The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1907-10-20

- a'oSH hpVN JuSl tIkntttn "h'
II cost tho ship toll OF $500 per hour.
For the privilege of passing through
it had to pay $1,000 and, In addition
81 for every man. woman and child
upon btafd. All the canal company
did il, this case was to reach out its
hand and take IN the money. The ship
had TO furnish its own coal and steam
It's way through and this money was
merely for the privilege of passing.
But this ship is comparatively small.
It's tonnage Is only 5000. and many of
THE vessels now going through are
much larger. Nearly every day steam
ers pay $4,000 each for their passage,
and tolls Of $4,000 and 100000 ar. rot
uncommon When an army transport
passcs{tlIe men on hoard are charged
81 head. and this adds enormously to
tho canal receipts Indeed war
which Knocks down all other stocks
sends that OF the suez canal sky high,
what the sucz CauaI Pays.
IL Panama should pay proportionate-
" with sueH the United states govern
Inent wilI realize from Ii something IKE
/ per cent. every vear out Of II. The
money actually invested in the canal of
Suez was 500. 100000. ana It's receipts
last year were over s2s.00o.GoO. After
paving all its running expenses 1t has
more than sii. 600 left for dividends
and other purposes. and its stock is
now worth more on tic market than
that OF the Standard oil CcmpanS
Within the past year or so the rates
of ton haye Been considerably reduced,
hut Rey are still $3.50 per ton on every
Ship which passes through. Ihe TOE
nge now amounts 20 between 13,oo0,0"o
4 /, M 80. and III GROVE
right along It has utmost doubled
since 1870 and tho rath Of increase
H. SUCH as estimated by r. T.. Sionts.
the former head OF tic Fanaina canal,
that If II continues the receipts VIII /
be quadruplad by the beginning of the
next century. NJ that time 1t VIII be
over 10000, 600 tons, and for tonnage
alone. not Including the charges for
passengers it Will then bring in the 1
mum. AR. shonts thinks the l'anaina
canal will be opcu to traffic In 1911. !
ana that 5.00O,a0G tons of shipping Will |
pass through the first year. The rate
will he higher than that now paid at
sticz. 1t will probably be 81 per ton,
ana at that Panama will have for its
first year gross income Of sio.OOo.o0o /
not counting the passenger tolls.
Applying the Same ratio OF Increase
since its beginning, tile volume of the
Panama canal at the close of the CEN
tury will amount to moro than 3d.
200, GOO tong and. Mt the then reducedi
rate of $50 per ton its income should
ye Sis 100000 per aunutn. sir. Shonts
has estimated that If we mako the sea
crel canal it will cost us s272.oOo.ooo,
and that tile lock canal can he built
Tor about half that sum. With such
dividend prospects in view. tile ques-
lion OF the initial expense does not
Ttattcr.
John Bulls Hig bargain in Canal shares
Tho Suez canal is ROW controlled byl'
the British. 1t was originated by a I
Ftenchrnan. financed by French bank
srs. and engineered by French brains.
iut the bulk of the profits go to .Tohm
Rull. When Ferdinand De Iesseps pro-
posed to build the canal the English 7
sncered at the suggestion
Wien hn got n concession from the
khedive, Said Pasha, they actually OPP
posed it's construction. and they did |
everything they could TO clog the
work. THE French received no help
from any other nation. but neverthe- I
less they went on They began dig
gins in 1859. and It was Just about Ten
Years later that the waters of the |
through into the waters OF the Rad
sea. The canal was opened in Novcm.
her. 1863. and IN the following year
about 100000 tons. Of shipping went
through II. In less than five years
lhis had Increased To more than 1000
poo tons and the gross income TO al
most S5;l0.oOo..per annum.
The.Brftis'li then saw that Ii was a
good thing aud cast about to find some
method Of getting control. They sue
needed through Ismal Pasha who was
then on tho throne of Egypt Old Is
mail was one OF the most eXtravagent
1Erants who has ever squeezed money
out OF an oppressed people. He had
aided tho French ntpuilding the canal
and had spent something like s20,00O,-
600 on the ceremonies by which 1t was
opened, He had borrowed money at
30 and 10 per cent interest aud was
head over heels in debt. In the allot-
meut of shares 10000 out OF the 400,-
ono had gone to the Egyptian govern
ment, and when the Khedive became
hard up he concluded to put them on
the market. The English cabinet got
wind of the matter, and at the some
time the French minister at Cairo tele-
Eraphed Paris that unless France
pV"slAl me l-SSplldn shares to- morrow
they would be purchased by England"
Al that time parliament was not in
session. but Lord Beaconsfield and one
or Two others took the responsibility
OF making the trade. They borrowed
seo,0OO,9Oo from the Rothschilds, and
before the world outside had any idea
that the bargain WAS pending they had
the whole of lsmail'a stock in the Brit
ish treasury and John Bull had the
control. lie had not. it Is true. 81 per
cent. OF the entire capital stock, but
the other holdings were so catered
that the seven-siXteenths which he
owned gave him the whip hand, and
that he has held ever since.
AS II is now, no large block of the
common stock appears TO be held by
any Individual, corporation OF other
government. Indeed. 1t meeting OF
some years ago, the largest sharehold-
er. outside of Great Britain, was a
Frenchnar, Who had a little more than
1850 shares.
That sGo.0oo,ooo was one Of the best
investments John Bull has ever made.
AZ It's present market value his stock
Is worth slb5,ooU,00o, and It has gone
/, mn r.y.n