The Raymer enterprise., 1913-09-04

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vestors in the states had become dis
couraged and the cost OF labor had ad.
vanced. But hurricane came to the
rescue. Two ships loaded with gold
seekers were forced to anchor near
Manzanillo island and the passengers
paid the company handsome sum to
carry them to Gatun In work cars. The
news that the road had carried more
than thousand passengers reached
New York and funds again flowed into
the Golfers OF the company.
As the wock progressed passengers
were hauled longer and longer dis
tances and before the line was com.
pleted the receipts from passengers
and freight were considerably above
100000. The last rails were laid
the night Of January 27, 1855. and the
next day the first train passed clear
across the isthmus from the Atlantic
to the Pacific. The entire cost OF the
road up to December 81, 1858, had
been something less than sS,oO0,0O0
and its gross earnings in the same
time were little more than that sum.
The rate across the isthmus was put
at $25 gold, being intended to be to a
certain extent prohibitive until they
could get things into good running or.
der, but SO great was the volume of
travel that the rate was not reduced
for more than twenty years. Soon aft.
er its opening the road began to de.
clare "a per cent. dividends, and at
one time its stock went up to $50.
In the SOS the company fell on hard
times. 1t lost much of its freight traf.
fic. was held up by the politicians in
Bogota and then suffered by the com.
pletion OF the Union Pacific railroad.
Next Russell Sage and others like him
got control Of the directorate and
wrecked the road. When de Lesseps
came over to dig canal his company
bought up the stock and used the road
to help in its work.
Then in 1904 the United States
bought out the French company and
also acquired the railway and SO it
became the first American road to be
owned by the government. So eco.
nomically and efficiently has 1t been
conducted since then that 1t is cited
as an argument for the government
ownership of all our railways.
The building of the canal and espe.
cially the creation Of the artificial Ga.
tun lake made necessary the reloca.
ton Of the Panama railroad along
most of its route. The old roadbed
now is under water for much OF the
way, the old line still in use being only
about seven miles in length, from Co
lon to Mindi and from Corozal to Pana.
ma. From Mindi to Gatun the grade
ascends to 95 feet above tide level.
From Gatun the road runs east until 1t
is four and a half miles from the
canal, and then south again on great
embankments across the Gatun valley.
Along this stretch passengers OBJ.
tain an unusual view. Because OF the
construction of the Gatun dam across
the channel Of the Chagres river. the
Chagres valley and all its tributary
valleys have been converted into a
lake with an area Of about 1854 square
miles. The Gatun valley is one OF
these drowned arms and as the train
crosses. wide stretches of water are to
be seen on both sides Of the track.
Down below the surface are still Wis.
ib!e the tops Of giant trees that have
been killed by submergence, and along
the edges Of the lake the tallest and
hardest OF the trees reach thir dead
limbs above the waters. Here and
there is pretty little island that not
long ago was the summit of hill, and
the shore line Is most picturesquely
broken up by capes, peninsulas and
bays.
From Monte Lirio the line skirts the
shore OF the lake to the beginning oi
the Culebra cut at Bas Obispo. Orig.
inally 1t was intended to carry the rail
road through the Culebra cut on a 10
foot beam along the east side, ten feet
above water level, but this plan was
knocked out by the slides and breaks
The line was carried around Gold Hill
to n distance OF two miles from the
canal until 1t reached the Pedro MI
guel valley. down which 1t runs to
Paraiso and the canal again. Thence
1t runs almost parallel with the chan.
mel to Panama. There are two big
steel bridges on the line. One, near
Monte Lirio, has a center lit span to
permit access to the upper arm Of Ca
tun lake; the other, a quarter OF o
milo long. across the Chagres river at
Gamhoa. The total cost OF building
the new line Of the railway was $S,S66.
392. In addition, q large cum has been
expended In increasing the terminal
facilities.
or course. even after the canal Ia
opened. the railway will have good
deal Of business. transporting people
and goods between Colon and Panama
and serving the needs OF the operating
forces OF the canal. But It's days oi
glory have departed, and ]. A. Smith