The Fargo forum and daily republican. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1894-1957, 1910-04-02
Travellers Tales

Sam w. Bradford of Ayr, this county,
was a guest at the Gardner hotel yes
terday He has recently returned from
visit to the canal zone, and came
home by way of New York city. He
was much pleased with his visit and
talked most entertainingIy Of the Pan
anna canal, and everything connected
with it. Said he: "The Gatun dam
is dam now building across the Cha
gres river about six miles from it's
mouth on the Atlantic side. The dam
is not only across the stream, but
across valley extending from the base
of one mountain 20 the base of another,
a distance of a mile and a half, and it's
effect when completed will be to create
an inland sea or lake rather, 10 square
miles in area, and in some places ninety
feet deep. The lock at Gatun will lift
vessels up from the level of the Atlantic
into this artificial lake which they will
travel under their own steam and over
the present site of the railway through
THE Culebra cut to the lock on the other
side, about forty eight miles in all,
Where they will be lowered into the Pa
cific. The time estimate for transit
from one ocean to the other will be less
than twelve hours. The present canal
follows pretty nearly the line of the ex-
cavation done by the French and the
water o fthe Atlantic comes up to the
site of the Gatun dam in the old French
ditch, The Chagres river just now, at
the end of the dry season, is about the
size Of our Red river In midsummer
In the wet season, eight months out Of
twelve, $50 inches of rain falls on the
water shed drained by the Chagres, 100
miles long, and the river swells to per-
haps 100 times it's present size. Not
withstanding all that, however, they es-
innate that it will require the floods OF
two seasons to fill the basin made by
the Gatun. The French started out to
build sea level canal and fully one
third of the excavation they did was
below the level of the bottom of the
lock canal and might just as well not
have been done SO far as help to the
present work is concerned. a. sea level
waterway would not be practicable be-
cause the tide in the bay of Panama
rises all the way from seventeen to
ninety feet against a tide on the At
lantic side of about two feet. Besides
the foods OF the Chagres river would
put more silt i'm the canal In one season
than could be dredged out in years
They have the earth taken out of the
Culebra cut on fiat cars and at present
are dumping it into the Pacific and
making a causeway out of an island
In the concrete work they are using
! 5000 barrels of cement a day They ay-
erage about $4,000 square yards every
day with the shovels. The points oi
the compass are confusing on the 18TH
mus. The sun rises in the Pacific and
sets in the Atlantic. The Gatun dam
will be 100 feet high and 500 yards
across at the base The dam is not con-
crete in any part. merely q big dump
C.. IL. Wood of Armenia was a business
visitor to the city yesterday. MIR. WooG
lis connected In a clerical manner with
| the Armenia and Sharon Land Co. and
| he stated TO The Forum that there ha6
been no seeding done in the immediate
vicinity of his home. but that dhe
ground was an ready. He stated thai
his company had discouraged It's ten.
ants from seeding, believing thar better
results would come from seeding an.
time after April 10 rather Than Oh
March 10. He said at Chaffee, however
there had been q good deal Of seeding
done. He sasd the community abcu
| Armenia and sharon was ali prosperity
| He left FOR his home yesterday after,
noon and said ne was pleased to se'
Fargo grow. Mr.. Wood II an enthus
iastic member DC the shrine and seldom
misses = naeetlnK hsres