Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1906-12-26

FOR ares a byword for unileaithfulnesss
and with so large G Gongre agnd set 70 3
hard work there will now and !nen
outbreaks of disease. There VIII .. To-
ton. there will be uniooked-for acciss
dents to delay the excavation OF tne Isss
Each such incident will be entirely nat
ural and, even though serious no oI,o
Of them will mean more tnan 8, x nSssn
discovered by sensation mongers and re- re,
tailed to timid folk of little faith, MI,
the whole work is being badly managed.
Experiments will continually be trle9 y. +.
housing. in hygiene, in street re lea and
be failure; and among those who hear
Thomases will at once believe that the
whole work is a failure. Doubtless nere
and there some minor rascahty VIII ~
uncovered; but as to this, have 70 Say
that after the most painstaking INQUIRY
1 have been unable to find single reput-
able person who had so much as heard
of any serious, accusations affecting the
honesty of the commission or or any
responsible officer under it. append q
charge. that of the ownership of lots IN
Colon; the charge was not advanced oy
less. 1t is not too much to say that the
whole atmosphere OF the commission
breathes honesty as it breathes efficiency
and energy, Above all. the work mas
been kept absolutely clear of politics
have never heard even suggestion OF
spoils politics in connection with it.
brought to me for which there seemed
to be any shadow of foundation: In
have indicated in the course Of this
messages came to the conclusion that
there was, foundation for the com
pant, and that the methods or the
commission in the respect complained
OF could be bettered. In the other in
aaae n pwo Or
instances where they referred to mis-
takes which the commission had al
ready round out and corrected.
ISLANDERS and Libelers.
remains an immense amount of as
reckless SANDER as has ever been pub
lilshed Where the slanderors are OF
them. Where they are Americans.
feel for them the heartiest contempt
of ana w 1ndlgmation; beeause in spirit
they are. trying to interfere with and
hamper the execution of. the greatest
are seeking to bring to naught the eff
forts of their countrymen to put to
the credit of America one of the giant
accusations of these slanderers con-
stitute gross libel upon a body of
iigenee. expert @ ability high char se
| tetr and devotion to duty. have never
| been eXcelled anywhere. There is not
| on the isthmus who has obtained his
position on any other basis than merit
| alone and not one. who has used his
position in any way for his own per-
sonal or pecuniary advantage.
Plan TO Build by Contract.
After most careful consideration we
have decided to let out most of the
work by contract. if we can come to
Satisfactory sat etsg terms with the contract,
| suited to the peculiar genius of our
people; and our people have devel,
| to grapple with it It is of course
much better to do the work in large
| part by Contract than to do it all by
sible on the one hand to secure to the
contractor sufficient remuneration
s sG make it W9rth While th for
undertake the work; and provided on
the other hand it can be done on terms
which will not give an excessive profit
| to the contractor at the expense of
the government. After much con-
sideration the plan already promul-
features was drafted after careful
by the ehief zen neer a e %r. stevena
who. while in the employment of Mr..
Hill.s,the president of the Great North
Of this very type Of contract. Mr..
Stevens then submitted the plan to
the tn chairman of the commission. Mr..
with Mr.. Rogers, the legal adviser of
the commission. to see that all Legal
| ted copies of the plan to both SecfeNy
tary Taft and myself. Secretary TafH
submitted it to some of the best coun-
sci at the New York bar. and after
wards 1 went over it very carefully
with Mr.. Taft and Mr.. Shonts, and we
laid the plan in it's general. features
that 1t combines the maximum of adj
vantage with the, minimum of disad-
put upon the speedy and economical
construction of the canal and pen
atty imposed on delay. and waste. The
plan as PROMULGATED is tentative;
doubtless 1t will have to be changed
in some respects before we can come
to satisfactory agreement with re-
sponsible OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES even
after the bids have been received:
and of course it is possible that we
case the government will do the work
itself. Meanwhile the work on the
isthmus is progressing steadily and
Single Commissioner Desired.
A seven-headed commission is of
course clumsy executive Instrument
We should have but one commissions
er, with such heads Of DEPARTMENTS
and other officers under him as we
may find necessary. We should ba
expressly permitted to employ the
Sulting engineers.
I accompany this paper with a mar
showing substantially what the canal
will be like when it is finished. When
the Culebra cut has been made and
the dams built Gf they are built AZ
present proposed) there will then he
at both the Pacific and Atlantic ends
OF. the canal two great fresh-waters
lakes. connectG by a broad channel
across the backbone of the western
Hemisphere: Those best informed be-
in about eight years; but 1T is neve~
safe to prophesy about such work
as this, especially in the tropics
Confident of Ultimate Success.
OF the success of the enterprise
am as well convinced as one can - !
of any enterprise that is human ~
is a stupendous work upon which our
fellow countrymen are engaged down
there on the isthmus. and while We
should hold them to strict accounts
bility for the way in which they per-
form 1t, we should recognize wifb
frank generosity. the epic nature ~
the task upon which they are enraoed