New-York tribune., 1891-04-22

! the San Juan from the Costa Rlca Nils anu
further up the San Carlos from the same side,
while from the north there are innumerable rivu-
let's trckling from secret fountains in the heart
of the forest. The San Juan is the only high
way through this impenetrable wilderness. 1t
seems TO have been designed by nature as an
interoceanic water route
The first night is passed at the junction of the
San Juan and Colorado. On the second after
noon Ochoa is reached at the entrance to the
highlands. This is the point where the great
dam is to be built so as to increase the depth
Of water in the river and to convert it into
ship channel navigable at all seasons. What can
now be seen is O little creek, the Machado, on
the north bank with high wooded hills on each
side of the river The canal will enter the river
at this point, thrty-one and third miles in o
direct line from Greytown via the Deseado and
San Francisco basins. The dam is to be 1880
feet long, with abutments OF $50 feet, and is
to be built of rOclS-fllMg and earth-backing
averaging 6l feet in height above the river
bottom, % feet in thickness at the top, and 500
feet at the bottom. The material for this dam will
be brought by the construction railway from the
Divide, where the great cut is to be made Since
many dams have been built of larger dimensions
than those of Ochoa, this engineering work is not
to be considered either impracticable expert
abutment bills and the structure be heavily
weighted with large stones and provided with sub
stantal concrete walls, it will be strong enough to
resist flood pressure during the rainy season. The
effect of the proposed dam will be to create a
slack-water channel 1000 feet wide with depths
ranging from 20 10 130 feet. Large areas Of
river bank and forest will be flooded, and the
river san Carlos, now insignificant creek, will
be enlarged into spacious lagoon navigable for
O
The channel as II is now seen at low water Is
ObstTucted by series of rapids. AT Machuca,
where little creek flows into the San Juan
from the north, there Is double bend with an
island midway in the stream. Double lines of
rapids are found which cannot be passed by
freight is transferred to barges, which are
cautiously poled up the rapids, an operation
requrIng about three hours. The passengers
have 10 choose between following their baggage
in the barges and walking two miles through
the forest over rough trail. Then in due course
of Nicaraguan time, which is the slOweSt reach
of the pendulum on the planet q little steamer
the Adele, comes down from Castillo and rescues
the passengers from the Tayages Of mosquitoes
and the pangs Of hunger. The Bolas rapids are
not far away are the Mico rapids where line
Of rocks stretches across the river. The Adele
hangs off the rocks at least five minutes unable
to make headway against the current although
pressure is above the safety mark. The same
experience is repeated the next morning, when
d
tram-routc, ana another steamer, the Norma, has
been boarded under the shadow of the old fortress
The TOro rapids are not considered the worst on
the river, but passengers are very thankful when
they are out of the putting and sweating steamer
Before getting into the rapids the Norma ties
mp along Shore fires up her furnaces, ana when
the steam is at a dangerously high point shoots
out into the stream to struggle labOriously
against the current and to gain upon it by
inches. With hundred passengers huddled about
a boiler which would probably be condemned in
leisure
the consequences of an explosion.
The construction Of the OchOa dam will cover
all these rapids, except the Toro, with twenty
three feet-pf water in the dry season. AT Ma
chuca and Castillo some blasting will have TO be
done, but at Toro and other points in the upper
reaches of the river dredging to the depth Of
l-2 feet will be required shipcharnel of
great breadth and depth will be obtained with
very little effort and expense, apart from the
twenty-One embankments will have TO be bulit
for the control Of the increased volume OF water,
which is to be maintained at a level Of lo6 feet
above the sea. For "a 1-2 miles from
0choa to San Carlos, there is q natural ship
channel which only needs TO te deepened during
the dry season and dredged in few places From
across Lake Nicaragua, to the canal. which is
to end at Brito Nature has furnished l21 miles
OF this lnteroceanc waterway ont of hand.
With the passage of the Toro rapids, the trav-
eilers vlcssltudes are at an end. The Managua.
the best steamer of the line, makes a quick and
delightful passage to San Carlos the lake, and
transfers its passengers directly 70 the Victoria,
which crosses the lake i'll twenty-four hours,
calling at various stations. The accommodations
of the line only failed me at one point Castillo,
where had 70 beg for a cot in the agents Office,
since there were no hotels in tie town and no sleep
ing cabins in the steamer. In Castillo the GUS
toms line had to be run, and it was as dangerous
an operation as shooting the rapids. Ny M
fortunate little friend who had lost bis unde
veloped negatives by the soaking of his baggage at
Colorado bar here met with another misfortune,
He had been taking few photographs with his
camera the way up the river using glass plates,
which had been saved from the wreck. These
negatives he had wrapped up in black paper and
concealed in his trunk. The customs official
Gshed il out and sternly demanded the nature of
so Susplcious-looking parcel. The amateur
photographer, coached by an interpreter, explained
that the package contained undeveloped negatives
from a camera, which would be ruined by eX-
posure 10 light. That did not matter The OFF,
cial must know what those mysterious things were.
The package was opened and the negatives Of
river scenery ruined. Then il was that my fellow
traveller closed his camera with bang aud offered
20 sell il at 2j per cent Of the original investment
Between the Colorado bar and the Castillo custom
house there enough certainly % dishearten
the most cheerful and philosophical artist in the
field OF travel.
During this journey up the San Jnan have been
On each Of the seven steamers Of the Nicaraqua
Steam Mail and Navigation Line, and have fully
appreciated the difficulty of moving either freight
or passengers during the dry season. The New
York visitors who % GO over the same route
during the next fortnight will return TO the United