New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1866-03-15

The suex Canal.


yrm Our Special Correspondent
CAIRO, Egypt Feb. 9, 1866.
Your correspondent has failed for several
months to keep your readers couyaH with affairs at
sAs aapa but he hopes to make up for the time lost
By Transforming himself into correspondent IN
..,tibu, and giving you few letters from Egypt and
Syria.
Having come to Egypt in search of health, deter
mined TO unite business and pleasure in an excursion 20
he Suez Canal when should be sure Of plenty OF
fresh desert air. and Of such information as might be OF
hterest to your readers.
From Cairo 70 Suez by Of the Pashas Railroads,
n ride over an unbroken desert of some 9Omes. and
Eve or six hours not including the two hours We waited
A Cairo after the advertised hour OF starting.
sues is represented by Murray as small Arab town.
Devoid of all interest, but French and English enter
pSse have made it busy city, with many fine resi-
aences and the best hotel in all the East.
Bot the Grand Canal was the object Of our visit and
without stopping TO decide the point at which Moses
crossed the Red Sea- we commenced efforts to reach
she nearest point on the line of the canal when there
was any work going on.
Unfortunately for me- M. Lesseps was absent with a
commission sent by the Sultan from COnstantinope to
seport upon the canal 1t was poor consolation to be
tod BY his agent that IL he had been in Su'z he would
gratis to the whole hBe of the canal AS he was not
there was forced to make my way as best could
THE SWEET WATER CANAL
Not long age, all Europe was informed by telegraph
tbst the Suey Canal APPLETON that boat
laden with Goals had passed through from the Mediter
fanean TO the Red Sea- This was strictly true but the
impression produced was false, The "Sweetwater
Canal beaIs the same relation to the ship canal that
tie newly -sharpened saws of carpenter bear 10 tbe
house which he is abon to build IL brings the wafer
Of the Nile to the town OF Snez and To certain portions
of the works the main canal. furnishing dfinklng
water to the workmen the means of irrigation to I'M
lied tracks of desert and an easy means OF trahsbor
Ing material to the works of the ship canal II s about
20 feet wide and feet deep and Is great Woik III ~
self but not The canal passed over ABOUT 10 nles Oh
Il in a ships boat. towed by q camel and steered ny
Bedoun. AFTER waiting one day for permission rom tne
agent In going and returning, L met OF ooals III
all most of them empty aid al belonging TO d. Lesseps
This canal was dug ~ forced labor. e. by men seized
by the Pssha of Egypt driven the desert and
forced to work certain number of weeks.
TIE SHIP CANAL.
Isaw norton of the works of the grand canal myse,
and found at Suez several gentlemen who had just eI
smined tie whole line from osea 1t sto be about
40 miles long, $50 feet wide and 50 rect aeep no'
yard o. 1t has yet been completed. AT Port Lald on
where immense works are needed and
port must be built very little has been DONE A, Two
points the line few miles have 30 Tar been eopieeu
that immense dredging machines are OF Work bringing
Il down to the proper depth. At one OF these points
however the canal has filed up almost as fast as u
could be cleared cut Az lsmnis h an uu.r
ont and some pretty gardens planted anu water ca
from the Sweet Canal On the first section near
Sues work has been commenced IN only one place,
about Is miles This place called Chalouf, was the
one which visited Here found about 500 men al woi
italians French and Greeks. They had been at woik
With the aid Of 10 or - engines and cortrvancss Of all
kinds The same force may perhaps be able 10 com
pete this half mile in year although 1t viii not be
easy fol Europeans TO work there during the summer
months. There are complications of all kinds in this
work More than half OF the 600 cubic feet TO be
removed from this half mile is solid rock. which must
Be blasted. large amount,pf salt water must every
DAY be lifted BY engines high above the level OF the
canal that IL Will off upon the desert and then the
sides OF the canal being formed to considerable extent
of sea sand must be w6lled up.
With time and money. the canal can be completed
and made success. not only through this half mile
but across the sthmus but the work at this point 10
Dir basis upon which 10 estimate the amount Of time
and money which must be consumed before vessels viii
pass through from sea to sea- 1.-THE rate OF BAH NILE
Q year. Two hundred and forty years would De neees
eary but the work IL eoinx on at four points, which
would give Ms 60 years snd as to money. ths sum 70
Quired before the day Of dividends can come VIII o.
favorable circumstances perhaps 1t may be finished II
30 years; but viii N. Lesseps and his stoekhoiden
have the patience and the courage TO watf
The greatest difficulty is the want Of lsborers. and
a one which hardly he removed. EnFand snt
Turkey have nterisied TO preIen, te mighty o. force,
population. for the sake Of his canal Foreign iabo
Sae, Msny Of n Lesseps's best machines are nov
standing idle because he cannot hire men to worl
them. Even those who come do not care to remain
Ny own impression Is that the CANA VII never o
cemr.cted BY the Company which now has II In haod
but that after the whole capital o present Compan!
has been expended and lost Will be taken up by other
and some day completed. absolute disree ard OF TIM
ard money Ia an evidence OF the grandeur OF any pro
iect the SseE canal is certainly tie grandest schem
she world has over seen.
GEOLOGICAL FORMATION OF TIE fSTHMVs.
Tho works upon the canal should be visited by ever
p,ol,rist who comes 10 the East regret that car
make no preiensiops to the name my self but fonn'
enough to interest any one at Chalouf The common
Ae.srt .sna there IA about 10 feet thick Below Thu
lies n LAYER of fine white sand; under this a laye
Of solid black clay under this sgaln layer Of fine re-
sand: under this coarse bite sea sand wlth yer,
small pehb.es, under this fine black sand and 50 on
With OCCASIONAL layers Of black red and yellow clay IN
terspersed In one place counted j district layers
averaging about inches in thickness In other place
they we're not above 9 inches an average. and be
Death them lay bed Of solid rock. IBIS bed OF roei
extended through the whole half mile, ne sometimes