The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1914-02-01

| indian negroes working on the Canal
are paid at the rate of 10 cents an
hour-more money that they ever got
before. or are likely to receive again,
for their labor. The Spaniards get from
l6 to 20 cents an hour. In addition,
! free quarters are furnished. with water
and electric light thrown in, not tn
mention free medical attendance in case
Of sickness and free transportation by
| train to and from their work.
| AZ first all the negro laborers were
! housed in buildings of no great size
! fitted up as barracks. with hunks ar
ranged in tiers. They did their cook
| ing outdoors or in roughly con-
structcd shacks. Later the commission
built for them miniature apartment
houses, with two rooms to each apart
ment. and many of them sent home
for their wives and children. Thus and
for other purposes. chiefly residential
numerous villages grew up. Culebra
Empire, Cristobal, Gatun and Gorgona
are considerable towns built 10y the
| commission.
Rather odd it seems to find that all
the work people in the Zone are divided
into two great classes-gold employees
and silver employees. The former In,
clude all the officials. the engineers
and other technical experts, the skilled
artisans and the clerical force. Those
on the silver roll are mainly common
| laborers. Nearly all Of the men on
the gold roll are white Americans.
In fact this is a polite method of draw
| ing the color line without offence. TIL"
, Spaniards. though white. are nominally
on the silver roll, but they are paid in
gold. Silver employees are paid in the
| cure mt silver coin Of the Republic of
Panama; the god employees get their
money in American gold pieces.
At the great Commssary store in
| Colon there is a sign over one door
which reads Gold Employees" and
over another door the sign silver En-
ployees." This serves in effect To
separate the races. Prices are exactly
the same to both. but many articles are
found on the silver side that tre not
carried in stock on the gold side
and some there are on the gold side
that are not represented on the silver
side. This is because the whites and
the blacks have different tastes in
many things, especially where food
supplies are concerned. Just beneath
each article of mer, handise. tackled to
the shelf, is the price of it. printed in
letters an inch high.
Most people do not realize that the
Panama Canal. apart from the perform
ance OF its function as an interoceanic
highway, Is destined TO be a great and
highly profitable commercial enter
prise For one thing. it will deal in
coal, selling, it expected, at least
900, 900 tons yearly. 1t is reclioned
that. on an average. every ship pass
ing through the ditch will need 500
tons Of coal, or an equivalent in other
fuel. There are no coaling stations
nearer than Newport News, on the At
lantic side, or San Francisco, on the
Pacific. and the price of fuel at South
American ports is very high, Accord
ingly, preparations for handling coal
are now being made on large scale,
and great tanks are being built to hold
fuel oil for oil burning vessels.
This, however. is only one feature OF
the contemplated business. The Gov
eminent Is going to furnish ships with
food and many other kinds Of supplies
There will be demand for fresh meats,
groceries, vegetables. canned goods, ana
particularly ice. In order to furnish
these things the great commissary
plant at Cristobal will be made per-
!. manent affair. with its immense store
houses, it's bakery. which has been
turning out over 100000 loaves of
bread a year. and its ice making plant
; and cold storage outfit. the latter one
OF the largest and most admirably
equipped In the world
This cold storage plant will keep In
stock great quantities OF fresh vege-
tables, fresh fruits. fresh eggs. ana even
fresh cream and milk. brought from the
states As heretofore. all the buying
, OF such perishable merchandise Will DC
> done presumably by an agent OF the
Government in New York, who VII.
make his purchases all over the un'tco
states. wherever the market Is cheap
I est Through the adoption OF this sys'
! tenn it has been found practicable to
sell fresh fruit in the Zone fetched from
! California by water. at San Francisco
prices ,,, .o,,oh,
, 10 obtain concessions permitting then
, n establish supply houses In the Zone
h,,t the Government has refused, part'!
because Uncle Sam thinks he m'g"t al