davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The daily worker., 1925-11-18
Panama and American Imperialism MmudG

/ s in accordance with the treaty of
1908 whereby Panama was forced to
,ecognize our special rights" as :"the
yuarantors of Panaman indepen-
ience.' sl ne
1t was with reason that Roosevelt
called the treaty of 1908 "a historic
stage in the development of the
Monroe Doctrine"
Let us consider the territory of
Panama (exclusive of the Canal Zone)
under the present conditions of peace
and normalcy. Customs, finances and
police are under the direction of
Americans. The Panama railway is
owned by the United States govern
ment. Revenues from the liquor ex-
else are pledged against interest pay
ments on the per cent national de-
tense loan" Of 1921. IN. B.-Any at
tempt to institute prohibition in Pan
anna, in accordance with Yankee pre-
cedent, would no doubt mean another
hurried military invasion from the
canal zone)
The total amount of private prop
erty in the republic" of Panama was
officially estimated about two years
ago at $33,175,501. OF this, 1000
or more belongs to the United Fruit
company, which has its own railways.
lands and equipments. BY arrange
ment with the dummy Panama gov
ernment, the Goodyear Rubber com
pany has exclusive warehouse facili.
les for rubber in Panaman ports. The
American Foreign Banking corpora
ion and the International Banking
corporation (both controlled by the
Wall Street money trusD have their
branches in the republic" and dom
nate the movement of financial capi-
.al there. TwoIthirds Of all the capi-
tai invested in Panama is American
capital. ~
] A MEXICAN big business" has thus
"A an enormous stake in the little
pseudo-republic where the Panama
hats come from. Has not this at
least a little to do with the deter.
mination of the u. S. government to
guarantee Panaman independence SC
religiously, even from the Panamane
themselves? Is not American imper'
ialism simply phase OF the develop
ment Of American capitalism toward
the monopoly of whatever sections OF
the earth It can lay its hands on?
have not touched at all the ques'
tion of imports and exports between
Panama and the United States, but
when that is taken into consideration
as well as the factors mentioned
above, II wilh be plain that Panama
has no more independence economic
ally than she has politically. Like
The daily worker., 1925-11-18

L1oLKS who imagined the occupa-
1 tion of the city of Panama by our
gallant boys in khaki" constituted
an invasion were under an illusion.
The entire republic" of Panama is
under American rule all the time. The
recent episode was merely an applica-
ton of martial law for the purpose
of breaking a strike of decidedly un-
American Panamans and restoring i'm
perial law and order. The slaughter
of five natives was just "regrettable
incident"
Readers of The DAILY WORKER
may be interested to know what the
republic of Panama looks like now
that it is back to normal.
TN the first place there is the strip
4 of Panama territory known as the
Canal Zone, ten miles wide. running
straight across the middle of the
country and completely dominating
it, a. Contrary to popular belief, the
Canal Zone is not legally a possession
of the United States but is part of the
republic" of Panama. Certain it is,
that in 1904, with the concurrence Of
Roosevelt's "big stick" and the United
States navy, the zone was leased" to
the U. S. in perpectuity. But Panama
has never received a single penny OF
rental The rent money is stored up
in a Wall Stret bank to cover interest
payments on the S0-year 51a per cent
loan that American bankers forced
upon the protesting republic" Sim
ilarly with the $10.O00.00O that the U
S. was supposed to have paid over to
Panama in return for the concession
to build and operate the Panama
canal. This money is invested in
New York state bonds; the Panamans
can neither change the investment
nor touch the principle or the interest
The entire net income of this "consti
tutional fund.-" as it is called, Is
pledged TO cover interest payments on
another Wall Street loan--the 5 pei
cent serials of 1915.
However that may be. an American
governor runs the canal zone as Unit
ed States territory-with a 100 pei
cent American military administra
tion, an American post office. Ameri
can Qualifications, and American sol
diers and marines. A Panaman work
er can not even get job in the Canal
Zone, except at unskilled manual la
Dor and at the very lowest rate OF
pay. h'a
OF course. the soldiers and marines
~ do not stay in the Canal Zone
10y cyerrun the rest Of the "repub'
tic" whenever the Canal Zone admin
stration thinks It advisable. That
The daily worker., 1925-11-18

, Prospective expansion of our -influ-
nee, and commerce in the Pacific"
TODAY the United States is an en-
l. pire stretching out everywhere-in
he Atlantic as we'll as in the Pacific;
in Europe, Latin-America and the Far
East. Imperialism implies an indus
trial method of international seizure
and monopoly; it is therefore, form
of business in which big guns are re-
quired no less than statesmen and
credit men-to protect and extend
the monopolized areas. Imperialism
and war are inseparable and there are
millions of workers who can be use
as cannon fodder. The various units
of the American empire have, been
pieced together with that idea in
mind.
Latin-America is the economic base
of American imperialism, and the
Panama canal is its central strategic
base.
The entire Caribbean and Central
American region has its strategic as
wen as economic importance for
American Imperialism. A. series of
naval bases beginning with Key West,
Florida, and including Guantanamo
Bay lat the southwest Of Cuba), Por-
to Rico. and the Virgin Islands, give
the United States absolute control of
the Caribbean. The treaty of 1907
with Santo Domingo gives the U. S.
| he, right to build a naval base at
saIhana Bay; the. treaty of 1915 with
Iaiti gives her the same right tc
he Mole of st. Nicholas; and ths
/ sryan: :Chamorro treaty Of 1916, per.
mits her to build naval bases in the
Bay, of Fonseca and the Corn Islands
off, Nicaragua. s"~i
1t is significant that in the not
wholly fantastic volume. recently pub
lished under the title of ''The Great
Pacific War; A History Of. the Ameri-
can-Japanese Campaign OF 1931-33," !"
the starting point OF the war is con-
nected with the blowing up OF Jap
anese steamer in the Panama canal
and the consequent suspension of
communication between the Atlantic
and the Pacific. The author, II. c.
Bywater is leading British naval
authority, and he knows whereof he
speaks.
MOT without reason are the Ameri-
~ can military forces in Panama
concentrated in the Canal Zone.
American Imperialism will cling to
the republic" of Panama in the face
Of everything. There is not another
Of her possessions that she would
not give up before this. She guards
iealously against the slightest unset.
Ting influence on the peninsula. Anti
The daily worker., 1925-11-18

Turkey and Wall Street backs France.
When the agreement between Britain
and Germany was made public Stand
ard Oil fatty refused to permit Ger
many to obtain a percentage of its
share, on threat of Withdrawing from
the Mosul oil group. England stood
firm for its agreement with Germany.
Standard Oil withdrew.
THIS withdrawal of the United
L States from the Mosul group is a
declaration of an oil war against the
English concern, the Royal Dutch
Shell. Preparations for the war had
already been quietly made by Stand
ard Oil buying up large claims under
various Turkish concessions in the
Mosul fields. This one act brings
forcibly upon the stage of history the
next stage, and possibly the last, in
the world wide conflict between the
two imperialist giants, England and
America, in their titanic struggle over
monopoly of the oil fields Of the
world. The politics of diplomacy will
soon give way to it's logical extension,
the politics of war.
A PROPER appraisal of this new
"A struggle is impossible without
keeping in mind that it is one front,
though at present the most important,
of the world struggle between Britain
and United States for control of the
oil supplies of the world. This strug-
gle has been raging since 1919, when
oil fields and found that the Royal
Dutch Shell controlled by Britain had
been quietly getting control of most
of the available supply of the world
outside the United States, and por-
ton inside Since that time Standard
Oil has used every conceivable means
within its power to overcome its rival.
In 1922 the United States concern,
operating thru subsidiary, the West
Indies Oil company, was on the verge
of obtaining valuable concession
from Persia, when the Anglo-Persian
Oil company, a British concern STEP
ped in and secured the oil by claiming
a prior concession to the property. A
slight gain over England was made in
the Argentine in South America, but
in May of that year, the Royal Dutch
Shell secured another advantage over
Standard Oil by signing an agreement
with Leonid Krassin, acting on the
Soviet delegation at the Genoa con-
ference, to the effect that a fiveyear
concession in the Baku oil fields
would be granted the Royal Dutch
Shell and its subsidiary, the aAnglo-
Persian concern. Concessions in Rus
sia, tho of temporary advantage to
the nation securing them, cannot be
viewed in the same light as conces-
sions elsewhere, for. tie reason that
the Soviet Union prevents, thru .polit-
ical control, the securing of a mon
opoly by any other nation and be-
cause, at best, the foreigner acts only
as coneessionaire and the terms of
agreements are always of short dura-
ton ata the expiration of which the
property sreyerts to the government.
Britain's S policy was obviously to
The daily worker., 1925-11-18

other states of the Central American
and Caribbean region, she has been
impressed into the American econo
mic system, dominated by the lords OF
Wall Street, and is as truly a part OF
it as Illinois or California. With the
difference, however, that she is one
of the colonial divisions of the system
that she is subject nation, ex-
plotted under imperialist slavery, and
her sons and daughters are obliged
to toll under the most abominable
conditions to produce super-profts for
the imperialists. 1t is the super-pro-
fits from subject nations like Pana-
ma that make it possible for Ameri-
can capitalism to continue its ex-
ploitation and pauperization of the
American working class. For this
reason, if for no other, every class
conscious worker in America, must be
supporter of the growing Panaman
movement for freedom from Ameri-
can rule.
DUT it would be extremely superb
- cial to assume that American
financial interests in Panama itself
furnish the only, or even the main
reason for the enslavement of this
little dependency of American imper-
ialism. Panama must be looked at
in connection, first and foremost, with
the spread of American imperialism
thruout Latin-America, and secondly,
with the development of American i'm
lerialism over all the world. The
'anama canal provides the key to the
ituation.
I The project of the canal was what
Inspired the original robbery of Pan.
ma from Colombia. in the imitation
revolution staged in 1903. The pro
ect was an old one. but it did not ac'
quire irresistible momentum until a
certain period had been reached in
The economic and political develop
ment of the United States.
To say that the canal was wanted
for trading purposes is to repeat an
obvious truth, without at the same
time throwing any real light upon the
question. The fact remains that II
vas only after Americas entrance on
he world political stage that things
began actually to happen in Panama
After the war with Spain, the Ameri
can empire included Hawaii, Samoa
and the Philippines, Porto Rico in
the Caribbean and Cuba, a protector
ate, close at hand. In the words OF
President Mckinley, the building OF
the canal was intended to afford "thai
intimate and ready intercommunica
tion between our eastern and western
5eaboards demanded by the annexa
ton Of the Hawaiian Islands and the
The daily worker., 1925-11-18
By Manuel Gomez

capitalist agitation that tends to de-
stroy the present balance of forces,
strikes of ragged and hungry laborers
against extortionate rents, any work
ing class or peasant disturbance at
all-will be put down as callously as
Great Britain would put down SINH
lar disturbance at Suez.
Panama is the pivotal point of
the entire structure of American inn
-perialism outside of the United States.
In the face of this, what mean the
protests of the little people of Pan
anna who only want freedom?.
The daily worker., 1925-11-18

7 throttle operations Of Standard Oil
in the, undeveloped fields of Mesopo-
tamia and also to secure the more
favorable concessions from the Soviet
government for exploitation. Standard
OH has bitterly opposed the inroads
of British oil and has utilized its
power in Europe and the Near East
to overcome British control.
WTHEN Britain tried to decisively
w subdue Turkey in 1921 by back
ing Greece against that nation, it was
French support with full backing of
Standard Oil that smashed the military
campaign of the Greeks. Britain and
France with the backing of Standard
OiD were at war and the Turks and
Greeks furnished the soldiers to fight
the battles.
England's maneuvering within the
league of nations that eliminated in
its securing preponderating influence
in the sixth assembly was the be-
lated reply to the defeat of Greece.
Also the early expiration Of the four
year mandate for Irak forced Britain
feverishly to strive for advantages
over France that would insure con-
tinuation of the Irak manuate.
The best way for Britain to secure
a perpetuation of it's own mandates
against the will of France is to dis
credit the French administration of
mandates. That accounts for the
policy of neutrality" on the part of
Britain in the fierce struggle now
raging between the Druse tribesmen
and Syrians on one side and the
! French butchers on the other.
| The British press is strangely silent
on this matter Some capitalist edi-
torial writers and European political
correspondents have evinced amaze
ment that Britain maintains consist
ent policy of refraining from severe
criticism of France in the Syrian af-
fair. They, in their infantile minds,
accustomed to analyzing the words of
statesmen instead of the acts of the
governments involved, construe this
suits of Locarno. But, while main
tanning neutrality" the English press
inadvertently exposes it's hand by ad-
vising the English authorities in Pale
stine to avoid anything that could
arouse suspicion that the English are
behind the revolt of the Druses. This
protestation of innocence is very sus-
picious. We think Britain, like the
player queen protests too much" I"
Last week in the article on "Manda-
tes in Syria and Irak" the present
writer said: while Britain had a
hand in the Riff affair there is moth
ing to indicate that the revolt in Syria
was encouraged from that source"
We pointed out that Britain had
everything to gain from the defeat of
France in Syria; the transfer of con-
troll of territories so that a Cape to
Cairo railway and a further extension
to Calcutta, thereby uniting the con-
tinent of Africa with that of Asia, car
be realized; also the preparing of z
case against France on the grounds
that she is incapable of administering
the mandate in Syria, so that Britaii
The daily worker., 1925-11-18
Mexico's Proposed Land Law

restricting ownership land by foreigners passed
the house of representatives in Mexico City by almost unanimous
vote 1t before the senate and will probably without
marked alterations for the that is
government inspired se
The probability Gales government serving
ests of Standard OIL is making against the British
known the Mexican Eagle Oil company.
1t is certain that Mexico does contemplate the shutting out
Of foreign capital altogether but the bill is intended simply to
restrict the investments of mperist in favor of the
other. eA71sae .e,l.
Mexico has. since 1910 been kept continuous turmoil with
pnppet president replacing another rapid succession adeo
Villa Iuerta Caanza Oregon Gales thrown the
Of history by either Standard Oil the Mexican Eagepayng
the either the T. Brtann the world struggle for
control of the oil production of the world.
Mexico will not merely restrict bnt will prohibit foreign
asm ownership of land when the workers reyounized by the
thrush Of foreign capital and the ndustrazaon sections
of that nation rise in their might and proclaim their rule
being pawns the mperast struggle
Britain and the United States
The daily worker., 1925-11-18

WHEN England secured control of
w the Mosul oil district the Stand
ard Oil company raised such a storm
of protest that an armistice was sign
ed in the form of gentlemen's agree
ment whereby the United States con-
Germ was to receive twenty per cent
of the future production of those
fields.
Now, as the aftermath Of Locarno,
comes a decisive break Between Eng
land and this country over the ques-
ton of Mosul oil. The armistice is
ended. The struggle in the Near East
between the two leading imperialist
nations of the world breaks out anew
in a more malignant form. 1t is not
confined to Persia and Turkey alone
but involves the other imperialist ma
tions of Europe.
A short time after the close Of the
Locarno conference there came to
light new alignment on the question
Of Mosul oil. Britain's mandate is
soon to expire so energetic action had
to be taken to perpetuate it. The
question will come up in the council
of the league of nations. France,
bound by economic ties to Standard
Oil, and receiving a share of Mosul
oil, resents this extension of the time
period of the mandate.
Before the sixth assembly of the
league France had things very much
her own way. With the support of
other nations she easily dominated.
But at the sixth assembly every meas
ure adopted was reached thru com
promise with British interests. This
diplomatic triumph of England paved
the way for her calling of the Locarno
security" conference.
Called with the two-fold purpose Of
creating a bloc of European nations
against the Soviet Union and at the
same time. resisting the stranglehold
that Wall Street is obtaining upon
Europe, the final results, still in the
womb of history. will unquestionably
reveal the fact that its one achieve
ment was a triumph for England
against America.
THE contradictions within European
L capitalism prevented the realization
Of the British foreign minister's (Cham-
berlain's) hopes of preparing a uni
fed struggle against Russia on the
basis of the Locarno pacts. The econ
omic dependence of France and Italy
upon the United States prevents their
uniting with Britain in it's second OBJ
jective. But, in spite of this. upon the
basis of the Locarno pacts Britain is
moving against the United States.
A few days after the Locarno con-
ference there came to light the fact
that England had offered Germany a
20 per cent share in Mosul oil on
condition that Germany was to join
the league and support England in its
demand for a 25-year extension of the
mandate This move was deeply re-
sented by Standard Oil because the
Rockefeller interests desire to wrest
Mosul oil from Britain and place it in
the hands Of Turkey. France backs
The daily worker., 1925-11-18

nay get the mandate. We proved that
Britain had every incentive to carry
IN intrigues against France in Syria,
but we then had no evidence that she
actually had hand in starting the
struggle We still question Britain
having had a great deal to do with 1t
much as she may have reached to-
ward that end, but the press comments
of London, just arrived, are suspi-
ciously colored in regard to the af-
fairs in Syria There can be such a
thing as OVERRIDING the pretext of
neutrality"
IF England really has hand in the
Syrian revolt she is playing des-
perate game, amounting almost to in
sanity, because such elementary for
ces, once unleashed, cannot be arrest
ed by arbitrary decree. The Syrians
and Druses have very definite desires
to throw off the shackIes OF the inn
perialist power of Europe and they
will not be more ready to submit to
British rule than they were to French.
Also, the success OF the. Syrian revolt
will encourage the movement of ng-
tional, liberation in ali the colonial
countries and Britain will find herself
faced with widespread revo1ts thru
out all of Asia and Africa. But such
are the contradictions Of Imperialism
that the competing nations must fire.
quently stake their existence upon the
outcome of one maneuver' 81
When the Mosul oil fields are deve-
loped they will need the Syrian port
of Beirut as the pipe line terminal
With the French retaining control Of
the Syrian mandate the French and
American oil interests iin reality one)
can force Britain to disgorge a large
portion of her petroleum products.
This creates another incentive for
England to control Syria. At the same
time this struggle over oil, the with
drawal of Standard Oil from the Mo-
sui group, the bloody struggle in
Syria, the strategic position of Beirut
as the natural terminal for Mosul oil
eloquently explains the American
naval maneuvers in that region. 1t
explains why United States battle
ships traversed the distance of the
Mediterranean to Alexandria, from
thence to Beirut, on the pretext of
desiring to protect American lives
and property" Can anyone doubt for
moment that these warships are
there for any purpose other than as 6
threat to Great Britain2 a ~
In Palestine the British forces are
mobilized on the border. Insthe port
of Beirut American destroyers mena-
cihgly lay in the harbor. Britain is
preparing to oust France, the agent of
STANDARD Oil, from Asia Minor. In
driving relentlessly toward this OBJ
,ieqt she uses every strategem at her
disposal. The attack of Greece against
Bulgaria was unquestionably the work
of Britain, who wants to strengthen
her front against Turkey, with the
idea of subduing that nation, securing
lndisputed control of Mosul, captur-
ing Constantinople and the Golden
Horn and at the same time blockad-
ing Soviet Russia in the Black Sea.
The daily worker., 1925-11-18
We Correct An Error.

NEW YORK CITY, Nov. 16.-To the
Editor of The DAILY WORKER: One
of The DAILY WORKERS New York
correspondents was seriously mis-
informed in report published in the
New York edition of The DAILY
WORKER of Friday last, Nov. 13, to
the effect that the Norwegian steamer
Start had been tied up at Pier No. 3.
army base, South Brooklyn, for two
days by strike for wage increase
under the direction of the Inter
national Seamen's Union.
According to correcting reports just
received, there is no foundation for
the above report given to our CORES
pondent Two port delegates of the
|, w. w. Marine Transport Workers
Industrial Union No. $40, Bryan and
PETERSON. bring the word personally
hru the former to The DAILY
| WORKER. New York Office that the
crew of this ship. the Start, positively
two delegates themselves stamped up
the members of the crew while in port,
that there was no demand for an in
crease of wages or other demands
and no trouble of any description
while the ship was in port and that
the ship sailed on Nov. IL.
The erroneous report was particular
ly obnoxious to the .wobblies at this
time, because during their recent
strike in support of the international
strike of seamen, the officials OF the
l. S. U. at all the ports of the country
were reported to have given the ship
ping masters and the crimps active
cooperation in lighting the strike and
the wobblies have been more active
than ever in lining up sailors in the
New York port, since the recent
strike was transferred to the job.
Fraternally,
n. r. Richards.