The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1913-10-10
ATLANTIC CONNECTED
WITH PACIFIC WHEN
GAMBOA Dixie FALLS
Waters of Gatun Lake Rush
Into Gigantic Culebra
Cut.
MARKS THE FINAL STEP
Blowing up of Barrier De-
void of Any Spectacular
Setting.

COLON, Panama. Oct. l0.-With a
deep roar and rumble. resembling
heavy artillery firing at n distance.
several thousand pounds of dynamite
in thirty charges, were today exploded
in the Gamboa dixie, allowing the wa
ters of Gatun lake to trickle through
into Culebra cut
After the smoke and spray of the
heavy charge had cleared away. steam
dredges were Immediately put to work
dredging out the channel When this
work is completed, and the water in
Gatun Lake has risen TO sufficient
height TO flood Culebra cut to the for
ty-five foot level the Panama canal will
be ready for navigation.
Although the blowing up of the
Gamboa dixie today. might be termed
the final step in the completion of the
canal, in that IL removed the remain
ing barrier with the exception of the
! locks. il was devoid of any spectacu-
lar setting. Five Gays ago the first
water from Gatun Lake was led into
Culebra cut through several pipes,
| this water acting as a cushion for the
explosion today. The charges of dy-
Mantle were distributed i'm such a man.
ner as to merely loosen the material
composing the dixie. allowing the wa
ter to trickle through and cut its own
channel.
Canal Not Done.
While the waters of Gatun Lake now
flow north into the Atlantic and
south into the Pacific, much work yet
remains to be done before heavy
draught vessels can be sent from one
ocean to the other.
With more work to be done. il
would not be con sistent, according to
| Col. Geothals, to make a spectacle of
| the joining of the waters of the Allan
| tic and the Pacific So everything was
quietly prepared and just as quietly
executed.
This nearing of the end of nine
years of toll on the part of the en-
gineers and workmen on the isthmus
/ to bringing forth a realization of what
has been accomplished In building the
canal. The Chagres river has been
| turned into a lake, 164 acres in ex-
tent by impounding its waters back
of the Gatun dam. This dam is a
mile and a half in length and 120 feet
high, united the high hills on either
! side of the river. Without consider
| ing the other features of the canal.
the construction OF the dam alone was
feat of engineering to test the skill
of the American technicians.
CuIebra Causes Work.
Then the digging of the Culebra cut.
ditch nine miles In length, 300 feet
! to 500 feet wide at the bottom, and
from a thousand feet to half a mile
wide at the top, through the isthmian
hills, which APPROACH mountains in
size, was a task of gigantic proper
tions.
Another dam was constructed at the
lower end of MirafIores Lake. This
lake lie between the lower end of Cul-
ebra cut and the channel leading into
the Pacific. At the upper end of the
lake is the Pedro Miguel lock and at
the lower end a mile and half away
are the two Miraflores locks
/ Enter At Lemon Bay.
A ship passing from the Atlantic to
through the deep waterway dredged
situated. Passing into the canal chan
mel it will steam for seven miles at
sea level until IL reaches Gatun.
Here IL will enter the series of three
locks and be lifted 81 feet to the sur
face of Gatun Lake Across the lake
TO the entrance OF Culebra cut is a dis
tance of about twenty-four miles. At
Bas Obispo the vessel will enter the
cut. The nine miles of the cut travers-
ed, the vessel will enter the Pedro
Miguel lock and be lowered to Mira
flores Lake. At the other end of Mira
flores Lake IL will be lowered by the
two Miraflores locks to sea level. pass
ing out to the Pacific
20 Miles Long.
The canal from shore line to shore
line is 40 miles I'm length. although the
deep waterways dredged in the sea at
the approaches increase this distance
to fifty miles.
To complete the journey through the
canal will occupy from ten to twelve
hours, depending upon the speed at
which the vessel can navigate In the
two lakes and Culebra cut