Evening star., 1898-12-20
first two having a lift of 35la and the other

first two having lift of 35i2 and the other
40 feet. The first will be located nine and
three-fourths miles from the Greytown en-
trance, the second but a short distance fur
ther on, and the third thirteen and one
half miles from Greytown and at the en-
trance of the great divide. The canal from
this point westward will be at the normal
lake level. The estimate made by the com
mission for excavation is 1000, 900 cubic
yards of clay and 1000.00D of soft earth.
The commission figures the estimated cost
of cut stone, concrete, &c, in addition to
that of eXcavating, at about 50 000, 900. This
does not include the cost of intricate ma
chinery for manipulating both the guard
and lock gates and for the gates themselves
The commission does not propose to es-
timate the cost of constructing the OchOa
dam site, upon the building of which hangs
almost entirely the feasibility of the canal
by this route, which at this point is prac-
tically that of the Menocal survey. This
is due both to the colossal size of the dam
and the perpleXing problem of controlling
the flow of water in the San Juan during
the period of construction. A river with a
discharge of 10000 cubic feet per second
as asCertained by the commissions inves-
ugation, offers difficulties that will tax the
ingenuity and thoughtfulness of the most
advanced and astute engineers. 1t will be
absolutely necessary to divert the San Juan
from its natural course at this point tenn
porariy for the removal of the sand and
silt to anchor the dam to the hard. firm
rock 10 feet below. Both banks offer fine
facilities for planting and anchoring the
wings of the dam. The cutting from the
dam to the lake, it is estimated, will be
some 30,000,000 cubic yards.
Towns and Country to BE Submerged.
Raising the level of the water at Achoa
dam 10 feet must necessarily result in the
innundatfon of a vast area of country ly-
ing between the mountains on either side
of the San Juan from Ochoa to Lake Mic
aragua, involving a loss of millions of dol
lars. This area will only be estimated by
the commission, as the dangerous character
of the jungle and tropical growth prohibit
any attempt at surveying it. Along the
San Juan lie numerous towns of ancient
note and prominence which will be totally
submerged Castillo is one, a historic town
of some 5000 Inhabitants, with its massive
old custom house quaint and impressive
homes of CastilianS of high degree in the
far dreamy past, and an old bastion fort in
an advanced state of decay, built upon the
same plans and nearly about the same
period as the better preserved old coquina
fort at San Augustine, Fla. 1t is located
about half way between Ochoa and San
Carlos, on the lake, the terminus of the
eastern section of the canal. Castillo and
a number of villages and settlements would
disappear as if they had never existed.
Excavations in the lake will be necessary
at San Carlos on the east and Rio Grande
on the west side, the width decided upon
being 300 feet al the river mouths reaching
water. The distance across the lake from
San Carlos to the Rio Grande entrance on
the west side is forty-three miles. From
this Rio Grande entrance to the outlet at
BritOn harbor on the Pacific is thirty miles
the entire distance of the canal being near
by 40 miles.
The Western Section.
The western section of the canal presents
no such engineering difficulties the east
ern, hence the details of the survey have