Norwich bulletin., 1910-12-07
PROGRESS OF PANAMA CANAL
Work Most satisfaotory-Completesf Jan. 1, 1o15-Cost $375, ,o0o,Oo0.

Work Most Satisfaotory-Completed Jan. 1, 1915-Cost $375, 100000.
 At the instance of Colonel GoethaIn. s, army engineer officer in charge of the work on the Panama canal,
 just made 8 visit to the isthmus to spect the work done and to consus with him on the ground as to certat problems which are likely to arise { the near future. The progress of tn work is most satisfactory. If no uneA Dected obstacle presents itself the cana will be completed well within the tina fixed by Colonel Goethals--to wit, Jas l, 1915--and within the estimate of cosl $375, 100000
 PrszSg reports have reached the Uni ed States from time to time giving ae counts Of slides of earth of very larg yardage in the Culebra cut and elsG where along the line, from which ! might be inferred that the work ha been much retarded and that the tim of completion has been necessarily postponed.
 The report of pr. Hayes of the gee logical survey, whom l sent within th last month to the isthnus to make aa investigation, shows that this sectioa of the canal zone is composed of seds mentary rocks of rather weak struetur and subject to almost immediate disin tegration when exposed to the air. SuE sequent to the deposition of these sedf ments 1gneouS rocks, harder and nor durable, have been thrust into then and, being cold at the time of their iIf trusion, united but fndifferently witt the sedimentary rock at the contacts
 The result of these conditions is tha as the cut is deepened, causing unbal anced pressures, slides from the side of the cut have occurred. These are il part due to the flowing of surface sol and decomposed sedimentary rocks upon inclined surfaces Of the underlv ing undecomposed rock and in part bl the crushing of seructurally weak beds under excessive pressure
 These slides occur on one side or tht other of the cut through distance ol four or five miles, and now that theis character is understood allowance has been made in the calculations of yard age for the amount of slides which will have to be removed and the greater slope that win have to be given to the bank in many places in order to pre- vent their recurrence. Such allow ance does not exceed 100000 yards
 Considering that the number of yards removed from this cut on an average of each month through the year is 1900 GOO and that the total remaining to be excavated. including slides, is about 30000,0 ,000 yards, it is seen that this addition 10 the excavation does not offer any great reason for delay.
 While this feature of the material ta be excavated in the cut will not sePi. ously delay or obstruct the construc' ton of q canal of the lock type, ths increase of excavation due to such slides in the cut made eighty-f1ve feet deeper for a sea level canal would cer tainly have been so great as to delay it's completion to time beyond the pa tience of the American people.
 Among questions arising for present solution is the decision whether ths canal shall be fortified. have already stated to the congress thst strongly favor fortification, and now reiterate this opinion and ask your considera' ton of the subject in the light of the report already before you made by competent board.
 If in our discretion we believe mod ern Qualifications to be necessary to the adequate protection and policing of the canal, then it is our duty to construct them. We have built the ca nal. It is our property. By conyen' ton we have indicated our desire for and indeed undertaken it's universal and equal use It is also well known that one of the chief objects in the construction of the canal has been to increase the military effectiveness of our navy.
 Failure to fortify the canal would leave the attainment of both ttsase aims in the position of rigtyss and eb- iigations which we should be psxsr-