The New Orleans daily Democrat. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1877-1880, 1877-07-23
INTEROCEANIC CANAL.
The Projected Connection of the Atlantic
and Pacific Oceans.

Translated for the st. Louis Globe Democrat
from the German Gazette
The following is part of q report sub
mitted by the Secretary of the Geographical
Society at Cairo:
A plan occupying the mind of M. de Les
seps has regard to the opening of q direct
route by sea between the Atlantic and Pacific
oceans. A railroad may perform that ser
built to complete the work of the Suez Canal
by permitting ships to travel round the world
in straight line and everywhere receive and
discharge merchandise. A geographic COM
mission has been appointed IN u, France to ex-
canoe Of this undertaking has been fully COM
pretended in the United States, and the gov
eminent has appropriated 40,000,00 francsfor
preliminary studies and grading.
An English-French society, in possession OF
concession for the construction Of the Canal
of Darien, have instituted an exploring ex-
petition to begin preliminary studies in
those parts. TO infer from the labors thus
far effected that out Of seven Or eight routes,
that Of Darien, the latter, or that of Nicara-
qua, has been selected. The plan of Darien
would have had precedence, as the canal
could be constructed there without locks, as
tards the passage very. materially. At each
lock vessel Is detained half an hour at least.
What would be the result il thirty-seven
vessels are to pass through on the same day,
as was U11e case laUely Ill Lie CueZ CdudlI Leu
it be as it may, this much is certain, that in
case the plan OF the canal of Darien, which,
according to Mr.. de Lesseps, is to be pre-
ferred, Is not accepted, none but the canal of
Nicaragua can be mentioned. small space
separates the broad surface of the Lake of
Nicaragua from the Pacific Ocean, while at
the entrance, as we'll as at the outlet Of the
canal, there would be two harbOrs-San Juan
del Norte (Greytown) and San Juan del Sur
(Rivas)
AS regards the canal through the Isthmus
of Darien the question according to the plan
before us, would be the digging Of a canal
which, fed by the river Atrato, would see it's
natural route marked out between the cordil-
leras Of the Northern and Southern Continent
OF America. It would run out in the marshes
Of Cacarica and flow into the Tuira creek on
the Yon declivity. However, it is the same
road proposed by A. Won Humboldt. The
main question touching the prospective Mic
aragua canal is that of the construction of the
locks there to be required. To-day, locks for
navigable canals are calculated to be from ten
to eleven metres. The point is then to con-
strtlct locks which will raise and lower the
ships at once from twenty-four to twenty-five
metres. II that result is effected, the whole
valley of the San Juan del NOrte river will be
put under water by frightening out the Lake
of Nicaragua The further execution Of the
enterprise would not meet with any difficulty
worthy of mention. The society OF the pro-
iected interoceanic canal entertained the
wish that M. de Lesseps would put himself at
the head. However, he believes himself en-
titled to leisure and recreation after a work
like that of the Suez canal, in order to afford
further moral aid to that class of enterprises.