Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-04-22

Copyright, 1905, by Frank G. Carpenter.)
Special Correspondence of The Star.
PANAMA.
Uncle Sam is like to lose millions through
the Miss Nancys of Congress before the
canal is completed. They have already be-
gun their Investigations of the petty emer-
gency purchases made by the canal COM
mission, and they insist that everything
shall be done by slow government methods
backed by congressional action. Such meth
DDS are all right in ordinary government
business but. just now, they are like great
iron balls chained to the legs of the en-
gineers retarding their work at an enor-
nous cost in money and, 1 might almost
say, in life as well. Farther on in this
letter 1 shall show how such delays have
affected the hospitals and how they are
retarding the actual work on the canal.
At this initial stage the government can
not afford to be penny wise and pound
foolish. The work is already started, and
the high-priced men are on the ground.
There is an immediate need for all sorts
Of supplies, and emergencies are bound to
come from time to time which will de-
mand the immediate expenditure of COM
paratively large sums at a moments no.
tice. On such occasions minor mistakes
may occur few men may make more
than an ordinary profit, but the saving IN
money and health will be enormous.
n LOSS VI YSo,Ooo q lay
The parents who have boys on the isthmus
will be interested in the matter of health.
The taxpayers are interested In pushing
the work on the canal; for every day of
delay will cost them at least $4,000. We
are to spend on the canal, including the
money we have already given the French,
about $500. Geo GOO, and it is estimated that
1t will take from ten to twelve years to
build it, At per cent the annual interest
cost on that sum will be equal to 100000,
but as the money will be gradually in
vested the interest should be averaged from
beginning to end. and it will be only half
the above sum or 81. 100000 year. The
engineers tell me that the cost of the en-
gineering, administration, sanitation and
general expenses, which Will be about the
same throughout the work, will approx
mate 100000 a year, which. added to the
4,500O00 makes $6o00,O00 for these two
elements, for each year 1t is building. This
is the time value of the work. The moment
the canal is done this expense stops and the
canal becomes a live account instead of
dead one on our national ledger.
Now, six and half million dollars. divid-
ing by 300. means $50, 900 for each working
day, and that Is what the delay will cost us
year in and year out. For every day that
Congress haggles over the prices we shall
have to spend 10000 Every working
minute means loss of more than $50, that
loss going on at the rate of 90 cents per
second at every watch tick the working day
through.
Is this the time to haggle about the cost
of waffle irons, muffin tins, hospital sup
plies and blue print paper for the use Of
the engineers?
i want to know.
Red Tape at Panama.
Indeed, Congress is making such a fuss
about the petty items of expense at Pan
anna that both the commission and the en-
gineers are afraid to buy the actual neces-
sites without a lot of red tape that makes
their actual cost ten times as great as
though they were bought at double prices
We are building and repairing something