No. 85.
Mr. Washburne to Mr. Fish.

No. 1369.]

Sir: I have the honor to send you inclosed herein a letter of Mr. A. de Gogorza to the President, with whom, it appears, he has had personal relations.

Mr. de Gogorza, as you are certainly aware, is the author of a scheme of great interest to the United States—a canal across the Isthmus of Darien, and to the furtherance of which he has devoted twelve years of labor. He writes to the President to call his attention to that scheme, which seems to be in the way of being seriously considered.

Notwithstanding his Spanish name, Mr. de Gogorza is an American by birth, and so are his children; his father, a Frenchman, was naturalized in New York in the last century; he has lived, however, for years in the United States of Colombia, and availed himself of the facilities furnished to him to explore the Darien Isthmus.

After two different explorations, he satisfied himself that a natural passage had once existed between the two oceans from the Gulf of Uraba, on the Atlantic coast, to the Gulf of San Miguel, on the Pacific side, by way of the Atrato, Cacarica, Paya, and Tuyra Rivers, and that such passage could be opened again. He succeeded in convincing the Colombian Government of the soundness of his views, and secured a concession giving him the privilege to cut a canal along the route he had discovered.

It seems that he first looked toward our government and people to promote his scheme, but for some reason or other he failed to get our assistance, and repaired to France, where he has been very active, and where his efforts were not altogether unsuccessful. He brought the subject before the international geographical congress held here last year, as well as before the French Geographical Society, and pressed it in such a way that this society determined to take the matter in hand. In March last it decided that a French “committee of initiative” should be appointed, the duties of which were to invite all the geographical societies of the world to co-operate in a definitive exploration of the American isthmus, not only by the material means they could dispose of, but particularly by bringing their influence and credit with the governments of the countries in which they were located in favor of such exploration.

The members selected to compose that committee are distinguished and well-known men, whose character and standing give them a title to public confidence. They are, Messrs. Ferdinand de Lesseps, president, member of the Institute, director of the Suez Canal Company; Admiral Baron de la Ronciére le Noury, senator, president of the Society of Geography; Meurand, honorary president of the Society of Geography, president of the Commission of Commercial Geography, director of the consulates at the foreign office; Delesse, chief engineer of the mines; Malte-Brun, president of the Central Commission of the Geographical Society; Levasseur, member of the Institute, vice-president of the Society of Geography; Foucher de Careil, senator, member of the Society of Geography; Cotard, engineer, member of the Society of Geography; [Page 126] Henri Bionne, late officer in the French navy; Maunoir, general secretary of the Society of Geography; Hertz, general secretary of the Commercial Commission of the Society of Geography; Léon Drouillet, engineer, member of the Society of Geography.

Of course, this committee is committed to no particular project, but its only object is to create an international board, under whose scientific direction complete investigation could be made of the geographical problem involved in the cutting of a canal through Central America. The French Government has given a subvention to the committee, and has connected with its board a member of the French consulate, Mr. Verchère, who will report as to the progress of the investigations which they may make. I cannot tell you how far this committee has succeeded, but its president, Mr. de Lesseps, has addressed me to ask my assistance and to request that I should call the attention of my government to the subject, The association of M. de Lesseps with this undertaking is not without its significance. One of the most distinguished of living engineers; a man of the highest character and intelligence, and exercising great influence in the scientific and financial world, the interest he is taking in the matter is calculated to strengthen the project in the estimation of all persons who concern themselves in its development. I forward herewith two pamphlets the committee has sent to me, which fully explain its views.

The work of such commissions is always very slow, however, and Mr. de Gogorza, though confident that no other passage can be opened between the two oceans but the one he has discovered, has organized a company for the purpose of proceeding at once to the necessary scientific surveys and estimates preliminary to the creation of his Darien Canal Company. The directors of this provisional company are General Turr, aid-de-camp of the King of Italy; Charles Cousin, inspector-general of the Northern Railroad Company; Eugéne Rampon, late consul-general to Colombia; G. Reniad, banker.

According to the stipulations of the act of concession, the Colombian Government has the right to take part in the proceedings of that company; and it has appointed for that purpose its minister to France and England, Mr. Zapata, and a special delegate, Br. Joaquin Sarmiento, director of the Bank of Bogotá, who has just arrived in Paris. These gentlemen are about to form a commission of engineers, which will repair at once to the isthmus. It is their intention, I understand, to give an international character to the enterprise, and to call on all the maritime governments for assistance, when the engineers will be ready to begin their operations.

I am assured that the Italian minister at Washington has already been instructed to make the necessary steps in that direction. Mr. De Gogorza, in the letter he has addressed to me, states that the assistance required would be the appointment of an American engineer to join the commission of survey to be sent over the coming winter, and such help as the United States naval officer in command at Panama would be able to lend to the commission.

I have thought that in view of the vast importance of this great undertaking, and of the serious character which it has now assumed, our government will not hesitate to associate itself in all proper measures looking to a full development of this enterprise, which is now challenging the earnest attention of the great maritime powers of the world.

I inclose in the pouch a few copies of M. de Gogorza’s pamphlet, addressed to members of our observatory and coast survey.

I have, &c.,

E. B. WASHBURNE.