Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-07-13
Fifty Years Ago
In The Star

The following news item in The
Star Of July 8, 1880, regarding the
Hr;.. possibility of an inter.
NICARAGUA oceanic ship canal by the
Canal Nicaragua route was Of
interest In view of the
renewal Of the Nicaragua project a.
a supplement to the Panama waterway:
I'VE are enabled to lay before the
readers Of The Star the following
summary Of the results obtained
through the recent visit Of Mr.. Menocal
to Nicaragua: Through the diversion
into Lake Nicaragua OF the headwat-
ers of the Rio Grande, now falling into
the Pacific. an excellent surface drain
age Is secured and the Lajas route
will be substituted for the line of the
canal instead of the Rio del Medic
route. This will reduce the estimate
Tor labor $4,000 900. It was found that
from the mouth of the San Carlos
River, on the Atlantic slope, and fall
ing into the San Juan River, the canal
can be excavated almost in q direct line
to Greytown, q distance Of IS miles.
Ihls shortens the canal as originally
located, z miles without increasing the
depth Of the cuttings and reduces the
estimate 100000. An examination
of the locality shows the probability
mat one dam across the San Juan
River SO feet in height will be made
above the mouth Of the San Carlos.
The effect will be to make an unin-
terrupted navigation OF the River San
Juan TO the lake, distance of SO miles:
thence by Lake Nicaragua Sc miles 10
virgin Bay, making total of 1l9 miles
OF unimpeded navigation and actual
canalization on the East Coast, as be-
lore stated, Of IS miles and on the
west Coast OF IT miles, having seven
MT docks on each Of is feet and q
TIDE lock OF feet at Brito. The esti-
mated cost approximately as thus inn
proved in location viii not exceed
4o,OOO0 900, exclusive OF contingent ex-
penses Tor surveys, supervision of labor
and the interest on money, and as an
onset the concession granted bv the
government Of Nicaragua of several
thousand square miles Of valuable
lands"
The famous fast of DR.. Tanner in
New York took place so years ago,
T.n.,. starting on the 26th day OF
tanners June with 40 DAYS as oh
Fast jective. Skepticism re-
garding the good faith Of
the faster was early expressed. The
Star Of July 8, $780, says:
THE first stage has been reached in
the row that was bound to CONS
sooner or later between the old and
new schools of medicine over the case
Of DR.. Tanner. the 40-day faster. in
New York. The charge Is now fiatly
made by some Of the former that the
patient has been surreptitiously sup
piled with food by his watchers during
the course Of the experiment. The
charge does not seem to BE- perfectly
sustained, but the effect of It will
doubtless be to throw q cloud upon
the whole transaction and to convince
at least q portion Of the medical
faculty that the task undertaken Ia
physical impossibility and that the
patient Is q humbug, Is they have all
whether the experiment. had IL
been conducted without any suspicion
or cause for any, would have been pro-
ouctive OF good, In case Of either fail.
ure or success, may perhaps be open
10 question, but 1t certainly would have
been more to the credit of Or. Ham
mond and the other regulars, as they
style themselves, had they accepted Or.
Tanners proposition that they should
prescribe the tests and do the WATCH
ing, instead Of standing aloof and cry.
ing fraud as they now do. Had thev
done this 1t Is likely that the experi1
ment would have added something Ia
scientific knowledge. whatever the re.l
SUIT might have been, because then the
public would have received the COM
illusions as final"