The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1896-01-07
COST OF NIcARAGUES CANAL.
RELIEF THAT IT CAN BE BUILT
FOR $6O.OOO,OOO.

,,.s;dent Bartlett Expresses the
o,ipfon That IL VIII Not Be "A More
rxpensive Undertaking Than the
,tauchester ship CanaI-He Points
out That IL VIII Not Be Subject to
Many of the Expenses Necessary in
,be Case of the English " aterway.
london. jan 6.-In an interview with
Bartlett, president of the Niearag-
On canal Company. in London yester-
Jaw an United Press reporter was in
r,-n,ed by that gentleman that he had
inst returned from visit TO the Manches-
ter ship canal
NV thanks are due" said Mr.. Bartlett.
.-o Sir John Jackson and the executive
s-an Of the canal for the facilities they
,Tered me in my examination. 1 was
entertained in Manchester and a steam
,.sabt was placed at my disposal. 1 was
inch eratifed at what 1 saw and sur
,rfsed at the magnitude Of the work.
The amount of excavation in construct
inc the canal was in excess of 46.O00000
cubic yards in rock and earth. nearly
as much as will be required in the en-
lire construction of the Nicaragua canal
The cost of the Manchester canal, about
1sWoO0O. was largely enhanced by land
MANAGES and the building of ViaductS ana
G~idges. sewers, gas pipes, water pipes,
rivers and canals, all had to be taken
5fnder or over the canal, work OF great
exDense and magnitude which does not
baiong properly to the expense OF con-
s+ruction of the canal per Sc.
None of this extra work VIII be re-
ouired in the construction of the Mic
aragua canal, as it runs through a coun-
trv not populated and where no railway
bridges have to be constructed to secure
a right of way at the expense OF the
canal 10 accommodate existing lines. L
am. therefore, satisfied upon examlna-
son of the physical facts and items of
cost that the entire excavation IN rock
ana earth and building of locks upon
the Nicaragua canal Will not exceed that
In repIy to a question as to what En-
glish capitalists thought of the report OF
Inc Nicaragua commission; Mr. Bartlett
said he found that the English simply
smiled at the army engineers report, and
that il was looked upon here as the re-
mort of British army engineers would be
looked upon. No attention would be paid
to il for the reason that they We're the
last men to be conversant with such a
great work, and that their estimates are
always TOO high and usually guessed at.
If was known all over the word that
construction under army engineers would
cost double what 1t would under the best
Nr Bartlett further said it had also
been commented on here that the COM
nissiOners evidently went to Nicaragua
10 criticise and condemn the work Of
others. and it was considered significant
that they only spent fourteen days eX-
aiming the line of the canal from the
Atlantic to the Pacific, and then were
loud in their criticisms of the work OF
experienced men, who spent years in
surveying the route and making plans
with care and al a cost Of several hun
bred thousand dollars. Then II was
thought that the commissioners did not
hesitate to guess at the result, doubling
The figures given by the experienced en-
gineers The report was generally con-
sidered unfair and absurd and its ind
ings unworthy of confidence.
Mr.. Bartletts personal opinion, from
what he saw by the papers, was that the
commissions report dealt unfairly with
the company ana by the general govern
ment, and that the statements made OF
costs and many particulars were utterly
unWarranted and not based on even the
pretense of any survey, as the commits
sion ran no levels and made no measure
ments or bearings, which any conscien-
tious and experienced engineer would sure
ly make before guessing at the cost over
the heads of the older and more eXper-
fenced men who had made surveys and
hearings and had demonstrated what the
quantities were by actual measurement
That to say the least, was unprofes-
sional and indicated some special animus
or reason for making such a ridiculous
report. 1t would fail, however to ac-
cOmplsh the purpose evidently aimed at
because it would be answered as soon as
the President sent 1t to congress. No fair
minded man could read what was puO-
lished in the report without being con-
making such statements on such INSULT
Cent data