The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1899-01-10
MACANALF FOR SALE
FRENCH GOVERNMENT NO LONGER
INTERESTED IN THE WATERWAY.
General Abbott En- Route to washing
ton to Make stntement-First
Mistakes Rectifed.

NEW YORK, Jan. Brig. Gen. Henry l..
Abbott, United States army, retired, arrived
here to-day from France on the steamer La
Champagne He was accompanied by NJ.
Choron, who is said to be connected with the
new Panama Canal Company General ABB
bolt. who was a member of the interna-
tional technical commission, composed of en-
gineers of the United States, France Rus
STA, England. Germany and Colombia, which
recently made an inspection of the plans and
work and suggested changes in the route of
the Panama canal is on his way to Wash
ington to lay before the United States gov
eminent all the information he possesses
regarding the interoceanic waterway at the
Isthmus of Panama. He said that the
French government has no longer anything
to do with the proposed canal, and that the
new company could dispose of its interest
in the work to the United States without
opposition from any source, provided the
terms offered were satisfactory
He further said that the new canal COM
pany, with the 65. 100000 francs which it pos
sessed when it secured the control of the
big cut, has simply been doing the prelim-
mary work necessary on account of the
mistaken ideas of the old engineers. Now
all obstacles, such as the overflow of the
Chagres river during the period of freshets
have been arranged for and the old idea of
making the connection between ocean and
ocean tideWater one has been modified so
that the part that is yet to be finished will
be built on the lock principle. TWO-fifthS
OF the entire canal work is now actually
completed and the balance under active con-
structiOn with three thousand workmen and
q large force of engineers. Thus far about
fourteen miles of the tidewater part of the
canal on the Atlantic side have been COM
pleted and are naVigable to vessels drawing
tWenty-eight feet of water. There are
few bars that only need dredging to make
1t passable for vessels of greater depth. Be
yond that point there has been considerable
excavation to the twenty-one-mile line from
the Atlantic. over four miles of the tide
water work on the Pacific side of the canal
have also been finished
General Abbott said the new plans for
completion of the Panama canal are per-
fectly feasible, and that the canal can be
completed in one-half the time and at much
less cost than it will take to dig the Mica
ragua waterway. Were the two routes
completed to-day" said Mr.. Abbott. 'eight
vessels to one would prefer the Panama
route, because it is only forty-siX miles
across and the Nicaragua course will be
the San Juan river are very short and
sharp. There is no reason why this country
should not take hold of and finish the Pana-
ma cut. President Mckinley has recent
ly been furnished with the full report of the
international technical commission, and the
present status of the canal as stated may be
ragua project by this government and the
completion by the United States of the
Panama route. l have been called to Wash
ington for consultation and can talk intel
ligently on any subject concerning the canal
WORK ON THE CANAL.
1.-THE report of the commission is prob
ably the most authoritative document ever
presented on an engineering subject. 1t has
been prepared with the greatest care after
the most thorough and competent investga-
ton and examination, with most exhaustive
surveys before the members which cover
every foot of the ground to be treated, and
~ the most experienced engineers of five
different nations. The total length of the
Panama canal is 1852 miles, including 1886
miles dredged in the Pacific to deep water.
The profile of the canal presents in the
central part high summit from which the
ground slopes gradually, although irregu-
larly, toward the low grounds adjacent to
the sea. The portions of the canal adj
jacent to the sea have been eXcavated, and
although the ChagreS river has been for
years flow ng through them, they can
be partially utilized. AT the present
time the topography of all the grounds in
VolVed in the project and the character of
the materials to be encountered are accu-
rately known and delneated, deep and ex-
tensive excavations, as well as soundings
and bOringS, have made known the sub
terranean strata underlying the surface, and
by those means no doubt is left as to the
soundnesS OF the materials through which
the canal is to be dug to great depths and
on Wn1Cn the foundations OF the locks, dams
ana other structures are to be established.
Sixteen different plans have been worked
out in detail, including estimates of cost and
time needed for construction. 1t is on these
complete data furnished by the engineers
and by the observations of its own members
on the isthmus that the international tech
meal commission has based it's conclusions.
THE original purpose of the old company
was to build a canal without locks freely
open from ocean to ocean, but after several
years of work the plan was abandoned, ow-
ing to the enormous excavation necessary
to cut the central mass of the mountains
(the culebra) and the difficulty and expense
of properly taking care of the occasional
tOrrential flow of the River Chagres. The
alternate plan which has been adopted by
the new company Is to reduce materially the
depth of the central excavation and to es-
tablish therein a system of locks, to be fed
from the Chagres river. In order to prop
erly regulate the flow of the river two large
dams Will be erected. One of the dams will
be located at Bohio, at the last group of
locks on the Atlantic side This dam will
transform the ChagreS into vast lake,
which will extend to Obispo, II distance of
thirteen miles, and will cover an area of
over tWenty-one miles The dam, besides act
ing as regulator of the Chagres floods,
will obviate strong currents where the ca
nal traVerses the bed of the river, an eX-
tremely important matter for ocean ship
THE other dam will be located at Atha-
Juela, on the Upper Chagres, about nine and
Cne-third miles from the canal 1t will
form reservoir covering ten miles, which
win be feeder to the summit level of the
canal. and will assist in effcctuaIly control
ling the floods of the Chagres. 1t will also
furnish hydraulic power transmitted by
electricity, for operating the locks and
lighting at night the entire canal from the
Atlantic to the Pacific
Both dams consequently can accumulate
a storage of at least 66,0G0O00.C0o gallons.
which. with proper adjustable weirs, will be
more than sufficient to control the largest
freshets known.
THE stimate of cost of the completion of
the canal have been established at the eX-
perience acquired during the last four years
of actual work on the isthmus, and is re-
Of the work proper under plans adopted.
$S7 C0e 600: for contingencies $100, 400 900; to-
tai, $102 10000. If both locks be built with
creased to 1925, 600 600"
AWFUL WRECK.
Concluded from First Page1
other mangled bodies we had extricated