, 1890-09-06
SOUTHAMPTON TO THE FRONT.
OPENING A NEW DEEP-wATER DOCK.
European Mail, August. 6th)

Southampton is evidently making a og
bid for popularity with the mountaineering
public. As our readers are aware, this Is
the port from which the West Indian and
South American mails are despatched ny
the Royal Mail Steam Packet C~ompany'S
boats; it is also the head Quarters OF the
Union Steamship Company, Which shares
the South African mail service with the Gas
tie Mail Packets Company, whose steamers
start from London and proceed to Dart
mouth to embark the mails. The directors
of the southampton Docks Company, de-
sirOuS of meeting the demand for docking
the large and powerful steamships which
are a necessity Of the age, commenced the
construction in 1887, OF Il new deep water
dock which should float the largest mer-
chant vessel in the world. Forty acres OF
land had to be reclaimed, and after eXperl-
encing numerous difficulties, the engineer,
Mr.. Alfred Giles, Mp. Qhe Chairman or
the Union Steamship Company, had the
satisfaction of seeing the new dock opened
Oh Slturdav, July 36, by the Queen, who
was pleased to name it the En- reSS Dock.
The estiml Ell cog, ofthe wo k waSE30o,OO0,
a great portion OF which sum vas found by
the London and South Western Railway
Company; bur an additional 100000 has
had to be incur red, owing to the bodily
displacement, som twelve mouths or moro
ago, of a great p rtion Of the east wall,
which neCeSSItate the pLtlre demolition OF
AGO feet out Of the 800 feet in all which
tmake up the wall. This unfortunate disaS-
er, of course, del ayed the opening by many
months, The entrance To the dock is 10
feet wide, and the water area now made
available is exactly Is acres, with a uniform
depth of rs feet at lOw-Water spring tides.
From the entrance, moreover, Il contlnu-
Gus channel, two miles long, of the same
uniform depth, has been dredged, which ex-
tends to the natural channel of the river.
The quay walls OF the dock are EIilt OF
solid concrete, and the cOpings, steps, and
angles are of fine grained Cornish granite.
The walls extend 3, 1856 lineal feet, and are oil
feet high. The sea bank enclosing the dock
is 1,043 yards long, and is designed to re-
siSt ii pressure of 70 feet OF water. The ba-
sis Of this bank is of chalk, OF which 81 ,208
tons we're used. Some idea of the StupeH-
dOuS character of the work may be CLEANED
from the fact that in dredging the channel
outside the dock entrance about 100000
yardS-that is to say, 29J,0OJ t0nS-were
raised and removed at the rate Of 5000 tons
a day. For the opening ceremony the
directors invited, in addition to the leading
lOCdI MAJ uttIooj ~ ll 80 OANN - SNNSO'
from London, who travelled down to
Southampton by special train. On the ar
rival of the special 100 pm, luncheon was
served in a shed $50 feet long, which was
specially fitted up for the occasion. Covers
were laid for 600. At the cross table Mr..
Macnaghten, the Chairman of the Company,
who presided, had ON his right aud left the
Archbishop of Canterbury, Lord Hunts
ford, Mr.. Raikes, Mp, the Earl of North
brook, the Hon. II. w. Campbell, Mr.. S. E.
Norris, Mp, Mr.. Alfred Giles, NJ. P, Sir
Donald Currie, NJ. p, Sir George Baden
Powell, NJ. P, Mr.. J. II. Evans, NJ. P, Wis
count Gort, and many other leading lights
in the political and commercial world. The
toast list was far too lengthy for an occa-
sion Of this sort, and surely such tOaSts as
1.-The Clergy and Ministers of all DenOml-
nations" the "Army and Navy aud Reserve
forces aud ''The Houses OF Parliament
might we'll have been omitted. But, not
content with the ten toasts on the list, an
other was intr0duced-"The health of Lord
Kuutsford" proposed by Lord Montagu,
which gave the Secretary of State anopror-
tunity of declaring that the Government
had succeeded in advancing the. interests