Rocky Ford enterprise., 1911-12-01
oZlz2< NH a NNR0 WoZlzZ Z0CHS

States 1t one of the severest o|
scorings ever given public official
Probably the country does not
know the inside history connected with the nha
employment OF army engineers to buiid the ran
anna canal The engineer corps OF the army al
the outset thought that ii should be given charge
of the canal work but influential civilians brought
pressure to bear the administration on behaii
of engineers in civil life. 1t was said by certain
civilians of prominence that the army was nor
accustomed to handling great business proposi
tions and that no army engineer ever had done
a 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 II was with considerable reluctance
that the administration disappointed the proper
ambition of army engineers to be assigned 10
the work of canal building Wien three civilian
engineers. one after another. had gwen 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 army officer would desert
his post, by the resignation route, for dis
cpline and inculcated will to do his duty would
keep him at the digging until it was finished o"
until failure had come Moreover, 1t was known
that no army officer would flee in the face OF
yellow fever in fear OF death from any cause
Colonel George w. Goethals 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 1t and
has marked every step of the way. The
colonel chose at the outset two chief assistants
Lieutenant Colonels David ID. Gaillard and William
l.. Sibert who graduated from the military acad
emy 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 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 lie has a face remarkably youtiful and
neither the climate, the hard work the anxi
cites of the isthmian life have touched his vigor
He is sort of court of last resort in the sthmus.
He travels from place to place on certain days
and establishes headquarters for the hearing of
complaints He brings hard, common sense to
bear on all kinds of matters. from the settling of
a family row to controversies to seniority in
rank OF some of the civilian superintendent La
borers can go to him with complaints of bad
food and be of hearing and also be sure
that any kind of wrong will be righted He is
a sort of a shepherd of the flock, a father of
family OF $4,000 children
Colonel Gaillard who is the engineer in charge
of the central division of the work. and Colonel
William L. Sibert. engineer in charge of the At.
lantic division. has been said. were classmates
at West Point. Gailard's first name is David
When he and Sibert entered the military academy
as "plebes" they took great liking to each other.
They were chums and confidants all through their
cadet course. Sbert is a big man. physically.
and the cadets nicknamed him Goliath. Gaillard