The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1889-01-25
/ GREAT GUERRA CUT.
|esn1seps' Magnificent Victory
s. tiysr the sliding Mountain.
r.nana star and Hsala.

- a the tuttDId SrISsssi ~ tie F&H~1s
- most stapendous IF al the great
80 works. a. our readers are aware,
~ 10 10 a year or two ago. given
$3.50 concern even 70 the canal
s.uauv itself. while ignorant and
<.x;lr critics ernphaticaIly pro-
.~rced IL quite Impossible Of
-x-xrm<nt. The trouble had al
-. hen not that the hill range Of
=. adiyiier-or s.the summit. a. il
-. csiled--wss too hard TO be
-. bat, on the contrary that IL
=. reaerssIy too soft. The mere
s.s.;ax Vas easy enough, in its way.
- trouble was that no cut
- be permanently main
.se.d on account oi the
s..euuta;n side siiding into and
80 40 tbs excavations ~ soon as
- eere made. Thence arose the
zs-<ud Of the Isthmian sliding
.erptairs. and which were said 10
xfx tke prosecution OF the canal
Is Certainty ali efforts prior to
80 that have recently been made
r. rfrd1eesi H-uch the same result
- s soangster's frantic trials after
eS.fsy dividing q eand mound. An
srrao1s amount of money had been
~,rssf. bat CuIebra's grim, Satire face
81 if0wned proud defiance upon its
soukl-be yioIators and decisively
efSIIeneed man : boasted science q
eroeaer is massive unsosidarify III
20 nav be forgiven thu use OF 50
reyently psfaeoxieaI term.
5hen our preventative visited the
urtx The other day, he had not been
- ~ SCOT for 1T least six months.
/ "a ras therefore particularly able to
IN. conception u the amount o.
+ entfing that hsd been done within that
fme The whole riage Of the hill has
~ fut through by system OF ssaf-
frk<r graduating inward toward the
- 81 he canal proper. and the effect
Z which has been ~ Systematically
= auay the hill on both sides. 30 as
5 SCIENTIFICALLY amount TO leveiIng OF
i al Ii . series Of great sweeping
16ees from the proposed channel, and
= fnrh manner as 10 prscinsle the
lngfhiIify Of tie soft mountain sides
&6ing doxnwsrgi, ~ would have been
hesitahie in any cutting OF less gi-
nnlic magnitude.
From ti8i~ description those Of our
no6ers aho have little or perhaps no
mrsonal knowledge OF the locality may
hxb1s TO form some idea OF the nature
ID magnitude Of the achievement,
syeo 80 far a. II has gone.
0}epurse there Il yet an enormous
s1soant nj excavation 90 he done ere
~ IevefilIg even can be done satisfAc-
ns1ls, 10 say nothing of the proseeg-
Ten Of the work Of cutting the actual
eksnnel OF the canal. But the great
point has been attained of demon
lHatIng the feasibility OF the work al
u. Il has been a great work even
tkas far--one worthy OF engineering
11lsns, and IT. prosecutions to 50 sat
hfsetpry q stage OF development Is
nnething OF which 10th the company
~ the contractors may well fee
Fpud. although the cost has been fab.
1j9as. That, however. was In any
~ inevitable. As q whole, the canal
\ Panama il g 1itantic work. full oil
mrious engineering problems: and
MEN we consider that the Cuiebrs
10 vas nj one OF the most difficult
brts Of the work. and the most prob
NAUTICAL. ton. even prejudiced and
bstile critics must coucede that is
accomplishment up To the present
stage Is stapeustoas achievement. 1!
proves beyond dispute that the canal
can he cut through the sliding hills
OF Cslehra. and. ihdeed, as matter oi
Tact, IL leaves nothing more than an
enormous amount of ordinary exeaya
don 10 be accomplished. The prob
I'm has been solved.
And so In like manner, one after tn,
ether, all the problems that presente,
themselves In the way of this grea
work are being solved Every so-calies
aimpossibility" that has been encoun
iefrd has either already been or 1
king rendered possible by the con
tentraied force OF modern engineering
skil---we may even say s.genias
that has been focused upon Ii. ans
mes victory smiles for the indoulit
siie and persevering Grand Fran
ais" oil along the line OF his stupen
ipns undertaking.
Merely TO look at the machiner,
AAt is used Inv the operators at Gu
SRA i enough To take ones breath
way. Enormously powerful siredge.
~ mp the earth from the bed OF Tn,
a. and furee il throsgh Seem:agl,
1possible lengths of pile 20 is dies
szei resting pace, whist all alons
y sides 81 the cat n,iF kty exeavators
zaFing slowly along raslroad-trarks
~ away the bowels OF the mountain
| szh Incredible rapidity and deposii
y Debris In cars that bear IL away g.
= dumping grounds.
10 rapidly Ia this work proceeding
aat the whole physical aspect of the
Aslify anuergocs fficessant modifi.
utloE, snd, as may be inferred from
tsat we have said already. in the
Sure Of the last five ar six months il
hs been ~ completely changed rs 81
6asey at single cursory look around
tmast vivid conception Of the nature
I'D naagaisnsle of tho work being ae-
] empiishea.
Oar readers have already been made
s1aasntei with the great weFk of the
20 siranie dam. by which the waters
thss river are controlled and col
md BY ahont the end os
nxt Msreh the work of eSca-
Mon. il is expected. viii
s<ss - far advanced as so rem.
m possible the commencement of ae-
sN sesrsfiens an The work Of dredg-
z cal the actual channel OF the
a1A Rs that time the space be.
usn the tao dreG gers nox at work
= have been brought TO the neces-
kFel by the p excess 81 eSeava-
50 an The tiIper levels that is row
Aas en- as described.
ee nisdse of January the bridge
me Rio tsranGe that i nov being
taF the purpose Of DETECTING
ssasd from SIS present track
hes acroS> the proposed bed of
shal, and up Ia which the cutting
Afessiy practically reachesi-will
aassesed. and the new track will
~ teen laid In less than two
zssas time, therefore. the uefiec-
80 The railroad 81 this roint viii
een accomplished and one
49, Sep completed in the work al
So ssofa section of the Panama