The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1899-01-11
NICARAGUA NO GOOD
General Abbott Says We Should Buy
the Panama Canal.
SHORTER AND BETTER
oNE-FoURTH THE LENGTH OF
NICARAGUA ROUTE.
Eighteen Miles of the Canal Now Ex-
cavated and 5000 Men Are at
Work-can Be Completed For
Much Less Than the Nicaragua
Canal.


New York. Jan. 1O.-Brigadier Cen
eral Henry L. Abbott, retired, has ar
rived here from France on the steamer
La Champagne. He was accompanied
by NJ. Charon, who is said to be con-
nected with the new Panama Canal
company. General Abbott, who was a
member of the international technical
commission, composed Of engineers Of
the United States, France, Russia,
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 Washington to
lay before the United States govern
ment ali the information he possesses
regarding the inter-oceanic waterway
at the isthmus Of Panama He said
that the French government had no
longer anything to do with the pro-
posed canal and that the company
could dispose of its interests in the
work to the United States to the United
States without opposition from any
source, provided the terms offered were
satisfactory. He further said that the
new canal company. with the o., 900 900
francs which it possessed when it Sc
cured control of the big cut, has simply
been doing the preliminary work neces-
sary on account of the mistaken ideas
of the old engineers. Now all obsta-
Chagres river during the period of
freshets. have been arranged for, and
the old idea of making the connection
between ocean and ocean has been
modified so that the part that is yet
to be finished will be built on the lock
principle.
Two-ffths of the entire canal work
iC a11N- OF J Ia1
ance under active construction, with
5000 Workmen and a large force of en-
gineeSs. Thus far about fourteen miles
of the tideWater part Of the canal On
the Atlantic side have been completed
and are navigable to vessels drawing
twenty-eight feet of water. There are
a few bars that only need dredging to
make ii pasSable for vessels of greater
depth. Beyond that point there has
been considerable excavation to the /
twenty-one-mile line from the Atlantic. |
Over four miles of the tidewater work |
on the Pacific side of the canal have |
also been finished.
General Abbott says the new plans |
for the completion of the Panama. canal |
are perfectly 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 Nicaragua canal.
Were the two routes completed to- |
day. said General Abbott. ..eight yes /
sells TO one would prefer the Panama
route, because it is only forty-six miles
across, and the Nicaragua course will
be four times that length, and the
Windings Of the San Juan river are
very short and sharp.
There is no reason why this country
should not take hold of and finish the
Panama canal. President Mckinley
mas recently been furnished with the
fuli report of the International technf- |
cal commission, and the present status
Of the canal, as stated, may be the
means of the abandonment Of the
Nicaragua project by this government
ana the completion by the United
states of the Panama route l have
oeen called TO Washington for consulta-
ton and can talk intelligently on any
subject concerning the canal
Ihere are no active volcanoes with
n zOO miles Of the canal, and there are
no troublesome winds or river currents
20 be encountered even in times of
low. The time of transit for vessels
.hrCuSh the canal VIII be less than q
lay, and merchant and war vessels of Z
ne largest size can be accommodated.
mere is nothing in the physical condi-
ION on the lstnmus to prevent a sea-
eve. canal, should the latter seem de-
ilrable in the future
Inc estimates of cost of the compile
ION OF the canal have been established
rom the experience acquired during
ne last four years of actual work on
ne Isthmus, and is reported By the
technical commission as follows: Cost 4,
u the work proper. under plans adort- +.
"a. SSL0OO,eC0 add for contingencies.
l5.40O,cO total. s1O2 100000. If beth
ockS be built with z width of SECS
eet. the cost would be increased To
1z5. 900. coo. -
Such. in brief, is the present status =
Il the Panama canal, and if this gov
rnment does not take advantage of the ..
nance now offered it. the waterway of !
ne isthmus will be completed by pri- !
ate capital. It will then be in opera
ION years before the rival scheme
nished, and being a shorter route from
cean TO ocean, would be a financial :
uccess- while the other cut, if ever
srred out would be a failure in more
9ays than one" |