The Panama Canal Review Shows an Area of 50Th Street Piriatas 6 in Panama City During 1925

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NOVEMBER 1968

X \Y P. Leber, Governor-President Morgan E. Goodwin, Press Officer

Publications Ed itors A=S R. S. Hahtmne, Lieutenant Governor ^I J^^fel Theodore Barrington, Tom as A. Cupas

Editorial Assistants Frank A. Baldwin Official Panama Canal Publication Eunice Richard, Tobi Bittel, Fannie Panama Canal Information Officer Published quarterly at Balboa Heights, C.Z. P. Hernandez, and Jose T. Tunon

Printed at the Printing Plant, La Boca, C.Z. Review articles may be reprinted in full or part without further clearance. Credit to the Review will be appreciated. Distributed free of charge to all Panama Canal Employees. Subscriptions, $1 a year; airmail $2 a year; mail and back copies (regular mail), 25 cents each. Postal money orders made payable to the Panama Canal Company should he mailed to Box M, Balboa Heights, C.Z Editorial Offices are located in the Administration Building, Balboa Heights, C.Z.

3ndex c4bout Our Cover

Panama Golf Club 2 THE PAINTING on the cover of this issue of The Panama Canal Review shows an area of 50th Street Piriatas 6 in Panama City during 1925. Today, this region is part of the Panama Golf Club. The original painting New Lieutenant Governor 9 is the work of Louis Celerier, a retired professor who

Panama's Boat Builders 10 lives in Longview, Tex. Celerier is French by birth

but is a naturalized citizen of Panama. Anniversaries 12 Begining on this page is an article about the

Canal History 13 Panama Golf Club, telling how it started with little more than a bohio and a cow pasture, as shown on Chiriqui Highlands 14 the cover. Enthusiastic love of the game plus imagination on the part of a few persons served as vital Modern Medicine 18 ingredients in building it into the beautiful layout

Work Down Under 21 it is today. The Canal Zone's new Lieutenant Governor, Col. Shipping Story, Statistics 24 Richard Sides Hartline, and his family are introduced

Shipping Notes 27 to our readers in an article on page 9. THEY'RE NOT JUST

GOLF: A game widely played since were sitting around Panama thinking exuberance of the Duke of Balboa the 15th century, by gentlemen driv- about playing it, without much play- (the late Theodore McGinnis) as he ing, putting, whacking, or otherwise ing. So they began to weigh the lent spirit to the commencement was devastating a little white ball whose problem. When they decided it not a passing thing—except that he role is to follow a fixed trajectory wasn't overwhelming, they set about passed it on to the members who fol- across a course and terminate by to build a golf club. In the words of lowed. Their enthusiasm can only be plopping into a small hole in the John Westman, the proclamation expressed as passion. They swing, center of a green. This sport, of went something like this: and putt, and smile—or explode— no mean skill, provides 20th cen- "When Admiral Johnston, General with equal equanimity. The difficulty tury man with three basic needs— Morrow, don Francisco Arias Paredes of exploding with equanimity is a to excel, to expound, and to explode. and don Raul Espinosa, decided that secret only a gentleman golfer knows. —Golfer's Dictionary. the pastures of Las Sabanas could be Golfs affinity to explosions, at the

That daffynition failing, it should transformed into a golf course, the Panama Golf Club or any other, is be rephrased to more accurately Duke jumped up on the bandwagon, not recent. In fact, it may have all mirror the game's magnetism: "There threw off a keg of Balboa Best started because of an explosion. In is thinking about playing it, there is Brewed, and hollered, FORE!" 15th century Scotland, the parlia- playing it, and then there is thinking Thus was bom the Panama Golf ment of King James II decreed that about having played it." Club, or, as it is known today, the "... golfe is to be utterly cryed About 50 years ago, a few fellows Club de Golf de Panama, S.A. The downe, and not to be used— the

November 1968 sporte interferes with the practise of archerie—an essential defence of the realme." But as the end of that century drew closer to an end, gun- powder was invented and suddenly archery declined—so much so that by the time James IV came along in 1473 he was an avid golfer. Forty years later, even Mary, Queen of Scots was teeing off. The sport thus has a noble back- ground, and somewhat like the Nobel Prize, got started more because of —rather than with—a bang. But not at the Panama Golf Club. They were not going to wait around too long before they could get a game up—and they did—with one hole, a bohio, and a cow pasture. They played on sand greens. They fenced out cows. They scratched— (chiggers). They saw their precious sand greens washed away every time it rained. They built them back up. They added others. And— they played golf. Besides Westman himself, who was treasurer of the club for 45 years, there were many mainsprings in the early club—among them Col. +**kk (later Jay J. Morrow to become governor of the Canal Zone), Johnny Expert Alberto Sarra (he's the Club pro) and current Panama Golf Club Woman's Putter (the famous journalist Jules champion Fusae Takahashi team up for some twin-putting. Sarra has been Dubois) and the already-mentioned instrumental in further professionalizing the course layout. Duke of Balboa (manager of the forerunner to today's Cerveceria

Nacional.) With the spirited imag- It was a sizable problem. But, as sweet—for the knowledge of having ination and wrv humor so character- with Col. Morrow directing the re- built the club from nothing. The istic of golfers, thev went ahead im- pair of sand greens, there always original club site was on what is now PUTTING AROUND

proving their club until the game be- seemed to be somebody in the mem- Calle 86-A. The present site, close- came cowless, chiggerless, and a man bership with the answer. Chiggers by, covers 155 beautiful acres and could exult or explode at the pure became the project of Dr. William is a course the pros rave about. game itself and not at the vagaries M. James. The clubhouse was built in 1931, of nature. "He had an effective, if powerful, has been expanded since with a com- "But not overnight," Westman solution," Westman says. "Before we plete pro shop, and ranks with some adds, "did all this happen." With went out to play, we would lather of the finest clubs in the world. a twinkle in bodies with a mixture of sul- his eye, this septuagena- our Since the early club was built, rian golfer who still plays the game phur and Lifebuoy soap. That kept and as it later developed into the and plavs it well, relates chiggers off— I assure you. They some of the present one, there has never been a the early club with fond left right away. But you never knew problems lack of incident, nor the good humor ". memory, . . although we weren't if your wife would let you in the to face problems with grace as well so fond of some of the problems house that night. Doc James' lather we as courage. had. Take the chiggers. Now, you was a little stronger than modern "Col. Morrow was particularly of know what kind of concentration a insect-repellant." this bent," Westman says. "His good golf shot takes. Can you imag- But later, as the course grew humor was extra dry, even for a ine trying to make a drive when greener and the members' tenacity- golfer. Once, B. C. Poole drove out vou're one massive itch? That's how began to pay off in other improve- many chiggers we had!" ments, the playing became twice as (See p. 4)

The Panama Canal Review PUTTING AROUND

(Continued from p. 3) of a tournament one year honoring about 2:30 a.m., there were screams those members who had taken part coming from for a game in a PanCanal govern- the Ladies Room. I in the official preparation for it, he mean—lots of screams. There was ment car. He parked it right out rose at the table after the others had 4 inches of water the I front, came in, and got his clubs. on floor. listed their various distinctions, the When he walked out, Col. Morrow found trouble, a stoppage in the and said: plumbing I was standing next to Poole's car, which fixed—dressed in dusting off the PanCanal emblem "I'm delighted that each of you my tuxedo. You're lucky I don't bill the with a handkerchief. 'You want to had a particular role to fill in this club for cleaning it." The mem- always keep that symbol pretty, B. last tourney, but you're probably un- bers roared, and thanked Westman for his chivalry. C.,' the colonel said. Poole stopped aware that this year my function was nocturnal short, turned back into the club- unique— a distinction not likely ever house, came back out and drove the to be equaled in this club." Best-known Names car to his office. He returned 20 The heads at the table turned, The club has had some of the minutes later—in his own car." wondering what the distinction could best-known names in Panama for be. Westman told them. "I saved president, among them the late Louis Westman's Anecdotes eight of your wives from possible Martinz and Dr. Frank A. Raymond, Westman's anecdotes about the death by drowning, or panic, at the and Richard L. Dehlinger—the only old club are innumerable, but the party last night." three ever elected to the post twice. best ones he tells are on himself. At The heads turned some more. The presidency alternates between an all-male luncheon held at the end "Last night," Westman said, "at a Panamanian and an "extranjero"

The front entrance to Panama Golf Club—a far cry from the Bohio it was in 1918.

4 November 1968 each year. Current president is Geoffrey Lee, general manager of Tabacalera Istmena which is chief sponsor of the Panama Open each year. A native of England but a Pan- ama resident for 12 years, Lee shoots in the high 70's. He has only praise for the evolution of the club from early beginnings to the modern facility it is today.

Club Pro Sarra Part of the continuing improve- ments have been due in the last 5 years to Club Pro Alberto Sarra, an Argentinian who came with plans of only staying a year, and has remained five. "He's turned our club from a good one to a better one—to one the pros rave about," Lee says. "The only thing is, 1 hope we can hold onto him." Sarra redesigned several tees, greens and traps and laid out new landscaping for some areas. The re- sults are such that Lee says of him: "He's a fine golfer, knows the game intimately, but his first love is build- Winner and still John Westman, long-time patriarch club, ing or improving golf courses. He champ— of the holds up one of its many trophies. Owner of Office Service Co., Westman joined the club does exactly that." when it was 1-year old in 1919, and served as treasurer for 45 (count' em) years. Continuing accomplishment and loyalty permeate the Panama Golf nament this month. Teams of eight player on the Isthmus. Sandy Hinkle Club. For example, there is Mrs. from each of the six Central Amer- and Roberto Duran just finished Norma L. de Crisopulos, accountant ican nations will compete. A busy representing Panama in the Domi- and all-round administrative girl for week of activity is slated, including nican Republic Invitational Tourna- 26 years. For a long time, she and formal flag ceremonies of the par- ment, where they placed third in Westman just about ran the club, ticipating countries, dances, parties, a field of 20 countries. but now—with a membership of al- and of course, a celebration awarding most 600—Norma has two assistants. the prizes. Club's Woman Champ

The club's woman champion is Probably playing in this tourna- Fusae Takahashi, 21-year-old daugh- La Touche, Another Landmark ment will be Anibal Galindo, pres- ter of. the Japanese Ambassador to Another landmark at the club is ent club champion, and Jaime de la Panama, also a member. Aubrey La Touche, who has been Guardia, whom Lee calls the finest with them 40 years. He has been Best of Pros everything—bartender, waiter, chauf- The best of the pros have played feur, and locker room attendant. the Panama course, and Arnold "When you want to get it done— see Palmer played in one of his first Aubrey," is the byword. Another major tournaments here in 1957. The loyal employee is waiter Gooding club has had an Open every year McMillan, with 24 years' service. since 1952, when Sam Snead and

Current Officers Roberto DeVicenzo competed. Plans are going ahead for the 1969 tourna- Current officers are Alfonso Brid, ment, which is expected to be vice president; Dr. Juan Correa, sec- played the week before Carnival. retary; and Bob Chandler, treasurer. As always, there will be players in President Lee has been on the this Open excelling, expounding and 14-member board in the past, and exploding—but then, that is what has served in vaiious committee good golf is all about— if done with responsibilities. Geoffrey Lee, current president of the equal equanimity. At the Panama The club, celebrating its 50th Panama Golf Club, and general man- Golf Club, a player never loses it. Anniversary this year, will host the ager of Tabacalera Istmena, is just 1968 Central American Golf Tour- completing a year's term as Club prexy. TBB.

The Panama Canal Review .

y[ou Can t (Eeat PihataA

£*

ANYONE WHO has ever been to a when it is finally broken by the vio- was an ordinary clay pot, the "olla" children's birthday party in Latin lent thrust of a stick-wielding attack- used for food or water. The rough, America knows how much joy is gen- er, its contents spilling to the floor, unsightly olla often was camouflaged erated by a festive-bedecked object and the frantic scramble for goodies bv putting figures around it. These suspended from the ceiling, a bal- is on! probably were the first efforts to dec- cony, or the branch of a tree on the The pinata originated in Italy, orate the squatty round pot which patio. Hidden within the trappings probably in the early 16th century, evolved into the myriad of elaborate of this brightly colored creation, when people used to think up home- pinatas of today. which may look like a bird, an ani- type amusements. They played The Spaniards gave the pinata a mal, fish, a or any number of things, guessing games, told stories, present- religious significance and designated is a treasure chest surprises. of The ed skits, and often played tricks on the first Sunday in Lent as Pinata treasure chest is called a "pinata." a blindfolded player. In one of the Sunday. The pinata was broken at a In it are many kinds of candy, fruits, games, a cone-shaped earthenware masquarade ball on that day with nuts, and even small toys for the pot, containing goodies of the day, the treats tumbling down on the guests. young was suspended from the rafters, masked dancers. Usually made of papier mache swung around a bit, and broken with As rime went on, the pinata cus- and filled to the brim with these a stick. The Italians called it pignat- tom waned in Spain but became pop- goodies, the pinata holds the promise ta, from pigna, which means "pine ular in Latin America. Probably, it of magic for the intent youngsters cone-shaped." came with the Spanish explorers to who hit at it over and over again Italian adventurers took the pig- the New World about 400 vears ago with a lowly broomstick. And, oh, natta custom to Spain and there it —most likely to Mexico first. what excitement and merriment became pinata. The Spanish pinata Although it has undergone changes

6 November 1968 LLnleJJ you re Strong, Cnough

Guests are warned to give the stick-wielding player ample swinging room as Guillermo Eduardo Bricefio, son of Dr. and Mrs.

Alejandro Briceno J. of Panama City, takes his turn at breaking the windmill pinata at his birthday party. in structure since its humble begin- by adults. In areas of northern Italy, pot, brim-filled with goodies, is still ning, the pinata game has remained for example, three pinatas are filled the usual custom at children's par- more or less the same. The custom —one may contain ashes or flour, the ties and only recently have the dec- continues in Spain and Italy and has second, water, and the third will orated papier mache or cardboard spread to many other countries, such have the goodies. To the delight of variety of pinatas appeared at Costa as Portugal, British Honduras, sev- the onlookers, the blindfolded play- Rican parties. eral South American countries (west er can only guess which of the three >-The broomstick is missing from coast), all of Central America, Pan- he should aim for. Guests are warned the Cuban pinata, and the children ama, Mexico, the United States, and to give the broomstick-wielder plenty pull at gay ribbon streamers attached Canada. of "swinging room." to the papier mache pinata which History shows that in Mexico the In another variation of the game, virtually pours out its contents with pinata retained its religious conno- the entire contents of the pinata go each yank at the streamers. tation, but instead of a Lenten tra- to the one who succeeds in breaking In Guatemala, as in Mexico, the

dition it became, with the passing of it. In this version, an extra-hard pinata is associated with the posadas, years, a Christmas festivity. The pi- baked clay pot is probably used. and in both countries the clay pot nata came to be associated with the In Venezuela, a beautifully dec- is still the thing. At Christmas time, posada, the procession of neighbors orated, bell-shaped pinata of papier a party is not a real party without which takes place the nine nights mache or cardboard is filled with a pinata. Of special interest is the before Christmas and symbolizes the rice and suspended near a doorway. Judas pinata which appears in cer- Holy Family's struggle to find shel- With a pull of a ribbon, newlyweds tain parts of Mexico the day before ter. The group goes from house to passing through the door are show- Easter. Armed with sturdy sticks, the house and is refused lodging until ered bv a cascade of rice. The tradi- Mexicans figuratively, and almost it is welcomed at the last house. tional birthday pinata in this South literally, beat the devil out of Judas. Here, the pinata is broken and every- American country is large and very A most charming surprise is a body gets a treat. elegant. pinata used in Ecuador where two While often a fun activity for In Costa Rica, the pinata has re- or three beautifully decorated figures children, the pinata also is enjoyed tained its colonial simplicity. A clay (See p. 8)

The Panama Canal Review *

Pinatas f /,V - ~ -_ _ (Continued from p. 7) are hung together for the fiesta. One or two contain the usual goodies. The other, when shattered, liberates live birds! Imagine the children's shouts of glee at the flutter of wings! Another lovely pinata custom for a young lady's 15th birthday party is a basket-shaped pinata filled with roses.

In Panama, the pinata is always found at children's parties and frequently at baby showers and fare- wells, and just about any fiesta. Starting about 20 years ago, the papier mache and bag version of the pinata began to replace the "olla de barro." Several pinata makers, work- in their homes or at their places ing " of business, are presently supplying t at least five or six specialtv shops in Morgan, broomstick in hand, his little Panama City with beautifullv execut- Jeffrey looks on as friends scramble for the lollipops that have just spilled from the pinata at his birthday party. Jeffrey is the ed pinatas in a varietv of shapes and son of Mr. and Mrs. Richard Morgan of Los Rios. color combinations ranging from elaborate airplanes and rabbits to a the candy and small gifts. Tie a criss- often sorry to break it. A papier simple decorated paper bag. Should cross of heavy twine around the pi- mache pinata is much harder to break a particular shaped pinata not be nata, gathering the long ends of the than the earthenware pots. This readily available, expert hands will twine at the top. Put more papier provides opportunities for more tries create the appropriate one for the mache over this, and when it is drv at spilling the treasure chest inside. season or the occasion. decorate it with brightlv colored In recent years, Another method for making a pi- United States crepe paper. tourists in Panama have discovered nata is bv using a large, strong paper For those who know how to work the gay and delightful pinatas and bag and cardboard, and anvthing with papier mache, it is the ideal have taken them home. that can be sewed, stapled or glued Panama method for making pinata animals shops are proud of filling pinata or- to it to give it shape and make it and figures. There are no rules and ders for customers as far sturdy. The bag, when decorated awav as no color specifications. Imagination with crepe Ohio and New York Citv and cities paper, can be converted has no limit, and the resulting pinata in South America. It has been found is so beautiful that the guests are (See p. 26) that the attractive pinata, filled with small gifts, goodies of all kinds and gag gifts, is an excellent wav to get a party on its way or to spread good cheer during the holidays. A pinata provides fun and gives the participants an opportunitv to break something— at times, a most satisfying experience. Because of the unlimited range of shape, color, and content, the pinata mav be adapted to almost any festive occasion. Perhaps the easiest way to make a pinata is the balloon and papier mache method: blow up a big balloon and tie a knot at the neck. Hang it up and cover the balloon with four of five layers of papier mache. After this has dried, let the air out of the balloon and remove it. Cut a Cardboard, glue, crepe paper, and deft hands at work making the fun-giving pinata. hole at the top big enough to receive Mrs. Araceli Diaz also makes party favors seen on shelf at right.

November 1968 New Lt Gov.

Arrives at

Crucial Tiime

AT NOON on October 11, Col. Richard Sides Hartline, serving as Acting Governor of the Canal Zone for the first time since his arrival 8 days earlier, attended a military ceremony at Old Panama at which command of the Panama National Guard changed hands.

At midnight, he was in conference with Washington by telephone, reporting on the military coup which brought about a change of government in the Republic. The events posed high-level decisions by the United States, with the Canal Zone suddenly becoming a temporary ref- uge for the principal figures of the ousted regime.

It was a swift introduction for the new Lieutenant Governor to the oft- times unusual responsibilities of his new post in a unique area—the Canal Zone. Lt. Gov. and Mrs. Richard Sides Hartline, with their daughter, Nancy. For Mrs. settled He and his family had just Hartline and their children, Nancy and Douglas, this is the first time they have in their new home at Balboa Heights. made their home in the tropics. For Mrs. Hartline it had meant a change-over from suburban living in N. Mex., and their daughter Nancy, after the stateside football season is the Washington, D.C., area; for Colo- 12, arrived when the Hardines were over. He will be a senior at Balboa nel Hartline, the change-over was stationed on Okinawa. High School. from duty in Vietnam. The family has a wide variety of Daughter Nancy already is en- interests. Colonel Hartline, who rolled in the seventh grade at A tall professional soldier engineer, when Curundu Junior High. Okinawa- Colonel Hartline has been on the played football and lacrosse Point, now favors born, Nancy is in line as the second move ever since he was graduated he was at West promptly found other member of a Canal Zone Lieutenant from the U.S. Military Academy at handball. He handball enthusiasts on the Isthmus Governor's family to obtain a U.S. West Point in 1945. He has served had a game lined up soon after citizenship certificate here. in the Philippines, Okinawa, Ger- and Another member of the Hartline many, Korea and Vietnam. He was his arrival. Mrs. Hartline modestly describes family is to be residing soon at the born in Goshen, N.Y. herself as an average housewife and Lieutenant Governor's house at Bal- Mrs. Hartline, the former Harriet mother. She is a self-taught seam- boa Heights. He is Mrs. Hartline's Dicke, was born in Salt Lake City, stress and an enthusiastic gardener, father, Henry Dicke, a lively 87-year- Utah, but lived most of her youth but her deepest interest is in old retired corporation executive in Allentown, Pa., Boston, Mass. and painting, a hobby she took up in and engineer. He also has traveled She met her husband while he was Germany. extensively in Iran as a consultant. studying for his master's degree in Son Douglas has an overpowering This is the first time that the civil engineering at Massachusetts enthusiasm for football. A star mem- entire Hartline family will be to- Institute of Technology. ber of the football team at Annandale gether outside the temperate zone. Their son Douglas, who soon will High School, near Washington, he Their first reaction: Love at first sight be 17, was born in Albuquerque, will join his parents on the Isthmus with the Isthmian landscape.

The Panama Canal Review 9 Boatbuilders of Panama

"OS BARCOS pesqueiros da INA- In all of Central America, there in PE foram competition with 37 others from fabricados pelos estaleiros is nothing that equals Deco Marine. Latin American, European and DECO MARINE S.A.-do Panama. Started 8 years ago as a ship re- United States bidders. A Deco e Deco's know- industria de muito res- pair facility, it has expanded in the how was the key. peto. Seu know-how e da melhor last 2 years into a full-fledged ship- importacao." yard specializing in fishing vessels- Unique Chill Tanks and its reputation is now known That was from "O Cruzeiro," the A unique feature of the Deco-built throughout the hemisphere. fishing mass circulation Brazilian magazine, vessels is the chill tanks for and storing translates: "INAPE's fishing "O Cruzeiro's" tribute to Deco's the catch while the boat is at boats sea. were built by the DECO MA- know-how is a good example of how Deco has patented a glass-fiber RINE tank so well S.A. shipyards-in Panama. this has been achieved. When Bra- insulated that even in Deco is a highly the case of respected industry. zil's fishing industry asked for designs compressor failure the Its know-how is of the water temperature in the highest for its growing fleet of shrimp trawl- tank loses importance." only 1 to 2 degrees in 5 ers, Deco Marine's plans were chosen days. Every boat being built by Deco for Brazil's FISHING VESSELS FOR INAPE-Industria Nacional de Pes- BRAZIL-At Deco Marine shipyard in Panama City Panaman.an craftsmen trained in ca-will carry 10 of these the shipyard are building three fishing boatTfa tanks, each a Brazilian company. with a capacity of 2,200 pounds. Another feature of Deco-built boats is that they can be converted from shrimp trawlers into purse—seiners in just 2 days. The three vessels now being constructed in the Deco shipyard for Brazil are scheduled for delivery in early 1969. Eventually, Deco may build as many as 30 boats for INAPE, ranging from 76- to 100-footers at an average cost of $100,000 each.

Already, Deco is eyeing boat building contracts in El Salvador, Ecuador, Venezuela and possibly Nicaragua.

10-Acre Site

The Deco shipyard covers 10 acres in San Francisco de la Caleta, a sub-

urban section of Panama City. It is located on the only spot along the entire Pacific coast of the Isthmus that has a rock-bottom basin and a natural rock-bottom channel to sea.

Texas-Born Contractor

The choice of the site for the shipyard is typical of the way Joseph M. "Mike" Byrne does things. A Texas-born contractor who came to the Isthmus 30 years ago, he was in the paint business for years until his interest switched to fishing vessels. This occurred in about 1960 when shrimp fishing became the fastest growing industry in Panama. Like many others, Byrne was aware that there were no haul-out facilities

for the mushrooming shrimping fleet. Boats had to be careened on the

November 1968 a

with the beaches for repairs; laying a keel or manufacture of chill tanks, vents, fathoms in comparison 35 replacing a shaft or a propeller were stacks, and sinks that started Deco's fathoms that was the maximum for then in next to impossible. reputation growing. These Deco- the small wooden trawlers made installations proved so superior use. This was achieved by increasing Finding the 10-acre site was the to those made of galvanized iron the length from .50-60 feet to 76 first break for Bvrne. Buying the land that as word of them spread among feet and up, installing more power- from the various owners was a com- the fishing companies, orders poured ful engines, hydraulic winches, and plicated process, but Deco finally in—and Deco's reputation grew. enough cable to shrimp at a depth became the sole title-holder to the of 100 fathoms. 10 acres. Deco Builds and Repairs In the past 2 years, Deco Marine So did its customers. Deco Marine A Modest Beginning has turned out about 25 fishing ves- provides repair and maintenance Operations began on a modest sels. And its spectacular growth services for U.S. Armed Forces sea- limit in the fore- scale, limited to repairs of small seems to have no going craft and for tuna clippers and boats—one at a time. The original seeable future. yachts. It also builds sand and work force numbered seven men. oil barges, ferry boats, launches, More Than 40 Boats a Year One 80-ton cradle was all that was and unsinkable fiber-glass lifeboats. Deco now is equipping to build available for drydocking vessels. About 2 vears ago, the Panama Re- 40-50 vessels a year and—more im- Deco's expansion started when finerv contracted with Deco Marine portant—has the business to reach

Bvrne brought into his organization for the maintenance of all its vessels. that capacity. It has cut construction A. "Tony" Ghiloni, a graduate required substantial expansion 5. It J. This time from 13 months to can naval architect from California with of the shipyard facilities which in handle 15 vessels simultaneously for 40 years' experience in the design and turn led to shipbuilding operations. repairs and can accommodate boats

construction of fishing vessels. Ghil- It was typical of Deco that the of up to 1,200 displacement tons.

oni had operated his own shipyard in first steel-hulled shrimp trawlers it Its work force numbers 200 men at

Puntarenas, Costa Bica, before com- turned out for local companies were present— all of them Panamanians ing to Panama to work for a shrimp- better than any other operating in trained in the shipyard by a "revolv- ing firm. When the latter went out these latitudes. Their biggest feature ing school" svstem. When full capac-

of business, Ghiloni joined Deco. was a marked increase in efficiency ity is reached, the work force will

It was the use of fiber-glass in the —the Deco boats could fish at 100 be more than doubled to 500 men. The shipyard has become self-

sufficient with its own foundry, propeller repair and balancing shop, diesel engine overhaul shop, wood mill, and machine shop. Plans are underway to enlarge and length- en the larger haul-outs. Safety—

watchword at Deco— is being in- creased by an addition to the break- water protecting the drydocking operations.

High Caliber Work The high caliber of shipwork done bv Deco is indicated by the

fact that its vessels are certified by the American Bureau of Shipping: the efficiency of its work force by the absence of a single major accident since the shipyard was estab- lished; the growth of its operations bv the fact that Deco is now a $2 million facility. At the age of retirement, Mike Byrne speaks with youthful enthusiasm of bigger things to come at Deco, his creation.

"Mike" Byrne are is simple TONY AND MIKE-A. J. "Tony" Ghiloni, left, and Joseph M. "I love action," his naval architect, directs shipbuilding the top men at Deco Marine. Ghiloni, a graduate explanation. "And this is where the and repair operations. Byrne founded Deco Marine and has made it the largest action is." operation of its kind in Panama.

The Panama Canal Review 11 ANNIVERSARIES^ (On the basis of total Federal Service) MARINE BUREAU Lock Operator (Operating Engineer- Sibert F. R. Haynes Hoisting John A. Redway Equipment) Supervisory Supply Clerk Launch Dispatcher Cristopher L. Lynch Wilfred A. Richards Hubert A. Thompson Helper Lock Operator Leader Crane Hookman Clerk George Palmer Herman A. Reid Norman A. Bennett Linehandler Assistant Baker Helper Electrician Irvin F. Headley Linton G. Roberts Alvin A. Bracey Oiler Clerk Seaman Bernardo Frio C. L. Brathwaite Oiler Laborer (Heavy) TRANSPORTATION AND Albert S. Hunter TERMINALS BUREAU Motor Launch Operator ENGINEERING AND Pedro Urriola Ervin A. Rolli CONSTRUCTION BUREAU William H. Lead Foreman (Materials Handling) Guard Supervisor Egger Central Office Repairman Telfield D. Landers Edward J. Friedrich Lothen E. Boyd Truck Driver Chief Foreman Machinist (Marine) Cement Finisher

SUPPLY AND COMMUNITY TRANSPORTATION AND Harold J. Charles SE/f|CE TERMINALS BUREAU Hot Water Tank Repairman Emanue^ Henry L. Davis William H. Fergus Ba, Maintenanceman-Rope and Wire Oiler-Floating Plant-Boom Mic Cable Norton B. Stephenson A Wilfred A. Melise Administrative Assistant Arthur L. Guard Antenor J. de la Rosa Superv ance Ruben E. Douglas Leader Blaster Clerk School Bus Driver Clarence G. Wilson Azariah C. Coke W. W. Wellington Painter Clerk-Typist Stevedore Irvin C. Boyce Victoriano Ortega George A. Grimes Ration Light Serviceman Laborer (Heavy) Chauffeur Plant) ENGINEERING AND Charles E. Chase CONSTRUCTION Leader Liquid Fuels Wha BUREAU Santos Estrada neral Engineer Winfield Ford Stevedore Cargo Classification Specialist Gilbert G. Wilson (Facilities and Jose Arias Automotive Mecha Repair) Leader Core-Drilling Fender) Eric T. Nevers Arthur A. Lewis Truck Driver Truck Driver John E. Ridge, Jr. Sidney I. Brooks Water System Operator Paver SUPPLY AND COMMUNITY David Murrain Harris Campbell SERVICE BUREAU Pipelayer Asphalt or Cement Worker Lilias I. Hurley Clyde E. Boxill Cargo Classification Specialist Painter John F. Manning Ira G. Barber PERSONNEL BUREAU Program Manager (General Manager) Seaman James A. Yates Walter G. Thorne Eriberto Pascual Supervisory Personnel Staffing and Field Tractor Operator Seaman Employee Relations Specialist Kenneth T. Bowen Jose Alzamora MARINE BUREAU Truck Driver Leader Painter Violet L. Cave Frederick D. Wade Thomas Ebdon, J. Jr. Sales Store Checker Seaman Supervisory General Engineer Prince Bennett Cardinal E. Husband Leroy Griffiths Meat Cutter Painter Cargo Classification Specialist Harry A. Dockery Arthur A. Nedrick John Stephens Distribution Facilities Laborer Motor Launch Officer Operator Ulpiano Marmolejo CIVIL Eric A. Greene AFFAIRS BUREAU Cemetery Worker George Carrington Oiler-Floating Plant Lazaro Martinez Swimming Pool Victor M. Luscap Operator Garbage Collector Joseph S. Corrigan Time and Leave Clerk Thomas H. Riley Customs Wilfred E. Rawlins Inspector Truck Driver Seaman Cleveland D. Ennis Fitzgerald White Teacher John B. (Senior High L.A. Schools) Willis Warehouseman (See p. 13)

12 November 1968 j

CANAL HISTORY 50 yearJ c4ao IN OCTOBER 1918, an executive order requiring the licensing of all motor vehicle operators in the - "- -•_ Canal Zone was issued by President Woodrow Wilson. The Canal Zone Executive Secretary was empowered to appoint examiners at Balboa and Cristobal who would be responsible for examining applicants for li- censes, and make recommendations to the Executive Secretary as to the fitness of each applicant to operate motor vehicles over the streets and roads of the Canal Zone. This order repealed earlier Isthmian Canal Commission ordinances regarding the same subject, which had been in effect up to that time.

25 yieaM c4ao HOW IT WAS THEN-This is 1914 excavation for Balboa Terminals, Drydock No. 1. world-renowned J ASCHA HEIFETZ, violinist, arrived on the Isthmus the Selective Service in the fall of One year trfao to present a series of concerts 1943. Canal Zone Executive Secre- throughout the Canal Zone. Heifetz THE DIVISION of Preventive Med- tary Frank H. Wang was named had completed a concert tour in Pan- icine was completing preparations Chief Registrar for this initial selec- ama 2 vears previouslv, but returned for putting its new Mobile X-Ray tive service registration. as part of a program to present name Unit into operation. The unit was to and entertainment to the military person- be used to examine emplovees dependents at townsites and jobsites nel stationed in the Canal Zone. 10 yearJ c4g.o throughout the Canal Zone for pos- General George H. of a well- Lieutenant PAT QUINN, member sible lung disease, on a rotating Carib- Brett, Commanding General, known Canal Zone family, was ap- basis. In this manner, the greatest bean Defense Command, announced pearing in a Broadway play by Max- number of persons would be reached November 2 a relaxation of censor- well Anderson, "The Golden Six." for early detection of health prob- ship bans for military personnel in A graduate of Balboa High School, lems and employees and their fam- the area. Servicemen would now be Miss Quinn had been attending a ilies would be benefited by its allowed to inform the folks back dramatics art college in New York inception. home of their exact location in the City when selected for the show. Caribbean, which was expected to Theodore Roosevelt Centennial improve morale, as danger of attack ANNIVERSARIES Week celebrations were climaxed by on the Canal waned. (Continued from p. 12) a pageant, "The Ordeal of Mr. BUREAU The Atlantic Side War Bond Com- Stevens, or Teddv Roosevelt Visits HEALTH mittee, headed bv Arnold Bruckner the Isthmus," in which many res- John Lewis bv Medical Technician General and coordinated Ernest C. Cot- idents of Panama and the Canal Zone ton, received the congratulations of Cecil B. Walker took part. The event was held at the Nursing Assistant (Medicine and Canal Zone Governor Glen E. Edger- Tivoli Hotel. Among the many guests Surgery') ton for having tallied $1,535,503 attending from the United States, William C. Allen in war bond sales from October 1942 besides former construction day Medical Aid (Ambulances) through October 1943. This was the workers, were the Honorable Maurice Wellington G. Myles first that the Leader Cook year War Bond Commit- H. Thatcher, sole surviving member tee had been in operation on the Harold J. Morrison of the Isthmian Canal Commission, Leader Hospital Food Service Atlantic side. and Mrs. Richard Derby, one of Worker U.S. -citizen workers of the Canal President Roosevelt's three surviving Marcos A. Munoz Zone were instructed to register for children. Leader Laborer (Heavy Pest Control)

The Panama Canal Review 13 .

Highlands of Chiriqui . . Where Nature Unfolds

YOU GET INTO your automobile at 8 o'clock in the morning, when the tropical sun and humidity already permeate the air. You drive through the city amid its early-morning bustle and noises-horns, vendors' babble —and all the varying sounds of a metropolis awake for another day of activity. Gears grind, tires squeal, and traffic cops' tempers rise faster than the sun. You start and stop, veer and wind, and eventually find yourself on the outskirts of town, heaving a sigh of relief. The city is wonderful, but—intense as always.

Then, as you start to travel west- ward on the winding Inter-American Highway, the city retreats behind the car and the countryside unfolds in what you imagine will be an endless series of rolling hills, studded with the sensuous vegetation of the tropics. After all, this is Panama-land of huge, tropical game fish, of intense You almost have the Alps next door to you, if you live in Panama. Above is Curt sunlight filtered through thick hazes Hemmerling's chalet in Bambito, a "suburb" of Cerro Punta, where the elevation of humidity and swaying palmeras is high enough to make you appreciate blankets at night. that might have inspired the cumbia. so closely do they mimic its rhythms. Below is one of the rivers that lull you to sleep if you stay at the Dos Rios in Boquete. This is the tropics; the very rain here The bridge in this photo cuts across the rear of the hotel, and beyond it, upriver is a musical instrument. slightly, guests can see where two rivers channel into one. But, if you travel far enough, and not very far at that, you will find yourself in a few hours climbing- climbing farther and faster than you realize, because the hills are gentlv curved and rise subtly—ascending to an elevation of 3,800 feet. As you get about midway to that elevation, you notice the countryside undergo a change—the trees grow straighter, truckloads of vegetable-produce and other cool-climate crops pass b\ you, and the tightness in your ears

suddenly tells you Panama is more than the tropics.

Then, one final turn around the midsection of a mountain, and the gentle proof is unfolded to you like

the flower it is— Boquete—a little town which marks the memory for- ever. It opens up at the curve like

a petal and though it were a deadly

November 1968 :*«&-

fe'.r-

w-«.

I**

«¥in^^ ^ftSfc^ pace of life is determined by Boquete-a valley of bouquets, where there are more flowers than blades of grass, where the nature's slow and easy tide of seasons.

Thus, in a mere 7 hours, over a jungle flower you would risk its is a cool 6,300 feet above sea level. embrace. Slightlv down the mountain from the brief 300 miles, a non-tropical wil- is from palmeras to But no worry of that. Rather, rolling surface of Cerro Punta whose derness reached— from tropical oity to Boquete has more subtle weapons. rich, black topsoil is 20-feet deep in Panama pines, high-country—in less than a day. You spend a few days there in one some places, are the "communities" cool cabins The mean temperature is now 65, of its small hotels or pensiones, sleep- ( usually of one or two houses, in the evening two ing to the natural narcotic of its or chalets) of Bambito, El Volcan instead of 85, and musical streams (they are every- and the llanos. The combination of blankets feel good as the thermom- a chilling 50°. The where), eating as though you had these areas, onlv a short drive from eter sinks to is like the inner- place is still Panama, but the cum- a new stomach ( and eating well and Boquete or David, far off in inexpensivelv), and wondering—what most depths of a primitive forest. bia's sensual beat now seems distance; at Cerro Punta happened to the tropics? Few tourists are in evidence. the tropical one imagines Strauss in the wind, But— there is more. Boquete is just The local people are friendly, vig- and the thunder of the streams could nature's elegant introduction. Be- orous, and the pioneers among them have been written by Beethoven. vond it, on the other side and farther literallv brought on their backs to the But mountains moving men is up the mountain, an encore awaits area much of whatever is there. They rarely as impressive as the reverse. you. Ascending a road which now could switch to mules only after a At Boquete-Cerro Punta, men have is no longer quite gentle and where road was built. The road opened the challenged a few. Around Boquete, the word "town" loses meaning, you way for new people and enabled the grows straight up the side of a enter a mountain forest almost pri- beginning of the tiny community of coffee mountain—or at least at so sharp an meval in its beaut\', cut through by Cerro Punta itself, but the original incline your neck hurts as you tilt a single main road and studded with majesty of the land is virtually un- your head back trying to see the peak a house here and there—or a Swiss changed from what it has been for planted rows. Flowers, all chalet— and other unlikely sights ap- centuries—an untouched region of of the flowers, appear in strangely pear, such as miniature cattle drives, sheer-faced mountains and valleys kinds of wonderful places—on the faces of an occasional vegetable farm, and a that spin round and round in a dizzy concave hills, between rocks in "town" that resembles the one-street series of sights. The streams of Bo- streams, and along the sidewalks of communitv of the Old American quete lull, those around Cerro Punta most humble residence. In Cerro West. roar; thev are near-rivers whose rap- the endlessly twist gigantic rocks and Punta, the dirt roads This is Cerro Punta, an extinct vol- ids crash upon the imagination in what it must have canic crater and lakebed which rises fling a challenge at the fishermen do. (See p. 16) and falls across a 10-mile stretch and who would dare cross. Not manv

The Panama Canal Review 15 ,

hC a" lege"ds-true ones-Glenn Lewis of Cerro Punta, of surveying for Lindbergh, of cutting through onL footf^ .n itthe"EKi the brush 1920s, who came up to die-in 1938. His Oklahoma wife, Virginia, used to be a Peace Corps wXr at BooTte Chiriqui Highlands

(Continued from p. 15) At sparsely settled Cerro Punta, asked him when he had his last there also are Indians. When been like to cut through this maze Glenn physical: Lewis, Curt the first time—when they even had Hemmerling and a hand- "That was my last, when I was ful of others to to turn the pack animals back, the came the area in the told to retire," he said. "So I went bush was so thick. 1920's, the only inhabitants were four up to the States and traveled 50,000 Indian families. During that decade miles looking for a good The men who helped place to uncover this and the one following, other new- cave in. I had been to Cerro Punta paradise are varied. The first of them comers arrived, and the names Shan- in 1924. After all that travel number less than a in the dozen, and those non, Martinz, and others were added States, I couldn't find a prettier place. who followed now represent, per to the list of patriarchs. They know So I came back, built a home, and capita, the broadest cross-section of the area to the square inch, and their 'died' here." national origins found in all of Pan- love for it is wedded to a tacit pride ama. Boquete, for example, He's still dying-at 75-smoking has 31 in having overcome it. the same three ethnic groups in its population of packs of cigarettes a They are old people, these patri- day, keeping his own hydroelectric 13,000, with 50 percent of these first archs-chronologically. power plant in running generation. They include Ecuadorian Some of them order (which even came up to Cerro Punta he brought in on foot in and Egyptian, Cuban and Canadian, to die— 1938), run- 30 years ago. They're still working at ning his own ham radio, and helping German and Jew, Eastern and West- it. Such "deaths" may be another 30 "newcomers" John and Henryetta em European, American, and of years in coming. Glenn Lewis, for Winklosky "feel set" (they started course-Panamanian, besides many example, was told by his doctor in in Cerro Punta in 1947 and are mere others. Apart from native-born res- 1938 to retire ". youngsters in and enjoy his . .6 their sixties). idents, most of the other ethnic months to live." He had stomach Lewis' reputation groups have as a good neigh- become Panamanian trouble, arthritis, and was smoking bor is outweighed only by his well- citizens. three packs of cigarettes a day. I found fame in many fields—sur-

16 November 1968 veyor, photographer-newsman, and pilot. In 1924, he came to the Isth- mus as a surveyor for the U.S. Army. His job was to fly World War I "bom- bers" (bi-wing paper kites) over Panama and decide where landing fields should be built for Charles Lindbergh's newly planned Central American airmail service. Lewis found he couldn't see enough by air, so he took to the ground. He cut his way on foot from David to Cerro

, Chiriqui Punta ( 50 miles ) thence to Lagoon, and finally, to the Costa Rican Border (70 miles in all). He had pack animals with him at first, but turned them back when they delayed his progress. The trip took him 32 days. He got his surveys.

In the course of this task, he flew with and photographed Lucky Lindy many times, and the latter's first Cen- tral American airmail service was based on Lewis' surveys. Besides his work there, Lewis was intrigued by Cerro Punta, so in 1932 he bought 100 acres and built a fishing camp. At the time, he owned Servicio Lewis in Panama City, and along with doing photographic publicity for the Army and Navy, he was movie-news representative in Panama for MGM, John and Henryetta Winklosky, both recent retirees from Panama Canal, indicate Fox, and Pathe of New York and by their expression how they like Cerro Punta. Paris. He additionally made the first is missing. educational films of the Panama she was doing Peace Corps work in goes with it; only the snow to Canal for Eastman-Kodak, and took Boquete. She's from Oklahoma, and Archeologist Hemmerling came to do dig- many reptile pictures for Raymond they recently celebrated their second the mountains in 1924 Ditmar's famous books on herpetol- wedding anniversary. gings. He is a former Assistant Direc- tor of Panama's Museo Nacional, ogy. He also has filmed alligator Trout fishing in Cerro Punta is and most of the early archeology of hunts, jaguar forays, and at the Ca- without par; they can still be taken Panama was done by him. Thousands nal in 1923, took the only photo- two on a line. (Again, the Lewis of his finds are on display at Pan- graph ever shot of combined com- touch; he flew the first trout eggs into ama's museum and at institutions in ponents of the U.S. Atlantic and Pa- Cerro Punta on ice from the States.) other countries. He also raises coffee cific naval fleets, which were in Pan- Hunting includes bandtail pigeons -14,000 trees— and is a great teller ama Bay at the time for maneuvers. and tapir, and for those willing to of tales of Cerro Punta. Over a late- This was with the old-style photo- go farther back in the bush—puma, evening glass of wine in front of the graphic equipment, but Lewis had ocelot, jaguar, and deer. As to farm- fireplace, he will fuel your imagina- his enormous picture printed and ing, crops in Cerro Punta are non- tion with his memory. sold in 3 weeks, using 15,000 feet of tropical; all temperate zone crops people at paper. His net: $7,000. which do not require frost will thrive There are other old Cerro Punta, and they're proud of Besides these accomplishments there, and they are cash crops. the word. Their youthful spirit scorns when he was "young," Lewis laid Besides pioneers Lewis, Matt the euphemism, senior citizen. They down a few more after he "retired" Shannon and the late Louis Martinz may not have found the Fountain of in 1938—one of them building a mile- (whose horse-breeding ranch is still Youth, but mountains have proved long airfield at Cerro Punta in 1955. a landmark in the area), there is Curt more healing than the waters of the His other activities, besides traveling, Hemmerling, who lives in Bambito, old legend. Spirit abounds in Cerro are endless. He hunts, fishes (his one of the "suburbs" of Cerro Punta Punta. The faces, the voices, the 25V2-inch, 5Y4-pound trout is still which is a whole 3 miles down the friendliness, reflect the natural un- the record in the area), and drives road—consisting of one house, his. spoiled splendor of the rivers and back and forth to Panama frequently. It's a Swiss chalet replete with the streams, the lush valleys, and the His first wife died a few years ago, many-peaked roof, the little windows overpowering mountains whose and he is now married to the former and the cozy rooms of its Alpine (See p. 26) Virginia Lewis, whom he met when counterparts. Even cool weather

The Panama Canal Review 17 Jfelplng vhem li)alky

c4na aQive vhroug,h

M,oaem yfiealcal Practice

IT TOOK 11 major operations to in a Panama City hospital, doomed enable Jorge G. to walk. After a to die before reaching adolescence, bed-ridden infancy, he now has the for she was bom with her urinary opportunity to grow up into a use- bladder outside the abdomen, with- ful citizen. And little Moyra M., who out urethra and vagina, her pelvis was born with the bladder outside with no frontal bones. She had to the abdomen, now has a chance to grow a few months before medical grow up, able to achieve mother- science could do anything for her. hood. The dark menace of hopeless- She was admitted to Gorgas Hospi- ness in their lives has given way to tal when she was 8 months old. the brightness of promise. Though her case was primarily of are Jorge and Moyra among the interest to the Urologv Service, lit- many beneficiaries of the Panama tle Moyra also was seen bv pedia- Canal Health Bureau's teaching pro- tricians and orthopedists. The former gram which is an integral part of the evaluated her congenital defects and training curriculum for intern and the latter performed reconstructive resident physicians—in effect at Gor- surgery to correct the lack of fusion gas and Coco Solo Hospitals for of her pelvic bones. many decades now. Generally un- Two weeks after her admission, known to the public, the program has urologists began the process of plas- resulted in case after case of out- tic reconstruction of her defective or standing medical assistance to men, missing organs. After a five and one- women, and children in Panama. half hour operation, her reconstruct- When 10-year-old Jorge came to ed bladder was in its natural position Gorgas Hospital in mid- 1966, he was under the frontal bones of the pelvis. doomed to the life of a helpless crip- After 1 1 weeks in a body cast, Moyra ple. The rheumatoid arthritis he had went back to the operating room for developed at one and one-half vears the final reconstructive surgery. After of age severely contracted and stiff- three major operations, little Movra ened his knees, hips, and feet. He has gone home a normal "dry" baby could not bend his right arm and he -the spectre of death before adoles- had contractures of the wrists and cence banished. fingers. No doctor had seen him for These two cases, among the most 7 years, and by the time he was dramatic of recent "teaching cases" brought to the Orthopedic Service of in Gorgas Hospital, Gorgas he was completely bedridden. illustrate the philosophy behind the Intermittently, for nearly 2 vears, Health Bu- reau's program. Jorge underwent operations on his One of the basic cri- feet, knees, hips, right elbow, and teria for admission of a "teaching Walking again—even with crutches—is case" is right leg— 11 operations in all. When the patient's inability to a milestone for this lad. The Health he was discharged not too pay, since the entire treatment is long ago, Bureau's Teaching-Case Program put he was walking—with braces, yes, him on his feet again. provided absolutely free. Charity? but able to move by himself. Today, In a sense, yes. But the program he walks five blocks every morning helpless condition in which he was goes beyond charity-for-charity's- to school. While he probablv will re- admitted to Gorgas. sake. A second criterion is the non- quire some type of mechanical aid Little Moyra's case came to the availability to the patient of treat- the rest of his life, he is walking attention of doctors the minute she ment in Panama. Finally—and this is alone— vast a improvement over the was born. She came into the world what sets the program apart from

18 November 1968 mere charitv—the caSe must have ing program stimulates physicians to other patients with diverse conditions teaching value from the medical join local medical staffs. This in- of the spine requiring surgery and standpoint. This is of exceptional im- evitably leads to higher professional fusion. portance, for the normal patient load standards and a better grade of med- As is to be expected, there is a in Gorgas and Coco Solo Hospitals ical practice. A stateside physician, much more active training program does not always supply all the various for example, has little opportunity at Gorgas than at Coco Colo Hospi- pathological and clinical conditions nowadays to treat a case of tubercu- tal. But the requirements are the required for the residency training losis of the spine. At this writing, sev- same for teaching-cases. The pro- program. Through this program, eral such cases in varying degrees of gram has made Gorgas a teaching physicians—both staff and in train- severity, have been treated in the hospital the equal of ing—apply diagnostic and therapeutic Orthopedic Service in Gorgas, all re- any in the United States, techniques which thev will use later quiring removal of diseased body and has thus helped to make available in their care of other patients. tissue at the vertebrae and spinal on the Isthmus medical care Thus, Jorge was accepted because fusions. Three of the cases, inciden- comparable to that practiced in the most his rheumatoid arthritis is rare among tally, were Guaymi Indian girls. outstanding centers in the United States children, and Moyra because her con- Treatment of such cases, even if in- genital abnormality of the urinary frequently found in future practice, Valuable Teaching Cases bladder occurs about once in every provides the involved physicians 30,000 deliveries and was of the with such detailed knowledge of It is important to understand that most severe type. spinal anatomy and makes them so a teaching program has been in existence Community Benefit familiar with these particular tech- at Gorgas Hospital for at niques of surgery that least 40 years. It started when in- Implicit in the program is the dis- they can terns were first recruited for service tinct benefit to the communities to apply them with great benefit to at Gorgas Hospital and then which the hospitals provide care, other conditions affecting the same was gradually enlarged to include because the opportunity to minister part of the anatomy. Thus, the direct residents in training. to unusual and severe cases and par- benefit to the three Guaymi Indian The bulk of the teaching cases comes ticipate in such an outstanding train- girls will later prove of value to from among patients— United States and Pana- manian citzens—who are eligible for care and medical facilities in the Canal Zone. It is only the unusual cases, those which are difficult to diagnose or which present problems in treatment, that come from Pan- ama. Through the program, these patients are helped and at the same time the clinical experience of the physicians in training in enlarged.

Massive Goiter Removed

Mrs. Eduarda R. came to Gorgas Hospital with a massive goiter, her thyroid gland enormously distended. The normal dimensions of the gland are about two and one-half inches in diameter. The weight of the massive growth caused her to stoop and she could hardly swallow or breathe. The case was taken to the Nuclear Med- icine Section, but the goiter was far too advanced for treatment with ra- dioactive iodine. It took 6 months of inpatient and outpatient treatment to bring Mrs. R's health back in balance for surgery. When the goiter

was finally removed, it was found to be the largest ever taken out at Gor- gas Hospital in the memory of vet- AND SHE'LL BE NORMAL—This tiny lass was born with major congenital birth eran physicians, and of a size rarely defects, which the Teaching-Case Program corrected. Without such treatment, she either would not have lived or would have survived with tremendous handicaps. (See p. 20)

The Panama Canal Review 19 a

Helpins Them Walk, Live

Varied Sometimes the hospital's doctors dis- (Continued from p. 19) Teaching Cases Are cover them; sometimes they are re- The variety of teaching cases is recorded in medical textbooks. Mrs. ferred by doctors in Panama who are such that every service of the hos- R. has recovered. familiar with the teaching program pitals has them at one time or in the Canal Zone, or by missionary Plastic surgery of cleft lips—a con- another. When 8-year-old Luis E., doctors visiting remote areas in genital defect-is not an easy job, from Escobal, Colon Province, was the Republic; sometimes they are particularly if the palate also is in- operated on for the removal of bone brought in by their employers in the volved. Under the teaching pro- fragments pressing on a nerve, caus- Canal Zone. gram, several cases of this type have ing facial paralysis, it was only the the Health Bureau been successfully treated, most of second time that such surgery was Participants in program are the interns and them in San Bias Indian babies. This performed in the Eye, Ear, Nose teaching physicians, under the guid- condition is only occasionally en- and Throat Service of Gorgas. The resident supervision of board- countered in a population the size boy had suffered a skull fracture sev- ance and specialists on the hospital of that in the Zone. The opportunity eral months earlier in a fall on a certified Depending on the specialty in to see and treat these additional cases wharf. The pieces of bone pressing staffs. they are training, residents will make physicians in Canal Zone on the facial nerve paralyzed the which anywhere from 2 to 4 hospitals more adept in their treat- right side of his face. He couldn't will spend At the end of train- ment of future patients. close his right eye—not even when years at Gorgas. are board-qualified and sleeping. It is only in the very re- ing, they Victim examination for board Snake-Bite cent past that surgery of this type, must pass an certification, which is official rec- Snake-bite incidents are always of in this area, has become feasible. ognition of their rank as specialists. interest to the medical profession. Luis, still reporting for observation One such case was that of Rengifo once every 3 months, has now re- Far Reaching* Benefits A., an Indian boy about 12 years old. covered 95 percent of his facial growth of the teaching case He was bitten by a fer-de-lance below functions. The Canal Zone hospitals the right knee while farming in the program in the bespeaks its Madden Lake area. Neighbors ap- Born Without Thumbs over the past 10 years grass tourniquet on value. The benefits have been far- plied a very tight Miriam P., now a teenager, was ranging—for medical staffs, patients, his leg. It took hours to get him to bom without thumbs and without the that period and communities. It is a program of the hospital, and during radius bone in both arms. As a result loosened. By enormous impact on the health status the tourniquet was not she could not grasp objects. Ortho- gangrene of the chronically and severely ill, the time he was admitted, pedic surgeons reconstructed the in- recovered both in Panama and in the Zone. had set in. Young Rengifo dex finger in each hand into a thumb, For the patients from Panama, it from the effects of the venom, but which involved moving the digit where means care not normally available his leg had to be amputated from one position to the other. They placed. At to them for various reasons. To Zone the tourniquet had been also fused the wrist bones. Miriam, patients, it means new and improved the end of his treatment, which whose treatment has taken about walked out techniques which their physicians lasted 170 days, Rengifo 4 years, now can grasp objects with would not ordinarily have learned in of the hospital with an artificial leg. her three fingers and thumb in each their conventional care of patients. Not all of the patients treated hand. To phvsicians, it means the opportu- under the resident training program These cases are but a few of the nity to see and treat diseases of a start out as "teaching cases." Eduar- many which show dramatically what severity they would per- people today, type and do B., 7 years old, the corneas of medicine can do for haps not see in a lifetime of prac- whose eyes had been badly scarred as well as the benefits for all involved tice. There is far more than the by an infection, was "adopted" by in the teaching program. A more broadening of their field of inter- the men of a U.S. Army company complete list of cases of outstanding est and practice. Direct benefit to the to send him to Gor- medical assistance under the pro- who raised funds communities has been alone Canal Zone gas. The first corneal transplant— gram in Gorgas Hospital through improvement of the quality surgery not frequent in Gorgas be- would include patients who recov- of medical care by providing train- cause of the lack of an eye bank ered from massive obstructive-dis- ing opportunities to interns and —proved unsuccessful. By that time, tention of both kidneys, intersex residents and stimulation to stafl funds raised by the troops had been problems, clubfoot deformities, frac- phvsicians. exhausted, so Eduardo was taken on tures, wounds, post-polio complica- Though conceived primarily for as a "teaching case." He has since had tions, skin diseases—and many more. its scientific value, the program has a corneal transplant of the left eye Come from Near and Far happilv developed into a people-to- and a cataract extraction and has im- They people project which has won last- proved, but still is under treatment The teaching case patients come ing, and nicest of all, healthy friends. in the Ophthalmology Service. to the hospitals in diverse ways.

20 November 1968 D owN UND ER T L OC Ks

GREASING JOB—Francisco Wason, oiler (kneeling) greases sheave on the rising stem valve roller train chain. Leslie C. Mcintosh, oiler (standing) greases guide rollers on rising stem crosshead.

A LITTLE-KNOWN underground day. On the night shift, six men who er lock operator, who is the senior world exists "down under" that has handle service calls are assigned at in this position on the Pacific side nothing to do with Australia or a each lock. And there mav be an oc- of the Isthmus. His U.S. Government resistance movement. Those below casional boa or opossum down there, service dates to 1939. in this case are the men who work but of course they're not on the At Pedro Miguel, the supervisor down under the Panama Canal locks, duty roster. of leader locks operators in main- and who walk the labyrinths that The lock operator leader, me- tenance work, Joe Young, has service form a vital network thousands of chanical, and his counterpart, the that dates from 1941. Leader lock feet long under the locks' surfaces. lock operator leader, electrical, have operator Greg Gramlich's service also The operations of the locks fall the most responsible positions. Form- goes back to that year. A close sec- naturally into three parts—the con- erly, the leader, mechanical, was ond in length of service is Ray F. trol houses above ground level, the "senior tunnel man" and the tunnel Hesch, also a leader lock operator, operations on the ground that involve still is his domain. But whatever the whose service dates to 1942. the lock walls, and those down under. title, the job entails quite a bit of The dean of leader lock operator The number of men assigned to dutv exercise, especially leg work. machinists at Gatun Locks is Daniel under locks varies. During an over- Usually, the lock operator, me- A. Lawson, whose service dates haul period, some 950 extra em- chanical, "goes for a walk" first thing to 1936. ployees may be hired, about 700 bv in the morning. He walks the length Their underground dutv stations the Locks Division and some 250 bv of the tunnel on the first lockage and are compact. There's a desk, clip- Maintenance. After the chambers checks to see that all machines are boards that hold inspection schedules are drained, these men descend to operating properlv. Since the lock for the start of each shift, and hand- begin the actual overhaul which chamber is 1,050 feet and the tun- tools for small repairs, filing, or involves maintenance and repairs. nels extend another 300 feet at small assembly operations.

But during the normal workweeks either end of the chamber, it's a good The leader lock operator, electri- it's a pretty quiet world down under. constitutional. All the locks have cal, has duties similar to those of his About 20 maintenance men—paint- essentially the same dimensions. colleague, except that in his case the ers, oilers, craftsmen and helpers— On duty at Miraflores Locks is work involves the intricate electrical usually work at each lock during the Oliver G. Paterson of Los Rios, lead- (See p. 22)

The Panama Canal Review 21 CENTER WALL TUNNEL, looking north, shows the long, long walk ahead of the tunnel workers. Lubricating boxes are mounted on either side. Just beyond the lubricating boxes are the guards for the miter gate bullwheels. They Work Down, Down Under

(Continued from p. 21) The original machinery, installed striking the miter gates, requires equipment in the tunnels. At some 54 years ago by Panama Canal con- periodic lubrication and is in a pit points, the machines and electrical struction workers, is still in use today. approximately 70 feet deep. Stairs equipment are half a mile away from For over half a centurv the original go down most of the way, with the the control house. rising stem valves have been in oper- last 20 feet traveled down a ladder. Each tunnel is divided horizontally ation, the wheels have been turning, The chain stretches across the lock into three stories—the lower for the chain has been extended across chamber and is worked by a hydrau- drainage, the middle for wiring and the locks chambers and then re- licallv operated system of cylinders the top as a passageway with bays cessed, and the little motors have controlled remotely from the tower. into which the machinery to operate been doing the work. Only the motors A lighted red indicator on the wall the locks is set. There are huge cast have undergone a slight change. shows when the chain is up. When steel bullwheels more than 19 feet Once a 25-horsepower motor was the chain is down, the indicator is across, weighing 35,000 pounds and used, as a predecessor to the recessed in the wall. There are slots mounted horizontally on a large cen- 40-horsepower motor. in the side wall and bottom of the ter pin. These open and close the Along the passageways down lock chamber, and when a vessel is lock gates through a connecting arm. under, there are the transformer transiting, the chain falls into its In the next bay is the tiny 40-horse- rooms at intervals, and in the center grooves in the lock floor and out of

power motor which is able to oper- —walls are float wells to determine the way. The intricacy of the operate the wheels, and in tum the gates, the depth of the water in each lock ation is spelled out in a diagram through sharp gear reductions. chamber for the gages in the control sketch on one side of the tunnel wall.

A 40-horsepower motor also is house. Most of the work underground is used to operate the miter gate and Machinery for the chain fender, a at a level of about 8 feet, although the rising stem valves. safety device to prevent a ship from the rising stem lubricators weeklv

22 November 1968 go down into a pit about 20 feet of fire, primarily for protection of the at Miraflores and Gatun Locks also below the tunnel surface. Another miter gates in event of a floating fire, have bridge maintenance responsi- weeklv lubrication operation is the and for protection of control house bilities. At Miraflores, the swing care for the miter gate moving- personnel. bridge is maintained so that it can be machinerv. The lubrication crew, a A little-known role of the under- operated in an emergency. The leader, and five or six men provide ground locks area is that it is also a bridge itself is operated from the lubrication for all the machinery, shelter area. Civil defense emergency bridge control house, but there is check to see that everything is as it rations and drinking water are stored intercommunication with the locks. should be, and call attention to in each tunnel and are checked At Gatun, maintenance work is done am thing that might be wrong. periodically. on the vehicular bridge, which is Periodic inspections are made of All the locks machinery is activa- operated from the control house. electricity and water lines and the ted from the control tower. Before Life down under has its moments sump pumps in the lower tunnel. any maintenance service is per- of excitement, too, wholly apart A hole, about 3 feet by 4 feet, formed, the control tower is advised from the locks operation and yet gives access to the shaft for the lower as to exactly what part of the linked to it. The White Rabbit of under-tunnel, below the floor of the machinery is to be out of operation. Alice's Wonderland may not be locks chambers. At first glance, it The accident rate in the under- found in the tunnels, but once in a looks like the black hole of Calcutta. ground area is extremely low, due while the men come across snakes, Over half a century ago, the men to implementation of good safety mostly boas, especially at the begin- assigned to do the inspections in that regulations. After the control tower ning of the rainy season. The snakes under-tunnel area made the descent has been notified what machinery is are washed down-river during the bv a ladder set flush against one wall. to be out of operation and worked on, heavy rains, and when the lock gates Over the years, an improvement to the machinery in question is tagged are open, they slither up on the gate the operation was made, and the at two locations. Each employee arms and then inside. While most of inspectors rode down to the under- responsible has a lock with his own the snakes found in the lock tunnels tunnel area in a "bosun's chair," a key to the equipment on which he are boas, a number of fer-de-lance board rigged on a line, kind of a is working. Leaders have four locks have made locks' tunnel visits, too. close relative to a child's swing. mastered to their own personal keys, Opossums have found their way The newest development, which and a tag with the workman's name inside the lock tunnels, and a few is just being installed, consists of a is placed on the machine and the times sloths have crawled up over wire cage or man-hoist, in which a equipment locked to prevent its the fence and into the tunnel, where man stands as he is lowered down. being turned on while work is they curled up like raggedy balls The underground world of the underway. until they were found and evicted.

Panama Canal also has an emergency Although all the locks are essen- You see, there is plenty of variety pump and sprinkler system in case tially the same, the men who work "down under."

GO!—James E. Farrell begins the descent to the cross-under area beneath the locks' floors. Center, flush to the wall, is the ladder the first locks' workers used. The bosun's chair, in which Farrell sits, is due to be replaced in the near future by a wire cage or man hoist, in which a man stands as he is lowered.

The Panama Canal Review 23 PRINCIPAL COMMODITIES SHIPPED THROUGH THE CANAL (All cargo figures in long tons) Pacific to Atlantic

First quarter, fiscal year-

Commodity 5-Yr. Avg. 1969 1968 1961-65

1,231,354 1,037,172 282,514 Ores, various — 820,697 156,297 N.A. Iron and steel, plates, sheets, and coils— 806,677 150,127 N.A. Boards and planks 741,682 832,038 693,908 Sugar 360,526 N.A. Fishmeal 414,055 329,865 354,308 274,741 Metals, various 315,711 580,635 N.A. Iron and steel manufactures, misc 319,838 274,753 Bananas 296,801 130,271 Pulpwood 282,618 238,167 Food in refrigeration 196,404 (excluding bananas) 274,150 300,276 N.A. Plywood and veneers 208,441 121,409 Canned food products 179,491 210,355 253,387 130,271 Potash 158,284 115,546 Petroleum and products 150,126 618,861 490,599 109,537 Coffee 148,325 105,582 4,507,046 All others 2,469,938 2,990,402

Total 8,828,215 8,491,539 7,343,431

Atlantic to Pacific

First quarter, fiscal year—

Commodity 5-Yr. Avg. 1968 1969 1961-65

Petroleum and products 4,199,180 3,594,632 2,848,139 Coal and coke 3,544,096 2,504,584 1,521,383 Phosphates 1,225,062 931,022 497,992 Corn 736,428 607,078 299,197 812,008 Metal, scrap 704,733 1,260,135 Sorghum 556,250 365,211 N.A. Wheat 506,225 296,723 179,668 Soybeans 486,988 554,388 279,937 Ores, various 397,495 431,630 70,671 Metal, iron 373,884 969,036 48,694 Sugar 262,432 297,063 367,986 108,532 Paper and paper products _ 227,536 167,788 Chemicals, unclassified 161,048 252,706 161,332 Rice 149,353 85,376 28,632 Cotton, raw 145,004 97,441 79,961 All others 2,730,438 2,493,467 2,122,496 TotaL 16,406,152 14,908,280 9,426,628

TRAFFIC MOVEMENT OVER MAIN TRADE ROUTES

The following table shows the number of transits of large, commercia CRUISE CANAL COMMERCIAL TRAFFIC BY NATIONALITY OF VESSELS SEASON

THE 1968-1969 cruise season, starting this month, will bring the Hol- land-American luxury liner, SS Statendam, to the Isthmus on five "festival cruises." The vessel transit- ed the Panama Canal last month on what was to have been the first of two Caribbean Festival cruises, one this year and the other in 1969. The cruises proved so popular, how- ever, that additional Caribbean Fes- tival cruises are scheduled for No- vember 14, January 9, February 8, and March 11. The SS Statendam, whose local agent is Pacific-Ford, S.A. on these cruises, sails from Los Angeles and anchors in seven Caribbean ports as well as several Mexican and South American harbors. The Festival cruises will bring the SS Statendam on 10 trips through PanCanal. Each cruise is for 25 days and covers 9,300 miles. The Southern Cross will transit the Canal November 6 and again Decem- ber 18, according to Pacific-Ford. The Akaroa will transit December 4, and Christmas Eve will see the Northern Star in Balboa for a transit on Christmas Day. A New Year's Eve arrival will be the Stella Oceanis, which will dock in Cristobal and sail New Year's Day. C. B. Fenton & Co., Inc. had its 1968-1969 cruise vessel schedule inaugurated last month with the ar- rivals of the Bergensfjord and the Kungsholm at Canal ports.

On November 3, Panama's Inde- pendence Day, the Sagafjord arrived in Cristobal for immediate transit. The vessel berthed in Balboa from mid-afternoon until 1 a.m. the following day. The Federico C, also represented by Fenton, will make a series of calls at Cristobal starting December 30. Federico C will sail from Port Ever- glades, Fla., cruise through the Ca- ribbean and then dock at Cristobal for about 10 hours. The ship will come back to Cristobal for half-day visits January 13 and 27, February

(See p. 27) Refreshing Chiriqui Highlands

(Continued from p. 1 7) be interested in. Everybody goes up supplemented with comfortable lodg- to lives excellent at out- 11,000-foot peaks rise no higher than there die—and for 30 years." ing and cooking— Carruth has mountain fever, too. rageously low rates. the spirit of the people who call them A home. Along with those already men- building contractor in Panama City, The drive from Panama City itself tioned, there are the Leonard Butzes, he gets up to his Cerro Punta retreat is smooth, fast, and only the varied as often possible. will delay stop both in their 80's, and the broth- as landscape you as you Otherwise, is ers Gutierrez—one of whom came to The ease of enjoying Boquete- for pictures. the trip die at Cerro Punta of tuberculosis Cerro Punta advantages for merely rapid. Beyond Bio Hato, about 75 20 years ago. They farm broad a weekend—and a weekend only miles out from Panama City on the Inter-American the road is stretches of land—themselves. And whets the appetite—may tax your Highway, new all the way to David and feels there is the "old" barber who walks credibility. You can stay in Boquete, it. David, it is only short up 3 miles each week to cut John after a short 6-hour drive from like From a Winklosky's hair—on a road with 40 Panama City, for less than $20 a drive to either Boquete or Cerro percent grades. Winklosky and his night for two, with private bath Punta. But means accept this wife Henryetta are recent retirees and including all meals. The food is by no even partial mir- from Pan Canal. well-prepared, and varied, and the verbal imitation as a streams that lull you sleep ror of such a journey. It is yours as There are youngsters in the area to near the hotels Panamonte, Dos it was mine, for the easy taking. It now—40-year-old Tommy Carruth, Rios and the quaint Pension Marilos cost noth- will take you away—to the cool, for example, who provided the initial ing extra. Most rates remain un- primitive forests you dream of, to the impetus for this story. When I told changed from one time meadows, to the brooks and rivers, him over coffee one afternoon we of the year to the other. The entire year is the and to the mountains—the mountains were looking for story ideas, he said: season. If you stay at the Marilos, that make you suddenly stand still "You know, there's kind of a pretty you will meet its engaging host, and stare up, way up high. place up in the Interior you might Gregory Chuljak, Austrian-turned- As mother nature re-unfolds her- Yugoslav-tumed Panamanian, a man self to you, a masculine touch is whose 65 years cross several coun- evident in her stroke; perhaps there tries, careers, and turns of fortune. is another—older—Patriarch in Cerro Piftatas You'll feel fortunate to have known Punta. him. Theodore Barrington (Continued from p. 8) As you go over to the other side into a clown, an animal face or any of the mountain-range toward Cerro number of figures. Punta, you can stop at the Dos Rios' sister hotel, of the same name in An empty gallon ice cream con- El Volcan. Farther up toward Cerro tainer or a hatbox is an excellent base Punta itself, there is Curt Hem- for a pifiata. Dress it up with crepe merling's chalet, which he has paper and add features to make an animal face, a bird, a flower or a fruit. The paper bag and cardboard pifia- tas are safer than the pottery pifiata MONTHLY COMMERCIAL TRAFFIC AND TOLLS and will not hurt anyone when Vessels of 300 tons net or over—(Fiscal years) broken. Make a pifiata by any method.

Hang it up, being sure the rope is strung tihrough a hook on a pulley so it can be raised up and down and moved about. This way, the master of ceremonies can move the pifiata out of the path of the whooshing broomstick. Now watch the fun as the blindfolded child or adult flails at the empty air. He gets three tries and the game goes on until a guest gives the pifiata a good whack and breaks it, spilling out the goodies.

The party is launched! o HIPPING (Continued from p. 25) ships transiting the Canal. Both were 10 and 24, March 10 and 24, and put in service in 1963. April 7 and 21. Holland-American Line announced The Bergensfjord, due in Cris- that the company will invest 4 million will transit the tobal in late January, dollars this fall in refurbishing the Panama Canal and dock in Balboa. line's three big vessels—SS Rotter- The Oceanic, on Fenton's winter dam, SS Nieuw Amsterdam, and SS will visit cruise schedule, Cristobal Statendam, all of which are Panama January 25 and again February 12. Canal customers.

Steady Customer LLOYD TRIESTINO, one of Italy's PANAMA CANAL TRAFFIC most" important shipping lines, con- STATISTICS FOR FIRST QUARTER tinues as a Panama Canal customer FISCAL YEAR 1969 after the first two transits by its lux- TRANSITS (Oceangoing Vessels) ury ships earlier this year. The first 1969 1968 to transit was the Guglielmo Mar- Commercial 3,346 3,317 U.S. Government 381 350 coni, a 27,900-ton passenger liner Free 19 27 which arrived in Balboa February 23, transiting northbound. The Gali- Total 3,746 3,694 leo Galilei, a sister ship, went through TOLLS' will tran- the Canal October 29, and Commercial __ $2 1 ,932,274 $20,531 ,957 sit again, northbound, on March 16 U.S. Govern- 2,426,073 2,284,978 and August 6, 1969. ment The Guglielmo Marconi will be in Total $24,358,347 $22,816,935 Canal waters again November 11, CARGO 00 1969, and will transit northbound. Commercial— 25,236,502 23,403,346 Because of the closing of the Suez U.S. Govern- Canal, these ships are now circling ment 2,312,423 2,331,434 the world. Both are 701.59 feet long, Free 38,041 138,268 with a beam of 93.80 feet. Each can Total 27,586,966 25,873,048 first- tourist- accommodate 1,629 and ° Includes tolls on all vessels, oceangoing class passengers. With a speed of 24 and small. 00 Cargo figures are in long tons on all knots, they are among the fastest vessels, oceangoing and small.

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