Decorah public opinion. (Decorah, Winneshiek County [Iowa]) 1895-1928, 1910-03-23
January to April there is little or

seventh of an inch per day, CT so
inches per aGnum. Water Will be
required to pass vessels through the
locks and will also be used, so far
as available, in generating electric
current for use in lighting, in fur
nishing power for canal operations,
and for the future operation of the
Panama Railroad. This will be ac-
complished by installing hydro
electric plant at Gatun, and making
available the energy due TO the 80
feet head of water. Any surplus
water will be disposed of by allow
ing it to flow over a spillway, which
is merely a large waste-weir.
In steaming through Gatun Lake,
from Gatun to Pedro Miguel, dis
lance of 80 miles, vessels will ira
verse a channel varying from 1000
to 800 feet in width and from rs
to As feet in depth. For the first
s miles no digging is necessary, the
natural elevation of the ground be-
ing so low that it is only necessary
to clear the ground of trees and un-
derbrush
At Bohio there are a few high
points to level off, and some of this
work is being by task work" with
pick and shovel. The thousand
foot channel continues for l 3 miles
from Gatun, enabling vessels to
maintain full speed.
Toward Tabernilla the banks of
the Chagres River and the adjacent
land to be used as the canal channel
rise above elevation plus 40. The
ground will be eXcavated to that
elevation in order that the depth
of water in the entire channel may
not be less than As feet. From
Tabernilla the channel continues
500 feet wide for 4 miles, and
thence to Bas Obispo 500 feet wide
for a distance of about miles.
Many million cubic yards were ex-
cayated by the French between
Tabernlla and Bias Obispo which
will be useful in the present pro-
ject Between the Atlantic Ocean
and Tabernilla none of the French
excavation enters into or is useful
to the present plan except for con-
struction purposes.
Between Tabernilla and Ras Obs
pc the Chagres River, pursuing its
winding course, crosses the line OF
the canal not less than 8 times.
At Bas Obispo the Chagres River
turns abruptly to the northwest and
the canal enters the smile cut
through the Cordilleras, which
form the backbone of the continent,
where the greatest amount OF exca-
walton is being done, and which is
generally known as "Culebra Cut
This cut ends at the Pedro Miguel
locks. The minimum bottom width
Of the canal prism is 800 feet and
the depth of water will be As feet
In general, the line fellows the old
French canal in this section, which
took it's course up the valley of the
Obispo River to the deepest part
of the cut at Gold Hill, whence il
entered and descended the Pacific
slope along the line of the Ric
Grande River.
At Geld Hill, near Culcbra. the
| highest point on the center line o
the canal, the elevation was 33:
feet on the axis Of the French
canal, 312 feet on the present axi!
$50 feet to the wesD, and 303 fee
at the low point of the saddle or de
preston between Gold Hill on thu
, east and Contractors Hill OH the
west. The French began cutting
through Cold Hill on the east side
of the canal at elevation 534, which
, is the highest elevation where worl
was carried on. In this section o
, nearly miles the French removed
with their comparatively small OK
cavating machines and by pick an,
shovel over "a ,003, 900 yards Of ma
) terial, most of which is useful in tn
present plan. including larg
amount of soft everything earth AM
) clay The present plans call for tn
: removal of about S9,600,000 cubi
| yards between Gatun and Pedr'
3 Miguel, of which 77,700,000 is il
= "Culebra cut" in addition to wha
: the French took out; 100000
, yards had been removed from Guile
t bra cut TO August /, 1909.
, The end of Gatun Lake is reached
at Pedro Miguel locks. Miraflore
: Lake is a small body of water les
, than square miles in area, which
, is kept full by water entering will
vessels through the Pedro Migue
locks, and also from water from tn
! Rio Grande and Cocoli rivers, whici
, flow into it. A spillway is located
to the east of the Miraf1ores lock
5 to dispose of any overflow. Afte
, passing through Miraficres lock
, vessels have a straight channel
miles in length to the Pacific.
1t is thus seen that the presen
plan provides broad, deep channels
, with q minimum of curves anC
, bends.
The average width of channe
will be about $50 feet, about thre'
times os wide as the average widtl
! of the sea-level canal as proposed
) and estimated on, at much create
! cost. The minimum bottom widtl
, of the channel will be about 30
, feet through Culebra cut. The widtl
! for the sea-level canal in earth wa
intended to be only $50 feet will
> sloping sides, and 200 feet in rocl
! through Culebra cut with vertica
! sides.
The principal advantages derived
from the raised lake level formed
by dams at Gatun and Pedro Migue
2 are:
: 1. The amount of excavation i
! enormously reduced, and the cos
5 and time correspondingly diminish
S ed, even when the cost of the dam
S and locks is considered.
a 2. Another most important ad
\ vantage, and IN fact a necessity, i