Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1897-12-29
CANAL FOR RUSSIA.
Gear Plans One of the Most Stra-
teglC Maneuvers of the Pres
Gnt Century,

New York, Dec. pa special to the
Herald from Washington says that the
Russian government will begin next
spring upon a stupendous piece of engi-
neering work. which, like the trans Sibe-
rian railroad. will be of great strategic
and commercial value to her when COM
pleted. The project contemplates the con-
struction of a canal connecting the Baltic
and Black seas, which can be traversed
by battleships of the heaviest tonnage at
six knots per hour By means of this
canal Russia will be able to mobilize a
huge fleet in the Baltic in 1877 hours by
bringing to those waters the Black sea
squadron or can collect in the Black sea
in the same time the Baltic and Black
sea fleets.
In case of general European war over
the DIVISION OF China at the time of the
completion of the canal it would not be
difficult for Russia to send her feet
through the Bosphorus, the sea of Mar
mora and the Dardanelles into the Medi-
terranean, down the SueZ canal across
the Indian ocean to China, while she could
utilize the trans-Siberhn railroad to trans
port troops. The canal will remove the
necessity of sending fleet across the
North sea and down the Atlantic in order
to reach the Mediterranean and through
that sea reach the Suez canal and China
anu IL WAS pointed out lndC III case OF
war with Great Britain or Germany would
take measures to see that the Russian
fleet did not pass through their waters
I without a hard struggle
It is officially stated here that the ca
nal, when completed, will connect the city
of Riga on the Baltic and Cherson on the
Black sea. Advantage will be taken of
Dwina river, at the mouth of which Riga
is located, and of the Dnieper river,
which flows into the Black sea and at
the mouth of which Cherson sits. 1t has
been estimated by the Russian engineer
that to connect the two rivers, 125 miles
of excavation must be made. The length
of the canal will be 1000 miles. 1t will
have an average depth of 2S.4 feet. The
cost of the work will be S97 100000 and
it must be completed by 1902.
1t is frankly admitted by the Russian
authorities that the canal is being built for
military purposes, just as the trans Sibe-
rian road is being constructed, but they
say that the waterway will be of benefit
commercially. The wheat raised in the
southern part of Russia, near the Black
sea and the coal and petroleum obtained
from that section can be transported more
cheaply to markets than by railroads or
by steamers going through the Bosphorus
into the Mediterranean. Sixteen cities
are situated along the route of the pro-
posed canal and they will be benefited
by its construction.
Russia MAINTAINS q Formidable Heet OF
battleships and cruisers in the Black
sea-" said a well-known naval command
er, "such action being in violation of the
provisions of the Berlin treaty. The con-
struction of the canal will mean that this
feet can be reinforced within seven days
at the utmost by an equally formidable
fleet from the Baltic, and in case of the
ACKNOWLEDGMENT of Turkey, or a necessity
for large force of naval vessels in Ash
attic waters, Russia would be able to get
her reinforcements to that section ahead
of any other European government,
which would be compelled to use the At
lantic ocean and the Mediterranean. So
the completion of the Russian canal will
place the Gar in a position which will be
envied by all the other European govern
mentS'