The Calumet news. [volume] (Calumet, Mich.) 1907-1938, 1913-05-31

Phoenix, Arlz. MAY % Il, is in a
WAY a liberal education to visit the
Par ANA canal" said q recent visitor
1T Is hard for one to realize how
enormously big this job is until. on
the ground. but The efficient and econ
omlcal Was ~ which our governments
Is ACCOMPLISHING the task of hreakins
! the backbone oil the continent makes
| one very proud Ia he an American.
The real corner-Sto Of success
seems "a be the recognition that th"
men who do the work must live under
conditions II health aud contentment,
and the changing by the sanitary Iii
vision of what WAS really "A pestilen
tial jungle int" an exceedingly healthy
community, where The death rate aN-
erages only about The same as In the
| city of New Work. is certainly a great
| uchiovement.
col Goethals, in charge OF tn"
work, is "A truly great man. simple,
direct. an engine of energy. and with
"A keen eye Ia low unit cost a lin"
| sence of Justice and keen Interest
| in human problems.
SOMEONE has well Described the AL
ministra,iOn az the canal zone Is a
benevolent despotism, others have
claimed that il is training school
for socialism. This may be true. hut
what the American people are inter
tsted in is the fact thai the canal L.
being Vell ana economically built ana
there Is no question bat that 1t VIII
he ready for use before the estimated
date of the opening Jan. /, 1913, ami
that il will not exceed in cost the
final estimate of $4,000, 600.
10000 at Work.
Many means of hcalthful rrcrea.
| tion and amusement ale provided la
The zone by the government in the
shape of baseball and cricket fields
tennis courts and an excellent and
well equipped series Of Y. NJ. G. y
buildings, with gymnasiums, howlin&
alleys, cic Tie men seem To appre
ciate the excellent treatment given
lhsn and give "a proportional return
| In the intense interest shown IN their
work.
"During the heavy portions of Tia"
work about 40,000 men were employ
ed Of whom nearly 5000 were Ameri-
cans. The common laburers ar"
principally West India negroes, mos
| ~ from the islands at jamaica aun
| barbados also groups of Spaniard@,
| Italians, HindOos and Greeks, although
most OF the last named LEFT the ca
| ma, zone and returned To their coun-
| try To fight under the cOlOrs AZ the
outbreak of the Bulgarian Turkish
war.
| The canal is II sea level canal for
| eight miles from the Atlantic en-
trance 10 the famous Gatrn dam
| AT this point the isthmian Canal
commission have literally changed tn
whole face of nature, having bulit
across The valley of the thaprcs a
vertiable mountain ridge - mile AMI
n half long and nearly II half mile
wide at it, base. thr crest of when
! Is l05 feet above sea level, In this
dam the outer sides are composed 81
great ridges OF rock ana earth from
the Culebra cut between which "a
hydraulic hn has been made. Great
ing practically impcrri"us core
throughout the dam.
| An immense Lake.
Back of this dam the waters %!
the Chagres are impounded, iormlhi
liatum lake. with an area of l5l
mil. - located on the very crest of TIE
isthmur.
at the east end of the dam ar" tn
gigantic CatGm locks tn" largest
structure at concrete and concrete
steel in existence 100000 cubic 81
concrete having been used in th'S'
locks.
| These figures are 80 big that II IL
Ihard Ia realize what they meah' on
I;his concrete would max" q wall tish
feet wide and twelve feet high III
miles long, or "uongh 1" reach h'l
way around the state of l'"lawar'
while all the concrete used III Ih'
canal construction would make Il wal