| Show IU RIVAL r. TO rIlE TILE PANAMA 1 CANAL Baltimore American The rue railroad which I is a modification of oC tho ho ol old Eada Eads project was open for Cor business on the tho fil first t of oC this year car Eads' Eads idea was to lo build a ship railway with basins at at each cud by which ships could be raised up and carried over ovel tho the rails from one terminus to lo the other thereby avoiding necessity for fOl freight transfer Eads Ead died before beCore he ho could calI carry out oui his plans if Jf Indeed the they were practicable and the transfer trans trans- for fer CI of ships hip as a a. feature was abandoned The road now connects the Pacific with the Caribbean sea and reduces the time ot or ships from rom Atlantic and Gulf ports port to ports In the Pacific or 01 five days A large laige amount o of 01 money has haH been spend on this railway and much more moro is still to bo bu spent The termini are to be ho made mado as convenient convenient con con- and antI commodious as money can make them The road already has contract contracts with an American steamship line and will probably corral all the traffic which now no goes around tho the Horn or through tI the e Straits of or Magel- Magel Ian lan It promises to become a vel very important highway for COl the worl worlds world's M commerce and it Jt may mar be well vell to bear beal it In InI I mind that when commerce down Into certain ruts It II Is Js not easily diverted One Ono of these ship concerns is hs said al to send tons of freight around the Horn year yearly I Ii i The Tehuantepec route might easily become a for formidable formidable for for- rival to the tho Panama ean canal 1 Indeed it is on this account that mention of It Jt is made here herc It Is not likely that the Eads idea will ever be realized It Is 15 doubtful if ships can be raised to lo a height and antI placed on railways railways railways rail rail- ways and carried safely across an isthmus no matter I how many railway tracks traces there may be but it is possible l b by good management and th the remarkable facilIties ex extended ox- ox xI x- x I tended to trade to divert a large part of at the worlds world's com corn morce merce which passes across s the Isthmus or 01 around South America and keep that trade It Is of or gret Importance therefore that thai the Panama Panama Pana Pana- ma canal should be constructed as speedily as aR po possible I A few years cars make a a vast t difference In the carr can carrying Ing trade j of the the world in this tilts ago age of or progress He Ho would woul be he a rash prophet who would undertake to lo tell toll what sort port of ships will h bo in iii eal nonce honce The most hn- hn Portent object of oC Panama canal will bo bf to furnish h facilities for th the tho transfer of oC American al naval vessels s from the Atlantic to lo Ot the tho Pacific No 0 rival enterprise onU can interfere In- In with that though h if too much time Is consumed in building th the canal the naval na vessels may ho ie of a very cry from what they are now Still HUll the thenny tnt navy Is likely to bo bl accommodated no matter mattei imo how long lon It tal takes e to build the canal canol It Is 18 however to secure for Cor ho the Panama canal all nil the lie hu business possible It will cost a va vast t amount of money and the more shipping shipping ship ship- ping that passes Jasses through It after arler Its Us completion the tho greater will Ill b bo be the receipts and ail the probability of or tIl l Ihm deaths donds s. s If the canal can bo le completed say t-ay a in ton t years or Ol ovon tn in twelve twel rival enterprises like J e the pec Ilee route will do it little harm but hut I If a n. longer period than thal that thai is Js consumed in It Its construction tho th worlds world's commerce may ha have Bellied down to lo certain routes In a away away way which make It difficult to bring the bulk of It Itlo to lo tho the canal canol |
