This short travelogue film on Panama is from the series “This World Of Ours” made by Dudley Pictures in the 1950’s. Panama lies between Costa Rica and Columbia (:35). Within it’s borders, is the Panama Canal which connects the Atlantic and Pacific oceans (:43). In 1513, the first European to set eyes upon this land was Balboa and a statue stands in homage to him (1:09). All that remains of the old city founded in 1519, by the Spanish, are shown in rubble (1:17). Two years later the city was rebuilt and surrounded with a protective wall (1:32). Panama City is the capital (1:54). Facing the main road, Central Avenue, is the National Palace which includes important offices of the government (2:02). The city of Colon is about 48 miles from the capital and is the Republic’s second largest city (2:45). One of the main roads is Front Street (2:52). Most of the country is masked in thick jungle with only a small portion under cultivation (3:05). The next largest city is David, and it is the country’s hub of agriculture (3:13). Raising cattle is a major industry here and coffee is grown in the mountainous region (3:30). Coconuts grow mainly on the Atlantic side (3:38). Caco beans from which chocolate is made is a major local crop (3:50). Another prevalent crop is the banana and these are shown grown and harvested on the lowlands side (3:57). Workers carry and wash massive clusters on screen (3:57). The area is widely known for the Panama Canal with the canal zone extending five miles on each side (4:29). In 1882, the French were first to attempt to cut a canal through the Isthmus, though it was eventually abandoned (4:47). The US took over and finished the endeavor in 1904, and ten years later it was open to water traffic (4:57). When ship’s cross the canal, they must be lifted three times; about 85 feet above sea level, and then lowered again three times (5:15). The massive chambers, in which boats are raised and lowered, are a thousand feet long, 110 feet across and seventy feet deep (5:32). Four million gallons of water are flushed into the chambers (5:43). The gates weigh hundreds of tons (5:48) and are operated by electric power generated near the canal. The electrical engines that pull boats into the chambers are dubbed ‘mules’ (6:15). The boat in the film travels through the Pedro Miguel Canal to the Gaillard Cut, which was one of the most difficult parts of the engineering process (7:09). All three locks converge at the Gatun Lock (8:04). The film draws to its end with a brief synopsis and the notion the Panama Canal has become the connecting line of international commerce (9:08).

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