The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1914-07-19

<e HE Panama Canal--the big for
~ ty-seven- mile ditch reaching
fV from the Caribbean Sea 10 the
&% Pacific ocean. is almost com
plete When finished 1t will cost fhe
United States Government $3T5,20o,
600. OF this amount about $4,000
600 was paid out for salaries and
wages.
The Americans began work on May
Attn, 1904. with FAC employees. These
were increased from time TO time until
the number at the busiest period
reached ~, 66l. Between i've aH1 Elk
thousand OF the workers were Amer
leans who filed such positions az engi-
Deers. foremen. clerks and policemen
or these the greater number came
from Pennsylvania. New York was a
close second in furnishing employees
for the Canal and Ohio third. Men
from eighjy-seven countries worked
on the ditch rs lahorers.
The average temperature Of the
Canal Zone, which comprises 44s
square miles. is So degrees. The vege-
ration Is tropical and the rainfall
heavy. The annual average on the AT
lantic side being 13o inches and on
the Pacific 20 inches. These condi-
tons coupled with excessive humidity
naturally brought Illness 10 the north
ernef. and during the early days many
IF the workers died from malaria. In
1905 there was n yellow fever epidemic
and th}rfy-seven employees were
amcu0 its victims. When Colonel
william G. Gorgas came TO Panama TO
clean mp. the death rate was 49.94 per
1000. In 1919 tn the same places it
was 211S. cut down more than one
half This decrease In the death rate
was brought about by cleaning up the
cities. killing The mosquitoes and en-
forcing a rigid quarantine. Thirteen
hundred employees were required In
the sanitary department TO carry out
the reform IN cleanliness. and II cost
the Goverr%ent $4,000 600 to make
the place 1vahle one for the white
man The money WAS well spent, for
1t IS doubtful whether the canal could
have been built at oil ii the sanitary
squad rad relaxed it's vigilance.
During the period extending over
ten years Of American rule on the
Zone about SIX thousand employees
died, eleven hundred being killed by
accidents. such as dynamite explosions,
being run over b. trains. hit by cranes.
etc.
Each employee was given thirty
days sick leave each year with pay
and free medical attention. Twenty
four out Of every thousand employees
have been constantly on sick leave,
the most OF them III The hospitals
which have "a capacity nf about twelve
hundred patients. SIX weeks vaca-
ton with pay was allowed to the
American employees.
Canal Commission Abolished,
On April first Of this year the 18TH
m!an Canal Commission was abolished
and the permanent organization for
the operation and maintenance Of the
canal was pat into effect, with Colonel
George W. Goethals as Governor.
Ever since the canal work WAS taken
over by the Americans Canal Com
mission has existed. From time to
time changes were made by the re-
tirenent Of different members. There
was, however. little change made in
TIE policy or That body after Ig08,
when Colonel Goethals became It's
chairman. The labors of the Commits
sion were by no means easy. and many
danes their plans were un3ustiy at
tackled by a hostile press. Time and
again muck rakers visited the canal
and when they We're unable TO find the
slightest trace Of graft they set about
10 critictse certain plans Of the canal.
For instance. the Gatun Dam was re-
ported as sinking. This is one OF the
worlds greatest pieces Of engineering
ard was set up to dam the chagres
River and form Gatun Lake. the iar-
gest artificial body Of water in the
world. The construction of this dam
alone cost thirteen and one half mill
lion dollars II was commenced in
1905. and finished in 1914. For the
first two or three years the plans of
q n. darn were assaiied in the most