The daily gazette., 1877-12-27
From the Bait. Sun, Dec. 2e,
THE MARYLAND AND DELA-
WARE SHIP CANAL,


WARE SHIP CANAL.
Mr.. Horace Tebbts, of New York, who
Is president of the Maryland aud Della
ware Ship Canal Company, appears to
think that the time hes now come to take
the initial steps looking to the construc-
ton OF the proposed canal. Mayor
Kane has been approached on the sub
Ject, and it is said that the city of Balti-
more is to be asked to indorse the bonds
OF the company to the extent of half a
million of dollars. The line of this canal,
as fixed upon by the company and laid
down In the surveys, runs northward up
the bay to the head of Sassafras river, and
thence across the peninsula to the mouth
OF Blacbird creek, on the Delaware. The
distance to be cut through solid soil is
put by Mr.. Tebbets at seventeen miles
and the expense of excavation, at the
present estimate of twenty cent per cubic
yard, at four millions cf dollars. But, in
addition to this seventeen miles of actual
cutting, thirteen miles of the Sassafras
river would have to be dredged to the
depth of twenty feet so that the total
length of dredging and excavation would
not be less than thirty miles. In his
circular to the stockholders OF the COM
pany, dated March, 1876, descri bing the
advantages that would accrue from such
canal and the profits to be derived from
from Baltimore to the Eastern ports or to
Europe there would be a saving of two
hundred and twenty-five miles over the
route by the Chesapeake bay and up the
coast to the capes of Delaware. We have
reason to believe that these figures are
approximately correct. But these are
other points to be considered which may
still leave the project open to question.
n the first place there is already a canal
constructed across the peninsula from
the Chesapeake to the Delaware, some
ten miles north of the route of the pro-
posed ship canal, and running parallel
with it for the whole of the distance.
This canal, known as the Chesapeake
and Delaware canal, has been in success
full operation for many years, and al
though used by steamers only, and
neither deeper enough nor wide enough
for ocean.golng ships, could be widened
and deepened into ship canal, if such
were wanted, at an infinitely less cost
than dredging and cutting a new one but
few miles distant from it, through the
same kind of soil and with the same to-
biographical obstacles to overcome. But
ship canal, such as Baltimore wants, to
shorten the distance to the sea, must be
one that would be navigable at all sea-
son of the year. The Chesapeake and
Delaware canal, from the head of Elk, is
closed to navigation for at least part of
every winter, and in the hard winters to
which we are occasionally exposed can
not be used for several months. The ship
caual of Mr.. Tebbets, if constructed, as
proposed. from the head of Sassafras, ten
miles south of the present Chesapeake
and Delaware canal, would be subject to
the same conditions, and ships coming
from Europe and seeking to take adj
vantage of the shorter route to Baltimore
via the Delaware bay and the ship canal
would find the latter closed against them,
and would either have to proceed to
Philadelphia or to run out to sea again
aud enter the Chesapeake bay between
the capes. Moreover, ships leaving or
coming TO Baltimore by this route in the
spring, in running up the bay to the
mouth of SaSsafroS would encounter the
masses of drift ice from the SusQuehan-
ma, or in coming up the Delaware the
equally dangerous drift ice in that river.
In no event, therefore, would such ship
canal 30 located answer the purposes of
baltimore for her ocean commerce, or
Justify the expense of cutting 1t. The
route from BaltImore to the capes OF
Delaware should start from the bay shore
at Chester river, and thence across the
peninsula to point on the Delaware
rive abover the break water, and but q
short distance from the eapes Such a
canal would be saltwater canal, and
therefore open to navigation at all sea-
sons. The total distance by this canal
from Baltimore TO the capes would not
exceed eighty miles; the Delaware mouth
of the caual would be protected from
storms by the breakwater, and whilst the
proposed canal Of Mr.. Tebbet3 would re-
quire thirteen miles of dredging and
seventeen miles of cutting, or thirty
miles of work in all, and would be sealed
up in winter, the Chester river ship canal
would require forty-five miles OF cutting,
would carry ship directly out to sea and
would be open to navigation at all times.