The Guthrie daily leader. [volume] (Guthrie, Okla.) 1893-1996, 1915-11-01
JOHN N|ssLEY TELLS or
WORKINGS OF CANAL

Crlstobal, G, u, oct, goth, 1915.
Dear Folks: We left the ship at .: :OC
a. M. Mr.. Scannell, Mr.. Walton and
myself making up the party. two
miles walk brought us to the Mt. Hope
cemetery where we spent half an hour
walking through its flower bordered
walks and drives, passed graves which
mute evidence of the ravages of yell
low fever.
! We were soon started again on the
road to Gatun when Mr. Cole, an
other member of the crew, overlook
us and Joined the party. The road to
| Gatun is a fine piece of macadam and
motorcycles were whizzing by us
every few minutes taking the turns
wide open, giving US bare time 70 get
clear of them The road winds and
twists its way over rolling country
through jungles of eocoanut and
banana groves intertwined with vines
and dense growth The day was warm
and before we had gone very far our
faces began to show the first signs of
sunburn.
Beginning at the Atlantic entrance a
ship enters the first lock and is raised
30 feet. From this lock it is pulled
into the next one by means of cleo
tric mules and raised 30 feet higher.
Then ON into the last lock for an
other 30 feet. The ship is now on the
same level as Gatun Lake. The gates
at that end are opened and it pro-
ceeds across the lake which covers
150 square miles. This lake is fed by |
several rivers, the largest being the |
Charges 1t is not possible for me to
give a technical description of the |
gates or the system of raising and
lowering the water level. Large
pumps force the water in from the
bottom through immense manholes
and huge valves are opened when the
water is lowered The gates Of course
are swung back sand forth by electrici-
ty When these gates come together
they fit to the hundredth of an inch
and they are swung so perfectly and
work so smoothly that the guard
whom we talked with said that he had
ridden out on one half of one of these
gates when they were closing and that
he could feel no jar at all when they
came together,
In order to maintain the same level
At all times in the lake an immense
spillway has been built about half
mile from the upper end of the locks.
This spillway is provided with four
-een gates which may all be opened [
1t the same time in case of necessity, II
only three are generally I
opened at one time. At the bottom {
If the spillway is the hydro-electric |
station where the electricity for OPP {
rating the locks and gates is made a
~ utilizing the water power from the '
AXE good hundred feet above. From
he locks over to the spillway it is like
Walking through park.
| had a delightful day and one never
o be forgotten
AS far as the Buford is concerned il
ooks as though we were in for long c
tay here as no orders to the con-
rary have been received. All the
vegetables which we had aboard have
,een taken off and distributed among +
he several camps of the 9th along n
he canal. Monday a detail of men d
we're sent down for the rifles of the 7
egiment. These rifles are new and Q
we're put aboard at Galveston direct
rom the car that brought them from q
lie factory. All the equipment of the
9TH is new even down to their band v
lstruments, the old ones being lost i
/ the storm | have written cards to o