TRANSACTIONS OF SECTION E. 455 



distance of 120 miles from the great oceans to be small and shallow, necessitating 

 144 miles of canal and 140 locks. It has no port on the Pacific, and not a good 

 one on the Atlantic side. 



The Honduras route is no better, from the extent of its mountainous tract and 

 the distance (93 miles) between the two oceans. 



In Nicaragua the mountains disappear, and the lake is only 36 feet above sea 

 level, but a canal would require projecting jetties at each end, especially on the 

 Atlantic side. The badness of the climatic conditions has been above mentioned, 

 and dredging to keep down the deposits of mud and sand would require to be 

 unceasingly carried on. 



Of the Darien routes, that by the Atrato is very attractive. Large steamers 

 can ascend it for 1 56 miles, and it has a wide delta, the most favourable com- 

 mencement for a canal being at the mouth of the Uraba. Obstacles to its naviga- 

 tion require, however, to be removed. The Tuyra has a less volume of water, but 

 its mouth is very suited for a great international harbour, the climate being healthy 

 and anchorage good. Extensive surveys of these routes have been made, that by 

 Commander Selfridge being the most conspicuous. The Isthmus is narrowest here 

 between the Atlantic and the navigable waters of the Bayano, being only 30 miles 

 wide, but the mountains are narrow and very precipitous. Selfridge 's proposed 

 canal follows the Atrato and Napipi, passes the Cordillera by a tunnel, and ends in 

 the bay of Cupica ; it obtained the second place at the recent Congress. The 

 lecturer's own Darien expedition of 1876-77 was severely tried by the death of 

 Captain Bixio, the Engineer Brooks, and Musso. Engineering explorations were, 

 however, continued on the Cue and Caquiri rivers; the plateau of Cana was ex- 

 plored as far as Tiati, where an important discovery of a low valley was made. 

 The work was connected with that of the Americans, and a canal planned, which, 

 starting from the bay of San Miguel, was projected to fall into the Atrato. Three 

 hundred and sixty miles of forest and river bank were levelled during this survey. 

 An alternative route was to follow the Tuyra to below the island of Piriaque, join 

 the Chucunaque, utilise the Tupica valley, and passing to the south-east of the 

 Peak of Gandi, reach the Atlantic by the valleys of Tola and the Acanti. In the 

 following year the Bayano was explored, and the line from San Miguel to Acanti 

 determined. The line by Gandi has great advantages ; its tunnel is long, but the 

 rock is not hard, and the space is short between the Pacific and the confluence of 

 the Chucunaque and Tuyra. The total cost would not greatly exceed 375,000/. 



The Panama route, selected almost unanimously at the recent International 

 Congress at Paris, with M. Lesseps as President, is the only one on which a level 

 uncovered canal is possible. It requires a cutting of 262 feet in height, therefore 

 a tunnel is more economical. This would be from 5| to 9i miles long, i.e., not 

 longer than the St. Gothard. Volcanoes are extinct or dormant on this line, and 

 no earthquakes are felt. 



The route is from Panama to the Bay of Colon by way of the valleys of Chagres 

 and the Rio Grande, and practically follows a road which has been in use since 

 1532. The elevations of the rail already existing are not great, but the sinuosities 

 are frequent and curves sharp, and the rock to be penetrated in tunnelling is hard. 

 But this route has the advantage of being short, on one level, and near a railway, 

 with consequent facilities of transport ; of not requiring delicate works rendering 

 constant repair necessary ; and of possessing on the Atlantic side a perfect port in 

 the Bay of Limon, and on the Pacific one not requiring important works, and 

 with a generally calm sea. The tunnel required is short, and can even be dispensed 

 with if absolutely necessary ; if made, there is a possibility of multiplying wells 

 for its perforation. Although not geographically connected with this project, it 

 may be observed that a convention has been agreed upon between the lecturer and 

 the railroad company, permitting and aiding the proposed canal. The cost of 

 this plan is estimated at 32,500,000/. 



