The House Problem in Panama

Review and Herald Publishing Association · Takoma Park Station, Washington, D. C. · Jun 22, 1911

The House Problem in Panama

The following from a letter from Elder H. C. Goodrich shows the problem the West Caribbean Conference is wrestling with in its effort to restore its office headquarters since the Colon fire and the removal of the West Indian Union office to Jamaica:—

“It seems necessary, in building here, to consider the wants of the laborers. One rented room costs from ten dollars to fifteen dollars, gold, and this in buildings with four to eight families using a common kitchen. To get respectable rooms would cost us from forty dollars to sixty dollars a month. I am planning a building 28 x 60 feet, with chapel and conference office below, and three suites of rooms above. Rent on the chapel and rooms would bring in $648 a year.

“The chairman of the Canal Commission, in view of our loss, has kindly told me they will furnish us building materials. If we could borrow $1,500, we would have enough to go ahead. I am trying to borrow of individuals, but have not succeeded yet. In case we do not succeed, I think we shall have to move back to Bocas, which I would much regret. This is not an appeal; I know how the Mission Board is crowded to the limit. But I wish you to know what the situation is with us.”