In 1885, due to the tremendous problems encountered in trying to excavate a sea-level canal, the plan was changed to include a single, temporary lock and other adjustments in order to speed up the availability of the canal for traffic. Still, it was of no use : in 1889, Lesseps' company was liquidated in order to pay back investors and banks from which the company had borrowed. The appraisal of the company's belongings - including equipment, maps, and the value of the land already excavated - was very high, and in 1894, a new company, the Compagnie Nouvelle du Canal de Panama, was created in France to attempt to finish the canal. All involved thought of this as an impossible feat by the French, and ideas ran strong to sell the canal zone - possibly to the United States. France resented the loss of millions of francs (the estimated cost of the company's pursuit of the canal, including publicity and possibly a little bribery, is almost 1.5 billion francs), and subsequent trials of the......
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Approximate Word Count: 1199
Approximate Pages: 5 (260 words per double-spaced page) |