Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1897-03-16
PANAMA CANAL REPORT.
Plan for The Construction as Suggest
ed by The Commission.
More Than Thrte Thousand Men -
Work Along tho Line ana
More Needed.

NEW YORK, March l6.-The Herald
this morning publishes tho following
special correspondence from Panama,
Colombia.
From data furnished the Technical
commission employed on the survey Of
the Panama canal, to arrive at the
most feasible and financially practical
plan for its construction, a report has
been made by the directors, showing
the plan OF work for the present. In
part 1t ssyt:
"rhe profile OF the lock canal will
be as follows: The elevation Of the
summit level COTTON OF capsO will be
thirty-four metres ebove mean sea
level. Though the elevation OF thirty
four metres Is adopted as starting
point for the proposed WORK, 1t Ia not
to be considered rs Interchangeable.
"Ihe Company will epdeavor, either
during its Investigation or while work
Is In progress, to lower ss far as possible
the channel at the divide below the
elevation thirty-tour metree sht uid the
condition for excsvsting the the large
cutting, which will constitute the
ulvile, DC fOunu taVoraole.
"The barber channel at the Atlantic
end would he at about mean sea level,
the tide being OF no account at that
point. The harbor channel at the Paci-
ic end, will, on the contrary, vary
between the elevation OF high tide anu
the elevation OF low tide. The total
rise from the bottom OF the sea chan.
mel to the above mentioned elevation
OF "a meters would be 43 meters on the
Atlantic side aud would reach SO
meters on the Pacific side.
"The rice will be provided for by
i've looks on each slope.
"rhe maximum lift OF each lock
has been put up at 10 meters and this
Is one OF the considerations which
have determined the elevation OF the
bottom summit level channel TO
not greater than 81 meters.
"On the AIlsptIc slope are two SUE
cessive locks at The kllOmetric point,
"a at Bohio SolisdO aud three succe.-
sive locks ut Ooispo. Ga The Pacific
slope are one iuck at MirHiiUres, two
successive locke ut Pedro Miguel and
TWO successive locks at Paradise.
"The water supply for tue canal
| will be taken from the Chagres river
by means OF dam to be erected at a
higher point anu from there carried
| to the summit level canal. A very
favorable site for the erection OF this
| retaining dam Ia found at AlhaJuela.
The water Will BIS carried either by
metal conduits under pressure b.
open bitches, or by combination OF
the two tystems.
The LOCKS will be built sufficiently
large to accommodate the largest trad
| ing vessels.
They will be In pairs OF a clear
| length OF 200 metres and width of
| % metres Tor one and is metres for the
other. In the Vicinity OF the high
and low locks there will be various
| docks for the vessels 30 rs to facilitate
their movements as they pass In and
out anu to allow them TO pass among
| those waiting at the docSs.
"At the summit level which in
! cludes the great cutting ut the divide
about seven kilometsIs in length the
normal width OF the canal will be 20
metres at the bottom and 80 metres at
the water Hue. At the two ends of thu
| channel near the locks there will be
| formed by the building OF dame at.
tached to the locks TO close the
| channels small lakes forming anchor.
ages and waiting basi us for the ves-
| sels.0
Toward the middle of the channel q
basin Will be constructed to paHs yes.
| sels.
at ia proposed TO give the entrance
| OF the channel on the Pacific side "a
| width at the bottom OF 80 metres with
long stops OF Avs to one, on account oil
the swampy nature OF the gr0unds."
Under those conditions vessels could
pass one another throughout the en-
ire length OF the channel.
"The above described plan will re.
quire change In location OF the
Panama railroad In the portion be.
tween BohiD and Mlrafiores tor u dis
lance OF about forty kilOmeters.
"This change In location will be
made to the east OF the canal 80 as to
avo Did tie raiir old crossing the canal. -
This company h 3 at WORK now, more
than 5000 men Distributed along the
line, anu one OF the directors has just
returned from Jamaica where he mas
been to arrange to bring several
thousand laOorers here 70 push the
work.