The Savannah morning news., 1904-11-13
BY BAsSETT STAINES.

hardly second to the Panama canal:
for while the canalization of the Mo-
hawk river is a very different prob
lem from the control and utilization
of the Chagres river. they are both
engineer projects of the very best
magnitude.
Great Britain's Canals.
England is a country that depends
largely upon canal navigation, al
though it has a network of railways
which is closer, probably, than any
other in the world. There are g. O7
miles of canals in Great Britain. the
vast proportion being in England.
These canals carry considerably over
10000 900 tons a year.
The most important of them is the
Manchester Ship Canal which was
hailed as a great engineering feat
when it was opened in 1894. Its mag
nitude as a business enterprise may
be appreciated from the fact that the
capital of the company which owns
it is $77,560000, and that its revenue
is quarter of the entire revenue of
all the canals in Great Britain. al
though its length is only thirty-five
and half miles,
The most important canal work I'M
dertaken by Germany in recent years
was the construction of the Kaiser
Wilhelm Canal across the Schleswfg-
Holstein neck from Kiel to the Elbe
This canal was opened in June. 1885
and Its purpose is primarily strategic.
IL facilitates the transference of war
ships from the principal naval estab-
lshment on the Baltic, Kiel, to the
chief German North Sea base VIII
helmshaVen.
The canal is sixty-one miles long
and over two hundred feet broad. 1t
cost a
splendid success. Over 10000 ships
pass through it every year. Germany
mas about 5000 miles of other canals.
Europe Cut Up With Canals.
The whole of Europe is closely cut
up with canals, nearly all the naviga-
Die rivers being thus connected. Many
years ago, before this system of
canalization was as complete as it is
to-day, Scotchman named MacGregor
wrote book which had a great vogue
IN England, entitled "a Thousand
Miles in Rob Roy Canoe. -
He had the pluck to cross the Eng
fish Channel in his frail craft, and
then he entered one of the canals of
Holland. During the course of one
summer he travelled over a thousand
miles on the canals and rivers of Eu-
rope, but principally on the canals. He
went through Holland, Belgium
france, Germany, Austria, Hungary,
ana part of Russia, and he never once
had to leave his waterways and take
to the train in order to reach the points
he desired. Nowadays the system of
canals is much improved, and practi-
cally every town of Importance on the
continent is linked up with the vast
network of waterways.
Yet the nations of Europe are not
satisfied, and most of them have great
schemes of canal Improvement either
in contemplation or actually in hand.
France Leads Europe in Canals.
France is taking the lead. In 1902
the French Parliament approved a
great general scheme prepared by NJ
Baudin, the minister of public works,
for the Improvement of existing wa
terways, and the construction of new
canals. The sum involved is about
$100,000000, and the work is being car
ried. out as quickly as other demands
on the exchequer permit. Surveys have
been made for all the projects, and
some of them have actually been
started.
There are five separate schemes for
the Improvement of existing canals
and it is proposed to construct no
! fewer than ten large new canals con-
Meeting the principal commercial cen
tiers of France, such at Nantes, Mar
settles and Orleans.
England is doing nothing big at
present in the line of canals, but
there is a scheme to connect the docks
at Southampton with London by a
barge canal. 1t is estimated that this
can be done for $15,000,00 The great
idea of the originators of the scheme