The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1936-03-02
Vagabond
from
Indiana
MARC,
ERNIE PYLE

NCALA, Fla, March $50
~ much has been said and writ
ten about whether or not the Florida
Canal should be built at all, that
many people have overlooked the
droll fact that it's already being
built
For two days I've been here on
the scene, up to my ankles in sand
and up to my ears in amazement.
This is the biggest piece of con-
struction in America today It's the
biggest excavation job in all his
tory. It's twice as big as the
Panama Canal.
If all the dirt and rock that is
to come out of this ditch were
stacked in the shape of pyramid.
its base a mile square, it would
make a pile 1850 feet high!
They've been working steadily
here since September. They're at
work today over a stretch of nearly
20 Enthusiastically digging.
=
THEY have 5000 men on the job.
4 They're moving 100000 cubic
yards of sand every "a hours. The
work goes on night and day, never
stopping.
They're using mules. and men
with shovels, and hundreds of trac-
tors and Diesel scrapers that dig up
20 tons in one bite. and steam SHOW
els with 175-foot aluminium boonls,
and airplaneS, and boats.
They have cleared the timber of
thousands of acres and they've built
IS little cities out in the wilderness
for the workers to live in. Already
they're building bridges over wheref
the canal some day will be-theys
hope.
If President Roosevelt or Congress
fails to renew the canal appropria-
ton, they'll work until the money
runs out on July /, and then leave
a cash across the center of Florida
that will be the Grand Canyon of
the South.
THERE are thousand fascinat-
i ing Big and little details about
this immense job, and intend tol
tell every one of them 1 can re-,
member.
To get the canal picture, you first
must get it in your head just how
the canal runs. AS you probably
know, it is to connect the Atlantics
Ocean with the Gulf of Mexico, sol
ships won't have to go around the1
southern tip of Florida
Florida, in its narroweSt part, is
about 100 miles wide. That's about
three-fourthS of the way UP from
the tip, and that's where the canal
is to be- But the route doesn't run
straight across. 1t wanders around
for a total length of 1875 miles.
That's to take advantage of rivers.
where there's already water, and Of
river valleys, where they won't have
to dig SO deeply =
First, we go west on st. johns
River, from the ocean to Jackson
vile. This is % miles They don't
have to do a thing TO this It's
already deep enough for ocean YES
sells. )
Next, we go south, still on the
st. Johns River, and follow it 52i
miles to Palatka. Well have to dol
a lot of dredging here. This whole'
stretch is only IS feet deep. Well
have to make it 30.
ATOW we turn southwest, and we
IN go southwest for 95 miles, clear
across the peninsula. This is the
real canal. All this will have to be
cut out. All this will be big, arti-
fetal ditch.
1t will follow river valleys, but it
won't be right in the rivers. When
we get up in the center Of the state,
we'll have to cut right across high
land. There isn't any peak her e
that you can see with your nakedk
eye, but it's about 100 feet above sea
level.
AS we get toward the west coast,
we pick up another river valley, and
follow it down to the gulf But it's
very shallow, and Wen have to dig
deep.
Well even have to dig under
water with hydraulic dredges) for
20 miles out into the Gulf of MeXi-
co. That's because the Gulf along
the Florida Coast is shallow. Well
have to build a breakwater 20 miles
out into the Gulf to protect the
south side of this channel. Nature
has already provided one, in the
form of long shoal, on the north
side.
They started at the hardest part,
right in the middle, where it's high
est and today the digging covers a
stretch of nearly 90 miles.