The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1891-05-06
ENGLAND'S BIG CANAL
TO MAKE MANCHESTER A GREAT
COMMERCIAL FORT.

bOeFQ OF Ir6u9 IO-Qay-An Enter
prise Costing $e5,oOo.ooo APP
preaching Completion 49, " hat 1t
VIII Mean to Cotton Shippers.
Hon. E. J. Hale, United States consul at
Manchester, England, under the Cleveland
administration, but now American repre-
sentative Of the Manchester ship canal, is
stopping at the De Soto. He will address
the members of the board Of trade and the
cotton exchange at the board Of trade rooms
in the Commercial building at 4 o'clock
this afternoon.
! While stationed at Manchester Mr. Hale
| avaiIed himself of the opportunity to be-
! come acquain ed with the industrial con-
! ditiOns of this great manufacturing center.
| He became very much interested In the
| building Of the Manchester canal, the con-
| struction of which was begun during his
| consulate, and was nearly carried TO COM
| p.etion before the expiration of his term.
| In 1883 Mr. Hale made the canal the sub
| Ject of special report TO the Secretary of
| State, which report was considered 80 impor-
tant by the secretary that he had it printed
in a pamphlet to itself for distribution.
| Since accepting the position Of general rep
resentative in this county Mr.. Hale has had
| printed a number of copies of this report,
with notes upon the subsequent progress Of
the work, which give full information of
one of the greatest Of modern enterprises.
AN IMMENSE ENTERPRISE.
Very few of the business men Of this
| country have more than a slight general
| idea of the immensely Of this enterprise and
its vast importance to the commercial
| world. Mr.. Hale is thoroughly well
| acquainted with his subject and able to give
| the fullest information. To MORNING
| NEWS reporter who called upon him at the
De Soto last night he gave mass Of infor-
nation, the whole Of which, though inter-
esting, is TOO much for publication.
| Briefly the Manchester ship canal is
| canal 30 a miles in length, connecting the
| great port of Liverpool with the great man.
ufacturing city Of Manchester. The canal
| is, or will be when completed, 172 feet wide
at water level, with minimum width of
120 feet at the bottom and a minimum
depth Of 26 feet. In other words,
pleted between two of the largest
cities of the world, nearly twice the distance
| from Savannah to Tybee, with a depth of
water at all times of 26 feet, which is sew
eral feet more than now afforded by the
| channel Of the Savannah river between the
points named, and with width or channel
| which will allow Of the passage OF two of
the largest ships aaoat at any portion Of the
length. The canal will have five sets Of
locks, 6O0x65 feet each, with capacity of
lifting vessels 60 feet six inches from the
ordinary water level at Liverpool.
TO COST S65, 100000.
| Three-fourths of the work upon the canal
| has been completed and it is estimated that
| the entire work of construction will be
| completed and the canal open to traffic
| within less than one year. 1t is estimated
that the total cost Of the canal Will be $685.
| 5000, large portion of which has already
| been expended. The cost of the enterprise
is sufficient TO convince every one of
| It's immensely and vast Importance
The object of its construction is
to provide a canal of such dimen-
sions between the cities of Liverpool
ana Manchester that ships NAV 20 up to
Manchester and unload their oargoes there,
without having, as now, to unload at Liv-
erpool ana the cargoes transported by rail
| to the factories at Manchester. 1t is an eff
fort on the part of Manchester to become
independent of the port of Liverpool, and
If the project is successful it will result in
making a seaport of Manchester to all prac-
teal purposes.
Where the interest of Americans In this
canal comes in has already occurred to
| every business man who has read so far in
this article. Liverpool takes more Aneri-
can cotton than all other ports in the world
put together, and Manchester takes nine
teen-twentieths Of all cotton shipped to
| 1ihSIpOOls III manufacturers aDOuG O,UUV,-
900 bales Of cotton annually. 1t is, in fact.
the greatest manufacturing center in the
| world.
| A GREAT MANUFACTURING CENTER.
Mr.. Hale's report to the Secretary of State
in 1888 SHOWS Manchester to be- tue center
of an area of about Z 500 square miles, with
a population Of about 100000, which is
almost entirely given up to
manufacturing. Manchester proper
has population of $4,000.
around Manchester there are Isl industrial
towns
One hundred of these towns have a popu-
lation exceeding 10000, fifty-two Of them
range from 10 zoo to 10000, twenty nine
from 1000 to $4,000, eight from $4,000 to
100000 and eleven exceed 100000. The
manufacture of cotton and other textile
| materials IS the chief industry, though
other manufacturing interests, chiefly
growing out of the cotton manufacturing,
are immense.
The imports and exports of such a popu-
lation amount to volume that it has here
tofore taken several great railways TO
handle, aud will certainly furnish NEST
immense traffic TO the canal when COM
pleted. This population consumes immense
quantities Of food and general supplies,
which are imported chiefly from the United
States, 50 not simply one section, but
this whole country is interested in the
completion of the Manchester ship canal.
Its successful completion means a reduction
OF about so per cent in the rates from
Liverpool to Manchester A cargo of
cotton now consigned to Manchester is I'M
loaded at Liverpool loaded again on cars,
shipped to Manchester or neighboring
towns and unlo AIDED again at the factories
When the ship can sail up to Manchester
aud unload to the factories bordering the
canal there will be q considerable difference
in freight rates. 1t is estimated that the re-
duction of charges by the saving in handling
will amount to 3713 cents per bale on
cotton.
DIRECT SHIPMENTS TO MANCHESTER.
Mr.. Hale says that the result of the COM
pletlon of the canal would be that cotton
would be exported to Manchester direct in-
stead Of to Liverpool, as at present, and a
complete and important change in the pres
emit conditions of the cotton world.
Mr.. Hale has been in this country about
four months, having previously spent about
year in India and Egypt after leaving
England.
He has recently visited and addressed
upon the subject of the Manchester ship
canal the chamber of commerce of New
York, the cotton exchanges aud boards of
trade of New Orleans, Galveston and Mobile.
He will 60 from Savannah to Charleston,
| and 70 "a iuta cit