Greene County herald. (Leakesville, Miss.) 1898-current, 1910-02-18
PANAMA EDlT0RIALsrRfP
Letter No. rs.

SObi0 C0SiA9 E1iSN Sui way OAAo"SA
it drv-shod, or did until one OF
those quick tropical showers so
common to this season of the year
on the Isthmus struck us.
! Sele0ing a smooth track high up
on one side 10 afford the better view
and which seemed to be temporarily
abandoned, we began to pick our
way into this cut of which we had
heard and read 50 much aud upon
which the eyes of a large part of the
world are trained through the prints.
The name Culebra Cut is taken from
the mountain chain in which the cut
is made In English | suppose We
! we would pronounce that word Gu
Zebra as if the first syllable was &C
cented like in the word lull. But the
Spanish wreuches the vowels round
into somersaults from our way of
| lisping them. AS the Spanish tongue
is spoken by the larger part of the
permanent population of the lsthmus
in varying degrees of purity and cor
ruption, OF course q great deal of diff
ference is paid to their pronunciation
especially with reference to places
when they name long ere a Canal
was actually projected. They pro
nounce Culebra as if the word were
spelt cal-ee. Der. The first syllable is
pronounced like the first syllable in
calico. The second syllable is given
the long sound of and the accent
is made upon this syllable.
III walking along We had to be
careful, or we thought it best to be
on the safe side and be so, to avoid
stepping on the heavy copper brass
wires with which the bottom [" the
Cut is strung from one end to the
other. These wires are used to con
vey the electricity developed from
power houses In The hills where utilI-
tiOus waterfalls abound, to great
deal of the small machinery in the
cut, which is electrically driven. It's
more convenient to drive some Of
the machinery that way owing to the
frequent moves. Then this network
of electrical wires are employed 70
touch off the numerous blasting
charges. Many of these wires are a
bout as heavy as the ordinary trolley
wires which we see overhead ia the
streets OF d modern city. We did not
know when and which OF them were
dead and which alive, 50 took no
chances. OF course there are some of
The heavy black insulated type, which
were not menaclng.
Along at rare intervals we would
see sticking up out Of the ground a.
bout Is inches high red flag which
we had been warned before going an
To the cut TO stop when We seen it
and await its removal or Il signal
from the blasting crew that all was
well and we might proceed. The
reader may be assured that this
warning was strictly observed by us
The Hastings dona during work
hours of the day are OF . small order
beng the rivening up into smaller
bits OF the blasts which the etening
before failed to SILVER fine enough.
We saw several OF these touched of.
The rock and dirt would fly into the
air, bounding upward about ten feet
and outward in Il surprising ci'cum-
scribed space. IL reminded US very
much OF the splash of water when a
heavy object is thrown violently
down into it. The blasting crew
would stand but Il little way off for
the explosion. Several moments
would intervene attes the eye had
seen the explosion before the ear
would catch the report. Some Oh our
schoolboy or girl readers who have
entered on study of Natural Science
can explain to anyone TO whom they
happen to be reading this, the phe-
nOnena Of it.
While on the subject of blasting
we will conclude the description of
that part of the Canal operations,
In telling in u previous section o.
these letters, of the processes which
began with steam shovels, then rail
roads and darling trains, slep by step
downward, we did not come to the
labor which proceeds or makes ready
for the steam shOvels This is the
boring and blasting gangs. Strung
out in rows of nearly q mile, you can
see machine after machine set up
ana pounding away, when very nlucn
resembles an arteslan well outfit.
Each of these machines are driving or
boring shaft down into the rocks
making Il hole some six or eigh t
inches In diameter, and they even
have the continuous flow in and out OF
water into the hole to wash out the
rock and dirt to surface as its wore
away by the steady drill OF the ma
chine down in the bottom of the
shaft. This water is receiving by
hydraulic pressure piped into the
cut by large mains and distributed
through it by the large size rubber
and wire encased hose like We see
on n Ire fighting apparatus. There
are number of these rows OF boring
machines at work. Some ON one side