Daily Kennebec journal., 1906-02-10
More About the Canal Plans,

More About the Canal Plans.
Since the idea of a canal at Panama
was first agitated the pendulum has
swung back and forth several times
between the sea-level and the lock
system plans. First One and then the
other has been the kind most favored
by the engineering experts. The
problem looms up very big at pres
ent and the decision must be made in
the immediate future, a final decision or
vast Importance. The latest phase,
few days ago. is the reversal Of earli-
er judgments by Chief Engineer Stew
ems who fayOrs a lock canal, both be-
cause it is cheaper and because it can
be built in several years less time than
Il canal at sea level. When De Lesseps
started out in 1879 to build a canal at
Panama he had no idea of constructing
it at any other level than that Of the
sea. He was not proceeding in utter
ignorance. or the mere anology of the
Suez canal. Skilled engineers had
looked the ground over, and reported
that that was the proper way to do it.
But the primary operations based on
the sea level idea failed. De Lesseps
was compelled to abandon the plan
and resort to lock canal. When the
United States took the canal over, it
was taken on the lock basis. Our en-
gineers studied the ground pretty
thoroughly. and the Isthmian Canal
commission of 1S99-1902 reported in
favor of a canal with three main locks
and at three levels-sea level on the
Atlantic end and to the BohiO locks, II
miles from the mouth: 90-foot level
from there through the Cordilleras to
PEDRO Miguel, 90 miles more; level
of 80 feet from there to Miraflores,
about two miles, and the sea level
again from there to the Pacific mouth.
eight miles more.
This idea of a canal was the ohe
generally held at Washington until the
new Isthmian canal commission of a
year ago went back to the original
idea of a sea-level canal and reported
in favor of it. This judgment was con-
firmed only q month or two ago by the
report of the foreign and American
n Suttiny Antrinac.cS naltc1 IL hxy ths,
President as experts. People settled
| down to the idea that it would be q
level canal after all. But now the
judgment has been once more reversed,
for the Isthmian Canal Commission
itself. following the advice Of Its eng
| ineer. Mr.. Stevens. has decided In fav-
Or of lock canal at two leyels-one
| the level of the sea up to Bohio. at the
Atlantic end. and Mirafores-P Pedro
Miguel. at the Pacific, and the other
an S5-foot level between those two
points.
practicability to be considered in this
decision. The sea level canal could be
built. 1t would take, however, from
four to six years more to construct it
| than the lock canal would take. The
American people do not want to wait.
Again. a lock canal would be more
easily defensiblc in case of war than
sea level canal. This consideration
may have cut a certain figure in the
commissions decision If the canal
is built on the commissions plan. the
future traveller will enter il somewhere
i'll Limon Bay. and steam between
shores that are mainly low-lying until
he reaches BohiO. There his vessel
viii be lifted by locks 50 feet into the
air. and he will find himself entering a
large inland lake. made by the damned
Chagres river. About it high hills
will loom. After some II miles this
lake will narrow to a gorge. and the
traveller will enter deep cut, with
walls looming high on either side.
which will extend about eight miles.
Then another little lake. and he will
be dropped to the level of the Pacific.
to steam half dozen more miles into
the Bay of Panama
The Oisappearjno Deficit.