New Britain herald., 1929-11-22
BRITAIN D|SL|KES
 SUB.CHANNEL TUBE
France Eager for Tunnel But England Is Unenthusiastic

Paris, Nov. 22 UP)-Trance hopes that when the delegates of live powers meet in London to re- duce naval armaments, the British Admiralty may be persuaded that there will be no danger to England s isolation from the construction of a Nohicular tunnel under the Channel. AS far as France is concerned, it's lawmakers stand ready to vote approval of the undertaking. The matter has been put squarcly up to England, and only the shadow Of the Admiralty falls over the scheme which, France contends, could wipe out England's unemployment prob lem in a week.
 The French parliamentary com mittcc handling the tunnel matter has been informed that a British parliamentary body is working, pre- pairing a report to be ready by the end of the year, detailing the econ omic and financial possibilities of the giant tube.
 There seems little doubt, accord ing to information received in Paris, that Parliament will be in favor. But then the proposition will be turned over to the Army and Ad- miralty for study and report Only then will the matter return to Parliament where bill will be pre- pared authorizing tho building and financing of the tunnel.
 Proposal 172 Years old
 French tcchnicians have pro Grcsscd very far and have plans. pre- pared for the work as it would proceed from the French shore. They have made use of the plans which were adopted when part of the hole actually was bored twenty years ago.
 The question Of building the tun- ,ncl is nothing new. This year it is 127 years old for it was in 1892 that Mathieu advanced the idea of a tunnel 10 permit horse drawn stage coaches to travel from Paris 10 London.
 Mathiou was followed by another French engineer, Thome de Ga nond, who spent his family's for tune in sounding the Channel and in drawing pretty plans of dozen different routes which the tunnel might take. In 1865 an English company carried out soundings.
 The Nord railway, of France, made a real step towards the build ing of the hole by opening a pit at Sangatte and starting to dig in the general direction of England Sim .uit2noously, in 1882, the Submarine 'hannel Tunnel Co. Ltd, a sub S1dlary of the Southern Railway of England dug a milc-and- a half long gallery under the water on the British side.
 Length Of 33 Miles It was then the British news papers, led by the Times, opened with all their guns. The public was told that Britain would become colony of some continental power and that foreign armies, not week end tourists would come out the British end of the tunnel.
 The drillings already made show that the task would be an easy one, | Technicians say that without fore ing. the French and British crews could dig 20 yards of chalk a day l and after three years of effort the | tunnels would meet under the | Channel.
 Although the Channel is only % i mlles wide at the point where the i tunnel is to cross, it's route is q winding one with spiral approaches 1 10 allow electric trains to pull heavy | loads It's total length is nearly 33 . miles, but if completed, it would allow 12o trains 10 run between | Paris and London, daily. On the Boulogne end, the London trains . could be diverted to Berlin. Con- Stantinople or Moscow and on to Si- bcria and ManchUria. Three hours would suffice to link the French and l British capitals. the same time now taken by aeroplanc