700 Mr. A. Henry Savage Landor [June 18, 



The Obispo Diversion, which begins east of the Cut (near Gold 

 Hill) and opposite Culebra settlement, runs almost parallel to and 

 east of the Oanal. At Upper Bas Obispo the channel of the stream 

 crosses the Canal. The hills at that point are so near the Cut that 

 the Diversion could not lie constructed between them and the Canal, 

 so that a passage had to be found in a depression further east behind 

 these hills. In this Diversion, which is now almost completed, the 

 waters collected in the channel on the east side of the Cut will flow 

 into the Chagres River at a spot half a mile above Gamboa. 



At the time of mj visit steam shovels were at work in the hnal 

 cut through a barrier separating the channel from a ravine on the 

 opposite side, through which the stream will join the Chagres. 

 1 was told that considerable difficulty had been experienced in making 

 this cut 250 feet wide and 97 feet deep, owing to the heavy grades 

 encountered. 



There were five steam shovels at work in the Pedro Miguel lock 

 site. In April 1909 these five shovels took out close upon 100,000 

 cubic yards of rock and earth, loading rapidly on two tracks. In 

 fact, the excavation of the lock site was so far advanced that it could 

 be kept well ahead of the concrete-laying, which the Americans 

 expected to begin in August (1909). 



On the Pacific Slope, the Rio Grande (which was the only river 

 crossing the line of the Canal between the summit of the Continental 

 Divide and Pedro Miguel to the S.E. of the Culebra Cut) was entirely 

 diverted by the French, and its waters were not allowed to flow through 

 the bottom of the Culebra Cut. A dam had been constructed half a 

 mile from the Cut, and the water driven into the Rio Grande Reser- 

 voir, from whence it was conveyed in pipes to the Settlements in 

 the Canal Zone between Culebra and Ancon, as well as to the City 

 of Panama. The reservoir was of sufficient size to hold all the 

 water from tbis river in the dry season. During the rainy season the 

 overflow found its way to the sea by the French diversion. 



The excavation in the Culebra Cut was not deep enough for the 

 water to flow by gravity into the old French diversion channel south 

 of the Pedro Miguel lock site. 



The railroad system on the Isthmus consisted of the old Panama 

 Railroad and the railroad of the Isthmian Canal Commission. The 

 proposed submersion, when the Gatun lake will be filled, of the 

 present road-bed of the Panama Railroad made it imperative to relocate 

 the fine. The work of building the new railroad that would replace 

 the old one was at the time of my visit more than half finished. 



From the Atlantic terminal to Miudi, about five miles, and from 

 Corozal to Panama and Balboa, the old line will be used ; but 

 between Mindi and Corozal the new railroad will be constructed to 

 the East of its old location, and 10 feet above the normal surface of 

 the artificial lake. That is to say, at 95 feet above sea level. 



The relocation involved heavy embankments north of the Chagres 



