The Sun.
London, England, 1846-04-09 00:00:00

RUGBY AND HUNTINGDON'.

The case for the promoters being closed yesterday,
Mr. HILDYARD addressed the Committee this morning in
opposition on the part of the promoters of the South Mid-
land (Huntingdon) Branch—the competing project. He re-
verted at great length to the evidence which had been ad-
duced in favour of the line under consideration, and con-
tended that no case had been made out for the construction of
a line which would necessarily require so great an outlay of
money—that the South Midland scheme would give all
the advantages which it proposed to confer on the district,
and at less expense. He denied that the London and Bir-
mingham line would be more crowded by the South Midland
rival line, for the traffic from Stamford to Huntingdon
would be continued at Market Harborough, and consequently
Rugby would not be affected by this traffic. At Market
Harboreugh a complete train would be formed from this
traffic, which would proceed to London without stoppage,
under the management of the London and Birming-
ham Company, whose excellent control and super-
intendence was testified by the witnesses for the pro-
posed line. The Learned Counsel further stated that
the project now under consideration was an isolated one, and
in the event of the London and York Railway not being
carried into effect, the accommodation to the district would
be very imperfect. Of the two schemes, therefore, he
would without hesitation leave it to the Committee
to say which was the more likely to afford the
accommodation which the public required, and which
of them was brought forward under the better auspices. The
one bad for its promoters a large, and solvent, and powerful
company, whose respectability and wealth were incontesta-
ble ; and the other was under the sanction of a company
which might never be able to raise the large capital which
they proposed to embark in the undertaking, and which never
could give an adequate return. Under these circumstances
he would leave the case in the hands of the Committee,
feeling quite confident that on a deliberate consideration of
the respective merits of the proposed lines, they would
decide in favour of his clients, and unction the project of
the South Midland (Huntingdon) Company.
A list of assents and dissents along the line was then
handed in, when the room was cleared.

On our re-admission,
The CHAIRMAN announced the decision of the Committee,
that the preamble of the
RUGBY AND RUNTYNGDON MAILWAY
was not proved.
They also decided that the preambe of the
SOUTH MIDLAND (HUNTINGDON BRANCH)
was proved; but the Committee would require the insertion
of a clause in this Bill, rendering the operation of the Act
wwehriechthwe as adjourned till Monday,
the 27th instant.n Postponed till the next
subiect to the passing, in the present session, of the South
Midland (Leicester and Bedford) line.
T
ißile,l
meeting
clausesngof
theo b
Committee, tnimette
The Committee then adjourned.

Sub-Committee No. 2.
This Committee met at twelve o'clock, Sir J. Y. Buller in
LONDON AND lIIIMINGNANZ (ST. ALSAN'S
AND LITTON lIRANCIt).
the chair, and proceeeded with the case of the
PETITION FOR ADDITIONAL POWERS.
Irai'idGtl7e°allgeEnt' for the
The ClLie was now finally disposed of.—Standing orders not
complied with.
AX.HOLME, clararsztoreovc;
YORE., AND NORTH MIDLAND J'UNCTION.
Thisi6,a
sßiinl lfosrtmo tilloeddotvheart i
wouldafterEnaosttebre
necessary to have his
witnesses in attendance until after the 21st of April.
WAIMICIESIIIRX AND LONDON =Amp.
TON AND ASIIOWORCH LINE).
Bill
This Bill was again called on, and the formal proofs being
completed, the Committee pyoeeded to hear evidence in sup-
port of a petition against th. line, . .
ns
softhis petition •
One of the allegatio(in support of which
that
Mr. Burke appeared) . w
road
in 4 certain public road had
been described as a private. the books of reference.
It was shown that the road in question was treated as a public
road by the promoters, a cps.s section being given, and the
Committee took this asprnid[ei - evidence that it was a
o
public road. In the absence of any evidence to the contrary
they declared the standing or ers not complied with.
mt.. J. PAILIKIC, On the part of the promoters of the Bill,
said it was very hard upon them to be called on to give evi-
dence of its being a private road when it was the practicm of
all Committees to lay the onus o
of proof upon the petitione.m.
The CIIAIILMAN mad he could not help it. The Conimittoe
were resolved.
ations of the
The remaining alleg petition were then pro-
dmitt d
seeded with, some being a by the promoters, sad'.
dandate
others not being prove.,
'clock the Committee adjourned till the 21st of April.
o The ChAIMAY, bef9re Wiring the wow, gave notice tw

the protna.Zrs of Bills, that the motion of Lord Dalhousie,'in
the House or last night, had no reference to select
Committees.

Sub-Comr.•`-ttee No. G.
This Committee assembled to-di at half-past one o'clock.
Captain Jones in the chair.
The Committee resumed the consideration of the petition
against the

wartwxcasHnsm Z.ND LONDON (UAW,-

TON AND BAN:BURY MINX).

The CHAIRMAN said that it was the determination of the
Committee to report that the standing orders had not been
complied with, with repect to the property marked 31 in
the parish of Chesterton. The report would run thus :
That the standing orders had not been co:aplied with,
inasmuch as the property, which consisted of a
stable, Sec., in question was omitted, although such existed ;
and also that on the books of re,cn-ence the said property was
described as a private carriage-rood, which in addition con-
tained a cow shed, stack-yard, &c.
The next allegation was that a free board in the parishes of
Bishopton and Chesterton, the property' of Lord Willoughby,
was omitted.

Evidence was adduced to support this' allegation, which,
however, was not sustained.
An allegation of omission with reference to property in
the parish of Banbury, marked 33 and 34, was not sustained.
It was next alleged that five houses situated in the parish
of St. Nicholas, Warwick, were not numbered on the plans
deposited with the clerk of the peace for Warwick and those
in the Private-bill Office.
Evidence having been heard, the Committee found that
the allegation was sustained.
The next allegation was to the same effect, with reference
to the property marked 8, in Leamington l'riors, which
consisted of a house, outbuildings, and a yard.
. It was stated on behalf of the promoters that it was im-
possible to mark every point accurately, and that the mark
'2B on the plan was sufficiently descriptive of the property
in question.
The CHAIRMAN said that the Committee must report that
the standing orders in this case had not been complied with,
but would accompany the same with the explanation given
on behalf of the promoters, which the Committee considered
quite satisfactory.
Several other allegations to the same effect, and under
similar circumstances, were admitted.
It was next alleged that there were discrepancies between
the respective plans, which allegation was abandoned, and
several others of a similar character were entered into, but
not sustained.

The case for the petition having dosed, the Committee
found that the standing orders had not been complied with.
CALEDONIAN EXTENSION. •

This Bill, which was re-committed, was again considered.
Mr. BURKE appeared in support of a petition from certain
landowners, ic., along the line complaining of non-compli-
ance with the standing orders. He said that the promoters
of the Bill had laid down two alternative lines. Now, accord-
ing to the 16th clause of their Act, they should have given
due notice to the landowners, &c., on the line of the branch
from Ayr to Muirkirk, and that the necessary notices had
not been served, giving an accurate description of the line.
Mr. GRAHAM, who appeared on behalf of the promoters,
offered a few observations in reply to the elect that the line
in question was not an alternative line, but a branch, and
produced evidence to show that such was the case.
The portion of the line alluded to was from Curaloch to
Muirkirk.

The CHAIRMAN ordered the room to be cleared, and, on
our re•admission, stated that the Committee were of opinion
that the allegation was not sustained.
It was next alleged that there was an error on the datum
line, which was sustained.
The Committee adjourned shortly before five o'clock to
the 21st instant.

TIDAL HARBOURS COMMISSION.
The following extracts from the Second Report of the
Tidal Harbours Commissioners, just presented to both
Houses of Parliament, will be found interesting :
A more extended inquiry has fully confirmed the
views which the limited examination of last year lcd us
to submit to your Majesty. Not only is there a general
want of control over the management and revenue of
the ports, but there is not a single exception among the
numerous cases which have come before us, in which
such a control might not have been the means of saving
unnecessary outlay ; of preventing encroachments that
can now scarcely be remedied, or of stopping works that
must be removed in order to secure the objects to which
the attention of the Commission is directed.

The necessity of such supervision has also become
more apparent since the publication of the returns to the
orders of the House of Commons of August last, from
which we learn that the income of the vari )11s ports of
the United Kingdom considerably exceeds the sum of
800,0001. a year, the whole levied by charters and acts of
Parliament, or otherwise, from dues on shipping, and on
goods borne by shipping, but over the expenditure of
which Parliament has not at present the slightest control.

In Ire:and we have been enabled to visit most of the
ports and fishing piers around the coast, and have been
strongly impressed by a sense of the great value of its
natural harbours, their depth and capacity, and the
extent and capability for improvement of its fisheries,
which even in their present state, and with the fishery
piers often in ruins from neglect, afford employment to
19,880 vessels and boats, and 93,000 hardy fishermen.
But these natural advantages are very far from having
been turned to the best account; on the contrary, a de-
tailed examination into the state of the principal ports
shows that although much has been done, and, in many
cases, at a heavy expenditure of money, yet that if the
works had been planned with a little more foresight,
and steadily carried on under efficient control, the
same expenditure would have led to far better results,
and might have removed the causes of complaint for
which there is but too much foundation.

The harbour of Dublin and the river Liffey offer an
instructive example of the correctness of these state-
ments. Within the last thirty years many improve-
ments have taken place; the depth of water over the
bar and up to the city quays has been increased
several feet, by dredging, and by the bold measure
of running out the great north wall ; the traffic
and conseqaent revenue of the port Faye more than
doubled; and the latter has risen to 34,0001. a year.
Yet the evidence shows that the foundation of the
quays is generally so imperfect that they will not, in
their present state, admit of the river being further
deepened ; that the south quay, the resort of three-
fourths of the shipping of the port, is encum-
bered at its foot by heaps of mud ; that the
entrance into the GI and Canal Docks is all but
blocked up by sand-banks ; that there is a great want
of graving docks; that there is but one public crane; that
the port charges are very high; and that the ballast, of
which, by Act of Parliament, the ballast-office has a
monopoly, and for which it charges about double the
market-price, is in many cases bad.
Wexford harbour, which, from its capabilities, its po-
sition in a rich country, amidst an industrious population,
and its vicinity to the English coast, ought to be one of
the most prosperous in Ireland, is the resort of little
more than coasting vessels. It appears in evidence that
here are 104 Harbour Commissioners ; that the stream of
the Slaney, and the tidal waters of its vast estuary,
are left uncontrolled ; that the heads of the piles on
which the quays are founded project some feet into
the river, and have caused damage to several vessels ;
that a vexatious toll is levied on all vessels passing
through Wexford Bridge ; and that heaps of stone,
now forming an artificial bar eight feet high, have been
thrown in at the foot of its piers to save the foundation
from being swept away. Similar neglect appears outside
the harbour, where the want of a light off Blackwater
Bank, and the absence of beacons on the other dangerous
sands which line this coast, are stated to have been the
cause of several shipwrecks, and of a great sacrifice of life,
At Waterford, a capacious natural harbour, consider.
able (xertion has been made to deepen the ford and ob-
tain a channel up to the town; but an extensive mud-
bank still lines the foot of the finest range of quays in
the United Kingdom; the soil, dredged up in one
part of the harbour, is dropped into the stream in
• another; thousands of tons of refuse stone are annually
swept into the river from the quarries of Grenagh; while
the bridge, with its thirty-six arches and corresponding
piers, and an opening for ships only eight yards wide,
places a bar to the extension of navigation and improve-
ment towards Carrick-on-Suir and Clonmel.

The celebrated harbour of Cork stands pre-eminent for
capacity and safety, even in that country of fine natural
harbours. The upper portion of it, which falls more im-
mediately within the limits of this commission, extends
for five miles below the city to Passage. This part, since
the year 1820, has been considerably deepened; vessels of
500 tons now come up to the city, and the traffic and in-
come of the port have proportionably increased ; Tot
the harbour is far from being in that state which
a revenue of 8,000/. a year for the last twenty. five years
would warraur. emsplaiants are made that banks a
thee
foot
whichf the
y Y
gt
steamersrheea t
cityris k
andto the Cove
that seven weirs cross the river Lee within
o
luae betweenu e
one mile and a half of Cork, and impede the up-
ward flow of the tide ,- that a wall has been built for
1,500 yards, in a doub,ful direction, to guide the set of
the current, and is now left in an unfinished state ; that
the silt dredged up from the charnel is laid at the back
of this wall, and washed down again into the river by
every high tide ; and that an areaof 150 acres, over which
the tides used to flow has been parily enclosed, whereby a
large portion of tidal water is excluded. Yet this large
space, if inclosed by a wall properly directed, and the
loss of the excluded water compensated by dredging
the upper part of the bed of the river, might be a benefit
to navigation, and form a park for L‘ir and exercise fur
the citizens, instead of being left as a nuisance ; in short,
to quote the words of a highly respectable witness,
" the harbour of Cork has throughout been the victim of
half measures."

tßhaellilnaactteurrrhaas risers Complaints, also, are made that the Glanmire and
econbtortihbuinteda ntoegtlhecetcedorsitcatheiar while
errgsery
Fund ; that a portion of the dues collected in Cork never
reach the hands of the treasurer ; and that money has
been borrowed, and consequently a debt incurred, without
the authority of an act of Parliament.
Surveyors and sailors complain of the too great ele-
vation and ill chosen position of Cape Clear Light ; of
the want of a light en the Faze Rock, the western point
of Ireland ; and that there is no coast light from the
Old Head of Kinsale to the Hook of Waterford, a dis-
tance of seventy miles.
Limerick, at the head of the estuary of the Shannon,
the noblest river in the kingdom, and now, by the
energy of the Board of Public Works, rendered nevi-
yable almost through its whole length, offers great
fa cility fur navigation and commercial enterprise.
He."o there is a magnificent bridge built across
the harbour at a cost of 85,000/. ; yet, although
the same Act under which it was erected expressly
gives powers for 'the construction of floating docks, the
harbour still renaains without a dock or place of shel-
ter, .and vessels at low water lie on the rocky bot-
tom, and exposed to damage ; while its income
of 4,000/. a year, levied upon shipping, is mort-
gaged to pay the interest of money. chiefly ex•
pend.ed in building the bridge. It is also stated
in e,.ridence that while more than half a million of money
had been laid out in improving the Upper Shannon, the
esti iary of that river, from Limerick to the sea, has been
den ied even a few hundred pounds to buoy and beacon
the dangerous shoals which, although easily removed,

are allowed to remain and obstruct the navigation of the
port.

At Galway, similarly situated at the head of a large
inlet on the western coast, sheltered from the Atlantic
swell by the natural breakwater of the Arran Isles, and
shortly to be connected inland with the extensive navi-
gation of Loughs Corrib and Mask, much spirit and
enterprise have been shown since 1832. in making
a floating dock, nine acres in extent, fit to contain
vessels of 500 tons ; in conscqucnce the trade has in-
creased, and the revenue of the port has risen from 3401.
to 2,0001. per annum. Yet unhappily the whole of this
income is mortgaged to pay the interest of the debt in-
curred ; and, owing to some mismanagement, a rocky
bar of three feet high, on which a vessel might break
her back, has been left just without the sill of the dock-
gates. Great inconvenience is also stated to arise from
the distance the Claddagh fishermen have to go to their
fishing grounds, 30 miles off; and that a pier half way
down the bay would be a great boon to this valuable
body of men, as well as to the owners of numerous turf
boats which trade in this directii,n.

Sligo, with limited means, has recently extended its
quays 700 yards, anti removed a portion of the Blcunick
Point, while i's trade has much increased. Private
quays, however, still cause great inconvenience ; weirs
exist, which obstruct the upward flow of the tide ; the
ebb and flood stream require directing to prevent the
increase of sand-banks ; and the channel generally
wants deepening, to enable the put to keep pace pith
its thriving trade.
Londonderry, on the Foyle, where the river expands
into a spacious navigable estuary, has great natural
advantages, which have been ill seconded by art. Mud
banns encumber the foot of the quays, which might be
kept free by simply guiding the course of the stream.
The quays, chiefly private property, are in a neglected
state, and project apparently as the owners think fit into
the river. Complaints are made by sailors and pilots of
the leading lights on Innishowen Read being on the
same level, of the want of a light on Rathlin Island,
and of the more glaring want of a beacon on the Car-
righ-vanan Rock, which lies in the fair treoks of steamers
to and from the port.
Belfast, the first town in Ireland in enterprise and
commercial prosperity, ranks second only to Dublin as
a port, and has an income of 22,0001. a year. In the
year 1840, a channel up to the town was opened, having
nine feet water at low tides, which has proved to bo
great convenience to the fine steamers that daily run
from hence to Glasgow and Liverpool. But even with
this channel, the improvements in the harbour are far
from having kept pace with the rapid advance of the
town. Until very lately the quays and docks have been
private property, and thus have been permitted to oppose
a barrier to improvement. The evidence shows that
they are still in a very negleeted state, and that there is
so great a want of accommodation, that steamers are
often obliged to discharge their cargoes lying alongside
the quays three abreast. Complaints are made of the
state of the Custom-house; that the lower lock of the
Lagan navigation is only a mile and a half above the
town, and thus prevents the upward flow of the tide; that
encroachments are making on the banks of the river,
and that still more extensive encroachments are threat.
ened by railway speculation; in short, that everything
points to the vigilant control which is absolutely neces-
sary to enable this fine port to keep pace with the rapid
strides, both in manufactures and trade, of the capital of
Ulster.

Newry has the great advantage of lying within Car-
lingford Lough, which, a moderate outlay, might be made
a harbour of refuge, an inestimable boon on this part of
the coast. The Navigation Company here, instead of
deepening the natural channel of the river, have em-
barked all their capital in an artificial canal.
Dundalk has recently made great efforts, guided by a
.kilful engineer, to improve the harbour, and the increase
in steam traffic, consequent upon deepening the,channel,
already demands leading lights at the entrance of the
rivmr. _

IL'ogheda has been much improved by steadily dredg-
ing the River Boyne, and the revenue of the port has
been more than .soubled during the last few years; there
is, however, much yet to be done, and there are various
symptoms of neglect that would vanish under efficient
control; like Galway, its whole dues are mortgaged for
a debt incurred in improving the harbour.
The piers or breakwaters of the artificial harbours of
Kingstown, Howth, Donagliadee, Dunmore, Ardglass,
and Portrush, all built according to the same mode of
rubble stone, with a long slope to seaward, have all
suffered very material damage from the effects of the
waves. Ardglass pier, together with its lighthouse, now
lies a mass of ruins in the sea.
Of the 70 fishing piers, constructed or repaired in
1822 and since, at a cost of 43,0001., chiefly of public
money, many of them, from neglect in receiving timely
repairs, are falling to decay; and one of them, at New-
castle, county of Down, has been entirely destroyed, to
the great distress and almost ruin of the fishermen
around. These piers have nevertheless proved highly
beneficial to the districts in which they are placed, as
have also the harbours built by the liberality of indivi-
duals, as the Earl of Courtown, at Courtown; Lord
Annesley, at Newcastle; Mr. Ogilvie, at Ardglass; and
Viscount Palmerston, at Mullaghmore, in Sligo; and it
is earnestly to be hoped that some efforts will be made to
preserve them from a similar fate.
On the north-west coast of England, the river Lune
and the port of Lancaster are capable of much improve-
ment. The recent Admiralty survey of this district has
shown that there is a deep-water channel, hitherto ne-
glected, in Morecombe Bay, approaching to within three
miles of Lancaster, which, if properly lighted and
buoyed, would afford a harbour of refuge— the great
want. of this part of the coast where &l are tidal harbours.
Fleetwood-on-Wyre. from its connexion with the
Preston and London Railway, and from its direct com-
munication with Belfast and Glasgow, has at once
become a port of consequence ; and the admirable
system of lighting adopted in its channel, its extent of
quay accommodation, and its well-appointed and power-
ful steamers, offer an instructive example of what well-
directed skill and energy can accomplish in a few years.
The river Dee and the port of Chester afford a
striking example of the danger to which the interests
of navigation may be exposed by placing the power
over the river in the hands of a joint-stock company,
whose principal interest consisted in the successful
reclaiming the land. The area of the estuary of the Dee
between Chester and Kelstra, was formerly about 12,000
acres, covered at every spring-tide ; of this space
8,000 acres have been enclosed, or, as it is termed,
reclaimed, and the tidal water excluded ; about
5,000 acres of the land thus obtained on the Cheshire
side, now form the Dee Company's estate, and nearly
3,000 acres on the Flintshire shore are the property of
the adjoining landed proprietors. The Act of Parlia-
ment that sanctioned this extensive encroachment re•
quired that a depth of fifteen feet at ordinary spring
tides should be maintained up to Chester, in default of
which the rental of the company was liable to be seized
and applied to the improvement of the navigation. This
condition, it appears in evidence, has not been complied
with ; the standard by which it should be ascertained,
and which was required to be maintained, does not exist,
and the river was in so bad a state, in December, 1844,
that a vessel drawing only 8 feet water could not go up
to Chester on a spring tide.
It appears also that a rubble-stone dyke or embank-
ment extends seven miles along the Cheshire side of the
river, "on a line the most injudiciously laid out with
regard to navigation ;" thatithis dyke, a portion of which
is covered at half-tide, is only marked by insignificant
perches or beacons, that several vessels have struck on it, •
some of which have been entirely lost ; that the river,
from Flint upwards, is neither lighted nor buoyed ; that a
weir or mill-dam, rising 11 feet above the bed of the river
exists just above the city, dams the water up for several
miles, and prevents the upward flood of the tide ; that
loads of atones are thrown into the river to secure the
foot of the jetties ; and that at Parkgate, twelve miles
below Chester, which formerly was one of the principal
mail-packet stations between England and Ireland, a
dry sand no* extends almost across the estuary.
On the south coast, at Salcombe, there are neither
pilots nor a harbour master. On the north-east coast,
the river Tyne and port of Newcastle, including North
and South Shields, take the lead among the principal
coal ports of the kingdom, which, owing to the vast in-
crease in steam navigation, are daily rising into great
importance. Newcastle has shipped upwards of two
millions of tons of coal per annum for the last quarter of
a centary ; her foreign trade has risen to half a million
tons yearly, and the revenue derived from the
river and paid to the City Corporation, who
by charter are conservators of the port, amounts
to 19,000/. a-year, exclusive of 6,0001. annually
levied by the Trinity Board for primage, buoyage,
&c. Where all seems so prosperous, it is an un-
grateful task to point out that such a state of things
may be deceitful ; yet so it assuredly will prove to be
on the Tyne if the river be much longer abandoned to
itself, as, generally speaking, it has been till within the
last few years.

Sunderland is indebted less to nature and more to urt
than the neighbouring port of Newcastle ; here exten-
sive stone piers project into the sea, by the aid of
which several feet of water over the bar have been ob-
tained, and the enterprise of the coal owner and ship-
builder, and skill of the engineer, have been rewarded
by a revenue of 16,0001. a-year, derived from an eaten-
sir home-trade in coals, and a rapidly-increasing fo-
reign traffic. This port, however, is capable of much
improvement ; the quays are private property, and
much out of order ; the moorings were so indif-
ferent that, owing to the pressure of the ice in the
winter of the year 1841, the whole of the shipping in
the harbour brake adrift, and the damage done was
estimated at 30,000/. ; the foundation of a part of the
south pier is so insecure that the scouring
of the sea has undermined its foot ; the en-
trance of the north docks is far from being well
placed; so heavy a swell ranges along the piers, and into
the harbour, that the engineer has been obliged to take
down a large portion of the middle of the south pier in
order to make a beaching place for the swell to expend
itself upon ; and a general complaint is made of the
want of dock accommodation, affording an easy outlet

to the southward in north-easterly winds.
Hartlepool owes its rapid rise chiefly to its southern
outlet, the want of which is so much felt at Sunderland.
This fortunate position has been in some measure
econded by the Dock and Railway Company, who have
now a floating dock of twenty acres, where they can
load 5,000 tons of coal a day; while the entrance is
allowed to be one of the mast easily accessible of any of
the tidal harbours along this coast. The success of this
port has induced the formation of a Hartlepool West
Harbour Dock, about half a mile to the westward, the
works of which are in an advanced state.
Stockton-on-Tees, including Middlesbrough, is one of
the most thriving of our coal ports. Yet even here, on
a closer inspection, the want of some control is mani-
fest—the quays are nearly all private, and are falling
into the river ; the piers of the bridges are only sup-
ported by the loads of stone thrown down at their foot ;
rocks of whinstone impede the upper navigation, and
cause damage to the barges ; the entrance of the dock
at Middlesbrough, completed but five years since, is only

- •
Viitty feet wide ; while about 2,000 acres of the estuary
have beenen:llosed, and the corresponding tidal way'.
excluded ; and the channel over the bar, which formerly
ran due east, has, in consequence, changed to N.N.E.
Great complaints also are made of the want of a bar-

hour of refuge in the neighbourhood, and of a beacou
on Redear Rock, upon which vessels are annually
wrecked.
Whitby has a revenue of 3,600 a year, derived from a
passing toll on coal borne by shipping, specially im-
posed for the improvement of the harbour. It offers to
shipping in return a west pier, of fine Whitby stone, not
placed in the best direction, which projects 10u yards
beyond the east pier, and causes an eddy at the en-
trance ; a circular head, inviting the run of the sea
into the harbour ; an entrance one-third too wide ;
rocky bar, that migh: easily be blasted, on which more
than one ship has broken her back ; a mill-dam that
stops the upward flow of the tide ; a railway darn, re-
cently made, which excludes 30,000 cubic yerds or
water on every spring tide ; ballast and the rubbish of
the town thrown below high water mark and behind the
west pier ; and a dry harbour.
Scarborough, for some unexplained reason, has been
denied the passing toll that has Leen continued to
Whirtibdnynagutdonß,rliidkle Whitby,ington
,immediately adjacent.
B
on coals for the last 150 yearshas enjoyed;ilteNV ailiPtbayss,intg tolloo,it
offers in return a harbour dry at low water ; a north
pier, built with public money at a very great cost, vet
not.cren carried out to low water ; no quay accominocia-
tien ; a heavy rarge of swell along the pier, so that no
moorings will hold the vessels ; and a piei-end light
furnished with a single candle ; yet Bridlington Bay is
the only good shelter in northerly gales on this coast.
Kingston-upon-Hull takes the lead as the first port
in the kingdom for inland trade ; while its position with
respect to the North Sea has made it the chief outlet of
our manufactures to northern Europe, and raised it to
the rank of the third port in the country in foreign
traffic. The approaches by the deep but intricate chau-
ut.l of the Humber are adthirably buoyed and lighted by
the Hull Trinity Board ; floating docks to the extent of
23 acres already exist, and 15 acres in addition will
soon be opened. The activity at the docks is not sur-
passed by that of any other port in the kingdom, 75
vessels having lately passed through the Humber dock
lock in a single tide. The tonnage of the vessels that
have paid dock dues during the past year amounted to
700,000 tons, and the whole income of the port, derived
from tolls on shipping and goods borne by shipping, ex-
ceeds 75,0004 a year.
Commercially important as Hull appears to have been
in the infancy of British commerce, it was not till 1775
that the old Hull dock was set on foot ; the traffic still
increasing the 11-timber dock was begun in 1807 ;
more than twenty years elapsed, during which the
trade almost doubled, when the Junction dock was
opened in 1829, but not until Goole bad been de-
clared a bonding port. Great as was the increase
of accommodation thus afforded, the trade more
then kept pace with it ; and, as it appears in evidence,
for want of dock room ships have been greatly damaged,
and some sunk in the harbour from its over-crowded
state, being at times so full that vessels could not get
in or out for weeks together ; and, on one occasion, a
vessel made a voyage to the Baltic and back, while
another, ready for sea at the same time, was endea-
vouring to proceed down the harbour. Thus Hull af-
fords a striking instance of the evil of permitting a com-
pany levying heavy dues on shipping to obtain power to
give or withold dock accommodation according to its in-
terests, instead of this power being vested in the Corpo-
ration or in trustees for the public good. The original
shares of the Dock Company, on which 2501, only have
been paid, are now worth 2,0001.
Grimsby, from its position near the entrance of the
Humber, will, when the proposed extensive works are
carried out and the projected railways completed, offer
great facilities to the trade with the Baltic and Northern
Europe ; it will be a ready coaling place for steamers,
and will, probably, become the principal resort of the
fishing vessels employed on the Dogger Bank, as
well as on the more distant grounds of the North Sea
fishery.

Great Yarmouth is of importance for its commerce
and fisheries ; and its roadstead is well known as the
most capacious in England, and as a great thoroughfare
and shelter for the coasting trade. Yarmouth Haven
has a depth of eight feet on the bar at low water, and
vessels of from thirteen to fourteen feet draught enter
at ordinary high tide. The registered tonnage of the
port is 40,000 tons, and the number of arrivals yearly
about 3,000 vessels, the aggregate tonnage of which
amounts to 176,828 tons.

One great impediment to the flow of the tide is the.
narrowness of Yarmouth-bridge, and of the adjoining
part of the haven, which occasions in ordinary tides a
difference in the height of the water of one foot, and in
very high tides of from three to four feet, between the
bridge and the pierhead.
Norwich, a city containing 62,344 inhabitants, situated
in the centre of the county of Norfolk, and distant 30
miles by water from the sea, was constituted a port by
the opening of the Lowestoft navigation in 1832. Its
exports and imports being large, its citizens had long
desired a direct communication with the sea by the port
of Yarmouth ; and the river Yare, throughout its whole
course from Norwich to its junction with the Breydon
Water, being of sufficient depth to admit vessels of 200
tons burthen, the Burgh Flats and the narrowness of the
Yarmouth Bridge were, and still are, the only itnpeii-
ments to that desirable object ; but these portions of the
navigation were then intrusted to the charge of the Cor-
poration of the town of Yarmouth, who refused the citi-
zens of Norwich the desired communication with the sea.
Thus thwarted, the citizens of Norwich formed a joint-
stock company, and applied to Parliament for access to
the tea by Lowestoft ; but even in that attempt they
were opposed by the Corporation of Yarmouth, who ex-
pended more than 8,0004 in Parliamentary opposition to
their object.
The communication, however, between Norwich and
the sea at Lowestoft, was obtained; but having failed t)
realise the expectations of its projectors, there is again
a unanimous desire to have a direct navigation to the
sea through Yarmouth; but it is stated that there is still
the same opposition to this project on the part of the
Yarmouth Haven and Pier Commission, now intrusted
with the management of the localities referred to,
although it is generally admitted that the deepening of
the Burgh Flats and the widening of Yarmouth Bridge,
would not only, afford the desired communication, but
also tend to the improvement of the harbour and bar at
Yarmouth; while at the same time the cost ofexecuting
the necessary works, to secure these objects, would not
greatly exceed the sum mentioned as having been spent
in fruitless opposition to the navigation by Lowestoft.
It is stated that if St. °lave's• bridge were removed
from the river Waveney, and the Burgh Flats deepened,
sea-borne vessels of much greater draught of wate
could easily reach Beccles through the port of Yar
mouth.

Blakeney and Cley, or. the north coast of Norfolk,
have a common entrance, which, by a winding course,
is distant from the town of Cley 51, and from Blakeney
3} miles, Within the memory of some of the present
pilots, 140 coasting vessels have taken refuge in this port
during one tide ; yet in the place where these vessels lay
afloat at low water there is now only a depth of
five feet, and the utility of the harbour has consequently
been almost destroyed.

It s stated that this evil has been caused by the en-
closure at different times of more than 1,200 acres of
land, over which the tidal waters formerly flowed.
Unfortunately, also, in 1817, Blakeney, by Act of
Parliament, became a proprietary harbour, and the mer-
chants and inhabitants, unless they are proprietors, have
no power to interfere in its management, or in the regu-
lation of the charges on the shipping ; and until legisla-
tive authority be given, no such power can be exercised
either by the government or by any other parties.
The port of Wells lies a few miles to the west of
Blakeney. The bar of its harbour is dry at low water,
but the rise of tide on it at ordinary springs is 21 feet,
though at the quay only 12 feet.
The inhabitants struggled for nearly half a century to
prevent the inclosure of the tidal l
of
ands
manyb suitsytliea atdj law;oinig
proprietors, even at the expensehave
been all these efforts were frustrated, and 486 acres
been inclosed, to the great detriment of the harbour.
The necessity of the supervision of harbours by Go-
vernment further appears from the fact that, wader an
Act passed so recentlyas 1844, the sum of 9,650/. has
been borrowed, on an assignment of the harbour dues,
to erect a quay; and the expenditure of this large
amount has been left almost entirely under the control
of ono of the Commissioners, who acts as secretary,
collector, treasurer, paymaster, and superintendent of
the steam.tug and of all public works; and who thus
has the whole management of the works and finances,
without even the check that would be afforded by the
assistance of a clerk or the employment of a practical
engineer. _ _

the merchants and inhabitants complain of the heavy
burdens imposed on them by such gross mismanagement;
but, as in many similar cases, they have no power to
interfere or obtain redress, as the Commissioners named
in the Act, who now permit such mismanagement, and
many of whom do not even possess any property in the
town, have the power of nominating others to fill up

vacancies.
At Harwich, besides the extension of Landguard
Point mentioned in our former report, it appears that,
Owing to the continued excavation of cement stone near
the coast, the sea has made great inroads in Mill Bay to
the westward, and at Fclixstow to the eastward, and the
Admiralty surveyor has recently reported that the waves
are encroaching to a great extent along Landguard East
Beach, at the rate of tire-and-twenty feet a year. Unless
some decisive and systematic plan of groymng, in order
to repel this encroachment, be at once adopted, it is
lim-
possible to predict what mischief may arise to this
valuable harbour.
Aeration of
Harwich also offers an instance of the pecessity of
again defining the limits of ports, as threcsocpter,a,_
right
Ipswich claims by charter and daily exercises
lying close
close to
of levying anchorage dues upon ,
and manifestly far
returns that the.
the
removedfece from
th the town
et onwant
the United King
aggltre
the aepmopel Pnptrstaatroit 'of); London, exceeds
natural ilirma ri
limit oj cf
4tvh e port
therefore, of the
dow, exclusive of docksths
e Parliamentary
one-fourthatl
earomi utshtisbedeabnt:
appearsga t segregate d e b t fromo ofthe
4 000 000/ sterling;
an-
nually whole: haaprpbrocuprriianteeodintooofp
aßyoot,hoeoOL interest a 3•
which will consequently materially cripple the means
for future improvements. This large sum, although
borrowed with the sanction of the Legislature, has been
laid out entirely by several local boards, without the
slightest control being exercised over it either by Par-
liament or by any other power specially charged to
watch over the interest of the public.
Among the numerous cases of the misapplication of
harbour funds, to which we have already had occasion
to refer, a sum of more than 28,0001. expended last year
in Parliamentary and legal expenses connected with
Bills for the improvement of harbours, seems to your
Commission to be a most impolitic and unnecessary out-
lay,[ and one whioh !flight be entirely prevented by the
I establishment of a harbour conservancy board, such as

we have humbly ventured to submit to your Majesty's
consideration. _

vFromVtho
competition already commenerd between
rai r ads and the coasting shipping, we fear that unless
immediate measures be taken to improve the harbours
and navigable rivers of this kingdom, and, where prac-
ticable, to lessen the due e a large p of the goods
which these vessels now carry will b 4 conveyed by the
railroads rapidly extending to almost every part of
the coast. We would, therefore, strongly urge ,6uch
assistance, not only on economical but on political grounds
of the highest' importance to the maritime interests of
the kingdom, as the coasting trade has ever been the
best nursery for the hardy raci, ff seamen who have so
ably maintained the hotteur acid power of t. 1,6 cot', try.
We alluded in our fist rep"rt to the otistructione acid
shoals which so seriously impede art l endanger the nevi
gation of the Thames between Greve;end and London-
bridge; all the additional information and evidence we
have received since that report was presented fully con-
vince us of the correctness of the opinions we then ex-
pressed, and we feel confident that, if the various and fre-
quently conflicting authorities., to whose guardianship
the conservancy of this noble river is entrusted, could be
induced to co-operate cordially in its improvement, and
to carry on their operation; jointly on one serind and
uniform system. the impediments which now discredit
the local administrations and endanger the commerce of
the metropolis, might be speedily and cheaply removed.
And in strong corcOoration of our own view of this sub-
ject, we subjoin the following extract from the report
of a select Committee of the House of Commons in the
year 1536, specially appointed to inquire into the state
of the pole,- of leindon:
"That this Committee are of opinion that the various
conflicting jurisdictions and claims of the Admiralty,
the Trinity House, and the Corporation of the city of Lon-
don, over the river Thames below the bridges, have bad
a most injurious effect upon the interests of navigation ;
that it is desirable they should be consolidated and vested
in some one responsible body, and that means should be
found to provide for the removal of shoals and obstruc-
tions in the bed of the river."
All these lasts and considerations induce us most
earnestly to repeat the recommendation, which we ven-
tured dutifully to submit to your Majesty in our former
report, that all the tidal harbours in the United King-
dom be placed under the special care ef a board of ob-
servaney, to be formed under the authority and provi-
sions of an Act of Parliament (of which we annex a
Bill), being fully convinced that any less stringent and
decisive measures will be found wholly inadequate for
the accomplishment of the great national object which
your Majesty has been graciously pleased to direct us to
consider and examine.

All which we humbly certify to your Majesty.
William Bowles, Rear-Admiral, M.P., chairman ;
J. J. Gordon Bremer, Captain, R.N. ; Joseph
Hume, M.P. ; Aaron Chapman, M.P. ; Edward
R. Rice, M.P. ; Thomas Baring, M.P. ; P.
Beaufort, Hydrographer • G. B. Airy, Astro-
nomer Royal ; John Washington, Captain,
R.N. ; Richard Godson, Q.C. and M.P., Coun-
sel to the Admiralty.
London, 20th March, 1846.