Part 2. The Panama Canal handover.

Keyword. The Panama Canal, 19th century, hard labor, cut off, engineering marvels, relinquish control of.

Vocabulary. swamp, jungle, malaria, deposit, lock, toll, marvel, relinquish, coincide.

A. Listen to three short paragraphs about Panama Canal, draw lines to match the paragraph number with its main idea.

During the first half of the 19th century, much thought was given to building the Panama Canal.

The discovery of gold in California in 1848 brought an increased demand for a transporation link across Panama.

A railroad line was completed after 6 years of hard labor in swamps and jungles.

Over 2,000 workmen died for yellow fever and malaria.

For 11 years workmen struggled against heat and disease.

The canal cuts thousand of miles off sea journeys between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, raising ships from one ocean and depositing them in the other through a system of water locks and a man-made lake.

Some 14,000 ships pass through the canal every year, and pay 540 million dollars in tolls.

The canal remains one of the engineering marvels of the world.

It played a critical role in the development of global commerce.

This month, the United States relinquished control of the Panama Canal.

Panamanian President and formal U.S President Jimmy Carter signed a document turning over the canal and the land surrounding it to Palama.

It was in 1977 during Mr. Carter's administration, that the U.S and the Palama made the initial agreement:

The canal comes under Panamanian's control on December 31.

B. Listen to the following news item, complete the summary and details.

And Panama takes ownership of the Panama Canal from the United States at noon Friday, ending more than 90 years of the U.S control of the waterway.

Panamanians are planing the day of celebrations to mark the event, which coincide with New Year's Eve festivities.

United States later Thursday lowered its flag over the Palama Canal for the last time with the brief ceremony attended by the Panamanian President.