The Mathews journal. (Mathews C.H. [Court House]) 1903-1937, 1905-11-23
FOR A SEA Ii
Decision Reached By
Expert
The AMERICAN NFSSERs DIVIDED.
a msiOrity Of Them Favored The Lock Canal
on Account Of the Smaller Cost aud Shorter
Time Needed to Complete It-.Ihc Foreigners,
However. Could Not See the PrscisesblHty
OF Any of the Lock Plans Suggested.

Washington Especially BY a vote OF
eight to five the Board Of Consulting
Engineers of the Isthmian Canal Com
mission, composed OF the best engineering +.
talent IN the world, placed itself upon
record as tavoring the construction OF
the Panama Canal on the sea level This
decision represents the outcome of nearly
three months hard work Early in Sep
temoer the engineers gathered from all
parts ot the world. for the President. de-
Sirous to avail OF the best talent as
vel as to avoid adverse foreign criticism
IN the future, had called upon the gov
ernnentS OF FIVE great nations distin-
guished for the successful oor,sfruStio,,
OF great hydraulic works to send each
one Oh their best engineers TO assist tl,e
American engineers in the decision OF
the momentous question of constructing
the Panama Canal at sea level or at
locks
The foreign 70 wasb;noton
absolutely withd s>s.ssf from sbe;r
own government l>i.sas d.
termined 10 be -
solely by the fact s E :. + s =
them i'll the shape (.
physical data and siSSp7r4e Il + 4 ~
eral projects, notably that upon ~ =
the French Panama Company worked
patiently for more than a decade, thatV
OF the First American Panama s(.omniis=
sion; that OF u. Buuau-Varilfa. the
French engineer who was in charge OF
the canal works IN the last days OF the
French administration, and that of Lindon
w. Bates, the Chicago civil engineer who
was connected with great enterprises on
the Nile and elsewhere The Americans
tor their part were acquainted with the
main featurs Of these projects before the
board OF engineers met in its first session.
Nevertheless they joined in the study of
physical data, and with their foreign col
leagues went over countless blue pzints
and maps, went to the isthmus and
scanned every inch of the route of tbs
proposed canal, and had made up theiI
minds when the board reconvened IN
Washington, about the beginning of this
month, as The type OF canal they favored
Il was not until last Tuesday, howeverrV
that anything in the nature OF a decisiev
vote was taken; and that, after al, was
an indirect test Just what that propoA
sltiou was cannot be stated with absolute
certainty, but it IS conjectured that the
Issue was whether or not lock canal OF
a certain type should be Constructed. s
At any rate. the vote disclosed the tact
that a majority of the eiglrt American
members, under the lead OF General ABB
bott, was strongly in favor of lock
canal. The foreigners were against the
particular type mentioned in the proposi.-
ton, but it was not clear that H thaca.
moment they were opposed 10 the whole
proposition of lock canal The real
test came Saturday, and the time between
Tuesday and the meeting Saturday was
consumed i'll some very strong presenta-
tions on the part of the maj ority Of the /.
American delegates 10 influence their
foreign colleagues 10 accept one of the
other lock propositions The Americans,
however, were not unanimous, for there
! is reason 10 belve that three of their.
number, probably General Davis and Mr..
Parsons and Mr.. Burr joined the foreign
| delegates in this last vote, which recorded
the board as favoring the sea-level canal.