FIFTY YEARS AGO

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXI, Issue 21935, 19 October 1934, Page 8

FIFTY YEARS AGO

THE PANAMA CANAL FIRST COMPANY'S TRIALS Difficulties encountered in the construction of the Panama Canal, which was opened 21 years ago. were described in the Hkrald of 50 years ago. As early as 1550 a Portuguese navigator published a book, showing that a canal could be cut through the isthmus. For more than two centuries no serious steps were taken toward the construction of a canal, if exception be made of William Paterson's disastrous Darien scheme in 1698. Early in the nineteenth centiuy, however, there was a decided increase of interest in the question. After considerable preliminary surveys and attempts to commence work, an national congress composed of 135 delegates from various nations, principally France, was convened in Paris, under the auspices of Ferdinand de Lesseps. After a session of two weeks it was decided that the canal should be at sea-level and at Panama. Immediately afterward the Panama Canal Company was organised, under a general law of France, with de Lesseps as president. An attempt to float the company that year failed, but in 18SQ another attempt succeeded. Work under the plan for a sea-level canal continued until the latter part of 1887, the management being characterised by a degree of extravagance and corruption rarely, if ever, equalled in the history of the world. The plan was changed to one including locks, and work was pushed on vigorously until 1889, when the company, becoming bankrupt, was dissolved. In 1894, however, a new company was formed, but within five years it also had difficulties with finance, and was only able to continue operations in a provisional way! After considering building an independent canal through Nicaragua, the United States purchased the works of the second French Panama company, in 1902. Four years later work was resumed and, in spite of difficulties of unsatisfactory administration and fever, the canal was finallv opened in October, 1913. '