, 1880-02-26
ISTHMUS CANAL.

Doubts rs to the Utility of the Work
Will 1t Pay for Sailing Vessels to
Mako Use of the Canal?-Iseso.ls for
Believing that 1t VIII Not-Po1lcy the
United States Should Pursue.
WASHINGTON, D. c., Feb. 2o.-Lawrence
Smith, Of Louisville, KY, who attended the
Panama Canal Congress, at Paris, last May,
upon invitation of the French Commission,
and as the representative Of San Francisco
and the Chamber Of Commerce of that city,
and who was Vice-President of the Commit
tee on Navigation and Neteorology, says that
sailing vessels which now ply between San
Francisco and Liverpool by way Of the Cape
could not save 5per cent by going through the
proposed canal. He bases his statement upon
facts Which he has been collecting in Europe
and Amer1c1 during the past year.. While he
was in Liverpool, two ships of 1,500 tons each
arrived from San Francisco after passage
of 120 days, which is fairly good voyage in
: point of time. In going by way Of the Cape,
ships keep we'll out at sea, under the lnttu-
ence Of prevailing east or west winds, and
are troubled very little by calms. To reach
the canal they would be compelled to hug
delayed in the vicinity of Panama Bay. by
calnls that the trip would not, i'll his opinion,
be shortened one-fourth. Lie computes the
cost of a "trip Of 130 days, putting the value OF
s. is1 Insurance. HsssSs inc incued' Allowing ii for
difference Of one-fourth in Insurance. the
cost Of the same vessels trip Of ninety days,
by the canal, would be S4,S75, or 81, G25 i'll
favor Of the canal. But at s. per ton, the ca
ing the scale in favor Of the Cape by $2.S75.
Allowing for the use of capital for thirty
days longer, at Is per cent on the value of
the ship and 6 per cent on the value Of the
it, Sr 1,,.{ i'm 1t-+ c$i
remains il favor Of the Cape by $3.50.
Against this must be set the gain in time.
This gain, he believes, has been greatly over
rated, and he asserts that it will be very little
for ships sailing from Hong Kong to Europe.
It is admitted that the voyage from the Bay
of Panama to California is one of the most
yexatious known. It is said that it takes
longer to go from Panama to California tlan
from Valparaiso to California. From June
WSs TO 5 ea bae Saab e bcs a
so that it often happens that twenty miles Of
westing are not made in week. Lieut..
A1aury is reported as having snitl i'll 1866 that
if some great convulsion Of Nature should
rentl the continentin two at Panama, leaving
free open channel from ocean to ocean. it
would never become highway for sailing
vessels.
Mr. Smith says that the estimates made at
Paris, of the cost of the Panama and San
Bias routes, respectively, were s24o,ooo,ooo9
and S2SO, 900, ,000. It was unanimously agreed
that questions of navigation must be. settled
as if the Congress were dealing only with
sailing vessels, for the reason that steamers
could not be expected to carry thu; heavy
cheap products and pay. the heavy toll re-
auired. AIr. Smith believes that the United
States should let the canal severely alone for
the present. Senator Gordon's resolution Of
projection he regards as a declaration Of war
to the whole world, with an army. Of 25,0oo
men and an Insignificant navy behind it, in
behalf OF a canal that will be of more use to
any one else than to ourselves. He urges the
development Of our own territory by high
sion of the relations which must exist be-
tween our west coast and Asia, and our east
coast and Europe. Great highways from
ocean to ocean will furnish, he says, cheap
and rapid transportation for all products ex-
cept those which are heavy and cheap, and
these. he believes, will find their way around
Cape Horn, rather than by the costly route
of an intcroceanic canal.