Roberto Chiari (1905-1981) president of Panama (1960-1964), negotiated with two U.S. presidents in a futile effort to settle peacefully problems of the Canal Zone.

Roberto Chiari was born in 1905, a member of a well-known Panamanian family. His father, Rudolfo, was Panama's president from 1924 to 1928. But two years later the depression (which devasted the American economy) also wracked Panama, and Chiari had to go to work as a crew member aboard a ferry belonging to the Panama Canal Company. His job was that of a wiper in the engine room.

Such a job was quite a come-down for this proud young man who had gone to LaSalle School in Panama City and had served his father as an aide. The 1930s were tough times in Panama as well as elsewhere. But during World War II the Chiari family turned things around, and by the end of the decade...