Académique Documents
Professionnel Documents
Culture Documents
ELECTIONS, ETC.
[Minutes of
Aesociute Members.
REQINALD
FRANCIS
BAKER, Stud.Inst.
C.E.
BELL, B.Sc. (VicCHARLESDICXBON
tm*u),stud. Inst. C.E.
WILLIAX ALEC
BOOTHROYD,
Stud.
Inst. C.E.
RAYMOND CARPMAEL,
Stud. Inst. C.E.
JOEEPII
CAPEL CORNOCK,
Stud. Inst.
C.E.
MAURICE
BRYHAX
FRIEDBERGER,
Stud.
Inst. C.E.
HAROLD
TUORNTHWAITE
HINCKS.
CHARLES
EDWARD
INGLIS,
B.A. (Cantab.), Stud. Inst. C.E.
SENTARO KONDO.
JAYES
WARREN
MCCROSKY.
JOHN
ROWLAND
JONES
MOLEAN.
WILLIAEHENRY
MEYRICK.
MAGNUS
MOWAT, Jun., Stud. Inst.
C.E.
WILLIAXHENRY
LAWBON
PYBUS.
SAMUEL STANSFIELD,
B.Sc. (Victoria.)
WILLIAX ROBINSONTOWNSEND TUCKEY,
B.E. (Royal.)
* For information as to early plans for connecting the Atlantic and Pacific
Oceans, see Papers i n the Minutes of Proceedings by J. Glynn (vol. vi. p. 399),
Lieut.-Col. J. A. Lloyd (vol. is. p. 58), and F. M. Kelly (vol. xv. p. 376).SEC. INST. C.E.
Proceedings.]
151
152
-as
insisted-
Proceedings.]
153
154
[Minutes of
Proceedings.]
OF
155
156
Proceedings.]
157
158
recently published,establishesbeyonda
donbtthefeasibility
of thecanalonthelinesthey
propose. Thisreport is in fact
a r6sum6 of numerous independent investigations on the ground,
experimentsandactualsurveys,andcareful
discussions of the
features of a multitude of projects submittedto
them. By a
process of elimination of all that could be considered hazardous
for want of precedent, it presents three equally practicable plans,
of which one is selected which contains no feature that has not
alreadythesanction of experience elsewhere. When it is considered that this distinguished body of men, aided by a competent
force of engineers in thefield, hare made an exhaustive investigation with borings and meteorological and tidal observations over
an extended period, and have profited by experiment in construction, it may fairly be assumed that nothing in the wayof data is
wanting to warrant definite conclusions as to the Panama canal.
I t is not the purpose of this Paperto transcribe themass of detailed
information contained in the report, but some of this matter will
be found in the Appendix. The Author ventures to
express his
chosen by the Compreference for an alternative plan to that
mission, which, however, they declare to be equally practicable.
His reason is the conviction that considerations of economy and
expediency, which to a large extent undoubtedly governed their
choice under the existing conditions of general public distrust i n
the whole enterprise, will soon have altered in importance; that
with returning confidence the construction of the canal is really
assured,and will inspirea greater effort on the partof the Governments or capitalists who undertake it, to approach still nearer to
the ideal sea-level canal than theCommission is inclined to recommend ;and consequently, the immediate adoptionof the lowest locklevel practicable, in the Authors opinion, would not cost appreciably
more than themedium summit levelrecommended by the Commission, and would give infinitely superior results for navigation.
Before proceeding to discuss the plans, it may be well to state
clearly the difficulties inherent in any form of canal through the
isthmus at Panama. The Technical Commission having rejected
as impracticable, or rather imprudent, under present
circumstances,
the recommendation of the ideal solution of a sea-level canalbeing excessively costly, andpeculiarly subjectto thedangers
of an overflow from the Chagres and other torrential streams, was
limited to a choice of various altitudes of summit level for a canal
with locks. I n this connection the popular idea that a sea-level
canal, without locks, is an impossibility at Panama, on account of
the difference of tide-level in the two oceans, is erroneous. It is
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Proceeding.]
159
160
Winutcs of
along the canal from end t o end and at all possible dams and lock
sites. As any excavation that could be done on the Culebra and
Emperador cuts would be so much to the good towards its completion, whatever final plans might be adopted, it is here that the
greatest amount of workhasbeen
done by the new Company.
The force omployed on this work has averaged about 1,500 men
for the past three years; the cut hasbeen carried down throughout
2 miles t o a level of 160 feet above sea-level, and to a width of a
little more than one-fourth its final width ; the average elevation
atthe summit was originallyabout 380 feetabovesea-level.
These figures give some idea of the magnitude of what has been
accomplished, the importance of whichisnot
so much inthe
material progress since the! interruption of the work, but in the
absolute proof which it affords of the natureof the ground, and the
feasibility of the work, even if it were ever thought necessary to
go down to thesea-level canal. It has been shownthat thedreaded
landslides are absolutely insignificant, occurring only in the comparatively slight upper soil, and due in great part t o the careless
deposit of material in spoil banks in the early stages of the work
obstructing the natural drainageof the land ; even the loose spoil
banks,tosaynothing
of the realbanks
of thecut,stand
perfectly a t a sharp angle, in
some placesquiteperpendicular,
and are covered with permanent growth. This refers only to the
upper strata, for the new
Company have long been working in
material constantly increasing in density from shale and sandstone
to conglomerate and other compact rocks ; and at the time of the
Authors recent inspection they were well into hard
black basalt at
many points, with the unfinished sides standing perpendicular and
notashovelful
of materialbeing removed withoutblasting.
t o carry away the material
The lines for the construction trains
excavated,havebeenlaidout
with the greatestcareandforethought, and have been carried through
on both sides,towell
chosen and distant tips or spoil banks in the valleys
of the Rio
Grande and theObispo River ; the spoil in allcases being deposited
so as to improve the natural drainage of the lands adjacent to the
canal, and usefully employed in the huge embankments necessary
(many sections being now complete
for rail-laying) for the deviation
of the Panama Railwayas the workprogresses. These construction
linesare so disposedas t o makepossible an enormous increase
in the working force and number of the trains, so that working
dayandnight,thetime
of constructionneedonly
be limited
by the number of menandmachines that caneconomically be
of the cuts. It would be difficult
engaged in the actual length
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Proceedings.]
161
t o speak too favourably of theresults achieved underthediscouraging conditions and limited financial resources of the new
Company during the early stagesof their labours, when it was not
atallcertainthat
aserious attempt would ever be made to
complete the work.
4. The Technical Commission having definitely put aside all
plans for a sea-level canal, principally, on account of its cost,
which, as a purely commercial~scheme~could never yield
a profitable
returnunderany
reasonable estimate of thefuture traffic, it
is unnecessary a t present to discuss that question further. Should
circumstances arise to cause: the work to be undertaken by some
Government, or combination of Governments, who would regard
theextra
cost as more than compensated bytheadvantages
of such a canal,i t may be conceded in the light
of the investigations
made, that there is no insuperable obstacle to its construction on
that system, and there is little doubt that the ultimate
cost of
its maintenanceandworking
wouldbeconsiderablyreduced
thereby. Kevertheless in allplans considered it has been borne in
mind that the lower the summit-level and the less the lockage
(i.e., the nearer to sea-level), other things being equal, the more
satisfactory would the solution be for the purposes of navigation.
The Comnlission has studied in detail three distinct plans, all of
which are admitted to
be equally practicable-the highest with
the summit-level 126 feet above mean sea-level, the medium plan
with the summit-level at 98 feet above mean sea-level, and the
lower plan with the summit-level 6 2 feet above mean sea-level.
They recommend the adoption of the medium plan, a short
description of which will now be given, the other two being of
the nature of modifications in the quantities of different kinds of
work involved rather than forming anessential departure from the
general design, except in one important particularof the lower plan.
The alignmentof the canal,on any of these plans,being governed
by the topography of the country,is practically identical with that
of the planson which theold Company worked, save for a fewminor
alterationsintheflattening
of some of thecurves; hence the
whole of the work previously done is utilized. I n general termsthe line, beginning at Colon on the Atlantic side, crosses the low
marshy country in a southerly direction till i t reaches the valley
of theRiver Chagres, which it crosses severaltimesuntil
it
reaches the junction of its tributary, the
Obispo, a t Matachin,
where the Chagres itself turns sharply to the eastward and runs
generally parallel to the sea-coast. (It is this peculiar feature of
the Chagres that causes it to collect such enormous quantities of
[THE INST. C.E. VOL. CXLIV.]
B1
162
. . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . .
19,400,000
20,300,000
21,100,000
Proceedings.]
163
vated, and hares the Chagres a t Matachin for the Obispo Valley,
where a t 29 miles the two summit locks are placed. These have
a total possible lift of 50 feet, the 13$ miles length of the Bohio
Lake section being calculated for a variation of 13 feet i n elevation
accordingto the season, Figs. 6, Plate 6. Thesummit level is
also calculated to vary possibly 5 feet above the adopted 98 feet
level. Fromthesesummit locks a t Obispo across the Cordillera
dividetothe
locks on the Pacific side a t Paraiso,thesummit
level is carried for 7 miles and the descent is made at Paraiso to
the first intermediate section by one lock with a maximum lift of
30 feet. This section is 1; mile in length and extends to
Pedro
Miguel, where a double set of locks, with a maximum combined
lift of 59 feet lowers the level to that of the second intermediate
section, 19 mile in length, which terminates at Miraflores. There
the varying sea-level of the Pacific is reached with one tidal lock,
having a maximum lift of 30 feet and a minimum lift of 7 feet, i.e.,
allowing for the wriation of the water-levels in the two intermediate sections as well as for the 20-foot tide at Panama. From
Miraflores to La Boca, and thence to deep water a t Naos Island,
there is a sea-level stretch of 8 miles, giving a total length for the
canal, to deep water, of about 46 miles. The maritime section a t
Panama, as stated before, is ultimately to have a depth of 40 feet
below mean tide level, which thus gives a minimum of 30 feet a t
low tide as elsewhere. The minimum radius of curvature in the
alignment is 150 chains, with the exception of some short sections
i n the approaches to locks, where a radius of 125 chains, and
even of 95 chains, has been found unavoidable.
The characteristic features of this plan will now be dealt with,
showing how it meets the opposing conditions of controlling too
much water in flood times, and of storing and supplying enough
in dry seasons for all ,the possible needs of the canal. Details
of measurements and quantities, necessary works, such as locks, etc.,
will be found in tabular form in the Appendix, and in the published report of the Technical Commission. It has always been
on theisthmuswhich
could
recognised thattheonlystream
possibly supply the waternecessary for a lock canal is the Chagres,
the minimum flow of which has been ascertained to be 26 cubic
yards per second in extremely dry weather, while its maximum
flood-discharge has been estimated as high as 3,400 cubic yards per
second for 48 consecutive hour#. These latter figures, however, are
rarelyattained.
I t is somewhat surprisingto find that as far
back as 1875 the AmericanGovernment expedition under Commander Lull proposed exactlythe same planasthat
adopted
M 2
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164
[Minutes of
Proceedings.]
OF THE PANAMA
CANAL
WORKB.
165
166
~~
..
Maritime
,,
,,
,,
,.
,,
...
__------0 to 15
15 ,, 29
29 ,, 36
Yti ,, 37
H7 ,, 382
38% ,, 469
(
1
'
1
-
Tutd
- S
8,380,000
10,920,000
31,190,000
25
1,900,100
1,449,400
25
12,605,000
1
66,444,500
i
75
20
30
60
Proceedings.]
167
from thetime
work is again vigorously undertaken. These
remarks apply equally to the project for a lower summit level.
The question of health on the Isthmus, as one of supreme importance in the prosecution of the work, should not be ignored;
from actual experience the Author considers the evil reputationof
that region i n no way justified. I n the early days of the construction of both therailroadand canal, no doubttherewas much
sickness; but with the extensive clearing
done and the growth
of villages from end toend
of theline,with
a population
of Panama is to-day
of some 40,000 inhabitants,theIsthmus
as healthy as anyothertropical
region, and is practically
safe for the residence of white men who observe the most ordinary
rules of health.
ThePaper is accompanied by fifteen photographsandfour
new Panama
sheets of drawingsgiventotheAuthorbythe
Canal Company. From these Plate 6 has been prepared.
168
[blinutts cf
APPENDIX
SUJIJISIiY O F THE TECHNICAL CORIJIISSION'S ESTINATE
O F COST.
EARTHWORK.-GESERAL.
Atlanticmaritimesection
. . .
Bohio intermediate section . . .
Summit section . . . . . .
Intermediate section, Paraiso . .
Intcrmedinte section, Pedro-JIiguel
Pacific maritime section . . . .
Contingencies . . . . . . .
Stone-pitching banks. . . . .
. . . .
. . . .
. . . .
. . . .
. . . .
. . . .
. . . .
. . . .
f Sterling.
815,500
1,517,400
4,705,000
252,300
189,500
1,204,700
S32,500
277, 5ao
. E1,594,400
--
The average prices given include transportation aud all handwork, dredging
a t 3 francs and sometimes 3.50 francs per cubic metre (1s. 10d. and 2s. l i d .
per cubic yard), ordinary excavation 3.50 francs and rocky material 5.50 francs
percubicmetre (2.9. 14d. and 3s. 4d. percubic yard). For the great cut at
Culebrlt and the other excavation in dry ground the rates are 3.50 francs per
cubic metre (2s. l*d. per cubic yard) for ordinary excavation, and 5.50 francs
per cubic metre (3s. 4d. per cubic yard)for rocky material,includingalso
discharge and all other expenses. These prices have been established upon the
cost of the work a t present being done in the great cut. with certain correceions
which future circnmstances appear to justify in the
opinion of the Commission.
LOCKS.
f Sterling.
. . . . . . . . .
. .
T.hl
Contingencies
. . . . . . . . . . .
4,932,500
499,000
. .
5,431,500
--
Proceedings.]
169
DAMS.4ND
'WEIRS.
S Sterling.
435,400
. . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . .
17,900
53,500
35,500
1,990
. . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . .
. . . . . . . .
184,110
. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. .
Total
Contingencies
. . . . . . . . . . . .
1,02S,400
161,000
. . . . . fl,lS9,400
The prices calculated for masonwork are the same as thosc for the locks for
all the darns on the line of canal proper, but have been rated a t G0 franc3 per
cubic metre (about 36s. 8d. per cubic yard) for the work on the Alhajuela dam.
DEVIATIONS
AND
WIDENING
OF STREAMS.
.
.
. . .
. .
Total
Contingencies
. . . . . . . . . . . . .
Sterling.
219,900
220,000
130,800
570,700
63,600
____
. SGk,300
--
RAILWAYS.
. . . . . . .
. .
. . . . . . . . . . . . .
Railway
Panama
of the
Deviation
The railroad to the Upper Cllagres, Alhnjuela dam
Contingencies
Total estimate
C'ontingenries
CAXA4LFOX
SCnfMlT
555,000
64,100
15,200
. . 2634,300
Total
SUPPLY
Sterling.
LEVEL.
. . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . .
.
594,700
$9,300
--
. "674,000
t Sterling.
S Sterling.
237,900
515,400
. 18,912,000
170
WORKS.
[llinutes
Of
If to this total be added (entirely apart from the sums already placed nnder
each heading for contingencies, amounting to E1,665,000)for general contingencies on work that cannot be foreseen, a further lump sum of 21,388,000, a
total of E20,300,000 is arrived at as the amount representing the cost of the
work properly 80 called. Thistotal would be reduced byabout E1,586,000
if the construction of the duplicate lock chambers were postponed provisionally
at all locks ; and the totalwould be raised t o E20,816,000, if the construction of
all the locks, with their twin chambers of equal width, that is, 82 feet internal
measurement, were undertaken immediately.
ORDINARY
SECTIONS.
SECTIONS
...
COLON-BOHIO
I N
ROCK.
..-
SECTION.
O B I S P O
LOCKS-
LONGITUDINAL
SECTION
....
PARCIIS0~- PEDRO-MIGUEL
\"
...
SECTION.
SECTlJN
A .
'
'
SECTiON
B'.
G
ALHAJUELA
D A M .
SECTION