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“...between 1763 and 1777
£933,916 4s. 11 \d. was spent on them. The walls were
demolished between 1863 and 1880, and only fragments
remain at the head of Teniente Street and behind the
Church of the Angel.
From Central Park, Pi-y-Margall (the name is that of
a Cuban Patriot), or Obispo (Bishop), and O’Reilly streets
run parallel in a north-easterly direction to the old
President’s Palace in the Plaza de Armas, a substantial
building erected in 1834. These two streets, which are
very narrow but extremely picturesque with their
tinted awnings and quaint signs, form the chief shopping
centre of Havana. O’Reilly Street owes its title to the
Spanish General of that name, who entered the óity
by it while the English left by Obispo Street when
Havana was restored to Spain in 1763.
The Plaza de Armas is a centre of interest; to the
north of it is La Fuerza, said to be the oldest fortress in
the New World. It was erected by Hernando de Soto
in 1519. The story goes that when that worthy set
sail to conquer...”
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“...Middlesex, a distance of 25 miles.
The roads are not at present suitable for wheeled traffic
except in the immediate vicinity of towns, and between El Cayo
and Benque Viejo.
There is a canal between Sibun Bight and Manatee which is
suitable for light draft boats only.
Belize has a good local telephone service, and trunk lines
connect the capital with Stann Creek, Punta Gorda, El Cayo,
Benque Viejo, Corosal, and Orange Walk. A cable laid under
the Rio Hondo connects British Honduras with Payo Obispo,
Mexico, and a wireless station is established at Belize.
SPORTS. Lawn-tennis is played on concrete courts of the
polo and golf clubs, and there are also several private courts.
Cricket is played from May to October, and there are several
native cricket and football clubs. The Belize Golf Club, which
was established in 1900, has' a nine-hole course (subscription
$1.25 per month and $10 entrance fee). Polo is played on
Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays from October to March,
by the members of...”
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“...4i8 POCKET GUIDE TO THE WEST INDIES
then traverse a great lake thus formed for a distance of
24 miles until the backbone of the Isthmus is reached
at Bas Obispo. Here they pass through an immense
cutting—the famous Gaillard or Culebra cut—on
emerging from which descend to the Pacific by three
locks, one at Pedro Miguel and two at Miraflores. Many
people imagine that the Canal runs east and west. This
is not the case. From Colon it runs due south as far
as Gatun, and thence in a south-easterly direction.
Not a little surprise is experienced by some visitors
to Panama, when they see the sun rise from the Pacific
Ocean.
The total length of the Canal from deep water in the
Atlantic to deep water in the Pacific is 50! miles, or
from coast to coast 42 miles. Below is a comparison
between the Panama and Suez Canals:
Length (miles)
Depth (feet) . . .
Least bottom width (feet)
Excavation (cubic yards)
Cost . . ...
Panama. Suez.
5°i 104
41 36
300 147
251,041,054 80,000,000*
$368,543,000 fcs.761,522...”
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“...422 POCKET GUIDE TO THE WEST INDIES
A service (2nd class) is also maintained between Pedro Miguel
Junction and Bas Obispo, calling at Paraiso, Culebra, Empire,
and Las Cascadas. (lime, 35 minutes.)
A " shuttle ” train plies at regular intervals between Third
Street, Colon, and Gatun, calling at the following stations :
Fifth Street, Passenger Station (Colon), Commissary (Cristobal),
Shops (Cristobal), Mount Hope, Mindi, New Gatun, and Gatun.
(Time, 25 minutes.)
SPORTS. Motoring, swimming, boating, hunting, fishing,
riding, dancing, golf, baseball, visiting the Canal and historic
spots, the theatre, horse-racing, bull-fighting, boxing, tennis,
and participation in the native fiestas are among the most usual
diversions. The presence of large Army and Navy forces adds
to the social gaiety of life.
CLUBS. The Strangers’ Club at Colon welcomes visitors.
At Cristobal, the American settlement, there is a Y.M.C.A.
which also shows hospitality to visitors.
SIGHTS. Colon, formerly called Aspinwall...”
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“...426 POCKET GUIDE TO THE WEST INDIES
Gatun valley by several embankments and a steel girder
bridge with a movable span, to Monte Lirio (14-48 miles),
after which it skirts the east shore of the Gatun Lake
past Frijoles (20-92 miles) and Caimito (26-13 miles) to
the Gaillard Cut, which begins at Bas Obispo.
The great Gaillard or Culebra Cut is the most striking
feature of the canal. It is no fewer than nine miles long,
and the total excavation which it involved was over
230,000,000 cubic yards, of which 20,419,720 were
removed by the French.
This great cutting, affectionately known to the Canal
employees as the “ Big Ditch,” is the wonder of the Canal.
So immense is it, that during the construction period, one
had, from above, to gaze at it for some minutes before
the thousands of workers, the dirt trains and the steam
shovels could be distinguished. To quote John Foster
Fraser:
The Culebra Cut is not within the range of the comprehension
of the ordinary person. To delve through hills for...”
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“...THE PANAMA CANAL
427
that just prior to the passage of H.M.S. Renown, with
• the Prince of Wales on board, and her escort H.M.S.
Calcutta through the Canal on March 30th, 1920, the
channel was blocked for several hours by a huge boulder
1 estimated to weigh fully 50 tons. To obviate such
interruptions to traffic the work of removing the hill-
side by hydraulic washing proceeds by night as well as
Leaving the Canal at Bas Obispo, the railway cuts
through a ridge of solid rock behind Gold Hill, and even-
tually runs down the Pedro Miguel Valley to Paraiso.
Here is the Pedro Miguel (popularly known as “ Peter
McGill ”) Lock, similar in construction to those at Gatun
which lowers vessels 30 J feet to the Miraflores Lake!
this lake is formed by dams connecting the walls of the
Miraflores Locks with the high ground on either side.
The dam to the west is of earth, and is about 2,700 feet
long, with a crest 15 feet above the level of the lake, while
that to the east is formed of concrete (about...”
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“...77
—— Dripstone, 9
— First sight of, 22, 80
— History, 76
— Industries, 75
— " Mean whites,” 39
— Parishes, 75
— Railway, 79
— Schools and Colleges, 87
— Sports, 80
— Women’s Self-Help Associa-
tion, 85
Barbuda, 200, 212-5
— History, 212
—- Sport, 213-4
Barclays Bank (Dominion,
Colonial, and Overseas),
n, 82, 122, 150, 160, 174,1
187, 220, 265
Barfleur, H.M.S., 248, 283
Barima River, 377, 388
Barranquilla, 401, 402, 410
Barrington, Admiral, 178
Barrouallie, 196, 198
Bartica, 373, 377, 388
Bas Obispo, 418, 426, 427
Basseterre, St. Kitts, 218-22
Basse Terre, Guadeloupe, 305,
306, 307
Bassin. See Christiansted
Bassinville, 238, 247
Bastidas, Rodrigo, 409, 418,419 .
Bastien, Dr., 291
Batabano, 348, 363, 364
Bath, Barbados, 79, 94
Bath House, Nevis, 229—30
Bath, Jamaica, 259, 289, 296-7 7
Bathsheba, 79, 96
Battle of the Saints, 247—8,,
283, 311
Battowia, 184
Bauxite, 373
Bayly, Zachary, 274
“ Bay-men,” the, 394...”
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