APPENDIX XI DATA OF EXISTING SHIP CANALS SUEZ THE Suez Canal connects the Mediterranean and Red seas, extending from Port Said on the former to Suez on the latter, and is at sea level, without locks of any kind. Its total length is 104.08 miles, as follows: Channel of roadstead at Port Said, 1.86 miles; Entrance channel of outer harbour, 1.24; Port Said Harbour, 2.48; Lake Timsah, 1.24; Large Bitter Lake, 9.32; Channel of Suez Roadstead, 1.55; Canal proper, including Small Bitter Lake, 86.37. The canal was authorised by the Egyptian government in 1856, and confirmed by the Sultan of Turkey in 1866. The concession runs to November, 1968. Work was begun on the canal in 1860, and it was opened to commerce in 1869. The original excavation amounted to 80,000,000 cubic yards, chiefly of sand but with some strata of rock two or three feet thick. The original depth was 25 feet, the bottom width 72 feet, and the surface width from 196 to 328 feet, according to the character of the soil composing the walls. The deepest cutting was about 80 feet, to the bottom of the canal. In 1895 it was enlarged to a depth of 31 feet, and to a width of 108 feet at the bottom and 420 feet at the top. This work increased the total excavation to 98,000,000 cubic yards. The original cost was about $90,000,000, which was increased by the work of enlargement to $102,500,000. At the present time the canal is being further enlarged, so as to have a depth of a little more than 34 feet. The authorised draught of vessels passing through it is, however, only 27 feet. The speed of vessels is limited to 10 kilo. metres, or 5.4 knots, an hour. The average time of passage is 18 hours. The entire canal is lighted with electricity, and vessels pass through at night as well as by day. A current is caused by the tides, sometimes in one direction and sometimes in the other, seldom exceeding a knot an hour. Statistics of traffic through the canal in the years stated are as follows: Rote Bose The British Government purchased shares in the canal amounting to £4,000,000, the value of which in March, 1905, was £30,857,755. Despite repeated reductions of tolls, the yearly dividends on the shares show a tendency to exceed the maximum permitted, of 25 per cent. In 1904 they were 141 francs on each ordinary share of 500 francs, and 117.50 francs on the Actions de Jouissance. In 1893 tolls were reduced to 9 francs a ton, in 1903 to 8.50 francs a ton, and in 1905 to 7.75 francs a ton. KAISER WILHELM (KIEL) The Kaiser Wilhelm or Kiel Canal, constructed by the German Government, begun in 1887 and completed in 1895, connects the Baltic and North seas, across the northern part of Germany. It is a sea-level canal, with locks at the ends to control the influx of the tides. It is 61 miles long, 29.5 feet deep, and 72 feet wide at the bottom, with a number of much wider "turn-outs" at which vessels may pass each other. The total excavation was 100,000,000 cubic yards, and the cost was $40,000,000. Statistics of traffic follow: The Amsterdam or North Sea Canal, giving access to the inland city of Amsterdam from the North Sea, was constructed by the private North Sea Canal Company, and afterward purchased and enlarged by the government of the Netherlands. It is a sea-level canal, or really 14 inches below sea level, with tide locks at the ends, and is 15.5 miles long Its depth is 27.9 feet, which is now being increased to 32.2 feet. The width at the bottom is 115 feet and at the surface 164 feet. It was begun in 1865 and opened in 1876. The cost was $15,000,000, but this was reduced to $10,000,000 by the sale of lands filled in and reclaimed from the sea. MANCHESTER The Manchester Ship Canal, connecting the inland city of Manchester, England, with the Atlantic Ocean by way of the Mersey River and the harbour of Liverpool, was constructed by a private company, and was begun in 1887 and was opened to traffic on January 1, 1894. It is a lock canal, 35 1-2 miles long, with five reaches at various levels. Beginning at tidewater, there is a tidal reach of 21 miles. The second reach, of 7 1-2 miles, is at an elevation of 16 1-2 feet; the third, of 2 miles, is 16 feet higher; the fourth, of 3 1-4 miles, is 15 feet above the third; and the fifth, of 1 3-4 miles, is 13 feet above the fourth. Thus the elevation of the Manchester terminal above the outlet at Liverpool is 60 1-2 feet. The depth of the canal is 26 feet. The width varies. For 28 miles the bottom width is 120 feet, with occasional "turnouts" of 180 feet. For 4 miles the bottom width is 170 feet and is now being increased to 200 feet. The surface width varies from 175 to 230 feet. The total amount of excavation was about 45,000,000 cubic yards, of which one-fourth was sandstone. The cost was $75,000,000. The time required for passage is from five to eight hours. Statistics of traffic are as follows: The Corinth Canal, connecting the Gulf of Corinth with the Gulf of Ægina and affording a short cut from the Adriatic and Mediterranean seas to the Ægean Sea and the Dardanelles, was begun by a private company in 1884 and was opened for traffic in 1893. It is a perfectly straight canal, at sea level, without locks. It lacks 100 yards of being four miles long, and is 26 1-4 feet deep. At the bottom it is 69 feet wide, and at the surface of the water only 80 1-4 feet, the banks being much steeper than those of any other canal. The total excavation was 15,000,000 cubic yards, a large part of which was granite, and clay so hard as to require blasting. For 2 1-2 miles there is a cut of great depth, measuring at the centre, to the bottom of the canal, 286 feet, or about the depth that would be required at Culebra to make the Panama canal at sea level. The cost of the Corinth Canal was about $5,000,000. There are strong currents in the canal, and steamers not under the best of control frequently graze the side walls, sometimes with much force. CRONSTADT A ship canal connects Cronstadt, on the Gulf of Finland, with St. Petersburg. It is about six miles long, with a bay channel of ten miles. Its depth is 20 feet and its width from 220 to 350 feet. Its cost was about $10,000,000. WELLAND The Welland Canal, connecting Lake Erie with Lake Ontario, was constructed in 1883, and was enlarged in 1871 and again in 1900. It is 27 miles long, and has twenty-five locks, with a total elevation of 327 feet. It is 27 feet deep, and has cost $24,000,000. ST. MARY'S FALLS The St. Mary's Falls (Sault Sainte Marie) canals connect Lake Superior with Lake Huron, around the falls of the St. Mary's River, and are two in number, one belonging to the United States and one to Canada. The United States canal was built in 1853-55 by the State of Michigan, at a cost of $1,000,000. It was enlarged in 1870-81 by the United States Government, and in 1882 was transferred entirely from State to Federal control. In 1887-96 it was again enlarged. It is now a little more than a mile long, 160 feet wide, and 25 feet deep, but the depth of the two locks is only 17 and 22 feet respectively. The lift of the locks varies from 16 to 20 feet. The total cost of the canal and locks to 1904 was more than $6,000,000. Statistics of traffic follow: |