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In this connection I wish to state that Mr. Ruggles some way is all mixed up on his figures for the monthly estimate for April. As you know, heretofore our carload measurements have checked very closely each month with crosssection measurements, but for the month of April the figures are away off, Mr. Ruggles's estimates only giving us 114,085 cubic yards, when our carload records show 129,638 cubic yards.

The discrepancy is largely at steam shovels 202, 101, and 102, all three of which are working in sliding material.

I have tried to get this matter straightened out, but Mr. Ruggles is sick in bed and the men who did the cross sectioning are some of them away, so that I have decided to take as a basis for the estimate for the month of April the figures as given by Mr. Ruggles's cross sections in all cases except at steam shovels 101, 102, and 202, in which cases I have taken the carload measurements as the output for the month in place of cross-section measurements, as I am positive the cross-section measurements do not show even approximately the monthly output. After Mr. Ruggles gets well I will try to have him straighten this out.

This gives as the output for the month only 126,749 cubic yards, as against 132,840 cubic yards for the month of March, when, in fact, we took out nearly 300 cars of material more in April than we did in March, and the cars were loaded equally as well.

Taking these figures as the basis of our estimate, our costs for April, you will note, are 52 cents per yard. On this amount 3 cents per yard is due to surplus train men who have been of no service to us, and also on account of wages paid for time of men in transit between the States and Culebra. If these items were deducted it would make the cost about 48 cents per cubic yard for the month of April.

The primary reason for the increase of about 5 cents over the month of March is the large amount of time lost during the latter part of the month on account of holidays and holy week.

Very respectfully,

W. E. DAUCHY, Acting Chief Engineer.

Approximate comparative statement of cost of work at Culebra during the months of March and April, 1905.

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Chief Engineer Isthmian Canal Commission, Washington, D. C. DEAR SIR: I submit herewith the following report of the operations of the engineering and construction department during the month of April, 1905:

[F. B. Maltby, division engineer, Cristobal.]

Beginning with the month topographical surveys were in progress to obtain necessary information for the relocation of the Panama Railroad between Gatuncillo and Monkey Hill. Since then the line has been run upon the ground and completed.

Surveys are in progress to determine the location of the shore line, wharves, piers, tracks, and buildings, and other features of the territory from the dry dock to the beach at the north end of Colon.

A small party has erected some stations and signals for a system of triangulation.

Borings have been made around the outside of the dry dock to ascertain the character of the material, with special reference to the enlargement of the dock. The work of remodeling the tracks in the Cristobal yards has been in progress. The material tracks at wharf 14 have been repaired and all the tracks in the yard at Fox River. The tracks leading to the machine shops have been practically rebuilt.

Wharf work. The wharf work has been confined to the reconstruction of the light lumber wharf near magazine 4, and owing to the lack of material only a small force has been employed.

A shed has been erected over the tie-boring machine near wharf 14.

The health of the party throughout the month has been exceptionally good. Gatun section.-A very small party, under Mr. Nichols, has completed the field work, maps, tables, and report on certain special work assigned to him by the chief engineer. Surveys of the canal between Gatun and Bohio, and borings along the line of same, have been in progress, but owing to the scarcity of labor the progress has been slow.

[H. F. Dose, resident engineer, Bohio.]

On the 1st of the month, owing to Mr. Boyd Ehle, resident engineer at Bas Obispo, having been transferred to Culebra as acting division engineer, Mr. Dose was put in charge of the work at both Bohio and Bas Obispo.

Bohio. The survey party at Bohio has completed the tabulation of records and data relating to final reports on an investigation at Bohio for the period ending February 28, 1905; survey of the Panama Railroad from Cristobal to San Pablo has been completed and estimates of costs of construction made.

The largest portion of the work done during the month has been office work. Bas Obispo.-The basin survey of the upper Chagres has been continued with some interruptions due to religious holidays observed by the laborers.

The topography adjoining the Chagres and all its tributaries has been taken to the 200-foot contour and the valley of the Pequeni River, including its tributaries, has been covered to a point some distance above the settlement of San Juan.

The progress of the party in charge of the boring of the tunnel line has been slow on account of the difficulty in obtaining laborers.

Two borings on this line had been completed previous to April, and during the month a party was working on the third boring.

Two boring machines have also been at work near Empire, two at Paraiso, and three between Tabernilla and Bohio.

[Boyd Ehle, acting division engineer, Culebra.]

The total amount of material taken out of the cut at Culebra during the month of April was 126,749 cubic yards, as against 132,840 cubic yards in the month of March.

The decrease in the output was due to the fact that there were but twentyfour working days in the month of April, as against twenty-seven in the month of March, and work was very much delayed during Holy Week and various Jamaican holidays during the latter part of the month.

The cost per cubic yard of material removed during April was 52.4 cents, as against 43.3 cents during the month of March.

This increase in cost is due to, first, the decreased output caused by numerous holidays, the organization at Culebra now consisting of such a large number of gold employees that a large portion of our daily expense is constant, whether any work is done or not, and where time is lost on account of holidays or lack of sufficient labor the cost of the output is very materially increased.

The second cause for increased expense is the fact of having a surplus of men above the needs of the work in certain departments, particularly in the transportation department, and the increased cost due to the payment of men in transit from the United States.

These last two items amount to 3.4 cents per cubic yard on the entire output for the month.

On April 10 another one of the new 70-ton Bucyrus steam shovels was put to work.

During the last week in the month the rainy season started in, and its effect began to be felt at once in the general condition of tracks and dumps. On

account of lack of preparatory work during the dry season, which had not been done on account of the lack of track foremen, tools, and proper material, the tracks are in no condition to stand up under traffic during wet weather.

The consequence is that as soon as the rains commenced the tracks began to go down, and derailments, which had bothered us more or less during the dry season, became much more frequent.

On the dumps the clayey material which had been hauled out during the dry weather, as soon as it began to feel the effects of the rain, commenced to settle and slough off, putting some of the dumps in almost impassable condition.

In addition to this trouble of sliding, this clayey material which was taken out of the cut when it is rained upon sticks to the dump cars and has to be shoveled off by hand, which causes a great deal of delay and adds greatly to the expense.

The labor situation has been a little worse during April than during the preceding month. The average number of laborers employed in all departments was 1,795 in the month of April, as against 1,837 in the month of March.

Several new dumps have been established along the Rio Grande Valley, near the village of Lirio and at Paraiso, and tracks leading to them have been laid. Tracks have also been laid preparatory to starting steam shovels Nos. 105 and 106 and French excavator No. 18. French excavator No. 18 was started at work on the 8th of the month in order to cut an opening through the barrier at the south end of the cut in order to prepare for steam-shovel work. The output of this excavator has been very small, and the work it has been doing has been entirely of a preparatory nature.

The need of track foremen, which was mentioned in the report for March, is more pressing now than ever, no track foremen whatever having been received during the month of April.

The rains having started during the latter part of the month has made it necessary to put what track men there are working upon such tracks as are laid in order to keep them in passable condition, which has made it necessary to stop all laying of new tracks preparatory to installing additional steam shovels.

[A. C. Harper, resident engineer, La Boca.]

The work that Mr. Harper has been doing during the month has been entirely of a preparatory nature, and consisted of cutting of lines in order to enable surveys to be made and preparing triangulation stations.

[C. E. Davis, engineer waterworks and sewers.]

Panama waterworks.-No work has been done on the Rio Grande reservoir. The elevation of the water in the reservoir has been kept at approximately 225 feet during the month, water being turned off every few days for supplying the demands of Culebra cut.

The discharge of the Rio Grande into the reservoir reached the minimum flow during this month of approximately 300,000 gallons per twenty-four hours. The rains during the latter part of the month have increased this flow.

On April 18 the balance of the water pipe arrived in Colon. Delivery of several thousand feet of 16-inch pipe has been made and 2,800 feet of it laid upon the supply line between Rio Grande reservoir and Panama.

In the city of Panama 3,565 feet of various sizes of distribution pipe have been laid.

Panama sewers.-Sewer pipe has been laid during the month continuously with the water pipe, about 2,000 feet having been laid of different sizes.

Culebra. The distribution reservoir back of the police station has been completed, and the work of laying the main on the west side of the cut for mechanical purposes has been continued.

Corozal.-A small force has been engaged in laying a 6-inch line of pipe to the bachelor quarters at Corozal. This will be connected with the main distribution line leading to Panama and will furnish excellent water service.

Gorgona.-A line of 6-inch pipe has been laid from near Gorgona Station to Bas Matachin shops for fire protection of the shops.

The concrete dam across the river has been completed, providing storage at the site of the pumping station for several millions of gallons.

Haut Obispo.-A force of 7 or 8 men has been employed during the last week of the month in installing the waterworks system at Haut Obispo to supply the new quarters of the marines.

Empire.-A construction force has been organized for work on the dam, the site for which has been cleared and a Decauville railroad is now being laid to the same from the Panama Railroad track at Empire.

Colon. Preparatory work has been done, consisting of laying Decauville track from the Panama Railroad at Mount Hope to the site of the dam. Preparations are now being made to push this work, but not much can be done until more laborers are obtained.

[A. M. Burtt, acting supervising architect.]

At Ancon Hospital grounds minor repairs have been made to buildings, and the 4 houses comprising the leper hospital are practically completed and will be turned over to the sanitary department as soon as painted.

The new hotel for bachelors at Corozal is practically completed, 28 rooms being now occupied.

Work on the new houses to be used as quarters for married employees has been commenced and fair progress has been made.

The work of repairing houses for sanitary and other departments at Miraflores has been completed as far as authorized.

Minor repairs have been made to houses at Paraiso, Empire, Bas Obispo, Matachin, Gorgona, Mamei, Gatun, and Monkey Hill.

At Cristobal 34 buildings are being raised and repaired.

The construction of the new police station and new detention hospital at Cristobal is well under way.

[C. A. Strom, mechanical engineer.]

The work of the three shops at Bas Matachin, Empire, and Cristobal has been largely devoted to overhauling of engines and dump cars. Twelve locomotives taken from the storehouses have been overhauled and placed in service.

In addition to these, special general repairs have been made to 7 locomotives temporarily disabled at Culebra. Repairs have been completed on 234 of the old French dump cars, and these have been sent to Culebra to take the place of the bad-order cars shipped from there to the shops.

As no lumber has been available, it has been impossible to commence the erection of buildings for the enlargement of the shops that have been authorized. The work of repairing French dump cars has been seriously delayed on account of lack of material that was ordered from the States last November.

Notices are now being received of the shipment of this material, and it is hoped that a better showing may be made upon its arrival.

EMPLOYEES.

On the 29th of April the number of employees carried on the pay rolls was as follows:

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Chief Engineer Isthmian Canal Commission, Ancon. DEAR SIR: It is going to be necessary to do a large amount of preparatory work before we can install many additional steam shovels at Culebra. May 6 I wrote you quite fully with regard to the conditions of the work at Culebra; not knowing whether this letter reached you at Washington before you left there, I attach a copy hereto.

The conditions existing at Culebra are no better than when this letter was written, but are a little worse, and will get no better until we get things shaped up in a proper manner for taking care of the output.

I therefore make the following recommendations with regard to preparatory work, which I consider necessary to be done:

A double-track railroad should be laid from the vicinity of Pedro Miguel Junction along the center line of the canal to the barrier that is now being removed at the south end of the high portion of the Culebra cut. This doubletrack road should be connected with the present Panama Railroad at Paraiso and, perhaps, one or two other points between the Rio Grande reservoir and Pedro Miguel.

It should also be connected with the old Panama Railroad at two or three different points between Pedro Miguel Junction and Cucuracha.

A double-track railroad should be laid from the Chagres River near Bas Obispo along the lowest excavation in the canal to Culebra, this to be connected with the Panama Railroad at a point between Empire and Las Cascadas, at Bas Obispo, and at a point about halfway between Las Cascadas and Bas Obispo.

The double-track railroad in both of these cases to be used for excavating tracks, in order to shape the cut up for proper working on the terrace plan; and the Panama Railroad should be used as an outlet for hauling away the material through the various connections suggested above.

Wherever these connecting tracks leading from the double-track line along the center of the canal to the Panama Railroad, join the latter, storage yards should be put in, so that loaded cars taken from the steam shovels could be set out at these points and taken from there to dumping points by trains running exclusively over the Panama Railroad.

This arrangement would give an outlet for the material on both the east and west sides of the south end of the cut, and on the west side at the north end of the cut. As to the material to be taken out on the east side at the north end of the cut, perhaps the most advantageous way of handling it would be the construction of a track leading to the Gamboa dam site. Mr. Ruggles has made a preliminary survey of such a track. It will be in the neighborhood of 4 miles long and will be very heavy work.

If this track is constructed, it will require a regular grading outfit in the way of a large number of teams, scrapers, etc., and will take quite a little time to construct.

If this line is constructed, a connection between it and the Panama Railroad in the vicinity of Matachin should be made in order to get equipment, fuel, and supplies to this piece of track.

A new switch-back track should also be constructed at once connecting level 90 meters with the lower level. This is absolutely necessary in order to carry on any further work at lower levels on the east side of the canal below level 90. The tracks comprising what we now call the Lirio yard," on the east side of the cut north of our engine house, should also be rearranged and a track extending from this yard along the east side of the canal outside of the canal prism be constructed. This is necessary in order to get rid of the tracks which are now within the canal prism and are in the way of future operations in that locality.

The question of moving the houses from the old village of Culebra should be taken up at once, as in order to carry on our work on that side of the canal it is necessary to move back the old Panama Railroad to the limits of the canal prism and start steam shovels working along in front of the village in order to shape up the cut for excavation at lower levels.

A map of this property has been made and was given to Governor Davis some time ago, requesting that arrangements be made to put us in possession of this property.

The question of the control of the Sardinilla River and the east fork of the Obispo River should be decided upon and the work of such control put into effect at once, as these two streams, which come together near Las Cascadas, flow along the center line of the canal from that point to Bas Obispo, and but little work can be done in that vicinity until this water is taken care of in some manner, nor can the canal be deepened to any great extent between Empire and Bas Obispo until this water is taken care of, as it is necessary in order to provide drainage the whole length of the cut to open out this portion of the canal through which the river now runs.

In order to use the new equipment, a portion of which is now on the Isthmus, it is going to be necessary to relay all of our present tracks with different rails from the high Belgian rail, to put tie plates on the soft-wood ties, to surface these tracks, and to ballast a portion of them and put them in reasonably good condition to handle the output of the shovels.

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