Omaha daily bee., 1906-01-21
SHONTS TALKS IN CINCINNATI
Chairman of Canal Commission lie Guest OF
Commercial Club.
lSTHsUs NOW A SAFE PLACE TO WORK
Preliminary Preparations Are Vow
Practically Complete aud Prog
re.s WIN He Rapid and
Certain.

CINCINNATI. jan. 2O-Theodore p.
Shonts, chairman of the Isthmian Canal
commission, was the guest of honor and
sole speaker at the January meeting of the
Commercial club in this city tonight. Mr.
Shonts had been asked by the club some
time ago to address It at such time as
was convenient, the invitation being pre-
scented through Secretary Of War w. H.
Taft, and the invitation was accepted for
this month.
Mr.. shonts' speech.
Mr.. Shonts said:
am here tonight to talk as have said
not Of an experiment, but of an assured
success. We are not merely going to build
the Panama canal-we are building IL.
Preparation is a part, and a most i'm
When that shall have been fully and
thoroughly accomplished a great step for
ward will have been taken. You cannot
foundation. You cannot run a railway
until you have laid the tracks. You cannot
build chimney by placing the top bricks
frst. These are trite truisms but there
seem to be people in this country to whom
they are novelties. We are approaching
the end of the preliminary work. We
in which to work. We are getting the
line OF the canal into condition which
plant TO the best advantage. and we are
assembling the plant with which the work
Is TO be done. When you bear m mind
that we have been engaged in this pre-
paratory work barely six months that
We have been compelled to carry IL forward
In a tropical country, mainly wilderness,
at sea and 1000 miles from the base Of
supply. and that most OF the material
entering into the work had g be manu-:
featured to order before IL could be shipped
TO the scene Of action, l think you will
admit that the amount of time consumed
has not been unreasonable.
l shall not burden you with details of
the preparatory work. Briefly summed up
they have resulted, first, in converting the
as healthful place for work of the kind
in hand as could be found in any tropical
country-with reasonable care a man can
go there to live now with no more serious
menace to his health than he would en-
counter in frontier work in our own coun-
try; second, the workers of all grades
quarters, wholesome food in abun iance
and at reasonable prices, and pure water
| third an Anticipated, inadequate and
poorly manned railway system has been
| improved and recognized on modern lines.
and provided with up-to-date equipment
Of locomotives and cars; fourth, new
wharves equipped with modern mechanical
| appliances, commodious terminal yards at
| both ends of the railway, extensive ware
houses, suitable machine shops and q mod
preaching completion NTH. more than
50 00oo0o has been expended in the pur-
chase OF supplies and material. largely for
! an operating plant in the actual work Of
excavation. and the bulk OF this invest
/ rnent is already on the isthmus.
This vast quantity of supplies has been
purchased almost exclusively in the United
States. In accordance with our policy OF
buying in the cheapest markets. we have
| bought chieny in the United States be-
cause its markets, in the main, are the
cheapest in the world for the products that
we need in this work The American
/ a q To- IL
/ but we can buy the results OF his work
more cheaply here than abroad. because
! of his superior skin and because OF the
intelligent interest which he as an Amer
lean citizen takes in his work. In other
words. he puts more brains into the prod
| uct Of his hands. because he is a citizen
! enlarged and his ambition stimulated by
active participation in the duties of citi-
| zenshin.
| Character of Labor.
The character OF labor employed on the
isthmus has more 70 do with the time IL
viii take TO. build the canal-more to dc
other determining factor.
There is no insuperaole difficulty in the
way of the construction of the canal from
an engineering point of view and with any
ordinary class of labor. The serious prob
! lem Is to get what will be considered in
this country anything like an ordinary class
OF labor. In examining this question We
have studied and discussed the merits OF
labor OF nearly all nAtionalitles available
which we have to intend in the employ
ment of oriental labor lies in the laws which
hedge about is use. In order TO comply
with the letter and spirit OF these laws
the best we can do is to let out the worl
by contract, advertise and secure the low
est bidder, who will be nothing more OF
labor, deposit the money required by th'
government of the country from which th'
laborer comes for the sustenance necessary
to the support of his family while he il
away and advance the money for the neces
sary transportation All this is to be in
on the isthn1us, m addition to the agent
remuneration. making IL very high priced
The government must protect Itself agains
the charge OF forcing involuntary servitude
and hence 1t can adopt no safeguard
which will prevent the labor from leavini
o ne st the money 4ecessaTy to eet il there
with no return whatever. The result o
this 10 prael lily TO make oriental labo
, Experiment With Italian laborers. Will
not made on a large scale, has not bee
satisfactory. Cor the reason that they d
succumb quickly 10 tropical feVers
VIII Get Men from spain.
The West Indian negro that we are usin
: has but little life and ambition in him
We are practically trying 10 WELD a
t getting over s per cent, or from a mos
liberal point OF view, asa per cent of IN
efficiency OF the most ordinary labor 4
w
: TO experiment with 1000 laborers from tn
north of Spain. This class OF labor wa
used 10 great advantage by Sir WilliaI
!, Van Horn in the construction Of his s
miles Of railroad in Cuba; While not tai
, they are OF muscular build, docile In ten
. permanent and willing and industrious worH
T: ers with enough ambition to want 10 be
cor e subforemen and. foremen in the
work In other words, besides being labor
I ers they have a spark OF ambition whie
makes 1t possible 70 develop them tat
/ | something better than brute force. Thes
|: men have the further advantage of bein
white and Of speaking the language whie
4 most of our foremen either know or rapid
/: ACQUIRE after reaching the isthmus.
So far as the labor in the United state
: Is concerned, We might as well recogniI
| the facts The best quality Of this labc
: il regularly employed. because OF the gTet
h Industrial activity here. This confines OF
!, | selection 10 those employed only as exit
y men and those seeking employment, WI
| OF course will not grade as high as thoi
regularly employed. In order 10 get thei
, men in some branches OF trade, II Is nece
|. sary 70 pay larger wages than are pa
!. in this country, for they would rather ha'
!. extra work with a chance of regular en-
ployment here, than leave their own coui
Il try.
As / said at the beginning Of these r
- marks. our preparatory work Is neariT
completion. II has. in fact, advanced
,: far as We can carry II safely until '
d know definitely the type OF canal We a