Chapter III

OUTLINE OF NEGOTIATIONS IN RESPECT TO THE PROPOSED CANAL.

In the preceding chapter I have considered solely the question of the practicability of the projected inter-oceanic canal. It will be interesting next to notice, briefly, some of the measures which have been taken towards the construction of the work.

Although its feasibility was asserted early in the sixteenth century, nothing was practically attempted until late in the eighteenth century, when the attention of the Spanish government was called to the subject once more by Godoy, “the Prince of Peace,” and a survey of the route made, under his direction, by Galisteo. After the independence of Central America, another attempt toward the accomplishment of the same object was made by Señor Manual Antonio de la Cerda, afterwards Governor of the State of Nicaragua, who, in 1823, urged the matter upon the Federal Congress, but failed in securing its attention.

During the year 1824, however, various propositions were made from abroad, in respect to the enterprise. Amongst these was one from Messrs. Barclay & Co., of London, bearing date Sept. 18, 1824. They proposed to open a navigable communication between the two oceans, _via_ the River San Juan and Lake Nicaragua, without cost to the government, provided the latter would extend the requisite assistance in other modes. On the 2d of February, 1825, other propositions were made, by some merchants of the United States, signed by Col. Charles Bourke and Matthew Llanos, in which they observe that they had, in the month of December preceding, (1824), sent an armed brig to San Juan, having on board engineers and other persons charged to make a survey of the proposed route. They prayed, in consideration of the advances already made, and the evidences of good faith thus exhibited, that the government would grant them, 1st, an exclusive proprietorship and control of the canal; 2d, an exclusive right of navigating the lakes and dependent waters by steam; 3d, free permission to use all natural products of the country, necessary for the work; 4th, exemption of duty on goods introduced by the Company, until the completion of the work. In return for this, they proposed that the government should receive twenty per cent. on the tolls, and that at the end of the term of —— years, the entire work should revert to the government. Whether the armed brig, and the party of engineers referred to, ever reached their destination, is unknown; nor is it known that the government of Central America ever took any specific notice of their propositions.

The subject was nevertheless regarded as of primary interest throughout all Central America, and the minister of that republic in the United States, Don Antonio José Cañas, was specially instructed to bring the matter prominently before the American government. This he did in an official letter, bearing date Feb. 8, 1825, addressed to Henry Clay, then Secretary of State. In this letter, Sr. Cañas solicited the coöperation of the United States, on the ground “that its noble conduct had been a model and a protection to all the Americas,” and entitled it to a preference over any other nation, both in the “merits and advantages of the proposed great undertaking.” He proposed also, by means of a treaty, “effectually to secure its advantages to the two nations.” The Chargé d’Affaires of the United States in Central America, Col. John Williams, was accordingly specially instructed to assure the government of that country of the deep interest taken by the United States in an undertaking “so highly calculated to diffuse a favorable influence on the affairs of mankind,” to investigate with the greatest care the facilities offered by the route, and to remit the information to the United States. But it appears no information of the character required ever reached the American government.

During this year, however, (1825,) various proposals were made to the government of Central America, from abroad, upon the subject; and in June of that year, the National Congress, with a view of determining the principles upon which it desired the work undertaken, passed a decree to the following purport:

“ARTICLE 1. Authorizes the opening of a canal, fitted for the passage
of the largest vessels, in the State of Nicaragua.

“ART. 2. The works to be of the most solid construction.

“ART. 3. The Government shall offer to the undertakers an
indemnification equivalent to the cost and labor of the work.

“ART. 4. The Government shall use all means of facilitating
the object; permitting the cutting of wood—assisting the
surveyors—forwarding the plans, and generally, in every manner not
injurious to public or private interests.

“ART. 5. No duty shall be charged on instruments and machinery
imported for the works of the canal.

“ART. 6. The expense of the work shall be acknowledged as a national
debt, and the tolls of the canal shall be applied to its
extinguishment, after deducting the necessary costs of maintenance and
repairs, and the support of a garrison for its defence.

“ART. 7. Any dispute regarding its liquidation or proofs of outlay,
shall be determined according to the laws of the republic.

“ART. 8. The Congress shall be entitled to establish, and at all times
alter, the rates of toll, as it may think proper.

“ART. 9. The navigation shall be open to all nations, friends or
neutrals, without privilege or exclusion.

“ART. 10. The government shall maintain on the lake the necessary
vessels for its defence.

“ART. 11. If invincible impediments, discovered in the course of the
work, prevent its execution, the republic shall not be liable to make
any remuneration whatever.

“ART. 12. In case only a boat canal can be opened, the indemnification
shall be proportioned to the smaller benefit which will then result to
the republic.”

This decree was published jointly with another fixing six months for receiving proposals; but the term designated was too short for any measures to be taken on the part of companies or individuals, and the Congress only received a repetition of a part of the proposals before made.

The principal of these were made by Mr. Baily and Mr. Charles Beniski—the first as agent of the English house of Messrs. Barclay, Herring, Richardson & Co., and the second of Mr. Aaron H. Palmer, of New York. Mr. Baily’s offer was conditional, while Mr. Beniski’s was positive, and was therefore accepted by the republic. The contractors, under the name and style of the “Central American and United States Atlantic and Pacific Canal Company,” were bound to open through Nicaragua a canal navigable for vessels of all sizes, and to deposit in the city of Granada the sum of $200,000 for the preliminary expenses within six months; to erect fortresses for the protection of the canal, and to have the works in progress within a period of twelve months. In compensation they were to have two-thirds of the profits of the tolls upon the canal until all the capital expended in the work was repaid, with interest at the rate of ten per cent., beside afterwards receiving one-half of the proceeds of the canal for seven years, with certain privileges for introducing steam vessels. The government was to put at their disposal all the documents relating to the subject existing in its archives, to permit the cutting of wood, and to furnish laborers at certain rates of wages. In case of non-completion, the works were to revert unconditionally to the republic. This contract bore date June 14, 1826, and the contractors at once endeavored to secure the coöperation of the government of the United States. A memorial was presented to Congress, and referred to a committee, which reported in due time; but here the matter stopped, although it appears to have received the sanction of De Witt Clinton and other distinguished men.

In fact, Mr. Palmer executed a deed of trust to Mr. Clinton, by which that gentleman, Stephen Van Renssalaer, C. D. Colden, Philip Hone, and Lynde Catlin, were constituted directors of the work. Mr. Clinton’s part was undertaken in entire good faith, and, as he himself expressed it, “for the promotion of a great and good object, which should be kept free from the taint of speculation.” Mr. Palmer went to England in 1827, to secure the coöperation of British capitalists in his enterprise; but, owing to various untoward circumstances, his mission proved abortive, and in the autumn of that year he appears to have abandoned the undertaking.

Although the administration of Mr. Adams did not at once fall in with the proposition of the Central American minister, it was not from a want of interest in the subject, but because it did not desire to commit the country to any specific course of conduct, until the feasibility of the enterprise and the leading facts connected with it should be better known and established. In the mean time, the principles upon which it conceived the work should be undertaken and executed, were well exhibited in Mr. Clay’s letter of instructions to the ministers of the United States, commissioned to the famous Congress of Panama. Mr. Clay said:

“A canal for navigation between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans will
form a proper subject of consideration at the Congress. That vast
object, if it should ever be accomplished, will be interesting, in a
greater or less degree, to all parts of the world; but especially to
this continent will accrue its greatest benefits; and to Colombia,
Mexico, Central America, Peru, and the United States, more than to any
other of the American nations. What is to redound to the advantage of
all America, should be effected by common means and united exertions,
and not left to the separate and unassisted efforts of any one power.
* * * If the work should ever be executed, so as to admit of the
passage of sea vessels from one ocean to the other, the benefits of it
ought not to be exclusively appropriated by any one nation, but should
be extended to all parts of the globe, upon the payment of just
compensation or reasonable tolls. * * You will receive and transmit to
this government any proposals that may be made, or plans that may be
suggested, for its joint execution, with assurances that they will be
attentively examined, with an earnest desire to reconcile the
interests and views of all the American nations.”

It will be seen that Mr. Clay, who was at that time a true exponent of the American system of policy, regarded the construction of this work as an enterprise peculiarly American, to be executed by the parties most deeply interested in it, to be under their control, but not therefore exclusive.

After the failure of Mr. Palmer’s project, the whole matter seems to have been allowed to slumber until some time in October, 1828, when the work was proposed to be undertaken by an Association of the Netherlands, under the special patronage of the King of Holland. In March, 1829, General Verveer arrived in Guatemala, as plenipotentiary of the king, with instructions regarding the undertaking of the canal. In consequence of civil distractions, the subject was not taken up until the succeeding October, when commissioners were appointed to treat with Verveer, and on the 24th of July, 1830, the plan agreed upon between them was laid before the National Congress. It was ratified on the 21st of September following. The principal features of the agreement were as follows:

1st. The proposed canal to be open on the same terms to all nations at
peace with Central America; but vessels engaged in the slave trade,
and all privateers, not to be allowed either to pass the canal or
hover in the vicinity of its mouths.

2d. Armed ships not allowed to pass without the express consent of the
government of the republic, and this permission never to be granted to
a flag at war with any other nation.

3d. The government to use all its endeavors to have the neutrality of
the canal recognized by all maritime powers, as also that of the ocean
for a certain extent around its mouths.

4th. The republic to make no charge for the land used by the canal, or
the raw materials used for its construction; nor to impose taxes on
persons employed in the work, who were to be under the protection of
the agents of the country to which they might belong.

5th. The work to be of sufficient dimensions to admit the largest
ships; and the execution to be left entirely to the parties
undertaking it, and to be made wholly at their expense.

6th. The interest on the capital expended to be ten per cent., and as
security for both capital and interest, a mortgage to be granted upon
the lands for a league on both sides of the canal.

7th. The canal to remain in the hands of the contractors until it had
paid cost of construction and repairs, with ten per cent. annual
interest thereon, and also until it had paid three millions of
dollars, to be advanced as a loan to the government, and then to
revert unconditionally to the republic.

8th. The rate of tolls to be regulated by the government and
contractors jointly, but always in such a manner as to give it a
decided advantage over Cape Horn.

9th. A free commercial city to be founded on the banks, or at one of
the entrances of the canal, which, while enjoying entire freedom of
trade, religious tolerance, a municipal government, trial by jury, and
exemption from military service, to constitute nevertheless a part of
the republic, and to be under the special protection thereof.

10th. In respect to navigation and commerce generally, the Netherlands
to be put upon a footing of equality with the United States.

Arrangements were accordingly made to send envoys to the Netherlands, with full powers to perfect the plan; and, for a time, the work seemed in a fair way to a commencement; but the revolution in Belgium and its separation from Holland, put an end to these hopes. The news of these events was received with profound regret. Mr. Henry Savage, U. S. Consul, in a letter to Mr. Van Buren, dated Guatemala, December 3, 1830, said: “All concur, and every one now seems tacitly to look forward to the United States for the completion of this grand project. They say that the United States, identified in her institutions with this government, ought to have the preference.”

In 1832, endeavors were made to renew the negotiations with Holland, and the State of Nicaragua passed resolutions agreeing to the propositions of the Dutch envoy, but nothing was accomplished.

Upon the 3d of March, 1835, public attention having again been directed to the subject, a resolution passed the Senate of the United States, “that the President be requested to consider the expediency of opening negotiations with the governments of other nations, and particularly with the governments of Central America and New Granada, for the purpose of effectually protecting, by suitable treaty stipulations with them, such individuals or companies as may undertake to open a communication from the Atlantic to the Pacific ocean, by means of a ship canal across the isthmus which connects North and South America, and of securing for ever, by means of such stipulations, the free and equal right of navigating such canal to all nations, on the payment of such reasonable tolls as may be established to compensate the capitalists who may engage in such undertaking and complete the work.”

Under this resolution, a special agent (Mr. Charles Biddle) was appointed by General Jackson, to proceed without delay, by the most direct route, to the port of San Juan de Nicaragua, ascend the river San Juan to the Lake of Nicaragua, and thence proceed across the continent, by the contemplated route of the proposed canal or railroad, to the Pacific ocean; after which examination, he was directed to repair to Guatemala, the capital of the republic, and, with the aid of Mr. De Witt, the Chargé d’Affaires of the United States, procure all such public documents connected with the subject as might be in existence, and especially copies of all such laws as had been passed, and contracts and conventions as had been made, to carry into effect the undertaking, and also all plans, surveys, or estimates in relation to it. From Guatemala he was directed to proceed to Panama, and make observations and inquiries relative to the proposed connection of the two oceans at that point. Unfortunately, from the difficulties of procuring conveyances to San Juan, the agent went to Panama first. From adverse circumstances, he never reached Nicaragua, and died soon after his return to the United States. He nevertheless made a partial report concerning the isthmus of Panama, to the effect that it was not practicable for a canal.

In 1837, the subject was again taken up in Central America, by General Morazan, who resolved to have the proposed line of the canal properly surveyed, intending to raise a loan in Europe for the execution of the work. Mr. John Baily was employed for the former purpose, but his work was brought to a sudden close by the dissolution of the government of the republic. He nevertheless made a survey of the narrow isthmus intervening between Lake Nicaragua and the Pacific, and also some observations on the river San Juan.

In 1838 a convention was made between the States of Nicaragua and Honduras, under which Mr. Peter Rouchaud was authorized to conclude an agreement in France, for the formation of a company to make a canal, and for other objects; but he effected nothing. The same result attended the efforts of Señor Don George Viteri, subsequently Bishop of San Salvador, and afterwards of Nicaragua, who was sent ambassador to Rome.

In the same year, Mr. George Holdship, representing a company composed chiefly of citizens of the United States, residing in New Orleans and New York, arrived in Central America, with a view of contracting for the opening of the canal with the general government. Finding that Nicaragua had “pronounced” against Morazan, and assumed an independent position, he proceeded to that State, where he at once entered into a contract, which provided for opening the canal, for the establishment of a bank to assist the enterprise, and for colonization on an extensive scale. He returned to the United States—and the matter ended.

This year was also signalized by some further movements on the subject in the United States. A petition was presented to Congress, signed by several citizens of New York and Philadelphia, viz., Aaron Clark, Wm. A. Duer, Herman Leroy, Matthew Carey, and Wm. Radcliff, setting forth that the wants of trade required the opening of a ship communication between the Atlantic and Pacific; that the accumulation of wealth among nations, and the prevalence of peace seemed to indicate a favorable opportunity for the undertaking; and recommending “that an extensive and powerful combination should be formed, and the most judicious and liberal measures adopted, for the purpose of carrying the plan into effect, and securing its benefits permanently to the world at large.” This memorial was referred to a committee, of which Chas. F. Mercer was chairman, who, March 2, 1839, made a report upon it, concluding with the following resolution, which was adopted:

“_Resolved_, That the President of the United States be requested to
consider the expediency of opening or continuing negotiations with the
governments of other nations, and particularly with those the
territorial jurisdiction of which comprehends the Isthmus of Panama,
and to which the United States have accredited ministers or agents,
for the purpose of ascertaining or effecting a communication between
the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, by the construction of a ship canal;
and of securing forever, by suitable treaty stipulations, the free and
equal right of navigating such canal to all nations, on the payment of
reasonable tolls.”

The subsequent action, both of the Executive and Congress, was directed to the opening of a route across the Isthmus of Panama, and resulted in the negotiation of a treaty between the United States and New Granada, by which the neutrality of the Isthmus was guarantied by the former, in consideration of a free transit conceded by the latter. Under this treaty, the existing Panama Railroad Company was organized, and that route of communication between the two oceans placed in American hands.

The disturbances incident on the dissolution of the republic of Central America precluded any serious attention to the project of a canal from 1838 until 1844, when Señor Don Francisco Castellon, having been appointed minister from Nicaragua to France, and failing to interest that government, entered into a contract with a Belgian company, under the auspices of the Belgian king, for the construction of the work. The grant was for sixty years, at the end of which time it was to revert to the State without indemnity, the State receiving meantime an interest of ten per cent. in the profits.

Still later, in April, 1846, a contract was made by Mr. Marcoleta, Nicaraguan Chargé d’Affairs to Belgium, with Louis Napoleon Bonaparte, then a prisoner at Ham, which differed but little from the preceding one, except that the canal was to be called “_Canal Napoleon de Nicaragua_.” Beyond the publication of a pamphlet upon the subject, under the initials of L. N. Bonaparte, this attempt also proved abortive.[53]

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Footnote 53:

The following paragraph from the pamphlet in question furnishes a
remarkable commentary on the “enlightened views and liberal policy”
attributed to the emperor by his partisans:

“France, England, Holland, Russia, and the United States have a great
commercial interest in the establishment of communication between the
two oceans; but England has, more than the other powers, _a political
interest_ in the execution of the project. England will see with
pleasure Central America become a flourishing and powerful State,
which will establish _a balance of power_, by creating in Spanish
America a new centre of active enterprise powerful enough to give rise
to a great feeling of nationality, and to prevent, _by backing
Mexico_, any further encroachment from the north.”

-----

So the matter rested until 1849, when the acquisition of California by the United States, and the discovery there of vast mineral wealth, again directed public attention to the project in a more serious manner than at any previous period. It now began to assume a practical form, and, as a consequence, there was a renewal of propositions to the government of Nicaragua. The first of these, in the form of bases subject to future adjustment, came, under date of 16th of February, from Mr. Wm. Wheelwright, the projector of the British line of steamers on the western coast of South America, on behalf of an English company. It embodied, substantially, the provisions of the contract of 1844 with the Belgian company, but was never acted upon by the Nicaraguan government.

The second was in the form of a detailed contract, and was entered into between Mr. D. T. Brown, representing certain citizens of New York, and General Muñoz, Commissioner of the Nicaraguan government, on the 14th of March, 1849. Although it was very promptly ratified by the executive, it was not ratified by the company within the time stipulated by its terms.

In the meantime, however, namely, as early as January, 1848, when it became evident that the Mexican war could only terminate in large territorial acquisitions to the United States, the port of San Juan de Nicaragua, the only possible eastern terminus of the proposed canal, was seized by Great Britain, under the pretext of supporting the territorial rights of a savage, facetiously styled “King of the Mosquitos.” This act could not be viewed with indifference by the government of our own country; for it not only violated the principle constantly recognized and asserted by the United States, that the routes of transit between the two oceans should be free to the whole world, uncontrolled by any great maritime power, but it violated also a principle early and well established among the American nations, namely, the exclusion of all foreign, and especially monarchical, interference from the domestic and international affairs of this continent. The real purpose of the seizure of San Juan was too apparent to escape detection; and the government of the United States, upon these principles, would have been bound to interpose against the consummation of the felony. But it was specially bound to interpose, after it had been earnestly and repeatedly solicited to do so by the injured republic in question. These solicitations were forcibly made, in letters addressed to the President of the United States by the Supreme Director of Nicaragua, dated Dec. 15, 1847, as also in letters from the Secretary of State of that Republic of the dates respectively of Nov. 12, 1847, and March 17, 1848. “The obvious design of Great Britain,” said the Director of Nicaragua, “in seizing upon the port of San Juan, and setting up pretensions to sovereignty, in behalf of savage tribes, within the territories of Nicaragua, is to found colonies, and to make herself master of the prospective interoceanic canal, for the construction of which this isthmus alone has the requisites of feasibility and facility.”

Although the matter was thus brought before the American government, it does not seem to have elicited any action beyond certain vague instructions from Mr. Buchanan, then Secretary of State, to Mr. Hise, appointed Chargé d’Affairs to Central America. “The object of Great Britain in this seizure,” said Mr. Buchanan, “is evident from the policy which she has uniformly pursued throughout her history, of seizing upon every valuable commercial point in the world, whenever circumstances have placed it in her power. Her purpose probably is to obtain the control of the route for a railroad and canal between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, by way of Lake Nicaragua.” But while insisting upon the policy of “excluding all interference on the part of European governments in the domestic affairs of the American republics,” Mr. Buchanan gave no specific instructions as to the line of conduct to be pursued by Mr. Hise in respect to the proposed canal or the British usurpation. He confined himself to a denial of the British pretensions, and concluded by observing that “the government of the United States has not yet determined what course it will pursue in regard to the encroachments of the British government.”

About this time, viz., under date of April 4, 1849, Mr. Manning, British Vice Consul in Nicaragua, wrote to Lord Palmerston as follows:

“My opinion, if your lordship will allow me to express it, as regards
this country for the present, is, that it will be overrun by American
adventurers, and consequently bring on Her Majesty’s government
disagreeable communications with that of the United States, which
possibly might be avoided by an immediate negotiation with Mr.
Castillon for a _protectorate and transit favorable to British
interests_. * * The welfare of my country, and the desire of its
_obtaining the control of so desirable a spot in the commercial
world_, and free it from the competition of so adventurous a race as
the North Americans, induces me to address your lordship with such
freedom.”

On his arrival in Central America, Mr. Hise became speedily convinced that the whole scope of British policy in that country was directed to acquiring permanent control of the Nicaraguan isthmus. Deeply impressed with the importance to the United States of a free transit across it, although not empowered to treat with Nicaragua, he nevertheless conceived himself authorized, under the circumstances, in opening negotiations with the government of that republic. He therefore requested the appointment of a commissioner for that purpose to meet him in Guatemala, where, upon the 21st of June, 1849, a special convention relating to this subject was agreed upon. The provisions of this convention, it is not to be denied, were, in some respects, extraordinary, and not in entire harmony with the established exterior policy of the United States. It provided,

1st. That the United States should enjoy the perpetual right of way
through the territories of Nicaragua by any means of conveyance then
existing or which might thereafter be devised.

2d. That the United States, or a company chartered by it, might
construct a railroad or canal from one ocean to the other, and occupy
such lands and use such natural materials and products of the country
as might be necessary for the purpose.

3d. That the United States should have the right to erect such forts
on the line, or at the extremities of the proposed work, as might be
deemed necessary or proper for its protection.

4th. That the vessels and citizens of all nations at peace with both
contracting powers might pass freely through the canal.

5th. That a section of land two leagues square at either termination
should be set apart to serve as the sites of two free cities, under
the protection of both governments, the inhabitants of which should
enjoy complete municipal and religious freedom, trial by jury,
exemption from all military duty, and from taxation, etc., etc.

6th. That in return for these and other concessions, which it is
unnecessary to enumerate, the United States should defend and protect
Nicaragua, her territorial rights, her sovereignty, preserve the peace
and neutrality of her coasts, etc., etc., which guarantees were to
extend to any community of States of which Nicaragua might voluntarily
become a member.

But while Mr. Hise was thus occupied in Central America, the administration of General Taylor had been inaugurated. The affairs of that country attracted his immediate attention. The letters addressed by the government of Nicaragua to Mr. Polk and Mr. Buchanan, and which had remained unanswered, were replied to in the friendliest spirit; and before the expiration of the first month of General Taylor’s term of office, Mr. Hise was recalled, and the writer of these pages appointed in his stead, as Chargé d’Affaires of the United States to Guatemala, besides receiving special commissions to the other States of Central America, with full powers to treat with them separately, on all matters affecting their relations with this republic. It will be seen, therefore, that Mr. Hise was not only not empowered to treat with Nicaragua, but also that his negotiations were undertaken after the date of his letter of recall, which, however, failed to reach him until after the signing of the special convention, and after my arrival in the country. Under these circumstances, and having meantime determined on a specific line of policy, this convention was neither approved by the American government, nor accepted by that of Nicaragua.

The spirit in which the matter was taken up by the administration of General Taylor, and the principles upon which its action was predicated, are fully and clearly exhibited in the following passages from the instructions addressed to me by Mr. Clayton, Secretary of State. After disproving, in an unanswerable manner, the pretensions of Great Britain on the Mosquito Shore, Mr. Clayton submits the following significant question, and equally significant reply:

“Will other nations interested in a free passage to and from the
Pacific, by the river San Juan and Lake Nicaragua, tamely allow that
interest to be thwarted by the pretensions of Great Britain? As
regards the United States, the question may confidently be answered in
the negative.

“Having now,” continues the Secretary of State, “sufficiently apprised
you of the views of the Department in regard to the title to the
Mosquito Coast, I desire you to understand how important it is deemed
by the President so to conduct all our negotiations on the subject of
the Nicaraguan passage as not to involve this country in any
entangling alliances on the one hand, or any unnecessary controversy
on the other. We desire no monopoly of the right of way for our
commerce, and we cannot submit to it if claimed for that of any other
nation. We only ask an equal right of passage for all nations on the
same terms—a passage unincumbered by oppressive restrictions, either
from the local government within whose sovereign limits it may be
effected, or from the proprietors of the canal when accomplished. To
this end we are willing to enter into treaty stipulations with the
government of Nicaragua, that both governments shall protect and
defend the proprietors who may succeed in cutting the canal and
opening water communication between the two oceans for our commerce.
Nicaragua will be at liberty to enter into the same treaty
stipulations with any other nation that may claim to enjoy the same
benefits and will agree to be bound by the same conditions. We should
naturally be proud of such an achievement as an American work; but if
European aid be necessary to accomplish it, why should we repudiate
it, seeing that our object is as honest as it is openly avowed, to
claim no peculiar privileges, no exclusive right, no monopoly of
commercial intercourse, but to see that the work is dedicated to the
benefit of mankind, to be used by all on the same terms with us, and
consecrated to the enjoyment and diffusion of the unnumbered and
inestimable blessings which must flow from it to all the civilized
world?”

On arriving in Nicaragua, I found there a gentleman representing certain citizens of New York, the object of whose mission was to procure a charter or grant for the construction of a canal through the territories of that republic. Having previously entertained so many projects for the accomplishment of this object, all of which had failed, the government of Nicaragua was indisposed to listen to any further propositions until it was assured, as I was authorized to assure it, that the American government was willing to extend its guarantees to any charter, of a proper character, which might now be granted. Under the confidence inspired by this assurance, it proceeded with alacrity to arrange the terms of a charter, more liberal than any ever before conceded, which was signed on the 27th of August, 1849, and ratified on the 23d of the month following.

The terms of this grant are very well known; yet the following synopsis of its provisions will not prove out of place in this connection. It provides,

1st. That the American Atlantic and Pacific Ship-Canal Company may
construct a ship canal, at its own expense, from the port of San Juan,
or any more feasible point on the Atlantic, to the port of Realejo, or
any other point within the territories of the republic, on the
Pacific, and make use of all lands, waters, or natural materials of
the country, for the enterprise.

2d. The dimensions of the canal shall be sufficiently great to admit
vessels of all sizes.

3d. The grant is for the period of eighty-five years from the
completion of the work; the preliminary surveys to be commenced within
twelve months; the work to be completed in twelve years, unless
unforeseen events, such as earthquakes or wars, shall intervene to
prevent it; if not completed within that time, the charter to be
forfeit, and whatever work may have been done to revert to the State;
at the end of eighty-five years the work to revert to the State, free
from all indemnity for the capital invested; the company,
nevertheless, to receive fifteen per cent. annually of the net
profits, for ten years thereafter, if the entire cost shall not exceed
$20,000,000; but if it does exceed that sum, then it shall receive the
same percentage for twenty years thereafter.

4th. The company to pay to the State ten thousand dollars upon the
ratification of the contract, and ten thousand dollars annually, until
the completion of the work; also, to give to the State two hundred
thousand dollars of stock in the canal, upon the issue of stock; the
State to have the privilege of taking five hundred thousand dollars of
stock in the enterprise;-of receive, for the first twenty years,
twenty per cent. annually out of the net profits the canal, after
deducting the interest on the capital actually invested, at the rate
of seven per cent.; and also to receive twenty-five per cent.
thereafter, until the expiration of the grant.

5th. The company to have the exclusive right of navigating the
interior waters of the State by steam, and the privilege, within the
twelve years allowed for constructing the canal, of opening any land
or other route or means of transit or conveyance across the State; in
consideration of which, the company shall pay, irrespective of
interest, ten per cent. of the net profits of such transit to the
State, and transport, both on each route, and on the canal, when
finished, the officers of the government and its employees, when
required to do so, free of charge.

6th. The canal to be open to the vessels of all nations, subject only
to certain fixed and uniform rates of toll, to be established by the
company, with the sanction of the State, graduated to induce the
largest and most extended business by this route; these rates not to
be altered without six months’ previous notice, both in Nicaragua and
the United States.

7th. All disputes to be settled by referees or commissioners, to be
appointed in a specified manner.

8th. All machinery and other articles introduced into the State for
the use of the company, to enter free of duty; and all persons in its
employ to enjoy all the privileges of citizens, without being
subjected to taxation or military service.

9th. The State concedes to the company, for purposes of colonization,
eight sections of land on the line of the canal, in the valley of the
river San Juan, each six miles square, and at least three miles apart,
with the right of alienating the same, under certain reservations; all
settlers on these lands to be subject to the laws of the country,
being, however, exempt for ten years from all taxes, and also from all
public service, as soon as each colony shall contain fifty settlers.

10th. “Art. XXXVI. It is expressly stipulated that the citizens,
vessels, products, and manufactures of _all nations_ shall be
permitted to pass upon the proposed canal through the territories of
Nicaragua, subject to no other nor higher duties, charges, or taxes
than shall be imposed upon those of the United States; _provided
always_, that such nations shall first enter into the same treaty
stipulations and guarantees, respecting said canal, as may be entered
into between the State of Nicaragua and the United States.”

Article xxxvi., which is quoted in full, was drawn up by myself, and its insertion insisted on, in conformity with my instructions. Its simple object was, to put upon the same footing with the United States every nation which should undertake the same obligations with ourselves, in respect to the proposed work. These obligations were distinctly set forth in the treaty of commerce and friendship which was negotiated, simultaneously, with the Nicaraguan government, and which, in Article xxxv., provided as follows:

“ARTICLE XXXV.

“It is stipulated by and between the high contracting parties—

“1st. That the citizens, vessels, and merchandise of the United States
shall enjoy in all the ports and harbors of Nicaragua, upon both
oceans, a total exemption from all port-charges, tonnage or anchorage
duties, or any other similar charges now existing, or which may
hereafter be established, in manner the same as if said ports had been
declared free ports. And it is further stipulated, that the right of
way or transit across the territories of Nicaragua, by any route or
upon any mode of communication at present existing, or which may
hereafter be constructed, shall at all times be open and free to the
government and citizens of the United States, for all lawful purposes
whatever; and no tolls, duties, or charges of any kind shall be
imposed upon the transit, in whole or part, by such modes of
communication, of vessels of war, or other property belonging to the
government of the United States, or on public mails sent under the
authority of the same, or upon persons in its employ, nor upon
citizens of the United States, nor upon vessels belonging to them. And
it is also stipulated that all lawful produce, manufactures,
merchandise, or other property belonging to citizens of the United
States, passing from one ocean to the other, in either direction, for
the purpose of exportation to foreign countries, shall not be subject
to any import or export duties whatever; or if citizens of the United
States, having introduced such produce, manufactures, or merchandise
into the State of Nicaragua, for sale or exchange, shall, within three
years thereafter, determine to export the same, they shall be entitled
to drawback equal to four fifths of the amount of duties paid upon
their importation.

“2d. And inasmuch as a contract was entered into on the twenty-seventh
day of August, 1849, between the republic of Nicaragua and a company
of citizens of the United States, styled the ‘American Atlantic and
Pacific Ship Canal Company,’ and in order to secure the construction
and permanence of the great work thereby contemplated, both high
contracting parties do severally and jointly agree to protect and
defend the above-named company in the full and perfect enjoyment of
said work, from its inception to its completion, and after its
completion, from any acts of invasion, forfeiture, or violence, from
whatever quarter the same may proceed; and to give full effect to the
stipulations here made, and to secure for the benefit of mankind the
uninterrupted advantages of such communication from sea to sea, the
United States distinctly recognizes the rights of sovereignty and
property which the State of Nicaragua possesses in and over the line
of said canal, and for the same reason guarantees, positively and
efficaciously, the entire neutrality of the same, so long as it shall
remain under the control of citizens of the United States, and so long
as the United States shall enjoy the privileges secured to them in the
preceding section of this article.

“3d. But if, by any contingency, the above-named ‘American Atlantic
and Pacific Ship Canal Company’ shall fail to comply with the terms of
their contract with the State of Nicaragua, all the rights and
privileges which said contract confers shall accrue to any company of
citizens of the United States which shall, within one year after the
official declaration of failure, undertake to comply with its
provisions, so far as the same may at that time be applicable,
provided the company thus assuming said contract shall first present
to the President and Secretary of State of the United States
satisfactory assurances of their intention and ability to comply with
the same; of which satisfactory assurances the signature of the
Secretary of State and the seal of his Department shall be complete
evidence.

“4th. And it is also agreed, on the part of the republic of Nicaragua,
that none of the rights, privileges, and immunities guarantied, and by
the preceding articles, but especially by the first section of this
article, conceded to the United States and its citizens, shall accrue
to any other nation, or to its citizens, except such nation shall
first enter into the same treaty stipulations, for the defence and
protection of the proposed great interoceanic canal, which have been
entered into by the United States, in terms the same with those
embraced in section 2d of this article.”

The provisions of this article were not only in conformity with my instructions, but their design and inevitable tendency were to make it to the interest of every nation in the world to maintain the neutrality of the canal, and the independence and territorial integrity of Nicaragua. They secured to the United States every desirable privilege in her intercourse, commercial or otherwise, with Nicaragua; yet those privileges were in no wise exclusive; they would accrue to every other nation, upon the same conditions; conditions to which no nation except England could possibly object, and she only in the event of insisting on her pretensions over the Mosquito Shore.

And this is precisely the reason why the treaty containing this article was met by the unqualified hostility of the British government; it placed England in a position of antagonism to the whole world, and made it to the interest of every maritime country that she should relinquish her hold on San Juan. To avoid the alternative which the consummation of this treaty would impose, the utmost efforts of her diplomacy were put forth to defeat its acceptance by the contracting parties. In Nicaragua these efforts signally failed; the treaty was unanimously ratified by the Legislative Chambers, simultaneously with the canal contract, on the 23d of September, 1849. It was at once dispatched to the United States, approved by General Taylor and his cabinet, and submitted, in conformity with the requirements of the Constitution, to the Senate for its ratification.

This step caused the greatest alarm in the British legation, and Sir Edward Bulwer put forth every influence at his command to postpone, if he could not defeat, the approval of the Senate, which would have brought the whole question of British pretensions to an open issue and a definite conclusion. His exertions to this end were active and unremitting. In the Senate chamber and out of it, publicly and privately, over the council board and over the festive board, everywhere and at all times, this restless and unscrupulous agent wrought out his policy of opposition. His plans were greatly assisted by the distractions of Congress, which was at that moment engaged in the exciting decennial task of “saving the Union,” to the utter neglect of all other business. The blunt honesty and singleness of purpose of General Taylor, it is true, were unassailable; but the weakness and credulity of his Secretary of State proved more than a compensating advantage to Sir Henry in his diplomatic campaign. He prevailed upon this officer to enter into a convention, signed April 19, and proclaimed July 5, 1850, which has since obtained notoriety as the “Clayton and Bulwer treaty,” and has created infinitely greater trouble than it professed to cure. It provided in general terms for the joint protection of the proposed canal by Great Britain and the United States, as follows:

1st. That neither party “will ever obtain or maintain for itself any
exclusive control over” the proposed canal, or erect fortifications
commanding the same or in its vicinity, “or occupy, colonize, or
assume or exercise dominion over Nicaragua, Costa Rica, the Mosquito
Shore, or any part of Central America, nor make use of any protection
which either affords, or any alliance which either has or may have,
for the purpose of erecting, or fortifying, or colonizing the region
above named, or any part of it, or for the purpose of _assuming or
exercising dominion over the same_,” nor will either party make use of
its relations with those countries to procure exclusive privileges for
itself or its subjects in the proposed canal.

2d. Neither party will capture or detain the vessels of the other
while passing through the canal, or while within —— distance of either
of its extremities.

3d. To protect the parties undertaking the construction of the canal,
from “unjust detention, seizure, or violence.”

4th. To use their influence respectively to facilitate the work, and
their good offices to procure the establishment of a free port at
either end.

5th. To guarantee the neutrality of the canal, so long as the
proprietors shall not make unfair discriminations on vessels in
transit, or impose unreasonable tolls; to enter into treaties with the
Central American States to promote the work; to interpose their good
offices to settle all disputes concerning it, etc., etc.

6th. Both governments to lend their support to such company as shall
first present evidences of its intention and ability to undertake the
work, with the consent of the local governments; _one year_ to be
allowed from the date of the ratification of the convention, for the
company now in existence to “_present evidence of sufficient capital
subscribed to accomplish the undertaking_,” it being understood that
if, in that time, no such evidence shall be presented, then both
governments shall be at liberty to afford their protection to any
person or company which shall then be prepared to commence and proceed
with the work in question.

7th. The same general protection to extend to every practicable route
of communication across the continent, on the same principles.[54]

-----

Footnote 54:

This treaty was ratified by the United States, less on the merits of
the guarantee which it extended to the projected canal, than because
it was understood to put an end to the obnoxious protectorate,
amounting to absolute dominion, of Great Britain on the Mosquito
Shore. Such was the understanding of the treaty by Mr. Clayton, the
negotiator on the part of the United States, who, in a despatch under
date of May 7, 1850, said, in reference to it:

“DEPARTMENT OF STATE, }
“Washington, _May 7, 1850_. }

“E. G. SQUIER, ETC., ETC.:

“SIR:—* * * It is proper that I should now inform you that I have
negotiated a treaty with Sir Henry Bulwer, the object of which is to
secure the protection of the British government to the Nicaraguan
canal, and to liberate Central America from the dominion of any
foreign power.

* * * * * * * * * *

“I hope and believe that this treaty will prove equally honorable both
to Great Britain and the United States, the more especially as it
secures the weak sister republics of Central America from foreign
aggression. All other nations that shall navigate the canal will have
to become guarantors of the neutrality of Central America and the
Mosquito Coast. The agreement is, ‘not to erect or maintain any
fortifications commanding the canal, or in the vicinity thereof; nor
to occupy, fortify, colonize, or assume or exercise any dominion
whatever over any part of Nicaragua, Costa Rica, the Mosquito Coast,
or Central America; nor to make use of any protection or alliance, for
any of these purposes.’

“Great Britain having thus far made an agreement with us for the great
and philanthropic purpose of opening the ship communication through
the isthmus, it will now be most desirable immediately after the
ratification of the treaty, on both sides, that you should cultivate
the most friendly relations with the British agents in that country,
who will hereafter have to devote their energies and coöperation with
ours, to the accomplishment of the great work designed by the treaty.
Kindness and conciliation are most earnestly recommended by me to you.
I trust that means will speedily be adopted by Great Britain to
extinguish the Indian title, with the help of the Nicaraguans, or the
company, within what we consider to be the limits of Nicaragua. We
have never acknowledged, and never can acknowledge, the existence of
any claim of sovereignty in the Mosquito king, or any other Indian in
America. To do so, would be to deny the title of the United States to
our own territories. Having always regarded an Indian title as a mere
right of occupancy, we can never agree that such a title should be
treated otherwise than as a thing to be extinguished at the will of
the discoverer of the country. Upon the ratification of the treaty,
Great Britain will no longer have any interest to deny this principle,
which she has recognized in every other case in common with us. Her
protectorate will be reduced to a shadow—‘_Stat nominis umbra_’; for
she can neither occupy, fortify, nor colonize, or exercise dominion or
control in any part of the Mosquito Coast or Central America. To
attempt to do either of these things, after the exchange of
ratifications, would inevitably produce a rupture with the United
States. By the terms neither party can occupy to protect, nor protect
to occupy.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

(Signed) [Sidenote: “JOHN M. CLAYTON.”]

-----

Within a week after the promulgation of this convention, Gen. Taylor died. This event was followed by an entire change in the foreign policy of the government, which during the whole of Mr. Fillmore’s administration vibrated between the extremes of gross subserviency and indecent bravado. The British envoy deemed the opportunity favorable for his purpose, and redoubled his exertions to procure the rejection of the treaty with Nicaragua, or its essential modification, so as to do away with the alternative, so fatal to British designs, which its terms imposed. Communication after communication reached the State Department from this zealous officer, in which the circumstance that General Taylor’s administration had condescended to enter into treaty relations with Nicaragua was abundantly ridiculed, and the feeble government of that State not only characterized as ignorant, weak, and poor, but unsparingly denounced as faithless and corrupt. A special point of objection to the treaty, and that on which the envoy placed the greatest stress, was its incompatibility (as he alleged) with his convention with Mr. Clayton. That gentleman, in fact, was accused of duplicity and bad faith in permitting the Nicaragua treaty to rest in the hands of the Senate, which might at any time take it up for ratification, and thus topple down the cunning diplomatic fabric that he had raised.[55] These appeals and representations were addressed to a willing ear, and on the 29th of September, 1850, Sir Henry exultingly wrote to Lord Palmerston that “Mr. Webster furthermore said, that he should recommend the Senate to do nothing further, for the present, in respect to Mr. Squier’s treaty.” In what form that recommendation was made is not known; it is perhaps well for the memory of the dead, it certainly is for the credit of American statesmanship, that the details of this surrender of American dignity, honor, and interests lie under “the seal of secrecy.” It is enough to know that soon after the date of Sir Henry’s triumphant announcement to Lord Palmerston, Congress adjourned without action on the treaty. The next session passed with the same result, leaving on the minds of the Nicaraguan people a profound impression of broken faith and impaired national honor.

-----

Footnote 55:

See Letters of Sir Henry Bulwer to Lord Palmerston and Mr. Webster,
pp. 70, 71 of “Correspondence with the United States respecting
Central America,” printed by order of Parliament, 1856.

-----

Returning now to the special subject of the proposed interoceanic canal, we find the “American Atlantic and Pacific Canal Company” so far complying with its charter as to send out a corps of engineers, under Colonel Childs, to survey the line of the work, with the results set forth in a preceding chapter. The expedition had not been long in the field, however, before it became obvious that the undertaking would prove of a much more formidable character than had been supposed, and that the whole idea of constructing a canal conformably to the charter must be abandoned. The survey was nevertheless continued, and an apparent compliance with the letter of the charter kept up, while the grantees dispatched one of their own number to Nicaragua with the view of procuring a separation of the privilege of exclusive steam-navigation, in the interior waters of the State, from the more serious obligations of the canal contract, and to secure other additional privileges necessary to establish a monopoly of transit. This exclusive privilege having been principally conceded for the purpose of facilitating the construction of the canal, and regarding the attempt to procure the separation as covering a design to abandon the proposed canal, by securing independently all that could, for many years at least, prove of value, the government of Nicaragua at first refused its assent to the application. Political disturbances subsequently occurring, the constituted authorities of the State were overthrown, and two distinct governments installed, one at Leon, another at Granada. Availing himself of the necessities of the latter, in respect of arms and money, the agent of the company succeeded in obtaining from it the concessions desired, although under protest from the government established in Leon. With this contested if not invalid concession he returned to New York, and the California emigration being then at its height, a company was readily formed under it, with the denomination of the “Nicaragua Accessory Transit Company,” which, after an infamous career of deception and fraud, the history whereof is written in the proceedings of our courts of law, finally broke up, disastrously, from internal dissensions. With the organization of this company, the anterior canal company was practically dissolved, nor has it since been heard of, except in connection with some abortive attempts to give currency to certain documents called “canal rights,” issued by the grantees of the canal, before the supplementary concession was made, and before the original charter became forfeited for non user. By the provisions of that charter the canal was to be completed within twelve years, ten of which have elapsed without action, and consequently any effort to represent the “American Atlantic and Pacific Ship Canal Company” as having a legal or even constructive existence can only be characterized as an impudent attempt at imposture.

As already said, the results of Col. Childs’ survey in Nicaragua were such as to discourage any idea of opening a canal through that country, at a cost within the range of legitimate enterprise. Subsequent efforts to find other and more practicable canal routes, at Darien and Atrato, were unsuccessful, and the surveys of Maj. Barnard at Tehuantepec proved that a canal at that point was simply impossible. The public mind, furthermore, having now for the first time taken up the question of a canal, from a practical point of view, soon settled down into the conviction that however desirable a canal might be for certain purposes, railways would far better subserve the more important and essential requirements of travel and of trade. This conviction gathered strength from the experience of the Panama railway, which, notwithstanding its deficiencies in position and ports, and the deadliness of its climate, was found adequate to the general requirements of commerce. These considerations, still more than the distracted political condition of Nicaragua, were effectual to divert the public mind from the subject of the proposed canal, and it was allowed to rest in abeyance, and probably would have gone entirely out of sight for the remainder of this century, had not attention been called to it again by the fantastic proceedings of a certain Monsieur Felix Belly, of Paris, “publicist, and knight of the orders of San Maurice and Lazarus, and of the Medjidie.” Taking advantage of the reaction against Americans which followed the expulsion of Gen. Walker from Nicaragua, and by adroit implications of being the confidential representative of the Emperor Louis Napoleon, (who, as we have seen, had himself been principal to a contract respecting the canal,) he received from the acting president, or rather dictator, of Nicaragua, a new concession for opening the proposed canal. The instrument bears date, “May 1, 1858, the anniversary of Walker’s capitulation!” Its provisions are such as might be expected from the character of the contracting parties, and do not merit recital. They may, however, be inferred generally from the stipulation of Art. 26, “that the French government shall have the right to keep two ships-of-war stationed in the canal, or in Lake Nicaragua, for the entire duration of the works.” The contract, furthermore, by an eminently Gallic appreciation of congruity and propriety, is accompanied by a grand political manifesto, setting forth that “hitherto all the official agents of the United States in Nicaragua have been accomplices and auxiliaries of fillibusters,” and that, for this and other reasons, Nicaragua was then, and by virtue of that manifesto, “placed under the guarantee of the three powers which have guaranteed the Ottoman Empire—England, France, and Sardinia”—these powers being adjured “no longer to leave the rich countries of Central America to the mercy of barbarians!” Late advices from Nicaragua affirm that the contract with the “Knight of San Maurice and Lazarus” was ratified, with various modifications, on the 8th of April, 1859, by the Legislative Chambers of the State.[56] It will thus be seen that the somewhat dreary history of earnest but unsuccessful attempts to connect the seas by means of a canal, is finally to be relieved by a comic episode; and we may indulge the pleasing hope, that the all too sad reminiscences connected with the undertaking, like the too serious impressions left by a tragedy, are to be happily dissipated by the opportune introduction of a farce! To Punch and Charivari remains the congenial task of recording and illustrating the future career and the prospective triumphs of Monsieur Belly, “Publicist, Knight, etc.,” in Nicaragua!

-----

Footnote 56:

It is stated also that this ratification is coupled with certain
arrangements to open a transit route, by means of small boats on the
river San Juan and Lake Nicaragua, and by carriages from the lake to
the Pacific, as was done by the extinguished “Accessory Transit
Company.” So far as M. Belly has any practical object, it is probably
this—to obtain the exclusive right for such a transit, or the
concession of such privileges as will give a practical monopoly. This
may easily be done, notwithstanding that Nicaragua has declared the
transit “open and free.”

-----

END.

LA PLATA:

THE ARGENTINE CONFEDERATION

AND

PARAGUAY.

Being a Narrative of the Exploration of the Tributaries of the River La
Plata and Adjacent Countries, during the Years 1853, ’54, ’55, and
’56, under the Orders of the United States Government. By THOMAS J.
PAGE, U.S.N., Commander of the Expedition. One Volume Large Octavo,
with Map and numerous Illustrations. Muslin, $3 00.

This Volume contains the Official Narrative of one of the most
important Expeditions ever sent out by our Government. The vast region
drained by the River La Plata and its tributaries was closed to
commerce and navigation by the rigid Colonial Laws of Spain, the civil
wars which followed the Independence, and the subsequent selfish
policy of Rosas, the tyrant of Buenos Ayres. After the defeat and
flight of Rosas, one of the first acts of Urquiza, the able and
enlightened Director of the Argentine Confederation, was the decree of
August 28, 1852, declaring the waters of the Confederation free to the
flags of all nations.

Our Government was the first to avail itself of this decree. Early in
1853 the steamer _Water Witch_ was placed under the command of
Lieutenant PAGE, with instructions to explore the Rivers of La Plata,
and report upon their navigability and adaptation to commerce.
Lieutenant PAGE executed his commission with rare fidelity and
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soil, climate, and productions of the country, and the manners,
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unfortunate rupture with Paraguay, showing conclusively that the
attack upon the _Water Witch_ was altogether unwarranted, and the
allegations by which President Lopez attempted to justify it entirely
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Transcriber’s Note

Where variant spellings were encountered (e.g., parroquets/paroquets, court yard/court-yard, mayor domo/mayor-domo), corrections were made only when one variant was obviously predominant elsewhere.

About 90% of the instances of the Spanish honorific ‘Señor’ use the ‘ñ’. The remainder have been corrected (at 91.20, 121.7, 231.9, 235.24, 265.25, 348.10, 348.12, 364.12, 491.9.)

There are a number of errors in the chapter and illustration lists, likely caused by a late addition to the illustrations. These have been corrected. Two woodcuts are referenced (#36 and #92) but do not appear in the text.

Printed Corrected
Woodcut 15 109 119
” 16 110 120
” 16 110 120
” 36 273 [Missing]
” 37 275 274
” 69 474 476
” 80 515 517
” 81 515 517
” 92 621 [Missing]