Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1890-11-18

TALK WITH CIVIL ENGINEER FRANK p. DAVIS
WORK on THE HARBoR OF GREYrowS-cLEAR-
ING sRouyD FOR THE oAsAL-DrrFIcuLrIEs
ENCOUNTERED.
'Tve been living in the tropics for year
and a hail. said Mr.. Frank p. Davis to STAR
reporter this morning, land / am here on
leave Of absence for the purpose Of getting q
breath of fresh ai-"
Mr. Davis is division engineer on the Nicara:
qua Canal, and ranks next to Chief Engineer
Menocal.
Work is going on steadily" said Mr.. Davis
in response to question. During tho past
year there has been most satisfactory progress
Fully 900 feet Of the breakwater at the en-
trance to the harbor at the eastern terminus
has been constructed-:here will be 100 feet
of it when completed-and il has accomplished
moro than We had expected Of il. 1t has given
US an opening from the sea to the San Juan Ia
COON 600 feet wide, with an undredged depth
larger vessels to enter the lagoon THAI had
been able to get in for the past twenty seven
years. Now We have two dredges
CUTTING A CHANNEL
across the bar to secure q depth Of twenty feet
and II the weather continues reasonably good
that channel will be open by the LIST of next
January. That will be OF incalculabie advan-
tage to us. Ocean steamers may then come
right up to our wharf In still water and there
discharge their cargoes. Under the present
primitive arrangement cargoes have 10 be dis
charged into lighters out on the open
This open-ses discharging has been the most
fruitful cause Of delay in our work of co.,
struction- Il was impossible to unload loco
motives in rough weather and we never had
any other kind of weather when locomotives
had to be delivered. As a consequence we
have had to send our lighters and tugs to Corn
Island, eighty miles away. where the locomo-
tives could be transferred still water; at
other times the lighters have been taken to
Monkey Point, thirty miles distant, for the
same purpose. At the railroad terminus We
have completed n substantial wharf. which is
equipped with a steam derrick and the necos-
sary railroad tracks. As soon as the channel
has been cut through the bar We can transfer
supplies directly from the steamers to the
cars
TEN MILES OF RAILROAD NEARLY DONE.
"How is the railroad progressng?'
"All right. Ten miles of road have been
completed and will be in operation by Janu-
airy 1. The value of this road can scarcely DO
over-estImated. for without il no heavy mac him
cry could be gotten into Big Divide Cut. where
there will be the heaviest piece of excavating
on the entire route. 1t is also important be-
It affords the only means OF securing
rock with which to fill up the breakwater.
None but those who have been there can
realize how difficult was the construction OF the
first six miles of that road. The primary
foundation was very wet swamp. Then We
built up long corduroy above high water and
on the corduroy We laid temporary stringers
and the track. Dirt was dumped in and the
sIilrOad was ready for business. The corduroy
was built up entirely by manual labor, the
workmen being III from two to four feet of
water ali the time.
WORK on THE CANAL.
ION the canal itself the only actual work done
Is clearing. The right of way has been
cleared for about eleven miles from the eastern
terminus. known popularity as Greytown Five
or SIX survey parties have been continually in
the field completing the final location of the
canal and railroad and also making careful de-
tail surveys for locks. dams and other i'm
portsnt works. Test borings have been made
over the route. Earth sugers and diamond drills
have revealed the character of the material
that must be eIcavsted-and the revelations
are most satisfactory. In the Big Divide Cut
one boring was made every 600 feet. There the
boring, have been carried to the bottom of the
canal-in some cases to depth of 800 feet
and the rock brought up was very favorable.
1t Is very easy to work and yet 10 of sufficient
hardness to stand well.
HOW THE MEN LIVE.
"'The company has erected q good many
permanent buildings in the vicinity of the
eastern terminus-quarters for employees, shops
and store houses. The hospital facilities have
also been largely added to-"
Where do you get your drinking water
from?" asked the reporter.
From above. We have large tanks and In
these rain water stores ITSELF Well water is
NO good You don't have to 20 more than a
couple Of feet below the surface to get it; it
just drains through from the swamps Twelve
miles away from our headquarters is a small
mountain stream. and as soon the railroad
goes far enough to enable us to distribute the
pipe by its aid we will have spring water to
drink.
HEALTH OF THE FORCE.
THE health of officers and men has been ex-
cellent With fourteen hundred men at work
the average number in hospital has been about
Fifty and the average duration Of individual
sickness is five days.
"ADd the diseases? Nearly all light fevers.
The total number of deaths in the past eighteen
months was twenty. OF these Ave were ACCT
dental and five were caused by diseases which
were In nowise attributable to the climate
Not one of the officers died from sickness
About eighty of the force are from the United
States; the laborers are either Jamaicans or
natives of Nicaragua
when will the canal be completed? trihe
hard to answer" and Mr.. Davis shook his head
and smiled If there is plenitude of capital
the canal can be ready for business within six
years"