The herald. [microfilm reel] (Los Angeles [Calif.]) 1893-1900, 1895-06-16
Great Preparations for
the Canal=Opening
Festivities
PROGRAMME NOW COMPLETE
Feastiug and Good Things for AlI...The
Visiting Warships Well Provided
for by the German
Emperor

All the arrangements Tor the formal
opening OF the great Kiel canal are now
complete and the 600 workmen who
have labored on it since June 8, 1887.
have sought other fields of occupation;
the last OF the great bridges which span
il at frequent intervals along its sixty
two miles of length are in use and all
that it needed is the magic presence OF
Emperor William for the giant gates to
swing open and connect the commerce
OF the North sea with the East sea.
This has been the dream OF thousands
If patriotic Germans Tor moro than 600
years. In the oden times the attempt
was frequently made. but the mechanical
appliances OF those days were not equal
to the great task. Later on, when the
engineering difficulties were removed by
the Improvements in machinery, politics
barred the way to successful issue OF
the project The war element of Ger.
mOiy opposed the building OF the canal,
claiming that the millions of marks
needed would be better expended in elab-
Grating the forces OF the army and navy.
They also claimed that in event OF war
the canal would be difficult place to de-
fend and would require immense armies
ment of other parts of the nation. The
war element successfully opposed the
project for many years. but at last Its
supporters won Bismarck over TO thei.
side. and soon after the canal became an
assured fact In the last few months
great deal has been written about the
Kiel canal, but nothing definite has been
said Of the festivities, the details OF
which have now been completed and
which will make the opening carnival
participated in by all the nations OF the
world. About the canal it Is sufficient to
say that it cost $3s, 100000 to com plete.
exactly the sum appropriated for the
purpose. The total excavation was o.
600, 900 cubic yards. against 50, 500. 900
cubic yards in the making of the Man
chester canal, which cost $1,000. 900.
The Kiel canal averages 2l7 feet in width
and at the shallowest portions is 30 feet
in depth. This will allow the passage
OF the largest merchantmen and of the
heaviest men-of-war in the German
navy. Ordinary vessels will be allowed to
move only at the rate of five and half
miles an hour, and the toll will be IS
cents per ct register ton. This means that
the receipts will probably be in the
neighboIhood OF 81, 49, 900 year. ans,
The festivities will beign on June 10Th
at Hamburg, when the emperor and i'm
perial party will arrive at the latter city.
The foreign warships will go direct to
KEEL and will anchor there at places
assigned them. Only the imperial yacht
Hohenzollern, the dispatch ship Kaiser
Adler aud the first class war shin Woerth,
comprising the imperial squadron, will
visit Hamburg.
On the afternoon of the Goth the canal
works. at the North sea end. will be in
spected and the imperial squadron will
then pass through the sluices to the
monster bridge at Gruenenthal and on to
Rensburg. when the second day of the
festival will close. At the latter city the
festivities will be at their height.
On the morning of the DIST the first
event at Kel will consist of military evo-
lutions by the Ninth army corps and a
review Of the troops by the emperor.
Promptly at noon of that day the en-
peror will board his yacht and move
eastwad to the Levensan brioge. and then
to Hotenau. and here the laying of the
cornerstone will take place at the veIy
source OF the canal, and all the foreis.