PANAMA CANAL.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 27, 26 October 1907, Page 15

PANAMA CANAL.

-Mil TAFT ON , THE GEE IT WORK ; Tho United States..Secretary m for,War,..Mr. William H;'. Taft,' arid his party, on routo;to the . Philippines,.! spent' .. a -day-,; iii., Portland, Orogon,-.a3 tlio, guest of Theodoro;B. Wilcox, i President ■ of, tho Oregon Development 'League: .This-!is 'J'aft's iirat visit- to tho 1 Pacific JNorth'-west,".arid ohis- stay>in' Portland was made-the occasion of' Several pleasant attontio'ns "to tlie man- who aspires to' the ,Prosi'deiicy."'' .'" • 1 ' •' -TELLS OF PANAMA..CANAL:' : J.,-Speaking,'ii'nder the, auspices/of-tho. Oregon Development Leaguej'Mr. iTaft: gave'a minute' resume! •of .the -history ' of'' tho attempts; to : buihl a canal across 1 the Isthmus of Panama, and iof' the'progress 'upon. tlie.''prcsent' work since it wasjbogun by tho .Roosevelt' Adminis|tratiqii.; ' said '. h'o', thought' it:,.'was :dispbsal'of material .irijCulebra'cut. next year ( of ;To,U(jp,poo';to 12,000,000-cubic i yards.- - - -. *.flt..is;,byin6 means ,certainj.":ho said,' "that the. timo itaken>• to' niako■ 'the excavations for the Culebra cut will mean the timo necos- . sary.-.for tho completion" of '• the'.; canal'.'-; "There is the Giitim dam to to'constructed, and therq"-'are' the- Gatrin-' ' : arid" it;.'is likely;.'that the enorriioiis'struct'urd .necessary to bo"made 'for. locks at'jGaturi 'and the' enormous'dam' will take,'longer, 'than tio 'ei&v«twn >t';Ciilobrpi.'.'. i-.-,'/., : ; .'."lt, is ' jqu'itp.'certain.that.every,othor piece ofi construction : tq. be carried on can be completed, iii, less time,i but I think'it is a inoclcrato. estimate. to say that the ,: canal will bo' compltted in soven years from the heginriirin of:'th'e next-fiscal year:' : , That 1 is; bur' canal will be-completed'about'July l, l!)lo-- ' •_''Th'e, meir'actually at 'work mimljior:about The number.oh' th' 6 pay-rolls'.are' a •! S.ffeaf iri.any. .nibre.'. , WoVdoriot. get full-.work ouc 'of,them. .There,are about 4000, Americana iOO.O and alithe'rest are ' West'lndian negroes; A:Spanjards,-. and -Greeks ,aro- r qur - besfc;.unskilled--. M'Wo-ibare American .unskilled /' i f ; r ■ ■•'The efficiency.-of -thd'iWesfc"lndian' negro 'is; about one-third- that.ofii,white!lab'dur.', The : cq'mirig; ;6f t ' white; 'labour a'pjSafently''''hy. l :cqm- • petition! has . increased: - the jbffl'ciency, of,] tfie Iblabk man,' 'so that,,"on. tho 'whqley the' labour sifcu'Eitioh' "oh r - tlie' ;Isfch'mii(s;|'issatisfac.toi-y.; It docs'; not,,seem. necessary., for, rlis /.to employ IhoiiTOck.W PKpousiv(o/ij6f Couratf/JHiEa'btjtlH everywhere--is •» exponsivd* iiC'tßS .tropics-it.-'is-doubly oo.',;The; : question' that ; T fancy the Americair l people-''ha'vo'- most;at lieart""is-thEr' j ,time l, 'iri.,'w , liich' , tho I :Cari'Sr"caii bp built l ; and i "ri6t' l 'jts costj"''prqvidcd' that\ tliii ipioney ' which' is " expended', is iiojß 'wasted; 'but is';h'oiiestly"a'pr)lidd to the work.!' . ViV.. ',