The Daily Alaska empire., 1928-01-23

fever brought on by carelesSness and ignorance of sanitation, CT fled to foreign lands to enjoy the huge sums they were able to pilfer.
 u. S. Is Uneasy
 During all this time the United States was not exactly at ease re- garding Panama. The prospect of Europeans digging and subse- quently controlling canal in the Western Hemisphere, at the very doorstep of North America, was not viewed with much favor either in official Washington pr by the public at large. It was not until 1903, however, after several costly surveys had been made, that Congress appropriated the necessary funds and permitted the work to proceed as a United States government venture.
 For the next three years vir- tually no progress was made m actual construction, and while this was blamed upon the civilian engineers. it is hardly chargable as a fault, for their work of pre- paration in making the Canal Zone habitablc was largely re sponsible for tine success of those who followed.
 Aside from the task of eliminat- ing disease, General Goethals was faced by many other unique prob lems, any one of which was stu pendous work in itself The first of these was the cutting down to much lower level of several good sized mountains near the center of the Isthmus in order to minimize the elevation of the canal itself. Gold Hill and Con tractors Hill, through which the famous Culebra Cut was driven, were removed almost completely. and millions of tons of earth and clay were disposed of in the op- eration It was not until several years after the canal was opened ito traffic that the several slides which developed at that point were brought under permanent control.
 Mighty Feat
 The second mightiest fegt was the damming of the powerful and cratic Charges River with the Gatun Dam. This was designed not only to eliminate much of the excavation by the formation of iGatun Lake, but also to insure plenty of water for ships of deep draft. The lake. as completed by General Goethals, is S5 feet abore sea level. covers more than 15O square miles in the interior of the Isthmus, and is deep enough for the largest ocean liners to pass through.
 Following close upon the heels of this problem came the build ing of huge concrete locks with filling and emptying systems, and great steel gates with opening and closing devices. Many times the plans were changed, and many sleep|ess nights the Chief him self spent working .out the com plicated calculations, but finally the job was done, and 1t was not the least of those for which Gen eral Goethals in 1915 received the thanks of Congress flor distin- guished service in constructing the Panama Canal" Despite the fact that Goethals used heavy hand on his aides and laborers alike, and that they were pushed and driven to the limit of endurancey he was one Of the most popular men on the Isthmus when the time came for him to wind up his affairs and sail for home.
 Promotion Rapid
 General Goethals was born in Brooklyn, N. Y.. June 29, 1858. His early education was obtained there and also in the City College of New York. following which he was appointed to the United States Military Academy at West Point. where he was graduated in 1880 as a second lieutenant in the engineering corps. From then on his promotion was rapid, until he received in 1915 the rank of