last it was his time to speak. He
said only a few words, but they changed the minds of his hearers. He
told them they were all there to build the canal. They were working
for their government, the United States of America. He wanted no
salutes, but he wanted work. This pleased the men and they were
ashamed of their impoliteness.

The Colonel's first act was to organize the workmen into three
divisions, the Atlantic, the Central, and the Pacific.

He put each under a superintendent. Then he stirred up contests
between these divisions. He would tell the men on the Pacific division
how rapidly the men on the Atlantic division were digging or putting
in concrete. Of course, each division wanted to make the best showing,
and the men were always eager to get the Canal Record, a small weekly
newspaper, so they could read the scores of the different divisions.
These scores grew to be more exciting than those of ball games, and
the men worked hard and well.

They liked Colonel Goethals and whenever he went by they saluted him;
not with the army salute which they had scorned, but by waving their
hands, lifting their caps, and greeting him with a smile on their lips
and in their eyes.

They felt free to talk to him because they knew he was their friend.
Shortly after he started his Sunday morning office hours, some of the
lowest paid men told him that their bosses swore at them all day and
used the worst kind of language. At once he sent the following order
out all over the Canal Zone.

PROFANE LANGUAGE

Culebra, C. Z. Aug. 4, 1911

Circular No. 400:

The use of profane or abusive language by foremen or others in
authority, when addressing subordinates, will not be
tolerated.

Geo. W. Goethals,
Chairman and Chief Engineer.

Some of the foreman did not talk much for a while, they had been so
used to swearing, but the Colonel's orders were obeyed.

The work then moved along smoothly and Colonel Goethals was looking
forward to the end of his labors, when one day an engineer on the
Panama Railroad paid no attention to the signals and let his train run
into the rear coaches of another train, killing the conductor.

This engineer was drunk, and it is against the rules of any railroad
for an intoxicated person to be in its employ. Colonel Goethals had
the engineer