Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1906-12-17
MESSAGE ON
TRIP TO PANAMA
President Sends Special One to
Congress, Telling in Detail
What He Saw.
FOUND THINGS IN GOOD SHAPE
Notes Unjust Crlticism--Makes Rec
concentrations for Various Purposes
Work Progressing Satisfactorily.

Washington, Dec. 1.-THE presl-
dent today sent the following special
message to Congress:
TO the Senate and House of Represen-
tatives;
In the month OF November visited
the Ithmus Of Panama, going over the
canal zone with considerable care; and
also visited the cities OF Panama and
Colon, which are not IN the zone or
under the United states flag, but as
to which the United States govern
ment. through its agents, exercises con-
trol for certain sanitary purposes.
The u. 5. :. Louisiana, on which /
was, anchored off Colon about half past
on Wednesday afternoon, Nov. IA.
came aboard her after my stay on
shore, at about half past on Satur-
day evening, Nov. IT, on. Wednesday
afternoon and evening / received the
president Of Panama and his suite, and
saw members OF the canal commission,
and various other gentlemen, perfecting
the arrangement for my visit, so that
every hour that | was ashore could be
employed to advantage. / was three
days ashore-not a sufficient length of
time to allow of an exhaustive investl-
CATION of the minutie of the work of
any single department. still less to pass
judgment on the engineering problems,
but enough to enable me to get q clear
idea OF the salient features Of the great
work and of the progress that has been
made as regards the sanitation OF the
zone, Colon, and Panama, the caring
for the housing of the employees, and
the actual digging of the canal. The
zone Is narrow strip OF land, and 1t
can be inspected much as one can IN
spect 90 or 90 miles of a great railroad.
at the point where it runs through
mountains or overeomes other natural
obstacles.
l chose the month OF November for
my visit partly because ii Is the raini-
est month OF the year, the month in
which the work goes forward at the
greatest disadvantage, and one Of the
two months which the medical depart
ment of the French canal company
found most unhealthy.
,,,oe,r NV .St,opr
r"9i DAh
On Thursday morning we landed at
about half-past Z and went slowly over
the line of the Panama railway, end
Ing with an expedition in tug at the
Pacific entrance of the canal out to the
Islands where the dredging for the
canal win cease. We took our dinner
az one one OF me eating houses ,ha iur D, ,s
government employes--no warning OF
our coming being given. inspected
the Ancon hospital, going through vari-
Gus wards both for white patients and
for colored patients. | inspected por-
tions of the constabulary zone pollce),
examining the men individually. | al
so examined certain OF the schools and
saw the school children both white
and colored. speaking with certain Of
the teachers. In the afternoon of this
day was formally received in Pana-
ma by President Amador who, together
with the government and MI the people
of Panama, treated me with the most
considerate courtesy, for which here
by extend my most earnest thanks.
was driven through Panama and in a
public square was formally received
and welcomed by the president and
other members Of the government, and
In the evening I attended dinner
given by the president and reception,
which was also a government func-
ton. ] also drove through the streets
OF Panama for the purpose OF observ-
ing what had been done. We slept
Mt the Hotel Tivoli. at Ancon. which Is
on n nil directly OUTSIDE OF the Clly OF
Panama, but In the zone.
erco>,r NV
sbNoND DAi'
on Friday morning We left the hotel
at o'clock and spent the entire day
going through the Culebra cut--the spot
I'm which the most work will have to
be done I'm any event We watched the
different steam shovels working; we
saw the drilling and blasting, we saw
many Of the dirt trains (of the two
different types used. both carrying the
earth away from the steam shovels and
ueposltlns !. om tme uu.nps soiae OF
merely to get rid of the earth, while In
other cases they are being used for dou-
bic tracking the railway and IN pre-
pairing to build the great dams Wis
tied many OF the different villages, in
specting thoroughly many different
buildngs--the local receiving hospitals,
the houses in which the unmarried
white workmen live, those In which the
unmarried colored workmen live; also
the quarters Of the white married en-
ployes and Of the married colored en-
ployes; as well as the commissary
stores. the bath houses, the water-clos-
cts, the cook sheds for the coored la
borers, and the government canteens, or
hotels, at which most OF the white en-
ployes take their meals. went through
the machine shops. During the day
talked with scores OF different men.
superintendent and heads OF depart
ments. divisions and bureaus; steam
shovel men, machinists, conductors, en-
glneers, c'e hss,h ",c az 'ne oiora e,'cnh
borers, colored attendants. and man
ayers OF the commissary stores where