The Calumet news. [volume] (Calumet, Mich.) 1907-1938, 1913-11-24
SLIDES STILL TRsACAEROUS
Their Constant Recurrence Has
Greatly Retarded Work
DISCUSSES GREAT PROBLEMS

Washington, Nov. 24.-No definite
date for the official opening of the
Panama canal is set in the annual re-
port of Colonel George Goethals, chair
man and chief engineer of the canal
commission, which has just been sub
mitted To Secretary Garrison. Neither
is there any prediction of when the
ships may first pass from ocean To
ocean. The first day of the canals
actual operation still depends upon the
treacherous slides of Culebra cut ana
how fast the dredges can keep the
channels open.
1T mas been the general belief that
the effect Of the water i'm the cut
would tend To retard slides and expert
cnce below the Gatun locks fully JUS
tiies this belief" said Colonel Goe-
thals. "On the other hand the geolo-
gist of the opinion that the water
may To some extent develop new slides.
Again much ado was made in 1903 over
The seamy character of rock on the
isthmus through which water flows
quite rapidly, in consequence OF which
the question was raised that the lake
might leak ont through seams and
crevices.
II these things are liable 10 occur,
the sooner the better. if thu Official
opening of the canal is To occur Jan
nary ], 1876 for if water were not
admitted this fall but We're deferred
until May !, 1914, the fun height could
Ia paaahal tlstnlar
leaving little time for the letermina-
tion Of these questions. Til ase con-
siderations led To the conclusion tnat
the water should be turned into the
cut at the earliest date pracficahlo for
getting the dredges Ia work ON the
slides.
Slides Must Be Removed.
THE present plans, therefore, are
based upon the blowing up of Gambpa
dixie ON October 10, it's removal by
dredges Immediately thereafter, the
transfer Of two suction dredgcs and
ladder dredee to the CucaIacha
slide, the smaller dpper -dredges 10
work on the other slides until the
full width OF the channel is attained,
and the passage of vessels through the
canal as soon as channels of full
depth and of sufficient width have
been secured.
Before boats can be passed it will
be necessary to remove the Gamboa
dixie by dredges and To remove the
slides as already outlined. The pas
sage of commercial vessels is depend
ent, therefore, upon the time when
proper channels can he dredged
through the slides; should additional
ones occur, they will necessarily ad-
vance the date when this will be ac-
c0mplished."
The canal proper, exclusive of the
approaches, the machine shops and
warehouses and great ocean docks at
either end, would have been complet-
Cd during the last fiscal year, but for
the extensive slides in the Culebra
cut. And to deal with the great prol-
lens involved in the removal of the
slides no effective way was found cX-
cept the bodily displacement OF vast
hills. The slides and breaks increas-
ed as the cut was deepened.
NO treatment has proven effective
Tor slides when once developed, except
that of excavating and hauling away
material from the moving mass until
the slide comes to rest or until the
angle of reporsc for the particular ma
terial in motion is reached said
Colonel Goethals.
Great Engineering Problem.
e Last year It was predicted by geol-
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