The Colfax chronicle. [volume] (Colfax, Grant Parish, La.) 1877-1981, 1882-09-02
The Suez Canal in 1882.

The Suez Canal In 1882.
was glad to see how much of the
banks are now cased with stone. Trees
grow with difficulty in the sand and their
roots suffer from the salt water. A sandy
bank is carried by the wash of the steam
ers into the deep-water channel. But
this stone casing resists the wash, and
when it is complete the company will be
able to increase without danger their
regulation speed. We met with no OBJ
stacle for two hours. In this great high
way of nations we saw no life save the
wild marsh birds and the waste of water
stretching away to the yellow desert.
There are cares or passing-places every
few miles, where the deep waterway is
widened from twenty-four to fifty yards
and sometimes more. and signalman
system stops or allows to pass the ships
according as the next run is free OF occu-
pied. We passed the first care success
fully, but at the second the ball was
hoisted above the flag, which in canal lam
guage means Ego into the siding" Moth
ing came by before sunset, when all traffic
ceases. and we lay in the quiet moonlight
with every intention to proceed at sun
rise. But when came up next morning
to see the start found a fleet of sreat
ships, each with its noisy little tug and
yellow flag at the masthead, slipping
along in single file. 1t was a grand way
of realizing the work of the canal Nine
teen vessels went by, averaging. our cap
tain told me, 1,50J tons burthen. All
save two carried the British flag. Three
were crammed with pilgrims, forecastle,
main-deck, and quarterback, one mass
of life. Even the boats were full of
them, and from under canvas awning
peeped the yelled faces of women. One
lot were Russian pilgrims from Caucasus
savage looking fellows in fur caps and
black cloaks; the others were Algerians
and Moors in turban and burnons. The
rest of the ships were cargo-laden,
twenty-five and twenty-three feet in the
water. All went by safely till the seven
teenth, the Scotch Greys. She went a
yard or two out of her course and at
once was aground. She had passed us,
but others had still to come, and there
was nothing for it but to wait till the
Scotch Greys got free. Hawsers were
made fast to stern and bow on either
bank, and after an hours shouting and
sieaming and wincing. the big ship
swung into place again. The rest came
by without disaster, and we got by our
selves at eleven o clock.
The canal is not big enough for the
present traffic. Shipping to the extent
of over 100000 tons passes through
every year. and it is steadily on the in
crease. Ships have to wait their turn,
and much valuable time is wasted at
either end and in the passage. The ac-
commodation may be increased in two
ways. The whole length of the canal
may be widened SO as to allow of ships
passing each other everywhere. Such n
work would not be difficult, but it
would be very costly. The deep-water
passage would have to be more than
doubled in width. as the slow speed
makes steering difficult. and ships in
passing would require plenty of sea-room
to avoid accidents. The present width
of twenty-five yards would have to be
raised to sixty, but it would not be
necessary to increase the width of sur
face of the whole waterway, which is
already 100 yards from bank to bank.
The second mode of increasing the
facilities of passage is more feasible,
and has much to recommend it..
1t consists in a considerable in
crease of the number of cares
or passing places. and in the lengthen-
ing of those already in existence. There
are at present thirteen, and they might
easily be increased to twenty. The
same precautions now practiced would
be still enforced in the passing of ships.
The block system would be carried out
from care to care. The buoying of the
passage is already excellent, and there
would be no increase in the danger of
fouling and jamming. The conse-
qucnccs of such accidents in so narrow
water way as the canal are so serious
that think, on the whole, the increas-
ing of the cares is most to be recon-
mended. But one or other improve
ment is necessary. London Times
s----os-