The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1847-04-29

canal railroad begins and the route with It con-
nues in the course to western lakes which then
furn sh direct highway to the river the city and the
Gulf Tehuantepec on the Pacific The topography OF
this isthmus been investigated with some care II
might indeed be unwise to begin practical operations
without fresh and thorough survey; but enough Is
known to render II quite certain that the communication
can be opened without unreasonable expenditure OF la
Dor money
The width of the isthmus the mouth Of the Hu
asacuaco on the Mexican gulf TO the shores OF tho Pa
eic at Tehuantepec is about hundred and thirty
five miles. The central mountainous chain, which,
conformably to its relative position throughout both
Americas Is much to the Pacific than the At
lantic exhibits here depression which continues
from Santa Maria Patapa to Miguel dc Chimalapa for
distance OF about twenty miles, summit level
plain u formed whose streams How north aud whose
boundaries at the south and southeast a chain Of
small hills called Cerros (nighands of Sasalma and of
Espinosa which separate the flowing north from
those flowing south, and between which here there
are passages such a. the Poro (gate of chivoa and
space Of depression in the great ridge
running north, empty themselves in the Huasacualco
those running south empty themselves in the Chicapa
which in discharges itself into the lakes east Of
Tehuantepec and 1t Is both of these rivers
Huas acualco and Chicapa-whch may be employed In
efecting the transit across the Isthmus, by uniting
them either by a canal, railway or good macada-
missed road.
This route for tho junction pointed out by Fer
nando Cortez the conqueror as long ago the year
1920 Indeed all the three principal routes which
have referred-Panama, Nicaragua and Tehuantepec-
were designated by Lopez de omarra in his history Of
the indies as early us D. 1901 and 1t Is worthy OF
remark that these three routes the only which
after the lapse of three centuries many explorations
present the least promise for the construction Of ship
canal
For more than two centuries the hope of cfecting
navigaole communication between the seems to
have been wholly abandoned At the close of the last
century however this old project OF uniting the Huasa
cualco with Tehuantepeo, in Mexico, revived and Au
gustin Cramer after making researches in IVA
der the orders y Vccroy Bucarel proposed carry II
into effect by canal fed from small tributaries
the Huasaoualco More recently, the general govern
ment Of Mexico 1925 authorized Gen, Orbegozo ex-
plore this route but that officer misled by of
the only barometer he had with him. to the conclu
sion that the construction Of canal there work
almost impractcable, and restricted himself to
mendng good road At last in 1912 Joseph de Garay,
having obtained by legislative desire, the privilege Of
making communication between the two
this sthmus established board Of commissioners under
the direction OF an engineer Gayeano Moro, with in
structions to give the sthnus thorough scientific
poration Moro published his abor and their results in
1874 and tho information he gives is certainly the
latest and most authentic 1t may be agreeable to to
have it set forth briefly.
The village Tarifa which gives its name the plain
ut the depression Of the central chain Of mountains to
the level of the sea- the plain itself is somewhat lower
The hills which bound the plain the south and south
but little elevation; and cut of some fifty hundred
yards In length would alone be sufficient to enable
(gate) Tarfa One of these hills the BEL Convento,
in which the Rio Monetza takes its rise, and thence
flows into the Chicapa at San Miguel stands alone and
two of s sides particularly the north csft
sunken that cut through them would be work Of
The direct distance between Tara and the
river Bocabarr through which the lakes the
side of the ishmus reach the Pacific is about thirty
ven miles. On the southern declvity, the principal
streams the Rio Osuta and the Rio Chcapa, both o.
which empty themselves in the lakes the latter about
miles from the Bocabarra and nineteen miles from Tara
All the streams the northern decvity flow into thu
uasacualco; and that river after very winding
reaches the Gulf Of Mexico about hundred and v
miles from Tarifa One of its chief tributaries the Ma
laengo which flows into II its left bank about ninet
direct miles from its mouth or hundred and sixt,
miles following its crcuitous bed The Chcapa gaugel
above San Miguel Chmaapa, by combining several rvu
lets flowing from the central chain rolls body of water
estimated Mt about twenty-five cubic feet per second
The Ostuta in volume five times larger, and
which is really remarkable and indicates extreme thrst
SOIL this volume of water dminshes 1t ongthens
its distance from its original source.
The volume Of water in tho Huasacu alco great and
at tho lower part of its it would be nayigabe for
ships of any size 1t for the its mouth
The depth OF water this bar has BEEN ut different
tnies ascertained TO be- BY Damper fourteen feet BY
Cramer eighteen feet By Orbegozo, fourteen feet BY
Robinson, twenty feet. BY Moro, twenty feet There
differences are expainabe with great probability by
supposng the bar to be ntersected by submarine canals
ce and the soundngs not to have been made In the
same one
place called La Horqueta he Fork the Huasacualco
divides into two branches the right and chief Of which
the Apotzongo, runs course OF twenty live miles and
the other left the Mistan Of about thir
ythrce miles: they encirce large island called Tecam
chapa. Below this island, the depth Of water always
exceeds twenty-five feet and becomes sometimes thirty
thirty eght but above the reunion Of the two
be rid Of by dammng the Nlistan at La Horqueta
Above this latter point the depth decreases at some
places it is found to be from twenty-five to thirty cot
but in general IL less than twenty and sinks
| TO four. Two points only, however may DO
regarded difficult to oyercomethc Old Malpaso aud
the Nal pasothc first being between three and
four miles below the confluence Of the Maatengo with
the uasacuaco, and the second between nine and ten
miles below the first Mt the confluence Of the Rio Sara
bria At these two points the rocky character Of the
rivers bed would make its deepening difficult.
On the other side Of the sthmus, the Bocabarra which
constitutes the pathway between the Pacific and
the lakes or lagoons into which flow the Chcapa and
Osua has depth Of about twenty -four feet but its
opening on the kcs Is obsructed by bar whose depth
of does exceed nine feet. Moro ascrbes the
original formation of this bar in great degree to the
fact he led
into tho lake, and Ia Of opinion that II II removed
by artificial conrivances the result would be perna-
nent He thinks that this removal might be accomplish
cd by giving direction to much of the water Of the Os
tuta above towards feeding the canal and thus dmin
shng the force Of the current in the lake After
ing the bar the depth increases but throughout tho
eighteen miles, hereabouts of distance from the bar
feet Of be had; though modes of augment
n | ing its depth could readily be found
Those minute details translated and transferred from
the French publication already mentioned and who's
accuracy perceive to doubt introduced
here in order to show that the subject had not beer
lightly considered They prove that the two prncipa
obstacles to the creation OF ship channol the 18th
sacualso and Bocabarra Now, the bar at the mouth
the first of these rivers be impediment
soon as Its main submarine canal which twenty
fcet Of water have been found, Is fxed with accuracy
and marked by lines OF buoys and the bar at the mouth
of the other river within the lake. is removable either
In the suggested by Moro upon the plan
tofroc successfully pursued under the direction Of
corps Of Typographical Engineers with bars at the
frances Of rivers from the northern lakes Then by
surrounding the inferior obstacles -namey, the occa-
sonal shaowness Of the IIuasacualco and Of the lake
either by sinking the bottoms raising water and
the short dividing swell Of land between the OF
the Rio Monetzs running south into the Cbcapa and the
Of any of the running north the
Huasacuaco-an uninterrupted water highway Is effect
ed There does not indeed appear the whole limo Of
this route any difficulty which the present Of
our science and mechanical art may not yanqush
We should a perhaps prefer canal Of largo diruen
sions Ut to vessels of every sze and tho
expenditure for such aoDe having reference the route
specially described Is estimated differently from fifteen
to twentyhv millions of dollars These estimates
liberal, and probably exaggerated by imperfect
knowledge Of the local aids In the presence and cheap
of material and labor, which would be furnished
STILL the highest valuation is in contemplation Of the
purpose and its ncalculable results far from being APP
palling But It may be- that canal much smaller and