El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1913-09-06
Panama To Spend Income
Gets First Rent Money From United
States and Plans to Build Rail-
road and Improve Country
-fsr D. I
+ reHerIe ,. has

annual rental Of s25O,OOO under the per-
petuaI lease by which the United States
holds the Canal Zone, has caused the
officials of Panama to consider many
LONG deferred public improvements.
one of these proposed improvements
| is 4 railroad connecting the capital
| with David, the largest city OF the
/ republic outside OF the Canal zone
( This railroad has been projected Tor
| number of years The president ar
| ranged with the Isthmian Canal COM
| mission for survey of a route be-
| tween the two cities, and planned TO
J acquire some of the equipment of the
! state department. held 1t up until Ger
/ and operate it. However, the plan was
| temporarily pigeOnhOled, and the only
| connection between these cities re-
! NAMED the water route across the pay
| of Panama. Since the accession OF Dr.
/ Porras to the presidency, the project
has been revived and, if it IS carried
! through, it viii be the first large I'M
/ dertaking outside of the city of Pan
! anna, to which the government OF the
I republic has committed itself
| BEHIND in the Payment.
! The failure of the United States to
make its first annual rental payment
] at the time appointed in the treaty
/ NAV 4, 1879 was a matter Of comment
] in diplomatic circles. Congress made
] the appropriation in due time, but the
state department hald it up until Ger
I tain Investigations were made. Here
/ after the Panama republic viii get Its
check for S250,000 every fourth of May
In addition to this income the re-
public has nearly $1,000, 900 invested
in first mortgages on New YORK CITY
! real estates. This investment repre-
sents that part of the cash payment OF
S10.O00,000 made by the United states
which the Panama republic did not
require at the time The result is that
the republic has an annual income OF
some 100000 entirely outside of mon
eys raised by taxation Panama has no
army and no navy to support
Slow in Making improvements
But, Notwithstanding the fact that
its annual budget is only one-third
what it might be II the usual aDpro-
priatiOns for army and navy purposes /
had to be made, and the further fact
that it has an annual income of $500.
600 outside of the revenues raised by
taxes. the republic has been very slow
in the matter of making necessary in
ternal improvements. It agreed with
the Canal Zone officials that If they
would build certain public highways TO
the zone boundaries, it would extend
them into the interior. The canal
authorities. acting under this agree
ment, built these highways to the zone
boundary, but, aside from a small Z
stretch Of road between the zone
frontier and Old Panama, the republic ]
has precious little to show in the way
u promises redeemed IN THIS QlE6cLAOu- 3
President POrras has resolved TO /
signaliZe his administration by carry
ing forward the work Of internal i'm /
prOvements outside of the city of Pan
ANA His predecessors built a very !
fine national theater in conjunction 4
with an administration building, and I
also constructed al an outlay Of some /
100000 a national institute, or uni E
yersity- But this university is more 4
imposing from an architectural than
an nsaH Sta i'm
though the population Of the republic
about equals that of the city OF Wash
1ngton, the number Of pupils in school
IS only about 10000. There are very
few even of these who have enjoyed
educational advantages beyond the
primary grades.
With determination II extend the
governments aid TO the populL-i0n llv-
ing outside of Panama and Colon, the
present president IS planning to give
as many of the capitals IF the prov
inees of the republic land connection
with the national capital as IS pos I
sible- He also hops to better the I
school facilities in the provinces away I
from the capital In doing this he is
handicapped b0ln by lack of teachers
and by lack of interest IN public ed
ucatiOn on the Da7C If the masses
American Example Felt.
Gradually The example in civic richt-
afforded by the Americans en-
the Canal zone Is having its effect uLon
the republic of Panama Already bull
lighting has been abolished. It is true
that when this sport was tolerated the
character OF the fights was so bad !
that none of them even had the excuse
ot scientific sport behind it. Another z
Indication of the Improvement Of rlbIic
sentiment IN Panama is shown by the Z
Tane of cock fighting There is still
4 number of cooking mains in the can
tai but the government is gradually /
putting an end to the sport
Prize Fights Become Popular.
me prize ring has succeeded the
luIl ring IN gratifying the Latin Amer ]
can thirst for gore and there is :
scarcely Sunday that does not wit '
less a number of fights. These are
ometlmes very O-u=aI and very often ] 7
.Le Il dIleupS- The Panama paI-cTs
END them much publicity, bu- freque,.-- 7
J even they are shocked by the raw i
nethOds Which are rcSOr-ed % in the J
Tlze ring A large number OF Amer1- y
an ne er-do-wells of athletic build Wis
{ the ISIhmuS and reDl enish their wan 7
ng fortunes in the Panama pr5ze RINGS :
ne championship OF the Isthmus was G
nee IN the keeping of a dirt train i
onductor IN the employ Of the Isthmi- il
n Canal commission. /
The recent advent of . street cor :
ne IN the city of Panama will mean .
uyL 70 the hundreds Of poor horses k
2 that city. Heretofore TRANSPORTS
ION mas been solely by cab and the :
- Az NC--tS per passenger. The
tIe horses which drew these cabs
ere driven within an inch of their
YES every day by drivers who lacked
ne flrSt instincts of Observation-Disclosures. o
,I 1TePaEe to Study Fish Migration.
me scientists of the TsrbrDrrs are
citing ready to study a new phenom-
ION Wnlch viii be made possible bv az
lie opening of the Panama canal. 1t is re
ronaoIe mat large number of fish o.
ON the Atlantic and from the Pacific p.
,ean viii go through the locks in com Ie
ny win the vessels that pass through IN
en-, ana ind their way into fresh
aIer IN Gatun Lake. Some OF them .,
ey even go through the lake and eer AZ
TO the other ocean. A caref,,i ra,7,.,, 81 ~
: me ne species of fish in Isthmian wat tn
: HelS DSeh made. and the TRANSFORMS in
IN n, Mhlch viii take place as the result va
r., Ihese new conditions of environment
III be studied both nv fbe bl,aa-I ~ be
5ileIies IN Washington. and bv the tn
ologlsts on the Isthmus tn