The Lake County times. [volume] (Hammond, Ind.) 1906-1933, 1907-02-09
BUILDING Of THE PANAMA CANAL
is frstof a of GOOdan
to
uIIbe IIocain interest

the like. with more coming in every
week. This labor is largely composed
of Jamacians. Barbadonians and Mar
tlniquens, with an ever increasing con-
tingent of Italians, Spaniards, Dagos
and Coolies and it is absolutely neces-
sary that this class Of labor be en-
ployed to do the unskilled physical
work along the line Of the canal. not
withstanding anything the opponents Of
foreign labor may say to the contrary
Tropical suns and other natural CON
dittons abounding makes 1t impossible
that Americans can perform this labor
and survive. The problem Of building
the canal IS not only an economic one,
1t is a question OF health--life and
death.
| Health and sanitary conditions have
been and are now OF the utmost i'm
portance here and no one not having
observed, partially at least, those CON
ditions as they existed prior to the
American regime can form any sort of
true conception of them.
/ Imagine a town Of four or 1--WE thou
sand inhabitants, nine-tenths Of whom
are negroes and Panamanians. located
in veritable swamp, the island sec
tion being actually lower than the sea
level the streets without pavement of
any sort. no sewerage, water at all
times within two or three feet Of the
surface. and soil positively rotten with
decayed vegetation. outhouses Of the
most dilapidated and revolving char
acter, cesspools Of little or no service
in caring for their contents, with a
! rainy season OF eight to nine months
| in the year. making the streets and
sidewalks almost impossible for the
greater portion Of that time, and you
have an idea of what the town of
Colon was two years ago, and partly
of what 1t is today.
Colon is the port OF entry on the At
lantic side OF the isthmus and is the
most important shipping point there
on. This is the starting point of the
canal on the Atlantic side. and where
every man. woman and child. every
pound OF freight. every letter. paper or
piece of mail, whatever its character,
and every piece OF machinery or other
supply destined for the tsthmus or for
the South American coast on the Pa
oiho side is trans-shipped by rail, and
Is the place where the Isthmian Canal
commission first established its head
quarters and began it's actual work on
the canal In this place and among
these surroundings the men sent here
by the commission commenced the pre-
liminary work which has led up to and
made possible present conditions and
made the Isthmus, or at least the por-
ton of 1t through with the canal pass
es and which is designated the canal
zone, from one end to the other with
the possible exception or Colon which
has yet much to be done In order to
modernize 1t and thoroughly cleanse
and purify 1t, a health and pleasure
resort and place of deep and abiding
: interest to people from all over the
world as 1t becomes better ana more
widely understood.
Panama City while not so poorly To-
Gated naturally as Colon. was much in
same condition as the latter place until
the Americans under the direction Of the
health officer of the zone, began to re-
} juvenate IT. and the entire line of the
canal was a fever infested jungle fol
the most part. where it IS said fol-
every yard OF dirt removed under the
French control and operation one hui
man life was sacrificed. OF course
rate was without doubt enormous anC
| appalling in the extreme