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

the United States government. The
| Chagres river, the largest in the coun-
| try, is navigable to Gatun. Small sail
ing vessels provide. transportation
along the coast. The local govern
but the Americans employed on the
canal who occasionally go on the ram
page, pay no attention to the native
officers, who are not allowed to carry
/ firearms. Twenty native policemen
have been called out to arrest one
| drunken American Uncle Sam might
/ own the country, if he saw fit, but be-
ing a lover of Liberty and the Square
Deal, he has given it guarantees which
may. prove very Troublesome in the
future.
A Spanish engineer. named saa-
canal at Panama. His suggestion was
placed before the Dominican friars.
and. after searching the Bible, they
reported adversely on the plan by
quoting the following. What God has
Joined together. let no man put asun-
DER This was sufficient for King
Philip. Altogether, nineteen different
routes across the isthmus have been
considered. since 1929, when the
| Spanish engineer first suggested the
| of the United States into the history
] of the canal, through a resolution in
| troduced into the senate by Henry
| Clay, although we did not actually be-
gin work until 1904.
! Third class fare over the Panama
railroad for many years after its COM
| pletion was S25 from Colon to Pana-
ma Cor so cents per mile.) Now it is
$2.40.
| One of the amusing things connected
with the canal is the reports made by
| expert commissioners, and to which
| no attention whatever is paid. For in
stance President Roosevelt appointed
a board of consulting engineers con-
! sisting of thirteen members, to forever
I settle whether we should build a sea
| level or lock canal. The commission
| erS decided or sea level canal. We
are building lock canal.
There are two machine shops con-
nected with the canal work, one en-
ploying 1000 men, and the other 500.
Over forty-two tons of silver are
paid out monthly on the canal for la
Dor. There are accommodations for
11.5oo families of gold employees
| (white), and 400 are on the waiting
list. Not only are white employees fur
nished rent free, but electric lights.
certain furniture, coal for kitchen
stoves. distilled water and medical at
tendance are free. Gan engineer on
in addition to the perquisites namely
The silver employees (negroes) are
housed in barracks, and there is ten
dency among them to go into the
brush" and build their own shacks
The negro laborer is paid 90 cents for
a day of nine hours. The European
laborer receives $3.50 for the same
work. The standard rate of pay for
white mechanic is 50 cents an hour.
eight hours a day. The average pay
of American employees is about S160
per month; the average pay of silver
employees (negro), $35 a month. AL
though 10000 negroes are employed,
they do not work steadily. The average
number at work is $4,000 per day.
There are 1900 American women, wives
about the same number of children; this
does not include wives and children of
railroad employees. so
You often hear Of thesexcellent sanitary
condition of the Canal zone. 1t will cost
twenty million dollars nby- the time the
The Canal zone has supreme. circuit and
district courts. The cost of governing the
annually. The zone has seventeen post
offices, and Sc saloons. The saloons pay
500 per month license, and this money
supports the schools. At the time of
American occupation, there were S27 sa-
looms, paying $12 to $50 a year license.
The school system is similar to that in
the United States. There are II schools
for white children, with an attendance of
$50, and II schools for colored children
with an attendance of 1900. White and
colored children do not attend school to-
gether, as in Uncle Sans country.
Congress last year authorized the issue
of additional bonds toward the construc
ton of canal up to the full amount of
the estimate for a lock canal, S375, 201, 600
This action committed US to the compile
ton OF the work, and to provide funds
There is no backing out now.
While in Culebra cut. in a motor car
we ran across another motor car which
had broken down. The car contained one
of the Canal commissioners, with party
of ladies, and we hauled him into Culebra
station, where we were to take the excur-
sion train back to Colon. From the low
er end of the cut to Culebra station we
ran over the main line of the Panama
railroad for a distance of six or seven
miles, and pulled the disguised commits
sioner along at a very lively clip.
Fred n. Reynolds, an official of the
Panama railroad. lived at Horton a
boy where his father was Rock Island
engineer. Mr.. Reynolds told me that
at the head of the great work than Colonel
GoethalS is doing, and this seems to be
the opinion along the Canal zone. was
greatly impressed with the system that
is everywhere apparent. That the work is
being pushed as rapidly as possible there
seems no doubt.
There is one thing about the Panama