was foolish to spend money on such an uncertain
undertaking. They said the great slides of gravel and sand along the
sides of the canal could never be stopped. They said the locks would
never work. President Roosevelt paid no attention to these comments,
but selected Colonel Goethals because he was sure he could build the
canal.

Colonel Goethals cared as little as President Roosevelt for the
opinion that the task was impossible. In fact, he told the President:
"Say nothing to such doubting persons. By and by we will answer them
with the canal."

We know that he did give such an answer. He built the canal right
through the red shifting hills of sand that threatened to slide down
and choke his work. He cut away a jungle so the banks of the canal
could be kept free and open. But best of all, he taught order to the
men who worked under him, and they found out that he believed in them,
he believed in the work that he was doing, and he believed in the
Government of the United States. No wonder they made a song about him
and praised his splendid leadership.

As his title tells us, Colonel Goethals belongs to the regular army.
Until he was appointed as the chief engineer of the Panama Canal, no
military man had been in charge there. The men working on the canal
were performing civil duties, and in no way resembled soldiers. When
they heard a regular army officer was coming down, they did not like
the idea of having to obey just as if they were soldiers. Many of the
foremen and officials told their men they would have to spend their
time saluting Colonel Goethals and standing at attention with their
little fingers against the seams of their trousers.

During the first days of his stay in Panama, a banquet was given in
honor of Colonel Goethals, for the men felt they must entertain their
new chief, though they were not friendly to him.

At this banquet, they cheered the former engineer, John G. Stevens,
and did not applaud Colonel Goethals when he appeared. However he was
exceedingly polite and did not notice their bad manners. The men had
expected to see him wear a full dress uniform, and you can imagine how
surprised they were when they saw him dressed in citizens' clothes.
Never once while he was in Panama did Colonel Goethals appear in
uniform.

After the banquet there was a program of speeches. Each speaker made
cutting remarks about the new military control, but the Colonel did
not seem to notice their insults. At