Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-08-11
Fifty Years Ago
In The Star

"A Canal Project That Does Not
Boom is the title of the following ed
De Lesseps' Star star Of yi'"i 1ur, Us :.
Canal Stock. iS yesterday the SUBJ
scription books for stock in NJ. de Les
seps Franco Universal Canal were
opened in New York City. Leading New
York merchants indorse the canal
project verbally. with great enthusiasm.
out they do not subscribe for any
shares. They profess to see no danger
to American interests from its being
in the hands Of foreign engineers and
capitalists. In case it proves failure.
they say that 1t will be better that the
100000 900 or $3.50, 100000 required
should come out OF foreign pockets
than that it should be withdrawn from
the active trade of this country. II. on
the other hand, the canal proves A sue
cess. the United States are amply
strong enough to compel respect for
their interests on the part OF any for
eign government or combination of gov
ernmentS. The talk about the Monroe
Doctrine and American interests. they
say, comes from the politicians at
Washington who are after reelection
and who care absolutely nothing for the
American commerce whose welfare they
profess to have 1T heart De LesssEs.
they say, is on the right track. Hs
alone of all those engineers who are
making such fuss over this matter has
built An interoceanic canal and has
made 1t a magnificent success. He had
to contend against all sorts OF influences.
stoppage of work. lack OF funds. hos
tility of England and the Sultan. the
sneerina OF hostile engineers who de-
clared he could never dig his ditch
through the sands and never keep 1t
open after he had dug it. He built no
compiled ted and costly locks and At
tempted no snowy fents OF engineering,
but dug a Deep broad channel straight
through from sea to sea. That is just
what he intends to do in Central
America. It Is a plain. common sense
problem to dig straight through the
summit something over 200 feet in its
highest part) and carry the dirt out At
both ends, using 1t to build his harbors
at either entrance, just as he did at
Suez and Port Said. BY employing
steam navvies or eXcavators, with lines
Of railroad to carry the dirt away, the
work will be greatly fastened And
then they point out the advantages TO
be derived to commerce from bringing
teas and spices across the Isthmus OF
Darien, thus avoiding the injurious eff
feet Of the terrible heat these articles
receive in crossing the 1sthmus OF sueA.
But still with all these advantages
in view. the New York merchants do not
show their faith in the enterprise by
subscribing for any of the stock. In
fact, nobody Subscribes. The books
were thrown open for subscriptions yes
terday in large. rsr''-' frescoed apart
ment, with furniture Of the costliest and
most elaborate description. and tables
grooming under piles of Advertisements
and proepectuses. Of t71e company.
printed on the finest white paper and In
clear handsome type. setting forth thu
financial merits OF the scheme and the
almost absolute certainty OF its ultimate
success. But. notwithstanding these al.
lurenents. there was noticeable alb
sence Of investors. In fact, 1t Is said.
not A single dollar of American capital
was subscribed ?esterds:. The New
York managers of the company now
say they did not expect much support
In New York anyhow-that in any case
the bulk Of the capital will come from
Europe They say. further. that the
splendid reputation Of M. de Lesseps, and
the triumphant success OF his first en-
terprise, have won the confidence Of the
continental public and investors. Suez
Canal stock, which in Its time was sue
cessively decried by the British govern
ment and sneered by by the English In
vestors. is now worth IA cents on the
dollar. while Its 300-franc bonds are
sold on the Paris Bourse for 565 and
567 francs cash.
Books were opened in Paris yester.
day at nine different banking houses
and associations. and we shall probably
soon hear whether the project .booms
any more hopefully there than in New
York" (.