The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1898-01-20
CAME BACK FROM NICARAGUA.
VI. A. CONNOLLY, CHIEF CLERK OF
THE CANAL COMMISSION, HERE.


Left the Commission on Its Way to
Pay Its Respects to President Ze-
Inya-EIeven Engineering Parties
Have Been Equipped and Put in
the FieId-They VIII Work Along
the Proposed Route of the Canal
and Report TO the Commission.
What the Commission Expects to
Do.
Mr.. NJ. A. Connolly, chief clerk of the
Nicaragua Canal Commission, who has
been in that country with the commission
for the last month. is in the city, having,
it has been said, been summoned to APP
pear as a witness in the court martial
| proceedings now in progress.
Mr. Connolly left the commission Jan.
at Greytown, just as it was about to start
for the interior on a river steamer, placed
at its disposal by President Zelaya of that
republic. The commission has since reach
ed Managua, capital of Nicaragua, where
its members paid their respects to the
President and his cabinet.
Before the commissioners left Greytown
they appointed and equipped eleven diff
ferent parties, aggregating in all about
$50 engineers and laborers. All of the
engineers were carried there from the
United States on the Newport, with the
commission. No laborers being procura-
Bile in the vicinity Of 9Greytown, about $50
We're secured from Costa Rica, the neigh
boring republic. The commissions party,
when it left Key West, comprised 1OS men,
including engineers and assistants, and to
these other laborers were added on arrival
in Nicaragua.
These eleven parties, each under an as
sistant engineer, are now distributed
along the line of the proposed canal from
Greytown, the Atlantic terminus, 10 Brito,
the terminus of the canal on the Pacific
Ocean. These parties will be engaged in
the work Of gauging the San Juan river
and tributaries, making soundings of Lake
Nicaragua and running lines and levels
over the whole distance of the proposed
canal, for the purpose of ascertalning the
most advantageous route and TO procure
data on which TO base an estimate of cost.
At the time Mr. Connolly left nothing
but preliminary work had been done, but
he is confident that by this time reports
of work along the canal route are coming
in. The reports and other data from the
engineers will be placed in the hands of
the commissioners, who will make their
report from them to the President through
the state department.
The commissioners, after paying their
respects to President Zelaya, will proceed
to Rivas on the Pacific side where they
Will establish headquarters and remain for
about one month, for the purpose of max
ing an examination of Brito harbor and
the country west of the lake. After the
completion of this work they will return
to Greytown, examining the lake and the
San Juan river en- route. Thence they
will take the United States gunboat New
port for Port Limon, Costa Rica. From
there they will go to San Jose and pay
their respects to the President and cabi-
net to Costa Rica. At the conclusion of
those ceremonies the commissioners will
go down the coast of Colon, and thence by
rail to Aspinwall, taking occasion while
there to make an examination of the Pan
anna canal Then they will return to
Greytown and shortly thereafter to the
United States, the commission leaving the
working parties in the field to gather data
to enable the commission to continue their
studies of the canal question.
The people of Nicaragua, Mr. Connolly
says the looking forward hopefully to the
building of the canal. They were quite
enthusiastic, he states, in their reception
to the commission on its arrival, and the
Nicaraguan officials have done every
thing in their power to make the com
missioners visit a pleasant and profitable
one. From cabled advces it is reported
that the commission was royalty enter
| tanned by President Zelaya and cabinet at
Managua.
Mr.. Connolly left Bluefelds Jan. - on
the steamship Hiram, banana boat, and
arrived in New Orleans Monday night,
Jan. II, from where he came right to Sa-
vannah. The members of the commission
now in Nicara qua are Rear Admiral John
c. Walker United States navy; Col p
C. Hams, United States Army Corps of En-
gineers, and Prof. Louis NJ. Haupt, civil
engineer. They are accompanied by a
large staff of engineers and clerks.