The herald., 1898-11-30
The PANAMA CANAL co.
HASN'T THE LEAST IDEA OF
SELLING OUT
But Director General Hulin Would
Like to Know How America
Feels About Buying

NEW YORK, Nov. ga. Hulin, d.
rector-general OF the new Panama Canal
Company, has come over from Paris to see
what this government thinks about the wa
ter route between the Atlantic and the
Pacific. He protests that there is no inten-
tion on the part OF the French company to
sell the canal and says that it has only one
purpose IN view and that is to cut the big
dltch at once.
When asked if the published reports that
his company wanted TO sell out 10 the gov
ernlnenL was true, Mr.. Hulin said Alb
solutely no. Selling out is the last thing
we should think OF. We want to cut the
canal and we are ready to do it. We have
kept 1900 to 1000 men constantly employed
in digging the canal and a force of 5000
is now at work on the ditch.
What has been accomplished! Much.
We have actually dug eighteen miles OF the
total forty-six. Of these vessels are now ma
miles on the Pacific side. The canals depth
is % feet, though in some places silt has
made bars that would have to be removed
and can be removed easily. Our company,
which is the successor, by purchase, of the
de Lesseps Company has in assets, reckon
ing as such the machinery and accomplished
work, at least s75,OOO00O These assets have
been appraised at 95,OOO,0OO. We have
gone far enough to learn that the Panama
canal is entirely practicable and is the
shortest, cheapest and best water route
between the two oceans.
There We're formerly thought to be two
insuperable obstacles-the Chagres river
and the Cu,ebra cut. Both of these diff
culties have disanpeared before engineer
ing science. The Chagres river can be read
ily mastered and the cut through the Gu
Zebra mountains, which was once thought
impracticable because of the sliding earth
that filled the ditch as fast as it could be
dug. has turned out to be a comparativelv
simple problem. II has been found that
there is rock sub-stratum through which
the canal may be ont so that it cannot be
disturbed bv the sliding earth
Gan international technical commission
has recently examined the route Of our
canal. and will, I think, pronounce it en-
eral Fl. l. Abbott represented the United
States, and England and Germany were rep
resented by engineers who had experience
in diggira the great Manchester and Kiel
canals. General Abbott has given his view
in several articles in the periodicals. He
calls attention N these two facts: The Par
ana canal would be fortv-sv miles long and
the Nicaracna canal would he 176 niles. the
Panama wonld cost Slc0000.00n while the
Nicaragua would cost sla3000O00
''T nav add TO these facts given bv Cen
eral Abbott the important one that the
Panama canal can he comnleted in less than
half HE tins It would take to cut the water
wav across Nicaragua
When asked abo-t his object in going to
Wos hington. NJ. Hul'n said:
"NVn want to know lust what inte-ost the
United States take in the canal We are
not trvino to get tho rovernrert to huv us
ont but II is natural that the TTr;tad S+atas
heing r"ost deenlv affected bv thn crral. viii
feel leon interest in it. and it IS en,,allv
ratr~s' that we shor1d want tn learn irei
what thn ovta-t OF th"4 ir4o~est r,ov 10 =
Mr.. Hu'n will go to Washington in few
days