Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1927-12-20

| influence of similar enterprising inter
ests behind Nicaragua, requiring as it
does, according to a former Isthmian
canal commission, eight locks in place
| of three in Panama, requiring a dig
! ging of 297 feet in Tamborcito Cut
/ in place of 103 feet in Culebra Cut.
| = x X
| For our coast trade the shorter
route from the Atlantic and Gulf ports
| to the Pacific is all in favor of the
| Nicaragua Canal. In olden disputes
much was made of the obstacles OF
the winds and Gains handicapping
| sailing vessels off Nicaragua on both
sides of the Isthmus, but today sail
ing cuts no figure, for steam has
wholly superseded sails in ocean
traffic.
The United State. has purchased
from Nicaragua for $2,000,000 per
petual and exclusive right to build
such an interoceanic canal across her
domain whenever we see tit to do so,
and we have gotten well rid of the
laundering, ''entangling alliance" with
Great Britain, manifested by the Clay
ton-Bulwer Treaty, requiring British
consent before we could go ahead and
build and control interoceanic canals
to be protected under our Monroe
Doctrine.
In a speech made in 1853 in the
Senate by Senator William II. Seward
the speaker rebuked political criticism
of Secretary of State Clayton, and
said:
The honorable Senator from Cali
fornia (Mr. Weller) declared that ne
was astonished to hear the Senator
from Louisiana say that he was sur
prised at anything, however stupid,
that might be done by the late Secre
tary of State, Mr.. Clayton, and that
ne tMr. Weller) had never known Mr.
clayton to have any co neCtion with
any public affair in which he did not
show himself exceptionally stupid, TO
say the least"
There are advocates today who ar
que that our hesitancy TO permit free
passage of the Panama Canal to our
own coast traffic because of the de-
mand from Great Britain (who is for
bldden any share of our coast trade
anyhow, as are all other foreign coun-
tries) is more modern case of British
protest on our doing as we like with
our own, almost on par with Secre-
tary Clayton's concession.
X X x X
The building of any interoceanic
canal had the opposition of all trans
continental railroads, including those
in Canada. AT the time the Panama
Canal was under construction all
American transcontinental roads were
controlled by foreign (mostly British
bondholders. Since the World War
those bonds have passed to American
investors.
While the railroads foresaw in
creased competition by means of the
lnterOceanic canal, whether in Panama
or Nicaragua, their worst forecasts
have been exceeded. 1t is cheaper to
ship through the Panama Canal from
Chicago to all Pacific ports and thence
by rail to 500 miles inland than to
ship from Chicago to such points all
by rail. That advantage for water
transportation will be increased hen,
instead of shipping from Chicago via
the Great Lakes and rail to New York
ana thence by water through the
Panama Canal, the rouse win lie down
the Mississippi to Nicaragua and up
the Pacific Coast.
x X x X
The French Prince Qater EMPEROR
Louis Napoleon in 1886 wrote as
follows:
Inc geographical position of Con
stanunople is such as rendered her the
queen OF the ancient world. Occupying
as she does the central point between
EUROPE, ASIA and Africa, she would be-
come the entrepot of the commerce Of
al these countries, and obtain over
them an Immense reponderance-for
IN politics. in strategy. a central
position always commands the cir
conference.
There exists in the New World a
state as admirably situated as Con
stantinople. We allude to the state
OF Nicaragua. AS COnstantinOple is
the center of the ancient world, so is
the town Of Leon the center OF the
new, and if the tongue of land that
separates its two lakes from the Pa
citic Ocean were cut through she
would command, by virtue of her GEN.
trial position, the entire coast of
North and South America The state
or Nicaragua ca become, better than
COnstantinople, the necessary route
of the great commerce of the world,
and is destined to attain an cxtraurdi
nary degree of prosperity and gran
deur."
TO some extent that prediction also
applies to Panama, but even che lfken-
ing of either to Constantinople cannot
be taken too literally, since the Suez
Canal robbed that Turkish city of its
monopoly of the routes of commerce.
Conditions change with the decades
and "new conditions bring neW'--in-
vestigations.
tCopyright 1927 by Pxul<V Cohiasl