Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-11-19
VOTE, EIGHT TO FINE
Result Of Consulting Engi-
neers' Decision.
THE PANAMA CANAL
TO BE CONSTRUCTED ON A SEA
LEVEL.
This Vote Reached After Months of
Hard Work and Careful Computa-
tion-Future Work of Commission.

BY a vote of to yesterday the board
of consulting engineers of the isthmlan
canal commission, body which, If Presl-
dent Roosevelt realized his hopes, embodied
the greatest and most representative en-
gineerng talent in the world, placed itself
upon record as favorlng the construction of
the Panama canal on the sea level. This
decision represents the outcome of nearly
three months hard work. Early in Septem-
ber the engineers gathered from all parts
of the world, for the President, desirous
to avail of the best talent as well as to
avoid adverse foreign criticism in the fu-
ture, had called upon the governments of
five great nations distinguished for the
successful construction of great hydraulic
works, to. SEND each one of their best en-
gineers to assist the American engineers
in the decision of the momentous question
of constructing the Panama canal, at sea
level or at a greater altitude, involving
system of locks.
Work of the Engineers.
The foreigners came to Washington alb
solutely without instructions from their
own government and without bias, deter
mined to be guided to their decision solely
by the facts TO be presented to them in the
shape of great mass of physical data and
supplemented by several projects worked
so patiently for more than decade; that
OF the first American Panama commission;
that of NJ. Bunau-Varilla, the French en-
engineer, who was In charge of the canal work
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 else
where. The Americans for their part were
acquainted with the main features of these
projects before the board of engineers met
in It's first session. Nevertheless, they
Joined in the study of physical data with
their foreign colleagues, went over count
less blue prints and maps went to the
isthmus and scanned every inch of the
route of the proposed canal. and had made
up their minds when the board recenvened
in Washington about the beginning of this
month as to the type of canal they favored
1t was not until last Tuesday, however, that
there was anything In the nature of decs-
i've vote, and that, after all, was indirect
test. Just what that proposition was can
not be stated with absolute certainty, hut
It is conjectured that the issue was wheth-
er or not lock canal of a certain type
should be constructed. At any rate, the
vote disclosed the fact that a majority of
the eight American members, under the
lead of Gen. Abbott, was strongly in favor
of lock canal. The foreigners We're
against the particular type mentioned in
the proposition, but 1t not clear that
at that moment they were opposed to the
whole proposition of lock canal. The
real test came yesterday, and the time be-
tween Tuesday and the meeting yesterday
morning was consumed in some very strong
presentations on the part of the majority OF
~ al toe IN inf
foreign colleagues to accept one or the other
lock propositions. The Americans, however,
were not unanimous. for there is reason to
believe that three of their number. prob
ably Gen. Davis and Mr.. Parsons and Mr..
Burr, Joined the foreign delegates in this
hast vote, which recorded the board as fa-
voring the sea-level canal.
A Few More Details.
The decision was reached about noon and
thereby the board practically concluded It's
labors There will be a few more meet
ings this week simply to deal with small de-
tails and to put into permanent form the
results of the boards protracted meetings.
The foreign delegates desire to leave for
their European homes by the 9th instant.
To accommodate them In this the full board
has agreed that they may conclude some
purely formal work connected with this
project, such the approval of certain
minutes and signature of papers at a spe-
cial meeting to be held in Paris IN Decem-
Der or January. 1t is expected that one of
the American members of the board will
go to Paris to wind up this business, all
of which must be done before the final re-
port OF the board can be regarded as COM
plete and ready for submission to the
isthmlan canal commission. The commits
sion in turn must record its own judgment
upon the conclusion reached by the board
of engineers, and there is even now be-
lief current that that Judgment will be ad-
verse to the boards plan However, there
are two more important steps, at either of
which there may be great changes proposed.
for the commission must pass the plans
and its own recommendations 10 the Presi-
dent. who in turn must stamp them with
his own approval or disapproval and for
ward them TO Congress, which after all
will be the court of last resort as between
the sea level and lock canal projects; SIM
ply through the fact that additional legisla-
tion will be necessary if a sea-level canal
is to be built, for the board finds that such
a canal will cost from S75, 900, 600 to $100 oO0,-
600 more than the cheapest practical lock
canal. and Will consume from five to seven
years more In the construction.
No Bonds Until After Legislation.
1t can be authoritatively stated that no
Panama bonds will be issued until Con-
gress shall have authorized their use as a
basis for national bank circulation at one
half of per cent. the same as the consols
of 1880. Two per cent bonds, II is said
would not be worth par If bank circulation
based thereon were taxed at / per cent as
the law now provides. And even IL the
bonds Were issued and sold the money
would not be available until Congress
should appropriate IT. Treasury officials are
somewhat surprised at the published state
ment that the Secretary of the Treasury
Is contemplating the issuance OF bonds un-
der present conditions.
Secretary Shaw has twice called the at
tention of CSngress 10 this needed legisla-
ton. This undoubtedly will be repeated
In his forthcoming annual report, and
Speaker Cannon has given him assurance
that he wiA do everything in his power to
expedite Its passage.
1t is probable that bonds will be issued
after the contemplated legislation approx
mately as the proceeds are needed in the
construction of the isthmian canal. Any
other policy would subject the government
20 the payment of interest while the money
was In the treasury awaakang the progress
Of the canal