The Nashville globe. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1906-193?, 1912-05-03
Panama and Costa RIGA


are eXcavating, that they must haul five or
six hundred train loads of dirt each day, and
each train carrying from five to ten cars. We
can get some idea of the immensely of this
great work when we know that from $4,000
TO 10000 men are engaged in this work all
the way along from Gatun Lake to Mari
ilores Lock, or from Colon Bay to Panama
Gulf
There was nothing so wonderful in the
excavation till we came to what is known
as Cuebra Cut. Here is what might be
called the Divide. It is upon this ridgeway
that the rain water on one side runs into
the Atlantic and on the other side into the
Pacific Here this great canal must be
on level between the locks, and to reach
that level an excavation must be made
something like 100 to $50 feet in depth for
several miles in length. This brings us over
to Pedro Miguel Here we start down the
mountains and reach the waters of the Pa
cine Ocean or Panama Bay The waters of
the Pacific are possibly 18 or 20 feet higher
than the waters of the Atlantic.
The >,r"at body of fresh water Gatun
Lake, must be kept on level, as ships must
De let down IS feet to reach the water-leve
OF Panama Bay. This, like the Gatun Dam.
is done by great locks. Here the ships 90
INTO great cement wall or basin built up
ohe-half or three-fourth of mile in
length. The wall must be from so to 100
Ieet IN width inside measurement. The
water must be let down through great gates
INTO the MariforeS Lock, and throuoh +hn
Marifores it must be let down 25 feet into
the level waters of Panama Bay. then for
ten miles we travel On sea level ont into
the open Bay and on into the Pacific.
Inc reader will seq Of o1onoo +L,o+ AL:
great canal is not canal of salt or ocean
water but that it is a canal of fresh water
gathered during the six or eight months of
the rainy season and confined in GREAT
lake, then forced backwards from the lake
~ or ~ miles through the mountains TO
Ihe locks OF Pedro Miguel. AS our reader
mas some knowledge of locks and dams, it is
not necessary to try and describe the rails
ing and lowering of the ships.
H-WHAT MAY BE ASKED.
The question may be asked, What becomes
oI Ghe rock and dirt that is taken from this
great excavation? In answer to this. we
will say that the rock, millions and millions
OF tons, is ground up to make concrete for
the construction of the great stone walls of
the locks and dams. One other Question
may be asked: How is the Chagres water
held to form the great Gatun Lake? This
is another engineering feat of mechanical
skill that racks ones brain to think il ont
commencing in the low valleys, rock CLAW
and sand are piled up, almost a mile IN
width and possibly $50 feet high. Itlis car
RED up IN great train loads, the rock be-
ing piled on either side and the sand and
clay IN the center as a core in such wav
mat 1t is not more than $50 feet wide at
Inc top. But to guard against overflow or
The breaking of the dam, great spill-wavs
are made with gates leading out from the
0ottom OF this dam, so that the water Of
me great lake, when reaching too great
height, could be turned loose to make its woI
INTO the Caribbean Sea. We shall not af
empt to give description of this work hit
! IS enough to say that the lowlands alonG
NE canal are all filed up in some places for
MES back, so that travelling on the rail-
oadS we imagine that we are traveI;no On
llghlands and that we are LOOKING down
INTO a great valley or stream built h., UO wv
ure The Gatun dam and all the o+h he'.
Jams along the loWlandS look like oroo+
mountain ranges that have been buiit b,,
ature. '0n oullC Oy
H.-THE POPULATION.