OCR Text |
Show WHAT "WISDOM" IT IS! We soo a good ileal of applause given in the Eastern newspapers to tho "wisdom" "wis-dom" of 'President Slocum of Colorado Colo-rado in' "disposing of the Panama Caiial issue ? at Tho .Hague peace conference. con-ference. ThorQ was nothing calling for any action ', by that couforunce on tho Panama' Canal question. No action j taken at that conlei'onco could possi- j blv bind-anybody; but tho meddlesome- uoss of it might, easily put the United States in a-faisc-position, thereby making mak-ing it .difficult for our Govornment to right itaolf later , on if fcho matter ever came up in a practical form by arbitration arbitra-tion at Tho Hague.' Great praise is given to President Slocum because of what is announced to be his nccomphshmont, and the altruistic al-truistic American declaration which he submitted to . that conference, and wliich that conference gladly adopted. Tho Slocum; declaration donounoos the fortifying of the . canal, holding that it is unnecessary ..if wo would seek the peace idea and ask other nations to protect us, and also that Great Britain Brit-ain and the' European nations mu3t be givon the "benefit of tho doubt" with regard to the vague language used iu I the Hay-Pauncefoto treaty, and therefore there-fore that all other nations must be allowed al-lowed to use the canal on' precisely tho same terms that we use it ourselves. In his address in support of his proposition, propo-sition, President Slocum appealed to the press and people of Europe to rec' ognize that, the people of the United States, wore uof actuated by "sordid motives" in building tho canal, but by the purpose to deal fairly with evory nation, this fair dealing consisting of doing great work and expending money lavishly for tho benefit of othor nations. na-tions. It is stated thereupon that President Slocum "has - rendered a groat service to this country in putting tho nation right in tho eyes of those who wanted to know the. truth." and further " that nothing could havo been done more than this action of the American, delegate to help the movement move-ment for international peace." . That is to say, that President Slocum undertook to commit tho United States to tho proposition that it is not to get auy advantage out of the expenditure of $-100,000,000 in building the canal: that it . is building that -canal iu effect not for itself but for - the world, and that the world has just as much right to it as the United States has. Wo do not see that President Slocum suggested sug-gested that the management and control con-trol of the Panama canal should be turned over to' international commissioners, commis-sioners, with the United States having a mere - fractional voice therein, yet that is tho logical issue of President Slocum's declaration.. Thoro can be no doubt but that the action of Prcsidont Slocum is mischievous mischiev-ous in the highest degree, and that the United Stales will be called upon to ropudiato it later on cannot be doubted, if we should ever arbitrate the point. It is stated that President Slocum 's resolution and- remarks were "received with enthusiasm" by the European peoples. No doubt that would be the ease. Any country would receive with enthusiasm a proposition that some othor country was altruistically to spend $'100,000,000 for ils uso aud bono-fit, bono-fit, ignoring its "own interests. But how about the couutry that makes tho oxpendituro? Why should it not have its say with regard to the management and control of its own property? Why should wo build a canal for tho world, and invito all ils peoples to como in and sharo with us on tli, samo terms as ourselves? Tho thing is so exaspcr-atingly exaspcr-atingly absurd that it is hard, to deal with such silly nonsense as Ibis move of President Slocum 's " with any pa-tienco pa-tienco at all. .'Besides, why should such a commitment, of the United States to this notion bo sought at this time?. Evidently, to meet the. frowning face of ISuropeau hostility. Bui; do wo obtain ob-tain immunity from that hostility because be-cause of the concessions thus made? By no means. That hostility would merely speed on to further aggrossions and further demands. It is a sad mistake mis-take to yield anything in Die faco of tho hostile clamor of unfriendly nations, na-tions, and the United States cannot but be put in a false position by auch moves. |