Brownsville herald. [volume] (Brownsville, Tex.) 1910-current, 1928-02-11
.PRIVATEWAR
FOR CAPITAL,
SOLON AYERS
700 Lives Sacrificed To
Let Wall Street F asst
en- Claws on Nation,
Speaker Says

CLEVELAND, Feb. 11.-(Pl-
Training virtiolie guns upon the
Iicaraguan policy of the Washing
on government, Senator Wheeler,
emocrat, Montana, declared here
oday that recent American activi-
es in the little republic have con-
,-tituted "a war waged privately by
Calvin Coolidge in the defiance Of
the constitution, without the con-
sent Of congress or the approval OF
the American people"
Nicaragua, he asserted in an ad-
dress before the City club Of Cleve-
land, has been reduced from a SOW
reign state" to "a Wall Street pro-
tectorate.
"Sacrificed Lives"
Moreover, the Montanan charged
the Coolidge administration with
having sacrificed at least zoe
lives" in Nicaragua, "deviated from
the policy of economy, squsndered
countless thousands of our public
treasury and cost our country the
good will of all South and Central
America and permitted certain Wall
!. Street bankers TO finally fasten
their financial tenacles upon the un-
fortunate Nicaraguan nation and
suck il dry"
I'VE have dealt harshly enough
with Haiti, San Domingo and other
Caribbean republics" he continued,
"but our treatment of Nicaragua is
the most disgraceful chapter of our
whole course of dollar diplomacy
and every real American who knows
fl.> whole CHASTITY history of this
crime must hang his head IN
shame"
Flays Coolidge
He declared that IF the American
people, hopeless, apathetic, duped by
the systematic propaganda of the
state department, had not lost every
memory of true American tradition
they would protest SO loudly that
this administration would stop this
unjustifiable war and the killing OF
innocent men, women and children
When the history of our times ]:
written truthfully, this administra-
tion will be called to account for it:
unwarranted conduct, which has
been actuated solely for the benefit
of q very few Wall Street bankins
firms, no matter how much they
may seek to hide behind a paper
canal"
Using such terms as "sophomoriC
utterances, and ~pious platitudes,
Senator Wheeler launched upon q
criticism of President Coolidge's re.
cent speech before the Pan-Ameri
can conference at Havana. Mr.
Coolidge's reference to the COLDER
rule, in particular. aroused the Mon.
tanan's displeasure. He declared il
@the Golden Rule of Wall Street
bankers" and asserted that Mr.
Coolidge "when he implied that fol
the past twenty years the United
States in its dealing with the Car.
ibbean countries had followed this
precept, had revealed anew his
lack of understanding of the facts
surrounding our dealings with these
countries"
"Have Looted Country"
And even as Mr.. Coolidge was de.
livering his address, the senator
said, the Havana newsboys were
!. sselling extras telling about Ameri
can bombing planes scattering death
and terror over defenseless Nicara
guam villages"
Swinging into an extensive re-
view of Nicaraguan history, Mr.
Wheeler said that the years had IN.
folded in that country "a long sordit
story OF greed, intrigue, treachery
and unrestrained violence"
He charged that United States
eonsuls have encouraged and aide.
revolutions Ito further the financial
interests of certain Wall Stree
banks; that the government itseli
had acted as q debt collector" anC
@bond broker" He said, too, thal
~influential officials in the state
department after assisting in Ger
tain deals" had on "at least two
occasions" resigned and found EN-,
ployment with the bankers they
benefited. Senator Wheeler men.
toned Lawrence Dennis, former
charge d'affaires in Nicaragua.
American banking firms, he said
had "looted" Nicaragua's public
funds, -instigated revolution after
revolution and exploited the un.
happy Nicaraguans in much the
same manner that imperial Rome
ruled its conquered provinces" He
named these firms as J. and w
Seligman and company, and Browr
Brothers.