Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1908-08-08
MONEY IN PANAMA
You Can Earn the Coin There,
II You Will Endure
Hardship
POOR PLACE TO LIVE IN
POOR PLACE TO LIVE IN
An Iowa Man Talks Interestingly Of tho
Panama Country Where He Has
Been Working on tho Big Canal =
Doesn't Like the climate-Pay is
Big.
Special to Times-Republican.

Special to T1meS-RepuDuCdn.
Sioux City, Aug. S.-That Panama is
a fine country in which to make money
but poor place to live in is the view
of William E. Fleetwood, conductor
on the Panama railroad, formerly a
conductor on the Chicago, st. Paul,
Minneapolis and Omaha, with head
quarters at Norfolk. Mr.. Fleetwood,
accompanied by Mrs. Fleetwood and
their two children, has arrived in
Sioux City for visit with relatives.
He has leave of absence for forty
nine days with pay.
The family returned via New York,
the trip on the water requiring seven
days. Mr.. Fleetwood will spend part
Of his vacation shooting chickens on
his brothers ranch in Nebraska IN
cidentally he intends to invest part
of his Panama savings in farm land
long the Niobrara river.
along the Niobrara river.
Been There Many Years. !.
Mr.. Fleetwood has run a train in
Panama for seven years and Isl quali-
fed to speak of conditions there AS
to the climate he said the tempera-
'ture never fell below Is degrees
Fahrenheit and never got above 90 de-
grees. The rainy season, which comes
during our summer months, is the
most disagreeable part Of the year.
The rain doesn't drop; 1t actually
pours, sometimes raining almost con-
stantly for two weeks at a tirae. Nat
urally the vegetation is rank, and the
weeds breed mosquitoes, reptiles. ta-
rantulas and the sort. Mr.. Fleetwood
has brought back collection of skins
of snakes he has killed, remarkable
among these being the coats of "a whip
snake and coral snake.
The sanitary crew of the United
States government keeps the weeds
cut down around the houses where;
it's employees live, and that helps keep
the reptiles away from the premises
altho it is not an uncommon thing to
discover a deadly reptile under the,
house. All houses are built upon stills
as a matter of protection in this re-
gard.
Railroad men and other employees
OF the government are given furnished
houses free of rent. The houses are
modern in every respect. -
Easy to Spend Monsy.
The observation of Mr.. Fleetwood
has been that Panama is better
country for a married man who has
his family with him than for sim
gle man The trouble with SO many
single men is that pay day finds them
with lot of money in their pockets,
and they hike for either Panama on
the Pacific side or Colon en- the At
lantic side, Which are only 1crty-seven4
miles apart, and proceed to give
fair imitation of riotous living. The
temptations in these two cities are
many. The demi1nonde of all coun-
tries are there and gambling houses
are everywhere. The United States
government does not control condi-
lions in these two terminal cities.
Another trouble so many single men
run into in Panama is the drinking
of intoxicants. The best booze fighter
who ever lived in the states cannot
'shandle' the stuff in that tropical
climate. He won't last; that's all, Mr..
Fleetwood says. The fever will get
him, and quick death will be the
result.
yUncIe Sam Popular.
Fine progress is being made on the
construction Of the great canal, the
most wonderful engineering project of
all time. Uncle Sam, as all the ma
tives, or "Spheggeties, Spaniards,
italians and other nationalities speak
of the United States government. is
a mighty man, and down there he
commands all the respect there is
An American woman is shown defer
ence at all times, and room on the
sidewalks or in public places is always
made for American children. The
feeling is that if harm should come
to any of these that Uncle Sam would
send a squadron of his big battleships
the next! day and blow Up the whole
country.
Among the numerous interesting
collections brought back by Mr. Ellen
wood is that of Panaman coins. The
country has no gold coin or paper
money.
BUYS NEW RAGE HORSE.