The San Juan islander. [volume] (Friday Harbor, Wash.) 1898-1914, 1909-03-05
NEW LINE TO
PANAMA
PROPOSED TO ESTABLISH
GOVERNMENT STEAM
SHIP SERVICE.
Bill in House Directs the Panama
Railroad Company to Secure
and Operate Line of Vessels on
This Coast in Connection With
Railroad Have Line on Atlantic

This Coast in Connection With
Railroad Have Line on Atlantic
Los Angeles, Feb. 27.-A special to
an evening paper from Washington says
that Congressman McLachlan, of this
district has introduced bill in the
house providing for the establishment
by the federal government of line of
steamships to run between the isthmus
of Panama and Pacific coast ports. The
bill provides:
''That the Panama Railway Compa-
ny be and is hereby directed to estab-
lish and operate line of steamers for
the transportation of passengers and
freight along the Pacific coast of the
United States in connection with the
line of steamers along the Atlantic
coast and the Panama railroad, now
operated by said company, and to make
regular calls at all the principal Pacific
coast ports of the United States, in
Guiding Seattle, Tacoma, SAM Francisco,
San Pedro and San Diego, from and to
the western terminus of said railroad.
5OOO-Ton Vessels Asked for
''That the said railroad company be
and is hereby directed to charter, pur-
chase or cause to be constructed, ten
steamers suitable for the purpose of
said line with capacity of at least
5000 tons and an actual speed of at
least IL knots.
'That the sum of SIC, 900, 900, or SO
much thereof as may be necessary be
and the same is hereby authorized to
be expen led out of the treasury of the
United States for the purposes of this
act. That the sum so expended. or SO
much thereof as possible, be returned
to the treasurer of the United States
from the net earnings of the said Pan
anna Railroad Company"
In discussing the bill, Mr.. McLach-
Ian said:
''The property of the Panama Rail
road Company consists of double
track railroad across the isthmus of
Panama, between the Atlantic and Pa
cific oceans, and line of steamers op-
Grating between the city of New York
an Colon in connection with said rail
road.
1.-THE stock of said railroad company
is owned by the United States govern
ment,: which it now operates through
officers appointed for that purpose.
The steamers of this line, as rule,
are now taxed to their full capacity to
carry westbound freight from New
York to Colon, but the same steamers,
under existing conditions, return with
one-fourth cargo of eastbound freight
from Colon to New York.
To Complete Commercial Highway
even under these conditions, it has
been a profitable enterprise and the
Indebtedness of the company has been
practically cancelled, extensive i'm
provements have been made and valu-
able acquisitions have been added to
the equipment.
Provisions have been made in this
bill for ten first class steamers of 5000
tons each, with an actual speed of IL
knots. This will give regular service
between Puget Sound and Panama ev.
cry five days, with stops at Portland,
San Francisco, San Pedro and princi-
pal points of Mexico and Central
America
The class of steamers that is pro-
posed for this line can make the trip,
including all stops, to Panama from
Puget Sound in twenty days, from San
Francisco in fourteen days and from
Los Angeles in eleven days.
s'Such q line of steamers on the Pa
cific believe to be natural and nee
essary complement and adjunct to the
line of the Atlantic and Istbmian rail-
road now operated by the government.
It will stimulate commercial activ-
ity too long stifled on the Pacific coast,
as nothing else can do. It will cost
less to install this line than the price
of single battleship, which requires
the expenditure of more than half a
million yearly to maintain. and which
will be obsolete in ten years.
1T will complete the great CONNER
cial highway from and to all the great
commercial centers of the Pacific and
Atlantic coasts, assuring reasonable
rates at all times to all alike