River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1918-10-24
John LINER Writes
From Canal Zone"
Cristobal, Canal Zone,
Sept. 81, 1918.
Dear Grandma and Grandpa:

It is quite long time since l
wrote to you, but have so many to
write'to that it keeps me pretty
busy. And, of course, the folks let
me know about YOU, and you about
me, so l guess you will excuse my
DELAY. | am getting to like Panama
better every day that | am here. 1t
seems romantic that Grandpa
should have been here when he was
vounq and that [ should follow to
the same place. don't you think sof
Perhaps we have both been in the
same cities, but, of course, they are
much different now than they were
then. l have been in Cristo0ai'
Colon, Gatum, Balboa, and in Pana-
ma City. They tell me that in the
interior Of the Republic Of Panama
it is practically the same as It has
been for hundreds of years before.
Of course, l haven't had a chance
to see a great deal Of that. But
now in some streets of Colon the
children up to about Is or l6 years
old play in the streets absolutely
nude. The government runs prac-
tically everything, and so, OF course
EXPENSE is not trihed with. Every
white man has good job down
here. For instance, the manual
labor on the railroads is done by
Panamanians while the engineers
and conductors are all whites. The
white government employees are
called gold employees and the ma
tives are called silver employees.
In Cristobal there is large COM
missary or in other words mann
moth general store. This, too, is
run by Uncle Sam and everything
imaginable is sold at cost. Then
there is big commissarv restaur-
ant which is run cafeteria style. L
can't understand how they can sell
things at such low prices. A big
feed that would cost from a dollar
TO a dollar and half in the States
costs about forty or fifty cents there.
Of course, you know we sailors
never patronize this place after pay
day, because none of US like pie or
ice cream or a good cold glass of
milk But just the same. would a
whole lot rather have one of those
big luscious sugared cookies or a
piece of pumpkin pie that Grandma
makes. l guess you know how we'll
Dad and like them.
l think l never shall forget the
Sunday morning we landed here.
At the dock were perhaps rs cabs.
They were low affairs with a huge
folding top and the driver perched
way up high in front with big yell
low umbrella over him. On each
side was a big sidelight. These
lights use candles in them and are
supposed 10 be for ornaments,
guess, but are very poor ones. The
carriage is drawn by a little old
donkey or worn out western pony
that trots about as fast as one of
our horses walks. Then there is a
bell that the driver rings with his
foot and when these bells are ring
ing it sounds like a street car con-
ductor ringing up fares. | can't
get used to these things and l en-
Joy watching them 60 along the
streets, Then there are wild par
rots away up in the palm and cocoa
nut trees making a terrific chatter.
These are the only small birds
have seen and they are colored a
brilliant green. We fellows eat ba-
nanas from morning until night it
seems. They are only 10 cents a
dozen and they are great big ones,
700. A whole pig bunch such as
they have in the stores up north
costs about S1.25. We have already
tired 81 cocoanuts. They cost only
four cents each and are three for
ter c-utsr They are nice and fresh
and aoJut twice as big as the ones
we used to buy at home. Or we
can sometimes swim out in the bay
to ships going north with cargo
of cocoanuts and they will throw
them off and we get them for moth
ing.
I was over TO Coco Solo about two
weeks ago. That is about a 20
minute ride by motor sailer from
the Patrol Station. Coco Solo is a
submarine base and they also have