Morning journal and courier., 1886-02-18
COMMUNICATIONS.
Something About Life on The Isth-
 mus or Panama.

Something About Life on The Isth-
 mus or Panama. To the Editor of the JOURNAL COURIER:
 I noticed in the JOURNAL AND COURIER of the 18th an extract from the correspond ent of the Detroit Free Press entitled "On the Isthmus of Panama" ," which contains sev- eral inaccuracies.
 The Isthmus in not an unhealthy ace to live in under ordinary circumstances, as I resided there some time and with proper care did not have a day of sickness, and many Of my acquaintances who had lived there for years enjoyed good health. With fair brandy at S1 bottle, oranges two for a cent, ban anas cluster for five cents, and with poor accommodations for sleeping, strangers fare badly and generally succumb to the fever.
 The Isthmus is covered with luxuriant vegetation which has fallen and been undis- turbed for thousand years, forming bed of decayed leaves and mold which is now being turned over to make the canal, and, to my mind, it will cost many lives before the completion of the work is accomplished I believe the writer of the article to be misin- formed as to the number of workmen who perished in building the railroad. I was very intimate with the officers who built the railroad and asked that same question, is it true that life was lost for every tie, and was told that just outside of Aspinwall there was 8 swamp which ex- tended about two miles across and which they were obliged to pile before they could fill it in to support their track, and that for every pile life was lost. If your correspon- dent was correct each tie took four auger holes, and the length of the road was AZ miles, and if it takes 1 ,427 ties to a mile and 5, 709 auger holes, 278, ,276 lives were lost in building the road. I am inclined to believe he has been imposed upon I should have seen the graves when I was there.
 Monkey Hill is about nine miles from AS- pinwall and is used as a cemetery by the people of that town, and Mount Hope ceme- tery is at Panama oil the other side of the Isthmus, and am inclined to think that the dumps" exist in his imagination, as the people of Panama are very decorous and hospitable to strangers and such a burial would not be to their taste or habits.
 The railroad ties are made of lgnum vita and are found on the Magdalena river. The wood is cut from the heart of the tree to pre- serve it from insects, especially large red ant which will eat through the. side of frnsare house isavog ong P the S' paint and varnish to stand up alone. The telegraph poles were formerly of wood, but owing to the ravages of the insects now are made of cement. The ignum vite ties cost $1 each at the cutting place and the off cers of the company were often thought by railroad to be a little extravagant in their ties contract; but what would be said of the present officials, who send to Ceylon or Madagascar and buy ebony wood by the onze, and as the sticks are not very large, glue the pieces together to make good re- spectable railroad tie!
 I must here bear witness to the honesty and morality of the native of the Isthmus. A stranger can, or could go when I lived there, with uncounted gold and give it to the wo men for safe keeping, and upon leaving the village they would not make any charge for 1,&. ! ! the stranger two or three miles, fearing that the men would be tempted to rob the guest Our doors and rooms were always open night and day, and with the hundred natives in my employ I never had any trouble or disor- der. RESIDENT.