The Montgomery advertiser., 1904-12-19
GALLANT STOESSEL TELLS
 OF BLOODY DEFENSE OF CITY

ten feet above mean sea level and falls ten below. whereas. the nuctuation of the tide of the Caribbean at Colon Is less than two feet. The construction of a dam at Gamboa with the necessary spillways as noted in the previous plan. plan as under the thirty or sixty 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. It would also provide power plant for the generation of electric power sum- cient to furnish ample power for the operation of the Panama Railroad and for the operation of any machinery that might be used in the construction of the canal. It would require two years to construct this dam and rough ways would be between $15.0o0.000 and $1e,0o0.000. not including the power plant"
 Complets in Twenty Years.
 Asked by members of the commits sion for an estimate of the cost of the various plans, Mir. Wallace said the best estimate that could be made at present would be based on the estimate of the former comnnission of 320o.000.- 900 for . ninety-foot level canal. Fig uring with this as . basis the sixty foot level canal would cost $225,00O,- 900, could be open for traffic in ten years and fully completed in twelve years; the thirty-foot level would cost $2so. .o0o. open for trafic in twelve years and fully completed in fifteen years; the sea level canal would cost $300.000.000. could be open for traf1c in fifteen years and completed in twen- ty years.
 Chairman Hepburn's questions de- veloped that the estimate of time to build a canal was based on . ten-hour day. and that with the construction of the Gamboa dam and the operation of the power plant electric light sum cient to il1umine the whole of the Cuie- bra cut might be had. thus making practical the working of two or more shifts. and shortening the time of con- struction. Mir. Wallace stated the ex- cavation of this cut was the feature of the construction of the canal that took the time. He said:
 Upon the economical and efficient handling of the material from Culebra cut depends the cost and the time 1t will take to complete the canal. Every other question and every other problem connected with the entire work is su- bordinate and inferior to the problem of the excavation and disposal of the material from the Culebra cut"
 Work Is going on at the Culebra cut, some of the French machinery being in operation. Fourteen American steam saovels have been purchased. During October 3.1s5 men were on the pay rolls of the commission. Of these. 2.165 were iaborers receiving IS cents silver an hour; 246 Iaborers receiving IT Ia cents an hour; ITS werU machtnisss. boilermakers, pipe filters. plumbers. carpenters and nasons; z56 were Amer jeans from the United States, whose compensation ia paid in gold, and who fill positions as engineers. clerks and foremen. Mir. Wallace Is somewhat doubtful of the practical working of the civil service order recently applied to canal employees.
 Answering a question about the op. eration of a sea level canal, Mir. Wall lace said:
 "A sea level canal would be less ex- pensive to maintain. less expensive to operate. save time in passing through 1t. and could be widened and deepened when required without interfering with traffic."
 Mir. Wallace said he was not prepared to estimate as to time or cost or plan of a canal until he had completed talk ing data he Ia now compiling. He has several parties of engineers at work along the line of the canal. each en- gagged in compiling data on a given iproblsm, but he could not then tell when his recommendations as to the ca- nal will be ready.