REPORT OF BOARD OF CONSULTING ENGINEERS, PANAMA CANAL.


 Mr. DAUCHY. I can not give you the actual figures. You are about right in your statement. Perhaps two hours a day.
 The CHAIRMAN. I have heard it said that some of the derailments of engines were due to inflexibility of the frame of the engine-its lack of conformability to the inequalities as the engines passed over the track. With a more flexible frame and mounting, would you have had less derailments?
 Mr. DAUCHY. That is true. A very large amount of the increased cost was due to the trouble of dumping the material; not only the dumps getting in such shape, but every train having to be unloaded by hand.
 Mr. PARSONS. What would you recommend?
 Mr. DAUCHY. I would recommend a dump varying in height from 12 feet to 20 feet, with the use of flat cars with Lidgerwood unloaders.
 The CHAIRMAN. If I am not mistaken, one cause of derailment was the fact that the rail of French section used in that track was thought by the engineers to be too high in proportion to its base.
 Mr. DAUCHY. Yes; that was one great trouble. The Belgian rail in use was 4e- inches in height and 31- inches wide base, and at the time most of the tracks were laid we had no tie plates to put under. This rail was laid upon soft-wood ties, a portion of the time with very short spikes, so it was impossible for the rails to stand up.
 Mr. PARSONS. In the figures you have quoted, the average cost for eleven months is 58 cents?
 Mr. DAUCHY. 58.6 cents.
 Mr. PARSONS. For three months the Commission was paying its men on the basis of eight hours a day; for the other eight months paying ten hours a day. You have stated the average cost would be reduced-to 50 cents a cubic yard. Making the reduction for the three months and assuming ten hours a day, the average for the whole year would have been about 55 cents per cubic yard.
 Mr. DAUCHY. Would not it. have been less than that? The three particular months, June, July, and August, the expense per yard was so much higher?
 Mr. PARSONS. The yardage was much smaller than the other months. It would not make much more than that. It would take it to 55 cents. Your statement of reducing it to 50 cents would involve a reduction of some 10 per cent. I judge from the remarks you have made that with a proper track and proper equipment you would make a greater saving than 10 per cent.
 Mr. DAUCHY. Yes.
 Mr. PARSONS. I would like to ask if you consider it entirely feasible from your experience on the Isthmus to provide such plans and tracks as will practically obviate these difficulties which you have described?
 Mr. DAUCIHY. I do; yes, sir.
 Mr. PARSONS. Referring to the explanation that the yardage cost was increased on account of the shaping up of the banks and the laying of the roads leading to the dumping ground, I would like to ask if that was excessive for the period of eleven months over what it will be with reference to the entire work? That is, a certain amount of that shaping up, the changing of the grade, and relaying the roads must be done for the entire cut. What can you say about that?
 Mr. DAUCHY. That is, you refer to the small output per unit on account of using the shovels to shape up for tracks in proportion to the whole amount taken out? I should state that the proportional amount of that kind of work was larger during that time than it would be after we had installed a greater number of units. If we had 50 steam shovels working and out of that number 5 were working with reference to shaping up the cut or developing the cut for new tracks, the percentage would be smaller than if we had 10 or 15 shovels working and 5 working with the same object in view.
 The CHAIRMAN. A certain expenditure will have to be made for shaping up the banks and also for relaying the tracks leading to your dumping grounds.
 Mr. DAUCHY. I should say the proportion of that work during the past year is much greater in proportion to the total output than it would be in the future after a large number of units had been put at work.


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