Waterbury evening Democrat., 1888-05-02
PROGRESS AT PANAMA.
WHEN, IF EVER. WILL THE GREAT
 CANAL BE FINISHED?

There Are No Engineering Problems In-
 volved That Cannot be SoIved-IncOm-
 petent Men in Charge-Win Americans
 Have to Finish the Work?
 The great question that has been discussed here for the past few years and is still the all-absorbing topic of conversation is as to when, if ever, the great Panama canal will be finished Count Ferdinand de Lesseps has named 1890 as the year when he intends to sail across his water route from the Atlantic to the Pacific ocean, but is is considered very doubtful whether he will live to see the work completed. The French engineers all differ in their estimates of when the canal will be opened to commerce, and there are many who do not believe that the work will ever be finished Those who have made careful examinations of the proposed route of the canal admit that there are no engineering problems that cannot be solved. The best experts of all nations and schools of survey ing have been over the ground and find noth- ing more than the ordinary obstacles that are constantly met with in undertakings of such magnitude.
 INCOMPETENT ENGINEERS.
 The trouble seems to be with the men who have this gigantic undertaking in charge De Lesseps, who stands at the head of the great project is much better financier than engineer. He has had marvellous success in raising fabulous sums of money, and so far has been able to secure all the funds ,"'.ssary. His influence among his fellow countrymen is astonishing, and millions of francs are sub scribed at his mere asking The canal has become matter of national pride with the French, but it is feared that the death of De Lesseps will see the end of the canal. He is already very old man, and at the best it will take five more years to complete the work. In this time an enormous amount of money will have to be spent, and only the employment of the best engineering talent and lavish outlay will see the work finished. The men at the head of the mechanical part of the work are thought to be incompetent. They are French engineers from rEcole Poly technique in Paris. They have ideas that differ from those of the practical American engineers, and will pay no heed to sugges- tions from other than graduates of that par ticular school To them, it is said, is due the slow progress that has been made, and as long asthey remain in charge the canal will never be completed
 E The best work that is being done now is in the hands of the American Dredging com pany, which has contract for the lower part of the canal from Colon to Borio. Here the work is being carried on with practical system. Steam dredges and the best ma chinery are used, and skilled American work men are employed. The American Dredg- ing company receives $500, 900 month, and it's work is highly satisfactory and remarka- bly, quick. Along the other parts of the ca nal negroes and French laborers are working with pick and spade, and the progress is slow and uncertain. Here the French engineers are in charge, and the inferiority of their work seems to be apparent to everybody but the managers of De Lesseps' company. The method employed by the American dredgers is not unhealthful, while the laborers who work with pickax and shovel contract levers and malarial diseases and die by hundreds. This again puts the work back and causes a constant importation of laborers to fill the places of the men who drop out every night when the roll is called.
 THE CHAGREs RIVER.
 The great question of the Panama canal, or, rather, the problem to be solved before the Panama canal can become canal, has always heen the Chagres problem. How to dispose of that river, and how to lay it's new bed so that it would not interfere with the canal has been @ question which many have tried to settle. Near Bas Obispo, to the eastward of the high hill, is deep valley,
 
 tended to lead the Chagres. Two years ago the canal company decided to lead the | Chagres river into large basin or reservoir, which was to be built in the valley of Obispo. | This idea has been abandoned, however, and | the canal company has concluded to bring the entire Chagres away from the canal east ward As soon as the necessary conduits which are to lead the Chagres from its original bed, are completed the old river bed will be filled in. This seems to be the best plan of disposing of that troublesome water Another change of the original plan as pre- sented to the first stockholders of the cana company has been made. It had been in 1 tended to build the canal on the sea level that is, remove all the earth along the routt until certain level nine meters below tho | level of Aspinwall was reached. The Panama entrance to the canal was to be supplied witt @ lock.
 Today the Frenchmen think that this may cost too much money and now, in order tt have the canal opened as soon as possible, in tend to put eleven locks along the route iron Colon to Panama By this plan vesse coming from Colon will go through fv locks until gradually raised to the level O. Culebra, from which point it will be low cred again in the same manner toward tn Pacific side M Jacquier, the director gen 0Ie1l VI U140 Ccal1dA SOAiPoAJ, odAAhS oieos U. adopting this course, he will succeed in les sening the expenses of the enterprise ant hasten the opening of the canal The none. raised from the ships going through tn canal is to be utilized along the canal rout by gradually doing away with the differen locks. The water for the upper locks whicl is to float the vessels passing through them i to be supplied by heavy pumps which are t be erected at each lock station. The Ameri can engineers. as well as many of the Frencl surveyors, do not believe that the Panam Canal company will have the lock system above referred to carried out, and believ that it would cost nearly as much money t build locks as to excavate the canal down t its original depth of nine metres below tn I Atlantic sea level.
 It requires journey along the route o canal to gain conception of the magnitud of De l4esseps' undertaking. That the cana will some day be opened and the two ocean connected by means of a water way throug
 the Isthmus of Panama is generally concede
 here But it is not believed that De Lessep
 will live to see his great project accomplished
 nor is it thought that the French will be tn I <l.l