Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1909-03-10

had awakened in some future century,
had invaded some Utopia that is to be.
Everybody is well paid, so that there
is no danger Of labor troubles. All are
well housed, well fed, protected from
disease and made to behave them
selves. They live in forced state of
happiness and decency. And they
seem to like it. If there was ever pa
ternalism IN this world 1t is in Uncle
Sans ten mile wide strip across Pana-
ma. Even the supply ships that bob
IN and out of the ports on the Pacific
and Atlantic are run by the govern
ment. 1t Is as nearly q law made
paradise as can be got up on short no
tice in such God forsaken climate.
There are schools. churches and even
j women'S clubs. The suffragette has
| not yet appeared. but give her time.
| All the other luxuries of civilization
are on hand except grand opera and
| divorce courts. These can be depend
ed on to follow the flag. And the beau
| ty of the whole strip is that it is
American. The workmen are of all
colorS and nationalities, but the hustle,
| the confidence, the system and the hui
NOR are United States. That is the
reason the canal Is as certain to be
built as the world is to turn. The peo-
pie that have made a nation out of
raw materials are not going to be
stopped by little forty eight mile
isthmus. America is to dominate the
Pacific, and the Panama canal is the
| key to the Pacific. The dream of 300
years is to come true, and the water
path sought by Columbus is to be cut
from the east to the west. Whether
it is to be done by locks or sea level Is
a mere detail. The great thing is that
it is to be done, and speedily. 1t is but
fitting that this work which is to open
the gate to a new civilization should
be done under industrial conditions so
ideal that they themselves seem a fore
taste of that new civilization. Broth
erhood is becoming ever more of Il re
atty in the world, and who knows but
that organized industry is to be one of
the aspects of brotherhood,
When Goethals Orders.
| Colonel George Washington Goe
thals. the man in charge at Panama
is worth story in himself Rather, he
is worth several stories. and here are
two of them. Before Cocktails arrival
the civilian engineers had not kept the
strictest discipline. Orders were Civ
en-, but some of the subordinates had
other ideas. There was consequent dis
cuSsion, and maybe the orders were
carried out and maybe they were not
Well. Goethals gave an order. An IN
derofficial undertook to show hin
how dead wrong that order was. Goe
thals listened quietly, saying nothing
until the official paused, out of breath
and added, II hope you see the poin
Of my argument"
But said the colonel, speaking fol
the first time, II was not arguing.
was giving orders. Please see tha
they are carried out"
They were
At another time a house was to b,
built for one of the officials, and i
seemed that there was to be severa
months delay. The official complained
to Goethals.
"Get into my carriage" said til
colonel "and we will go over and Sc
about it."
Arrived on the ground. the foreman
was called up and informed that tn
house was to be ready for occupanc,
on Nov. Is. He started to explain tina
1t would not be possible to finish /
within year, when something in Goe
thals eye disconnected him, and h
wound up lamely that he would do tn
best he could
You did not understand me-" quiei
ly SAID the colonel what I said wa
that the house is to be ready on Nov
15."
And the house was ready
After two or three of the early cana
engineers and officials threw up thei
jobs President Roosevelt said, with
snap of the jaws:
Il am going to send a man dow
there who will stay on the job until
say he can quit"
Hustling at the Isthmus.
He sent Cocktails, and Goethals 1
Saying. In the two years since b
took charge things have been movin
at Panama. President. Elect Taft o
. his recent visit to the isthmus sa,
over hundred steam shovels in opel
alton. half thousand drills preparin
V for dynamite blasts to eat away til
IS sides Of mountains. track lifters tina
k moved whole sections of railway t
new beds in almost the twinkling q
i" an eye, two dredges cutting their wa
o into the land from the Atlantic an
l. Pacific sides, an immense new spill
IS way being constructed for the Chagre
20 river, cores being made for the in
d mense dams, and all this work of el
J. cavation. construction and Ereparatio