The sun., 1909-02-21
NEW YIN TN CANAL WORK
MIR. TAFTS VISIT TO PANAMA
WAS LIKE A TONIC.

All Hands on the IGthmun W0rkmE With
Fresh vfgor-Tun Int the Hame.
stretch Marked BY the Begiuufns Of
Concrete Work for the Gatm Dam.
PANAMA, Feb. e.--Now that the enRi-
neers who accompanied Mr. Taft to the
Isthmus have decided thst the constrr-
tion Of the Gatun dam will be absolutely
safe work on that part Of tho canal will
be pushed with the utmost rapidity.
Not only on that section but along
the entire course Of the canal the visit
Of the engineers has had the effect OF
tonic. The men in charge OF the work
had begun to get discouraged over the
faultfinding and the sensational reports
In regard to the possible failure Of the
datun Dam undertaking. They arc ready
now to buckle down with a definite goal
In sight and with the feeling that they
won't wake up some fine morning to
find the plans for the canal changed
from lock TO sea level type.
This infusion Of confidence into the
canal force was one OF the chief purposes
Of Mr.. Taft's visit TO the Isthmus. He
believes that confidence will do morn
than anything else at this time to assia
In making the dirt fly, and he is prepared
to take the stand from now on that the
type OF the canal ia no longer to be ors.
toned.
Before the visit OF Mr.. Taft and his
engineers Col. Goethals had plans yell
under way for the beginning Of concrete
work on the spillway Of the Gatun dam.
Nothing could be done. however. -
long az there was the slightest uncnr-
tainty as TO the final decision Of ;he
visiting engineers.
One Of Col. Goethals's last orders be-
fore leaving for the States with Mr. TAFT
was that the concrete work should 10
rushed now. The laying Of concrete
will probably be under way before Mr..
Taft In inaugurated. II will prscti-
cally be the first work Of that kind on
the canal and will mark the beginning
Of the turn into the hou,estretch. This
concrete work on the spillway alone will
take about three years.
The great dam that ia TO convert the
Chagres River into a lake tbirty-four
miles long and covering 1s5 square milss
Of the Isthmus Il Just beginning TO assume
form. This dam will be the keystone.
90 to speak. Of the canal.
Vessels from the Atlantic side viii be
lifted up eighty -five feet by q series OF
three locks into the big lake formed by
the dam. Through this lake the vessels
will pass 10 within nine miles Of tho Pacific
Coast. where they will again reach the
sea level through a system OF locks.
The dam will be one and a half niles
N-a
the one containing the channel Of ths
old French canal and the other the Chagres
River. Two immense rock toes or.
nlls, sixty-f1ve feet high, have been oon-
struoted parellel to each other across the
gully containing the old French channel.
These rock toes look like immense rail-
road embankments. 1t was one OF thees
fllls that settled right over the old French
channel during the recent vet season and
caused the anxiety about the dam which
finally brought Mr.. Taft and the board
Of engineers TO Panama
The distance between the two immense
toes rs about 1900 feet and into this space
they have begun to pump water loaded
with silt. This silt will finally form the
dam proper.
dam site and is being pumped from the
beds. Twenty-one million cubic yards
will have to be moved in this way TO form
the dam. and it will take two years.
The part Of the dam that will extend
Across the gully through which the
Chagres River is flowing cannot be built
until the spillway is finished and the river
Is diverted through it. The spillway will
run through a hill in the middle Of the
dam site.
Excavation for a large part Of the spill
way is already completed. The concrete
work in this spillwsy will involve the lay
ing Of 900 cubic yards. The noor in
parts Of the spillway is to be four feet
thick and the walls to be twenty feet high
and eight feet thick.
Work has already begun on the oon-
crete and mixing plant at the spillwsy.
In this concrete work the labor saving
devices will be almost as striking as those
that are in use in excavating.
The cement, sand and rock will be de-
livered at the dam site on tows brought
up the old French canal from the Allan
tic. The first shipment Of cement has
already arrived at the Isthmus and ship
ments will be made now at the rate Of
Q 1000 barrels every Ave days.
One Of the labor saving machines TO I've
used In the cement work will be big mix
ers run by steam. From the mixers the
concrete will be dumped into great buck
cts and carried on fat cars.
The buckets win be lifted from the cars
by locomotive cranes. Something Hike
500 yards Of concrete will be handled in
this way each day at the spillway.