The evening times. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1906-1914, 1907-03-05
THE PANAMA CANAL WORK IN
NEW HANDS.


NEW HANDS.
The Panama Canal really seems to
be reduced to it's simplest elements.
Mr.. Wallace and Mr.. Shonts have re-
signed, both some time ago and both
for good; and Mr.. Stevens, the chief
engineer, has now resigned, also for
good. The percentage contracts-for
which advertisements were made, and
an elaborate combination formed, in
Guiding the capital required as an
evidence of good faith and a dozen of
the most experienced and capable con-
tractors in this country-have also
been rejected. What is left? The
Isthmus of Panama is left, and more
or less shallow ditch across it, and
the house plant along the ditch, and
the various subordinates and workers
who have been occupying this plant
under Chief Engineer Stevens. The
corpus We still have, very much as the
Frenchmen had it at different stages
of their variegated career on the 18TH
mus; but the official heads of all the
responsible and actual canal-makers
are off, and so far as plans are con-
cerned, the immediate situation is
simply that of blank sheet of white
paper. Anything may be written on
this sheet of paper; but at this mo-
ment nothing is written on it that is
visible to the eye.
The explanation sent out from
Washington as to Mr.. Stevens's re-
signation is that he has decided to
work for private employers at a SAL
airy more than twice as large as that
paid to him by the government. Presi-
dent Roosevelt's explanation of the
rejection of the contract idea-at least
for the presents that it was sug-
gested to him by Mr.. Stevens him
self, and that in addition to other OBJ
jections he does not regard it as pru-
dent to go on with one mans plans
under another mans supervision.
What is probably most significant and
important of all, the president, so far
as it lies in his legal power to do so,
has turned this great work of con-
sideration over to the engineer branch
Of the army. He has selected three
engineer officers for this work. Their
names are Major Cocktails, Major Call
lard and Major Sibert, and they rank
in the order named. The Washington
report says that they are all rela-
lively young, and their appointment
may be regarded, We think, as the de-
finite end of the use of unofficial en-
talent in the work of con-
structing the Panama Canal. This
change also goes over into the canal
commission. There are many persons
in this country who have always
thought that our army engineers were
the men for this great job; and, after
the experience We have had in the
resignation line, everybody no doubt
will rejoice that at last they have got
their innings. Of one thing all may
be confident; and this is, that they
will play bali until the game is finish
ed.
President Roosevelt takes all these
incidents for a great and original con-
structive undertaking as part of the
days work. He describes these in
cidents as temporary "dislocations,"
and he means to keep the digging go
ing on continuously just the same. 1t
Is certainly true that such changes as
have taken place may far better hap
pen in this preliminary and tentative
stage than at later period Nothing
has happened to the canal as such,
and so far as it is a canal. All that
has happened is a jolt to our antici-
pations and hopes, and this is of no
practical consequence.