The citizen. (Frederick City, Md.) 1895-1923, 1911-12-01

scorings ever given public official
Probably the country does not
know the inside history connected with the final
employment of army engineers to build the Pan
anna canal The engineer corps of the army at
the outset thought that it should be given charge
of the canal work but influential civilians brought
pressure to bear the administration on behalf
of engineers in civil life. 1t was said by certain
civilians of prominence that the army was not
accustomed to handling great business PROPOSE
tons and that no army engineer ever had done
work of anything like the magnitude of the one
proposed There were all sorts of attempts to
belittle the engineering work of the army.
This sort of thing had its effect although 1t is
probable that it with considerable reluctance
that the administration disappointed the proper
ambition Of army engineers to be assigned 10
the work of canal building. When three civilian
engineers one after another had given over the
work President Roosevelt and Secretary of War
Taft concluded that the time had come to give
the army a chance. In effect the president told
the secretary that no army officer would desert
his post, by the resignation route, for dis
cipline and inculcated will to do his duty would
keep him at the digging until it was finished or
until failure had come. Moreover, it was known
that no army officer would flee in the face of
yellow fever or in fear of death from any cause
Colonel George w Goethas of the West Point
class of 1880 selected by the secretary of war
to take up the work that the civilian engineers
had dropped. Colonel GOethalS is still at II ana
success has marked every step of the way. The
colonel chose at the outset two chief assistants,
Lieutenant Colonies David D. Gaillard and William
L. Sibert who graduated from the military acad.
envy in the class of 1884 Since that time other
army officers have been detailed in addition to the
three who were first assigned. three who are still
working and who hope to be present when the
first ship .pokes its prov into the completed canal
Colonel George w. Goethals is tall slender
man with firmly knit figure and snow white
hair He has face remarkably youthful and
neither the climate. the hard work nor the anxi-
cites of the isthman life have touched his vigor.
He is sort of court of last resort in the isthmus
He travels from place to place on certain days
and establishes headquarters for the hearing Of
complaints He brings hard, sense to
bear on all kinds of matters. from the settling of
a family row to controversies as to seniority in
rank OF some of the civilian superintendents. La
borers can go to him with complaints Of bad
food and be sure of a hearing and also be sure
that any kind of a wrong will be righted. He is
a sort Of shepherd of the flock. father of a
family of $4,000 children.
Colonel Gaillard, who is the engineer in charge
of the central division of the work. and Colonel
William L. Sbert. engineer in charge of the At
lantic division, as has been said, classmates
at West Point Gaillard's first is David
When he and Sibert entered the military academy
as "pebes" they took great liking to each other
They were chums and confdants all through their
cadet course. Sibert is big man, physically
and the cadets nicknamed him Goliath. Gaillard