The Montgomery advertiser. [volume] (Montgomery, Ala.) 1885-1982, 1902-08-10
Manchester corporation, Of which may
speak further in another letter.
Some Wonders Of the Canal.

Manchester corporation, Of which may
| speak further in another letter. sA
Some Wonders Of the Canal.
The ride down the canal was one OF
greatest interest. The canal company
owns much Of the land along the way,
and this is of such a nature that there
could be an almost continuous dock from
one end of 1t to the other. Leaving Man
chester you sail by the great warehouses
and factories on the canals bank. Now
you are passing through fields as rich az
any in old England. They are bounded
by hedges and upon the green grass fat
cattle are feeding. Cheshire county ION
your left is one of the richest dairy coun-
ties Of the United Kingdom, and Lam
cashire on your right Is the busiest man
ufacturing country in the whole world.
We saw large manufacturing towns at
every few miles and often passed other
steamers coming UP to the city. Tha
locks were easily and quickly gone
througlaa the sluice gates open ana shut
automatically and the steamer .drnps
twelve feet within less than half as many
minutes. '+ -res .s9as
Curving Bridges. , ~
We steamed under great Saflsoad
bridges so high above the canal fhat the
masts of the ships do not touch than
as they pass on below. These bridges
were erected at an imnense cost by the
canal company. The railroad compamies
were opposed to the enterprise. as they,
thought 1t would eat down their trafflc
between Liverpool and ManDheRker. so
they forced the canal people TO not only
build the bridge. but to raise the rail-
roads for several miles on each sidA OF
the canal SO that the slope OF the fnad
crossing the canal might not be eseah
The most surprising bridge on the canal.
however, is one where the BridgyRateT cap-
nal has for years done q large bNstnesg
between Manchester ana LfverpoG. ~
was bought by the Manchester company
at the time they began the ship canal
and it was then making a profit Of sone3
thing like 100000 year. It is saB In
use, and 1t carries considerable 1resghts
The lineGof this canal was right acsosA
the route, necessary to the Manoheste4
ship canal and at nEse 9it seemed aA
though the construction of thu latteK
would necessitate its destruction 4
This was objected to, and the engineers
solved the problem by making a swing
Ing aqueduct bridge at the orossiRSI This
bridge can be closed with the waAer, and
even with the boats in 1t, and by ma
chinery so moved around to the side mat
the ships can pass through in the greater
canal below. When they have passed the
OrlOGe moves Ddch INTO pldC5f a1lu INC :
water flows on undisturbed. The aQue-
duct. with the water in it. weighs Los
tons. and 1t Is moved as easily as though
1t weighed less than fourteen pounds. I
1t can be swung in a couple of minutes
SO that the barges of the old canal are
almost unhindered by the mighty ships
of the new. ~-..->.
England's Big Canal System. !
This bridgewater canal is only one of a
large number of waterways which dis
tribute freight to all parts of England.
We are prone to look upon this as a rail-
road country. 1t is a canal country as
well. The United Kingdom has altogether
1907 miles of canals. and of these about
$500 belong to England and Wales. More
than one third of the whole are the prop
erty of the railways, the others being
managed by private corporations. Many
of the canals are connected with London,
one joins Liverpool and Birmingham.
others are found In the district of Shelf
field. Ireland has about 500 miles of ca
nails and Scotland seventy miles.
Upon these waterways about 100000 {
tons of freight are annually carried at
a cost OF more than $4,000 900. They are
said to pay with horses as their motive
power, and II is now proposed to run
them by electricity. and 1 understand
that our American capitalists have been
looking into this transformation as a, field
for profitable investment.
Frank G. Carpenter.