ABSTRACT
Toward the end of the nineteenth century, many US citizens embraced the idea that their country again needed to be more aggressive internationally and even consider territorial expansion. Increased US assertiveness took a number of different forms and evolved as the nineteenth century ended. In an effort to facilitate the projection of US power throughout the hemisphere, the US hosted a conference in Washington. By far, the important example of a new US approach to Latin America was its involvement in the Cuban struggle for independence. Spanish officials, fearing that growing sentiment in the US supported intervention in Cuba, and recognizing that their forces were unable to end the war decisively, announced a series of reforms in November 1897 dedicated to bringing the war to conclusion. As US desire to build a canal grew, Bunau-Varilla hired William Nelson Cromwell, a partner in a powerful New York law firm, to help him push for the Panama route over the Nicaragua one.
