Detroit evening times. (Detroit, Mich) 1921-1958, 1941-09-27
IN THE
NEWS
Saturday Symposium

Los Angeles, Sept. Is, 1871.
MIR. William Randolph Hearst,
san Simeon, Calf.
My Dear MIR. Hearst;
r AVAIL myself of this opp0rtu-
nifty 10 express 10 YOU my
appreciation. IA a LatinAmer-
lean, for the keen interest your
important chain of newspapers are
taking In promoting and strength
ening the bonds OF mutual under
standing and goodwill among the
different nations of our continent.
And especially want, as Mica
raguan, TO thank YOU most heartily
for your splendid and unceasing
campaign of many years IN favor
of the immediate construction of
the Nicaragua Canal, which IL not
luxury but necessity ot your
wonderful country.
The United States already has
an option, a. yeH well know, valid
until the year 20l5, renewable AT
that time IL necessary. which gives
this nation exclusive right to dig
the canal. Recently there has been
reached by Nicaragua friendly
agreement with its nrighbOr sister
-Cnsts Rien. whose territory wifi be
encroached upon by that great
waterway In section of the canal
route. so there are no more diplo-
matte obstacles between these two
only countries concerned in the
mailer In tEIIIn-stArttug-
work. In fact. Costa Rica will
benefit from IL just ~ much A.
Nicaragua.
There, of course. must be some
powerful reasons 10 account for ON
the part OF the government of the
United States that are delaying
the beginning OF dredging and en-
gineering of the projected canal.
A. a well known writer recently
Sid. IL j. no longer a secret that
nature and man impeFil The Pan
anna Canal. \ single landslide or a
single depth bomb exploded by n
suicide squad from an enemy sub
marine. simple sabotcur with
some ingenious device. may put
the Panama Canal cut Of commits
sion. Huge bombcrs arriving Mt
night could smash IL ieeks With
their deadly cargo or destroy sthe
Gatun. Dam. which may cause the
drying of the artificial Gatun Lake.
This would also cripple the canal
\ second canal would increase The
safety and the speed of your navy
We hear expert opinion favored
the immediate construction of n
new set of locks i'm Panama be-
cause the -inteEHatieHA situation
demands speed and the extra locks
could be built quicker and at about
=, the cost of the Nicaragua
{ nal. These new locks untotibt-
edly are being built under such a
plan as TO make them sufficient for
modern needs, that your bigger
battleships and monster airplane
carriers can easily go through them
and not scrape through a. Il the
case in the present ones. But, viii
this addition 10 the canal assure
against the dangers quoted above?
For the present the Nicaragua
Canal il not only commercial
proposition hut very important
strategic one, now that the world
is becoming more and more war
like There il room enough for a
navy a large a. the combined
navics of the world To harbor in
Lake Nicaragua and the island of
Omeicpe In the middle of the lake
would make af ideal naval station.
This route would also shorten the
running time between New York
and Los Angeles and san Fran
cisco and between these ports and
New Orleans.
Most Of the thinking people In
the three Americas believe that a
greatly augmented American navy
large and efficient air force and
two canals between the two great
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