Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-06-12

They form a part Of the great camp.
and their health and comfort must be
considered.
While the better class of Panamanians
are as cultured, refined and talented a
people as may be found, comparatively
few Americans on the Canal Zone, out
side of the officials. come in contact
with them. They reside in the city
Panamanians who work upon the canal
belong to the lower class, and are.
generally speaking. lazy, needless
mongrel race, mixture of negro, IN
dian and low white blood. They form
a very unsatisfactory class of laborers.
On the outskirts of the zone living
In small matched huts in native vii
lagos, are a farming class of natives,
who really constitute the best of the
middle-class citizens of the republic;
They speak fairly. good Spanish. and ana
have the elegant ~, courtesy OF In. .he
living by tilling the fertile ground and
selling their produce to the native
markets, one of which exists in every
these families occupy two of the
matched bamboo huts so typical Of the
tropics. One is used for sleeping pur-
poses and the other for cooking. eat
ing and a daytime shelter from 'he
rain.
During the construction of the Panama
railroad and the French regime upon the
canal many Chinese were employed as
dirt diggers. One of the towns is named
Malta Chin and, according to a frequently
told story, over 30 Cinnamon died al
this place during forty-eight hours
pestilent plague struck the camp, and SO
many of the died during the naS'
often dropping dead in the trench they
were fdigging that by night every live
man had become panic stricken Many
that were untouched by the prague We're
so stricken with fear that they unlteh III
cutting their own threats. So completely
did this suicide mania prevail that not
one of the $50 men was round awe III
the Chinese camp the next morning. IheN
were buried in the trench they had heen
digging and work was abandoned at that
point for many years. The name Mata
Chin is supposed to he a corruption OF
the Spanish words matar Chlno' sig
nifying ito kill Chinaman.
In spite of this tragedy there are many
Chinese in Panama and throughout the
Canal Zone but few, II any, are en-
ployed upon the canal. Every zone town
has its Chinese stores or shops. however:
From these foreigners secure most of
their supplies, and Americans purchase
articles not kept at the commlssarE
stores of the canal commission. A num-
her of these Cinnamon have taken TO
truck farming Some of the Chinese gar
dens are models of their kind. The fresh
vegetables they supply are In great de-
mand. especially in the smaller towns
which are out of reach OF the market
facilities of Colon and Panama.
Besides these the population of the
Canal Zone includes jamaican negroes,
who call themselves British objects
and never fail to bring forward their
British citizenship. They have generally
more or less eduCs and sometimes are
capable of filling positions involving
certain amount OF responsibility Then
there are negroes from Martinique and
other West Indian islands, Hindus.
Turks. Armenians, Italians and an in
creasing number of Spanish peasants
These last are among the most relapie
laborers, and most of them Will likely
become Panamanian citizens after the
completion of the canal.
To supply the needs of such mixed
collection of humanity was a mighty
task, but the canal commission grappled
it with such success that. aside from the
great object-the construction of the ca
nal-the Canal Zone stands as an exam
pie that is well worth the consideration
of the student of sociology.
These people are living in many re-
spects more comfortably and luxurlously
than in their own homes. The govern
ment supplies all their needs They live
in government houses wear clothes from
government stores and eat food brought
thousands of miles by the government for
. their nourishment. The children attend
schools provided by the government
Their religious services held in build
ings erected by the government for that
purpose, and generally under the direc-
ton of chaplains saaried by the govern
r1ent. They travel upon railroad owned
and managed by the government and
have the advantage of frequent passes
and unlimited half rates.
American club women at home will
learn with surprise that in the Panama
Canal Zone women'S clubs are encour-
aged by the government. even to the
tent of having free railroad transporta-
ton furnished when members desire to
attend club meetings in other towns.
The Americans naturally receive the
first consideration and any one visiting
the zone cannot but be Impressed with