The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1903-01-31
THE PROPOSED IMPROVEMENT

OF THE PORT OF LONDON.
Now that the Education bill is dis
posed Of, it may be expected that on
the reassembling of Parliament prompt
and vigorous measures will be taken
to enlarge the commercial facilities
of the British metropolis. 1t is uni
versally admitted that the channel of
the Thames must be deepned and
widened if it is to be adapted to steam
ships of the largest class, and that the
present dock system must be super
seeded by ampler, less costly and more
skilfully arranged accommodations.
Few persons on this side of the At
lantic not engaged In the export trade
are aware of the extent to which Of
recent years London has suffered from
the competition of British and Con-
tinental seaports. 1t Is true that the
value of goods imported into the Brit
ish metropolis and not re-exported rose
from about $513, 625, 900 in 1882 to nearly
1850, 100000 in 1899, an increase of some
rs per cent. That, even allowing for
fall in prices. however, the figures
are unsatisfactory, will be plain enough
when we recall that during the same
period the population has grown by
about 40 per cent, to say nothing Of
the enormous growth of districts tech
nically outside the London area but
within the sphere of supply from the
port. Not to mention Southampton,
which has risen at bound to the rank
of first class port, other British sea-
board cities have increased in greater
ratio than London. Still more sig
nificant are the figures relating to the
we mean the goods collected from all
parts of the world and then trans
shipped. In the twenty years from
1882 to 1901 the whole entrepot trade of
Great Britain stood almost still, the
totals for the dates mentioned being
in round numbers 1928, O00,0 900 and $780,
100000 During this period London's
share of the annual entrepot trade d.
minished by nearly $22,5O0,000. What
the British metropolis lost in this direc-
ton has been gained by Harburg,
Rotterdam, Antwerp, Marseille, Genoa
and Trieste. Especially noteworthy Is
the case of Hamburg, which in 1899
had increased her tonnage 40 per cent.
anu I6dCIGu d JuoL ONCl 1latL LAicbI
of London.
! Nobody who has studied the matter
doubts that the commercial facilities
of London can be signally improved,
but there are practical difficulties, ow-
ing to the magnitude Of the engineering
and financial operations involved. The
cost of dredging channel more than
SO miles long from the More to the Roy
al Albert docks, with depth Of 80 feet
at low water, width Of 1000 feet for
the first 20 miles, and 900 feet for the
remainder-the channel being contin-
ued about miles further to the London
docks, with a minimum depth of rs
feet-has been computed at about $12,
100000, including other works needed
to complete the river accommodations.
The sum requisite for buying up the
existing docks is. estimated at nearly
$1O0, 900 900, and $22,500,000 more would
be needed to increase the accommoda-
tons, supply new plants and put them
in state Of thorough efficiency. Such
an aggregate outlay would require
for the payment of interest at 2% per
cent. net revenue of nearly $3,500000
a year. There is nothing deterrent in
such an amount of interest, for it rep
resents approximately the annual prof.
its at present reaped by the three dock
companies. 1t is true that other cor
porate bodies would have to be alb
sorbed and their liabilities assumed,
and it is possible, If not probable.
that In those cases the expenditures
would not be balanced by receipts.
The Dock Commissioners, who have
made study of the question, however,
are convinced that the whole of the
needed revenue could be assured by a