304 THE PROPOSED AMERICAN INTEROCEANIC CANAL 



merce of this coast to the narrow strip of country embraced 

 within its western slope. This commerce centers at Valparaiso, 

 the chief seaport of Chile, and is carried on mainly by means of 

 steamer lines which pursue the Straits of Magellan route and 

 ply between Valparaiso and New York and between Valparaiso 

 and ports in Europe. The commercial success of the vessels of 

 these lines depends very largely upon the fact that they touch 

 and trade at ports on the eastern coast of South America. The 

 principal of these ports are Buenos Ayres, Montevideo, Rio de 

 Janeiro, Bahia, Pernambuco, and Para; also ports in the West 

 Indies. It is certain that for the reason just stated no consider- 

 able part of this commerce would be diverted to any American 

 isthmian canal. 



Besides, the exportable products of the west coast of South 

 America are essentially sailing-vessel cargoes, consisting mainly 

 of the nitrates, copper, wheat, coal, manganese ore, barley, cop- 

 per ore, and wheat flour. A considerable part of the import 

 cargoes into the countries of this coast are also sailing-vessel 

 cargoes ; but, as before shown, it will be entirely impracticable to 

 navigate sailing vessels through any American isthmian canal- 

 There is a comparatively small amount of commerce which 

 moves northward to Panama. According to the best available 

 data, it amounts to about 230,000 tons of shipping annually. 

 The possibility of its development is confined mainly to a nar- 

 row strip of country comprising the west slope of the Ancles, 

 north of Callao. 



The attempt has many times been made to prove inferentially 

 that an American isthmian canal must succeed because the Suez 

 Canal has proved to: be a success. This is not argument; it is ^ 

 idle vaporing. Inferences may be projected from similar but 

 not from dissimilar circumstances and conditions. It would be 

 quite as logical to infer the failure of the Nicaragua or Panama 

 Canal from the failure of canals in various parts of the world as 

 the result of railroad competition as to infer the success of such 

 canal from the success of the Suez Canal or of the Sault Ste Marie 

 Canal of the United States. The commercial failure of the Man- 

 chester Canal, the Kiel Canal, and the Corinth Canal are examples 

 in point; so is the abandonment of canals in all parts of this 

 country, notably the recent abandonment of the Delaware and 

 Hudson Canal. The President of the Delaware and Hudson 

 Canal Company, Avhich is now exclusive!}' a railroad company, 



