Ashland tidings. [volume] (Ashland, Or.) 1876-1919, 1915-09-09
COCKTAILS DISLIKES COMM
SION RULE.
(Oregonian.)
COMMIs.

| MOSt men, JHlHhi CdH hot "oih
under a commission, said Major
General George w. Goethals, guilder
of the Panama canal, in the course
of an informal talk at smoker held
in his honor by Portland engineering
societies at the Benson Hotel We'd
nesday night.
Every successful organization, l
don't care what it is," he went on,
must have head who is absolutely
in control. If he does not make good,
waste no time in cutting off his head.
But when man is trying to work
under five or six or seven commits
sioners, there is bound to be trou-
ble."
General Goethals was discussing
the organization by which the build
ing of the Panama canal was accom-
pished.
His remarks were regarded by
some present apropos of the Portland
city administration.
"a commission, went on the Cen
eral, "either will be dominated by
one man who imposes his stronger
personality on the others and be-
comes the real head, or if there is no
such personality on the commission,
there will be a weaker organization
with six or seven heads. A commits
sion is a good deal like board In
the army we think Of board as a
long, narrow piece of wood"
General Goethals said that his pre-
decessors in charge of the canal work
had been greatly handicapped by the
canal commission then in control,
and that even he, with military
rank that made him superior to any
member of the commission and with
the whole army organization behind
him, had some difficulty at first be-
cause of the interference of the COM
mission.
This was not eliminated, he said,
until President Roosevelt took things
in his own hands after congress had
refused to act and eliminated the
commission. Then it became posi-
BILE to get results.
The general said that the Canal
Zone government is now working to
depopulate the Canal Zone.
"There is little land of agricul-
tural value in the zone" he ex-
planned, "and the natives are gener-
ally hostile to American administra-
ton. They have become more so
since they have found they could not
milk the American Panama canal
COW as they MIXED the old French
company.
"They do not understand us, and
the best solution seems to be to de-
populate the zone of all except the
canal operating force and the mill
tary. This will make not only the
administration but problems Of sani-
tation easier. We are working to
that end now"
He said that he had been emphatic
in his recommendation that his sue
cessors as governors Of the Panama
Canal Zone, which includes director
ship of the canal, should have abso-
lutte authority, and that congress had
acceded to this view, but had de-
clined to adopt the further recon-
mendation that the governor should
be an engineer.
1T is distinctly an engineers
job" said General Goethals, but he
added humorously: Some congress-
men were not willing to take the
stand that defunct member of con-
gress should not be permitted to have
the job, if he can induce the presi-
dent to appoint him"
He summed up his views as to the
importance of one-man authority
with the remark that the governor
should be given full authority, "and
if it is plain after a reasonable time
that he has not the ability to handle
the situation his head should be
Topped off at once"