Evening star., 1923-08-19
BY F. CUNLIFFE-OwEN. c. b. f.

Nh r. u INLIfF E-OH En-. Z. Is. II.
~ EOPLE from this side of the
- Atlantic visiting Great Brit
ain should make a point, at
- least once in a lifetime, to ar
rive in London by water instead of
by rail There are thousands upon
Thousand of citizens of the United
States and of Canada who cross the
ocean, year after year, and who, in
variably disenbarking at Liverpool,
at Southampton or at Plymouth, have
no conception whatsoever of the port
of London, which. for the present,
still remains the greatest port in the
world, and who are consequently in
complete ignorance of all that vast
portion of the British metropolis
which extends eastward from the
Tower Bridge along the banks of the
Thames over to the mouth of the
river. Yet it offers wonderful spec
tacle. extremely picturesque and of
surprising interest, SO much so as to
be well worth while making the trip
by boats which sail from American
ports direct to London
For the purpose of facilitating and
encouraging this passenger .raffic,
the Port of London Authority <of
which Viscount Davenport is the first
chairman and virtual originator, is
constructing at Tilbury, a huge land
ing stage with all necessary equip
ment for the examination of baggage
on Decentralization so that .he pas
sengers on stepping from the ship di-
rectly on to the landing stage, after
the passing of their baggage in the
long halls on the landing stage, can
walk a few steps up the covered
gangway to Immediately take 'heir
places in the waiting train on ,he
adjacent river bank at ;rilbury for
the forty-minute run to London.
Only Temporary Dock.
This landing stage. in spite of it's
elaborate construction and equipment,
is not intended as a permanency but
merely for use pending the compile
tion of the great new Tilbury docks,
now being built, and which, when
finished, within the next three years.
at an expense of several million of
pounds sterling, will enable the pas
sengers to step from the liners on to
the dock and into the railroad train
awaiting them there, instead of on the
landing stage.
Inc total dock area of the port or
London today extends over near 5000
acres and is being enlarged all the
time, The port of London has some
eighty miles of Quays, wharves and
jetties, which are used in the course
of year by more than $4,000. 900 tons
of shipping. The expenditure called
for under the new developments, now
under construction, amounts close
upon 100000. 900 and Lord Davenport
and his board administering the port
of London are firmly convinced and
have convinced parliament Of the fact
that, with it's trade increasing all the
time, no expense must be spared in
keeping the port abreast of the grow
ing demands made upon 1t by domestic
and foreign commerce, which, last
year, represented value of over
$4,000. 000, 900. according to the official
figures.
Approaching this condition of af-
fairs. Lord Pirrie, head of the I'M
mense Shipbuilding concern of Har-
land & Wolf of Belfast, contracted
a year ago with Lord Davenport to
establish an elaborate up-to-date re-
pairing outfit in London for ships of
the largest size, similar to that it
built up on the Mersey for the port
of Liverpool during the great war
and, analogous to that which his firm
possesses at Southampton.
Making Modern Plant.
Lord Pirrie's concern has already
expended very large sum Of money