The commonwealth. (Scotland Neck, N.C.) 1896-1929, 1902-06-12
THE GREAT CANAL.

For nearly TOUR hundred years men
have been scheming and planning and
projecting for great canal which will
practically shorten the distance between
the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. The
plans and schemes have all been to con
struct canal across the narrow strip Of
land that joins North and South Ameri.
ca. This OF course would greatly shorten
the time OF passing from one to the
other. The accomplishment Of thl,
scheme has been the hoIe OF navlga
tors aud capitalists and governments
all these hundreds oil years.
But natures barriers have been mul.
tipiied as men have sought more close
ly and carefully what the means and
what the labor for the accomplish.
ment CT this object, until Mont Peleet
late eruptions have about put the last
touch upon the mountain of obstruc
tion to the construction of the long
dreamed and much desired inter-ocean-
ic waterway. After being discussed
and appropriated for by various gov
ernments and embarked in by various
investing companies it has come dowr
to the United States Government /.
build the canal by order and apprcpri-
atoms of Congress. The most seriou.
question seems to be a 5ecision between
what ale now we'll known as tie
Nicaragua and Panama routes.
The United States government lie
committed to the project, but the ques-
ton fol immediate decision seems to
be whether to construct the canal BY
the Nicaragua route, which would be
one hundred and eighty feven mile.
long and would require thirty thre.
hours 10 make the run, or by the Par
ma route, & distance OF iorty sever
miles and which would require lively.
hours to make the run.
Various arguments are used pro and
con for each route. Senator Ham.
In speech in the Senate a few day.
ago intimated that to construct the ca
nal by the Nicaragua route woull be
to invade The home of volcanoes for Re
said IN Lake Nicaragua, through which
that route would pass, are two vol
canoes, one of which has been known
to be actiye recently.
Senator Hanna is therefore opposed
to the Nicaragua route for he called
forth the example OF Mont Pelee's re-
cent eruption and asked if 1t is wise il.
view OF the recent Martinique horror
to put aside such considerations. Ii.
this strain he asked, eff there were M.
other objections except the danger from
vs,1oauon, c,,d ca;cr,; n n~,l;.;a.. !
lot any party OR corporation pause and
consider bsfere it began an expenditure
OF 500, COO, O0O?" And to an ordinary
laymsn, it must be confessed Senator
Hanna's question ought to carry weight
The playing with seven hundred mil
lions of public money to make canal
which any day may be filled up with
such stuff as destroyed st. Pierre is ne
slight thing In the minds OF those who
pay the taxes.
But how about the Panama route
Well it is only forty seven miles, bu.
1t turns cut that this is also place 81
great danger from earthquakes. DR.
Eugene Murray-Aaron wrote IRON
Washington, D. c., to the Scientific
American under date OF May oath tina,
Panama has sudden shocks and auiy
ers that would crack the pyramids O
Cheops in twain" He says that news
paper writers who stay about the Pan
ana route only few days and then g
away and say there are no seismic dis
turbances down there, just simply dom
know what they are talking about
But against this position by DIR. Muir
ray-Aarop, the Scientific American ed
itorially declaaes it strange that TO
close upon half a century there ha
been :: railroad in that region from So
to sea-
~occ;1o.eA