The Montgomery advertiser., 1907-08-29

If Mir. Oliver comes out ahead 1t Is his purpose to spend large sums in the South, and most Of his purchases. he informs me win be made in Alabama where he Is sure the material can be obtained to advantage.
 While Secretary Taft does not either personally or officially award this con- tract as the prominent member of the Roosevelt cabinet looking after Pan- anna matters he undoubtedly has deal of influence in deciding who shall be recognized, requirements under which bids are offered, of course, being taken into consideration.
 Mir. Oliver got anything but a ssquare deal some months ago when the government held out honeyed hopes to him and others to bid for dig ging the entire ditch. It will be re- called that MT. Oliver and his associ- ates made the lowest offer. Great cap- italists stood ready to finance the nn- dertaking, and at a critical moment lot of juggling commenced which switched things around generally, and announcement was made that Uncle sam had decided himself to make the dirt fly. Now reports from the isth- mus are that several thousand 1aborers have been laid off, owing to the fact that things are not running smoothly. One story is there is a lack of funds. Another is that friction has arisen among some of the higher officials. and the best informed men here are unable to get hold of the correct story.
 Regardless of his treatment by the government in that other deal. to say nothing of the large expense to which he was put in making his proposition variously reported at from $20.000 to s40. 0oO--Mr. Oliver in all his conver- sations, says that the canal will be
 constructed. He is generous enough to give Major Goethals, the army en- gineer in charge, credit for fine ability and tireless energy.
 MT. Oliver asserts that the compie- ton of the canal will be wonderful blessing to the entire country. and he thinks that 1t will be of special benent to the Southern States
 Taft May Favor oliver. It Is learned from authoritative sources that so far as Secretary Taft can influence the situation, MT. oliver will be given fair show on this bid for cars and materials that he, recently submitted. Some of the knowing ones l will therefore. not be surprised if the news soon is that the Tennessean has been awarded the contract. There are only three bidders, and the contest ap- pears to be really between MT Oliver | and the American Car and Foundry | Company.
 The agitation against the railroads in | the South, MT. Oliver says. has stopped much of the work of improvement planned by the companies. Several of | his own operations are completely tied | up Last year the Southern awarded | him a number of large contracts for | doubIe- tracking it's lines in Virginia, North Carolina, and Georgia, but that
 work will not be pushed owing to the | complications that have arisen within | the past six months.
 | Visitors who go to the Capitol this | summer are much astoIjshed to dis- I cover that everything about the east | front of that great legislative building | is in a badly torn up condition, and
 about the first question a tourist asks
 is What are they trying to do hereg' The answer is that some time in the next 1 year the gorgeous new office buildings
 being constructed for private use of 1 Senators and Representatives will be
 completed. The proposition Is to con- | meet those two expensive structures by
 means of tunnels and cute little electric
 railways with the Capitol.
 The ofiice building for the Senators Is I located about an average block from 1 the Capitol, and a little northwest of 1 the latter. The tunnel will be curved. | The building for the members of the lower branch of Congress Is about the I same distance southeast from the Capi- 1 tol. The tunnel leading to that will be
 of the same shape. The contractors are | getting along rapidly with the tunnel
 leading to the House offices, but they I have had terrible job In cutting the I tunner from the Senate side.
 A great number of water pipes and ] sewers were encountered over that way,
 and besides, the workmen had to so
 through what Is known as made
 ground" Cave-ins occurred that caus- l a AS ,I, ct l1ao .1l
 their religion. The contractors at first figured that the job could easily be completed by November 1. Now the | chances are that if they finish by the | time Congress convenes they will he do- 1 ing well There probably will be no
 difficulty on the House side.
 Men Work at Night.
 The trouble Is over at the other end, | and if the venerable Senators return
 and find a muss in front of the Capitol,
 there will be some loud remarks. The
 contractors are having their men work
 all night, and in order to provide prop
 CT illumination hundreds of electric
 lights have been strung along the line
 of the excavations and in the grounds
 There will be a double tracked elec- | tric road in each tunnel, and this will 1 convey members of Congress to the
 Capitol when they have to hurry over
 to either the Senate of House to an
 swer to important roll calls. A large
 percentage of the Senators now have l their offices in the Maltby building ad- l jacent to the Capitol grounds. The 1 late Senator Pettus of Alabama had | his office in he Maltby. If notified that
 an urgent roll call was on, the old
 gentleman had to exert himself con-
 siderably to reach the chamber in time
 to/answer to his name. The commit
 tee room of the late Senator Morgan
 was in the Capitol and was located on
 the Senate floor not far from the cham | Der.
 Sunday work is seldom done on Gov, | ernment jobs, but if the contractors
 find they cannot finish the tunnels be- | fore Congress meets. they probably | will have to resort to 1t. Tn the last l Congress, Representative Hefiin of Ala 1 bama presented a measure to put q ] stop generally to Sunday work on | buildings and streets in the District
 of Columbia, but 1t did not get out of
 committee. Mir. Heflin expects to in- | troduce his bill again next winter.
 Builders are doing lots of Sunday work | here this year. They have had no end of trouble on account of the labor | strikes. Among structures they had | to finish on time was a big new thea | ire, which opened this week. and an- | other theatre which was destroyed by
 fire last winter was rebuilt.
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