carroll prov
ing the theory that yellow fever is
transmitted by the mosquito and for
mulsting rules which freed Cuba
from the raVages Of that dread dis
ease. there remained but tho applica
ton II the methods followed else
where to secure similar results on ths
Isthmus with respect to the two dis
eases. The work in Panama deve,.
opcd nothing new" Housing ant
feeding and the recruiting OF labor
were more difficult; the repulsive in
fucnce Of the lands reputation as a
pest hole was supported by govern
mental restrictions on the emigration
Of workmen both from Europe ant
from the West Indies. Even takint
into view the experience gained in thu
insular possessions. Gov. Goethal'
concentrates his claim to credit: -
novel problem in government wal
presented by the necessity Of ruin.
and preserving order within the Cana
Zone. \ new situation existed, anc
after various changes there wa
evolved a form OF government whici
was unique, differing from any estab
lished methods Of administration"
The Tsthmian Canal Commission
was organized in March of 1904 afte
chapter OF history with Colombia
the Republic Of Panama and Pres.
dent Roosevelt as protagonists. Tn
secession of the Province of Panama
the recognition of its independence b.
the United States, and the negotia
tons that eliminated I'm the treat,
Of November is, 1908. with cession @
the zone, are not rehearsed in deta
by the Governor nor forgotten by tn
people Of this and the two other re
publics involved. The canal wa
placed in the War Department. an
administration of military. civil an
judicial affairs in the hands of tn
commission. President Roosevelt
: stituted in effect bill Of rights
for residents of the zone. but spccfi
powers were granted to the governin
body by which N certain cases Tn
individuals rights under that hi
, could be cancelled by the Sovernin
to those exercised by military occu
piers Of territory, and were justfie
J by the necessarily shifting and ur
r settled conditions of the popula ioi
: Major-Gen. George W. Davis was tn
first Governor OF the zone. He in
formed the people by proclamation tha
q "the laws OF the land would be con
4 tinued in force eXccp, where foun
to be IN conflict with certain funds
,, mental principles of government en-
j bodied in the Constitution OF tn
d United States whereby individual right
y are guaranteed and native officia
were instructed to continue in dis
|