Book 2, Chapter 10 Summary and Analysis

"The Lobby" takes up the story, as proponents of the two routes fight out in the U.S. Congress as to where to put an American canal. Sentiment is entirely one-sided in favor of Nicaragua, until William Nelson Cromwell and Philippe Banau-Varilla emerge as spokesmen of the "Panama Lobby." Both are aggressive Napoleonic types. Cromwell is a corporate lawyer with a reputation as a mystery man and puller of strings. "Accidents don't happen" is his motto.

Born in Brooklyn, NY, Cromwell begins as an accountant, works his way through Columbia Law School and, in 1876, founds the Wall Street firm of Sullivan & Cromwell. He builds his own legend and hires promising, young lawyers. He's a multi-millionaire by his early forties, and is a confidant to America's top financiers, on whose friendships he trades openly. As general counsel for the Panama...