Show AN OLD IDEA the german goethe foresaw the canal dr julius professor of germanic philology and literature at stanford university says that goethe received most of his ideas on geography from hig intimate friend herder the father of the science in germany who in his turn had been a disciple of barou von they had many erroneous ideas bays the san francisco chronicle lut that is not sur when it is considered eliat in the middle of the last century certain parts of the earth were supposed to be inhabited by giants and certain other parts by dwarfs goetha conceived the universe to consist of earthly sidereal and celestial elements each star he thought was governed by a separate spirit that of the earth was a personal being known aft the earth spirit it was the personification of the eternal creative element of nature Go ethos ideas of the geography of america aie full ot interest to us it was one hundred years ngo when he wrote in speaking of cutting a canal through the isthmus of panama suggests that there arc rivers on the isthmus that would render the cutting of a canal at other places moro advisable than at panama it would surprise me greatly if the people of the united states should not before long have settled that vast country west of the bocky mountains on the pacific coast are some of the finest and most capacious harbors of the world on these great cities will grow up making a ship canal across the isthmus an altogether abl ething |