The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1898-12-24
Nicaragua Waterway Will Require
$135,OOO,OOO at Least.
REPORT OF COMMISSION
NOW READY FOR THE SENATE
COMMITTEE.
Gives Many Details of the Construc-
tion-ochoa Dam Is a Colossal
Undertaking - Total Excavation
Will Be About 125, 100000 Cubic
Yards-Cut 200 Feet Deep.

New York, Dec. 23.-The preliminary
report of the Nicaraguan Canal COM
mission. consisting of General Haines,
Admiral Walker and Professor Haupt,
/ has been completed and will be read
before the senate committee, either
during the Christmas recess of congress
or Immediately afterwards. This re-
port will give many details of con-
structiOn in regard to the proposed
route and will give a close figure on the
entire cost Of the undertaking, as far
as human ingenuity can foresee.
A summary of these costs has been
made out in sections and without going
/ into the details of curves and levels
they are as follows:
The eastern harbor and jetties will
require about 100000 cubic yards of
soft excavation. The jetties themselves
require about 100000 cubic yards of rip
rap stone.
The Greytown section of the canal
that is. the section beginning at the
harbor and reaching to the east divide,
Will require 16,0000 900 cubic yards of
earth and clay excavations.
The three locks in this section viii
cost in the neighborhood of 100000
complete, with 5000, 600 yard excavation.
This section is about thirteen and a half
Z
jungle country near the coast. There
viii be 200 acres OF clearing and grub
bing also in this section. The Incl
dental expenses will amount to lirrl le
besides those above enumerated; the
fore they are omitted.
The divide section reaches from here
through the higher range of hills TO
UWenty-fOur miles further. There are
seven and one half million cubic yards
s,r, IL
lion yards Of earth ana clay. The
depth of this cut Will be mitigated by
the height of the canal, which is here
l12 feet above the sea. The canal cut
ting will be about 200 feet in the deep
est part.
From here begins the Ochoa section,
which runs through the San Francisco
basin and Florida lagoon. This is
low country and the cutting which will
reach to the 0choa dam, thirty-four
and one-half miles from the Caribbean
sea, viii only add 10,000,o00 yards to the
figures, making a trifle over 40000,000
cubic yards to the dam.
From here q summary of the cut
through the San Juan river viii ag-
gregate 34,0e0,o00 cubic yards with
about 100000 more for curve WIDEN
ing, and 1000 acres clearing and grub
bing. This Will not include any of the
channel cutting the bed of the San
Juan river. This makes 100000 cubic
yards of all grades of cutting to lake
Nicaragua.
The cost of the Ochoa dam, upon
which rests the entire feasibility of
the route, has not been accurately com
puted, as the undertaking is of so
colossal a. nature as to be beyond figur-
ing within a unit or even more The
dam viii be over 500 feet in length, its
foundation seventy-fiye feet below the
bed of silt in the river bottom and its
rise over 100 feet. AS the river Will
have TO be turned from its course dur
ing its construction, it will be seen that
many details will have to be taken into
consideration for an estimate OF its
cost.
The San Carlos embankment will cost
several million dollars and the esti-
mates are being made The cuts in the
shallow part of the lake will aggregate
100000 yards, making a total of S5,-
600, GOO to the western division of the
canal. The estimates for the western
division have not been made yet. They
are under the direction of Admiral
Walkers son, V. w. G. Walker, and
they will amount to not less than 80
100000 cubic yards more, making a total
of 100000 cubic yards of all kinds
of excavation to the harbor at Brito
and allowing 100000 cubic yards for
dredging here the total estimate will
come to nearly 125 coo. .000 yards, exclu-
sive of ali dams and embankments. 1t
VIII be seen that $135, ,O00, 900 will be a
conservative estimate of the entire
cost of the canal and this almost agrees
with that of General W. Ludlows re-
port of 1896