There were many obstacles to such a project. The first was Great
Britain. Fearing that either side would build an is thmathian canal and
use it for national advantage, the United States and Great Britain
agreed in the 1850Clayton-Bulwer Treaty that neither side would
build such a canal. A half century later, the now dominant United States
wanted to nullify this deal. Great Britain, nervous about its South African Boer War and an increasingly cloudy Europe, sought to make a friend in the United States. The Hay-Pauncefote Treaty
permitted the United States to build and fortify a Central American
canal, so long as the Americans promised to charge the same fares to all
nations. One roadblock was clear.
