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TEE POPULAR SCIENCE MONTELY 



passing vessels, and more particularly to vessels of the great size which the 

 Panama Canal is designed to accommodate. 



The board is of opinion that this consideration should be of determining 

 force in respect to the type of canal to be adopted, and that it should lead to 

 rejection of all proposed plans in which lift-locks, whether few or many, form 

 the principal or dominating features, and consequently to the acceptance of the 

 sea-level plan as the only one giving reasonable assurance of safe and uninter- 

 rupted navigation. 



The majority then set forth that no canal with locks can fulfil 

 these requirements and that the sea-level canal is the only type of canal 

 that can give reasonable assurance of safe and uninterrupted naviga- 

 tion. They refer to three accidents in the preceding nine years arising 

 from collisions between steamers and lock gates on the ". Soo," and to 

 three accidents of a like nature on the Manchester Canal, and to the 

 disastrous results that would have followed such accidents at the locks 



Tkestle Dujir ..ii'ST outside of East Toe of the Sosa-corozal Dam. 

 Ancon Hill and Ancon Hospital buildings in tlie background. 



of larger dimensions and higher lift on tlie Panama C*anal. They 

 placed the estimated cost of a sea-level canal at less than $350,000,000, 

 and thought that it could be completed in twelve to thirteen years. 

 They strongly condemned any provisional treatment such as the con- 

 struction of a lock canal. 



It is interesting to find among these members Mr. Hunter, the chief 

 engineer of the Manchester Ship Canal (which is a lock canal), who in 

 a convincing statement explains wh}'^, although as a member of the 

 Comite Technique, he favored the lock canal as best suited to the con- 

 ditions under which the New Panama Canal Company was operating, 

 he is now in favor of the sea-level canal. 



As an offset to the recommendation of the majority, a minority of 

 five members, Noble, Alibot, Stearns, Eipley and Randolph favored a 

 lock canal for the following reasons: 



