Mr. Taft in his speech to the Panamanians was earnest. He was imbued with the spirit of conquest as represented in our Panama Canal enterprise. It was to be a conquest of nature’s own forces in their most formidable aspects and he expressed a determination to enforce, during his term of administration, the laws necessary to make that conquest possible, and capping all his promises of fair treatment to the people of Panama, he emphasised an insistence upon orderly government in the little republic which brought forth round after round of applause.

He was destined to have almost endless difficulties of various sorts in the Canal Zone, but he had the great privilege of occupying an administrative office, first as Secretary of War and then as President, until the end of the work was in sight and all the problems had been fully solved. During those eight years, wherever he might be or whatever business happened to be temporarily paramount, Canal questions were with him always and were always given first consideration.