The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1910-02-22

worth two dollars in native silver
American silver is used great deal
and Judge Walker, who went into a
native store to get dollar bill changed
wanted eight American quarters for his
about finance, either. Judge Walker
may be right, although the men on the
ship are laughing at him today.
The breakfast foods which we buy al
nome in paper packages. are sold IN
Panama in tin cans, and these tin cans
are kept in cold storage. Statement OF
Mrs. ]. s. Barton, of Kansas City;
know nothing about it myself.)
Two years ago there was a slide in
the Culebra cut, and great gangs of
men worked night and day for six
months to remove it. Slides occur at
more than a dozen places The cut
has also been flooded by the dreadful
ChagreS river. An official on the train
told me that at times the track was
eight feet under water. from the same
terrible stream.
When I realize the magnitude of the
Panama canal, can not help wishing
that after Colonel Goethals completes
it he will give his attention to the
Atchison coal mine. a problem which
has been too much for everv other
man WHO mas tackled L
The passenger engines on the Pan
anna railway burn oil, furnished by
the California Oil company. The COM
pany has a pipe line across the 18TH
mus, following the railroad right of
way. 1t surprised me little to find
an independent oil company doing
business here. If have not stated the
fact before. you may be interested in
knowing that the Panama railway is
double-tracked nearly all the way.
We saw occasional fields of corn
along the route of the railway. The
agricultural department at Washing
ton is making experiments in the
canal zone. ard has decided that corn
of a certain variety may be grown
successfully.
The next big subject Americans will
quarrel about is ship subsidy. Other
nations pay ships big subsidies. The
Lusitania and Mauretania advertise
England because of subsidies 1t costs
fifty per cent more to carry cargoes in
American bottoms than in foreign bot
toms, for the reason that it costs more
to build ships in America than abroad,
and it costs more to operate Ameri-
can ships after they are built. We
are a liberal people, and believe in
high wages, whereas foreigners are not
so particular. On German ship a
servant not only waits on the table,
and takes care of several rooms. but
he plays in the band. In America. we
would be compelled to hire a waiter,
a chamber man and a musician. pro-
viding we could find men willing to
either wait on the table. or make UP
beds and empty Stops However. on
the Moltke the musicians do nothing
else, and they are kept busy. since the
band plays an hour every morning, be-
ginning at 10 o'clock; every afternoon
the orchestra plays in the ladies' sa-
loon at o'clock, and the orchestra
plays again at dinner at and on deck
at $50 when the weather is fine. But
on the other German ships have been
on the music was furnished by the
stewards One of the musicians on the
Moltke not only has a dress suit. but
he wore it at this afternoons concert.
In Topeka. which is very particular
socially, man who attempted to wear
a dress suit before p. m. would be
mobbed.
The large and increasing population
of the canal zone is attracting a good
many shows. The day I went to Pan
anna bills were up announcing the
coming of a Grand Circo.'' which is
probably Spanish for grand circus.
They say that in the tropics more
food is necessary than in the north.
At one point along the canal. there
is an enormous machine shop which
can make anything from watch to a
LOGON And of course there are
excellent hospitals and schools At
one point on the canal there is a sus-
pension foot bridge that cost $4,000.
At another point on the railroad
may be seen native and American
towns located almost side by side; the
native town is located on one side of
the track and the American town on
the other side. The difference in the
two towns is almost startling. Along
the hillsides you see many native huts
with matched roofs. Which recalls
that at still another point may be seen
a bridge built by the Americans for
the permanent railway, after the canal
is completed. Beside it is a bridge
built by the French for the same pur-
pose. The French bridge does not look
to be more than a hundred feet long
and light, where as the American
tainIy five times longer Old timers
at Panama say that while the Ameri-
cans are doing everything we'll and pay
high wages, there is no graft. as was
the case when the French were at
to build the canal.
Fresh milk is sent to Panama in re-
ships, and you hear much
talk of the Briar Cliff dairy. which is
located near New York, and sends milk
to the canal employees.
About the first thing traveller notes
on the Panama railway is that the
poles are old iron rails, for
merly used by the French.
In the yards at Colon, I noticed a
negro engineer on a switching engine,
but all the engineers on the line are
white.
The lottery is an established insti-
tuition in the canal zone. and in Colon |
and Panama we were everywhere Of |
A.--n