MYSTERY OF THE CULEBRA.

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 1899, 6 November 1913, Page 7

MYSTERY OF THE CULEBRA.

A PUZZLE TO PANAMA ENGINEERS In a paper read before tho mombors of tho engineering section of tho British Association at its annual meeting. recently, Dr. Vanglmn Cornish discussed in an' interesting way tho cause of tho landslips and upheavals that havo block* cd from time- to time tho progress of tlw workers of the Panama Canal in their grapple with fho famous OulobrsCut. Tljo deepest part of tho canal, lid said, is tho Ciilebra cutting, and aIL geologists had decidod that 110 landslips I or othor trouble could happen in digging it out.

Tho cutting was made, and then,' ca-mo tho strangest happening that) could bo imaging. Suddenly huge ma-sses of tho granite rock that formed; tho floor of tho cutting bulged up and blocked tho way. v Out of tho,s.o bulging masses rese to & height of- 9ft. in almost as many minutes. At the samis time, at the edge of the cutting, iv steady subsidence was going on. Dr. Oornish likened the troublo to a- curious flow of liquid going on deep down the cutting. Huge musses of earthl had been removed, and something had 1 begun to work beneath. It had been known for a long tiino that thero was! a seam of coftl below, but the eoal was 1 supposed' to bo firm and strong. Dr. Cornish found out that' when, this coal began to rot it was apt to slide like - a mass of tar. It never rotted until moisture came near it. When, water -gfct in it became rotten, and-be-gan to flmv. .Now in. tho making of the Panama Canal huge areas of primeval forest had been cut down. This Forest naturally absorbed tho mighty rainfall of tho district, and gave it baoit to Hie air. So very little water penetrated to tho lower depts. ' At least, it did not do so until i'ho Banal was built.

Now that is all changed. Many square miles of tho earth's surface havo been stripped of tho t'reos that formed its natural covering:, and Nature has taken its rovengo. Tho water lias found its way down and touched tho jurking giant below. It only needed a little tostart it, but now tho deep-seated layer'? of graphite or soal, or whatsoever it l may bo, has got that little, and' is moving. Tho water that is moving it! now began Ms work years ago. 'Dr. 1 Oornish' expects tho present work will hn-ve its effect for years to coino, and: although tho great cutting of tho canal will bo many timos wider than was at first expected, it Will havo interruptions from time to time from tho uptlmist. That will tio on for a year or two to come. When Nature puts back tlift forests on tho stripped country, tig -it will do very soon, tho underground flow, will ceaso.

It is Jioti believed, howovor, that tho upheavals will interfere with navigation. They will 110 doubt continue for a tinvo,-' but, owing to tho great width of tho. Channel, which in no place will bo less' than 30pft.,_ a. navigable waterway will bo maintained, any Upheavals being dealt with hy dredging. Tho ■effect of tho entrance of water into tho c'hannel is doubtful, as whilo it might- weigh dawn the bottom r>nd rirovcnt uphe.ival, it might increaso disintegration, so thai it will bo necessary to Await tho -outcome of' exporiwieo.

Tho question mro bo naked how it is tihat thoso slips and upheavals have not been foreseen. Br. Cornish believes -that, tho -mistako was duo to tho disregard of chenrioal considerations, and particularly to tho disregard of the dicmical action of rain water. This atmlicd to this slides: tfio froquoiicp upheavals \vn'« duo to stratification. There was no reason to supposoi that tin! canal would not bo capablo of rweivmp, traffic in 1914, or flint a safo and navigable water-way could not bo provided.

A mule, the ornicTSiim of ivli ;'•?> wis disputed at Brontfcrd Police Ccnrt, wan slated to bo tho pot of a litths girl, \vh:n waa "Dining for' its rotani.'