Railroad Company, and over $2,800,000 in cash deposited in the trust companies and banks named, bearing interest at rates varying from 2 to 3 per cent, and that considerable of the balance of said sum has been put into public improvements on the Isthmus. Neither I nor my firm have been the attorneys for the Isthmian Canal Commission or for the Government; but on several occasions the President and the Secretary of War have sought information and advice from me with relation to particular topics when it seemed so them, by reason of my familiarity with the Isthmus and the canal, that I could be of assistance. One of these subjects related to the differences that had, unhappily, grown up between this Government and that of Panama concerning the application of the Dingley tariff in the Canal Zone, the establishment by the Zone authorities of new ports of entry near Panama and Colon, postal regulations, etc. At the request of the President and the Secretary of War I accompanied the Secretary when he went to the Isthmus in November and December, 1904, with Admiral Walker, then chairman of the Commission, and Judge Magoon, its general counsel, and I rendered to both Governments every assistance within my power, resulting in the harmonious and successful adjustment of all pending questions. Another subject upon which this Government asked my aid was the purchase of the outstanding minority interest of the Panama Railroad stock. This outstanding interest naturally gave the Government great concern. The Government recognized that if the interests of the minority were disregarded litigation might result. For many practical reasons, too, it became of vital concern that the United States should have complete ownership. Both Houses of Congress initiated legislation to accomplish the retirement of this minority interest, but no law was passed. You remember that the two Houses failed to come to a concurrence at the last session. At this stage the President and the Secretary of War charged me with the task of acquiring, if possible, all of the outstanding minority stock. The efforts of the old De Lesseps régime, as well as of the New Panama Canal Company, to acquire this outstanding minority had never been successful. Senator KNOx. What did it amount to in dollars? Mr. CROMWELL. The total shares were about 1,100. Mr. CROMWELL. About one hundred and ten or one hundred and twenty thousand dollars, probably. I devoted myself to the subject with every resource within my power and reached every individual stockholder in England, France, Italy, the United States, and elsewhere, and succeeded in purchasing and delivering to the Secretary of War every single share of the outstanding minority stock, some of the certificates for which had been held by their owners for over forty years. This was accomplished without the payment by the Government of any compensation, commission, or profit of any kind. * * Isthmus of Panama, June 1906* An Act To provide for the construction of a lock canal connecting the waters of the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, and the method of construction. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That a lock canal be constructed across the Isthmus of Panama connecting the waters of the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, of the general type proposed by the minority of the Board of Consulting Engineers, created by order of the President dated January twenty-fourth, nineteen hundred and five, in pursuance of an Act entitled "An Act to provide for the construction of a canal connecting the waters of the Atlantic and Pacific oceans," approved June twenty, eighth, nineteen hundred and two. Approved, June 29, 1906. [34 Stat,, 611 *Treaties and Acts of Congress Relating to the Panama Canal [Annotated 1921]. Mount Hope, C.Z., The Panama Canal Press, 1922, p. 39. TC774.U6 1921a. **The month stated is an error, the board having been created by Executive Order of June 24, 1905 (B. 0.43). Denying Corruption in the Acquisition of Assets of the French SPECIAL MESSAGE. : To the Senate and House of Representatives: In view of the constant reiteration of the assertion that there was some corrupt action by or on behalf of the United States Government in connection with the acquisition of the title of the French Company to the Panama Canal, and of the repetition of the story that a syndicate of American citizens owned either one or both of the Panama companies, I deem it wise to submit to the Congress all the information I have on the subject. These stories were first brought to my attention as published in a paper in Indianapolis, called "The News," edited by Mr. Delavan Smith. The stories were scurrilous and libelous in character and false in every essential particular. Mr. Smith shelters himself behind the excuse that he merely accepted the statements which had appeared in a paper published in New York, "The World," owned by Mr. Joseph Pulitzer. It is idle to say that the known character of Mr. Pulitzer and his newspaper are such that the statements in that paper will be believed by nobody; unfortunately, thousands of persons are ill informed in this respect and believe the statements they see in print, even though they appear in a newspaper published by Mr. Pulitzer. A Member of the Congress has actually introduced a resolution in reference to these charges, I therefore lay all the facts before you. The story repeated at various times by the World and by its followers in the newspaper press is substantially as follows: That there was corruption by or on behalf of the Government of the United States in the transaction by which the Panama Canal property was acquired from its French owners; that there were improper dealings of some kind between agents of the Government and outside persons, representing or acting for an American syndicate, who had gotten possession of the French Company; that among these persons, who it was alleged made "huge profits," were Mr. Charles P. Taft, a brother of Mr. William H. Taft, then candidate for the Presidency, *Special Message of the President, December 15, 1908. 60th Congress, 2nd Session, House Document No. 1213. TC774.U6 1908. and Mr. Douglas Robinson, my brother-in-law; that Mr. Cromwe the counsel for the Panama Canal Company in the negotiations, was in some way implicated with the United States governmental authorities in these improper transactions; that the Government has concealed the true facts, and has destroyed, or procured or agreed to the destruction of, certain documents; that Mr. W. H. Taft was Secretary of War at the time that by an agreement between the United States Government and the beneficiaries of the deal all traces thereof were "wiped out" by transferring all the archives and "secrets" to the American Government, just before the holding of the convention last June at which Mr. Taft was nominated. These statements sometimes appeared in the editorials, sometimes in the news columns, sometimes in the shape of contributions from individuals either unknown or known to be of bad character. They are' false in every particular from beginning to end. The wickedness of the slanders is only surpassed by their fatuity. So utterly baseless are the stories that apparently they represent in part merely material collected for campaign purposes and in part stories originally concocted with a view of possible blackmail. The inventor of the story about Mr. Charles P. Taft, for instance, evidently sup posed that at some period of the Panama purchase Mr. W. H. Taft was Secretary of War, whereas in reality Mr. W. H. Taft never became Secretary of War until long after the whole transaction in question had been closed. The inventor of the story about Mr. Douglas Robinson had not taken the trouble to find out the fact that Mr. Robinson had not had the slightest connection, directly or indirectly, of any kind or sort with any phase of the Panama transaction from beginning to end. The men who attacked Mr. Root in the matter had not taken the trouble to read the public documents which would have informed them that Mr. Root had nothing to do with the purchase, which was entirely arranged through the Department of Justice under the then Attorney-General, Mr. Knox. Now, these stories as a matter of fact need no investigation whatever. No shadow of proof has been, or can be, produced in behalf of any of them. They consist simply of a string of infamous libels. In form, they are in part libels upon individuals, upon Mr. Taft and Mr. Robinson for instance. But they are in fact wholly, and in form partly, a libel upon the United States Government. I do not believe we should concern ourselves with the particular individuals who wrote the lying and libelous editorials, articles from correspondents, or articles in the news columns. The H I real offender is Mr. Joseph Pulitzer, editor and proprietor of th World. While the criminal offense of which Mr. Pulitzer has bee guilty is in form a libel upon individuals, the great injury done i in blackening the good name of the American people. It shoul not be left to a private citizen to sue Mr. Pulitzer for libel. should be prosecuted for libel by the governmental authorities. point of encouragement of iniquity, in point of infamy, of wrong doing, there is nothing to choose between a public servant wh betrays his trust, a public servant who is guilty of blackmail, o theft, or financial dishonesty of any kind, and a man guilty as Mr Joseph Pulitzer has been guilty in this instance. It is therefore high national duty to bring to justice this vilifier of the America people, this man who wantonly and wickedly and without on shadow of justification seeks to blacken the character of reputable private citizens and to convict the Government of his own country in the eyes of the civilized world of wrongdoing of the basest and foulest kind, when he has not one shadow of justification of any sort or description for the charge he has made. The Attorney-General has under consideration the form in which the proceedings against Mr. Pulitzer shall be brought. Meanwhile I submit to you all the accompanying papers, so that you may have before you complete information on the subject. I call your attention to my communications in my messages to the Congress of January 20, 1902, March 11, 1903, December 7, 1903 January 4, 1904, and December 17, 1906, in which I set forth at length the history of various phases of the whole transaction. I recall your attention to the report and opinion of the AttorneyGeneral rendered to me, dated October 25, 1902, with the accompanying documents and exhibits. I call your attention to the correspondence of the officers and agents of the Panama Canal Company with the President and other officers of the United States printed in Senate Document No, 34, December 10, 1902; also to the copy of the 'official proceedings of the New Panama Canal Company at Paris on the 30th of December, 1903, together with a report of the Council of Administration of that company, printed in Senate Document No. 133, January 28, 1904; and to the copy of the general conveyance by the New Panama Canal Company to the United States, also copies of certain telegrams from the president of the company making an offer of sale, and Attorney-General Knox's cablegram in response printed in Senate Document No. 285, March 23, 1906. I call your attention furthermore to the exhaustive testimony recorded |