The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1904-01-24
SECTION TWO
Panama. Jan L.
NJ AT. are r. the ehanoe ,,. for invest ia.

Panama Jan L.
tAfHAT are the chances for invest
VIZ ment in Panama What sort Of
jobs are waiting for men on the
isthmus2 These are questions of inter-
est 10 the man with capital. as well as
the fellow who depends upon his labor
for a living. The subject can only be
discussed in a general way. Colon, the
terminal of The canal on the AtlaEtic
side, is owned by the Panama Railroad
compauy-at least that corporation has
a ninetr-niae-yea lease on the island
upon which it is located. This island
was surveyed years ago. and laid of
into 1000 lots. but many Of these ere
under water aud carnot be- utilized until
the townsite Is filed In. The only spec
uIatiOn in real estate that can lie done
in Colon VIII be the leasing and sub
leasing of these lots In anticipation of
the boom all Of tho desirable sites havs
been leased by parties on the inside.
who are seUt here for their health
Colon is the one place ir the world
where this old expression is q Clinchee.
In the old days, when the French werr
working on the canal there were about
1000 people in Colon. but when the
work stopped they thinned cut in
hurry. 1t takes industries TO make d
city. The history of the Development
shows that no toWr can live long on
u
Colon to grow TO its former SIZE but
that is not likely. The great centers OF
the actual construction viii be farther
inland this time. principally al BohIo-
where the great dam viii be built ana
at Culebra, where the great cut is being
put through the solid rock. The work
around Colon has been completed, and
the activity az this point win not be 50
great as formerly. But it is the terminal
of the railroad. as wei as the Atlantic
entrance to the canal and is certain
TO be an important point on this ac-
count.
Rents Higher Than Rates.
I was talking with the owner of a
house on the principal street IN Colon,
and I asked him how much rent he was
getting. Il only get $50 n month now,
he replied, but I put on 800 more when
the treaty was signed IN Panama, and
] viii put on another 500 when it passes
in Washington / have not been stick
ing here in the mud all these years for
nothing" That is the situation as far
as rents are concerned.
There are now about 5000 people liv-
ing in Colon. OF this number about 100
are Americans, and, including the other
foreign element such as Engiishmen,
Germans Frenchmen, ETC. the better
class win probably number 300 souls.
The rest are negroes, Cinnamon and
natives, who are as dirty and miserable
as their surroundings. They viii never
make good customers for any one ex-
cept the lottery agents, cigarette man
ufacturers. and the undertaken. There
are no good stocks of merchandise in
Colon. because there is no one 10 sell
10 IF the population should increase
TO t0,009 or 1900 people the poor ele-
ment would still be so vastly in the
II -
merchants with the class Of goods they
are accustomed to handle, would still
be very small. The native is rot the
sort of customer the average American
grocer Is looking for. To please his
trade he would have to handle a class
OF stun that ne wouldn't give shelf
room NJ home. The kind Of meat they
use is not respectable enough to be
called dog meat. This is a fact It -
not a good market for shoes because
going bafefssted Is the popular style
down this way When they dress UP
they want shoes for looks, not for
wear. The kind our manufa cturers
make are too good and too expensive
for them The American and foreign
element viii buy the best if they can
get it. but it is a question if this class
viii ever be numerous enough to war
rant the carrying Of large stocks OF
frst-class goods.
Like Holes in a Sieve.
Of course there are as many chances
for business as there are holes in a
sieve, but il is a serious question
whether these chances are worth while.
saw a sign which read. Surgeon
Dentist" the inference being that when
the operator hasn't enough muscle to
pull them out he cuts them out. When
the best people of Colon get the tooth
ache they have TO hustle over TO Pan
ANA. fifty miles away, where there is
one American dentist VINO is getting
rich. One or two more dentists might
do pretty well on the isthmus. Eggs
cost 10 cents apiece, and part of the
time they cannot be had at any price.
Milk costs 40 cents a quart The pOul-
try raisers have the same trouble here
as in Alaska. There is so much damp