Lawrence democrat. (Lawrenceburg, Tenn.) 1884-1925, 1913-09-10

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 AZ |
miles long. II 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, It has become one OF
the best equipped and most efficient Of
railways. It has given great 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 preya-
lence OF disease.
To the rescue of the gold hunters
came three bold Americans, w. Fl. AS
pinwall, Henry Chauncey and John L.
Stevens. In 1S4S 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
! Atlantic terminus. However, a New
York Spectator spoiled this plan by
buying up all the land about the har-
hor and holding 1t at a 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
| 6dTL0 WIFI BOlueu buONbl.
Two Americans with 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, for
the land was 30 swampy and 80 infest.
ed with malaria and yellow fever bear.
ing mosquitoes that they were com
PEELED to sleep aboard a ship. Much
of the time they carried their lunches
tied on their heads and ate them
standing waist-deep in the water.
The efforts Of the company to OBJ
tain laborers were attended by ter
rible tragedy. Eight hundred Chinese
were brought over from Hong Kong
but within a week Of their landing
scores of them died. Opium was giveI
the survivors and for short time
checked the ravages Of disease. Blu
the supply of the drug was shut off OF
account of its cost, and again thu
( 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 seashore and wait
ed for the rising tide to overwhelr
them. In few weeks scarce two hur
= bred we're left, and these, broken i
D health and spirits, we're sent to ia
J, maica
: Another shipload of laborers, thi
= time from ireland, met no better fate
h for nearly every man died.
. The material difficulties that Col
fronted the railway builders are thu
summarized by Tones in his "Panam
in 1885," 1.-THE isthmus did not SUI
u ply single resource necessary for tn
l. undertaking. Not only the capita
c skill and enterprise, but the labor, th
IS wood and iron, the daily food, tn
II clothing, the roof to cover and the il
q struments to work with came frol
abroad. Most of the materii
:, used for the construction Of the roa
was brought from vast distance
Although the country abounde
in forests, it was found necessar
70 from the expense Of labor and ii
E. want of routes of communication,
D. send the timber, for the most par
q. from the United States, and not on
i. were the rails, to considerable e
= tent, laid on American pine, but Il
bridges, and, the houses and wor
- shops of the various settlements wei
of the same wood, all fashioned
Maine and Georgia. The metal wor
m the rails, the locomotives and the too
" were brought either from England
I, the United States. The daily feod
=, the laborers, even, came from Ne
:. York market"
" The first section of the road WI
laid through a mangrove swamp
which no bottom was found, the tracI
OF being foated on an immense pontoo
Nv BY October, 1851, eight miles had be,
: completed and solid ground W
reached at Gatun. Lack of funds nc
began to hamper the builders.
ii yestors in the states had become d
couraged and the cost of labor had q
vanced. But hurricane came to I
to rescue. Two ships loaded with go
90 seekers were forced to anchor ne
:. Manzanillo island and the passenge
paid the company handsome sum
o. carry them to Gatun in work cars. T
y news that the road had carried mo
than a thousand passengers reach
New York and funds again flowed in
20 the Golfers of the company.
h, As the work progressed passengt
~ were hauled longer and longer d