,illustration3 ,,duncan ,e4             
,mc,k,i,n,l,a,y    ,who as a ,member of 
,congress ,visited the ,canal with the  
,interstate  ,committee of the ,house4  
,illustration3 ,,the ,,big ,,four ,,of  
,,the ,,panama ,,canal--,president      
,william  ,mc,kinley1 ,president        
,william ,h4 ,taft1 ,president ,theodore
 ,roosevelt and  ,colonel ,g4 ,w4       
,goethals4                              
,,the                                   
,,panama ,,canal                        
,,duncan ,e4 ,mc,k,i,n,l,a,y            
#aiab                         ,,whitaker
  ,,ray-,,wiggin ,,co4                  
,,san ,,francisco                       
,,copyright ,,by                        
,,whitaker  ,,ray-,,wiggin ,,co4        
#aiab                                   
,,dedicated                             
,,to                       ,,president  
,,william ,,howard ,,taft               
,,by ,,the ,,author4          ,,the     
,,panama ,,canal      ,of all subjects  
now occupying the attention of the world

 at large1  and of importance not only  
to the ,state of ,california1 but to all
 the  territory west of the ,rocky      
mountains and the islands and coasts of 
the  ,pacific ,ocean1 over which the    
,american flag floats in sovereignty1   
none  is paramount to the construction  
of the ,panama ,canal4 ,the completion  
of the canal1 while a world event1 will1
 of course1 be of peculiar  significance
 and importance to that portion of the  
globe which borders  on the ,pacific    
,ocean4 ,countries1 islands1 coasts and 
,states that for  centuries have been   
isolated and far distant by water routes
 from  the centers of population of     
,europe and ,eastern ,united ,states1   
will  be brought thousands of miles     
nearer to1 and consequently1 into more  
intimate social1 industrial and business
 relations with the more highly         
organized governments of ,europe and    
,america4    ,in effect1 the opening of 
the canal in #aiae to the commerce and  
trade  of the world will be the         

realization of the dream of ,columbus1  
who  sailed across the ,atlantic in     
#adib to discover a shorter water route 
between ,europe and ,asia1 and the      
fulfillment of the prophecy of ,baron   
von ,humboldt1 who1 between the years of
 #agii and #ahje1 explored and  surveyed
 a great portion of ,central and ,south 
,america4 ,humboldt1 as a  result of his
 explorations1 predicted that within a  
reasonable period  of time the two      
largest oceans of the world1 the        
,atlantic and the  ,pacific1 would be   
united by an artificial water-way4 ,this
 water-way1  in his opinion1 as         
expressed in a letter to his friend1 the
 ,german poet  ,goethe1 would be        
constructed by the little republic at   
the north1 the  ,united ,states1 even   
then beginning to take an important     
place among the  powers of the world4   
,in #ahfg1 the energy and foresight of  
,seward acquired ,alaska as an  addition
 to ,american territory2 and though     
,seward was laughed at and  reviled as a

 foolish dreamer because of his purchase
 of a so-called  iceberg and a fog-bank1
 nevertheless1 that able statesman and  
diplomat  pointed out to the people of  
the ,united ,states that some day the   
,pacific ,ocean must become the world's 
greatest sea of commerce and  trade1 and
 that in that day ,alaska would become  
one of the most  valuable possessions of
 the ,american nation4    ,those dreams 
and prophecies today are reaching their 
culmination  and fulfillment in the     
opening of the ,panama ,canal1 which    
will be  celebrated in ,san             
,francisco1--yes1 not only in ,san      
,francisco1 but  throughout all         
,california and the sister ,states of   
the western  coast--by the greatest     
international exposition ever conducted 
in the  history of civilization4 ,it    
will be a jubilee celebration in which  
all  the ,states and principalities1    
nations and empires of the world will   
join in proud and thankful              
participation4      ,the ,history of the

 ,canal    ,the idea of constructing an 
artificial water-way between the        
,caribbean  ,sea and the ,gulf of       
,panama is as old as the discovery of   
,america4  ,christopher ,columbus1 in   
early life1 became converted to the idea
 that  the world was round1 and his     
studies led him to believe that by      
sailing  in a direct course and sailing 
far enough1 he could circumnavigate  the
 globe and come back to the point from  
which he started1 provided  he could    
keep on that straight course4 ,this     
belief naturally led him  to the        
conclusion that by sailing westward from
 ,spain1 across the  ,atlantic1 he could
 reach the coasts and the islands of    
,asia1 which  about that time were      
coming into great prominence as a       
desired market  for the exchange of the 
wares of the producers and the          
manufacturers of  ,europe4              
,illustration3 ,,ruins ,,of ,,santa     
,,dominie ,,church1 ,,panama4    ,the   
only mistake made by ,columbus was that 

he estimated the circumference  of the  
world at about #h1jjj miles1 instead of 
over #bd1jjj4 ,following his  theory1   
,columbus embarked on his first and     
greatest voyage1 and was  successful1 as
 we know1 in discovering one of the     
islands of the ,west  ,indies4 ,columbus
 made four voyages in all to the newly  
discovered land1  but it is doubtful as 
to whether or not he ever reached the   
mainland of  ,america4 ,one of his      
historians claims that on his last      
voyage he landed  upon the coast of     
,honduras in ,central ,america1 and on  
the land now known  as ,venezuela1      
farther toward the south4 ,this fact is 
of little importance  to us at this     
time4 ,we do know1 however1 that        
,columbus died in ignorance  of the fact
 that he had discovered a great         
continent instead of some of  the       
islands of the ,east ,indies4           
,immediately following the death of     
,columbus1 his enterprising             
lieutenants1 men like ,vespucci1 ,ojeda1

 ,balboa1 and others of equal           
prominence1 pushed their explorations   
farther westward1 and ,balboa1  the     
boldest of the ,spanish conquistadores1 
fitted out an expedition in             
,hispaniola1 which island was then the  
base of operations of ,spanish          
exploration and conquest1 and sailed    
across the narrow sea to the coast  of  
that portion of ,central ,america we now
 call ,panama4    ,balboa established a 
rendezvous and base of supplies and     
operations  on the coast1 and thence    
continued his journey inland1 and on the
 #bcrd  of ,september1 #aeac1 surmounted
 the heights of ,darien1 and from that  
eminence beheld the expansive stretches 
of watery waste known today  as the     
,pacific ,ocean4 ,balboa1 continuing his
 explorations along the  coasts of      
,panama1 soon discovered that the land  
was not an island1 but  a continent1 and
 becoming acquainted with the ,indians  
who inhabited the  country1 he learned  
that there were two large bodies        

connected by a  smaller body4    ,balboa
 understood this statement to mean two  
large bodies of water  connected by a   
smaller body of water1 and therefore1   
naturally came to  the conclusion that  
the ,indians meant that the ,pacific and
 the ,atlantic  ,oceans were connected  
at some point or other along the isthmus
 by a  natural water-way4 ,what the     
,indians really meant was that there    
were  two large bodies of land1 to the  
north and south1 and that these large   
bodies were connected by a long1 narrow 
strip of land1 part of which he  was    
then exploring4    ,the ,spaniards1     
naturally eager to extend their         
explorations into the  great western    
ocean1 began to search for the          
connecting water-way1 and  this quest   
was continued by them for nearly half a 
century2 but they  finally realized that
 the two great oceans of the world were 
separated  by the impassable barrier of 
a continuous chain of mountainous land4 
,the conquerer of ,mexico1 ,cortez1     

after finishing the subjugation of the  
,indians of that part of the ,spanish   
possessions1 in #aebf1 was commanded  by
 the ,king of ,spain to proceed to the  
,isthmus and to assist in the  search   
for the secret water-way4    ,cortez    
answered the command of the ,king by    
saying that if he could not  find the   
natural water-way he would proceed to   
make one4 ,the brave  old soldier1 all  
his life trained in the habit of        
surmounting great  difficulties1        
declared that if there were obstacles   
and mountains1  there were also men with
 brains and hands1 and that if he could 
not  find the water-way as commanded by 
the ,king1 he would carry out the  order
 by constructing a canal to connect the 
two oceans4 ,and so1 the  idea of       
,columbus being to find a short         
water-route between ,europe and  the    
,east ,indies and coasts of ,asia1 by   
the completion of the ,panama  ,canal1  
the ,united ,states is carrying out the 
original purpose of  efforts of the     

discoverer of ,america and the orders of
 the ,king of  ,spain to ,cortez1 to    
make an artificial water-way which will 
shorten the  lines of trade and commerce
 around the globe4    ,between those    
early days and the present time every   
great maritime nation  of the world has 
been interested in isthmian canal       
construction--,spain1  ,portugal1       
,holland1 ,germany1 ,france1 ,great     
,britain and ,italy have all1 at  one   
time or another in the intervening      
years1 considered the advisability  and 
feasibility of constructing a canal     
somewhere across the narrow  territory  
between the ,atlantic and ,pacific4     
,nine ,different ,routes ,proposed      
,in all1 nine routes have been surveyed 
or considered by some nation or  some   
company4 ,the first route to the north  
is known as the ,tehuantepec  route1    
which extends across ,mexico from the   
,gulf of ,mexico to the  ,pacific       
,ocean1 a distance of nearly #bjj miles1
 and over which route an  ,english      

syndicate1 headed by the ,pearsons1 is  
now operating a splendid  railroad      
system4 ,captain ,eads1 one of the most 
prominent of ,american  engineers of his
 time1 advocated the building of a ship 
railway over  this route1 a railway so  
constructed that cars could be let down 
into  the water under the bottoms of    
ships1 drawing them out of the water and
  across the land to the ocean on the   
other side4    ,of course1 this project 
might have been feasible with the       
smaller  sized merchant ships of forty  
years ago1 but it would hardly be so for
  transporting the gigantic freighters  
and passenger vessels that now  traverse
 the seas4    ,the second route1 towards
 the south1 was called the ,honduras    
,bay route1  a route across the         
,republic of ,honduras from ,honduras   
,bay on the east  to the ,pacific4      
,the third route came to be known as the
 ,nicaraguan route4 ,for a long  time   
this was the most popular of all the    
routes with the ,american  ,congress and

 the ,american people4 ,the ,nicaraguan 
route contemplated the  utilization of  
the ,san ,juan ,river on the east1      
between the ,atlantic  ,coast and the   
,nicaraguan lakes1 the ,nicaraguan lakes
 as far as they  extended westward1 and 
thence through a canal across the       
dividing land  from the upper lake to   
,nicaragua to the ,pacific ,ocean at    
,brita4 ,the  ,nicaraguan route would be
 #cgg miles shorter between ,san        
,francisco and  ,new ,york than is the  
,panama route1 along which the ,united  
,states is now  constructing a canal4   
,a fourth route was surveyed between the
 ,chirique ,lagoon on the eastern  side 
to the ,pacific ,ocean4      ,the       
,isthmian ,routes    ,three routes      
across the ,isthmus of ,panama have been
 surveyed and  considered--two besides  
the one which the ,united ,states is now
  utilizing2 and farther south two      
possible canal routes have been         
surveyed across the territory of        
,colombia4 ,the two southern routes     

would use the ,atrato ,river as a part  
of their course1 and from that  river   
across to the separating lands an       
excavation would be required4           
,illustration3 ,,water ,,front1         
,,panama4    ,of these nine routes only 
three have been seriously contemplated  
by the  engineers of the various        
governments and companies who have      
examined  them4 ,the three are the      
,tehuantepec1 the ,nicaraguan1 and the  
,panama  ,canal route4    ,in the year  
#ahjj all ,south ,american territory1   
with the exception of  ,brazil and a few
 colonies1 was under the sovereignty of 
,spain1 but  about the year #ahaa a     
series of revolutions broke out in      
various parts  of ,central and ,south   
,america1 having for their object the   
establishment  of independent republics1
 and by #ahbc all ,central and ,south   
,american  countries had achieved       
independence4 ,the province of ,panama  
secured her  independence in the year   
#ahbc1 maintained that independence for 

a short  time and then merged with the  
,republic of ,new ,granada4    ,panama  
remained a part of ,new ,granada for    
several years1 and then  became a part  
of the ,new ,granadan and ,colombian    
confederacy1 and  continued to be a part
 of that confederacy through various    
vicissitudes  of fortune and misfortune 
arising out of revolutions and war until
  ,november #c1 #aijc1 when she seceded 
from the ,colombian confederacy1        
hoisted her old flag1 and resumed her   
ancient nationality4    ,in #ahbe1 the  
,south and ,central ,american           
,republics1 desiring to bring           
themselves into closer relations and    
sympathy so that trade and  commerce and
 industry might be better developed1    
conceived the idea  of holding a        
convention in the ,city of ,panama1 in  
the year #ahbf4  ,the ,united ,states   
,government was invited to participate  
and take a  prominent part in that      
convention1 and in order to induce the  
,president  of the ,united ,states to   

send his representatives1 the subject of
 canal  construction across the ,isthmus
 was to be one of the most prominent    
subjects considered4    ,henry ,clay1   
the ,secretary of ,state of the ,united 
,states at that time1  was at first very
 eager to participate in the            
,pan-,american convention1  but was     
prevented by objections of the          
,president from sending  representatives
 to ,panama4 ,however1 he sent a note of
 felicitation and  encouragement and    
promised the support of the ,united     
,states in any  mutual project that     
would be to the advantage of all the    
countries1  and particularly pledged    
that support to any feasible project of 
canal  construction4 ,this was the first
 official interest taken by the ,united 
,states in the construction of an       
,isthmian ,canal4    ,like nearly all   
conventions1 the one that was held in   
,panama in #ahbf  met and resoluted a   
great deal and indulged in much oratory1
 but  adjourned without accomplishing   

very much of practical value4 ,however1 
a congress composed of representatives  
of several of the ,south and  ,central  
,american ,states authorized the        
construction of an ,isthmian  ,canal1   
and actually went so far as to enter    
into negotiations with a  prominent     
engineer for the purpose of having one  
constructed1 at some  point to be       
decided upon later2 but owing to        
revolutions and disorders  soon after   
developing1 plans for the project were  
for the time  abandoned4    ,in #ahcg   
the ,congress of the ,united ,states    
authorized canal surveys to  be made and
 a commission was appointed for the     
purpose of surveying  and exploring the 
,central ,american country so that data 
might be  secured that would give the   
,american ,congress information as to   
the  practicability of the different    
routes that might be utilized4 ,from    
that time on1 until today1 the subject  
of ,panama ,canal construction  has been
 almost constantly before the ,american 

,congress4    ,of course1 action in that
 body was more or less sporadic4 ,the   
subject  would be taken up from time to 
time when some pressing need for quicker
  and cheaper transportation to the     
,pacific ,coast made itself apparent4   
,in #ahdf the ,united ,states entered   
into war with ,mexico1 which engaged    
the energies of the nation for the time 
being and canal legislation  was        
forgotten4 ,after the war with ,mexico  
came the discovery of gold in           
,california1 and the rush of the        
argonauts to the ,golden ,state made it 
necessary that quicker and cheaper      
routes be established than those  around
 ,cape ,horn by water1 or the long trail
 over the plains and  mountains to the  
,pacific ,slope4 ,a company was         
organized in ,new ,york  which          
established a line of transportation by 
means of steamers from  ,new ,york to   
,greytown1 thence through the ,san ,juan
 ,river to the lakes of  ,nicaragua1 and
 thence by the stage lines to the       

,pacific ,coast1 where  again vessels   
were taken for ,san ,francisco ,bay and 
for the coasts of  ,oregon and ,puget   
,sound4      ,the ,panama ,railroad     
,about the same time a railway company  
was formed in the ,united ,states  which
 secured a concession from the ,republic
 of ,colombia for the  purpose of       
constructing the railway system across  
the ,isthmus1 which is  now known as the
 ,panama ,railroad4 ,this railroad was  
completed in #ahef1  and this addition  
to the means of transportation to the   
,pacific ,coast  again indefinitely     
postponed the necessity for canal       
construction4    ,in #ahfa the ,united  
,states drifted into the ,civil ,war1   
and once more  the subject of canal     
construction was forgotten4 ,after the  
close of  the ,civil ,war the           
transcontinental railroads1 headed by   
the ,union and  ,central ,pacific       
,companies1 pushed their lines westward 
until they  reached the ,pacific ,coast1
 and as soon as the first railroad had  

crossed the continent active opposition 
to canal construction began to  show    
itself in the ,american ,congress4      
,the transcontinental railroads1 fearing
 opposition in transportation1  from    
that day until the ,spooner bill was    
passed1 ,june #bh1 #aijb1  maintained an
 active lobby at ,washington1 and       
whenever canal  legislation was         
suggested1 having for its object the    
construction of an  ,isthmian ,canal at 
any point1 this railroad opposition     
manifested itself  in every form1 and no
 doubt canal construction by the ,united
 ,states was  postponed for many years  
by that agency4    ,however1 in #ahhi1  
,congress authorized the incorporation  
of a company  known as the ,maritime    
,canal ,company of the ,united ,states1 
and under  that authority ,hiram        
,hitchcock1 of ,new ,york1 as president1
 together  with ,warner ,miller and     
several other capitalists1 proceeded to 
raise  about six million dollars1 which 
was actually used in obtaining          

franchises and concessions from ,costa  
,rica and ,nicaragua for a canal  route 
through these countries4 ,some money was
 also spent in doing  necessary         
preliminary work4    ,the ,maritime     
,canal ,company was a favorite in the   
,united ,states for a  great many years1
 principally because it was championed  
by ,senator ,j4  ,t4 ,morgan1 of        
,alabama4 ,senator ,morgan made this the
 dearest project  of his later life1 and
 no doubt his last years of public      
service were  embittered by his failure 
to secure ,government co-operation for  
the  building of the canal through      
,nicaraguan territory4    ,illustration3
 ,,president ,,amador',s ,,residence1   
,,panama4      ,the ,french ,company    
,in the meantime ,count ,ferdinand de   
,lesseps1 the brilliant and  successful 
,french engineer1 having completed the  
,suez ,canal1 turned his  attention to  
the ,isthmian country4 ,after a thorough
 investigation of  all the possible     
routes1 through a series of             

negotiations1 he succeeded  in securing 
a franchise from the ,republic of       
,colombia1 giving him  authority to     
organize a ,french company and the right
 to construct a  canal between the      
little city of ,aspinwall 7now known as 
,colon7 on the  eastern side1 and the   
,city of ,panama on the ,western side4  
,so great was the popularity of de      
,lesseps that he had no difficulty in   
forming a strong company in ,france4    
,the stocks offered to the ,french      
public were subscribed for rapidly4 ,the
 ,french are a frugal people1 and  even 
the poorest of the ,french peasants and 
working men have always a  little hoard 
of savings4 ,the ,french people had such
 confidence in de  ,lesseps' ability to 
complete successfully his great         
,american enterprise  that the first    
issue of his stocks were taken almost at
 par4      ,de ,lesseps' ,plan    ,de   
,lesseps' plan contemplated the building
 of a sea-level canal1 #db  miles in    
length1 from shore to shore1 #ajj feet  

wide and #bh feet deep4  ,his authority 
from the ,colombian ,government amounted
 to merely a right  to excavate the     
canal1 the ,colombian ,government       
retaining jurisdiction  over the soil   
and the people4 ,the estimate of the    
cost of the type  of canal proposed was 
fixed by the ,french company at         
#abj1jjj1jjj4  ,the work of construction
 was inaugurated on ,february #a1 #ahha1
 with  ceremony by the officers of the  
,french company1 and was participated   
in by officials of ,france1 ,panama and 
,colombia4 ,but within a very short     
time1 owing to the magnitude of the     
scale of operations1 coupled with       
wasteful business methods1 the first    
fund of #abj1jjj1jjj was expended4      
,the company put out a second issue of  
stock which they offered to the  people 
of ,france as the first issue had been  
offered4 ,this second issue  was taken  
up as the first had been1 but with some 
suspicion on the  part of the buyers4   
,the second issue sold at a considerable

 discount2  still they found purchasers1
 and again the coffers of the company   
were  supplied with cash4    ,but the   
wastefulness and extravagance of the    
company continuing1 the  proceeds from  
the second issue of stock were soon     
exhausted and a  third issue was        
offered4 ,the sale of the third issue   
was made with a  great deal of          
difficulty1 and premiums were given to  
prominent men  of influence or          
authority1 or any line of business1     
providing they  would use that influence
 in the marketing of the company's      
shares4  ,so flagrant did these         
irregularities become that they         
culminated in  criminal prosecutions4   
,the sum total of the capital stock     
subscribed to by the buyers of  the     
,french ,panama ,company's shares was   
#cic1eje1ajj4 ,this great  volume of    
stock sold to the purchasers produced   
for the company only  #bja1edf1gdj1 the 
difference of #aia1ieh1cfj being lost in
 discounts  and premiums paid in        

marketing the stock4      ,wastefulness 
of the ,french ,company    ,this        
appalling exhibition of criminal        
wastefulness and unlawful  business     
methods caused the utter collapse of    
confidence in the success  of the       
enterprise1 not only of the investing   
public of ,france1 but of  the world as 
well1 and hastened the time when such   
methods must reach  their logical       
conclusion in bankruptcy4 ,the old      
timers on the ,isthmus  will tell the   
inquirer that of the enormous sum of    
money raised by  the ,french ,canal     
,company1 one-third was wasted1         
one-third grafted and  one-third        
probably used in actual work4    ,it    
seemed as if anyone who had any sort of 
influence might sell that  influence to 
the ,panama company for some kind of a  
consideration4 ,on  the ,isthmus today  
they will show you a storehouse         
containing about half  a ship's cargo of
 snow shovels which a manufacturing     
company in ,france  succeeded in selling

 to the ,french ,panama ,company1 no    
doubt in return  for the influence they 
might be able to give in assisting in   
the sale  of the ,french ,panama        
,company's stocks4 ,of course1 one can  
easily see  the ridiculous side of the  
purchase of half a cargo of snow shovels
 to  be used in the tropics4            
,practical bankruptcy came in the year  
#ahhi1 and from that time on  the       
,french ,canal ,company simply held its 
franchise and concessions  from the     
,republic of ,colombia for speculative  
purposes only4 ,then the  officers of   
the ,french company1 seeing that the    
,united ,states ,congress  was beginning
 to take a lively interest in canal     
construction1 and was  showing signs of 
a disposition to pass legislation that  
would commit  the ,united ,states as a  
,nation to the building of a canal1     
began to  look toward the ,united       
,states as a prospective customer for   
their  uncompleted canal project at     
,panama4 ,in the meantime the           

,nicaraguan  company had gone upon the  
rocks of bankruptcy1 and they1 too1 were
  offering their concessions and        
franchises to the ,american ,government4
  ,and so with these two propositions   
before ,congress1 time drifted on to    
the opening of the war between our      
country and ,spain4    ,when the        
,spanish war was declared1 it was       
reported in the ,united ,states  that a 
,spanish fleet was cruising in ,asiatic 
waters4 ,of course1 it was  not known   
how strong that fleet might be4 ,there  
was no way of knowing  whether or not it
 would be able to cross the ,pacific and
 take ,san  ,francisco or some of the   
other cities or ports of the western    
coast  of the ,united ,states4 ,so the  
,secretary of the ,navy ordered the     
crack  battleship of the navy1 the      
8,oregon10 to maintain her station in   
,san  ,francisco ,bay with steam up1    
prepared to go into action at any       
moment4      ,significance of the       
8,oregon's0 ,course    ,everyone who    

lived around the ,bay of ,san ,francisco
 in those days  remembers what relief   
the news in the papers brought on a     
bright ,may  morning that ,admiral      
,dewey1 in response to an order from    
,secretary  ,j4 ,d4 ,long had proceeded 
to ,manila and destroyed the ,spanish   
fleet4  ,this meant there was no longer 
any danger of the bombardment of ,san   
,francisco4    ,there was no longer any 
necessity for holding the 8,oregon0 in  
,pacific  waters1 and so quickly        
followed the order from the ,secretary  
of the  ,navy that she should at once   
take her departure to the coasts of     
,cuba  and join the ,american squadron  
operating there4 ,the citizens of ,san  
,francisco swarmed the hilltops to see  
the departure of their favorite         
battleship4 ,she sailed majestically out
 through the ,golden ,gate and  turned  
her prow southward4 ,the patriotic      
hearts of the men and women  of         
,california followed her course as they 
read each morning in the  newspapers the

 description of her successful voyage   
down the western  coasts of ,mexico and 
,central ,america1 on past ,panama and  
along the  coasts of ,south ,america1   
through the ,straits of ,magellan1 then 
to the  northward to her station on the 
coast of ,cuba4 ,but they noted that    
this  voyage consumed sixty-five days of
 time4    ,illustration3 ,,the ,,culebra
 ,,cut1 ,,looking ,,north4    ,then the 
,president1 the ,american ,congress1 and
 the ,american people  awoke to the fact
 that if the safety of the cities of the
 seaboards  of the ,atlantic and the    
,pacific depended upon naval protection1
 and  that if such a long voyage would  
have to be taken by ships stationed     
upon the opposite coast1 it might mean  
the destruction of incalculable  wealth4
    ,the entire ,nation began to realize
 that if the 8,oregon0 could have       
sailed from ,san ,francisco to ,panama  
and passed through the isthmus by  means
 of a canal such as we are now          
constructing1 she could have made  the  

voyage from ,san ,francisco to the      
coasts of ,cuba1 consuming three  days  
at ,colon or ,panama to take on stores  
and ammunition1 and still  could have   
been at her station on the coasts of    
,cuba in sixteen days'  time4 ,the      
people of the country began to realize  
that the difference  between sixteen and
 sixty-five days might mean the safety  
of the  ,nation1 and especially so if we
 were at war with a maritime power such 
as ,great ,britain1 ,germany and ,japan4
    ,this startling demonstration of the
 absolute necessity for a ,panama       
,canal from the standpoint of ,american 
national safety1 at once swept  aside   
all opposition at ,washington to canal  
construction4 ,immediately  a universal 
wave of sentiment in favor of a national
 ,american ,isthmian  ,canal swept over 
the land and found its expression in    
instructions  by every constituency in  
the ,union to ,congressmen and to       
,senators to  do all in their power to  
assist in bringing canal legislation to 

a  successful termination4      ,the    
,canal ,commission    ,immediately      
thereafter ,president ,william          
,mc,kinley was authorized by  ,congress 
to send a commission to ,panama and     
,nicaragua to examine those  two routes 
and to receive offers from the different
 companies as to the  amounts the       
different projects could be purchased   
for4    ,the result of the              
investigations of the commission was    
that the  ,panamanian ,company offered  
their uncompleted canal1 their          
franchises1  their plans and            
specifications1 the ,panama ,railroad1  
which was worth  about #ab1jjj1jjj1 and 
a line of steamships from ,colon to ,new
 ,york1  consisting of five medium-sized
 steel vessels of modern construction1  
for the sum of #aaj1jjj1jjj4 ,the       
,nicaraguan ,company offered their      
concessions from ,costa ,rica and       
,nicaragua1 in addition to all their    
other property1 for #f1jjj1jjj4 ,they   
simply desired to be reimbursed  for the

 amounts spent in securing their        
concessions and making their            
preliminary surveys4    ,after careful  
consideration the commission recommended
 the purchase  of the ,nicaraguan       
proposition4 ,it was at this critical   
state of the  negotiations that         
,president ,mc,kinley was removed by the
 bloody hand of  the assassin1 and as a 
result ,vice-,president ,roosevelt took 
his place  as the head of the ,american 
,government4 ,president ,roosevelt      
decided on  the ,nicaraguan proposition2
 but before the matter was closed the   
,french  ,panama ,company came fully to 
the realization that if the ,united     
,states  purchased the concessions of   
the ,maritime ,canal ,company and began 
the  construction of a canal through the
 ,nicaraguan territory1 without any     
question that project would be completed
 in a reasonably short space  of time1  
as it would have the power of the entire
 ,american ,government  behind it4      
,illustrations3 ,,boneyard ,,of ,,the   

,,old ,,french ,,machinery4    ,they    
also realized that if the ,nicaragua    
,canal was constructed it would         
probably make their holdings in ,panama 
of far less value2 and as they  were    
practically bankrupt then1 they begged  
an opportunity to submit  a lower price 
for their property4 ,this opportunity   
was granted1 and  the result was that   
the ,french company offered their       
franchises and  holdings1 including the 
railroad and the steamship line1 for the
 sum of  #dj1jjj1jjj4    ,this amount   
was so much lower than the amount       
originally demanded  that it caused a   
reconsideration by the ,president and   
,congress1 which  terminated in the     
decision of the ,president and ,congress
 to purchase  the rights and the        
property of the ,french ,company4       
,the next step was to ascertain whether 
or not the ,french company could  convey
 a valid title to the ,united ,states1  
and ,attorney-,general ,knox  was       
instructed to go to ,france and consult 

with the proper ,french  authorities and
 determine if such a legal conveyance   
could be made4  ,as a result of his     
investigations1 ,general ,knox on       
,october #cj1 #aijb1  decided that the  
,french company could convey an absolute
 title to the  ,american ,government4   
,a great nation such as the ,united     
,states could not contemplate  becoming 
the tenant of any other country under   
the sun1 much less a  feeble republic of
 ,central ,america4 ,the dignity of the 
,united ,states  required absolute      
sovereignty over any territory through  
which the  ,american ,nation might      
decide to construct an isthmian canal4  
,absolute  sovereignty over an isthmian 
canal1 however1 on the part of the      
,united  ,states had been waived by the 
terms of the ,clayton-,bulwer treaty    
entered into with ,great ,britain a half
 century before4 ,the terms of  this    
treaty provided that in case either     
nation should construct an  isthmian    
canal1 such canal should not be         

fortified nor controlled by  either     
power2 and that should any other nation 
construct an isthmian  canal1 the       
,united ,states and ,great ,britain     
should join in preserving  its          
neutrality4    ,before the ,united      
,states could exercise absolute         
sovereignty over  any strip of territory
 across the isthmus1 the                
,clayton-,bulwer treaty  would have to  
be abrogated1 and to accomplish this    
,secretary of  ,state ,hay entered into 
negotiations with ,great ,britain4 ,he  
found the  representatives of that      
country very willing to meet every      
reasonable  demand4 ,after a short      
series of negotiations he succeeded in  
having  passed and ratified by both     
countries the ,hay-,pauncefote treaty4  
,under  the terms of this treaty ,great 
,britain waived all claims to           
sovereignty  and control over an        
,isthmian ,canal1 and substantially     
agreed to the  jurisdiction and control 
of the ,united ,states over any canal   

that might  be constructed by that      
country4      ,acquirement of the ,canal
 ,zone    ,when this obstacle was       
removed the next step was to secure a   
canal  zone1 and the ,united ,states    
entered into negotiations with the      
,government of ,colombia with that end  
in view4 ,the result of the             
negotiations was that an agreement was  
reached by which the ,republic of       
,colombia agreed to convey to the       
,united ,states a strip of land thirty  
miles wide and extending a marine league
 into the waters on either side  of the 
isthmus4 ,the terms of the treaty were  
that the ,united ,states1 in            
consideration of the zone proposed to be
 transferred1 should pay to the         
,republic of ,colombia ten million      
dollars in cash on the ratification  of 
the treaty by the separate governments1 
and commencing nine years  from the date
 of ratification1 the sum of one hundred
 thousand  dollars a year for all time4 
,this tentative treaty found great favor

  in ,washington1 ,d4 ,c41 and was      
immediately ratified by the ,american   
,senate1 and then sent back to ,bogota  
for ratification by the ,colombian      
authorities4 ,but much to the           
astonishment and chagrin of the people  
of  the ,united ,states1 and to the     
extreme disappointment of the people and
  the authorities of ,panama1 this      
so-called ,hay-,herran treaty was       
refused  ratification by the ,colombian 
,senate4    ,the refusal of this        
ratification ultimately led to the      
secession  of ,panama from its          
allegiance to the ,republic of ,colombia
 and the  acquirement of independence4  
,while on the ,canal ,zone in #aijg on  
an official visit ,i came into close    
contact with the officials of ,panama1  
particularly ,president ,amador1  the   
first ,president of the ,panama         
,republic1 and ,general ,arrias1 who    
held the combined offices of ,secretary 
of ,state and ,war for the new          
republic4    ,at a dinner given by the  

,american ,minister1 being placed beside
  ,general ,arrias1 ,i took occasion to 
inquire of him the reasons why the      
,hay-,herran treaty was refused         
ratification by the ,senate of          
,colombia1  after it had been           
tentatively agreed to by the ,colombian 
authorities4    ,general ,arrias'       
explanation was to the effect that there
 were four  reasons why the ,hay-,herran
 treaty was refused ratification on its 
return to the ,colombian ,senate4 ,the  
first was that the ,german influence    
was strong in ,colombia1 and the ,german
 merchants and diplomats were  very much
 opposed to the extension of ,american  
influence down the west  coast of ,south
 ,america1 particularly in the          
,colombian ,republic4 ,the  ,german     
merchants1 seeing the collapse of the   
,french ,canal ,company near  at hand1  
hoped that a ,german company might      
purchase the wreck of the  ,french      
enterprise and carry the canal to       
completion1 realizing that  this course 

would mean much in the way of ,german   
aggrandizement4    ,the second          
influence1 according to ,general        
,arrias1 was that of the old            
transcontinental railroad management of 
the ,united ,states4 ,popular  demand   
for an isthmian canal having swept away 
all obstruction at  ,washington1 ,d4    
,c41 the scene of operations was shifted
 to ,bogota1 and  railroad influence and
 railroad money were probably used to   
induce some  of the ,senators to refuse 
to vote for the ratification of the     
treaty4    ,the third influence was that
 of patriotism4 ,some of the ,colombian 
,senators were opposed to a transfer of 
any portion of ,colombian soil  to a    
foreign power1 more especially as the   
,colombian constitution  contained a    
clause making it treason for any        
,colombian subject to  become a party to
 the alienation of any part of          
,colombian territory to  another        
country4    ,the fourth and the most    
potent influence was the fact that the  

,french  ,panama ,canal ,company had    
failed in every respect to keep the     
terms of  their contract with the       
,colombian ,government4 ,not only had   
they failed  to complete the canal at   
the time specified in their franchise1  
but  having obtained an extension of    
that time1 had failed to observe the    
terms by which the extension had been   
secured4    ,therefore the ,colombian   
,government might very properly proceed 
to a  forfeiture1 which could be        
obtained through due process of law in  
something less than ten months' time4   
,many of the ,colombian ,senators took  
the position that it would be  lawful   
and more expedient to declare a         
forfeiture upon the ,french  company1   
and take over the canal under the terms 
of such forfeiture  as provided by the  
franchise4 ,the ,republic of ,colombia  
would then  be in a position to sell the
 same to the ,american ,government for  
forty million dollars1 and since then   
they would secure ten million  dollars  

for a zone and a perpetual rental of a  
large sum annually1 the  financial      
condition of the country would be very  
much improved4 ,as the  finances of the 
,republic of ,colombia were at that time
 in a desperately  depleted condition1  
this prospect of their rehabilitation   
must have had  powerful effect with many
 of the ,senators4    ,illustration3    
,,gatun ,,middle ,,lock1 ,,looking      
,,south ,,from ,,east ,,bank4    ,these 
four reasons operating1 no doubt caused 
the ,colombian ,senate to  refuse       
ratification to the ,hay-,herran treaty4
    ,but in ,panama the people and the  
authorities were determined not to      
submit to the action of the ,colombian  
,senate4 ,the ,panamanians were  aware  
of the fact that the ,president of the  
,united ,states had been  authorized by 
,congress to make a choice between      
either the ,french  ,panama or the      
,nicaraguan route1 and that under that  
authority he would  at once proceed to  
close a contract with the ,maritime     

,canal ,company of  ,nicaragua if he    
could not secure a canal zone4 ,they    
also realized that  if once the         
,american ,government began the work of 
excavating a canal  through ,nicaraguan 
and ,costa ,rican territory1 in all     
human probability1  the ,french ,panama 
,company's project would be abandoned4  
,thus the cities of ,colon and ,panama1 
and the territory surrounding1  would be
 relegated to obscurity so far as       
world's trade was concerned1  for many  
years4 ,this the ,panamanians were      
determined to prevent  if possible1 so  
they took every step necessary to       
inaugurate and  successfully carry out a
 revolution in case of the refusal of   
the  ,colombian ,government to ratify   
the ,hay-,herran treaty4 ,they sent ,dr4
  ,varilla as their representative to   
,new ,york and instructed him to  remain
 in close touch with the cable1 and     
should he receive a cablegram  that     
,panama had thrown off her allegiance to
 ,colombia and had resumed  her old-time

 independence1 he should proceed at once
 to ,washington1  ,d4 ,c41 notify       
,president ,roosevelt of the fact1      
demand recognition of  the new ,republic
 of ,panama as an independent power1 and
 enter at once  into negotiations with  
the ,united ,states for the recognition 
of that  independence and the transfer  
of a canal zone4      ,the ,new         
,republic of ,panama    ,this program   
was carried out later on4 ,the          
,panamanians had very little  trouble in
 overawing the few ,colombian officers  
within their territory4  ,they knew that
 the ,colombian ,government had no navy1
 from the fact that  a year before the  
,colombian navy had been sent to the    
,city of ,panama  to coerce the         
authorities there who were disputing    
with the ,colombian  ,government over   
some items of revenue which were an     
issue2 and meeting  force with force the
 authorities of the ,city of ,panama had
 succeeded1  with the assistance of a   
small tug-boat and one piece of cannon1 

in  sweeping the seas of the entire     
,colombian naval power1 and as evidence 
of their success the two masts of the   
,colombian navy were sticking up  out of
 the mud-banks of ,panama ,bay4    ,nor 
were the inhabitants of ,panama or      
,colon much concerned as to  a possible 
attack from a ,colombian army4 ,that    
would entail a long  march of hundreds  
of miles through morass and jungle1 and 
could not  be successfully accomplished 
in less than a year's time4 ,and so the 
,panamanians were free to act in their  
purposes of securing independence       
without danger of very much interference
 from the home government4    ,the      
result of the revolution was very       
gratifying to the ,panamanians4  ,as    
soon as they learned that the treaty had
 been refused ratification1  they       
immediately wired to ,dr4 ,varilla at   
,new ,york4 ,he apparently was at  his  
post waiting the news1 for it was       
whispered in ,washington that he  took  
the night train from ,new ,york1 reached

 ,washington in the morning1  and       
arrived at the ,white ,house early in   
the forenoon4 ,and from all  indications
 ,president ,roosevelt must have been   
waiting just inside the  door to receive
 him1 for it is said that the ,president
 was on hand to  grasp ,dr4 ,varilla by 
the hand and welcome him to the ,white  
,house1 and  that when he came out two  
hours later1 ,panama was virtually      
recognized  as an independent           
government4 ,within a few days a treaty 
was negotiated  between ,panama and the 
,united ,states4      ,terms of the     
,treaty    ,this treaty1 called the     
,hay-,varilla treaty1 was ratified in   
,december1  #aijc4 ,its terms provided  
that the sum of ten millions of dollars 
be  paid by the ,united ,states to the  
,government of ,panama1 and the further 
sum of two hundred and fifty thousand   
dollars a year for all time1  commencing
 nine years after the ratification of   
the treaty by both  countries4 ,the     
,republic of the ,united ,states was to 

have absolute  title and sovereignty to 
a strip of land ten miles wide1 five    
miles on  either side of the center of  
the canal prism1 extending from ,colon  
to  ,panama1 and three miles out into   
the water on either side1 but without   
including either of the cities of ,colon
 or ,panama within its area4    ,this   
treaty further provided that the ,united
 ,states should guarantee  the          
independence of the ,panamanian         
,republic1 the terms being most         
explicit that the ,united ,states should
 protect the ,panamanian  ,government   
from insurrection within and invasion   
from without4 ,this  little joker in the
 treaty between the ,united ,states and 
,panama makes  that little republic the 
strongest of all the republics on the   
,american  continent next to our own4   
,in fact1 the ,republic of ,panama is as
 strong  as the ,united ,states1 and    
will be so as long as the ,american flag
  floats in sovereignty over a foot of  
,american soil4    ,the treaty also     

provided that the ,united ,states should
 have the  privilege of sanitizing the  
cities of ,panama and ,colon1 and that  
the  cost of the same should be a charge
 against the ,government of ,panama4    
,when all obstacles to the acquirement  
of the zone were removed under  the     
,hay-,varilla treaty1 the next step on  
the part of the ,american  ,republic was
 to begin the most important work of    
sanitization4      ,sanitization of the 
,canal ,zone    ,the sanitization of the
 ,canal ,zone and the cities of ,colon  
and ,panama  is one of the most         
interesting features of the history of  
the ,panama  ,canal4 ,the want of proper
 sanitation was1 no doubt1 very largely 
the  cause of the ,french failure4      
,the ,french authorities1 either not    
understanding the significance  of      
maintaining the health of the great mass
 of employees engaged in  their work1 or
 being criminally negligent of the lives
 and the health  of their employees1    
failed to take the necessary measures   

for the  protection of life and health4 
,their laborers were allowed to live in 
a  haphazard way4 ,the negroes were     
permitted to furnish their own food and 
to sleep where they pleased4    ,the    
consequence was that the ignorant and   
the improvident ate food that  was not  
properly prepared1 and slept very often 
in tents or on the  ground1 subject to  
the night dews and miasmatic vapors of  
the tropics4  ,diseases of the most     
virulent nature broke out in every camp1
 and  yellow fever became especially    
active in carrying off its victims4     
,illustration3 ,,the ,,effect ,,of ,a   
,,blast ,,along ,,the ,,culebra ,,cut4  
,upper ,picture--,before2 ,lower--,after
 a ,blast4    ,so with this dreadful    
experience as an example and a warning1 
the  ,american authorities realized that
 the first work of importance was  that 
of subduing the unhealthful conditions  
of the ,canal ,zone so  that labor might
 be engaged in with reasonable safety by
 the tens of  thousands of employees who

 would be placed upon the line of       
operations  of the canal when work was  
actively commenced4    ,fortunately1    
surgeons of the ,american army had      
gained a great deal of  experience      
during the ,cuban campaign1 and one army
 surgeon had achieved  particular       
prominence in his handling of tropical  
diseases4 ,dr4 ,w4 ,c4  ,gorgas1 who had
 campaigned in ,cuba and assisted       
,general ,leonard ,wood in  the cleaning
 up and sanitization of ,santiago and   
,havana1 was peculiarly  fitted for the 
important work of establishing healthful
 conditions on  the ,zone4    ,dr4      
,gorgas had also had the advantage of   
being a collaborator as well  as a      
fellow officer of ,dr4 ,reed in ,cuba4  
,dr4 ,reed was one of the first  army   
surgeons to become familiar with the    
theory that the yellow fever  and the   
malarial fevers of the tropics were     
carried and distributed  through the    
agency of mosquitoes4 ,in fact1 ,dr4    
,reed himself became  a victim to his   

desire for scientific knowledge1 he     
having allowed  himself to be bitten by 
a mosquito that had first filled itself 
with  the virus of a yellow fever       
patient1 and died as the result of the  
experiment4      ,war on the ,mosquito  
,dr4 ,gorgas carried on the work of the 
investigation and development  of the   
mosquito theory after the death of ,dr4 
,reed1 and became a  recognized         
world-wide authority on the science of  
tropical diseases  and sanitation1 when 
he was chosen as the officer to whom the
  sanitization of the ,zone should be   
entrusted4 ,he was given ample funds  by
 the ,american ,government and furnished
 with a force of men numbering  more    
than #bjjj1 his theory being that by the
 destruction of the  breeding places of 
mosquitoes he could finally eliminate   
the mosquitoes  themselves4    ,in      
carrying out his plan the vegetation on 
either side of the canal for  half a    
mile was cut down and burned1 the dead  
trees destroyed1 the low  marshy places 

drained where possible2 and where it was
 impossible to  successfully drain the  
ground and water pools they were covered
 with a  petroleum mixture4 ,in fact1   
petroleum was found to be so effective  
that  it came to be the favorite means  
of destroying the mosquitoes1 and one   
approaching ,colon today1 if the wind is
 in the right quarter1 may catch  the   
odor of that ingredient one hundred     
miles at sea4    ,it was found after    
investigation by ,dr4 ,gorgas that the  
mosquito1  called the stegomyia1 was    
peculiarly partial to the yellow fever  
victim1 and that after biting a yellow  
fever patient and becoming  inoculated  
with the poison1 the stegomyia became   
very active in its  distribution to     
other subjects4 ,a mosquito called the  
anopheles1 by  some peculiar freak of   
nature1 had a like attraction for the   
victims of  malarial diseases4    ,and  
so1 between the two kinds of mosquitoes 
there seemed to be a  rivalry as to     
which could do the most damage4 ,but    

fortunately neither  one of these       
pestiferous insects could fly over a    
quarter of a mile1  and so the theory of
 ,dr4 ,gorgas was that by destroying    
their breeding  places and eliminating  
them from the ,canal ,zone1 he might    
preserve the  health of the workers4    
,colon was overhauled by repaving the   
streets after first saturating  the     
ground with petroleum1 bringing in fresh
 water and constructing  sewers4 ,in    
fact1 all the measures that were        
necessary to establish  healthful       
conditions were used4    ,the same      
course of treatment was given the ,city 
of ,panama1 much to the  disgust of many
 of the ,panamanian residents1 who had  
been using water  from wells and        
cisterns that had been dug two centuries
 before1 when  ,panama was founded4     
,a splendid system of hospitals was     
built up by rehabilitation of  the      
hospital system left by the ,french     
company and the addition of  others4    
,thousands of cabins were built for the 

common laborers1 the  so-called 8silver 
men10 and better cottages for white men 
who might  take their families with them
 to the ,zone while engaged in labor    
there4  ,dormitories for single white   
men were built at every construction    
point4 ,restaurants were established at 
which a meal of four courses was        
furnished the superior class of white   
employees at #ce cents4 ,provision  was 
made for the issuance of cooked rations 
at a price of #aj cents  per ration to  
the 8silver men10 who are nearly all    
negroes1 it being  the policy of the    
commission to protect the life and      
health of every  employee of the ,zone1 
so that the health of the individual    
would become  a guarantee of the safety 
of the whole body of working men4       
,the ,present ,low ,death ,rate    ,time
 and experience have conclusively shown 
,colonel ,gorgas' theories  to have been
 correct1 and the gratifying result is  
that because of  the wonderful          
precautions taken and the very effective

 work done in  scientific sanitization  
since the commencement of operations    
under  ,colonel ,gorgas tropical        
diseases have almost been eliminated on 
the  ,zone4 ,as a matter of fact1 there 
has not been a case of yellow fever  on 
the ,canal ,zone since ,june1 #aijf1 and
 the malarial fevers have been  reduced 
to a minimum4 ,the ,canal ,zone has now 
a lower death rate than  most ,american 
cities1 and has almost become a health  
resort4 ,in the  opinion of some of the 
most eminent authorities1 the most      
effective  work entering into the entire
 construction of the canal is the work  
of  sanitization so successfully        
accomplished by ,colonel ,gorgas and his
  able assistants4    ,while the work of
 sanitization was under way1 the        
,president of the  ,united ,states was  
taking counsel with a board of engineers
 as to the  type of canal that should be
 constructed4 ,as usual in all such     
matters1  the authorities were about    
equally divided1 half of the engineers  

being  strongly in favor of a sea-level 
canal1 and the other half advocating    
what was called a lock canal4      ,the 
,two ,types of ,canal    ,the difference
 between the two types of canal is this3
 ,a sea-level  canal contemplated an    
excavation from shore to shore at the   
level of  the sea2 a lock canal         
contemplated the construction of a great
 dam  across the valley of the ,chagres 
and the course of the ,chagres river1   
which dam would have the effect of      
holding the waters of the ,chagres      
river4 ,the accumulation of those waters
 in time would form a lake1  the surface
 of which lake1 of course1 would be     
considerably above the  level of the sea
 on either side4 ,the dam would         
necessarily have to be  surmounted      
through the agency of locks4    ,after  
much controversy and bickering1 and a   
great deal of muck-raking  by the       
newspapers and magazines of the ,united 
,states and ,europe1 the  plan of a lock
 canal was finally adopted4 ,this plan  

contemplated the  impoundment of the    
waters of the ,chagres river by a dam   
constructed  at ,gatun1 a little village
 about three and one-half miles inland  
from the shore of ,limon bay4 ,this dam 
when finished would be #ggjj feet  in   
length1 half a mile in width at the     
base1 and #ace feet in height4  ,it was 
designed that this dam should hold the  
waters of the lake at  a height of #he  
feet above sea-level1 but it was        
constructed #ej feet  higher so that all
 danger might be obviated in case of    
excessive floods4    ,illustrations3    
,,at ,,work ,,in ,,the ,,culebra ,,cut4 
,the plan of the canal contemplated that
 this dam should be surmounted  by three
 locks constructed in pairs1 so that in 
case one series of  locks became        
impaired the other could be used1 or    
ships might pass up  one side and down  
the other at the same time4 ,each of the
 locks was to  be #ajjj feet long1 #aaj 
feet wide1 and have a lifting capacity  
of #bh  feet4 ,therefore1 when          

completed1 this series of locks         
constructed of  concrete would be more  
than #cjjj feet in length and about #bej
 feet in  width1 without doubt the      
largest concrete formation ever         
constructed4    ,the engineers of the   
,panama ,commission give four reasons   
for the  adoption of the lock system    
instead of the sea-level type4 ,in the  
first  place1 it would take twice as    
long to construct a sea-level canal as  
it would a lock canal4 ,secondly1 it    
would cost twice as much money1  and as 
the lock canal system is costing nearly 
four hundred millions  of dollars1 the  
difference in cost would be a great     
obstacle to the  construction to the    
other type of canal4 ,the third reason  
was that in  case a sea-level canal was 
constructed it would be necessary to    
place  locks somewhere along its course 
because of the fact of the variation  of
 tides between the ,atlantic and the    
,pacific ,oceans4    ,the tide rises and
 falls at ,colon1 on the ,atlantic side1

 about #c feet1  at the time of extreme 
high tide2 while on the ,pacific side   
the tides  rise and fall #bg feet1 and  
this great variation would cause a      
current  to rush through the course of  
the canal so great that locks would be  
required for its control4    ,but the   
fourth was the most potent reason of all
 why the lock system  was adopted4 ,on  
the ,isthmus of ,panama the rainfall    
amounts to #acj to  #aej inches         
annually4 ,sometimes the precipitation  
will amount to #aj or  #ab inches in    
twenty-four hours4 ,the ,chagres river  
is the only agency  for the drainage of 
a vast area of water-shed in the        
,caribbean sea4  ,therefore1 at times   
the ,chagres river might be a small1    
inconsequential  stream that a boy could
 wade across1 and yet before twenty-four
 hours  had elapsed1 because of a heavy 
rainfall1 it might have swelled into  a 
raging torrent that would wreck the     
strongest battleship of the  ,american  
navy4 ,the large volume of water        

discharged by the ,chagres  river could 
not be turned into the canal proper1 as 
the currents and  the rush of flood     
waters would soon impair the banks of   
the canal4      ,the ,lock ,system      
,adopted    ,therefore it would be      
necessary1 under the sea-level type of  
canal1  to construct a series of        
embankments and dams that would be far  
more  expensive to build and keep in    
repair than would be one great dam over 
the course of the ,chagres river4       
,besides1 the safety of the lock system 
would be much greater than that of the  
sea-level type4 ,these were the  reasons
 which finally controlled the           
determination of the engineers to       
construct a lock system of canal4       
,after the type of canal was decided    
upon1 the next step was the  assemblage 
of the force of laborers and the        
mechanical appliances  necessary for the
 physical operations4 ,in order to carry
 out this  scheme1 a commission was     
originally appointed1 composed half of  

civilians and half of military officers4
 ,the first engineers were  selected as 
being the most eminent of their         
profession1 and taken from  civil       
employment4    ,but great difficulties  
were encountered in perfecting the      
proper kind  of an organization to      
successfully complete this stupendous   
project4  ,the engineers taken from     
private life and entrusted with the     
work1  after a little experience on the 
,isthmus1 would be offered greater      
inducements to abandon their            
,governmental employment and take some  
other position1 generally far more      
lucrative1 in the ,united ,states4 ,and 
so1 either through accident or design1  
the ,canal ,commission lost the         
services of such men as ,wallace1       
,stevens1 ,shonts1 ,grunsky1 and other  
noted engineers1 and again it seemed as 
if canal operations would be  badly     
crippled for want of the right kind of  
men to direct the work4      ,army      
,engineers ,installed    ,this tendency 

of the civil engineers to leave their   
employment caused  much concern to the  
,president and ,congress1 and finally   
,president  ,roosevelt1 with his        
characteristic acumen1 decided that he  
would place  the work of canal          
construction under the army engineers   
entirely4 ,so1  at his suggestion1      
,congress reframed the law of the ,canal
 ,commission1  and ,president ,roosevelt
 remarked that under the new law he     
would put  army engineers on the job1   
and that they would either stay there   
until  it was done or get out of the    
army4    ,experience has proved that    
,president ,roosevelt's judgment was    
correct1  for the work has gone on since
 the reorganization of the commission   
with the regularity of a machine4 ,there
 has hardly been a stop or  a break at  
any point along the line of operations4 
,colonel ,g4 ,w4  ,goethals1 one of the 
most successful of the army engineers1  
was placed  at the head of the ,canal   
,commission and given full charge1 and  

his work  has been so successful that he
 has demonstrated his ability to command
  and to control the operations placed  
in his charge to the satisfaction  of   
the great powers that gave him his      
commission4    ,his first step upon     
being placed in control was to provide  
the means  of feeding and caring for an 
army of from #be1jjj to #dj1jjj men4 ,a 
bake shop was built at ,crystobal1 out  
of which #cj1jjj loaves of bread  are   
turned twice a day if necessary1 and a  
batch of pies and cakes in  proportion4 
,storage warehouses have been built for 
the storage of meats  and vegetables and
 various other supplies1 that are       
brought from the  north by shiploads4   
,ice plants have been constructed so    
that ice may  be distributed up and down
 the line of operations4 ,every morning 
at #c  o'clock a supply train leaves    
,colon1 and furnishes every camp along  
the  line of the canal with fresh       
supplies for the day's consumption4     
,thus1 under army supervision the       

employees of the ,canal ,zone are as    
well supplied with rations and materials
 as they would be on an army            
reservation4    ,following these        
necessary preparations for handling the 
big force of  men1 came the assemblage  
of the machinery and the mechanical     
implements  necessary to perform the    
work4 ,without going into exhaustive    
details1  it is only necessary to say   
that the very best materials1 implements
  and machinery that money could supply1
 brought from all parts of the  world1  
were sent to ,panama4      ,old ,french 
,machinery    ,one of the most          
interesting things the traveler upon the
 ,isthmus  will see is the mass of      
discarded ,french machinery piled all   
along  the line of operations4 ,no doubt
 the ,french used the best machinery    
that could be obtained at that time1 but
 that was thirty years ago1  and the    
progress of the world1 particularly in  
the use of labor-saving  machinery1 is  
nowhere more thoroughly demonstrated    

than on the  ,isthmus of ,panama by a   
comparison of the old ,french machinery 
with  that assembled by the ,american   
engineers4 ,there are piles of ,french  
locomotives that today are absolutely   
worthless1 not because the  machinery   
itself is defective1 but because of     
their feeble power4 ,at  the town of    
,empire there are forty-five ,french    
engines piled in one  heap that cannot  
be used by the ,canal ,commission4 ,in  
fact1 they are of  such little power    
that they would hardly be used by a     
street contractor  on a city job in the 
,united ,states4    ,illustration3      
,upper ,picture--,gatun ,lower ,locks4  
,lower ,picture--,huge ,traveling ,crane
 ,used in ,construction ,work4    ,in   
direct contrast to these are the        
splendid engines sent to the  ,isthmus  
by the commission--#bjj locomotives1 not
 of the largest1  but about of the      
medium size one sees on the ,american   
railways2  #bjjj splendidly constructed 
steel dump cars for the hauling of rock 

and debris2 #cjj air-compressed drills  
for boring into the rocks in  blasting  
operations2 #abe steam shovels of #ge1  
#ij and #abe tons capacity2  apparatus  
and machinery for the moving of railroad
 tracks1 so effective  that a railroad  
track can be slung #aj or #ab feet to   
one side or the  other1 laid down and   
spiked almost as fast as a man can walk2
 great  steel plows that are pulled     
across strings of gravel cars1 plowing  
the gravel or debris off the cars on one
 side so rapidly that a long  train of  
#be or #cj cars can be unloaded in a few
 minutes4 ,the stationary  machinery is 
of the best quality that genius and     
money can construct1  and so effective  
have been these means of labor saving   
that the work  has been accelerated from
 time to time until it is now a realized
 fact  that the canal will be actually  
constructed a year and a half ahead of  
time4    ,when the ,canal ,commission   
first began their work after the        
completion  and the adoption of their   

plans1 it was estimated that            
#aaj1jjj1jjj  cubic yards of debris must
 be excavated from the canal prism4     
,this  debris must be taken and         
deposited at some place so remote that  
it  could never wash back into the canal
 by the rains and floods4 ,the  debris  
taken from the cuts on the high lands   
could not be used in the  structure of  
the ,gatun dam1 as it would be too      
liable to percolation4      ,the ,gatun 
,dam    ,the ,gatun dam is being        
constructed by hydraulic process through
 the  instrumentality of suction pumps1 
which suck up the slime and the  debris 
from the course of the ,chagres river   
and the swamps and morass  through which
 the canal is being constructed4 ,this  
debris and this  water are sucked up and
 allowed to run along the center of the 
dam1 the  water running off and the     
solid matter congealing there1 and by   
this  hydraulic process that great      
structure will be formed4    ,the       
traveler upon the ,isthmus today1 if    

standing upon an eminence  overlooking  
the cut through ,culebra hill1 would    
imagine himself on a  height overlooking
 an industrial city like ,pittsburg4    
,there are scenes  of such immense      
activity on every side that he forgets  
he is in a  remote part of the world far
 from his home1 and that he is actually 
standing upon an eminence in the        
tropics4    ,the development of         
labor-saving machinery has been so      
marked since the  construction of the   
canal was actually commenced that each  
month's  work has marked an increase in 
the amount of debris excavated from  the
 canal prism4 ,when the ,government     
began operations in #aijf1 the          
engineers had before them the task of   
excavating #aaj1jjj1jjj cubic  yards4   
,their first month's operations were    
very successful1 and they  reported at  
the end of the month an excavation of   
about #bej1jjj cubic  yards4 ,they      
estimated that if they could keep up    
this amount of work  through each month 

they could finish the canal at a certain
 time2 but  the carping yellow          
newspapers and magazines of the ,united 
,states and  ,europe were extremely     
skeptical of the ability of the ,canal  
,commission  to continue to turn out    
#bej1jjj cubic yards per month4 ,the    
critics  foretold that when the rainy   
season came more debris would be carried
  into the canal prism by floods than   
could be taken out by machinery  in the 
dry season4 ,at times this criticism    
grew very irksome and  disagreeable to  
the commissioners4 ,however1 they kept  
their temper1 and  continued improving  
their machinery1 and month by month the 
output grew  greatly4 ,it grew to such  
an enormous extent that the estimated   
time has  been shortened to the extent  
that ,i have formerly indicated4        
,illustration3 ,,canal ,,administration 
,,building1 ,,panama4      ,the ,work of
 ,excavation    ,to give a comparison by
 the use of figures of the remarkable   
progress  made1 ,i will say that about  

six months ago ,i took up the report of 
the  ,canal ,commission and ,i found    
that in the previous month the amount of
  debris excavated for that one month   
exceeded #d1jjj1jjj of cubic yards1     
this tremendous output being a complete 
answer to the criticisms of the         
opponents of canal construction4    ,in 
order to give a mental picture of the   
type of canal1 let us take an  imaginary
 trip through the canal proper4 ,it will
 be forty-two miles  from shore to      
shore4 ,in addition to this there will  
be an excavation  out in ,limon bay on  
the eastern side1 and in ,panama bay on 
the western  side1 of about four miles  
on either side1 in order to reach deep  
water4    ,supposing that we are sailing
 down through ,limon bay1 which is a    
small bay at the bottom of the          
,caribbean sea1 on one of our ,american 
battleships4 ,we first enter the canal  
which leads from the bay up into  the   
shore toward ,gatun dam1 and this       
section of the canal will be #ejj  feet 

wide and #dj feet deep at low water     
level4 ,this channel penetrates  through
 the mud banks and land about four      
miles1 when it encounters  ,gatun dam4  
,gatun dam must be surmounted through   
the agency of locks1  which have been   
previously described4      ,operation of
 the ,locks    ,our vessel then sails   
into the first1 or the lower1 of the    
locks4 ,the  steel doors are closed and 
locked1 and water from the chamber above
 is  let down by means of pipes and     
valves which discharge underneath the   
vessel4 ,this water flowing into the    
lower chamber1 raises our vessel  #bh   
feet to the level of the second lock4   
,our ship sails into the  second lock1  
the doors are closed behind and locked1 
the water let down  from above1 and     
again our vessel is raised #bh feet4    
,and so the process  is repeated the    
third time1 until our ship sails out    
upon the lake  which is formed by the   
impounding of the waters of ,gatun dam4 
,this lake1 when filled to its capacity1

 will be thirty-three miles long        
between extreme points1 and eight miles 
wide at the widest part4 ,the  course of
 a vessel from this lake will be        
twenty-three miles to a place  called   
,bas ,obispo4 ,this is the point at     
which the canal begins to run  through  
the hill called ,culebra1 and therefore 
the cut is called the  ,culebra cut1 and
 is nine miles long4 ,the canal through 
this portion  of its course will be #bej
 feet wide at the bottom1 and the sides 
of  the canal will slope so gradually   
that at the highest point of ,culebra   
hill1 which is #cbe feet above sea      
level1 the width will be about  one-half
 mile4    ,our vessel passes through    
this nine-mile course to ,pedro ,miguel4
 ,at  ,pedro ,miguel there will be a    
pair of locks #ajjj feet long1 #aaj feet
  wide1 and with a drop or lifting area 
of #ce feet1 instead of #bh feet4       
,through this lock our vessel will be   
lowered to a small lake formed by  the  
damming of two small streams in the     

vicinity of the ,city of ,panama4  ,this
 lake will be a couple of miles across1 
and on the farther point1  called       
,miraflores1 two pairs of locks will    
lower our vessel to the  level of the   
,pacific ,ocean4 ,from the ,miraflores  
locks a channel will be  constructed out
 into ,panama bay--#ejj feet wide and   
#dj feet deep at low  tide1 the same as 
on the ,caribbean side4    ,the         
engineering features of the ,panama     
,canal are not intricate1 and not  in   
any sense difficult from an engineering 
standpoint1 save for the  great         
magnitude4 ,it is the size of the       
enterprise that has appalled1  and      
discouraged the canal's construction1   
and not the technical  difficulties of  
the work required4      ,the ,future of 
the ,canal    ,when the ,panama ,canal  
is completed the commerce and trade of  
the  world will be revolutionized4 ,san 
,francisco will be brought nearly  #ijjj
 miles closer to ,new ,york than it is  
today and ,european ports  nearly #fjjj 

miles closer4 ,it is estimated by       
statisticians skilled in  transportation
 and in carrier service1 that the cost  
of transporting  the great mass of bulky
 products from the ,pacific ,coast to   
,eastern  seaboards of the ,united      
,states and to ,european points will be 
reduced  nearly two-thirds4 ,in other   
words1 freights that now cost           
approximately  #a4jj per #ajj pounds    
over the transcontinental railroads from
 ,pacific  ,coast ports to ,eastern     
markets1 may be carried through the     
canal for  about #cc #a_/c cents4    ,it
 is estimated that this saving of       
freight on timber alone1 which is  still
 standing in ,california1 would pay the 
cost of the canal1 great as  it is1     
three times over4 ,we can hardly        
estimate the effect that this           
shortening of water rates will have on  
all the countries fronting the  ,pacific
 ,ocean4    ,it would seem as if the    
,western hemisphere was at last coming  
into  its own in dignity and progress1  

in its relation to all the world4       
,certainly the tides of people of       
enterprise and of business have been    
steadily pressing westward since long   
before ,bishop ,berkeley declared  that 
8,westward the star of empire takes its 
way10 and that ,western wave  is rushing
 onward today more strongly and steadily
 than ever before in  the world's       
history4 ,men of even middle age today  
probably will live  to see the          
fulfillment of the dreams and prophecies
 of the olden time  in the opening up of
 our coasts and land to ship commerce   
with every  country on the globe4    ,in
 ancient days it was the fact that seas 
divided nations1 because of  the        
difficulty of ocean travel4 ,in those   
days the only safe routes were  those   
over the land1 but in this modern time  
of gigantic ocean vessels1  capable of  
carrying thousands of passengers and    
hundreds of thousands  of tons of       
freight1 water travel and transportation
 is the cheapest and  most agreeable of 

all forms4 ,and therefore1 today it is a
 fact that  seas unite the countries of 
the world instead of dividing them4     
,illustration3 ,,president ,,taft       
,,signing ,,joint ,,resolution          
,,designating ,,san  ,,francisco ,,as   
,,the ,,place ,,to ,,hold ,,the         
,,world',s ,,fair ,,in #aiae4    ,the   
completion of the ,panama ,canal will be
 only the completion of one  link of the
 chain of three great improvements that 
are in contemplation  by the statesmen  
of ,america4    ,on the eastern side of 
the continent all the ,states bordering 
on1 or  tributary to1 the ,mississippi  
river are engaged in the propaganda for 
the deepening of that river to a depth  
of #ad feet from ,new ,orleans  to ,st4 
,louis1 and #ab feet from ,st4 ,louis to
 ,st4 ,paul1 as well as the  improvement
 of the tributaries thereof1 so that    
ocean-going vessels may  penetrate to   
the very heart of the ,american         
continent and discharge  their cargoes  
there4    ,the up-to-date and           

progressive city of ,chicago1 the mighty
 metropolis  of the center of the       
continent1 is alive to the possibilities
 of the  near future1 and has made      
provision for the issuance and sale of  
bonds  to the amount of #bd1jjj1jjj1 the
 proceeds of which are to be used  in   
the deepening and widening of the       
,chicago drainage canal and the         
,illinois river1 so that ocean-going    
vessels may not only penetrate as  far  
as ,st4 ,louis1 but may also proceed to 
,chicago1 and place that great  city in 
direct water communication with any part
 of the world4    ,the improvement of   
the ,mississippi and its tributaries1   
then1 is one  of the links of the chain4
 ,the ,panama ,canal is the central     
link4 ,the  third link must be and will 
be1 if the projects of the most eminent 
and patriotic ,american statesmen are   
carried out1 the re-establishment  of   
the ,american merchant marine1 so that  
,american ships may be used as  the     
agency for the distribution of the      

products of our great industrial        
country to all the lands fronting the   
,pacific ,ocean1 as well as to all      
other parts of the earth4    ,i believe 
that it has been a well recognized      
policy of all the  ,presidents and      
statesmen of our country for the last   
twenty years to  urge the accomplishment
 of these improvements4 ,they come      
slowly1 of  course1 but all large       
projects take time in their development1
 and  those of us who today are so      
fortunate as to live in ,california1 or 
anywhere upon the ,pacific ,coast1 may  
easily look forward to the time1  not   
far distant1 when ,california will be at
 least the second ,state of  the        
,american ,republic in wealth1 and      
industrial and commercial power1  and   
,san ,francisco the second city in      
importance under the ,american flag4    
,transcriber's ,note3     --,punctuation
 and spelling inaccuracies were silently
 corrected4