New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1855-03-02
TIE GREATEST EVENT OF THE cESTURY.


"a received from our Special Reporters az tue
Istbmus the subjoined highly Interesting scc'un'
Of the Opening OF the Panams hauroia' WHICH
tack place on the 20tb uls, only Ten days ago
III. wat importance Of the event OF connecting
"a. t,.o Great oceans will atone for the potpone-
rnsrt If our Legislature end local news to make
room for the report which follows
Iron Our Own Reporterl
PAsAxA Feb. - 1855.
Ivas pleasea when it was announced that In accord
ance with the projected programme of the entert ,n-
mept Of our party Oh the 'shmu', That we we're 10
take on curly departure fion tina; p4eue-spo' A'p'n
wall That disease and premature dean we're en-
demic in that region Of swamp and vegetable ro''en
pess was quite evident, without any minute lnVesu
cation in the typographical cbaracteris'ic' OF GUY
the foundation Of which below the level OF the Al
laptc and every breath Of it's air charged WITH the
poi.opous exbaation Of vegetable decay. There was
no need 20 investigate the physical causes which, IN
accordance with the laws Of bealth must lead to the
desdly fleets of malignant dsease; there Tss DO Nc
cessity TO study the statistics which are but contin'
nous record of death, when the CHASTITY features
Of every man you meet If meme"to ~0r''
Nor is it only the American white man. who
vilts decays and dies from the malignant atmosphere
inspired by the inhabitants of AspuwAll-'he eir he
breatbss being the breath Of de4ih, add not that OF
life. The people Of all countries and OF ali races and
color are equally forced 70 pay the fatal tribute
Demanded By the inexwable fate which overshsdows
with its dark wings that region, and strikes down
every or PROSTATE in resstess acknowledgment OF
In terrible tyranny The call Of duty the stimulus Of
enterprise and the hard necessities Of labor, have
peopled Aspinwal with sparse population Of Euro
Il. Al evfh tha
road and various steamboat companies of hotel.
landlords and thop-keopers, few Of whom are white
men from the United States, but mos. negroes from
Jamaica and St. Domingo and of some thoasands Of
lsborers ccmpo,ed principally Of the natives Of the
country and Of negroes from Jamaica although among
this cla. are to be occasional long tailed loose
trousered Chinese and turbaned Musselnan Cooley
from the East Indies Though in the enjoyment of a
hospitality under the auspices Of Col Totten and the
officials Of the Railroad Company, which proved that
the American heart remained sound 10 Aspnwall, how
ever stricken the body and although .uch was the
social delight in the company Of our devoted coun-
trymen, whose skeleton faces and shadowy forms
were but mesger indications of the fuloess of their
besrtr ] WAS glad when the steam. whistle, on Friday
morning aroused us with IFS familiar sound, and
startled the buzzards who were dsputDg with
cous eagerbess the possession with decayiug nsture
Of the carrion washed by the waves OF the Atlantic
10 our very door The officials Of the Company have
installed themselves in a wooden house, originally
int nded for hotel which brought out in every
part from rafters TO green blinds. from the United
States They call the Mess and here the engineers and
other officials of the Railroad Company live in friend
ly union Our party was generously provided for IN
these comfortable quarters on the seaside, looking
souilword, and famed by the cooling bfeezes which
blow at this season OF the year There was noting
in all the appointments arranged for our comfort TO
make regret hOme and, beyond the sight OF the
plantation Of banana.tIees and the view Of pelican
diving for fish, Of occasional native canoe bow
ing to us on the which waehed the shore, there
was hardly anything to remind us that were in
strange land.
AT seven minutes past O'Clock ON Friday morning,
Feb H. we took our seats in the last car of long
train especially provided for the benefit of our party.
The train alec carried the passengers who had ar
rived with us in the George Law, and who bad been
detained much to their dissatisfaction night in
Aspinws1 To realize fully the advantages of the
railroad, the company must, when their means OF
transportation are perfected carry those VIII are on
their way to and from California through WITHOUT de-
lay for Aspinwall is city to pass through, not to
stay at.
An incident occurred at Aspinwall during the re-
iocings got up to celebrate the transit Of our Com
pany which threw gloom over the occasion
poor negro who was loading cannon to fire salute
was struck with the rammer from the pre- nature dis
charge of the piece aud seriously injured perhaps Ia
tally We left him, surrounded by throng OF wall
ing negroes PROSTATE the ground nsensitle from
the conclusion Of the blow and With moot of the flesh
torn from his face The firing of guns the waving of
Gags and the shoutngs of the strange crowd ssluted
the train it passed along the edge Of the bay AMI
the front Of the town. l have not the time now to
describe the goIies Of the tropical landscape through
which the railroad passes. must confne myself to
the details of our celebration.
Our first stopping-place was Yatun where the en-
ployes OF the Road had contr bated their share to the
celebration by the erection of atrumphai arch where
the graceful pam entwined with the brilliant flowers
Of the Isthmus waved over our ads. Throughout
our course along the road aud at the various stations,
The officials and aborers, most of the latter
OF whom seemed TO be the native mixed races, hur-
rsed our progress and sautsd with all the noisy
ammunition at their command. withhold. neces-
sary, the general incidents, and confne myself to
those special TO the occasion.
Our chief purpose TO lay the cornerstone Of
memorial in honor of the three original projectors OF
the Panama Railroad and We bad accordingly carried
with pieces OF granite, prepared in the usual
way for the purpose On arriving st Ma,acbln, about
thirty five miles from Aspinuall the tram stopped,
and party and all the passengers on their way 10
California, descended. The scene which opened upon
our view was magnificent, even in comparison with
khe tropical spendor which had already greeted the
view. The spot chosen for the future monunsn' is
one Of series of natural mounds which have almos.