UNIVERSITY

OF FLORIDA

LIBRARIES
Digitized by the Internet Archive

in 2010 with funding from

University of Florida, George A. Smathers Libraries

http://www.archive.org/details/panamacanalrevie139pana



PANAMA ftMn CANAL

IN THIS ISSUE

Trailer Travelers

Museum Pieces

Lock Chamber Ceremonial

Micro Network Grows

S

Vol. 13, No. 9

April 5, 1963
Robert J. Fleming, Jr., Governor-President

W. P. Leber, Lieutenant Governor

Frank A. Baldwin Panama Canal Information Officer

i

/*~T:S

Official Panama Canal Publication

Published monthly at Balboa Heights, C.Z. Printed at the Printing Plant, Mount Hope, C.Z.

Joseph Connor, Press Officer

Publications Editors Robert D. Kerr and Julio E. Briceno

Editorial Assistants Eunice Richard, Tobi Bittel, and Tomas A. Cupas

On sale at all Panama Canal Service Centers, Retail Stores, and the Tivoli Guest House for 10 days after publication date at 5 cents each. Subscriptions, $1 a year; mall and back copies, 10 cents each.

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

Editorial Offices are located in the Administration Building, Balboa Heights. C.Z.

Colonel Parker and Colonel Leber pose in the Lieutenant Governor's office.

arriving, ana J£e^eavma

THE CANAL ZONE will have a new Lieutenant Governor beginning

Monday, April 8, as Col. Walter P. Leber departs for a new assignment

as Ohio River Division Engineer, and Col. David S. Parker assumes

his new duties as Lieutenant Governor of the Canal Zone. Colonel Leber, who recently was nominated for promotion to Brigadier General by President Kennedy, has served as Lieutenant

Governor since June 26, 1961, when he came to the Isthmus from

Washington, D.C., where he had served 3 years as Executive Officer

to the Chief of Engineers.

Colonel Parker, who served as Military Assistant to the Governor of the Canal Zone from 1952 to 1954, arrived on the Isthmus late last month from Washington, D.C. Graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point

in 1940, the new Lieutenant Governor served on the staffs of both

Adm. Chester Nimitz and Gen. Douglas MacArthur during World

War II. He was with the Army of Occupation in Japan for 3 years, received a master's degree in civil engineering from the University of California in 1949, served as instructor in Military Topography at West Point, then came to the Canal Zone for his first tour of duty

with the Canal organization.

Since leaving the Isthmus in 1954, he has served with the Portland

Engineer District in Oregon, with the First Corps in Korea, and with

the office of the Chief of Engineers in Washington.

The departing Lieutenant Governor, a native of St. Louis, will be

stationed at Cincinnati, Ohio, in his new assignment.

THIS MONTH'S COVER

THE ANNUAL observance of Semana Santa (Holy Week) in Panama brings forth many tradi- tional religious processions in commemoration of the Life, Passion, and Death of Jesus Christ. The

cover photo, taken by Orestes Cabredo, Panama

photographer, shows such a procession in Peno- nome. Holy Week this year is April 7 through 14. Index

Trailer Travelers Welcomed 3

Shrine Anniversary Ceremony 5 Museum Pieces From Cut 7

Inter-American Relations 9

Heading For New Diggings 17 Microwave Network Growing 18

Canal History, Retirements 20

Anniversaries 21 Promotions and Transfers 22

"3" To KO Polio 23

Shipping 24

ZONIANS AND PANAMANIANS dubious about

driving between here and the United States got

a shock recently when 24 trailer couples arrived, a few of them young, in their 50's, others retirees

in their 70's. The Highroaders have taken all kinds of roads, not just high ones. Some members

list Africa, Russia, and Alaska among their more

distant tour points. For an account of their visit, see page 3. A dewatered chamber of Miraflores Locks will be the scene of a Shrine ceremonial reenacting an initiation of nearly 50 years ago. One of the

members of the original initiation class still is

living on the Isthmus.

Out on the Cut widening project relics pre- dating even early French construction days are being found, some from the late 1850's. And

there's a report on expansion of the microwave

network on the Isthmus. Fourteen towers, many

in remote sites, were required for the installation, which serves 20,000 subscribers in major

population centers.

April 5, 1963
Veterans of many miles in many lands, Joe and Lydia M. Bos stand alongside

their trailer, on which is painted a list of their travels. As the trailer travelers came off the bridge, nearing

completion of their journey—one way.

"LETS GO" . . . AND THEY DID

WHAT TO DO with those long emptyyears after retirement?

This is a problem which never has

been raised for many of the 48 men and women who visited the Isthmus recently

as members of the Highroaders Trailer Club. With most of them well into their 60's—there are two or three babies in their 50's—the energetic Highroaders

have been exploring the highways and

byways of the world, and diey love it. Their mode of travel is one that is fairly common in the United States but

practically unknown in Panama. In fact, their arrival on the Isthmus caused a mild sensation among most local res- idents who were unaware that the Interamerican Highway was open to anvthing more cumbersome than the family car. While residents of the Canal Zone

and Panama may drive to David, the Costa Rican border, or even to San Jose,

this group of intrepid trail-breakers suc- ceeded in piloting their cars and trailers over the unpaved mountain roads of Central Arrierica, experiencing nothing more serious than a few flat tires and/or

a broken spring.

The Highroaders may be out for adventure, but they believe in comfort

too. Their roomy trailers are equipped

with electric lights, running hot and

cold water, showers, toilets, and refrig- eration. Some had the added luxury of

air conditioning. One pair of travelers had an electric organ which was used

for church services and came in handy

for evening entertainments, and several

The Panama Canal Review 3

had motor scooters as part of their equipment.

Under the capable guidance of William O. Carlson of Franklin, Ohio,

the trailer travelers drove down through

Mexico and Central America at a fairly

steady pace, with stops here and there

for sightseeing, repairs, and rest. Taking a hint from their pioneer

ancestors, the Highroaders followed

each other in caravan style, parked for the night in a loose circle, and had

community conferences on routes, travel time, and stopover sites. They usually

hit the road about 8 a.m. and sometimes

drove until 4 in the afternoon. Community activities were coordi- nated, with different tasks taken over by

volunteers. The Sunday church services, for instance, were conducted by Mrs. Lena Mae Shank of Indianapolis, who

was elected honorary chaplain. In Tegucigalpa, Honduras, they held services under the wing of a plane with an in- terested group of Hondurans watching

in the background.

Her husband Robert, an airport operator, has the distinction of being the only surviving one of the four airmail

pilots who flew the mail when the

U.S. Government took over this service

in 1918. The necessary and important job of collecting and distributing mail was

assumed on the trip bv Charles Dodge

of Imlay City, Mich. He did so well,

in fact, that his fellow travelers were

thinking of giving him some sort of a

certificate. While most of the Highroaders have

been members of the Caravan Club for

a number of years, this was the first extensive trip for Lawrence Wilkins, a former engineer with the Pontiac Motor

Co. in Michigan. Mr. Wilkins was so interested in the trailer-travel hobby

that he designed a Pontiac specially

equipped for trailer towing. He retired from Pontiac January 1 after 35 years

of service, so he could make this trip.

In addition to their own names and

the number of their trailers, the Highroaders have painted on their trailers the names of many of the countries they

have visited in their travels. On some,

the list is impressive.

Probably all travel records for members of this particular group were

broken by Horace Dickev of Burbank,

Calif., who retired 6 years ago when

he was 70 and since then has trailered through most of Africa and Europe,

including Russia, and visited a number

William O. Carlson, Highroaders leader, is greeted by Manuelita de la Guardia of the Panama Tourist Institute, and Frank A. Baldwin, Panama Canal Information

Officer. In background is Caravaner Mrs. Henry Gustafson.
of countries in the Middle East and

Asia. One of his prize exhibits is a pic- ture of his trailer parked in Red Square

in Moscow.

In 1959 and 1960, Mr. and Mrs. Dickey traveled in their trailer from

the most southern point in Africa to the most northern part of the Norwegian

peninsula. The Dickeys had a narrow

escape in Africa when a sleepy elephant

ambled into the trailer camp one night

and just happened to step on their

trailer. The body of the vehicle re- ceived extensive damages. The Dickeys,

however, escaped uninjured.

Language can sometimes be a barrier,

but in most places the Highroaders en- countered only courtesy and hospitality.

On the way down through Central America, there were a few extensive delays at the borders while surprised customs and immigration officers tackled

the task of inspecting 24 trailers and

their 48 occupants. They were enthusiastic about their reception in Panama,

where they were met by Manuelita de

la Guardia of the Panama Tourist Insti- tute and Frank A. Baldwin of the Panama Canal Information Office. Although a few decided to return home by ship, or ship cars and trailers and fly home, some of the group who

came as far as Panama retraced the road back to Mexico and the Texas

border after a period of sightseeing and

shopping on the Isthmus.

A windowsill shelf in the Wilkins trailer with miniature car and trailer, Seattle World's

Fair souvenir, center, Alaska "milepost," at right, and mementos of trip to the Isthmus.

Their headquarters and trailer haven

here was a section of the parking area

at the President Remon Racetrack,

where special water and power lines and

lights were extended to the caravan. During their stay, many were guests at an exhibition of folklore dancing and

other events in Panama Citv, visited the San Bias Islands, Miraflores Locks,

made a partial transit of the Canal,

visited Summit Gardens, and drove on

as far as Chepo for a picnic dinner. One of the races at the Remon track was labeled the Inter-American Car- avan Handicap in honor of the visitors

and Mr. Carlson made the trophy

presentation.

All along their route to Panama, the

trailerites found citizens surprised that they were not advertising anything, had

nothing to sell, that there were "no

strings" attached to the Caravan trip, that it was strictly for pleasure, nobody was paid, and all paid their own

expenses. The trip to the Isthmus resulted when a number of the Caravan members were chatting during a get-together

in Florida. In 1958, 26 trailers made a (See p. 23)

Visitors were amazed at spaciousness and

convenience of equipment in trailers. Here Dee Blakeley converts couch into a bed

for two.

THEIR HOMES ALL OVER U.S.

Dr. Eugene and Elizabeth Birchwood— 1755 East 73d Place, Chicago 49, 111. Bud and Dee Blakeley—17235 East Annadale, Sanger, Calif. Joe and (Toots) Lvdia M. Bos— 108% West Linn Street, Marshalltown, Iowa. Paul and Madeline Bryan-6376 17th Avenue North, St. Petersburg, Fla.

Bill and Agnes Carlson—P.O. Box 5, Franklin, Ohio.

Horace and Alice Dickev—1225 North Main Street, Burbank, Calif. Charles and Irene Dodge— 145 Grove Avenue, Imlay City, Mich.

Ralph and Lillie Douglass—P.O. Box 51, Sedona, Ariz. C. K. and Mildred Fetter-747 West Market, Lima, Ohio.

Clay and Esther Garrison—3901 South Dixie Drive, Dayton 39, Ohio.

Lloyd and Lilia Goodwin—Miami, Okla. Henry and Xina Gustafson—327 East 13 Mile Road, Royal Oak, Mich.

Guy and Louise Hawks—4310 Southern Parkway, Louisville 14, Ky.

Vernon and Clara Leech— 12382 Zig Zag Way, Tustin, Calif. Worth and Maud Overacker-R.D. No. 1 Box 370, Coca, Fla. Max and AnnaBelle Parsons— 103 Sunnyside Drive. Battle Creek, Mich.

Ravmond and Ethel Rains—4608 Southern Parkway, Louisville 14, Ky. Paul and Ruth Ross-19409 5th Avenue, La Puente, Calif. Robert and Lena Mae Shank—4100 Moller Road, Indianapolis 14, Ind. Yal and Mary Sutcliffe-1337 East 9th, Okmulgee, Okla.

Clifford and Man. Warren—9840 Sashabaw Road, Clarkston, Mich.

Floyd and Ruth WelIs-3432 Parkside Drive. San Bernardino, Calif. Lawrence and Erma Wilkins— 10265 Lakeside Drive, Pontiac, Mich.

April 5, 1963
LOCK CHfifTlB€R

SIT€ FOR SHRine

C€R€moniAL

The bronze tablet located on the center wall of Miraflores Locks commemorating the first Shrine Ceremonial held south of the U.S. border is examined by George M. Klepper, left, Imperial Potentate of the Shrine, who visited the Isthmus recently. With him is Burton

Davis, Plant Engineer of the Industrial Division, who is the Potentate of the Abou Saad

Temple of Ancon.

The Panama Canal Review 5

Hugh (Scotty) MacPherson

SUNDAY afternoon, April 7, about

4 p.m., a group of several hundred

solemn men, some wearing Shrine

regalia and all wearing Shriners' fezzes,

will descend into the empty upper lock chamber of the west lane of Miraflores Locks. They will not be on their way to the empty chamber to continue with the periodic lock overhaul which has been

in progress in the west lane since March 18, although a number of Locks

Division and locks overhaul employees

may be among them, including Roy

Stockham, Chief of the Locks Division. They will be Nobles of the Ancient

Arabic Order of the Mystic Shrine who,

on the empty floor of the locks chamber,

will initiate 50 or more men into the order in a reenactment of a Shrine initia- tion ceremonial first held in this lock chamber September 1, 1913. The ceremonial to be held Sunday

will be conducted by Abou Saad Potentate Burton Davis, who is employed by

the Panama Canal as Plant Engineer of the Industrial Division. He will be

assisted by the divan officers and others

of the 700 Nobles of the local temple

and possibly representatives of the Osman Temple of St. Paul, Minn.,

which is the mother temple of Abou

Saad. An honored member of the group

will be Hugh (Scotty) MacPherson, a

retired Panama Canal employee who

came to work with the Isthmian Canal

Commission in 1907 and who is the only member of the original initiation class still living on the Isthmus.

In fact, Scotty is one of only five or

six survivors of the first class of 171

"sons of the desert" on whom, according

to the inscription on a bronze tablet on

the Miraflores Locks wall, "was conferred in full form the Ancient Arabic
i .»

Members of the fife and drum corps of the Osman Temple of the Ancient Arabic Order, Nobles of the Mystic Shrine, shown at the bottom of the west chamber of the upper lock at Miraflores during the first initiation ceremony held September 1, 1913. The Osman Temple

is located in St. Paul, Minn.

Order of the Nobles of the Mystic

Shrine." Also present will be James E. Jacob, a retired employee of the Canal Zone

Health Bureau, who is the only other

charter member of Abou Saad Temple now living on the Isthmus. Abou Saad

Temple received its charter from the Imperial Council in 1917. Although Scotty and his fellow ini- tiates of that ceremony held in the empty unfinished lock chamber a half century ago went through what Shriners

call a "hot sands" ceremonial, the men

to be received into the order Sunday

will get the "cold sands" treatment. In other words, the initiation will be a

little more decorous than most of these

affairs and much easier on the initiates. Scotty, who now lives in the Cristobal YMCA, recalls that original ceremony

as a memorable occasion.

It was attended by 190 visiting members of the Mystic Shrine who came to the Isthmus from St. Paul by way of New Orleans. The group included

Imperial Potentate W. W. Irwin and

J. Harry Lewis, potentate of Osman

Temple.

The ceremonial was authorized

under the special dispensation of the Imperial Potentate and was the first Shrine Ceremonial ever held south of the Rio Grande.

The west chamber of Miraflores Locks, on which work was being completed in 1913, was decorated to re- semble the interior of a Shrine Temple.

After the 171 sons of the desert had

crossed the hot sands to the city of "Mecca," a bronze tablet was placed on the centerwall of the locks to commemorate the event. The tablet, still in place on the

locks centerwall, bears the following

inscription:

"This tablet marks the oasis where, on "Ailoul Ahaad 1327," (September 1, 1913) a caravan from Osman Temple

paused in its journey toward the setting sun and conferred in full form the Ancient Arabic Order of the Nobles of the Mystic Shrine on 171 sons of the

desert in service under the Isthmian

Canal Commission. May Allah protect

and sustain them."

In addition to being a venerable and

still active member of the local Shrine,

Scotty MacPherson is a Knight Commander of the Court of Honor of the Zone and is an honorary member of

Scottish Rite Bodies in the Canal

Sojourners Lodge, A.F. & A.M., in Cristobal. His home Lodge is in Saltcoats,

Scotland, a town Scotty left in 1907 to come to Panama to work for the Isth- mian Canal Commission as a carpenter

foreman. He remembers that he di- rected the carpenters who were doing

the interior finishing work on Colonel

Goethals' house in Culebra. An attack of malaria forced him home

to Scodand for a year, but Scotty returned to Panama and continued with

the Panama Canal's former Building

Division until his retirement in 1934.

Still full of vim and vigor, Scotty trans- ferred to the U.S. Navy and was employed on the Atlantic side until 1947

when he retired for the second time. He has been a naturalized United States

citizen since 1911.

All Shriners in good standing residing on the Isthmus or visiting here are

invited to attend the ceremony to be

held at Miraflores Locks Sunday. The

only requirement, in addition to a membership card, is that the member wear

a fez. Those who attend will receive cards to commemorate the occasion. In holding the ceremony at Miraflores in April, the members of the Order of the Shrine are jumping the gun slightly since the ceremonial 50

years ago was held September 1. But there was litde choice, since this

is the first time that the upper west chamber of Miraflores Locks has been

unwatered since 1961 and it probably

will be the last time except in case of an emergency or inspection, that the water is completely drained from the

Miraflores Locks to permit overhaul. The overhaul work now being done

at the Miraflores Locks includes modifications to make unwatering of the locks chambers unnecessary when repair or overhaul is scheduled.

6 April 5, 1963
^'^>?v

Tangle of old rails in foreground forms frame for view of section of original right-of-way

location of old Panama railway line. Stone ballast now is surface of roadway into project

area.

A bridge of the old French railway, over a Mandinga River slough, back in use. Earth moving equipment and cars of employees

of the contractor and project supervisors now pass over it, after rough surfacing with a fresh cover of earth.

MUSEUM

PIECES From

The Cut

Several of the old wrought iron railway cars found on the side of a bank, partially

embedded in the earth. Some of the lighter bracing members were distorted by trees 2 feet and more in diameter growing up through them.

AN OPEN AIR museum of relics pre- dating even early French construction

days on the Panama Canal will be

established within the near future as a by-product of the latest project for widening of the Canal channel from

300 to 500 feet.

It is to be located on Contractor's Hill, and can be established at little cost through coordination with routine project operations. Material and equipment

of French construction days and some

from the old Panama Railroad dating

back to the late 1850's are being dug

out by the contractor at work on the Zone I (above elevation 95) work on

the 3.1-mile Bas Obispo-Las Cascadas

Reach widening.

Plans also call for placing representative items of construction equipment in the vicinity of the Balboa

Heights railroad station where the most

ancient of the Panama Railroad's loco- motives, "Old 299," was dedicated as a monument January 28, 1955, during

celebration of the railroad's centennial. Old, small Belgian and French dump

cars manufactured in the 1880's, and some from early U.S. construction work,

are being found on the project site, along with rail, original bridges for the

rail line, and pieces of abutments for it. Some of the best of the representative

salvage items, including each different type of car, will be put aside, cleaned

and restored, and mounted on pieces of

original rail. A considerable amount of such

salvage is being found in the project

area, more than on earlier widening

projects. Work in this area is the first in which the contract was basically for
removal of simple earth overburden,

with a minimum of rock excavation. It

is intended to use the satisfactory rock

from the Bas Obispo-Las Cascadas

Reach project for fill for the Trinidad

Dam.

Some rocks and boulders, of course, are being encountered in the project, since the area is referred to as a "geological garbage dump" due to volcanic

activity and tectonic disturbances. These tectonic disturbances have

been upheavals and dropping of large blocks of earth masses deep within the ground, as well as at the surface, result- ing in seismic activity and folding and

faulting of the earth's crust. Volcanic

activity and marine sedimentation have

occurred repeatedly from 50 million years ago to the present.

The four huge 44-cubic yard power

scrapers at work have had a peak week

as high as approximately 180,000 cubic

yards of earth and rock moved, being

kept at the job on two 12-hour shifts 6 days a week. They are proving to be

rugged machines, and have a life expectancy of several years. They each consume about 580 gallons of diesel

oil per day on a full schedule. The Bas Obispo-Las Cascadas Reach

Zone I contractor, Moretti-Harrison, of Miami, Fla., should be at least a mile

south of the starting point at the Mandinga River by the time bids are taken

sometime after July 1 for the Zone II work (below elevation 95) . The Dredging Division will complete the Zone II work in the Empire Reach widening

project area to the south in a few more weeks.

Some of the better scrap is being

salvaged for bureaus and divisions which have use for it. The rest will be

This puncture cost about $4,000. A piece

of old rail from French construction days

pierced the thick rubber and heavy metal mesh multiple ply of one of the huge tires for the 44-cubic yard power scrapers at work on the project. This tire was brand new when work started January 21.

Communism: For The Birds

THERE'S a general exodus of balanced wildlife from the area of the Bas

Obispo-Las Cascadas Reach Canal widening project.

Among those fleeing as earth moving equipment works south are some

"Communists." These are the Greater Ani, birds of a dozen or so per flock which build a communal nest on the ground, take turns using it, sit simul- taneously on eggs laid in it, and apparently share parenthood of all results of hatching.

And ... on numerous occasions they appear to have noisy and unnecessary

conferences and disturb the natural serenity of their surroundings, reports

project engineer Charles McG. Brandl, amateur naturalist and aspiring

ornithological photographer.

Wary and timid, the Greater Ani are rare in and near populated areas, but

fairly common in more remote regions.

The better known Lesser Ani often follow mowers, gleaning for the insects put to flight.

Also found in the project area have been the mot-mots, pretty birds with

iridescent pastel coloring. They have a distinctive call and respond to calls by bird fanciers, coming to them. They have a peculiar tail construction and

the effort of making their call causes their tails to flop forward as they sound off.

reburied in spoil dumps with a mini- mum amount of cover so it can be

reclaimed later if this desirable. The

best scrap is bringing only $20 a ton now, compared with more than $40 a ton 7 or 8 years ago. Difficulty of removal and difficulty of access to the

project area currently make it uneco- nomical to salvage the poorer scrap. Pieces of the scrap have punctured

six of the tires for the big power

scrapers—tires costing about $4,000

each. Five of those punctured still are useable. One is a complete loss because of breaking of the multiple ply

wire mesh reenforcing these tires in place of the fabric used in regular tires. The others damaged have a reduced

service mileage left. Six new ones have

been purchased.

There's litde difference in character

of earth and rock being encountered on

the Bas Obispo-Las Cascadas Reach

project from that found during similar work on the west bank of the Canal

farther south, with sediment showing

heavy volcanic content. Source of this, it is believed, was an

ancient volcano in the vicinity of the

hills between Chiva Chiva Trail and

Las Cumbres on the Trans-Isthmian

Highway. Cerro Gordo, on the Continental Divide behind Empire Reach,

probably was a subsidiary cone late

in the volcanic history of the area. Parts of the apparent cone of this volcano are about 3% miles from the Bas Obispo-Las Cascadas project area, and within approximately \Vz miles of the Canal channel at the closest point.

Abutments of the original French railway bridge across the Mandinga River are visible

in center of picture on far bank. The location is about a quarter of a mile west of the Canal channel.

, - .i -
INTER-AMERICAN

RELATIONS

Inter-American relations is an "already long and somewhat abused"

subject, in the opinion of Bishop Mark G. McGrath, C.S.C., Auxiliary

Bishop of Panama, but one that will have to be discussed for many decades

to come with "increasing clarity and a greater sense of urgency." His

comments here are from a speech before the American Society of Panama

recently. They are published as the views of a man held in high regard

by all who know him, who has dedicated his life to service, and who

cannot be accused of "crackpotism" or "ax-grinding" for personal reasons. Bishop McGrath offered his comments "with the consciousness that many

are better informed than myself and more equipped to speak on the matter; I simply give my ideas and reflections with the hope that they may

contribute something to your own thinking on the problem."

Chips land in Panama, the Canal Zone, and many even fly as far as the United States itself.

A VERY HIGH Churchman in North

America recently remarked to me that there was not much reason for thinking

of help to Latin America since these

countries would have to go through a Communist experience anyway.

Apart from the fact that a nation does

not merely "go through a Communist

experience" (because the door closes behind the nation which falls under

communism and it does not easily re-open )

, there is the more fundamental

concern caused by the statement to which I refer, namely, the extreme

pessimism reflected in what a recog- nized leader of society in North America

is thinking about our part of the world. There are others, of course, who brush

off the worries and dangers of the time

with a bland type of optimism which

can only inspire in us a similar distrust. There are those also who speak of com- munism in Cuba as being a blessing

because it has served to awaken us to the dangers at hand. This would be true

if it really had awakened a sufficient number of our leaders in both North

and Latin America, and if it had not only awakened but also enlightened

them to the fundamental flaws now

affecting our society and driving it toward other Cubas.

I would begin by observing the

strangely split personality which many

Americans and, to a certain extent, the United States as such, presents before

the world in the matter of Latin America

as, I suppose, also in other foreign areas.

Book apparently

read as form

of diplomatic

hi:

//

masochism

AT TIMES Americans give off an

impression of bland confidence and

assured superiority. At other times they seem completely overwhelmed with

their inadequacy in understanding and

BISHOP MARK G. McGRATH

Bishop McGrath, C.S.C., who has

spent much of his life working on behalf

of Latin American campesinos, is the son of the late John T. McGrath, a Canal employee who came to the Isth- mus in 1914 from Trenton, N.J. He

lived in the Canal Zone several years, attended the University of Notre Dame,

received his bachelor's degree at Catholic Institute in Paris, and earned his doctorate in theology at the College of Angels in Rome. He was consecrated as a Bishop October 8, 1961, and named

auxiliary to the Archbishop of Panama.

handling foreign relations or particularly

their relations in foreign countries and

indulge in a severe amount of breast- beating about their mistakes and guilt

and failures. An example of this type of thinking is to be found in the book

written by C. Wright Mills entitled "Listen Yankee!"

The book blames the United States exaggeratedly for what has happened

in Cuba; but what is most remarkable

is that the book has sold widely throughout the United States, and it is appar- endy being read by many Americans

as a form of diplomatic masochism. On

a more simple plane, one discovers many Americans in Latin America who

are confident of their own personal

superiority in so many ways and yet

find themselves embarrassingly disguising their influence on local affairs for fear that it will be rejected because it

is American.

Recently I had occasion to overhear

the observation of an American gende- man who was anxious to support a student in the University of Panama

for a scholarship to be granted by this

The Panama Canal Review
It's Not

All

Like This

American's corporation. He was sure of what he was doing, but he was completly undone when he was told that it would be better for him not to publicize the fact that the scholarship was given

by the corporation because it would

limit the student's freedom in University

federation activity; since he would be

considered by many as a hireling of the United States.

THE GENTLEMAN could not see or understand this observation, except as an insult to his Americanism; whereas

in fact, it is no such thing.

There are two very different problems

involved which must be kept always

distinct, namely: (1) one's own love and pride in his own great national

inheritance, the virtues of his people,

and his own talents; (2) as dis- tinguished from a sincere endeavor to understand the different ways and

problems of another nation in which he

may find himself or with which he

would have to deal; and a tactful understanding that his contribution, if it is to be positive and real for this nation,

must be indirect, disguised, discreet,

and always subordinate to local en- deavors if it is not to be felt as an

imposition from abroad.

It is an apparent difficulty in blending

lawful national pride with discreet

(even if vigorous) influence abroad

which would seem to produce the split- personality image mentioned above.

If we go a little bit more deeply into the problem, we discover immediately

what is perhaps the greatest roadblock

to genuine inter-American collaboration,

namely, the great ignorance that exists

in both North and Latin America about one another. It is commonplace to mention this factor, and yet I do not

think that we weigh the consequences.

I THINK it is fair to state that the Catholic bishops of the United States are among its most intelligent and most

influential citizens. What they think and

say and do about Latin America will have a great bearing upon the eventual

relationships of the United States with

Latin America. And yet, I think I can

say without any fear of offense that most Catholic bishops of the United

States know very little about Latin

America and its problems and are quite

confused about just what they can do

to help. If this can be said of them, it certainly can be said of the ministers

of other religions and of outstanding

leaders in all civic and national areas.

It is not only that many, if not most of these persons, do not know whether

Venezuela is to be found on the Adantic

or on the Pacific ocean, but more importandy that they do not have any

clear notion of the social upheavals now

taking place in Latin America and of the entire historical, social, political,

and religious environment which has made and makes Latin America what

it is todav. Obviouslv we must make a

similar observation regarding the igno- rance of the leaders of the Latin American society, and, of course, much more

so in the case of the masses, regarding

the United States. And, here again, it is not so much a question of some of them thinking that Hollywood is to be found on the outskirts of New York City as rather their frequent ignorance of the social struc- ture of the United States and how it came to be. This is often manifest in the blanket statements of social re- formers in Latin America, condemning

all forms of capitalism and considering

the United States to be a gross example

of abusive capitalism.

ACTUALLY, THE target of these

attacks is still principally the liberal capitalism of the last century which

perhaps holds out in other areas of the world but which has certainly been

greatly gone over in the United States which, in many ways, is a far more

socialized nation today than any nation

of Latin America with the exception,

10 April 5, 1963
Nor Is It

All

Like This

of course, of Cuba. One example suffices

to bring out this point. The progressive

tax system as applied in the United

States would raise a tremendous cry from the business leaders of most of the Latin American countries if it were

imposed upon them.

There is another aspect to this mutual

ignorance which I think is worth bringing out; it is somewhat more delicate but I think nonetheless valuable. Most

Americans who live in Latin America

for short or long periods of time manage

to collect themselves into very cohesive

groups, known in various nations as "the Embassy crowd," "the American col- ony," etc., according to whether the nucleus of the group is made up of the

staff of the Embassy and its related

missions, or of a business group. (In

Panama we have a broader-based U.S. group—Canal Zone, Armed Forces, Embassy, United States residents in Panama.

)

These groups generally attend the same

hotels and clubs and, in their social rela- tionships, they are limited to contacts with one another or with persons of the country in which they are living who

enjoy the same economic standards of

life to which they are accustomed.

A person may live in a foreign country

in this fashion for 30 or more years and never really come to know that country or its people adequately. He

will judge that country exclusively by

the small coterie of privileged individuals with whom he deals, and he will come to think about the country exactly

as these same privileged individuals

think.

I CAN EXEMPLIFY this even in the

case of priests who would come from

the United States to work in Latin

America as missionaries. If one of them

is placed as pastor of a crowded,

populous, urban area, or out on land

among the poor and backward, he

meets the masses of Latin America; but,

if he finds himself placed as a professor in a private school, frequented

principally by children of well-to do

families, he may never meet psychologically the masses of Latin America.

The persons with whom he will mosdy

deal are his students and their parents

and the parents' associates, etc. He will hear them day in and day out talking

about their own country. They will give

him his legal advice, his educational

policy will be much affected by them,

he will even read the same newspapers

they read. Thus it is that, though he

may have been the son of a truck driver

in the United States, he will develop

mentally and psychologically in Latin

America into an aristocrat. This, which could happen in the case of

a priest or other missionary, with more

reason can take place in the case of a lay person in Latin America working

for the Government or for a U.S. cor- poration or in a similar employment who

finds that his salary allows him to enjoy

the luxury of one or two maids, the best

local clubs, trips to the ocean, and in general the company of the more comfortable classes of the society in which

he finds himself. Thus it is that Americans abroad can quite often live within

glass cages of their own making.

FROM WITHIN, they can see the poverty and the social problems of Latin America, but they come to look upon them too often with that certain indifference or fatalistic acceptance

which is often characteristic of the

aristocratic classes. This problem is more complicated by the fact that American businessmen abroad, as businessmen everywhere, and rightly so, are out to make money. Businessmen

and industrialists are not generally philanthropic in their viewpoints on business. We know that the laboring classes

in the United States had to fight long

and hard to obtain a position of bargaining power by which they could elimi- nate most of the abuses of unrestrained

capital and management.

Some would say that the pendulum has now swung in the United States to the other side. But, it is quite obvious that the labor movement in Latin America

on the whole is very weak. Sometimes

it makes very much noise when it is

The Panama Canal Review 11
//

DIFFICULT TO RECEIVE HELP"

utilized by Communist leaders for political purposes. But, in most nations of Latin America, the bulk of the laborers are unorganized and are very much at the mercy of their employers.

American industrialists and business- men abroad too often feel that they are doing all that they need do in labor

relations if they keep within the local laws, whereas these local laws in many

cases do not begin to assure labor protection. And thus, we find many American businessmen abroad who are far more reactionary, far more prone to dismiss as Communist every possible labor agitation than they would ever have been had they remained in the United States itself. I have heard

very responsible business leaders in various Latin American nations reject

all non-"rightist" organizations as being

Communist.

Quasi-experts from

golden ghettoes

often help further

narrow attitude

n

AMONG THE organizations thus con- demned were the various Christian

Democratic movements of Latin America which differ greatly from country

to country but which in some of these

countries offer a healthy political alter- native to the extremism of the right or the left. I cannot speak of Panama

where the Christian Democratic Party

has only recently been created. An added problem is created for the United States when these very Americans who have been living within their golden ghettoes in Latin America return

to the United States. They pass in their U.S. circles as quasi-experts on Latin

America. Their judgments are re- spected. They often help to further narrow attitudes on Latin America, for example the quite endemic notion that Latin America should be more explicit

in thanking the United States for

its aid. Recently I was in Miami, Fla., at the very time that the President of Panama

requested of President Kennedy a revi- sion of the Canal treaty. This request was announced in a Miami newspaper

under headlines which said something

like this, "Panamanians Not Content,

Want More." There are many persons

in the Canal Zone who still repeat the womout expression, "This country

would still be swimming in alligators if we hadn't come." No one denies the

great helps that have beeen received in Latin America from the United States presence and industry, but it is entirely

false to suppose that all or most of these have been realized out of merely

philanthropic purpose.

EVEN WHEN this purpose is evident,

it remains difficult to receive help from

another and doubly so when he is so

tactless that he keeps reminding you

that he is giving you this help. There

is a rightful propaganda and political value in international giving; but it must be discreet.

I have spoken of the ignorance which

exists on both sides of the Rio Grande

regarding the other side, and I have

stressed particularly the American igno- rance of Latin America because I am

speaking to the American Society, but

it is necessary to pin down in some

fashion a few aspects of this ignorance.

What is the American ignorant of re- garding Latin America? This is a very

vast subject which I can onlv pretend

to open up for your consideration.

First of all, it might be said that a person from the United States must wash his mind of accepted social and political

patterns if he is to understand the social and political structure of Latin America.

He is used to a society which was born

and grew on a frontier in the form of rugged democracy. He has never experienced an aristocratic colonial structure

into which Latin America was born

with the Spanish, with the Iberian conquests and into which it has remained more or less fixed for 400 years. The Latin American Conquistadores

and their descendants in power have for

so long held the landed wealth and

economic and political control that it is ingrained into their habits of thinking

that things should be as they are. One

might explicate their attitude bv

saying, "Some are born to riches and

power and comfort, the rest are not." This attitude does not spring from

malice; it is characteristic of all aristocratic societies; and we must remember

that most societies have been aristocratic

until very recently in history.

WHEN THE aristocrats exercise their power and wealth with a personal

interest for at least the minimum support of the masses, then we have a

paternalistic society which has many

virtues in certain periods of social evolution. When this does not happen, then we have an oligarchical structure which

brings about genuine oppression of the masses. In any case, the existence of this structure in Latin America sets it off considerably as regards the United

States. You cannot begin to compare,

for example, the youth of the United

States and the youth of, let us say, Bolivia. The great bulk of the U.S. youth will study all or most of the way

through high school. In Bolivia, possibly

only 7 percent will ever get as far as high school, and certainly no more than

1 percent will reach the university. Yet, if you take that upper 1 percent

and compare it to the average American youth, you will probably find that the Bolivian in question has broader

cultural values than the average American student of his own age. Comparisons between the two societies, north and south, are obviously quite

difficult. The tourist from the United States who

visits Latin America and only goes through its cities has the impression of

Primitive society,

growing slums

just few miles

outside the cities

a uniform civilization because he stays

in the best hotels and travels by the

best means. Yet, if he takes the time to go just a few miles out of the city in almost any direction, he will find a very

primitive society; and nowadays, he

need only visit the growing slum areas

to have a firsthand impression of the

suffering masses of Latin America.

12 April 5, 1963
WITHOUT DEVELOPING this comparison any further and only having

suggested it to you, I must mention

another complicating factor. The star- tling phenomenon of Latin America

today is precisely that this aristocratic

Aristocratic social

structure crumbling

with amazing speed

in Latin America

social structure, which has held together

for all these centuries, is crumbling with

amazing speed. This, too, complicates

the consideration of the Latin American

scene. There are many factors which

could be adduced as causes and ex- planations of the social changes now

being experienced.

one of the greatest internal migrations

that history has recorded. Throughout Latin America, masses con- verge upon the cities and produce the ever-growing slum areas. In Santiago,

Chile, for instance, every year 40,000

persons pour in from the land. This is entirely apart from the vegetative in- crease of the city population itself. But

the cities are simply not equipped to give houses, food, work, schools, and

churches to all these late arrivals.

ONCE THEY HAVE exhausted avail- able living space in the houses of

friends, they must throw some boards

together on any unoccupied land, and

you have the beginning of the "Villa Miseria," the "Callampa," the "Casas

Brujas," the "Favella," etc., as these

blights upon our cities are colorfully

termed in the various countries of Latin

America.

There are other factors that bring about

change. The American tends to think of the Industrial Revolution as something

that occurred already. Actually, it is just beginning in most areas of Latin

IF SOCIAL STRUCTURES are changing rapidly and must change rapidly, these changes must nonetheless be carefully studied and, as far as possible, controlled. On the other hand, it is certainly to be regretted that it is so characteristic of the comfortable classes of Latin America to resist change, all change that is social as well as economic,

and to ascribe their resistance wholly

to motives of anti-communism, when

it is quite obvious that their most

serious concern is often with their own

economic and social position.

This is regrettable, but it is also regret- table that so few Americans, whether

at home or abroad, have a genuine intui- tion into the social structure of Latin

America as it has been, and the social changes which are now taking place.

The reactionary attitude of so many

Americans living abroad succeeds in giving the almost universal impression

that they, and therefore the United

States, are identified with those who

resist social changes.

The poor Latin American sees the very high standard of living portrayed in the U.S. movies which have had a strong

eflect in increasing his desire for greater

"CHANGES MUST BE STUDIED"

Certainly one of them is the tremendous

population growth in Latin America,

said to be the heaviest in any area of the world. Within 30 years, the population of Latin America will double. For

static economies, not used to economic

expansion, this inevitably produces tre- mendous problems of unemployment,

housing, schools, churches, hospitals,

etc. Another great change that has

occurred is the introduction in the cities more and more of the U.S. way of life with all its comforts, for those who can buy them.

This has increased the already existing

tendency of the Latin American land- owner to live in the city. His absence

from the land and his unconcern about

the land have helped to accentuate the very grievous problems of production

in many rural areas. This neglect of the land is starkly evident in Panama where

the great bulk of the land we farm is

still cultivated without the assistance

of either machine or animals, being

worked upon simply by hand. The

population explosion on the land as well

as the backwardness and unemployment

of the "campesinos," added to the allurement of city lights, have produced

America, and it is producing the same

effects that it brought about in Europe

and in the United States. The major

problem is that the effects brought

about by this recent industrial revolution and the other factors which I have

briefly pointed out are occurring with

such tremendous velocity, one might

say that Latin America is being forced

to go through, in 30 or 40 vears, what

other nations have experienced in periods of centuries.

It is not surprising, in view of this cir- cumstance, that many of its own aristo- cratic leaders very honestly oppose

many of the inevitable changes which

are taking place and consider them the works of destruction. The insistence by

the U.S. Government and the Alliance for Progress upon such sweeping

changes as tax reform and land reform

and vocational education and guidance,

etc., can appear to the conservative

minds of Latin America as reckless. It is necessary to understand that not every

opposition to change in Latin America

springs from ill-will simply, and that often the over-simplified appeals for change which come from United States representatives at home or abroad

warrant some distrust.

comfort in life; he sees the Americans

in his own country living very comfortably; he sees the tourists who come

through and criticize quite freely everything that does not come up to their own standards of material comfort; and

he has the impression that the American

is not concerned about his poverty.

Established order

concept varies/

masses don*t get

U. S. aid direct

FOR EXAMPLE, when President

Eisenhower came to Chile in 1960, he

spoke very eloquently about the need

for inter-American unity, but used some

ill-chosen phrases. He exhorted all who

heard him to the defense of the established order. This phrase is quite acceptThe Panama Canal Review 13
able in the United States, where most

people have a comfortable share in the

established order, but it is politically

dead in Latin America, where most

people want to change the established order for one in which they can have

a larger share of goods and of power.

Again, there is the problem that the

U.S. relations with Latin America are generally and officially carried out through the governments. Many of these governments are struggling for eco- nomic survival, so that the great bulk

of U.S. aid, which is not military, goes

into balancing their budgets. This goes on without the kind of social and eco- nomic reforms which might serve to balance some of the budgets internally.

Meanwhile, there are tremendous examples of human suffering, such as now

affects over 20 million poor in north- eastern Brazil, who do not receive, as they might, the direct help of the people of the United States.

I recognize that these are complicated

problems, but I mention them because

of the undoubted effect that they pro- duce upon the Latin American mind.

It is very difficult for a person in the United States to understand how any- one can be drawn to communism; but it

is terribly easy for the pied pipers of Moscow to entice millions of our poor

in Latin America to their and our own

destruction. I need not describe for you

who know this problem very well some

of the extreme examples of poverty,

ignorance, and other physical and moral

miseries which are so common in Latin

America. Perhaps a story might help to bring out what I want to express.

A FEW YEARS AGO I met in Chile a young Argentinian priest who was

trying to make contact with some of the poorest elements of Santiago slums. He actually lived in these slums in miserable conditions for several months

in his initial contacts and has always

continued to return to this same form

of life from time to time. After the first few months of this land of living, I met

him and, among other things, he made

this remark to me, "You would be sur- prised what most tempted me during

these months in the Callampa (slums).

"It was not anything concerning women

or drink or things that men generally

consider to be their temptations. It was

rather the temptation of communism.

I would never become a Communist

because I know too much about it and

about our own Christian faith, but I can

certainly understand the temptation,

and I even felt it. When one is immersed

in misery and he is only offered one

solution, namely, the Communist soluThis Helps,

But It

Isn't Enough

tion, he does not have much of an alter- native. It is either this or no hope for change."

The remarks of this young Jesuit priest struck me forcibly. We must offer hope

to our poor, genuine hope, hope for genuine and lasting improvement.

Too often the richer classes of Latin

America feel that they are doing all that they can and must for the poor by

bringing them gifts at Christmastime,

organizing summer camps for their children, teaching catechism to these

same children, setting up orphanages,

etc. Obviously, this is only a paternalistic solution, not adequate to the

times. It alleviates the sufferings but

does not remove their cause nor does it improve lastingly the economic and

social situation of the poor.

I THINK MANY Americans abroad

have fallen into this same type of paternalistic thinking, and so have all those Americans at home who think that the problems of Latin America, economic

14 April 5, 1963
Mingling, Sharing

Thoughts, Ideas,

Dispels Ignorance

and social, can be solved simply by- sending money or other forms of eco- nomic assistance. These are needed,

but the solution lies in carefully guided

structural change, linked to education in community responsibility and

community effort.

If I may begin to sum up, I would say

that one of the greatest obstacles to better relationships between the Americas is ignorance of one another, an

ignorance which is shared in often by

Americans abroad and, of course, in these considerations we have included

those Americans living in the Canal

Zone sector of Panama. Overcoming

this ignorance requires not merely a factual learning about the countries of Latin America but a feeling for the

strong differences in cultural and social organization.

All this is complicated the more by the tremendous social changes now taking

place in Latin America. Our problem

becomes every day more complex. Some

persons may think that we are only

recendy becoming aware of our poor in Latin America; this is not entirely true. By reason of many of the things which

I have tried to describe, we are acquiring every day a greater number of poor

in more areas. Thirty or forty years ago

the problem of misery in Latin America,

as it now exists on the land and particularly in the slum areas of the cities, was unknown.

What conclusion can be drawn from

those observations?

THERE IS A tendency for us to preach

to one another on these matters, Americans to Latin Americans and vice versa,

and perhaps I seem to be preaching to you today. Actually, there is no easy

solution as we all know, but a beginning

of a solution lies in the recognition of our mutual ignorance and in an effort, particularly on the part of those who

are living in Latin America, to make a

real contact with its peoples; to josde

one's self occasionally out of his busy

or comfortable round of life; to travel about the country, learn the lan- guage above all, and talk to the people,

listening perhaps more than one talks.

I have many friends in the Canal Zone—

and please remember that I was born

in the Canal Zone—who have lived there for 30 or 40 years without ever having made any attempt to learn the Spanish language. This, of course, means a marked disinterest in Panama.

And, when this is multiplied by many,

many individuals, it can help explain the impression that is given to the Pan- amanians of supreme indifference on

the part of U.S. people, which they must

judge through the Canal Zonians, the

military forces in Panama, the official authorities, and the tourists. Recently there has been a marked effort on the part of responsible sectors in the Armed Forces, in the Canal Zone and

in the Embassy to initiate beneficient contacts with Panamanians. This has

given rise, for example, to help for children and for the poor through

what is popularly known as "Operation

Friendship," one of the greatest

diplomatic successes in Canal Zone and

Panamanian history.

AMERICANS RESIDENT in Panama,

through this very American Society,

have also undertaken beneficient activities. All this type of activity is of great

help to the needy and serves to establish the kind of human relationship which

has so often been lacking between

Americans abroad and the peoples who

surround them.

There are some Americans who would

like to affect also the ideological orientation of certain student, labor, and

other groups. This, of course, must be

done with care, lest it appear as a public

interference in local politics. Perhaps

much more can be done, at least to erase the image of a retarded and

regressive American capitalism, by pro- moting economic endeavors which will favor the kind of social and economic

changes that are desirable in Latin

America.

We talk a great deal about the need

for greater social justice in Latin America, which might be characterized as meaning a more equitable distribution of the national wealth. Americans

The Panama Canal Review 15
Americans can help

in social mobility,-

Latin American

capital straying

should take a certain leadership in Latin

America by the way they pay their help,

by the way they train their help, by the guarantees they give, by the social mobility they encourage, in allowing

competent help to rise to top positions even in American firms in Latin

America, etc. But, we must all realize that simply

dividing up the national wealth among

all the citizens would perhaps only leave

us all poor. It is equally important that we stress the necessity for economic

development so that there will be

greater wealth and greater production

to be shared and enjoyed by all.

THIS IS PERHAPS the greatest secret which Americans abroad should begin

to reveal to many of their local friends and business associates. It is a scan- dalous fact that great quantities of

capital from Latin America are being

sent abroad to be placed often in foreign deposits. This represents, on the part of Latin American capitalists, an

injustice to their own countries which

are at the same time requesting that the United States officially, and through its business enterprises, invest capital in Latin America.

The entire capital promised by the

Alliance for Progress over the next 10

years is said to be considerably less than

the capital deposited by Latin American

capitalists abroad in the last few

years. The Latin American governments

should do as much as they can to stop

and to penalize this flight of national wealth abroad, but much has to be done

to change the mentality which permits

and encourages this kind of flight. The

Latin American capitalist is obviously

manifesting little faith in the economic

and political future of his own country.

He can be encouraged to greater faith by his own American friends living in Latin America. Furthermore, the Latin

American capitalist who sends his money abroad often does so because he

does not realize the opportunities which

he could develop by investing some of that capital at home.

The proper investment and control of development of capital in wealthproducing enterprises in Latin America

is a lesson which must be learned, but

the wealth of Latin America would still tend to maintain a colonial and nonprogressive mentality of hoarding the wealth, or at least of not investing it unless there is an assurance of a large

and quick profit.

FURTHERMORE, the Latin American

generally—and this I recognize as a Churchman—is often bereft of a social sense in his religion. He does not clearly

recognize his moral obligations to society, in politics, business, or social

relations. The Latin American capitalists

who drain the wealth of their nations, even if it is their own, by sending it abroad are probably not conscious of the very grave social harm they so occasion to their nations, or at least of the social moral responsibility involved

in their procedure.

When anyone speaks of Latin America,

as I have done, it is necessary to honestly

remind all of us, including the speaker,

of the danger involved in generalizations. The economic and social picture

of Latin America varies greatly from

country to country and region to region. Just for example, there is much more

social mobility in Panama City than

there is on the land, and much more in Panama than many of the other nations

of Latin America. The vast particular

differences in Latin America must not be forgotten when we generalize.

And so I end as I began by reminding

you that these have only been some

personal observations on our inter- American relations which I pass on to you with the hope that they may be of some help in your own thinking about

the problem, and with the realization that we must continue to think and

discuss these problems quite openly and

frankly because, without a clear knowledge of what is happening around us

and a generous will to work together for a society that is true to our spiritual traditions in both North and Latin

America, and free and progressive, and

just and generous to all its citizens, we

may fear for evil days ahead.

I have often said and I really believe

that communism in Latin America is not our real danger; that communism

would not have a chance in Latin America if we, who call ourselves Christians,

would just occasionally stop thinking

only about ourselves and look at these general problems which affect each

country and all of us together, and then

make some generous effort to achieve

the kind of society which our gospel

and our faith would demand.

IT WILL BE many a year before a

significant improvement comes about in the socio-economic problems of Latin

America. But it is important to raise hopes now. Pessimism and despair drive men to extreme solutions—such as communism. We are in an age of rapid

change in Latin America. If our Latin

American business leaders, if the United

States, if U.S. personnel and citizens in Latin America appear as enemies of change, they will continue to lose the confidence of the masses and of many

serious social leaders.

If, on the contrary, as they have begun

to do, they at once encourage and guide

socio-economic changes (tax reform,

... We may hope for

flowering of spirit

of man . .

.

saved

from yawning abyss

'

land-reform, broader technical education, etc.) into healthy, productive

channels, communism in the Americas

will wither and die, for its roots will have been cut, and we may hope for a new flowering of the spirit of man freed from its present miseries and saved from

the yawning abyss of Marxist despair.

//

ITS ROOTS WILL HAVE BEEN CUT"

16 April 5, 1963
3 P. Alton White tries the seat at the controb of the 15-cubic yard dipper

dredge Cascadas. His father had been its chief engineer.

For New Diggings

ALLEGIANCE to the Dredging Division, its men, machinery, and equipment, and pride in its accomplishments:

That capsulizes the impression of

P. Alton White as, looking toward retire- ment, he glanced back at high points

during his 38 years with the Division. Mr. White retired April 1 as Dredging Division Chief, the only man to have

held that tide. Before he took over in 1950, his predecessors on the job had

been designated superintendents.

During Mr. White's service, the Pan- ama Canal embarked on, and completed,

its longest single project since construction days: Project 13. This job, spanning

two decades, laid the groundwork for and proved the value of the continuing

program for widening of the Canal

channel from 300 to 500 feet. Project 13 was widening from 300 to 500 feet a lV2-mile channel section through Culebra Reach, the worst slide area. More than 9.9 million cubic yards

of earth and rock were drilled, blasted,

sluiced, and dug between January 1935

and fiscal year 1955-56, when the

project was completed.

Coals were to provide a passing area and reduce slide frequency by grading

the slopes. It wasn't a continuous project over all those years. It was one on which work was done when other priorities didn't require concentration of Dredging Division efforts elsewhere. Other highlights during Mr. White's

career here were deepening of the

Pacific entrance channel and Balboa

Harbor 5 feet, dredging the third locks entrance channels during World War II, at Miraflores and Gatun Locks and the north approach to Miraflores Lake,

construction of the Balboa convov

assembly area opposite Fort Amador,

and the Canal channel widening

program, started in 1959 and to be

completed in 1966 or 1967. The assembly area was for mooring

of Navy tankers, and could handle

12 seagoing supertankers. Mr. White

recalls that three 15-cubic yard dipper

dredges and two suction dredges were

at work on this program: the dipper

dredges Gamboa, Paraiso, and Cascadas, and suction dredges Mindi, a 28-

inch, and Las Cruces, a 24-inch. The dipper dredges were 3 of the 20 at work in 1915 at the end of the

construction period, and the Cascadas

and Paraiso are 2 of only 5 known

dipper dredges of their size in the world. The dipper dredge, he feels, is the most important type ever used on the Canal, as it can be moved faster, in and

out of the channel even in intervals between transiting ships, and is versatile, digging both hard and soft material. Another high point in his memories was building of the town of Gamboa

in 1936-38, with a layout of separated

residential, civic, and service facilities. A special affection for the dredge

Cascadas is evident as Mr. White fields questions. His father, D. P. White, was

chief engineer of the Cascadas before

his retirement in 1942.

Original log books still aboard show

the Cascadas has dug nearly 47.2 million cubic yards of earth and rock since

it was commissioned October 13, 1915.

It has dug a record 23,000 cubic yards

in 24 hours. Among the "sad days" he recalls was

the layoff right after World War II when the Mindi was tied up for IVz years for economy reasons. "We had

to lay off some highly qualified men,"

he regretted, but although many of

them went on to jobs elsewhere in the Americas, some later returned to the Panama Canal. Most of the sad days he recalls entailed cutbacks for the Dredging Division for economy or policy reasons. But

he's pleased at having always stayed

within his budget and kept overhead

down.

He regards John G. Claybourn, Ann

Arbor, Mich., a former superintendent

of the Dredging Division, as one of the

greatest men he ever met. Mr. Claybourn, a civil engineer, and Mr. White came to the Isthmus at the same time,

in 1910, when the latter's father entered Canal service and Alton entered the first grade at Gatun. He's a graduate of Balboa High School. Project 13 was

started while Mr. Claybourn was

Dredging Division superintendent. Mr. White joined the Dredging Division as a recorder in 1925, was made an

assistant supervisor in 1935, supervisor

in 1940, and assistant superintendent

in 1948, when A. C. (Gus) Medinger, now an Orinoco Mining Co. consultant, was superintendent. Mr. Medinger is the father of R. E. Medinger, chief admeasurer.

Mrs. White is the former Mattielee Brown. They have a son, Dennis,

Phoenix, Ariz., an electrical engineer

with General Electric, and a daughter, Jean Ann, Boulder, Colo., whose hus- band, Maj. Charles F. McGinn, is a Strategic Air Command pilot. During his Canal service, Mr. White

has been active in Community Chest

and United Fund work, the Mutual

Benefit Association, Boy Scout Council,

and is a past president of the Canal

Zone Amateur Radio Association. He is a member of the Canal Zone Society of Professional Engineers, the Society of American Military Engineers, and holds

a Master Key to the Panama Canal

presented by Governor Potter in 1960. He and his wife plan to rent a house

in Houston, Tex., where they have a

lot of friends and relatives, and to spend some time with Mr. White's parents in San Diego.

He has enough hobbies to keep things

from getting dull: ham radio, color

slides, hunting, and fishing. He says he

plans to hunt wild turkey and cerveza

trees in Texas, geese and ducks around

Port Arthur and Beaumont, where he

has a number of friends in dredging

who know where to go for good hunting

and fishing.

And although retiring, Mr. White

may not mean full retirement, for he

admits that he may have "some interest"

in future dredging projects.

The Panama Canal Review 17
BOCAS DEL TO«0

^—mmmm fcOOO MC MICROWAVE TRUNK • — — — EARLIER ROUTES RETAINED LOWER CAPACITY ROUTES ^^» REPEATER AND COMMUNICATION CENTER ——REPEATER ONLY

: MILES

COMUNICACIONES 5. A. PANAMA

Map of the communications system operated by Comunicaciones, S.A., showing location of key units and distances between them. Maintenance centers were located by traffic volume and geographic location.

Phone Microwave Network Growing

(The following article is based on one entitled "A Modern Communications System for Panama," published

in the "Automatic and Technical

Journal." It is excerpted and para- phrased in some parts to avoid technical data. It was written by Alan C. Walker of Lenkurt Electric Co., Inc., one of the firms involved in design

and installation of the new microwave

system.)

RARELY does an engineering group

have the opportunity to design and

build an essentially new communications system in a single operation. Such

a situation did develop recently in the Republic of Panama, however, and

through the combined and coordinated

efforts of Lenkurt Electric and Automatic Electric, an entirely new communications network was brought to Panama.

Engineered, furnished, and installed

for the private owner, Comunicaciones,

S.A., the project enjoyed the keen

interest and support of government offi- cials, headed by President Roberto F. Chiari. The new system serves 20,000

subscribers in major population centers; with its modern services (including the convenience of direct distance dialing)

it is certain to grow rapidly.

The climate and rugged terrain and

the lack of any substantial existing trunklines dictated the establishment of a microwave system. Because of the urgent need for the new facilities, several activities were carried on at the

same time. For example, preliminary

equipment orders were placed very

shortly after the arrival of radio-path survey parties in Panama City. In general, the requirements were

that telephone and telegraph transmission performance be equal to that of the domestic network in the United

States of America, and that all circuits be compatible and interconnectable

with those of the Inter-American Tele- communications Networks, now in the planning stages. To insure a system that would provide

overall performance equal to these high

standards, the microwave paths were

President Roberto F. Chiari at the inauguration of the new Comunicaciones, S.A., microwave network.

very carefully evaluated for fade margin

and idle circuit noise level. Tower

heights at the 14 microwave sites were

so specified that atmospheric conditions would have minimum effect. Antenna sizes were made conservatively large and the net result was a microwave path reliability greater than

99.99 percent. Future growth was naturally a factor. Antennas are so equipped that there

will be minimum system interruption

when expansion becomes necessary. The equipment is designed to make

easier addition of a system for TV dis- tribution throughout the country. Even

with this planned addition, the original

battery plant installations will still have

at least 8 hours reserve. Either because commercial power

was absent at many locations, or because

the existing municipal plants already were overloaded, it was necessary to provide for power at a number of sites. For utmost reliability, dual generating

plants were provided at these points.

Three maintenance zones were established for the system, with centers located in Panama City, Aguadulce, and

David. Any change from normal operation of the monitored equipment, at any

station, is noted immediately, and the changed condition displayed on the sys- tem status panel to inform maintenance

personnel.

Telephone and teletype service

switching offices were installed at David, Santiago, Aguadulce, Chitre,

18 April 5, 1963
Bocas del Toro, and Panama City. The

system was interconnected with an

installation made in March 1960 which

linked the towns of David, Boquete,

Concepcion, and Puerto Armuelles, all

in western Panama.

Urgency of time required that the

first circuits be operated on a manual

basis until the dial exchanges could be

installed. New dial telephone exchanges

have now been installed and connected

into the system.

Additional channel groups can be

added when traffic requirements de- mand it. The over-water link from Cerro Campana to Bocas del Toro, 160

miles away, uses high-gain antennas,

because line-of-sight does not exist over

this path.

In June 1960 a system installed at David made possible automatic dialing

by customers in their cars to anyone

else in the area. This is effected through

exchanges at David, Boquete, Concepcion, and Puerto Armuelles. This system was the pioneer installation of its type

outside the United States. Panama's communications are modern, efficient, and dependable. The

services will shortly offer dialed-up

telegraph' (which will include modern

data handling), and a television net- work. The Panama communications

project is an outstanding example of what a determined group of engineers can accomplish in a short time, when

the opportunity is offered through the

vision of a progressive administration. The project also demonstrates the manner in which members of two sister companies, Lenkurt Electric and Automatic Electric, work together to get a big job done.

Eduardo Gonzalez, executive vice president

of Comunicaciones, S.A.

""*^\

The Cerro Pelado reflector unit at Gamboa in the Panama Canal microwave system. This is a sample of the terrain problems encountered in construction of units for the Comunicaciones, S.A., network. Like Zone's System

OPEBATIONALLY, the microwave

communication systems of the Panama

Canal and Comunicaciones, S.A., are the same, and electronic equipment

components were made by the same

companies.

The Canal Zone system planning was

started in 1957, it reached final design

stage in 1959 and Phase I installation was completed in 1960. Installation of

links with the Federal Aviation Agency

installations on the Isthmus was

completed in January 1962. Micro system message routing

between Cristobal and Balboa Heights

is from the Cristobal exchange to a

reflector at Gatun, via a reflector on

Cerro Pelado at Gamboa to one on Sosa

Hill on the Pacific side, thence to the Balboa Heights exchange. A reflector on Ancon Hill links the FAA operations

building with its Chiva Chiva radio

station. Other outlying FAA radio

stations are at Cerro Galera and Telfer's Island. A call from the Canal Zone to parts

of the interior now served by the microwave system formerly took as long as a half hour to an hour to complete,

because of cable capacity limitation and

the number of separate connections that had to be completed. And when completed, voice quality was often far from

what was to be desired. Time required now is only from half a minute to a minute, with voice quality so good that

there's no difference between a call to David and one to Panama City.

The 102-pair Panama Canal's Trans- Isthmian Telephone Cable No. 2 along

the Trans-Isthmian Highway still is in use, but cable No. 1 along the railway no longer carries trunk calls. It is a

49-year-old 50-pair cable, and now

is used only for local calls between

Gamboa and Cristobal. The firm of Gibbs & Hill designed

the Panama Canal microwave system

and it was installed by Motorola Communication & Electronics, Inc. The Engineering Division of the Engineering

and Construction Bureau worked with

the design firm and the Electrical Division worked with the installation company on the projects.
50 yearJ c4g.o

THE ONLY materials to be purchased on annual contracts for the year, it was

announced, were lubricants, waste,

white lead, red lead, rope, forage,

turpentine, kerosene, and gasoline. All other supplies were to be purchased

under emergency contracts terms. The decision was in line with policy

instituted in 1910 of gradually reducing

the stock of materials carried in store on the Isthmus so that when work on the Canal was completed there would be

the least possible amount to dispose of. An error in designating the picture on

the 2-cent stamps in the Panama-Pacific

Exposition commemorative series as "Gatun Locks," when it really rep- resented Pedro Miguel Locks, led the Post Office Department to destroy all of the stamps thus printed—about 20

million.

CANAL HISTORY

25 y[eard c4g.o

EVACUATION of Paraiso, long headquarters of the Dredging Division, was

proceeding rapidly in the third and

final year's program of transferring the

division to Gamboa.

In the wake of arrest of 3 persons in New York on charges their mission was

to obtain U.S. military secrets, it was

announced their instructions included

obtaining wartime plans for operation

of the Panama Canal Locks. Identified onlv as agents of an "unnamed Euro- pean power," all were said to have been

either German-born or educated in Germany.

Two bills, one for 30-year retirement

for Canal employees, the other for annuities for widows of Government

workers in the Canal Zone, were before Congress.

RETIREMENTS

RETIREMENT certificates were pre- sented at the end of February to the employees listed below, with positions,

and years of Canal service: Frank H. Archibald, Deckhand, Port Captain's Office, Atlantic Side; 37 years, 7 months, 7 days. Violet L. Bingham, Elementary School

Teacher, Latin American Schools, Atlantic Side; 35 years, 7 months, 6 days.

George P. Bonneau, Jr., Contraband Control Inspector, Custom Division, Pacific Side; 14 years, 10 months, 26 days. Nicolas Borbua, Helper Lock Operator, Locks Division, Atlantic Side; 42 years, 10 months, 10 days.

Ronald Chambers, Launch Operator, Port Captain's Office, Atlantic Side; 24 years, 5 months, 10 days . Edward A. Eckhoff, Planner and Esti- mator, Industrial Division, Atlantic Side; 28 years, 5 months, 2 days.

Benjamin Ennis, Pest Control Inspector Community Services Division, Pacific Side; 22 years, 7 months, 23 days.

Richard VV. Fuller, Supervisory Claims

examiner, General Audit Division Pacific Side; 28 years, 11 months, 10 days. Mervial O. Maynard, Radio Operator,

Dredging Division, Pacific Side; 39 years, 3 months, 21 days.

Gerardo Pascual, Helper Lock Operator,

Locks Division, Atlantic Side; 21 years, 9 months, 11 days.

Erwin F. Ramsey, Engineman, Hoisting

and Portable, Community Services Division, Atlantic Side; 19 years, 9 months, 4 days. Arthur E. Richards, Guard, Motor Transportation Division, Atlantic Side; 43

years, 5 months, 4 days. Paree L. Roland, General Foreman, Public Works, Maintainance Division, Pacific Side; 19 years, 6 months, 17 days.

Clyde L. Sharp, Finance Branch Superintendent, Postal Division, Pacific Side; 31 years, 7 months, 9 days.

Chanan Singh, Stevedore, Terminals Division, Atlantic Side; 34 years, 3 months,

11 days.

Gurdas Singh, Stevedore, Terminals Division, Atlantic Side; 31 years, 3 months,

29 days. Alberta M. Stone, Freight Rate Assistant, Supply Division, Pacific Side; 15 years, 8 months, 13 days. Cecil S. Thompson, Train Baggageman,

Railroad Division, Atlantic Side; 32

years, 8 months, 13 days. Lebert Trotman, Deckhand, Port Captain's

Office, Atlantic Side; 21 years, 10 months, 1 day. James U. Williams, Guard, Terminals Division, Atlantic Side; 18 years, 3 monts, 4 days.

10 yearJ <Ag.o

AUTHOR and playwright J. P. McEvoy

and his wife were preparing to sail for return to the States after having spent

2 weeks on the Isthmus. Mr. McEvoy

also was a roving editor of Readers

Digest, Mrs. McEvoy also was a widely

known writer. Preliminary work was under way on

erection of the Goethals Memorial at the foot of the Administration Building

steps. A seafaring career spanning half a century and linking the sailing ship era with that of modern luxury liners neared

an end for Capt. Erik J. Eriksen, master

of the liner Cristobal. He had accepted

appointment as Panama Line agent

in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, and after a vacation he and Mrs. Eriksen were

to move to the Haitian port to begin

"landlubber" duties.

One year c4ao

DEAN Roger C. Hackett of the Canal

Zone Junior College, which he had

headed since 1941, planned for his retirement following the close of the summer session in late August.

The Canal Zone Health Bureau's achievement of almost 2 million consecutive hours without a disabling

injury was recognized with presentation

of the National Safety Council Award

of Merit to the Bureau. Four earthquake tremors shook up

the Isthmus March 12, the first, at 4:42 a.m., strong enough to awaken

many people. The strongest, at 6:41

a.m., was rated Intensity V. The 'quake

center probably was in the vicinity of the Panama-Costa Rica border.

-ACCIDENTSFOR

THIS MONTH

AND

THIS YEAR

FEBRUARY
ANNIVERSARIES

(On the basis of total Federal Service)

CIVIL AFFAIRS BUREAU

Robert L. Snyder

Services Assistant to Director of Posts MARINE

Walter G. Brown

Inspector, Scales an

Meters

Alvin A. Rankin

Inspector, Floating Equi

Nathaniel A. Dal

Foundry Chr

David E. Grant Maintenanceman, Rope and

Wire Cable Karm Singh

Deckhand

SUPPLY AND COMMUNITY

SERVICE BUREAU

Earl C. Orr

rvisory Merchandise

arl»eement Officer en GuarcT

ATION AND

S BUREAU

in J. Barrera

ornQfive Equipment

iceman

Rupert A. Walters Shipment Clerk

Delfino Andrade

Guard

ADMINISTRATIVE BRANCH

George Vieto

Chief, Transportation

Section CIVIL AFFAIRS BUREAU

Margaret M. Finnegan

Window Clerk

Iris D. Richmond

Window Clerk ENGINEERING AND

CONSTRUCTION BUREAU

Laurent J. Baptiste Central Office Repairman

Lucille M. Fulop

Secretary (Stenographer)

Milton M. LaCroix

Shift Engineer

John W. Williams

Maintenanceman Distribution Systems

Eruolfo A. Angulo

Truck Driver

Sebastian Barsallo Paver Frank M. Cambridge

Heavy Laborer

Urvin N. Cornwall

Paver

Jose A. Cordova

Helper Electrician, Power

Plant Alfredo C. Newball

Seaman

Juan Pastor Pacheco

Laborer

Justo P. Villalaz Painter HEALTH BUREAU

Ella A. Partons

Staff Nurse, Tuberculosis Marcia H. Van Home

Administrative Assistant Winona A. Smith

Medical Technician, General

Jose A. Delgado

Heavy Pest Control Laborer

Cyril G. Francis

Hospital Attendant

Gelacio Marin

Diet Cook

Lorenzo Perez

Hospital Food Service Worker

Jorge Sanchez

Exterminator

Joseph A. Soberanis Nursing Assistant, Psychiatry Victor A. Thompson

Messenger and Motor

Vehicle Operator

Jorge Ubarnes

Hospital Food Service Worker

MARINE BUREAU

Walter A. Dryja

Assistant to Marine Director Frank P. Marczak

Marine Traffic Controller Bobert L. Rankin

iarn»aTraffic Cog

ticjurd V\ Thorns

larme 'fcaffic^ Frank Rkbirison , Motor Launch

Pedr^Abj/go

5eckjiwid

E>se' JC Amaya

^ock

Alfonso Brd —Steipei>-Hock Ope

Jos^ Cea

Maintenanceman

Cedric I. Gibb

Helper Lock Operator

Manuel Montout Deckhand

James Parris Helper Machinist

Israil Rook

Seaman

Carlos A. Victoria Deckhand

N. F. Whitfield Maintenance Painter OFFICE OF

THE COMPTROLLER

John R. Gough

Budget Analyst

Elizabeth Sudron

Travel Expense Claims

Examiner

SUPPLY AND COMMUNITY

SERVICE BUREAU

Albert D. Jones Grounds Maintenance

Equipment Operator

Leticia E. McDowell

Clerk Margaret Mussa

Clerk Typist

Teodoro Abrego

Baker Assistant Banfield F. Alleyne Laborer Cleaner

Joseph A. Chambers

Baker Assistant A. C. Jimenez

Utility Worker

Myrtle A. Garraway

Utility Worker

Justino Gondola

Milker Evans A. Gooding

Utility Worker

Allan S. Vanterpool Laborer Cleaner TRANSPORTATION AND

TERMINALS BUREAU

Juan F. Edmondson

Electrician Arthur B. Rigby

Engineer, Locomotive Yard

Roswell J. Tobin

Leader, Liquid Fuels Wharfman

James O. Brown

Stevedore Dennis E. Clarke

Helper, Liquid Fuels Wharfman

Jose A. Damas

Line Handler

Felix Anselmo Dogue'

Shipment Clerk Hector Haddo

Automotive Equipment

Serviceman

Jos^ Lara

Stevedore Moises Minas

Leader Railroad Trackman

The Panama Canal Review 21
PROMOTIONS AND TRANSFERS

EMPLOYEES promoted or transferred between February 5 and March 5 are

listed. Within-grade promotions and

job reclassifications are not listed. ADMINISTRATIVE BRANCH

Ranghilt H. Melzi, Clerk-Typist, Division

of Schools to File Clerk. Samuel H. Edwards, Counterman, Supply

Division to Messenger.

CIVIL AFFAIRS BUREAU

Hector Ching, Detention Guard, Police

Division, to Firefighter, Fire Division. Cecil L. Miller, Truck Driver, Dredging

Division, to Detention Guard, Police

Division.

Postal Division Dick R. Brandom, Finance Branch Superintendent to Relief Supervisor, Balboa. Milton J. Halley, Relief Supervisor, Balboa,

to Finance Branch Superintendent. Bernard J. Craig, Guard, Locks Division,

to Distribution Clerk, Substitute.

Division of Schools Lavon B. Dusold, Clerk-Stenographer from

Police Division. Doris T. De Fowles, from Clerk-Typist to Clerk-Stenographer.

Dorothy M. Darcy, Janet E. Jenner, Substitute Teacher to Teacher, Senior High

U.S. Schools. Sandra Motta, Substitute Teacher to Teacher, Junior High U.S. Schools. Helen E. Jones, Joan Machatton, Substitute Teacher to Teacher, Elementary U.S.

Schools. ENGINEERING AND CONSTRUCTION

BUREAU

Electrical Division

Alfred T. Marsh, Electrician to Test Operator-Foreman (Electrical-Power System). Allen C. Swicegood, Electrician to Senior Operator (Generating Station). Joseph M. Griffith, Railroad Trackman,

Railroad Division, to Helper Machinist

(Maintenance).

Dredging Division

Basilio Acosta, Wiper (Floating Plant) to Fireman (Floating Plant). Ismael Fuentes, Heavy Laborer to Leader

Heavy Laborer.

Albert R. George, Utility Worker, Supply

Division, to Helper Machinist (Marine). Faustino Martinez, Heavy Laborer to Boatman.

Theophilus Peterkin, Clerk to Clerk-Typist.

Sidney Bennett, Irwin C. Boyce, Winston

Chambers, Samuel Pinzon, Jr., Navigational Aid Worker to Gas Navigation

Light Serviceman.

Engineering Division Lydia Czapek, Engineering Draftsman

(Civil) to Physical Science Technician

(Geology).

Virgilio F. Garcia, Illustrator (General) to

Illustrator. Calixto Villarreal, Dock Worker, Terminals

Division, to Surveying Aid.

Maintenance Division

Silvestre A. Canizalez, Helper Lock Operator, Locks Division, to Helper Welder.

Ricardo Chen, Apprentice (Welder) (4th Year), from Industrial Division. Goldbern E. Gittens, Carpenter (Maintenance), Locks Division, to Carpenter.

Carlos Perez, Painter (Maintenance), from

Locks Division. Charles C. Wilson, Laborer (Cleaner), Community Services Division, to Painter (Maintenance).

HEALTH BUREAU

Julia E. Martin, Staff Nurse to Staff Nurse

(Medicine and Surgery), Gorgas Hospital. Eliza W. Robinson, Counterwoman, Supply

Division, to Nursing Assistant, Coco Solo

Hospital. Jose M. Santimateo, Railroad Trackman,

Railroad Division, to Laborer (HeavyPest Control), Division of Sanitation. Gil Batista, Laborer (Cleaner), Community

Services Division, to Laborer (HeavyPest Control), Division of Sanitation. MARINE BUREAU

James M. Walsh, Towboat Master, from

Dredging Division. James E. Taylor, Clerk-Typist to Clerk.

Industrial Division Levy Evelyn, Jr., Apprentice Welder (2d

year), from Maintenance Division. Valentine I. James, Helper Blacksmith (Heavy Fires), to Foundry Chipper. Luis A. Fajardo, Heavy Laborer, to Helper

Machinist.

Locks Division King J. Julie, Seymour A. Price, Clifford L. Stewart, Painter to Leader Painter. Marcelino Cerezo, Laborer, Dredging Division, to Asphalt or Cement Worker. Marcos E. Del Rio, Heavy Laborer, Maintenance Division, to Line Handler. Juan Gondola, Laborer, Dredging Division, to Painter (Maintenance).

Leslie A. McLean, Line Handler to Helper

Lock Operator. Mickell Williams, Helper Lock Operator to Crane Hookman.

SUPPLY AND COMMUNITY

SERVICES BUREAU

Mary N. Orr, Secretary (Stenography), to Administrative Services Assistant, Office of the Director. Marilyn B. Gayer, Clerk-Stenographer

from Accounting Division to Office of the Director.

Supply Division Roberta J. Paterson, Clerk-Typist, Administrative Branch, to Accounting Clerk,

Office of General Manager.

Bernice E. Smith, Clerk-Typist to File Clerk, Office of General Manager. James N. Weeks, Stock Control Clerk to Accounting Clerk. John F. Williams, Warehouseman to Guard.

Elias Gill, Laborer Cleaner to Sales Clerk. Eugene G. Wilson, Laborer to Sales Clerk.

Jorge Hernandez, Heavy Laborer from

Locks Division. Ralph S. Buddie, Laundry Worker (Heavy),

to Extractor and Tumblerman.

Clifford W. Edwards, Extractor and Tumblerman to Washman.

Andres Griffin, Clerk to Guest House Clerk. Demostenes Murillo, Heavy Laborer, Maintenance Division, to Laborer Cleaner. Clarence E. James, Packager to Milk Plant Worker.

Frances A. Jolliffe, Package Boy to Utility Worker.

Steven R. Ashby, Bell Boy to Utility Worker.

Alfred J. Davis, Heavy Laborer, Locks

Division, to Utility Worker.

Arthur Smith, Hugo Salazar, Pinsetter to

Utility Worker.

Merdell B. Thompson, Utility Worker to Counterwoman.

Herbert Brown, Camilo Cordero, Alsay

Thomas, Utility Worker to Counterman. Conrad S. Best, Utility Worker to Grocery

Attendant.

Wilfort B. Gordon, Utility Worker to Heavy Laborer. TRANSPORTATION AND TERMINALS

BUREAU

Terminals Division

Francois O. Modestin, Supervisory Cargo

Clerk to Supervisory Cargo Tracer Clerk. Frank Fox, Cargo Marker to Timekeeper. Juan Sevillano, Dock Worker to Stevedore. Reginald Denny, Llewelyn Q. Jolliffe, John

R. Burnham, Cargo Marker to Clerk Checker.

Jerry R. Escalona, Laborer Cleaner, Supply

Division, to Cargo Marker. Clement S. McFarlane, Cargo Marker to Cargo Checker. Noel A. Jones, Utility Worker, Supply Division, to Cargo Marker. Selwyn O. Brown, Cargo Marker to Clerk. Jose M. Maza, Laborer Cleaner, Supply

Division, to Dock Worker.

Earl R. Russell, Counterman, Supply Division, to Cargo Marker.

Alfredo Garcia, Clerk, Terminals Division,

to Cargo Clerk. Ruben Davis, Laborer Cleaner, Division of Schools, to Cargo Marker.

Railroad Division Louis A. Atherton, Gomett H. Hartley,

Clerk-Typist, to Supervisory Clerk. Sidney Crawford, Oiler to Centrifuge

Operator.

George M. Piggott, Helper Locomotive

Engineer to Brakeman.

Albert Smith, Helper (General) to Painter (Maintenance).

Rupert Clark, Laborer Cleaner to Laborer.

Motor Transportation Division

Jorge Julian, Truck Driver to Truck Driver

(Heavy). Ricardo R. Reefer, Deckhand, Navigation

Division, to Chauffeur. OTHER PROMOTIONS which did not

involve changes of title: Thomas E. Spencer, General Claims Examiner, General Audit Division, Office of

the Comptroller.

22 April 5, 1963
May V. Adonican, Bookkeeping Machine

Operator, Accounting Division, Office of the Comptroller. Ernesto O. Achon, Accounting Clerk, Supply Division, Office of General Manager. C. Lammerts van Bueren, Canal Zone

Guide (Interpreter), Panama Canal In- formation Office Canal Zone Guide

Service. Frank A. Venture, Storekeeping Clerk, Printing Plant, Mount Hope.

Hedwig Chavez, Clerk-Typist, Navigation

Division. William R. Bailey, Gerald W. Coffey,

Marine Traffic Controller, Navigation

Division. Joseph Kendall, Aurelio Newball, Clerk, Navigation Division. Hubert H. Vickers, Joseph C. Ward, Clerk, Railroad Division. Peter A. Ellis, Clerk, Railroad Division,

and Theater Usher.

Highroaders

(Continued from p. 4)

journey to San Jose, Costa Rica. That was when they took the name Highroaders. Some who were on that trip

urged that Mr. Carlson arrange a re- union of those on the Costa Rica tour. He replied he wouldn't stage it unless they'd agree to go to Costa Rica for the reunion dinner. They replied, "Let's go"

—and they did, and came on to Panama.

En route, they were said also to have

been the first trailer caravan to visit the Yucatan peninsula.

One member of the party, Bud

Blakeley, had been through the Canal on a Navy ship during World War I. Another, Henry Gustafson, had helped

machine the Canal lock gates at Wheeling, W. Va. One of the male Caravaners labeled

the group, "The craziest people in the world with the most sense." Home for the Highroaders is in widely scattered parts of the United

States, and they were looking forward

to spending some time with their families upon their return. But, already, the club has announced a new tour. This

time it will be around the world by way

of the Far East and Australia.

Officers of the Tourist Bureau of Panama extended their cooperation to the Caravan and advised them that any

request for tourist information or plans

for organizing similar caravans to Panama should be addressed to: Instituto Panameno de Turismo, Box

4421, Panama, Republic of Panama, or

to Wendell P. Colton Division, Wesley

Associates, Inc., 630 Fifth Avenue,

New York 20, N.Y.

cA Bad J\ou far Polio .

.

.

. . . But a ll/inner for tyou

ANYONE WHO'S SPENT a little time with the ivory cubes knows that three's a loser for the man handling the dice. But it's a winner in the current oral polio

vaccine program in the Canal Zone—and that's not a gambling matter.

In fact, the only way you can gamble and lose in the oral polio vaccine

program is to fail to get three—all three doses, that is.

The first dose already has been given in Gamboa and will be administered

in the rest of the Canal Zone this month. Then, in May, the second dose will be given. And the third dose, the real clincher to the treatment, will be given

at a still unannounced date.

All three doses are necessary for complete protection. Taking one dose and

skipping the other two, or taking two and skipping the third one doesn't give

you complete protection.

So don't gamble. Shoot for three in the oral polio vaccine program. All it requires is eating three cubes (made of sugar, not ivory), and what could be

easier than that? Play the game of health with three as your point—and have

complete protection.

The Panama Canal Review 23
SHIPPING

Bremen at Cristobal

THE FIFTH IN a line of famous

ocean liners of the same name, the North German Lloyd's 32,335-gross-ton

Bremen, is shown tied up at a pier in Cristobal during a recent visit to the Canal as a part of a cruise to the Carib- bean. Members of the crew can be seen

taking advantage of the sunny dry

season Isthmian weather to paint the

ship's side and lower the lifeboats for

full overhaul and painting.

This Bremen is the former French

liner Pasteur, built in St. Nazaire in 1938 and used during the war as a troop transport. She was purchased in 1957 by North German Lloyd and

completely refitted for the North Atlantic trade and winter cruises. On her

regular run she can carry 1,127 passengers in first and tourist classes, but on

cruises the ship can accommodate 700. Her public rooms are completely air conditioned. According to her agents, the Continental Shipping Co., this Bremen has been visiting the Canal on

winter cruises since 1960. The most famous of the five North

German Lloyd's Bremens, lost in World

Painters at work near bow; lifeboat lowered

to dock level for overhaul, painting.

TRANSITS BY OCEAN-GOING

VESSELS IN FEBRUARY

1963 1962 Commercial 841 841

U.S. Government 13 11 Free 8 11

Total 862 863

TOLLS *

Commercial $4,314,616 $4,390,163

U.S. Government 70,309 47,207

Total $4,384,925 $4,437,370

CARGO"

Commercial 4,876,698 5,290,975

U.S. Government 74,375 55,038

Free 39,312 48,004

Total.... 4,990,385 5,394,017

•Includes tolls on all vessels, ocean-going and small. •"Cargo figures are in long tons.

War II, came through the Canal on a

cruise in February 1939 and still holds

the record as the largest passenger vessel

to transit. She had a registered gross tonnage of 51,730 tons, was 898.7 feet

in length and had a beam of 102 feet. She was built in 1929. The first Bremen

went into service between Germany and

the United States in 1858, the second

in 1897, and the third in 1922.

Frozen Cargo Ship

THE SHAW SAVILL LINE'S newest motor liner, the Megantic, is a glutton

when it comes to carrying chilled and

frozen cargo. The sleek new freighter,

which returned to England early in March on the last leg of her maiden

voyage to New Zealand, had most

of her 665,000 cubic feet of cargo

space filled with New Zealand products. Eighty-five percent of cargo accommodations is insulated.

All holds and upper and lower 'tween decks are arranged for frozen cargo. Wing compartments are intended for carrying chilled meat. Two deep tanks

at the forward end of the No. 4 hold

are suitable for edible oils. The ship

will make regular trips through the Canal in the future, according to W. Andrews & Co., agents for the

line here.

Easter Cruise

THE HOLLAND-AMERICA LINE'S

Rotterdam is due to transit the Canal

northbound April 9 on her way back to New York following an 80-day roundthe-world cruise. She is reported to have

on board a number of passengers from

the U.S. west coast who are travelling

to Europe on the ship with a stop in New York to view the annual Easter Parade. On her way to the Canal, the Rotter- dam will call at Acapulco. In New York, she will dock for 3 days before sailing

for Europe. Passengers may use the ship as a floating hotel during the New

York stay.

Horses-Horses

NOT LONG AGO 11 horses went

through the Canal as passengers aboard

the Gulf & South American Steamship

Company's Gulf Merchant. It is not unusual to find horses listed as part of

a ship's cargo but these were Chilean

race horses worth $20,000 each. According to an item in the Port of Mobile

News, the valuable animals arrived

in Mobile safe and sound and were

delivered to N. B. Hunt, the son of a prominent Texas oilman. Ten of them

were brood mares: the 11th, Miss

Therese, will race as a 4-year-old.

The Gulf Merchant, represented

here by Panama Agencies,* is one of a

fleet of merchant ships plying between

west coast South American ports and

the gulf area.

France Has Birthday

THE LUXURIOUS French liner France, which docked in Cristobal March 25, recently completed its first year of operation. The vessel went into active service in the North Atlantic in February 1962 and since then has made

44 crossings, one cruise to the Canary

Islands, and two to the West Indies. The French Line reported that during

the year the ship carried more than 65,000 passengers, and sailed 158,000

miles. With a length of 1,033 feet, the

vessel is the world's longest. She was

docked at Pier 9 in Cristobal during

this first visit to the Canal.

24 April 5, 1963



Date Due

Due — '• -fc

JMffiJ^

Returned Due Returned

SMgE1^_ —
^?to. 30OS

P 187

IATIN W*EWfek

UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA

3 1262 04820 4829