The San Francisco call., 1904-12-19
OTHER LEVELS POSSIBLE.

The construction Of a dam at Gamboa in
this connection would also control the Chagres
River, except that it would be necessary TO
provide safety spillway by the construction
Of tunnel some eight miles in length through
the divide discharsing the surplus waters OF
the Chagres into the headwaters of the Juan
Diaz, or the alternative plan OF constructing
tunnel four miles long through the divide
separating the ChagreS basin from the head
waters oi the Gatuncio, q stream that enters
into the Chagres Valley at Gatun. Should this
iatter course be adopted it would be necessary
to construct an auxiliary channel for the
Chagres from Gatun to the sea in order to di-
vert its ioodwaters into the bay westward of
Colon
The third general plan under consideration
would be the construction of canal with a
30-foot level above the sea with a single lock
at Mirahores, and a single lock at Bahia, or In
the immediate vicinity; the construction Of the
Gamboa dam to be required in this instance
the same as in the 6o-foot level plan.
The fourth plan would be the construction
of a sea. level canal with tidal lock at Mira
flores. In this connection IL is necessary to
Pacific and the Caribbean the same, high
tide in the Bay of Panama rises ten feet
above mean sea level and falls ten feet below;
whereas, the ductua ton OF the tide OF the
Caribbean at Colon is less than two feet. THE
construction Of dam at Gamboa with the
necessary spillways noted in the previous
slen would be the same under the sea level
plan under the 30 or so foot level.
The construction of the Gamboa dam would
provide the water supply for the entire line
OF the canal, including the cities of Panama
and Colon 1t also would provide q power
plant Tor the generation OF electric power SUI
hcient to furnish ample power for the oper-
alton of the Panama Railroad and for the op-
Grafton Of any machinery that might be used
in the construction of the canal 1t would
require two years to construct this dam and.
roughly estimated its cost. including spill
WAYS. would be between SIS 600 600 and SIS
600. 0oo. not including the power plant.
GREAT SUMS INVOLVED.
Asked by members of the commits
sion for an estimate of the cost of the
q Il, voTa NoIl q ho haG
estimate that could be made at pres
ent would be based on the estimate of
the former commission of 5000, 600 900
for a ninety-foot level canal. Figuring
with this as basis, the sixtyfoot
level canal would cost S225, ,000, ,0OU, could
be open for traffic in ten years, and full
ly completed in twelve years; the .thir-
ty-foot level would cost $3.50, 600 900,
open for traffic in twelve years and
completed in fifteen years; the sea
level canal would cost $500, 900 900,
could be open for traffic in fifteen years
and completed in twenty years.
The estimate of time is based on a
ten hour day and after the construc-
ton of the Gamboa dam the working
of two or more shifts.
Wallace stated that the excavation
for the Culebra cut was the feature of
the construction of the canal that took
the time. He said:
Upon the economical and efficient handling
of material from Culebra depend the cost and
time it would take to complete the canal.
Every other question and every other problem
connected with the entire work Is subordinate
and inferior TO the problem of the excavation
and disposal Of the, material from the Culebra
cut that is the principal problem of this
work.
Work is now going on In the cut, one
American steam shovel and some of the
French machinery being in operation. Four
teen American steam shovels have been pur-
CHASED. one of which is being set up. The
others are to be delivered at the rate Of one
month During October 31S5 men were on
the payrolls of the commission. or these 216s
were laborers. More laborers are to be en-
ployed in the immediate future.
Answering a question about the
operation of a sea level canal Wallace
said:
sea level canal would be less expensive to
maintain and less expensive to operate, would
save time in passage through It, and could be
widened and deepened when required. with
out interfering with traffic.