The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1882-07-19
rsE ROAD TO INDIA.

The reason why the English bonn
barded Alexandria the other day,
and are now occupants and military
masters Of the city is becau3e their
road to India was threatened by the
pretended patriot and .liberator,
Arab Bey. The SueZ canal is one
of the most important works of this
or any other age, and While it was
no such gigantic undertaking as the
building of the pyramids which
overlook it, it is of greater benefit
to mankind in general, and the Eng
fish in particular, than all the pyra-
nids, the, sphynxes and mummy
cham bers and caves in all the land
of Goshen and beyond. The canal
IS about 100 miles long, running
from Port Said to Suez on the Red
Sea. one-fouth of the distance being
through the ponds or Bitter Lakes
The deptb of water maintained the
entire length and in the broad bays
or basins at either end is rs feet; 1t
is 325 feet wide at the surface,
except at the deeper cuttings, where
the width is 195 feet, sufficient
to permit the passage CT the
largest craft. There is a small
fresL water canal connecting with
the mill, but this is unimp2rtant
having several locks and being
Aavigable only TO small craft. AS
is well known II. de Lesseps, the
distinguished Frenchman, is, the
originator and builder OF the mighty
waterway, in the construction OF
Thich nine years were consumed.
England and the English at first
sneered at the idea Of ship canal
between the Mediterranean and Red
Seas. and while the Preach were
putting millions of francs into the
broad. deep ditch, the English were
going around "the Cape" to India,
and laughing at the waste OF money
by their neighbors. However, as
The canal approached completion
some of the shares began to fall into
the hands Of British spectators
Whe saw that their statesmen and,
countrymen generally had been mis-
taken in looking upon de Lesseps
and his scheme as impTacticable. In
August, 1869, the waters Of the Red
Sea were mingled with those Of the
Mediterranean and the Suez Canal
mas pronounced a grand success,
not alone by the French, whose
money @d enterprise had con
structed n but by the whole COM
mercial world. England was then
sorry that it had been so slow in
learning the truth, but with charac-
feristic and commendable enterprise
and the knowledge of a good thing
when it sees one, it went to work to
obtain control Of this portion of the
route to India, for the canal was OF
more importance to the British than
TO all the world besides combined.
BY master stroke Of fnaneieripg
In 1875, Lord Beaconsfeld quietly
purchased from the Khedive 49,.
6O2 Of the 100000 shares, which
with the others already held by
Englishmen, gave to the British 8
majority of be- stock. The diIec
tiOn.S 9WseEt, Stal remains in the
hands of the French, and de
Lesseps continues president, o.
course, nominally, the cana
is the property Of a private com
pany and so long as it is vel
managed, and being made to pay
large dividends, itweuld be uRwise
for the English to interfere to OBJ
tain control of the management. So
z0ng as the way is left open to al
Ehe world, England will be satisfied
to pay her tolls and receive hel
dividends with the other share
holders; and it was to prevent any
change in this respect that her war
hips were gathered in front Of