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Y19M
W. P. Leber, Governor-President

R. S. Hahtline, Lieutenant-Governor

Frank A. Baldwin

Panama Canal Information Officer

r^P^t -jSuifM^b

Official Panama Canal Publication Published quarterly at Balboa Heights, C.Z.

Morgan E. Goodwin, Press Officer

Publications Editors

I. oils R. Ghangeh, Tomas A. Cupa.s

News Writers Eunice Richard, Fannie P. Hernandez,

Jose T. Tunon, and Luis C. Noli

Printed at the Printing Plant, La Boca, C.Z. Review articles may be reprinted in full or part without

further clearance. Credit to the Review will be appreciated.

Distributed free of charge to all Panama Canal Employees.

Subscriptions, SI a year: airmail S2 a year; mail and back copies (regular mail), 25 cents each.

Postal money orders made payable to the Panama Canal Company should lie mailed to Box M, Balboa Heights C Z

Editorial Offices are located in the Administration Building. Balboa Heights. C.Z. 3nd(ex Ourur CtL/Over3

Birds of Panama 3

More species of birds are found in the Republic

of Panama than in all of the United States.

Chiriqui's Orange Concentrate Industry 5

Rovira, a once isolated village, is destined to become the orange center of Panama.

Petroglyphs 9

Hieroglyphics by Carib warriors can be seen, but not easily, throughout the Interior.

Shipping Notes 12

Fairs 13

The Dry Season brings on the fairs as thousands

head for La Chorrcra, David, and Los Santos. The 0-5 Goes Down 16

Tragedy and heroics mark submarine collision on Limon Bay. Five men are missing.

Culinary Capers 19

Shipping Statistics 20

Power Squadron's 20th Year 22

The Canal Zone Pacific Power Squadron makes

seamen out of landlubbers.

Palo Seco Reaches Milestone 24

Rehabilitation program and new "miracle" drugs

highlight 62 years of medical history.

Anniversaries 26

History 27

BIRDS ABOUND in the jungles as well as cities and

towns of Panama. This obvious observation caused us to dedicate both the front and back covers to four of these

lovely winged creatures. The birds, all macaws which

are members of the parrot family, are, from left on both

pages: Lefty, Pappy, Allcgra, and Cindy. Except for Pappy, they arc owned by Miss Mary L. Clark, a supervisory nurse at Gorgas Hospital. Pappy, a blue and gold macaw which came from Colombia, is owned by Air Force

S. Sgt. and Mrs. Fred R. Doss. Lefty, a grccn-ninged

mountain macaw whose eyes give the appearance of his being a tavern regular (the red lines arc actually small

feathers), was purchased at the public market on Avenida Eloy Alfaro in Panama City. Allegra, a scarlet macaw, will roll over on her back to have her belly scratched. She was near death when Miss Clark bought

her from a Canal Zone parrot fancier last year. Cindy is the rarest of the feathered foursome and was acquired

by Miss Clark through a friend in Brazil. A hyacinth macaw, Cindy is native to the jungles south of the Amazon

River. Miss Clark, who has been collecting larae birds

for about 15 years, says they arc relatively easy to keep.

She feeds them such things as sunflower seed, peanuts, raw vegetables and fruit, hard-boiled eggs, chicken

drumstick bones and cheese for protein. Parrots live approximately 40 years, although there are claims that they live much longer. Macaws arc confined to Central

and South America but once were found in the West

Indies. They are among the largest parrots and are distinguished by a "naked" space around their eyes. Cover photos by Arthur L. Pollack. Sketches on inside pages by Myrna Soriano.

May 1969
PANAMA

A Bird Watcher's Paradise

Bv Fannie P. Hernandez

IN" THE earliest dawn, before the sun

has emerged through the paling sky.

a sleek, black, yellow-eyed, male grackle

nestled in a mango tree breaks the

silence with a serenade to the new

morning. His tune is of long drawn

out notes, cheerful, throaty, subdued.

\et loud enough to awaken anyone in the vicinity. The female, brown and

smaller, quietlv chatters back from a nearbv palm frond. The handsome fellow singing with

all his heart is also known as a clari- nero—one of the abundant bird fauna

inhabiting the Isthmus of Panama An

ornithologist's paradise, there are more

different birds found here than in all of Xorth America north of Mexico—

approximately 850 species.

Best Months

Though the abundance of birds is evident throughout the year, April and

earlv Mav are especially favorable for bird watching. It is the beginning of rainy season, a time when not onlv the

native species but also the North American birds in migration mav be observed. South American species fiving to Central America also can be seen.

It is estimated that 6 billion birds, adults and voung, moving at night

from Canada and the United States. migrate to southern United States. Mexico, Central America and South

America each winter. A large number of these are seen in Panama.

Besides the striking grackle which mav be seen most anvwhere except the dense forest, are the birds of the tan- ager familv noted for their brilliancv

of plumage. Thev are blue, vellow.

green, and red. The crimson and black

species locallv called "sangre de toro"

is usuallv seen at the edge of the jungle

or along the roads in the Interior. At this time of the year, the loveh

musical notes of the Panama thrush tanager mav be heard ringing out from

the jungle. One of Panama's most

beautiful birds, this tanager is dark slate with a rose-red stripe on the sides of the forehead broadening in front of the e\ es The male has a loud sweet

whistle of notes in different pitches

Related to the tanagers are the honeycreepers, the familv of small song birds which abound in the humid, heavily

wooded areas of the Isthmus Bright

shades of blue and green predominate

in the males and vellow is prominent

in some species. One of the most bril- liant is the red-legged blue honeycreeper. The male is deep sapphire blue with

a turquoise crown. Part of the underwing is yellow and flashes out brightly

when the bird is in flight. The female

is olive green with underparts of paler

and brighter green. The honeycreeper

rarely sings in full daylight, but in the breeding season, the male sings a weak,

unmelodious song at dawn.

Grassquits

Common and comical to watch in the cpen fields are the small blue-black

grassquits that leap vertically several

feet and alight again in the same spot, uttering a few short notes during the jump.

On a spotting tour, a birder mav

also observe on the Panama countrvside

barred ant shrikes, sparrows, Panama

robins, which resemble their northern

relatives, hummingbirds, woodpeckers,

saltators, wrens, the "pico-gordo," the

thick-billed euphonia, which has a sweet canan -like sound, and flvcatchers, which probablv outnumber them all. Busv little seedeaters are verv nu- merous at the end of the drv season and the mangrove warblei is always to be found in the swamps. Of special in- terest to the bird watcher is the oropendula which suspends his long hanging

nest from the branches of large trees The male sings a long-drawn, far-earning liquid gurgle as he bows forward

into an inverted position, raising his wings above his back. Doves are abundant and verv tame

in the fields, gardens, and along the

roads. A flock of ducks is not a rare

sight.

Along The Shore

Shore birds, practically all migrants,

are abundant. Sea birds also are numerous and breed in immense numbers on

the islands in Panama Bay. Laughing

nulls, roval terns, brown pelicans and

frigate birds are usually seen along the

shore. Another large famih of birds is that

of the kingfisher ranging in size from a

small songbird to a crow. They are found near the water and feed on small

fish which thev catch by plunging into the water. Thev nest in holes in trees and banks. The motmots, related to the king-

(See p. 4)

The Panama Canal Review
Birding On The Isthmus

(Continued from p. 2)

fishers, are beautiful birds of green, blue and russet with graduated tails bare

about an inch above the extremities,

forming racket-shaped tips. The bird

itself preens off the barbs. Motmots

are found in the deep forests or dense

thickets, often sitting in one plaee for a long time. A fairly common bird in woods and

undergrowth is the squirrel cuckoo,

somewhat like the widely distributed

long-tailed members of the family.

A slow, melaneholv call, like a whistle

of variations is heard in the savannas.

It is the northern striped cuckoo, called

"tres pesos" by the Panamanians. These

birds call to each other bv the hour

bringing music to the open fields. Where there are cattle, the tick bird

or "garrapatero" is surelv to be found

as he feeds on insects on cattle.

Toucan

A frog-like croak which mav be heard more than half a mile across the open comes from one of the most striking

and distinctive of all tropical birds—

the toucan, a large jungle bird. It has an enormous, slightly curved vellowish green bill, nearly as long as its bodv

and very thick. The brightlv colored toucan roosts in holes in trees and feeds on fruit. A favorite of bird watchers and nonbirders too, is the family of parrots rep resented l>\ several species on the Isth- mus including parrakeets and macaws.

Their plumage is highlv colored and

variegated, with green being the pre- dominant color. Parrots are noisv birds with harsh voices and usually nest in hollow trees, the large species inhabit- ing the deep forest. Thev remain quiet

during the day but can be heard

squawking early in the morning and

before dark.

Showiest Parrot The macaw, the large, magnificent, blue and yellow or scarlet bird, is the showiest member of the parrot family.

It has a powerful hooked beak which

it uses to crack palm nuts and is ex- tremely noisv. Fairly common, macaws

are usually seen in pairs and frequent

the tops of trees. One of the most common and wideh

distributed birds of the Isthmus is the

parrakeet. Watchers may observe the orange-chinned parrakeet at sunset go- ing from tree to tree keeping up a shrill chattering as it feeds. The Veragua

parrakeet is apple green passing to bluish green on top of his head with

greenish blue wings, vellowish below.

The bill is horn color. The smaller "perico" is bright vellowish green with a patch of bright orange on his chin and

upper throat. These beautiful little crea- tures are often caught and sold as cage

pets. Panama, host to main species common

to both North and South America besides its own particular birds, offers a veritable field dav to bird watchers.

v ,_.
Sdtnmian Citrud Capital

(BloomA On Volcano Sloped

Bv Jose T. Tunon

A COMBINATION of Panamanian

technical skill, and United States busi- ness foresight and dollars has turned

a once isolated village, tucked away

in the highlands of western Panama,

into the citrus capital of the Isthmus

in less than a decade.

Rovira, just 15 miles from David,

the thriving capital of Chiriqui Province, is no longer a remote spot on

the map. It is the center of a 10,000-acre grove planted widi 665,000 trees about

to yield their first golden harvest. These

are not ordinary orange trees. The

Panama-United States combination that has marked the Citricos de Chiriqui venture in Rovira has been carried right into them—literally. The native Pan- amanian orange trees were used as the

scions for the grafting of stocks from

the best of the United States' orange countrv— Florida. The skill has been provided bv a team of Panamanian agricultural spe- PICKER-About 300 are employed during

harvesting season.

cialists. The business foresight and

dollars have come from National Bulk

Carriers, Inc., a corporation owned b\

United States interests which conceived

the orange juice industry in the Chiriqui

area. The investment is now approaching several million dollars.

By Oxcart Ten \ ears ago, Rovira could be reach

i'il onh 1)\ .in oxcart trail winding in .ind out of cane fields, rock-strewn fields, and sections of thick jungle. Todav,

visitors drive comfortably to the town

over a modern asphalt highway. Rovira itself is dwarfed by the installations of Citricos de Chiriqui for producing

orange concentrate of highest quality

for export. And there is no other spot in the Republic whose location is marked

bv 665,000 orange trees. |une 26. 1968, was a memorable da\

for Citricos de Chiriqui. Several re- frigerated containers filled with 50-gal-

(See p. 6

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*<1, NEW INDUSTRY-Orange trees are spread as far as the eye can see on the slopes of the Bam Volcano in the Rovira area of Chiriqui

Province, where Citricos de Chiriqui, S.A., is established.

The Panama Canal Review
GOLDEN HARVEST

OF CHIRIQUI

(Continued from p. 5)

Ion barrels cf what to Rovira was liquid

gold, were loaded aboard a ship berthed

in Cristobal—destination, Canada. The

barrels contained the first orange concentrate produced in Rovira and the loading operation crowned 10 vears of patient effort. The Citricos de Chiriqui complex is on the slopes of the Bam Volcano at an altitude of 3,000 feet. Dominating

the scenery is a huge processing plant,

installed at a cost of more than $1 million. Clustered around it are administrative offices, large maintenance shops.

and a plant for producing "Citropulpa,"

(a byproduct in growing demand as

cattle feed), a company restaurant and

even a lime quarry. The complex itself

is the hub of the orchard, spread as

far as the eye can see and beyond, some sections as high as 4,000 feet above sea level.

The Supervisors

Until March of this vear, the man

who supervised the operations at Rovira as Chiriqui manager for Citricos was Juan B. Ferrer, a Panamanian

agronomist. He has just been promoted

to staff agricultural consultant with

residence in Panama Citv for the vari- ous farming projects operated bv National Bulk Carriers, Inc. Ferrer's suc- cessor is Sebastian Gilberto Rios, jr., formerly chief engineer in charge of processing and construction.

Ferrer, still in his thirties, holds

.1 master's degree in phvtopathologv

(plant diseases) from the University of Florida. With Citricos since the company came into being in 1960, he was

responsible for all the field work that was required prior to actual planting

His work ranged from soil analysis and

preparation to the selection of the tvpe

of orange best suited for cultivation in the icgion and a study of prevailing

insects. "The native tree was chosen as the budwood source," Ferrer savs, "because

tests showed it has a good vield and is resistant to insects. We decided to graft

it to rootstocks of Florida's known varieties. The results have been amazing.

The first real crop from the initial planting in 1961 is due next September. The

trees are bearing and we estimate that

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HEART OF PLANT-The evaporators shown here produce the orange concentrate. About

12,750 pounds of juice are reduced to 2,750 pounds of concentrate every hour. Fidel Serrano, on ladder, is one of scores of Panamanians trained by Citricos de Chiriqui.

each will yield from 1,000 to 1,500 oranges a year." His voice rings with

pride when he talks of what is to come.

Rios, a civil engineer, is a graduate

of the University of Panama. He has been responsible for keeping the processing plant running and for the various

building projects within the company

property, including some 40 miles of asphalt roads in and around the huge

estate.

In Soils His assistant is another voung Pan- amanian agricultural engineer, Eugenio

Lee. who graduated from the Technological Institute in Monterrex . Mexico.

and also holds a master's degree in soils from the University of California. He

is now assistant Chiriqui manager in charge of the company's Agricultural

Department.

Another member of the team of Pan6 May 1969
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SPRAYING—Fumigation is widely used for pest control in the citrus fields. Panamanian workers have become experts at this work.

amanian specialists is a Universitv of Florida graduate, Hugo Cortes, an agri- cultural engineer who is in charge <>t the Experimental Department—a key

operation in a business that must constantly seek ways to improve upon nature itself. Here is one example of the type of work done in this department.

"People todav don't go for plain

tastes," Cortes says. "In many places, orange juice is mixed with the juice of

pineapple, grapefruit and other fruits. Here in Citricos we grow passion fruit,

tin- juice of which we have found blends

excellentlv with that of orange." Cortes also runs the nurseries where

the Florida seedlings are grown for grafting with the Panama shoots.

Rich Topsoil

Field work began in 1960. The initial phase was a thorough study of the soil

characteristics that proved the land was

of the highest grade. An impressive

feature: The laver of rich topsoil runs 5 feet thick in much of the land set aside for planting. Then came nematode (worm) and insect control in preparation for the large-scale planting in 1961. When planting was completed 3

\ ears later, a dark-green carpet formed

bv 665,000 oranges trees, set in neat

(See p. 8)

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FIFTY GALLONS EACH—In the warehouse of Citricos, Hugo Cortes, an agricultural engineer, points to drums used for exporting orange

concentrate. Cortes, a graduate of the University of Florida, is in charge of the firm's Experimental Department and nurseries.

The Panama Canal Review-
JUICE WILL FLOW

TO WORLD MARKETS

(Continued from />. 7 > lows. la\ over the Rovira countrvside

The Rovira area is ideal orange country—the daily temperature ranges from 60 to 80° Fahrenheit; the annual

rainfall averages 200 inches but the lav of the land provides effective natural

drainage. Nature and man have teamed

up to produce first-class oranges in Rovira. The benign weather and the rich

soil in the Chiriqui highlands account

for the luscious qualitv of the fruit. Citricos' largest mechanical instal- lation is the concentrate processing

plant, which can handle as manv as

] 00.000 oranges an hour. The plant is

fulls automatic, although imperfect

fruits are manuallv eliminated. The

speed of the juice extractors is about

400 oranges a minute and the characteristics of design prevent the oil from the peel from mixing with the

juice. The fluid is then pumped into the

evaporators, which are the heart of the

plant, for the last step in the process

of producing the concentrate. Everv

hour the evaporators receive 12,750

pounds of juice which are reduced to 2,750 pounds of concentrate. The concentrate is then placed in 50-gallon tanks and frozen in a cavernous 250,000

cubic-foot storage room where the temperature is kept at 28° Fahrenheit

below zero.

"Citropulpa"

The pulp and the rejected fruit are

carried by mechanical convevors to the

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Mediterranean Fruit Flies.

Rafael Le/cano

Checks Passion Fruit

"Citropulpa" plant. The mash is mixed

with lime to facilitate the extraction of excess water and increase the feed's bonebuilding properties. The mixture

then goes into a revolving oxen for toasting at 1,600° Fahrenheit. Packing

in 80-pound bags is the final step in the production of "Citropulpa."

The company's laboratory is located

in a section of the processing plant. A

University of Panama graduate, Hortensio Pinilla. Jr., is in charge of a continuous analytical program. Worm and

insect identification still is an important

part of the work here. Constant aerial fumigation is carried out by Citricos in the Rovira area. Citricos also is helping a project of the International Regional Animal

Health Organization for control of one

of the most dreaded pests—the Mediter- ranean fruit fly. Though this insect has

not reached dangerous proportions in Rovira, Citricos is helping in the fight for its eradication in neighboring areas. The project involves population studies and the propagation of millions of sterile male flies. No operation in Citricos is left to guesswork. The harvesting time is de- termined by scientific know-how. Continuous tests on samples of the fruit determine the acidity and sugar content. Three Hundred Pickers The picking of the fruit is about the onh major operation that is done entirely by hand at Citricos, where mechanization is the word. At harvest time,

about .100 pickers are added to the company's 150 full-time employees.

The Panamanian specialists running

Citricos de Chiriqui pride themselves in having welded a force of skilled workers "When we began," Ferrer recalls, "most of our men knew only how to handle a machete. Today we have ex- pert grafters and soil men, first-class fu- migators and heavy equipment operators, all trained here. Incidentallv, thev

all are paid above the minimum wage."

Citricos will reach another milestone soon Three vears from now everv one

of its 665,000 orange trees will be

bearing. Then Rovira's golden harvest

will raise production at Citricos' plants

to full-scale production and concentrate from oranges grown and processed in Panama will go to many parts of the world.

Hortensio Pinilla, Jr.

In Charge of Lah

May 1969
CARIB HIEROGLYPHICS-This 12-foot tall boulder overlooking the Santa Lueia River in Chiriqui Province was

inscribed by Carib Indians. The designs have been traced in chalk. The two markings with lines going out from

circles represent the "sun of life." The "fringes" on the top and bottom designs may indicate royalty. This perroglyph

is cracked due to extTeme heat. MeMA^ei Fawn Tke Vui

Panama^ Petaoa(ijpJti

By Louis R. Granger

YOU CAN miss them easily enough

even when searching, and anvone who

has walked up a stream bed or along some of the manv vallevs in Panama mav have seen but not recognized the petroglvphs—huge rocks and boulders on which the Indians left part of their indeliblv written history 1,000 years ago. These large gray masses dot much of the Interior, but to discover them takes more than an adventurous spirit and

boundless energy, although these qualities help.

A studv of the ancient Carib Indians

who are credited with engraving their hieroglyphics, is a must. Warlike, but

highlv skilled in the arts and crafts, the Caribs chipped out their messages on

only certain boulders—those that faced

water, either a stream, river, or pond.

The inscriptions invariably face the upstream direction or mountain ranges

The Panama Canal Review 9

where rain clouds first begin to darken

the skv. It can be assumed, therefore, that some of the writing mav have

been for the benefit of the rain god.

The Caribs populated Panama from

approximatelv 900 to 1,500 vears ago. Although little is known about their hieroglvphics compared to the writings

of the Mavan culture, the petroglvphs mav have been used to commemorate

certain festivities or religious functions,

warnings to other tribes not to trespass

and to explain the ways of the spirits. Sun And Rain

Various sized circles, and symmetrica]

signs possiblv indicating the sun, rain and earth, death masks, and animals

such as alligators and monkevs adorn

the petroglvphs.

There is one location where Sunday

explorers from the Canal Zone and

Panama City can, with a bit of effort, examine a petroglyph.

Drive west 46 miles along the Inter- American Highway to Bejuco and turn

right at the El Economico store onto

a dirt road, the onlv one there is, lo- cated approximately' in the middle of the town. It leads to the village of Sora. About half a mile out of Bejuco you

will come to a grove of coconut palm

trees. Just to the right, on a hill, will be an outcropping of dark, gray rock, the site of several petroglvphs.

You will have to climb over the larger boulders which overlook the palm grove and examine them closely to find the engravings. The largest one is of a 5-foot

alligator. On another boulder, a little farther down the hill where it gets difficult to walk, are many small circles and a symmetrical circular design dug

out of the rock's surface. Other sites where petroglvphs have

been found include: El Valle, La Pin-

(See p. 10)
AT BEJUCO—Chalking in a design is Neville A. Harte who has discovered 280 petroglyphs.

The figure at right is an alligator. It has legs but they have not been outlined in

this photograph.

(Continued from p. 9)

tada, Rio Grande, Calobre, Atalava,

Ocii, La Mesa, Sona, Mamev, Boca Baja, Remedios, Caldera, Boquete, Concepcion, San Miguel, and El Volcan.

Easy To Miss

To find them is another matter. Weathered over the hundreds of vears

since the Indians engraved them, a person, unaware of their presence, could

stand on a petroglvph and not see the

hieroglyphics. But if you have the time, plenty of it, and the inclination, vou can talk to farmers who live in the areas where the petroglvphs are found and know their

location. The writing is not the onlv significant

thing about these stones. On 90 percent

of the larger ones are blood basins and

drainage canals leading down the sides One theorv, and there are manv con- nected with the petroglyphs, is that the Carib hieroglvphics were made for cer- tain festivals and ceremonies, and that humans were sacrificed on the rocks to bring good luck to the tribe. The first petroglvph in Panama was

discovered in 1898, and bv 1953 onlv

three were known. But that vear, the most zealous petroglvph hunter in the Republic of Panama, Neville A. Harte,

began his quest. In seven years between 1953 and

1960, Harte, now 62 and a retired PanCanal emplovee, spent all of his spare time and $12,000 of his own

money in searching out the petroglvphs.

He discovered and investigated 280 of them traveling bv jeep, horseback, dugout and on foot through the Interior. A Booklet

Part of his expenses was for a booklet he published titled Panorama of Panama

Petroglyplis. Copies are in the Canal

Zone Library.

Petroglyphs are found throughout most of the world and a charcoal rub- bing of one in Hawaii can be seen in the Canal Zone Librarv-Museum.

The Caribs worshiped various gods

and spirits and apparently implored

them to give rain, good crops, and

animals to hunt. Hunters from various

tribes would occasionally travel out

of their territorv to hunt and possibly

plunder villages and graves where much

of the other tribe's wealth and religious totems were to be found. According to belief, even today, an

Indian never dies, but goes to a happier, more plentiful life. Therefore, their wealth consisting of gold ornaments,

colorful feathers and pottery was buried

with them.

To protect the graves and to keep

away pillaging warriors from other

tribes, some of the petroglyphs appear

to have been engraved with warnings

saying that trespassers would be dealt with severely and possibly face death. The death's head design such as the one found at Sona in Veraguas Province

may have been a warning sign. The

boulder it was engraved on was a sacrificial alter. On the top is a blood basin where humans were sacrificed to the

gods.

Grave Robbing

Then, as now, Indian graves were

robbed. The Caribs believed that if they

could obtain the items placed in the graves of great warriors or tribal chiefs they would receive their power and

strength. Today, however, unlawful

grave robbing is for the artifacts they mav contain. Many of the petroglyphs are cracked. The theory is that the Caribs may have

built fires on the rocks as part of their ceremonies. During his investigations, Harte has found modern-day coins in some of the cracks indicating that some

of the natives of the Interior still regard

these strange boulders with ancient

carvings as more than mere large stones, and throwing a coin or two within the crack might bring them luck. Although Harte admits he is only an amateur archeologist, he discounts one

theory for the purpose of petroglyphs

given by some American archeologists.

"A lot of Americans think these are

MAYAN—One of the most intricate petro- glyphs is this one near Las Palmas in Veraguas Province. The design is similar

to that of the Mayan culture.

10 May 1969
only signs to the Indians that there was

good hunting in that area. That's a lot of hooey because they would know

whether there was good hunting there without having to read signs," he said. A reason for some of the petroglyphs was for grave markers. Circles represent

graves, explains Harte, who proved this theory by actually finding grave sites indicated by the circles found on a petroglvph.

Buried

Some of the boulders Harte discov- ered had to be dug up from under several feet of earth. It is still a mystery

why some were buried, but one possibility is that the invading Spanish saw

them and decided to hide them from

the Indians as punishment. Some of them may have been placed over graves and sunk down. Whatever the reason,

the buried ones were kept in better condition because thev were away from

the weather. Through his studies, Harte has found

that there was no variation either in the depth or width of the inscriptions on any of the rocks. Each engraved line was a quarter of an inch deep and five eighths of an inch wide.

"This indicates that they used the same

type of tools to make the engravings." Harte said.

How Harte was able to discover the petroglyphs was a combination of instinct, knowing a lot about what he was

looking for, and hard work.

Dedicated to the hunt, Harte said his

instincts often led him to the right place.

He would then look for broken rock and

chips which remained over the years. "When I found a stone where it wasn't supposed to be then I knew there was

something interesting there." 3 Days

The petroglyphs not buried invariably

became covered with moss, vines, and

other types of vegetation. He has spent

as much as 3 days cleaning off a boulder

to get down to the engravings.

Once a petroglvph has been cleaned. Harte uses chalk to outline the designs

so thev will stand out more clearlv to be studied and photographed. Harte was born in England. By the time he was 11 vears old he was inter- ested in archeology and dug in the Roman ruins around Great Britain. He

moved to the United States at 16 and came to Panama 28 years ago from

Florida.

"I planned to stav in Panama for 6

months, but then I got interested in the

local history and I forgot all about the

time," he said.

It is likely that some petroglyphs are

Death's Head

Sacrificial Alter

still to be found in Panama. But before you pack your picnic hamper and scurry

off to the nearest stream, think again.

First, vou must have a government

permit to dig in the Republic. It would

probably take you days on end to find a petroglyph, and when you did, you

would have to spend several more days

cleaning it off. It would cost you money

to pay your way there and back and for workmen to help you dig up a boulder. And since it would be next to impossible to take the petroglyph home, the

best you could hope to wind up with

would be a photograph.

FAR FROM CIVILIZATION-Near La Pintada in Cocle Province, Harte examines a petroglyph at a dry stream bed. During the rainy

season water will cascade over this large, flat rock. Many petroglyphs are in the area.

The Panama Canal Review 11
SHIPPING

Korean Shipping

ONE OF the first of several new vessels being built for the Korean Shipping

Corp. is the MV Korean Pioneer which

is now making regular trips through the Panama Canal from the Far East to

U.S. ports. The Korean Shipping Corp. of the Republic of Korea was established in 1950 and began operation with the

acquisition of some old Korean tonnage

and 12 ships chartered from the United

States. Bv 1964, the company maintained liner services to Thailand, Japan,

and other Far East areas. Although the major stockholder has

been the Republic of Korea itself, re- cently the company began turning over

stock to private capital. Boyd Bros, represents the line at the Panama Canal.

Retirement Cruise

THE PANAMA CANAL will be a port

of call next March for the Moore

MeCormack liner Argentina which will be making a 47-day "Prelude to Retire- ment" conference cruise around South

America.

Chartered by a new organization

known as Prelude Inc., the ship will have on board 200 near-retirement-age

executives from large corporations and

their wives. The cruise is designed to

set the stage for a positive approach to retirement. Nearly 60 hours will be

devoted to lectures and panel discussions bv top-flight gerontology experts

who will talk on how to enjoy an active retirement. The cruise is scheduled to leave New

York March 7, 1970, passing through

the Panama Canal and down the west

coast of South America, calling at ports

in Peru, Chile, Uruguay, Brazil, and

the West Indies before returning to New York. Tours are being organized

in Panama, the Canal Zone, and at most

port cities.

PANAMA CANAL TRAFFIC

STATISTICS FOR FIRST 9 MONTHS

OF FISCAL YEAR 1969

TRANSITS (Oceangoing Vessels)

J 969 1968 Commercial- 9,674 9,787

U.S. Government 1,046 1,088 Free 44 83

Total - 10,764 10,958

TOLLS °

Commercial _, $64,383,292 $61,734,257

U.S. Government 6,445,040 6,669,827

Total $70,828,332 $68,404,084

CARGO 00

Commercial 74,054,281 70,863,957

U.S. Government 5,660,210 6,207,596 Free 74,871 368,717

Total __. 79,789,362 77,440,270

° Includes tolls on all vessels, oceangoing and

small. "Cargo figures are in long tons on all vessels, oceangoing and small.

SI968
Country Fairs . .

.

The scene here at La Chorrera is typical as thousands of persons head for the fairs throughout the Interior of Panama.

THE RASPADO (snow-cone) vendors

hawking their wares under a hot sun, the joyous laughter of little children,

blaring music emerging from numerous

loudspeakers creating a cacophonous

symphony, and everywhere, teeming

crowds of humanity move and mingle

as they tarry before the attractive displays.

These are the sights and sounds

greeting visitors to the Panama regional

fairs held annually during dry season

at Ocii, La Chorrera, David, Los Santos, and in September, at Bocas del Toro. Always popular events, the fairs at David, La Chorrera, and Los Santos this year attracted approximately

300,000 visitors or about one fourth of the Republic's population. The smallest of the regional fairs held at the Interior town of Ocu drew some 30,000

visitors, and Bocas del Toro, accessible

only by air or sea, brought more than 12,000 viewers to its displays and

beautiful beaches. Primarily agricultural in nature, the fairs have commercial and industrial exhibits which

permit the local inhabitants to display

and sell the wares they produced during

the year. Many people and numerous agencies

participate in these regional fairs, along

with the local vendors and exhibitors. Panama's industrial giants such as Destiladora Nacional, S.A.; Vinicola Licorera, S.A.; Cerveceria Nacional and

many others set up exposition booths

at the fairs, as do Panama Government

agencies direqtly related to the eco- nomic growth of the Interior regions—

the Ministry of Agriculture, Commerce

and Industries and the Panama Tourist

Institute. The Panama Canal participates actively in these events, providing exhibits on Canal operations, photographic dis- plays, free rides for children on the popular burros, Mancha and Gato, and

other features. The U.S. Southern Command, with its Army, Navy, and Air Force components, also provides exhibits and feature attractions at the

regional fairs. The U.S. Information Service and

the U.S. Agency For International De- velopment in a joint effort supply the

fairs with an Alliance For Progress For Panama display. In addition, a number

of special groups are brought to the fairs from the Canal Zone by both PanCanal

and the U.S. Southern Command toperform in the fairgrounds and augment

the program of events. Everywhere fairs attract people, and

(See p. 14)

. . . Panama Style!f

The Panama Canal Review 13

4£

lW\&*

Milit;ir\ ski divers approach Hn target area near the U.S. Southern Command display.

l liis Miniiiii' beauty

surrounds herself with

native nrls and Crofts.

Al lefl are Q CuOfl saillnuil ni'l a framed

miilii, and in background is a painting

dI a Guaymj Indian

mothci with her hnhv.

"Look at the lights!" seems to he what this comely visitor is saying to her young companion as they watch the electrical map

display at the Panama Canal pavilion.

(Continued front p. 13) Panama fairs arc no different. Visitors from the Canal Zone and Panama City head to even the most distant fairs to buy the local goods, try the native food, explore the hidden charms of the rural areas and to make new friends. Friends and fun go hand-in-hand with good

times and pleasant memories when you

visit a country fair— Panama Style!

Cattle exhibits dominate the livestock shows al all the fairs. Ranches compete by sending prize animals to each event.

Out-of-town visitors shop for natives hats at one of the many booths.

With the winning lottery numbers clearly

. .. TT .. , „. . _ _ , , shown, a woman takes an order at one of As the United States and Panamanian flags wave in the breeze, a crowd gathers around the many native food stands. Visitors can

the Balboa High School Band. The music has also drawn one of the many riders who got sample a variety of local dishes at the end

to the fairs on horseback rather than by automobile. of a busy day at the fair.

*<

tM

KrA l _--*»

Mai iyey Tut Panama C'wal Remhv 15
SUBMARINE TRAGEDY

SETS STAGE FOR HEROES

ILL FATED SUBMARINE-The U.S. Navy's 0-5 in calmer days before the fateful collision in Limon Bay off Cristobal in October 1923. The number 66 refers to the hull number given by the contractor.

THE MEN of the U.S. Submarine O-o

were roused out of their racks before

dawn for a Sunday transit through the Panama Canal. The 0-5 had orders to escort three other submarines through

the Canal from Cristobal to deep water

on the Pacific side. Routine duty, actually. The 0-5, com- manded by Lt. Harrison Avery, was

attached to Commander Submarine

Base, Coco Solo, and received such

orders matter of faetlv. Women, Whisky

Like most sailors during the rather quiet 1920s in Panama, the men moved

around the 173-foot vessel performing

their duties in an unhurried but exact way. The 21 officers and men quietly- chatted about the usual things—women,

whisky, the heat and rain, and plans for

their next liberty.

Early risers that Sunday October 28,

1923, may have been leafing through the morning edition of the Star & Herald.

On page 5. Hollvwood was advertising

"Thrills! Pathos! Smiles!" in Mack Sennett's movie "Suzanna." As they read,

another Hollywood-like melodrama with

all of Mack Sennett's thrills, pathos plus

tragedy and heroics was taking place in Limon Bay, Cristobal. At 6:25 a.m. the 0-5 was a dead ship

in 6 fathoms of water on the bottom of

the bay. She had a 10-foot-long gash

in her bow . . . three men were dead, one of the bodies was never found . . .

two of the survivors were trapped inside

. . . and another chapter to submarine

historv was launched.

During the next 31 hours the 0-5. which never saw duty again, became the

stage for heroes. The event became one of the most

pictorially documented stories of sub- marine salvage ever made. It created an underwater record when a Canal Zone

diver in his rescue attempts made the

longest dive up to that time. Also, it became the first attempt at physically

lifting any vessel the size of the 520-ton 0-5 off the ocean bottom. At a time when modem rescue and

safety devices did not exist, and while

submarines were still in their infancy, , it was a remarkable feat that the two men

trapped in the 0-5 were not only saved,

but that their submarine was raised at

all. Rescue of personnel from disabled

submarines was not duplicated until 16

years later when 33 men were saved

from the U.S.S. Squalus using a special

submarine chamber.

Receives Orders

That historic day for the 0-5 began

before dawn with the arrival from

Havana of the SS Abangarez, a 380-foot,

5,000-ton freighter owned by the United

Fruit Co. Shortly after 6 a.m. Capt. W.

A. Card, master of the Ahangarcz, re- ceived orders to proceed to Dock No. 6, Cristobal.

It was a collision course. The 0-5

was leading submarines 0-3, 0-6, and

0-8 to Gatun Locks. At 6:22 a.m. Captain Card, seeing that collision was im- minent, sounded a danger signal—the

first warning given by either vessel. The

Ahangarcz then backed emergency full speed and let go her starboard anchor. Without acknowledgment of the danger signal, the 0-5 held her rudder

amidships and continued on a southerly

heading.

Sinks By Bow

At 6:24 the Abangarez struck the star- board side of the submarine penetrating

the engineroom and the No. 1 main

ballast tank. The O-o rolled to port about

15 degrees, righted, and in less than a minute sank bow first. The freighter was undamaged.

At a board of inquiry which placed

the blame of the collision on the 0-5,

Captain Card said: "Just before we

struck. I heard someone call from the submarine's conning tower for everyone

to come from below. When we struck, someone ordered the 0-5 crew to jump."

Sixteen men were quickly rescued but

five were missing. They were: Henry

Breault, torpedoman second class; Lawrence T. Brown, chief electrician's mate; Clyde E. Hughes, motor machinist's mate first class; Thomas T. Metzler, fire- man first class; and Fred C. Smith, mess

attendant, first class. Two days later the bodies of Metzler

and Smith were found floating in the

16 May 1969
sea off the Colon breakwater. Hughes

was never seen again. Rescue work started almost immediately. Navy divers on a salvage tug

stationed at Coco Solo had arrived to survey the sunken submarine. Their raps on the O-5's hull brought immediate

response from inside—Breault and Brown

were alive in the forward torpedo room. But the divers were helpless to rescue

the trapped men. Artificial lungs and

rescue chambers to enable men trapped

in a submarine to escape had not been

invented and there were no salvage pontoons within 2,000 miles of the Canal

Zone. Therefore, a means to lift the submarine's bow off the bottom was necessary. In the Panama Canal there were

two 250-ton capacity floating cranes, the Ajax and Hercules. These leviathans had

the mightiest lift in the world for floating

equipment. They were specially built in Germany to handle the enormous lock- gates of the Canal.

Request Crane

Capt. Amon Bronson, Jr., USN, Commander Submarine Base, Coco Solo, was in charge of the 0-5 salvage operation and requested the Panama Canal to furnish one of the floating cranes to haul up the sunken vessel. But it was not going to be just that

easy. A slide had just occurred in Gaillard Cut, the narrowest part of the

Canal, and both cranes were on the

opposite side, miles away from the 0-5.

Ironically, this was the first slide to block

the Cut since 1916. Working to remove the slide were two

huge dipper dredges, the Cascadas and

Taraiso, which by 2 p.m. had cleared a narrow passage for the Ajax. The crane squeezed through and was over the 0-5

about 10:30 p.m.

Before the arrival of the Ajax, Panama

Canal salvage forces had assembled over

the submarine. Among them was Sheppard J. Shreaves of Newport, Va. "Shep,"

38, was dockmaster and foreman shipwright for the Panama Canal Mechanical Division. (Now the Industrial Division of the Marine Bureau.)

Volunteers

Barrel-chested and tough, Shep was a

qualified diver and supervisor of the Canal's salvage and diving crew. Rather

than risk the lives of his men on the treacherous underwater assignment, he

decided to make the dive himself, tunnel under the 0-5, pass through the lifting cable and secure it to the hook of the

Ajax.

Here is his account of the rescue

efforts on the 0-5.

"I could spot the 0-5 on the bottom

by the air bubbles exhausted from the compartment where Breault and Brown

were trapped. To survive, thev were

bleeding air from 3,000-pound compressed air reserves in the forward

torpedo room.

"Since the Navy divers had given me

a good briefing on the position of the O-o and the location of the two trapped men, I went right in through her side. The light of my lamp was feeble against

the pitch black. The inside was in an

awful mess, and it was tight and slipperv

going. I was constantly pushing away

floating debris. When I reached the for- ward bulkhead of the engineroom

I hit it with my diving hammer.

Faint raps were returned. Breault and

Brown were alive. I acknowledged their

taps, but almost with a feeling of hopelessness because I couldn't do anvthing

for them at the time." Shreaves then made his way out of the submarine and signaled for a firehose to be lowered. "The 0-5 lav upright in several feet of soft, oozing mud, and I began water

jetting a trench under the bow. Sluicing

through the ooze was easy; too easy, for

it could cave in and bury me.

"Swirling black mud engulfed me,

I worked solely by feel and instinct.

I had to be careful that I didn't dredge

too much from under the bow for fear the 0-5 would crush down on me. Once

Sheppard J. Shreaves A Sleepy Hera

in a while, I'd rap the hull with the nozzle to let the bovs know someone was

working to bring them out. Their raps were returned weaker each time."

Finallv, the tunnel was through.

A 4-inch-diameter steel cable was

dragged under the keel and shackled to the hook of the Ajax.

Aside from its flooded weight, there was tremendous mud suction hugging

the 0-5. Twice the cable broke and each

time new cable was wrestled under the bow. By earlv morning of the 29th, round-the-clock efforts to raise the sub- marine had failed. Shreaves surfaced

occasionally to report to Captain Bronson and to allow doctors to examine him.

Thev were concerned that his extreme

exertion while working under pressure

at 36 feet down might strain his heart. He had been underwater for nearlv 24 hours.

Boiling Cauldron

"I came up from what I hoped would

be mv last dive. I was near exhaustion. The job below was done and we were

ready for a third lift. At 12:30 p.m. on

the 29th, from topside, I released compressed air into the engineroom of the 0-5 to unflood that compartment and

lighten the boat. Water and mud bubbled to the surface as in a boiling cauldron ... I signaled the Ajax to slowlv lift the 0-5. "God, how we prayed the cable would

take it this time. The intense silence of the rescue force and spectators was

electrifying—almost unbearable."

After what must have seemed a life- time, the bow finallv broke surface. When the hatch was clear the two

trapped men crawled out, more dead

(See p. 18)

The Panama Canal Review 17
(Continued from p. 1 7)

than alive. They were taken to Coco Solo and placed in a decompression chamber,

and later transferred to Colon Hospital

for examinations.

"I was a big hero for a while," said Shreaves. "The boys carried me around

on their shoulders. Everybody rushed

down to the Stranger's Club in Colon for

a big celebration. But me, I went to sleep at the party."

The 0-5 incident established a world

record. Shreaves had made dives of the longest duration to that time. He was presented a Congressional

Lifesaving Medal on recommendation of the Acting Canal Zone Governor, Harry

Burgess, and was given a 14-carat gold

watch donated by 800 grateful members

of the Coco Solo Submarine Base. There emerged, however, another

hero of the 0-5 sinking.

Breault, 23, of Putnam, Conn., was in the forward torpedo room at the time of the collision. He escaped to the main

deck, but then realized that his friend,

Brown, was asleep in the forward battery room. Breault went back into the

sinking submarine, closing the hatch

cover as he slid below. Brown had not

Henry Breault

Earns Medal

heard the order to abandon ship. With

water charging in on them, they

attempted to escape through the conning

tower, but the deluge blocked that

route. They struggled back into the tor- pedo room and forced shut its watertight door as the 0-5 hit bottom.

It was for Breault's act of selflessness and valor by going to the assistance of

his shipmate, even though realizing the 0-5 was doomed, that he was

awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor by President Calvin A. Coolidge on March 8, 1924.

History closed in tight around Tor- pedoman Breault and the only known

record available is with the Congressional Medal of Honor Society which

said in January 1969, that he has been

dead for many years. Captain Card of the Abangarez retired

in 1953 after 51 years in the merchant

marine. He now lives in Millbrae, Calif. The collision with the 0-5 was the only

maritime accident during his career. Chief Electrician's Mate Brown has

also died, and there is no information available on the whereabouts of Lieutenant Avery.

With more than 1,000 dives behind

him, Shep retired to St. Petersburg, Fla., on December 31, 1945, after 32 years of Panama Canal service. He died in January 1968.

Material for this story was

compiled by Capt. Julius Grigore, Jr., USNR, supervisor of shipbuilding, conversion and re- pair for the 15th Naval District, Fort Amador.

$

3s*

SAVED FROM WATERY CRAVE-Thc USS 0-5 is raised by Panama Canal crane "Ajax" during salvage and rescue operations. Two men who were trapped in engineroom are shown shortly after rescue. One is in white T-shirt being helped off deck. The other is kneeling on

deck holding a wire stay. They are: Lawrence T. Brown, chief electrician's mate, and Henry Breault, torpedoman second class.

18 May 1969
CULINARY

"GO ON, give it a good shake," savs the gracious hostess indicating a big enamel

pot to a guest. "Shake it up good" adds Mrs. Pat Morgan as she turns to welcome

the next arrival. The occasion is the Garden Glub buffet held the second Tuesdav

of each month at Morgan's Garden on Gaillard Highwav near Corozal. By inviting the guests to jostle the contents of the pot, Mrs Morgan is actually

involving her dinner guests in the preparation of a delectable dish which will en- hance the principal course of the menu—a juicy barbecued filet of beef, done to perfection, served with wine-spiked baked beans, tossed salad, and a simple dessert. The edibles in the jerking, jouncing pot were once paid tribute as a "kitchengod"—onions—full-flavored and pungent, being "bruised" in a tumbling process; always a favorite with the garden clubbers attending the Tuesdav soiree, a Canal

Zone event for the past 20 years. Although Mrs. Morgan needs no bouquet throwing for flower growing and

arranging, and her contribution to life on the Isthmus has been recognized bv the Panama Government with the presentation of the Order of Vasco Nunez de Balboa,

this article makes a deep bow to her "bruised ' onions.

It's The Sulfur From earliest recorded time the onion has held high esteem in the annals

of cookerv. Low in calories, wholesome

and nutritious, the onion is both a delight and despair to the gourmet. It is delicious to the palate, vet objectionable

for the offensive odor it leaves on the

breath. This is due to the pungent volatile substances absorbed by the blood,

which are carried to the lungs, where

they are set free. The strong smell and

flavor comes from the oil, rich in sulfur.

It is the essence of this sulfur that brings on the tears, too. Whether or not one is a good cook

depends largely on the skillful use of onions. Cookbooks contain very few

recipes, with the exception of desserts, which do not have at least a trace of onion. A thin slice of onion or a few

drops of its juice has saved many a dish from dullness. 'A precious gift from the East to the West, the onion originated in northern

Asia and Palestine. It is mentioned in old Hebrew literature and drawings of

it are found on monuments in Egypt. As a "kitchen-god" in Egvpt, it was paid

special tribute and the Egyptians made

their oaths bv it. The Bible also speaks

of its merits.

In Egypt, as well as Greece, the onion was thought to give physical

strength and was fed to soldiers to give

thf m courage in battle. It also was

believed to have aphrodisiac qualities.

American Debut

Cultivated in Europe from the time

the Crusaders brought it back from their expeditions, the onion probably made its debut into the American kitchen in the

early 17th century. Today, its hundreds

of varieties are grown in all parts of the world. When grown in warm cli- mates, it is milder and somewhat sweeter

than the northern variety.

Strange as it may seem, the fragrant

lib and the onion belong to the same

family, the lilaceas. Other members of the family are the chive, the shallot, the

seallion. and the leek, the latter being

the emblem of Wales.

Yellow onions are preferable for soups, stews, sauces, and are also good

raw. White onions, a little more expensive, are not necessarily milder, but

small white onions are excellent served

whole in stews or creamed. The purple

ones, called California, Spanish, or

Italian, are beautiful in salads but a

little too sweet for cooking. No matter what color, a moderate size onion

contains approximatelv 91 percent

water.

To A Frazzle Comparing its utilization with other

vegetables, the versatile onion has most

of them beaten to a frazzle. Onions

are boiled, baked, creamed, scalloped.

glazed, grated, stuffed, smothered,

fried, sauteed, pickled, roasted, toasted,

chopped, sliced, minced, scraped and

"bruised," depending on whether thev

are to be used as a vegetable or to add

flavor and a little zip to a dish. Due to

this versatility, the onion has made a profound impression on cookerv. A good

cook knows exactly what to do with it. Here is the recipe for preparing Mrs. Morgan's "bruised" onions: For a regular

family size portion, slice about eight

medium sized vellow onions into rings

into a pot or receptacle large enough

to shake them in. Add about 3 table- spoons each of salad oil and vinegar

and 1 tablespoon sugar. Shake the pot

and then let marinate a few minutes. Then shake and "bruise" the onion

rings. Prepare them 2 to 4 hours before

serving and shake often, the more, the

better, as the marinade penetrates the raw onion rings in the process. Serve with meat course. F H.

ONION TREAT—Recovering from a snake

bite and fractured wrist, Pat Morgan pre- pares "bruised" onions for the Garden Club.

The Panama Canal Beview 19
CANAL COMMERCIAL TRAFFIC RY NATIONALITY OF VESSELS

Nationality

Belgian

British Chilean Chinese ( Nat'l.

)

Colombian

Cuban

Danish

Ecuadorean

Finnish French Cerman

Greek

Honduran

Israeli _ _ Italian ____ Japanese

Liberian Mexican

Netherlands

Nicaragua!]

Norwegian

Panamanian

Peruvian

Philippine

Soviet Swedish

United States

All Others

Total

First 9 Months, Fiscal Year 1969

No. of

transits 87

1,074

80

93

13732

279

44

32

183 864

391

15372

197 795

1,190

79

343

39

999

462

13069

70

371

1,125 284

9,674

Tons of cargo 111,277

8,730,616

557,341

649,100

410,005

317,487

1,613,433

53,727

191,640

789,779

3,286,373

4,401,580

96,131

483,444

1,270,506

6,750,180

18,238,702

331,340

1,786,190

68,991

10,441,949

1,982,080

599,521

359,124

502,118

2,484,246

5,605,069

1,942,332

74,054,281
grove swamps off Galeta Island for the past 8 years. Their study areas were

threatened with destruction. There was no effective method at hand for removing the oil. Attempts were made to disperse it with chemicals

and to burn it by soaking bales of hay

with kerosene and distributing them

throughout the spill pool and igniting

them. The attempts were only partially successful. This was an unfortunate accident but

not dangerous to the Canal. But what

if a massive oil spill were to occur in the Canal itself or within the harbors?

It would not be just a matter of polluting resort beaches or killing waterfowl

and fish. Such an event could interrupt

transists and endanger other ships using

the Canal. Meetings to discuss possible solutions and firm up an approach to planning

for handling oil spill emergencies were

held bv representatives of the Canal

organization, the U.S. Armed Forces and the Smithsonian Tropical Research

Institute. Some of the possible solutions to pro- vide capability to effectively control and dispose of oil products spilled into the Canal and harbors include various chemicals (dispersants and emulsifiers)

and absorption materials now on the market and under test by the Marine

Bureau. Materials and equipment have

been ordered to be on hand at Balboa

and Cristobal harbors and at Gamboa.

They consist of two pumps with

eductors for applying liquid chemicals

used in oil dispersal and eight drums

of two of the leading dispersants now

available. Also ordered is 800 feet of

"slickbar oil-spill boom" consisting of 9-foot sections connected together so that it can be stowed accordion-fashion

ready for deployment to contain oil

spills. Present plans are to store the oil boom at Gamboa, and possibly purchase

shorter booms for containing bunkering

spills in each of the port terminals. A ton of straw has been ordered and

will be used as an absorbent to remove

oil during clean-up operations after the bulk of an oil spill has been removed.

The Marine Bureau has made ar- rangements with chemical companies

and the U.S. Air Force to airlift supplies to the Canal Zone in an emergency. Also, emergency kits consisting

of a skimmer, pump and oil container

are under development by the U.S. Coast Guard to be flown to an oil spill site should the need occur. Marine Bureau personnel are nowinvestigating the various methods and means of combating oil pollution in order to develop a pollution plan.

PRINCIPAL COMMODITIES SHIPPED THROUGH THE CANAL

(All cargo figures in long tons) Pacific to Atlantic

Commodity

Ores, various Boards and planks

Iron and steel plates, sheets and coils Sugar

Fishmeal

Food in refrigeration

(excluding bananas)

Metals, various Pulpwood

Bananas __ Iron and steel manufactures,

miscellaneous Plywood and veneers Wheat—

Petroleum and products Potash Canned food products

All others __.

First 9 Months, Fiscal Year

1969
- k NAVIGATORS—John H. Stevens, in uniform, a past commander of the Canal Zone Pacific Power Squadron, teaches an advanced pilot- ing course. He and R. F. Hesch, left, the incumbent commander, look at a compass. Col. John Allis, squadron treasurer, sights through

a pelorus, an instrument for taking bearings. Looking on is Kenneth E. Lake. TURNING LANDLUBBERS INTO SEAMEN

By Luis C. Noli

ISTHMIAN LANDLUBBERS who

turn into sea lovers (an understandable

metamorphosis because of their natural surroundings) find themselves inclined

to give expression to their newly ac- quired passion through the sport of boating. Like the poet B. W. Procter, they are beckoned by the expanse of the ocean: "The sea! the sea! the open sea! "The blue, the fresh, the ever free!" But fear of the unknown is apt to keep landlocked many a man suddenly

enamored of the deep. He need not

despair.

A group of dedicated boating enthusiasts in the Canal Zone stands ready

to unlock for him the secrets of power

and sail boating—at least enough of them to make the sport safe and enjoyable. It is the Canal Zone Pacific Power Squadron—a unit of the United

States Power Squadrons—which is about

to complete its 20th year of activitv on

Isthmian waters. One of 375 power

squadrons in the world, the Canal Zone

unit seeks to promote the sport of boat- ing with emphasis on safety through

knowledge. This it does by imparting

knowledge through teaching.

Once a year, volunteer qualified in- structors from the Canal Zone squadron

take as many as 200 budding boatmen

for what is jokingly known in power

squadron parlance as "keelhauling"—

a course in piloting. The term comes

from a cruel practice in the olden days

of seafaring: hauling a man under the

keel of a ship as a punishment or a mode of torture. There is nothing punitive or torturous about the course taught by the Canal Zone Pacific Power

Squadron, except for the agony that every student—young or old—is apt to

suffer. The fact that only about half the starting number of students in every

class reaches the final examination is evidence, though, that the course is not

srrictlv for fun.

The Beginning

Thus it has been since the first power

squadron course taught in the Canal

Zone, which, incidentally, marked the beginning of the local organization on March 31, 1949. Of 31 boating enthusiasts who attended that first course, on piloting, 14 reached the end. Those first 14 "graduates" and their instructor, William M. Clark, Jr., formed the charter membership of the Canal

Zone Pacific Power Squadron. Clark, an engineer who had been a member of the Stamford, Conn., Power Squadron, came to the Canal Zone in 1942 to work

for the 15th Naval District. It was

because of his interest that the local squadron came into being.

In February 1949, he wrote the squadron's national headquarters in New Jersey requesting information on how to start one here and how he could

be reinstated as a member in good standing. With the replv from headquarters came material for the piloting course.

Incidentally, seven ladies, some of them

wives of the charter members-to-be,

also passed the course. Since only males can belong to power squadrons, the women organized themselves into the

squadronettes, the local unit's auxiliary.

The official anniversary of the Canal

Zone Pacific Power Squadron is September 12, the date 20 years ago when

the Governing Board of the United

States Power Squadrons approved the

local charter. Why Canal Zone Pacific Power Squadron? Everybody was certain that in

little time a second squadron would be

organized among boating enthusiasts on

the Atlantic side. It hasn't happened yet. The Canal Zone squadron's charter contains the names of Clark, Howard

C. Rufus, Brodie Burnham, Walter F. Kindt, Clifford Brewster, Edward D. Mcintosh, William H. Clinchard, Walter E. Pearson, William E. Heussler,

Bernard J. Brown, Francis S. Hargy,

Robert A. Berry, Robert B. Mcintosh,

Leo E. Barzal, and William J. Neithercoat. The original Canal Zone Squadronettes were Eleanor Burham, Arabritt Pearson, Alida Clark, Hildegarde

Rufus, Eileen Kindt, Ellen Thomas and

Lela C. Mcintosh.

Clark was the first commander of the Canal Zone squadron. He was last known to reside in Subic Bay, Luzon,

Philippine Islands, but nothing has been

22 May 1969
heard from him since 1956. Of the

founders, only "Bemie" Brown remains

active in the Pacific squadron. Hargy, now of St. Petersburg, Fla., and Berry, a resident of Townsend, Mont., still maintain membership in the Canal Zone

squadron.

The squadron is planning an anniversary celebration and will promote local observance of Safe Boating Week.

When the Canal Zone Pacific Power

Squadron was founded 20 years ago, the parent organization had been active already for more than one third of a century. Started just before World War

I in the Boston Yacht Club by Roger

Upton, a tenacious, safety-minded boat- man, the United States Power Squadrons

received much-needed impetus a decade

later from a "fortuitous tragedy." During a Boston-to-Halifax sailboat race,

a storm dismasted many of the sailing

yachts which had to be rescued by the power boats that had tagged along.

The episode served to focus interest on power boats, theretofore looked upon

with some disdain as "stinkpots" by

sailing yachtsmen.

The USPS has grown to a membership of 76,210 boatmen and its 375

squadrons are scattered from Maine to Yokohama and from Alaska to the Canal

Zone. The organization is divided into

districts, each with several squadrons.

The Canal Zone Pacific Power Squadron is in District 50 and has the dis- tinction of being the southernmost unit

in USPS.

Membership is by election after the candidate has passed the initial course on piloting, but is restricted to male U.S.

citizens. This first course—piloting and

small boat handling—is free and open

to anyone interested in boating. More

than a million men and women have

taken it since the founding of USPS.

Despite the inevitable high turnover in local membership—caused by the transitory condition of many Isthmian res- idents—the Canal Zone squadron now

has a roster of 70 squadronites, 20 squadronettes and 2 apprentices (boys 16

and 17 years old who have completed

the piloting course but who have to await their 18th birthday before being

accepted as members).

Once enrolled, squadronites and

squadronettes are eligible for the four advanced courses which are concerned

with the general subjects of seamanship, piloting, dead reckoning, and celestial navigation. The courses are free, except for the cost of textbooks and

materials and of written examinations.

The papers (marked by numbers to conceal the identity of the student) are graded in the United States by professional proctors, as power squadron in- structors are called officially. Each course lasts 12 weeks and

classes are held one night a week. For

years now, the Canal Zone squadron

has used the Panama Canal Training Center in Balboa as its classroom. By passing these courses, members

advance in grade within the squadron—

from seaman to advanced pilot, to junior

navigator, and finally to navigator. The

Canal Zone squadron has two junior

navigators in its roster—past commander Brown and John M. Waters. Ten of the squadronites are advanced pilots.

Instructors are volunteers from the squadron membership. They are awarded a coveted merit mark denoting that

I ^)

mi

Commander Hesch

Raises USPS Ensign

they teach or lecture to newer students. Only enrolled members are privileged

to display the United States Power

Squadron's ensign on their craft. The

rectangular ensign shows the traditional anchor design surrounded by 13 stars in the left upper quarter, in white and

red; the rest of the design consists of blue and white stripes. Boats of the Canal Zone squadronites also flv the

Pacific squadron pennant, showing the Southern Cross in white against a field of blue enclosed bv red borders. What

each svmbol means is best explained bv

the USPS bulletin:

"It is an outward and visible sign that the lxxit displaying it is under the charge of a capable person who has made a study of piloting and small boat handling and will recognize the rights of others and the traditions of the sea. The squadron's flag marks a craft also as being under the charge of a man who has met certain minimum require- ments and is so honored for meeting

them. This honor may not be bought

or sold, rented, loaned, or given away."

SEAMANSHIP—Power squadron students learn the handling of a sextant from John H. Stevens. From left are: Edward E. Garrett, P. Riggs

Forrest, Kenneth E. Lake, Jr. (an apprentice), Stevens, Harry E. Musselman, Jorge Fernandez, Robert H. McDaniel, and Betty H. Olchin.
BREEZE-SWEPT—In one of the most picturesque settings in the Canal Zone, Palo Seco nestles in a cove near

the entrance to the Panama Canal.

Picturedque Palo Seco

J\eaclte3 jtieaical ytluedtone

Bv Eunice Richard A CHAPTER in the medical histor) of the Panama Canal Zone is quietl) coming to a close. Palo Seco Hospital, established in 1907 at a picturesque cove on the Pacific Ocean west of the Canal entrance, is gradualh being phased out and should

cease operation bv 1972. It is one of four hospitals in the world supported

by the U.S. Government for the care of those suffering from Hansen's disease

(leprosy). The others are at Carville,

La., Hawaii and Puerto Rico. The closing of the hospital will follow

a long-term plan which went into effect

in 1965 when the first patients living

at Palo Seco were discharged and re- turned to their communities under a new

rehabilitation program sponsored bv the Canal Zone Health Bureau in cooperation with Panamanian authorities. The discharge of more patients from

Palo Seen actnalb became possible as

far back as 1945, when the hospital

began using the miraculous Sulfone drugs developed lor treatment ol tuberGREAT-CRANDFATHER-Still able to read his Bible without glasses is this 83-

vear-old patient. He has several great- grandchildren living in Panama.

eulosis and other infectious diseases. It was His! used at Carville for Hansen's

disease patients in 1941. Medieval Times

The sulfone drugs replaced chaul- moogra oil. an ineffectual and \ ile tast- ing drug obtained from the Burmese

chaulmoogra tree, which had been used

since medieval times for the treatment

of Hansen's disease. Sulfone, first ad- ministered intravenously, was such a great improvement that results could be

seen with the naked eye. Bv 1961, the drug was administered orallv in tablet form. With the new treatment, the

rehabilitation program was stepped-up.

Before being discharged, the patients are examined bv the Hansen's Discharge

Board which rules on the question of whether the case is arrested and if there

is no further sign of the disease. Whenever possible, the patient being

discharged is given a job, usuallv in the Canal Zone, and it is made certain b\

Canal Zone authorities that he can earn

out his job with no danger to himself

or to others.

24 May 1929
All patients discharged from Palo Seco under this program are kept under supervision by the Panama Public

Health Service and are given supplies

of sulfone tablets to be taken at home

to assure against recurrence of the

disease. The possibility of being returned home first came as a surprise and a shock to many of the patients who had come to think of Palo Seco as their per- manent home and who must now pre- pare to accept the outside world.

Not Dreaded

The outside world had to be educated

too, to accept the fact that Hansen's

disease is not now the dread contagious

disease referred to in the Bible, but is.

in realitv . one of the least communicable

of all communicable diseases. With the present rate of rehabilitation and the continued cooperation of the Panama Public Health Service, it has been possible at Palo Seco to discontinue the use of one three-story dormitorv for men and the top floors of two

dormitories for women. The patient

census, which was 103 in 1965. has been reduced to 71 and soon will go down to 69. Their ages range from

39 to 96. Home for these patients is a windswept quadrangle of nine buildings consisting of living quarters for single

patients, each with a room to himself, married patients' apartments, two

churches and a building with a kitchen

and two dining rooms, one for patients

and one for employees. Next door are the administrative office, dental clinic, commissary and storerooms, a hospital to take care of the more seriouslv ill, and

a clinic and treatment room. A laundn . which handles 200 pounds of laundn

a dav. and a maintenance shop oper- ated by patients, are under the dining

room-kitchen building.

Recreation

One of the most important components of the hospital is the recreation building where movies are shown and

where patients can hold dances and

parties, plav pool, and entertain their

friends. Welfare and activities programs have

alw a\ s been of great value, and the movies, furnished free bv film distrib- utors in Panama, are shown five nights

a week. In recent years there have been

such outings as trips to Fort San Lorenzo, sightseeing tours in the Canal

Zone and Panama, picnics at Summit

Gardens, trips through Gaillard Cut

aboard the Panama Canal sightseeing

launch Las Cruces, and celebration of Panama's Independence holidays and

Christinas. The staff consists of John R. (Tomm\ I Thomson, administrative officer; Dr. Guillermo E. Cedeiio. who holds an

outpatient clinic four mornings a week

to treat and check patients' progress, and three registered nurses, Mrs Marguerite Orr. Mrs. Lucille Wilson, and

Mrs. Amelia P. McGroart\ . nurse supervisor. In addition, there are nursing assistants, eight kitchen employees, a

clerk tvpist, and Alexander Webster,

who is an assistant to Thomson. A consultant service is available at Gorgas

Hospital with periodic visits from a dentist, dermatologist, and orthopedic team

Pleasant Life

Life is pleasant at Palo Seco even

for those for whom the new "miracle

drugs" came too late and who show

the marks of the disease. Some of them

are employed as orderlies, waiters, and

maintenance men. Others grow fruit and vegetables which they sell to the

colony's commissary. Others fish and

sell their catch. The patient payroll

amounts to approximately $1,000 bi- weekly. Each patient, in addition, re- ceives a monthly allotment of $2.50

which he can spend in the Palo Seco

Retail Store or draw in cash.

Patients furnish their own clothing, but this is supplemented bv gifts from

individuals, discarded clothing from the

Retail Stores, and unclaimed garments

from the Ancon Laundn'.

Others make their own recreation such as one old man usually found basking in the morning sunshine reading his

VISITS CLINIC-Dr. Guillermo E. Cedeiio,

who holds clinics four times each week at Palo Seco, leaves the hospital building after

visiting the 30 or more patients who are ill enough to be hospitalized.

Bible Although he is 83 \ ears old, he

reads w ithout glasses.

Or the active young woman who

designs and transfers pictures to cloth

in yarn and embroidery floss. The work

decorates the wall of her bright, cheerful room. And the middle-aged woman, who

is one of those allowed to prepare food

in her room. She is never too bus\

to show off her African violets. The

eggshells on the plants? "Oh, they keep awav the insects." she explains.

The Panama Canal Review
^ANNIVERSARIES;

(On the basis of total Federal Service)

ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES DIVISION

Felix L. Wilkins Platemaker MARINE BUREAU

James R. Shurland Motor Launch Operator

V. DelRozario

Helper Lock Operator George A. Jones Leader Toolroom Attendant Sidney J. Tivey

Painter Ervin D. Moore

Purchasing Agent TRANSPORTATION AND TERMINALS

BUREAU

Adolphus E. Mapp

Helper, Heavy Duty Equipment Mechanic

Webstar F. Marshall

Clerk

Percival A. Jordaq Chauffeur Edgar ! Helper^

George O. Ha

Biological Bernard D. Headley

Assistant Retail Store Department Manager

Kenneth H. Weeks

Stockman

Rupert L. Yard Motion Picture Projectionist ENGINEERING AND CONSTRUCTION

BUREAU

Leroy A. Cooper

Dispatcher (Floating Equipment)

Junes Benjamin Lead Foreman, Carpenter lames B. Rodney

Leader Seaman

Walter N. Babb

Navigational Aid Maintenanceman

Philip P. Daniel Teacher (Elementary L. A. Schools) Almoda Robinson Guard

ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES DIVISION

Edgar L. Josephs

Printing Clerk Frank A. Venture Shipment Clerk OFFICE OF THE COMPTROLLER

Claudius A. Jordan Bookkeeping Machine Operator

Cecil O. Maughn

Accounts Maintenance Clerk MARINE BUREAU

Euaska M. Roberts Wharfbuilder (Maintenance) William Hall Leader Carpenter Edwin D. Milwnod

Motor Launch Operator Darnley G. Rawlins

Oiler Joseph Foster

Painter

Florencio Santizo

Painter Henry E. Charles Rigger (Maintenance) Andrew E. Watson

Oiler Angel Maza R. Helper Shipwright Burton L. Powell

General Foreman (Salvage and Diving) William Wirtz, Jr. Foreman (Marine Woodworking and Drydocking) Douglas S. Smith

General Foreman (Locks Operations-Mechanical)

Gabriel C. Adonicam

Oiler (Floating Plant) Luther Davis

Linehandler Manuel E. Serrano Motor Launch Operator

S. A. Brathwaite Lead Foreman (Operations Lock Wall) Octaviano Sincler Painter (Maintenance) Amos N. Blades Maintenanceman (Rope and Wire Cable)

Joel W. Donawa

Lead Foreman (Operations Lock Wall) Evans S. McClain

Linehandler-Deckhand

Ricksford D. Bayley Seaman

Secundino Arrocha

Helper Lock Operator Luther Hurley

Asphalt or Cement Worker

Clifford A. Nurse

Teletypist Darlington L. Bullen

Painter Alfredo Jemmott

Shipwright (Maintenance) Lodge W. Waterman

Toolroom Attendant Matthew M. Kelly Seaman

Robert J. Blevins Guard Supervisor

Oliver G. Paterson Leader Lock Operator-Machinist

TRANSPORTATION AND TERMINALS

BUREAU

Eustace A. Holmes Guard

Joseph B. Greenidge

Helper Automotive Mechanic (Body and Fender)

Culbert E. Darnel

Chauffeur

Ivor A. Reece

Truck Driver (Heavy)

Vicente Nelson Brakeman

Joseph Drakes

Boiler Tender (High Pressure) Lucilo H. Hoyte

Supervisory Cargo Checking Assistant Donald R. Brayton

Railroad Operations Officer Philmore M. Alexis Truck Driver (Heavy) Canon S. Brathwaite

School Bus Driver

SUPPLY AND COMMUNITY SERVICE BUREAU

Marcus A. Grannum

Retail Store Department Manager

Elmer M. Leslie Laborer

Jose D. Acosta Laborer

Alfonso Green Warehouseman (Cold Storage) Ernesto H. Correa Supply Clerk Edward C. Gittens Warehouseman

G. Clair Lawrence

Chief Foreman Laborer-Cleaner ENGINEERING AND CONSTRUCTION

BUREAU

Robton G. Harewood

Carpenter

Jeff Danvers

Helper Welder

Lee R. Gittens Procurement Clerk David S. Facey

Helper Electronics Mechanic David A. Mannings

Painter Edward G. Coyle

Budget Analyst Donald E. Judson Power System Dispatcher Clevlan A. Small Supply Clerk

" ins

sell, Jr. Instrative Assistant Robert C. Calvit Inspector (Plumbing) Edward K. Wilburn

Master, Towboat

Lovestan F. Samuel

Laundrv- Equipment Repairman

Federico A. Valencia Engineering Draftsman (Civil) Stephen R. Gordon

Asphalt or Concrete Mixing Plant Operator

Arcadio M. Matamoros

Pipelayer George N. Watson

Automotive Equipment Operator

Carlos A. Rios Laborer (Heavy) John H. Flynn

Surveying Aid

James U. Samuels

Residual Fuel Treatment Plant Operator Joseph F. Watson

Electrician (Lineman)

CIVIL AFFAIRS BUREAU

Irvin Clarke

Firefighter Frederick W. Holmberg

Customs Inspector HEALTH BUREAU

Hubert E. Thompson

File Clerk

Clifton C. Nolan

Exterminator

26 May 1969
CANAL HISTORY

50 years cAao

THE PANAMA CANAL Mechanical

Division was busy 50 years ago rebuild- ing five former German-flag ships which

had been seized during World War I off the South American coast and interned. The first was the steamer Callao,

formerly the Sierra Cordoba of the North

German Lloyd Steamship Co. and once

one of the best equipped passenger

vessels of this company plying between

the port cities of Bremen and Buenos

Aires. The vessel was towed from Lima,

Peru, to Balboa by the dredge Culcbra

and rebuilt at Balboa by the Canal in 6 months. All five of the ships had

been systematically sabotaged by their former German crews. The Callao was

completed in April 1919. The new cold storage plant at Mount

Hope was used by the Commissary Division for the first time in February 1919.

It was one of the finest of its kind in the world, according to the Panama Canal

Record.

The total number of oceangoing ships

using the Panama Canal from August

1914 to May 1, 1919, was 7,632, according to figures printed in the Panama

Canal Record. The number using the Canal in the month of January 1919

totaled 171 exclusive of U.S. Government

and non-oceangoing vessels.

25 years cAao

A 33 PERCENT increase in the overall food prices in the Canal Zone commissaries since Pearl Harbor was reported at Balboa Heights in April 1944. The

report said that food led the advance

among all basic living cost items both on

the Isthmus and in the United States but

that a higher percentage for the Canal

Zone was caused bv increased handling

charges resulting from disruptions in shipping routine by the war.

President Franklin D. Roosevelt sent

to the U.S. Senate the nomination of

Brig. Gen. Joseph C. M. Mehaffey to be

Governor of the Panama Canal. He had

served as engineer of maintenance since September 1941 and succeeded Gov. Glen E. Edgerton April 19, 1944. In May 1944, it was announced that Col. Francis K. Newcomer had been

appointed engineer of maintenance for the Panama Canal.

Headlight paint, used to keep auto- mobile headlights at a minimum during

the years the wartime blackout had been

in effect, was being removed from Canal

Zone vehicles in April 1944.

Possible reduction in U.S. Navy per- sonnel stationed in Panama and the Caribbean area was voiced in Washington by Vice Adm. F. J. Morne, vice

chief of naval operations.

10 years cAao

WITH THE EXCEPTION of a few- isolated pieces of equipment, all house- hold electrical equipment on the Pacific side had been converted by the end of March 1959 from 25-cycle power to 60-eycle operation. The principal re- maining users of 25-cycle power on the

Pacific side were the locks where conversion was in progress, and Miraflores

Filtration Plant, which was scheduled

for conversion soon.

Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh,

arrived in Balboa in April 1959, aboard

the Royal Yacht Britannia. It was his second visit to the Canal, but the yacht's

first call in Isthmian waters and her first- transit of the Panama Canal.

Final tests were being made in March

on the air-conditioning system in the Administration Building at Balboa

Heights. The operation of the new sys- tem was initiated on a floor-to-floor basis and the installation of lighting fixtures was being completed.

Bids were being asked by the Panama

Canal for replacements for the 50-year- old Panama Canal towing locomotives.

It was to be the largest single replacement order ever to be placed for Canal

equipment. Also, work was starting on

the construction of the bridge over the Panama Canal at Balboa with awarding

of a contract for the east approach.

BALBOA FIRE STATION IN 1919-This was the latest in fire fighting equipment as the horse drawn apparatus was discontinued

in 1918 with the installation of a hose truck at Gatun. The Canal Zone Fire Department was established in 1905 with one man, a chief.

FIFTY YEARS LATER-The trees are taller, an addition to the

station has been added and vast changes are seen in the equipment.

In 1956 all fire services were consolidated under one division. Today, Canal Fire Division consists of 12 companies and 152 employees.

The Panama Canal Review 27




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DlTIN AMERICA