Weekly national intelligencer. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1841-1869, 1853-01-08
THE CHESAPEAKE AND OHIO CANAL.

Governor Lowe; in his Message delivered to the
Legislature of Maryland on Thursday, gives the
following view of the business done during the past
year on the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal:
Misfortune seems to attend the Chesapeake and Ohio
Canal But a year ago congratulated you upon its
final completion and expressed the hope that it would at
last begin to realize long deferred prosperity and
am again called upon refer to a calamity. In the
midst of the spring trade Of last year unprecedented
freshet swept over the work. disabling it completely
a to suspend navigation from April until the close of July
thereby oecasonng the loss of three of the best months
Of the of the year An expenditure
hundred thousand dollars it is estimated, will have been
caused by that eshe In reply letter addressed by
me to the President Of the Company, statement has
been furnished in which it is said that the Of
repairs rendered necessary by the disaster mentioned
be added the loss Of during the suspen-
sion of navigation the general interruption business
connected with, and in cases diverted from, the
canal the postpohement of arrangements contemplated
for the coal trade and the Of confidence, to
extent, in the canal reliable Of transpora-
ton" The whole loss is put down at two hundred thou
sand dollars The freshe Of April was followed by two
three breaches in the embankments which occurred
during the months Of August and September, and by
which the navigation was further suspended for one
month Since that time the navigation has net been in
errupted and the Of tolls greater than those
received in the corresponding period Of any previous
year You will be able with these facts before you to
for the unsatisfactory results which this company
exhibits for the past year tits proper, however that
should here that the work is represented to be in
better condition than was before the reshet of April
and that the repairs made have been projected upon
scale which is deemed sufficient to guard against like dis
asters in the future
The canal during the past year was navigaed for only
about six months The tolls collected from the first Of
January the thireth Of November, 1862, to
S7S 4s6 55 which, with the estimate for December will
swell the aggregate about ninety thousand dollars
To this sum may be added three thousand dollars for
water-rents; which will give the gross revenue for the
year The whole tonnage of all articles transported for
various distances from January to December was as
cending, 1888 TONS descending 127 447 tons which
with the estimate for December, viii show an aggregate
Of 100 900 for the year OF that quantity ninety
thousand tons claimed eqnpaieat tonnage within
the meaning of the act Of 1884, chapter 2sl which re-
qures average annual transportation of 1856 900 tons
Of tonnage upon the entire line from Cumberland TO
Georgetown for FIVE years. dating from the end Of six
months after the completion of the work The whole
quantity Of coal transported various points on the
canal during the year allowing lO239 tons as the es
mate for December) viii not exceed So 900 tons This
is be attributed not only the causes already named
but also TO circumstances connected with the operations
Of the mining companies Of Allegheny county which
the canal company had control II will be perceived
that notwithstanding the many untoward events of the