The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1900-05-15
DISCUSSED ISTHMIAN CANAL.
COMMITTEE OF BUSINESS MEN
TO GIVE DATA FOR SAVANNAH.

Small Audience I'm the Mayors
ONCE, Telling of the History of
the Movements for a CnnaI-He Is
Chairman of a Committee of the
Commission That Seeks Informal
tiOn as to the Value of Such a Ca
nal to the United Stntes-Commit-
tee Called for by a Resolution to
Furnish This Information Regard
ing Savannah.
The interest taken by Savannahians in
the scheme the government is considering
for the construction of a canal across the
isthmus uni ing North and South America
was scarcely indexed by the number
which gathered yesterday afternoon at
the City Exchange to hear an address
upon the subject by Prof Emory R. John
son CT the University OF Pennsylvania
who is member of the Isthmian Canal
Commission.
The meeting was to have been held in
the Council chamber, where, in anticipa-
lion of a fairs audience, a number of
chairs had been placed. After the hour
appointed for the assembly had passed,
however it was noticed that there was
slight prospect of the few being increas-
ed and the small number went into che
Mayors office.
Mayor Myers introduced Pref. Johnson,
who gave an interesting resume of the
efforts that have been made to construct
canal across the isthmus and explained
the plan under which the government is
now working to gain ell dos.red informa-
ton befo e taking definite steps for the
actual construction.
Prof johnson expressed pleasure In the
manner in which his desire to meet Sa-
vannahians had been received by the
Board of Trade and Cotton Exchange, hut
said the Mayor was mistaken in saying
in his introduction, that he was at the
meeting to give Information, FOR his OBJECT
was more especially 10 gather it.
The discovery of gold in Califo-n mia, p. o.
Johnson said. directed public attention 10
the need of transportation routes across
the continent. With such difficuti,s In
the way of the overland trip and so many
miles of watery waste TO be traverse. by
vessels rounding Cape Horn, 1t was hut
natural that speculation as to The pc sib J.
ity of a canal across the isthmus shou
arise.
For a long time the enterprise was re-
garded as enc open 10 private capital, and
upon TINS Dcll9I the IlrSl 6IlOitS lOOhluS To-
ward the running of a waterway across
the neck of land dividing the oceans wer5
based. The Vanderbilts frat CO. sde'ed
plan seriously, and their Investigate n
were followed by those of company #
which Gen. U. S. Grant was the mead.
Then came De Lesseps with his Frencn
company, after whose failure the United
States felt about cautiously, negotiating
with Nicaragua for the land necess Try for
a canal. The bill was wi, hdrawn from the
Senate, however, before it came 10 vote.
The American Canal Company rroc,Tei
grants, but lis privileges and Concessions
were LOST in the financial panic cf 1898, and
its work served as nothing more than dam
ger signals to close the way it pursued to
any future effort that might be made.
With the demise of the American Canal
Company, the government again stepped
to the fore, appointing a commission to
look into the respective advantages of
proposed routes across the isthmus of
Panama for a canal The Ludlow Com
mission made researches in 1895, but it
was hanpered by a lack of funds. An
other commission followed, but its work
too, was Intellectual, and the present COM
mission is endeavoring 10 succeed where
others failed of their purpose.
On the present commission, besides Prof
Johnson, are seven civil engineers and a
lawyer, ex-senator Pasco of Florida The
COMMISSION mas Deen DIVIDED into COM
mittees to facilitate the work, the engin-
GERS considering the merits of three pro-
posed routes, through Nicaragua, from
Panama to Colon, and at Darien. Mr.
Pasco is at the head of a committee 10
look into the matter of rights, franchises
and privileges, while Prof. Johnson is
chairman of the committee 10 ga Their oata
regarding the results that might be ac-
cornplished for the United States in open-
ing the canal. 1t is his province to In
Vestigate everything bearing upon the
value of the cons truction to the interests
of this country, and it was for this that
he came to Savannah, desiring report
from the business men of the volume of
trade, and what branches Of industry
may be benefited by the opening CT a new
route to facilitate connlunica ton with the
Western coasts Of North and South Amer
lea and the Orient
Prof. johnson said he is finding the Wis
its be IS ray,rg cities of great assistance
to him in his effort to report practically
and from knowledge received from enter
prising business men rather than from
data gathered in an Office at Washington
AS an instance of the benefit he gains
frcm personal visits, he mentioned the
gigantic terminal work that IS in Npro-
gress on Hutchinscn's Islard saying that
he can readily understand how the in
tarests OF the city are to be preserved by
'NNi Oil oNNsitiOll " Slllpl-HS
On Frof Johnson closing his talk Capt
ID. G. Purse offered the following reso-
luton. which was adopted the chairman
de2idicg to name the committee later:
Whereas, our rapidly developing c7m-
merce and the experiences CT the late war
with Spain emphasize the supreme neces-
sity for closer water connection between
our eastern and western ocean coasts. ana,
Whereas, an isthmian caral would
shorten by one-half our water conmunica-
ton with our most remote territorial Ie-
probabilities and strengthen the advan-
tages of our merchants and manufa cturers
in competing for the trade OF the Orient,
and.
Whereas, an isthmian canal would IA
cilitate the rapid concentration of our ma
val strength upon the weak points on our
vast ocean and Gulf coasts in time of war
and avoid the necessity for facing the de-
lay and dangers that confronted the Orr
gon in her phenomenal voyage from San
Francisco to Santiago. therefore. be IL
Resolved, That the citizens of Savann h
and her commercial bodies, in jcint meet
ing assembled, unanimously indorse the
movement inaugurated to construct a ca
nal across the American ISL pus ~ o,r