The Meridian times. (Meridian, Idaho) 1909-1938, 1913-09-12

the Panama canal the Importance of |
the Panama railway will decline al |
most to the vanishing point.
For nearly sixty years this railway |
has been carrying people and freight |
from ocean to ocean. Though only Al
miles long, it has been, for certain
periods, one of the most important and
most interesting railroad lines in the
world During the building of the
canal, under the ownership of the
United States, 1t has become one of
the best equipped and most efficient of
railways. 1t has given gress help in
the construction Of the canal that will
prove it's virtual death.
The finding of gold in California was
the cause of the building of the Pana-
ma railroad. For long years before
the wild rush of argonauts in 1S49 the
isthmus was almost forgotten by the
civilized world, but when the yellow
metal was discovered on the west
coast it became once more a great
trade route. In order to avoid the long
trip across the plains in prairie
schooners," thousands of gold-seekers
went by boat to Chagres, up the Cha
gres river to Gorgona or Cruces and
thence over the old Spanish road to
Panama. This, too, was long route
and in the rainy season a painful and
dangerous one because of the preVa-
lence of disease.
To the rescue of the gold hunters
came three bold Americans, w. H. As
pinwall, Henry Chauncey and John L.
Stevens. In 1848 these men had asked
the government of New Granada for a
concession for the road, and in 1850
Stevens obtained it at Bogota- The
Pacific terminus could not be otherwise
than at Panama, but at first the har-
Dor of Porto Bello was selected for the
J Atlantic terminus. However, New
York speculator spoiled this plan by
J buying up all the land about the har-
Dor and holding it at very high price,
so Navy Bay was chosen instead.
When work on the line was begun in
May, 1850, there was no celebration,
no turning of the first spadeful OF
earth with golden shovel.
Two Americans with a gang of In
dams landed on Manzanillo island, now
the site of the city of Colon, then a
desolate, uninhabited spot, and began
the tremndous task of clearing the
route through the dense jungle. The
surveying party suffered intensely, fol
the land was so swampy and so infest
, ed with malaria and yellow fever bear
ing mosquitoes that they were com
j ~ Gle oh I'd shin MnnI
of the time they carried their lunche:
tied on their heads and ate then
standing waist-deep in the water.
The efforts of the company to oh
tain laborers were attended by ter
rible tragedy. Eight hundred Chimes,
were brought over from Hong Kong
but within a week of their landin:
scores of them died. Opium was giyel
the survivors and for short tim
: checked the ravages of disease. Blu
the supply of the drug was shut off Of
account of its cost, and again tn
deaths became numerous. The poo
: Orientals in despair began to commi
suicide, some by hanging. others b
implement, while some deliberatel
sat down upon the eeashore and wal
ed for the rising tide to overwhelr
them. In few weeks scarce two hun
dred were left, and these, broken i
health and spirits, were sent to il
maica.
J Another shipload of laborers, thi
n time from Ireland, met no better fat
for nearly every man died.
~ The material difficulties that col
fronted the railway builders are thu
a. summarized by Tones in his ''Panam
in 1885," "The isthmus did not SUI
g ply single resource necessary for tn
undertaking. Not only the capita
n skill and enterprise, but the labor, th
- wood and iron, the daily food, th
clothing, the roof to. cover and the i
!, struments to work with came fro
y abroad. Most of the matters
used for the construction Of the ros
Ia was brought from vast distance
- Although the country abounde
in forests, it was found necessar
from the expense of labor and Il
= want of routes of communication,
send the timber, for the most par
% from the United States, and not on
- were the rails, to a considerable e
tent, laid on American pine, but Il
h bridges, and the houses and wor
8 shops of the various settlements we
= of the same wood, all fashioned
Maine and Georgia. The metal wor
!, the rails, the locomotives and the too
: were brought either from England
= the United States. The daily food
the laborers, even, came from Re
- York market"
= The first section of the road WI
- laid through mangrove swamp
which no bottom was found, the trscl
;. being floated on an immense pontoo
:. BY October, 1851, eight miles had be-
- completed and solid ground W
reached at Gatun. Lack Of funds nc
began to hamper the builders.