Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1888-12-22
ON THE ISTHMUS.
A TRIP OVER THE TRANS.IsTHMUS
RAILWAY.
Some Interesting Facts and Feat
ures OF the Narrow Tract Con-
meeting the Two Continents.
Correspondence of the RpooRD-Ux1OS.I

on arriving at Panama was to make
trip over the celebrated railway, which,
since 1885, has been running between
Panama city on the Pacific side and As
pinwall on the Atlantic, and on account of
which the United States came near having
the war not long ago.
Notwithstanding all the fuss that was
made 1t its building, it would seem that
the construction of this road could not
have been a very serious undertaking,
since its highest point is scarcely $50 feet
above sea level-not circumstance COM
pared to that highest railway in Mexico
between Vera Cruz and the Capital, which
rises more than 5000 feet within a few
miles.
1t is officially stated that the average
value of the merchandise that passes from
ocean to ocean over the Panama Railway
exceeds S44, 100000 every year. NJ. de
Lesseps' Inter-Oteanic Canal which runs
between the Atlantic and Pacific nearly
parallel with this railway, is without
locks, and almost on dead level. But to
this inchoate wonder of the world, which
the knowing ones hereabouts are wont to
characterize as " De Lesseps' folly" we
will pay more particular attention By and
by.
Aspinwall Tor Colon. as it is sometimes
called), is Colombia's most iiourishing sea-
port, and is virtually colony of the
United States of the North, having been
coded in perpetuity by the Government of
New Granada in 1852, to the American
company who founded it for the Atlantic
terminus of the Panama railway. Archi-
tecturally the pert little city looks as if it
had accidentally strayed away from New
England and got lost down here in the
tropics. In reality it does not touch Co.
lombia or Panama, at all, but occupies a
tiny island (Manzanillo}, in the Gulf of
Mexico, or rather in Navy Bay, an arm of
the Gull. The small island, though only
about mile in extent, is one of the most
busy and prosperous places in the New
World, because of Its commanding posi-
ton as a place of transit, both by reason
Of the railway and the interoceanic canal.
Indeed, Aspinwall pretty nearly monopo-
Lies the benefits of traffic in both direc-
tions, over the route between the two
great oceans which has appropriately been
dubbed "The Highway of the World" to
the almost utter exclusion of fast-decaying
Panama. For romance and picturesque
ness the latter will always bear the palm:
but Aspinwall, with its more common
place features and air of smart, Yankee
newness, is bound to run as far ahead Ct
the sleepy old Spanish town in substantial
prosperity as Northern thrift and enter
prise distances Southern sloth and indo-
lence-romantic and picturesque though
the latter may be.
The American town was named in honor
of Colonel Aspinwall, one of the original
promoters of the railway and the shrewd-
est of merchants Its population has been
variously estimated, and probably changes
with times and seasons-but about seven
thousand viii approximate fair average.
The town contains number of good
hotels, one of which boasts of being able
to contain six hundred guests 1t has also
the only Protestant Episcopal Church in
Central America, besides several "mis-
sions Methodist, Baptist and Presby-
ferdinand a number of Catholic sanctu-
aries.
There are also American and Spanish
newspapers, commodious and well-con-
Quoted hospital, and very handsome build
4iiSS W lnc IdIlIOdu company.
The great depot is exactly in the center of
the town, connected by track with the
wharf at which steamers land-a change,
indeed, from the old days, when the only
way Of crossing the Isthmus was on dom
key-back, goods and all
Among AspinwalPs other attractions is
lovely drive around the island, called the
Paseo Coral (coral boulevard), because the
1rlo taalc IL. IL 4 i
bed of coral rock. Everybody patron
ICES the Paseo at the sunset hour, on foot
or IN coche. On the farthest point of the
island stands lofty lighthouse, whose
revolving eye throws yellow CLEAN far
over the stormy waters. Though Navy
Bay is the best harbor on the eastern coast,
with sufficient depth Of water for the
largest vessels. and anchorage room for
half the commerce of the world, yet it is
woefully subject to the "northers" that
are such terror to mariners on the Mex
lean Gulf
No fewer than seven lines of mail
steamers make Aspinwall their port of
destination, via Panama, rendering it the
chief entrepot, not only between Califor-
MIA and the Atlantic States, but between
England and countries beyond the Pacific.
II We THAI ASDlIlWall
is only about two thousand miles from
New York City, forty-nine miles from
Panama City, and equi-distant $500
miles from those two great tradIns-posts,
Valparaiso and San Francisco.
Formerly the climate here was very I'M
healthy, but Yankee neatness, assisted bv
thorough and enlightened system of
drainage, has made the little island about
ba LII L.
Spanish America. Only eight miles away
IS the old Spanish town of Chagres, G port
at the mouth of the river of the same
name. 1t was once the principal city of
the section, but has suffered almost total
eclipse since Aspinwall was built. 1t is
divided into two towns, one on each side
of the river, that on the left bank being
styled the American Chagres. because
settled principally by people from the
United States. The ether is the old Span
lsh village, and has a mongrel population
of Mexicans, indians, Negroes, Creoles. |
Cards, Spaniards and Englishmen. Both
towns are little better than collections of
rude huts, miserable, psor, dirty and I'M
healthy, their only importance being as a
mail station between Great Britain and
the western coast of the two Americas.
Chagres harbor viii Accommodate only
vessels drawing not more than ten or
twelve feet of water, and at all times is ex-
tremely difficult of entrance, requiring a
fair vivid. When once inside, however, /
ships are perfectly secure, SO far as the ele- |
ments are Concerned, no matter what |
storms may rage upon the open gulf; and |
for that reason it is much sought during |
the season OF northers.
The great river upon which the twin |
towns lie rises some thirty miles north of |
Panama city and traverses a fertile coun-
try. But though from twenty &c fifty feet |
deep, it is not navigable because broken
BY numerous cascades and owing to the |
rapiditv of its current It's afslaents-the |
rivers PeqGeni, Gatuu and La Trinidad-
are ali considerable streams, and aspon its
banks, farther in the interior, are several |
towns, each infinitely better than Chsgres.
On this coast are also found nlaav of
those places whose names we're fatuilisz in
our sc.,ooi-days and map-drawing expert
ences-the Gulf of Darien (near its east
ern extremity Port E-cocesa, the haEba-
of San Bias, Caledonia Bay and the ChiEie
qui lagoon. The last-named, pronounced
CHI ree-kiel, includes the river, lagoon
and archipelago, and belongs mostly to the
adjoining StsYa Of Costa Rico der,arfn,ent