tain.

This treaty has been negotiated in accordance with the general views
expressed in my message to Congress in December last. Its object is to
establish a commercial alliance with all great maritime states for the
protection of a contemplated ship canal through the territory of
Nicaragua to connect the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, and at the same
time to insure the same protection to the contemplated railways or
canals by the Tehuantepec and Panama routes, as well as to every other
interoceanic communication which may be adopted to shorten the transit
to or from our territories on the Pacific.

It will be seen that this treaty does not propose to take money from the
public Treasury to effect any object contemplated by it. It yields
protection to the capitalists who may undertake to construct any canal
or railway across the Isthmus, commencing in the southern part of Mexico
and terminating in the territory of New Granada. It gives no preference
to any one route over another, but proposes the same measure of
protection for all which ingenuity and enterprise can construct. Should
this treaty be ratified, it will secure in future the liberation of all
Central America from any kind of foreign aggression.

At the time negotiations were opened with Nicaragua for the construction
of a canal through her territory I found Great Britain in possession of
nearly half of Central America, as the ally and protector of the
Mosquito King. It has been my object in negotiating this treaty not only
to secure the passage across the Isthmus to the Government and citizens
of the United States by the construction of a great highway dedicated to
the use of all nations on equal terms, but to maintain the independence
and sovereignty of all the Central American Republics. The Senate will
judge how far these objects have been effected.

If there be any who would desire to seize and annex any portion of the
territories of these weak sister republics to the American Union, or to
extend our dominion over them, I do not concur in their policy; and I
wish it to be understood in reference to that subject that I adopt the
views entertained, so far as I know, by all my predecessors.

The principles by which I have been regulated in the negotiation of this
treaty are in accordance with the sentiments well expressed by my
immediate predecessor on the 10th of February, 1847, when he
communicated to the Senate the treaty with New Granada for the
prote