Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1909-02-17
AL 5 WELL WITH
PLANS FOPl CANAL
Z
Report OF Engr s IS Who Re
Gently Insper S Work and
Plans : omitted
CRITICS ARE PUT TO RouT
President Tells Congress Those Who
Object to Present Plans Are Those
Opposed to Building of canaI-Gatun
Dam to Be Lowered Twenty Feet
Locks to Be Placed inland.

4
made hereafter on the lock type of the
Panama canal, according to the opin-
| ion expressed by President Roosevelt
| in message transmitting to congress
today the report made by the engin-
GERS who recently visited the canal
zone with President-Elect Taft, lis
in reality merely an attack upon the
policy of building any canal at ALL"
The report, in Roosevelt's opinion.
shows in the clearest fashion that
congress was wise in the position 1t
took that ii would be inexcusable folly
to change from the proposed lock canal
| to a sea level canal"
| Gatun Dam to Be Lowered.
81 commend to you" he says to con-
gress, "the most careful consideration
of reports. They show the only crit
| icism that can be made of the work
on the sthmus is that there has some
times been almost an excess. of eau
| tion in providing against possible trou-
Il
| BILE. AS to the Gatun dam itself, they
show not only that the dam is safe,
but on the whole the plan already
adopted would make it needlessly high
and strong, accordingly they recon-
mend the height to be reduced by
| twenty feet, which change in plans l
have accordingly directed.
"The dam and locks, lock gates and
all other engineering structures in
volved in the lock canal project are
feasible and safe according to the
engineers, and they can be depended
upon to perform with certainty their
respective Functions They report
that they do not find any occasion
FLOR changing the type of canal that
has been adopted. The change to the
sea level plan at the present time
would add greaetly to the cost and
time of construction, without compen-
i sating advantages
But One Danger.
"They declare the most practical
question in the construction of the
Gatun dam is the possible slipping and
sliding Of materials underneath and in
the body Of the dam In regard to
\ llllS IuCSliols lllCS iiuNC iS1ShSNA si'S
conclusion that the design upon which
work is now being prosecuted abund-
antly fulfills the required degree of
stability and goes far beyond the linn
it's of what would be regarded as suf-
ficient and safe in any less important
structure
Locks Go Inland.
"As to the change to the lower locks
on the Pacific end of the canal from
Laboca, on the shore of Panama bay
to Mira1ores, about four miles inland,
they report that the settlements which
occurred as the result of change cause
no reason to doubt the stability of the
proposed dam,' this change having
been made because objection might
be made from military point Of view
to placing the locks on the shore of
the bay, exposed to the guns of histile
ships The board Of engineers esti-
mate that it will increase the cost by
about $1OOOO,O0O, but that it will
greatly lessen the cost of fortification
Total Cost 100000.
"Another. change, that of increasing
the minimum width of the bottom of
the canal for about Al miles in Guile
bra cut, they estimate, will increase
the cost Of the work by about $13,00O,-
900, but will facilitate navigation.
They approve the change in the pro-
posed location of the breakwater at
the Atlantic end of the canal. Their
estimaso of the complete cost of the
canal is s36G,90eo0 They say it IS
incorrect to state the original estimate
of the cost was s140,000,000. as this did
not include sanitation and zone gov
ernment.'
"Commendation is expressed at the
present condition of the work. The engi-
neers commend the medical and san
itary department for its success in ex-
terminating yellow fever and controll-
ing malaria We see no reason they
add, why the canal should not be COM
pleted as estimated by the chief en-
gineer, by Jan. 1, 1915; in fact, it
seems that somewhat earlier COM
pletion is probable If all goes WE'LL"