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SHIP TRANSPORTATION

AND

THE CHIGNECTO SHIP RAIlWflY

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Read bbfobe the Canadian Society of Engineers,
AT Montreal, Deo. 29th, 1891.

H. G. C. KETCHUM, M. Inst. C. E.

1892

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JIead before the Canadian Society of Engineers,

AT ^lONTREAL, DeC. 20tH, 1801.

H. G. C. KETCHUM, M. Inst. C. E.

1892

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TRANSACTIONS C
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TRANSACTIONS CAN. SOC. C. E.
VOL V. PLATE XII,

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WOOD* fQINT^'-^ t>-'*s=«»ii£Li:-^

CHIGNECTO SHIP RA

By H. G. C. KETCHUM.

rO SHIP RAILWAY,

H. G. C. KETCHUM.

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PORT EL6!

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Thiu'Bda}', 29th December.
JOHN KENXEDY, Vice-President, in the Chair.

*aper Ko. US,

SHIP TRANSPORTATION.
By TI. (r. C. Ketciium, M. Can. Soc. C. lO.

Ship transport, in Homo form or othei-, has been practised for
ges, even before the Christian era. The first example we have
n record is that of the Diolcas of Corinth.. Some excavations
ecently made on the isthmus of Corinth exposed to view
omains of this ancient Diolcus It was a means for hind
arriai-e of ships of that period from the harbour of Schainus to
he eastern extremity of Port Lech(uum. Ships were run ashore
i,nd dragged from one sea to the other. The derivation of the
vord Diolcus is from the Greek verb ' to drag.' The work
•xisted in the time of Aristophanes 427 B.C. and is said to have
)een in operation ;jOO years. The site of Sehfcnus is now called
Jocosi. This ship road is thus described in the Lexicon of
Uornelius Schrievelius JioXx"^ (Diolcos) : '• Tractatus in Jsthmo
* Corinthiaco iibi naces ex lonio in (Kijivum et vicissum trahebantur "
—"A track on the Corinthian Isthmus where ships were hauled
' out of the Ionian into the(Ega'an Sea and neighbourhood." It
svas such a great advantage to commerce (owing to the difficulty
Df weathering ('ape Maltea) that Corinth became, by its means, the
emporium of trade between Italy and Asia. The size of the ships
eanied is said to be about 149 feet long, 18 feet wide, with a
draught of 8i feet. It is said that this] method of ship transport
was practised by the Greek Admiral Nicetas Ooryfas in the year
831 in order to enable him to attack the Arabian Corsairs who
were then devastating the coasts of the Peloponesus.

In 1438 the Venetians carried a fleet of thirty galleys overland
from the River Adige to Lake Garda, a distance of 200 miles, the
motive power being oxen, assisted on the mountains by wind-
lasses. One thousand oxen are said to have been employed.

1 111 t > t

2 Kelchum on Ship Transporla/ioH and

ThiK herculean enterpriHe was proposed by Blasio do Arboribus
and Nic(>l(j Sorbolo and wa^ siui-essfully cairied out with the Iohs
of but one vessel.

In 1453, at the siei^'c of Constantinople, Soleiman Pacha trans-
ferred his fleet by land into the (iulf of the (lolden Horn by tim-
ber ways, greaseil and laid on trestle-^ and stagiiit!;. The feat was
eai'ried out in order to avoid a hu/jje chain laid across the llelleH-
p( nt, which jircsenlcMl an impassable ba'iier to the t'litrancc of
his fleet by water. This cniip de (juerre was accomplished in a
single iiijifht. The vessels weie dragged over two miles, so, on
(he nioiniiigof 22ti(l April, lir»;i, the astonished iidiabitants saw
u lai'ge lloct lying close under their walls, and capitulated.

In 1718 Count Kmanuol Swedenboi-g conveyed a siiallop, two
galleys and four large boats five leagues over mountains and
valleys from 8tr(;mstadt to Idefjal, in Sweden. Swedenborg, the
foundci' of the Swedenborgian religion was ennobled on account
of his invention, which is described as ' a sort (jf rolling machine."
Jt was also used by Charles XII. to transport cannon to thosiege
of Frederickshall.

All these examples of ship transportation ovei'land weic under-
taken and carried out ])i'incipally foi- warlike enterprise.<.

Coming neaicr our own time, we have the example of a
Poi'tage railway, fifty years ago, from Holidaysburg to Johns-
town, Pennsylvania, where catud boats were carj-ied in sections
thirty miles from one canal to another, before the Pennsylvania
Central Iiailrt)ad was o|)ened. The Portage liaihvay was con-
structed to connect the caiud sy>tem of lOastern and Western
Pennsylvania. It was a system of -'gravity railways," with ten
inclined planes, and u]) and dinvn these steep inclines the large
boats of the '" Pioneer Packet Line " made i-egular (rijis until the
Pennsylvania liailroad was built, when it ceased to be opei-ated.

There was another of similar cotistruction on the Morris and
Ksso.K Canal, in the State of New Jersey.

In Cornwall, Englaiul, between Bude and Launceston, the Budo
Canal has existed since 182(1. At JIol)bacote Downs the canal
boats, which are furiushed with small iron wheels, ascend the up-
lands by an inclined plane 'JOO feet long, provided with two lines
of rails terminating at each end in the canals. The iion wheels
lit the rails and the boats are raised by an endless chain moved
by two vast tanks alternately tilled with water and descending

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the Chignecto Ship Railway.

into wells 220 feet deep. There are seven of theHe inclined planes
in operation on the Budo Canal.

In Germany vessels of sixty tons capacity aro cai-ried overland
from the upper to the lower part of the Klbin{,'-Oborland Canal,
in West Prussia. This transport system has been in successful
operation for over twenty years, but When the idea was first
broached it was ridiculed by everybody.

In 18(50 Sir James Brunlces and the late Mr. E. 13. Webb pro-
posed to the Emperor Napoleon III. a ship railway across the
Isthmus of Suez in lieu of the present ship canal. Marshal A^ail-
lant, Minister of War for the Hmporor, referred the matter toM.
de Lcsseps,who rojecteil the idea. Amon^'st the advantajjjes men-
tioned in favour of the proposed Suez Ship Etiilway was the con-
venience with which the ship's hulls could be examined whilst on
their ciadles during the passage from sea to sea. The i-ailway
was to have been level throughout. The ships were to be sup-
ported on a framing of iron resting on numerous wheels and
springs, these, again, on ten rails. The speed was to have been
twenty miles an hour, and the estimate of cost was one-seventh
that of a ship canal. The passage from the Meditori-anean into
the Ked Sea was to have been made in 16 hours. The speed of
steam vessels in the present canal is reduced to about 2^ miles an
hour.

The Hydraulic Lift invented by Mr. Edwin Clark, M. Inst. C.
E, was proposed to be used for the first time by Sir James Brun-
lces as the means to be employed for raising and lowering
vessels at each terminus of the proposed Suez Ship Railway.
This invention, first carried out at the Victoria Docks,
London, renders it ])ossible to construct Ship Railways any-
where on the globe where canals have been [)rqjecte(l. Tlie
author will have the pleasure of exhibiting a model of the
ship lift this evening by which it will be plainly demon-
strated that by its means, not only ships can be lifted out of
their natural element, but that anywhere on dry land, physical
difficulties, hills and valleys may be overcome by the use of the
Hydraulic Lift, thus avoiding heavy gradients and obtaining
shorter lines than would be possible under any other contrivance
An hydraulic lift can be used to lift vessels on land as well as
from the sea. It only requires a water supply sufficient to feed
the engines. The water used in the presses can be supplied

4 Ketchum on Ship Transporlation and

from a separate tank, which once filled is a sufficient supply for
a very lonj^ time by re-usinj^ the water which is all the bettor
for a little mixture of grease and oil.

By the use of the hydraulic lift to surmount differences of level,
and a simple Turntable to change direction, it is easy to build
Ship Railways anywhere.

It was owing to a suggestion of Mr. Edwin Clark, in his paper
read before the Institution of Civil Engineers in 1866, that the
author turned his attention to the possibility of largely cheapen-
ing the construction of the Haio Vertc Canal by using the
Hydiaulitr Ship Lift, with boat shaped pontoons to convey large
draught vessels on a shallow canal. The first plan for a canal
was to have a depth of only four feet, the next plan was for eight
feet. When Captain Ciawloy, E.K., proposed nine feet of water
on the sills of the canal locks, he declaretl it to be impracticable
owing to the deficiency of a fresh water supply, and he objected
to the use of the Bay of Fundy water, owing to its turbid nature.
The clear water of Bale Verte could not be used owing to its
lower level, which, without being pumped to the height required
to supply the deficiency, could not be made available. The
author thought, that with such a working depth as the fresh
water obtainable would supply, it would be a great advantage
to adopt Mr. Clark's suggestion (vide Minutes Inst. C. E. Vol.
XXV. page 309) : " This system," he said, " aifoi-ds ready
" means, by the construction of a shallow canal of transporting
" the largest vessels in cargo, either across an isthmus or over
" river shallows ; and of removing vessels of war inland, either
'' for their protection, or for their employment as a means of
" internal defense."

The author found a difficulty in working out the problem at
the Bay of Fundy loithout using some sort of a railway to transfer
these pontoons from the Ship Lift to the proposed shallow canal.
This idea led to the present Ship Railway in construction at
Chignecto. It became apparent that vessels might as well be
lifted to the surfivce of the ground and hauled across the neck
of land on steel rails, thus avoiding all the question of water
supply and its various iiorplexities in this particular locality.
It occurs to the author that such a scheme might b*^ used in all
the canals of Canada, to convey vessels having any draught,
say up to twenty feet. There is no necessity of deepening

upply for
lie bettor

s of level,
^ to build

his paper
, that the
cheapen-
ising the
vey large
t* a canal
for eight
of water
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objected
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ig to its

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the fresh
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or over
id, either
noans of

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iction at

> well be
;Le neck
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locality,
ed in all
draught,
iepening

the Chignecto Ship Railway. 5

the existing canals at immense expense when by using pon-
toons you may so easily and safely convey ocean vessels of 20
feet draught and more through the present canals. All it
requires is a lift at or near each terminus at a convenient place
where the water is deep enough for the pur])OHe. The pontoon
should bo open at the top and provided with blocking gear to
receive the vessel on the Hydraulic Lift. When lifted the
pontoon can be towed away with the vessel upon it to the other
end of the canal, in the vicinity of which another lift would be
ei-ectod, and ready to rccoivo the vessel and reloate her from the
pontoon, when she could continue her voyage to her destination.
The simplicity and economy of this method is beyond question.

The hydraulic Lifts could also bo utilized as CJ raving Docks for
all sorts of Lake craft. With proper precautions to preserve the
pipes from frost, as proposed to bo used at Amherst, N.S., on the
ChignectoShip Railway, there is no danger of damage from this
cause, or from ice if properly situated and protected. The sys-
tem of pontoon floating may also be applied to tho River Shallows
of the St. Lawrence in many places. The pontoons, which may
be called " steel rafts," would draw from six to eight feet water
according to their size and the load of vessel carried upon them.
They are laigely used at Malta in tho Mediterranean for vessels
of 3,000 tons in cargo.

In 1812 a remaikiiblo Ship Railway was proposed by the Re-
public of Honduras across its territory from Puerto Caballos on
the Atlantic Ocean to tho Bay of Fonseca on tho Pacific Ocean,
about half way between the Panama canal oi M. do Losseps and
Captain Eads' Ship Railway on the Isthmus of Tehuantopoc. It
was intended to adapt tho Intoroceanic Railway, then under con-
struction by the Republic, for the purpose of a Ship Railway. It
was to carry 1,200 tons and would doubtless have been carried
out if the Republic could have found the money, which they
failed to do.

Later on Sir John Fowler prepared plans for a Ship Railway
for the Khedive of Egypt to overcome tho cataracts of the Nile.

Then the Tehuantepec Ship Railway, the huge enterprise of
Mr. Eads, tho engineer of St. Louis Bridge and Mississippi
Jetties, was projected and a concession obtained by him from the
Mexican Government.

iliSiv;

m«i

Keh'hum on Ship Transportation and

This Ship Euilway piuject is wlill nlivo. It will be about 130
inileH loiiK and will connoct the Gulf of Mexico with the PaciHc
Ocean. The gradients are to bo 50 feet o the mile. The
elaborate investigation into the merits of this great work, which
took i>laco bolore a committee of the United States Senate
brought forward an amount of evidence of ex|)erts in ship build-
ing which ought to silence forever any objections that might be
raised against Ship Railways in general as to the liability to un-
duly strain vessels dining their transport from sea to sea. Mr.
Eads and his able coadjutor, Mr. Corthell, have done valuable
work in the cause of Ship IJailways, by si)rcading abroad their
views and disseminating the evidence given before the committee
of Congress. The j.rojectors of all Ship Railways will be greatly
indebted to Mr. Corthell for su clearly setting forth the economy
to be gained by the introduction of Ship liailways in his paper
on "Canals and Railroads, Ship Canals and Ship Kailways,"
read at the Convention of the American Society of Civil
Engineers, .lune 25111, 1885.

The conclusions derivable from Mi-. Corthell's valuable paper
are " that a canal cannot compete in speed or economy or facili-
ties with a railroad ; and that a Ship Canal must also be much
more expensive than a Ship Railway in tirst cost, maintenance
and operation, and much inferior to it in dispatch facilities and
conveniences."

lid r,avs : " The cost oii the best railroads is three mills per
ton per mile lor through freight."

Deducting irielevant items, such as do not pertain to a Ship
Railway, the cost can be properly reduced to one and a half mills.
But he also maintains that the cost can be reduced on Ship Hail-
ways to one mill per ton per mile, because much larger loads are
carried.

'The ratio of paying to non-paying loads is greater,' 'The
frictional rosistanoe to the motive power is reduced,' * The Line
of Railway is straight,' -The Track perfect,' 'The Gradients, if
any. very asy,' ' Greater results are obtained with less fuel and
service.'

Detailed plans of a Steamboat Railway on the Dalles of the
Columbia IJivor, Oregon, have been submitted to the Secretary
of State lor war, U.S.A., and General Casey, Chief of Engineers,
U. S. Army, in forwarding his report to the Secretary of War

Siiii

^^feM

e about 130
the PaciHc
mile. Tho
M)rk, which
itow Sonulo
1 ship build-
it might bo
bility to un-
() HCJi. Mr.
no vuhiablo
ibroatl their

committee

1 bo greatly
lie economy
in his paper

Kailways,"
sty of Civil

uable paper
ny or facili-
Iso be much
naintonance
acilitioH and

)c mills per

in to a Ship
a half mills.
n Ship Ilail-
;er loads are

■eater,' 'The
' ' The Lino
Gradients, if
less fuel and

>alle8 of tho
le Secretary'
>f Engineeis,
staryof War

the Chignecto Ship Rni'wa//. 7

pronounced it feasible and the host solution of tho problem
presented ! A Ship liailway has also been proposed across the
Peninsula of Florida.

Torpedo boats 35 metres in K'ngth have been transported from
Hrest to To"!on, France, on an ordinary lailway, on five sj)ecially
adapted lug,<ra,i,'e trucks. In fact, Ship R.iilways may be largely
used in war to transfer even ironclads from one sea to another
and even into tlie interior of a country.

The author will now turn your attention in general terms to
his own project of the Chignecto Ship Railway— 17 tniles long, to
cany vessels of 1000 tons registei- v/ith cargoes, total 2,000 tons
weight. At the time it was conceived ho had not the most
remote idea of its ever being brought to its pi-esent stage of com-
pletion, and it was not until Sir Cliarlos Tapper took hold of it
that there seemed any probability of its being carried out. It was
Sir Charles Tapper who gave it life and ))ievented the project
from being crushed beneath the weight of ridicule and incredulity
which assails any great work of a novel description. The
declaration of your Kx-president, xMr Thomas 0. Koefor, C.M.G.,
that a Ship Hallway wa-^ tho only feasibio method of overcoming
tho obstacle to commerce presented by tho Isthmus of Chignecto
was also of powerful influence iii supjiort of tho scheme in its
early stages.

Tho first essential of a Ship ]?ailway is to have good ports at
each terminus, not only to enable vessels of the maximum depth
to enter with ease, but also to i)r.)vido a receptacle oi- basin for
them to lay in quiet water, so they may take their turn to bo
floated over tho Grid of the Lifting Dock, otherwise in any groat
breeze of wind, it would be difficult to insert tho blocks properly
under tho bilges of the vessels whilst they are about to bo lifted
from tho water to the level of the Jlailway.

A few i-omarks now about Ilydi'aulic Lifts and the strains on
vessels will conclude this j)aper, which is an introduction to
another paper on the '• Chignecto Ship Railway, tho substitute
of tho Bale Voi-te Canal," which will be read this evoninir.

The present papoi- is a proper prelude as illusti-ating the many
steps leading up to tho Chignecto undci taking, whereby Canada
will bo the first country to actually inaugurate this i\e\v and
economical system of ship transportation for steamers and largo
sized vessels.

Ketchum on Slii/t Trans/nfrtntion and

Till' Hydraulic Lil't (riavint,' DocUiU tlio Victoria DockH, lion-
(lon, has bcon in oporatioii nearly thirty yuaiH and has lifted ah(»ut
four thoiiHaiid voshcIh with perfect safety, it is 300 feot long
and sixty foot wiilo ; il can lift a vessel of ;i, 000 tons weight.
The succosstui opi'ration of this first exjicrimcnt of t'lo kind led
to the conHtruclion of others in diU'ercnt j)arts of the world.

In lH7(i, the Clarence Fiifting Dock at Malta was anothorgroat
success. Il was the first to lift vessels in cargo. Ships coming
through the Sue/, (^anal sto|) here when they reciuire I'cpalrs
and these repairs are niade without disturbing the cargo. In
August, 1S8(), th(^ ship "Cilenasleg " of 2,143 tons grows register
was lifted with 2,000 tons of cargo, and many othe' oxrimploM

can

Another Hydraulic Ship lift was erected at Bombay, now
owned b}' the Peninsula and Oriental S. 8. Company, which lifts
vessels of 5,000 tons register.

There is no Hydraulic Lift that tho author has heard of in
America excepting one at San Francisco. Here vessels are
placed and blocked directly on the gi'id without tho intervention
of ponto<»nH. All the otheis named have used open pontoons, for
tho purpose of floating vessels away to another place to undergo
repairs. Any number of pontoons may be employed to multiply
the uses (if the dnck. Without their aid (as in the case of tho
San Francisco dock) one vessel oidy at a time can undergo repairs

An Hydraulic Lift is in use at Andorton, (Jheshirc, where ono
press lifts a trough ol" water fifty-tivo feet high, from tho llivcr
Weaver to tho level of tho Trent and Mersov Canal.

Many persons thought a water cradle or a trough of water
woul<l l»e necessary to carry vessels on a railway. A little study
will prove the conti-ary. Ono vessel would then bo inside of
another one, really weaker in construction, as the outer vessel
could not very widl have cross beams like the ono to be carried,
and it is also carrying double tho load.

Ml-. W. M. Smith, M. Inst. C H. <>f Aberdeen, has patented a
Ship Cradle with hydraulic cushions — ''a series of plain
" tubes of India rubber and canvas filled with water, and j)laced
" side by side athwart tho ship from stem to stern, tho open ends of
" each tube on a level with the dock and tho middle of the tubes
" bent underneath tho ship's bottom, and resting on tho car."

The idea is ingenious, and time will show whether it ought to
be adopted. It is desirable not to sot up any oscillating motion to

the ChifftH'i'to S/iifi Bnihi'dif.

Docks, lion-
't lif'tod ulxiut
[I0 foot long
tons woi^Iit.

t'lo kind led

world,

inotiioi'^roat
IhipH Cuming
[Uii'o rcpuiiH
u cnrgo. In
ro8H register
0' oxninplew

jmbiiy, now
', which lif'lH

hoard of in

vessolrt are

intervention

pontoons, for

to undergo

1 to multiply
case of the

Ici'go repairs
0, where one
m the llivcr

igii of water
I little study
bo inside of
outer vessel
o be carried,

patented a

).s of plain

I", and j)laced

open ends of

of the tubes
the car."

it ought to
ng motion to

/'.

'^'

'^.

'.T"

f—

■f

-r^

■mn

■n

„

r-*

RPI

10 Kiiihum on Slii/t ''yaHs/KtrfatmH and

jnovuiit tli»' l i iii U i* tli- ii il'Uii"ii ul'iln' \voi:^lit (if v»'s«olisuiiil ciir^o
wliilo on the cnulle. Tho iiivontoi* claimH that the vortsuls would lu'
iiH^ood jjs walor l)i)riu', l)iit if ohcillaiion Nhoultl bo in any way
causoii l»y this riKMle, tlii' ndvaiitai^'f of a tiu-roly solt cushion
would 1)0 noiitrulizotl Ity lliis doCoit, ami it would lio Iti'ttiT
to Mtick to proved uit'tliods of lilockiti'.'; in tlio tii'ht instance

Sir JMhvurd .1. Uood, K. 0. ii,, iato Cliiof Construotor in tho
lJl■ili^h Navv, in hisovidonco hoforo thoUtunniittoo on Cojniniirco
hotoio inontioiuMl, waiil : —

'• 1 hhould like to suy at tirst that, as a naval constructor. I
have no I'oar whalovor of a ship unilor;,'<)ing iir)y strain in tho
procoHs of lifting; out of ti»o water (as would ho necessary in tho
case of a ^hip railway) that she is not liable to ut present in
ordinary ilocking. F would .-"ay, further, thut I uin ([uito sure
thai the processes of ordinaiy dockini^ carried on in a vast num-
ber of private establishments are very negligent and insufticiunt
in comparison with those which would be adopted in tho case of
tho hydraulic lifts connected with tho proposed ship railwa}-.

" Thoy seem to think there arc no vibrations or jerking, or
forces of some kind tho ship would be subjected to on tho railway
that who i> not subjected to at sea. That feeling, I know, is a
pretty gcnoial one. I can only attribute it to tho fact that tho
gentlemen who so think are not ac(j[uaintud with tlio strains that
ships undergo at sea.

" Tiie next thing 1 would say is that wo have ships on railways
and we have them in tho worst I'orm. Nothing is commoner
than lieaving up slips upon which ships are j)ulled up out of tho
water. They have to take their bearing Hrst at tho bow, and
gradually como up until thoy got upon tho solid, and are then
hauled up by chains.

'* That has boon done every whore, all over tho world, thousands
of times in this country, and it is now carried on to a voiy largo
exMent indeed. With docks for ships of 3,000 or 4,000 tons
nothing is thouglit of pulling these ships uj), and nothing is
tlu>ught of any sti'ains they undergo under tho circumstances.

'■ If it is sutlicient on a Ship Railwoy to provide against some-
thing like tho worst hurricanes at sea, then I have no hesitation
in saying that it is perfectly impossible for these, ships on the
railway to come to any grief from wind, because the resistance
to hold tho ship upright on her cradle on the railway track is, 1
think, very many times greater than tho forces which keep her
upright at sea.

!:« fr,5'TO«9a'>3r»a»ei'fe*««*»iw».^- -

'tmef s^\

oImjuhI cjvr^r)
tsols would lu'
> in any way
Nf)ll tii.Hliion
lid 1)0 iK'Ut'r
iivt inslanco
tictnr ill the

0|lH(llR't(»l', I

liuiii in tliu
osHary in tlio
t prewont in
in (juilo Hiiro

a vuwt nuni-
1 insurtielont
n tlio casu of

luihvay.
i" Jerking, or
1 the rail way
I know, is a
fact tiiat tlio

strains that

!0n railways
M commoner
ip out of the
he bow, uiui
nd are then

d, thousands
a veiy largo
4,000 tons
nothing is
eumstances.
i^ainst somo-
10 hesitation
dups on the
e resistance
Y track is, I
eh keep her

the Chignedo Ship Rnihmi/. 11

" With a tra(di liki! that, ami with loconiofivos adapti'd to il,
there would he no dilHculty in trun'^poiting hhips. Il would lie
best to avoid u very hiirh rule of speed. It would not bo neces-
sary, I should think, to move these shipH at a greater speed tliun
eight or ten miles an hour, although i am <|uite prepared to
believe that, with a propel" track and locomotives, vessels could
lu) traii.sport(H| much I'asler."

Ill September, ISH'J, the author referred tins (juostion of ship
strains to Professor T. Olaxton Kidler, M. Inst.C. H., now of the
Dundee University, wiio lepfU'ted as follows: —

" III connection with the ship herself, it will bo important to
arrive at some estimate of the strains to which kIio may be
exposeil during the process of land carriage, as e(»mpaie<l with
the strains which she freqiieiitly undeigt)es in a heavy seu, and
to whi(d) her strength should bo, and generally uoutd be pro
portioiwMl

" The ^ ross weight of ship and cargo being taken at 2,000
tons, her displacement will bo 2,000 x :{5 = TO, 000 cubic feet;
and with an ordinary coefHcient of fineness the leading liimen-
sions of a sailing vessel of this displacement may bo taken lo
average roughly.

Length 200 feet

Breadth 35 •

Depth IG to 17 feet

" As an average example, I may, i)erhaps, take the case of an
actual sailing ship whose length is 205 feet and breadth about
3(1 11. G in.; the greatest load displacement of this vessel is
somewhat greater than 2,000 tons, but she has that exact dis-
placement when loaded to a smaller depth of It! ft. 3 in. The
ends of this vessel are of moderate fineness, while her miildlo
body is very full and for one-third of her length nearly parallel,
the average area of the immersed cross section for the middle
third of her length is about 520 sq. ft., or nearly 15 tons dis-
])lacement per foot of length. One half of the total displace-
ment is therefore contained in the middle thiid of her length,
the other half is divided between the two ends and will average
7i tons per foot. This represents the actual distribution of the
supporting forces when the ship is floating in quiet watei- ; tho
distribution of the loud, however, will, of course, vary accoiding
to the lading of the ship. Assuming, with J'rof Uankine, that

Kelchnm on Ship Transportation and

ono half of the total load may bo taken to bo distributed in pro-
portion to tho displac'oment and the other half uniformly dis-
tributed over the length of the ship, this would give (as a
rough calculation) a load of about 12^ tons per foot for the
middle body diminishing to 5 tons per foot at the extreme ends,
or averaging about 8J tons per f(jot for the fore and after bodies,
and this rough calculation would show that in still water the
vessel suffers a hogging strain of about 7,000 foot tons as the
moment due to the excess of weight of the fine ends over their
buoyancy. This amount would, of course, vary according to
the build of the vessel, being greatest in vessels with very fine
ends, but when the ship is supported upon the crest of a wave
she undergoes a further hogging strain, which is much more
serious and which is greatest in vessels having bluff ends.

" Tho total hogging moment due to these two causes is given
b^' IJiinkinc equal to the total displacement multiplied by -^^ of
the length for all vessels of ordinary build. In the case of the
2,000 ton ships, therefore, this will amount to 2,000 x ^' =
20,000 foot tons. In order to compare this theoretical require-
ment with the strength of vessels as actually built in good
practice, the case of an iron sailing ship 205 feel long is taken
as a practical example. This vessel is 23J feet deep from the
floor to the stringers of the upper deck , and her neutral axis
lies at § of the depth. The hogging moment given by
iiankino's rule above quoted produces a maximum tensile strain
of 3.02 tons per square inch, and a compressive strain of 3.92
X §= 1.47 tons j)er squaie inch only. In the case also of a
well built wooden vessel it appears that the strain is within the
working strength of the material in nearly the same propor
tioiis as in -his iron ship.

" We may take it thcretbie that the safe working strength of
any well built vessel is fully sulticient to carry this bending
moment, viz: Displ. x ^q length, when acting as a hogging-
strain, and i| of this amount as a sagging strain, atid that this
bending strain will not exceed th(5 strain that she actually
suffers at sea whether she is well built or not."

This report goes to show that on a Ship Kail way Cradle there
would bo less strain upon a vessel than she sutfers by simply
laying in quiet water.

It is impossible within the limits of one paper to enter more

iiPiPliPIPIiPiWI

the Chignedo Ship Railway.

buted in pro-
niformly dis-

give (as a
foot for the
ctremc ends,
after bodien,
II water the

tons as the
:j over their
according to
th very fine
t of a wave
much more
ends.

uses is given

ied by -^^ of

case of the

00 X ^«- =
tical require-
uilt in good
3ng is taken
ep from the
neutral axis
it given by
ensile strain
rain of 3.92
ise also of a
is within the
same propor

1 strength of
his bending

I a hogging-
id that this
he actually

Ciadle there
PS by simply

3 enter more

largely into the various problems that have to be worked out in
connection with ShipEailvvay Cradles, Axles, Wheels, Hails, etc.,
and the Society will excuse the author from going into more
details, until the problem (which has been carefully wdi ked out
at Chignecto) is fully tried there.

•A

, ^HWV

Ketchum on Ship Transportation and

TUP, ClIKiNWJTO SHIP RAILWAY— TIIK SUBSTITUTE
FOli THE BAIE VKUTE CANAL.

By JL a. C. IvKTciiuM M. Can. Soc. C. E.

Tlic fiiHl |»i'()])()s!il for a canal to connect the watorH ot'tlicCulf
of St. Lawicncc with tho I lay ol' Fiiiuly \vu,s nia<ic during the
French ic^iino by the Ahhc do hi lioutre, the enterprising loader
of tho Frencli ct)h)niHt.s of Acadio.

In 1783 Colonel Kobert Morse, Chief of tho Koyal Engineerw,
waH oi'dcred by Sir Guy Carleton, Commander-in-chief of His
Britannic Majesty's forces in North America, to make a I'cport
on the "state of the defences, with observations leading (o the
further growth and "security of tho colony of Nova Scotia,"
which then included New Brunswick and a part of the State of
Maine. In this I'eport Colonel Morse suggested " tho idea of
" opening a water communication between the Gulf of St.
" Lawrence and the Bay of Fundy," which he said, " would bo
" attended with good ot^ects," and ho spoke of " tho many and
" groat advantages which woukl result to tho country from such
" a communication."

In this respect all tho engineers who have studied the project
from that date have been in perfect accord with Colonel Morse,
who, however, looked upon such a communication mostly from
a military and naval point of view. He rcgai'ded the Canal as a
means of naval defence, whereby war vessels could pass from sea
to ea for tho purpose of attack or defence without running tho
li-auntlct of a hostile foot on tho Atlantic coast of Nova Scotia.

This isthmus of Chignocto is historic ground. Two-and-a-half
centuries ago Fort Lawrence was the headquarters of Chevalier
de la Vallit^rc, the Seigneur of Chignocto and Governor of Acadio.
Fi-(jm his day until the full of Quebec the country within sight
was almost continually the theatre of stirring action. Tho
French regarded the possession of the Isthmus of Chignocto of
strategic importance as a half-way station between Port Eoyal

rrvrrr

the C/iignecfo Ship RaiJvmy.

and Lriiiislitiru-, Csipo Broton, on tlio one Iiuiid, iirul QucWc on
tlic otliei-.

Tho l'in,i,Mi>li loiiulit ami st riiL^ii;!*'!! t'oi' its j>o-^session, iis it
iin'iUMU'd tlio l"'i-oiicli a liaso ot npoi'alions from wliirli llio l'!iii;-lisli
.-I'lllcnu'iils coiiM 1)0 liara>-<(Hl. 'I'lio tide ol' conihaf Killed around
it iiilcrmittcntly lof IT)!* years. It lias lieeii eapliind and icea])-
lufoil in the l-'reneli and Indian wai's, and dnrini.' tin- Aineiiean
revolution a small army ol' volunteers fiotn the iiei^diliourinij:
repnhlie hesei^etl Fort < 'iindjei'land.

The hei<'hts of Fort ('umherlatul have lre(|U('ntly hcheld lleets
of warshijis (lyin^i,- the Lilies of I'VatH e, anil tho White ( V(tss of
St. (ieor<^a'. It I'anUs witii Louisburi,^ and old Port Koyal in
historie interest and iinportance, and was I'i^MitU' eon-iderid one
ol the keys of Canada.

ShcMild there be war between (iroat iiritain and any Kurojiean
power there is no doubt that a hi;;Iiway for vessels ot' war, sueh
as g'unboats and torpedo boats, wt)uld be of the gretiti'st pos^ible
advantai;o to Great Britain and Canada in the defenec of the
-Maritime Pi'ovinces.

In 1822 the Crovcrnmont of Now Ilrunswiclv instruetcd Mr.
Robert C. Minnette, ri'f)vineial Land Surveyor, to make the tirst
aetual survej' of a canal, whicdi he aeconiplishe 1 in that year.

In LS2r) Sir Howard I)ou<^la-, (iovernor of New Brunswick,
employed Mi'. FranciH Hall, Civil Lnginecr, to rcpoit on tho
construction of a canal on the lino of .Mr. Minnotte's survey.

In LS2'i Sir Thomas Telford, the most eminent Kn^lish rnici-
neer of the day, I'oundei' ol' the Listitution of <.'ivil Lni^'ineers in
London, was eon^iilteil as to the ieasibility of .Mr. Hall's
jdatis. lie ri-ported that "if this canal were cumpleled, ready
'■ aeee.ss wouM thereb\' be opened, not only with (Quebec and
" iMontre.il, but also with the uj)jier lakes to a boundless
" extent."

In 184.'), Ca)»t. 11. O. Crawley, of the Royal I'^ni^ineer.-, was
employed at the joint expense of Canada, New Biuns\vi(d<, and
Fi'ince Ldward Island to report on pi'evious sehenies. iie said :
" It is unnecessary tbi- me to dwell upon the importance of an
" undortakinu: which .seems to be generally admitted."

Aftei- this (late public attention was directed to Railways and
it was ])roi)i.)sed to r.tilize the Steamship Lines now establi>hed
on either side of the Isthmus by tiansliipping freight over a

Kctchum on Ship Transportation and

Lino oi'Euilwjiy to bo built betweoii tho Bend of Petitcodiac on
tbo IJay of'Fundy, and Shodiac on tiio Gulf of St. Lawrenco.

In liSS.'i, a Company was formed and a contract made with
MesHrs. JV.to, Bi-assey, Belts and JaelvHon, and woi'k comnicnccd
on this Line of Kaihvay from Moncton to Point du Clicno, a
distance of 18 miles. It was, however, taken out of tlio hands of
that lii'm in 185(1 and coinjjletod by the Governmi-nt of Xcw
Brunswick in 185>. 'fhis was tJie fii-st line constructed by tho
(iovernment of that Province under Mr. A. L. Light, M.I. ('.!"].,
Chief Kni;ineer. Cai-i^'oes fi-om tho (julfpoi-ts wore ti-anshij)ped
at Point du Chenc, carried ovei' tho Isthmus and ai^ain put into
steamers on the Bay of I'undy. In 18(»0, this line was extended
to St. John, New Brunswick, a total distance of 108 miles, and
freight from the Culf Ports and Prince Kdward Island was then
tranship))ed from steamers to the railway and from the .ailway
to the steamship lines plying between St. John, N. B., and
Portland and lioston.

A line liom Pictou to Truro, a distance of 55 miles, was aftor-
wai'ds completed across another jiart of tho Isthmus by tho Gov-
ernment of Xova Scotia under Mr. Sandford Fleming, C.M.G..

Chief l^ngiiieer.

Subsequently a line of railway from Sackvillo to Cape Tor-
mentine, antl branches from tho Intercolonial Eailway to
Buctouche, Eichibucto, Chatham, Caraquet, Dalhousie, N. B.,
have all been fompleted, showing tho great importance attached
to the trade flowing from the (Julf of St. Lawrence towards St.
John and tho United States.

" The business done on those lines affords evidence of the large
" volume of traffic seeking transit between the Gulf and Bay, or
" between the Gulf and the Eastern States of the Eepublic."

" Where there is so large a railway traffic it needs no argument
" to show that there must be an enormous water bourne traffic
" when once the Short Cut across the Isthmus of Chignecto is
" possible.''

Xotwithstanding these railway facilities there are many bulky
articles of commerce which cannot, with economy and conven-
ience, be carried any great distance by rail, and when there is
a necessity and exjjenso of transhipment and rehandling, the
railway carriage becomes sometimes too expensive to leave any

Petitcodiac on
Lawrence.

ct mailo with
I'lv coinnicnccd
it. dii Clicne, a
)(' Iho hands of
uni-nt oC Xow
tructed by the
ife'ht, M.I.C.H.,
le ti'ansliij)pod
ai^ain put into
i was oxtendod
108 miles, and
dand was then
m the .ailway
n, N. B., and

iles, was after-
iia by the Gov-
3ming, C.M.G..

to Cape Tor-
1 Eailway to
housie, N. B.,
tance attacdied
ice towards St.

ce of the large
If and Bay, or
Republic."

Is no argument

bourne traffic

f Chignecto is

[•e many bulkj'
)' and conven-
when there is
ehandling, the
e to leave any

the Chignerlo Ship Railway.

profit. Such is the case with lumber, coal, gy])sum, plaster,
building stone, potatoes, deals, Hsh, kc, c"^c.

In ]S(!0 a Company was incorpoiatod liy the Legislature of
Nova Scotia to build the canal, as a private woik, and the interest
in it was accordingly revived.

In 18(10 the late Jolm J'age, C. E., Chief Knginoer of Pid)lic
Works, was called upon to repoit upon all pi'cvious surveys of
the Haio Vertc Canal, which at this date had again become a live
question, and further surveys were ordered by the Dominion
(iovernment. In 1871 a most thorough survey was made of the
wiiolo Isthmus by Mr. F. Baillargc^, As.sistant"ciiief Hngineor of

'ui)lic Works

In 1872 Sir Casimir Gzowski and the late Mr, Samuel Kecfer,
<'. E.. surveyed and recommended a line of Canal approxinnUely
on the route of the present Ship IJailway.

Samuel Keefer, C. E., obsei'ved that in the comi)aratively isol-
ated condition of the Provinces bi'fore Confederation the neces-
sity tor this shoi-t line of communication was not felt; but now
that they form one united Dominion, bound together by ties,
political and commercial, the trade growing up between them
must tend year by year to give greater importance to the pro-
posed shorter and safer line of navigation.

The estimated cost of this line of canal by these engineers was
$5,317,000, but Mr. Page, on examination of the estimate, alleged
that there had been undervaluations and onus-ions, and he added
to it 25 per cent, for undervalue placed on works, $1,320,250, and
for omissions $450,000, making the probable actual cost of work,
according to Mr. Page, $7,100,000.

Mr. Page declared " that the construction of a navigable chan-
'• nel between the Bay of Pundy and the Cult' of St. Lawrence, on
' any line that can be selected, will be an undertaking attended
" with unusual difficulty, not only from the nature of the work
" to be done, but from the great dirtcrence in the elevation of the
" respective tides."

The range of the tides in the Bay of Fundy has always been
exaggerated in the school books and gazetteers. The most care-
I'ul ob.>>ervationa taken by Mr. Baillargd^ C. K., in 1870, resulted
ill establishing the range of tides to be 38 feet at neap and 48
feet at spring tides. The greatest tide ever known occurred on

lulditrni (in Ship TraNK/xirta/ion and

tlio .Jill ()c|(tl»e'r, isii'.t, til MOW iiiooii. Tlio liiii^'c wa.s llioii (iriy-
sovcii ritt..six iiiclu's. It is vvt'll khown as (lio ShxIjv tide, ho
fiiilcil li'diii a |ii(;clicliuii iiwido iioarly a yoar licforo il liappt'iifi.l,
liy l-iiMii. S. .M. Sixl.y, i:. .\., \vl.i( Il ai-poaiod in tlio Loik^ui
'Villus ill huic'iiilii'i'. h(o. Tlio lollowiiii'- roiisons jor (ho piodic-
liuii svoio -ivoii ill his nwn woids : " Al 7 a. in., Octolior Otli, (ho
'• iimoii will 1.0 al 111, It |.art oC hor urhit iioarosl (ho oui'tli. lior
" alliai tidii will llioroloio ho at tho maxiiiiiiiii Coi'co. A( noon (»i'
•' .^aiiu- day llir in.ion will ho on (ho oarlh's o(|iial<)i-, which novor
" wociiis wiihoui iii.ii kod alinosphoric distiirham-c, and at '1 p. m.
•' ^aIll(• (lay lino.-, druwn iVoin tho t-artli'is oontiv- woidd out (lu!
" iiHxtii and Mill in I ho s;imoaro oi'ii^-ht as(oiisi(in. Tho moon's
" a(trao(i..n and (ho mui's allraolioii will Ihorolbro lo in Ihosanio
" diioolioii In olhor woids (ho now moon will ho on (ho oarth's
" O(|iiulor and imthinii,- nioro (hi'oa oniiii^- t-an oociir widioiit
" niiiaolo." 'I'his |irodio(ion was voriliod hy voiy high (idos and
a toiiihio stdiin on (ho JJuy ol' Fiiiidy.

Tho oxtionio laiigo ol" tidos in iJaio Voito was ohsorvod to ho
10 loot H iiiohos; (he ordinary lango hoing only 5 (eot 7 inchos.
Thus whilo the (Imliiaiions ahovo and holow tho moan sea lovul
woio only '1 fool !) inchos at liaio Voilo, (hoy wore at tho sumo
timo ]!» led ahovo and holow moan soa lovolon tho liay ol'Fundy
a( noap (idos, and 24 loot at s])ri!ig' tidos.

A lloyal (^llnmission coinposod of tho most roprosontativo com-
morcial mon ol Canada, soloc(od f'r(»ni tho dilloront provinoos, was
uppoinlod hy tho (lovoinmont in 187! to invostigato tho whole
canal sys(om of Canada, with tho lato Sir Jlii-h Allan as (Jhair-
man. Tho Maio Voile Canal after full onquiry and oxaminalion,
was jilaced l.y ihoin in llio tirst rank of all iho canals of tho Do-
minion. The i'ullowing is oxtraotod from tho report of the
Canal Commis>ion : •' The growth of Intorcoloniul (rado depends
" on oheaj) transil, since the morchandiso passing holweon tho
" Mai-ilimo !*i ovincos and Ontario nui.'^t be. of a bulkij character,
" ro.|uiriiig largo vessels and rapid dispatch to ho really jirolit-
" ahlo. When a jiropollor can go direct with u cargo of coal, (»r
" other produce of (he Eastern I'lovinces, to Kingston and To-
" ronto, and there get a rolurn freight of Hour, hurley, and olhor
" Westoi'n produce, Intercolonial trade will have entored on a
■' new era.

" When Xova Scotia coal of the best de8cri])tiou can be supplied

II II I I I H III W

wa.s llioii (iCly-
Siixlty tide, ho
il liii|»|)oiit'(l,
in lliu liOndiMi
lor llio piudic-
L-tohcM' 5lli, llio
e c'Jii'tli. Hoi-
0. A( noon of
', wliicli iiivci'
;iii(l ill '1 |(. ni.
ivoiild oil, tin;
Tli'j moon's
le ill tlicsaiiio
on tiie oiirtli's
KMiir witlKuil
liigli tides and

bservod to Ito
(eot 7 inches,
loan HCii lovui
"0 ut tlic suniu
l)uy ol'Fiindy

cntativo coni-
ii'oviiiecs, was
itc Ihu wliolo
llan as (Jliair-

oxaiiiiiialioii,
uIh of llio Do-
■cporl of tlio
Irado di'iicnds

bctwoen the
dkij chanicter,

really jn-olit-
'go of coal, or
^ston and To-
ey, and other-
entered on a

n be supplied

t/ic. Cliignctio Ship luii/irai/.

•• alMindaiitly and (dica|)ly to western poiis, a great iiiipulsc will
'• necessarily he given to the Iransrer of (lie trade ot the St. Law-
•• lenee and Lakes to screw steamers, a traiisier already t;iking
" place, as we have |ire\i()Usly shown.

'• With the canals enlarged, eoal fivigliK woidd he reduced to

" the niiniiniini |K.iiit — a lake |.iu|„.|K.r wmiM always hring hack

■' hoiii the |(»wer ports a cargo of eoal, rather th mi e.)iiie empty

•' - jiisi as the hliiglisli timher ships have ln'cii .iccnstomed io

• hring the same aiticK- instead of hallasl.

'• Inseparably coiii,,mI('.| with lliegrowlh of I nleic oloiiial trade
•• is Ihe eonstriiction of llu^ |!aie Vi^rle ("anal acros> the Istimiiis,
•' coiiiuTling Ihe Provinces of Nova Scolia a-id New llriiiiswick.
" The advantages that mii>t accrue, not merely Io the Dominion
•• a- a whole, hut to the commerce of the Mai'ilime I'roviiiees, are
'• so clearly pointed oiii hy the lioards of Tradi^ of all the lead-
•' ing cities of Canada, and hy men inleresled in the development
■'of niir commercial intere-ts, not simply the niendianls of St.
•' John and other places in the locality ot the proposed ( 'anal, hut
" meridiants of Hamilton, Toronto, Ottawa, Montreal and (^ue-
" bee, that it is siijiei fhious for the ( 'ommis^ioiiers to <lo more
•■ than brielly refer to a lew salient featiii'es ot the scheme.

■' A steamer laden with tlour i'>v Si. .lohii. X. I!., now goes
•' down the (Hilf as far as Shediai'. where the cargo is transported
■■ by rail to its destination. The total distance by water from
•• Shediae through the d'ut of Caiiso and around the coast of
" N'ua Scotia to the IJay of Fundy as far as the eommeicial
" capital of N-w Hruiiswick is about (lOU miles, and the coiise-
•• iiuenc(! is that there is little or no direid comnuinication be-
" tween the I5ay (.f Fundy [torts and those of ihe Kiver St. I.aw-
■• reiice. I!y u Canal through ihe Isthmus the distance from
•• Shediac Io St. .lolin will not be much more than one hundred
'• miles."

Accordingly the (Muernmen I of the day decidi'd to jiroeeed with
the construction of the canal. His F.xeellciiey Lord huirerin, at
Ihe oiicning of the .se.ssion of IHT.'i, in hi,> speech from the throne,
useil the following language:

'• 1 am glad to inform you thai plans and specifications \'ov the
•' enlargement of the Welland, and th.' eonslruction of the Haie
" Verte Canal, have been completed, and that the works can now
" be put under contract. The surveys for the St. Lawrence

iMMilM

IMS

KetcliNW on Shijt Tran%portatwn and

" (!aniils will, T am usHui'ed, bo finished in time to fominence the
" works at liic l)0<finninf^ of next year. Tins will insui-o tho com-
*' plotion of all those <,a'eat works at the same period,"

111 acionlnncc with tlic piotnise thus given, one million dollars
wais placed in the estimates for the construction of the Baio Verte
Canal, which, accoi'ding to the late Mr. Page's estinuite of tho
lino surveyed by Messrs. (rzowski und Koefer, was to cost
S7, 100,000,

In 1875, under a change of (iovornment, another commission
was iippointed, with tho late Hon. John Young as chairman. The
rej)ort made liy this Commission was unfavorable. Indeed, it is
said the Cmnmission was i)urposely appointed to defeat the pro-
ject and save tho now Government the necessity of making tho
outlay pledged by Parliament.

The lion, .losoph Lawrence, one of tho Commissioners, pro-
tested against tho verdict of the majority, and ably defended the
commeriial pros])ects of the canal in a separate re])ort.

It was afterwards discovered that an error had been made in
their computation ol" the distance to be saved by the Short Cut.
Tho Comnussionors had represented the distance saved from
Montreal to St. John as only 225 miles, whereas it is actually 500
miles, making an error in their calculations of 275. Their o\)\-
nion was, that the small distance to be saved would not warrant
the ex])enditure. Tho prejudice produced in some quarters by
tho misrepresentation of distance (and hence the erroneous con-
slusions of the report) endures to this day. The following ad-
missions were howovci" made;

''The evidence taken, and the observations which the Commis-
" sionei's have had the (tpportunitj' of making, have impressed
" them deejdy with the vast i-esources of New Jirunswick, Nova
" Scotia anil Prince Kdward Island, and the large increase which
" may be reasonably looked for in their trade and commerce."

It was, however, most fortunate for tho Dominion that the
verdict of this (.'ommission, incorrect as it was, delayed for a
while the j)ublic expectation. It gave time for a new idea to be
developed which was happily destined to prevent the country
from falling into a most iri-etriovable error of judgment and from
an expenditure counted by millions of dollars, — a better mode of
communication between the tico seas was j'ossible.

In 1875 the author of this paper submitted his opinion to the

-Jk-i._

t.«jU.U.

^WMlMMMMMUl

t''>1«*'

lUfil

>mnience tho
ii'o tho com-

illion dollai-H
8 Baio Verto
iniuto of the
vas to Cost

cotnmisHion
lirman. Tho
Indeed, it is
Peat tho pro-
making tho

donors, pro-
lofended tho
t.

en made in
I Short Cut.
saved from
ictually 500
Their opi-
lot wan-ant
[uarters by
nneous con-
lowing ad-

10 Commis-
impi-OHsed
wick, Nova
ease whicli
mereo."
n that the
lyed for a
; idea to bo
10 country
t and from
er mode of

ion to the

the ChVfi^necto Ship Rnihrmj.

public through tho ProsH that a Ship Railway would not only
(iiltil all tho rciiuii'cnionlM, but in tnaiiy respects would be prefer-
able to a canal; that Ihoro was no fii^iiieoiitii,' (litlicult}' citlior in
iho construction or operation of such a line; aii'l that vessels in
full cargo could be traiispoi'tcd over tho Isthmus in perfect Ha fety
and at wmall expense. That the trans|)ort would take less time,
and tho n>aintenaiice. ro|»alr.H and operating would be no groatei-
than by canal. This bold suggestion anvstcvl all further discu.s-
sioiis of a canal, anil for six years thei'o was no further move
made tending to solve the problem of the Isthmian Transit. The
l)(»iniiii()n Government had entered upon a policy of fostering
its own manufactures and relying upon its own productions tor
its prosperity. 'riie result .soon showed itself in a marked
increase in tho raising of coal and lumbei-, which was followed
by a corresponding increase in tho coasting trade and com-
mercial marine of the Maritime Provinces.

At length, in 1881, the author carried out, at his own expense,
a survey and location for a Ship Railway, and having found a
good line, submitted a jiroposal to the Hon. Sir (!harle> Tu|)per,
Minister of Railways and (.'anals. offering to form a company to
carry out the woi'k, provided the Government would subsidize
tho work, for about one third tho cost of a canal.

The proposed subsidy took the form of a contril)ution by the
Government to the Company of 8150,000 per annum for twenty-
five years, which, if capitalized at four per cent., would be Gi\\Mx\
to the sum of §2,343,312.

Tho proposal, therefore, if adopted, would save to the country
the cost of tho Canal, to which it was pledged, as before stated,
estimated at $7,100,000, le.ss tho sum of 82,313,:^ 2, tho capitaliz-
ed value of the subsidy, or a saving of no less than $[,750, (188.

Hon. Sir Charles Tapper, Minister of Railways and Canals, re-
ferred the whole question to the <'hief Kngineer of his Depart-
ment, and Mr. Collingwood Schrieber i-ejiorted as follows: —

1. "That the project is quite practicable of e.xocution."

2. "That the Ship Railway as proi)osed would be a good sub-
" stitute for the Canal originally contem|)lated."

3. " That the advantage in respect of cost as compared with
" that of a Canal would be greatly in favour of the Ship Railway,
'' tho cost of a half-tide canal being calculated by the Govern-
" ment Engineers at from $5,050,000 to $8,217,849: whereas the

Kelvhuiii oti Ship Tran^jtorlatiim auil

"Hubsidy iiskcd lor l.y llu> Company, naiiifly, .^l.')0.(IOO for LTt
" yoiii's, if cupitiili/eil at t por cent, would l>o Oijiiiil I* tlic sum of

"k',:;i;;.;;i2oiiiy."

'V\\v ( 'mmiiissioiicr-- in thoir Ilc^poil on |»;i;^^' 51 stale: " Tlic
"dislaiicc from Slu-diac t(» Si. .loliii l»y the present route, via the
"(Iiil ofCauso, to he (100 miles. This dislanco would lie reduced
" hy I lie eonstruetion ol I he Haie \'erle Caiiul to ahout 100 miles,
"and l'rei!4;hts would, in iheii' opinion, Im diniini--hed hy li.'> per
"cent , f,MV'ally lieiu'litini;' IIm^ coal Iraile and lisluM'ies, and in-
" crejisin^" the volunu' of !;'eneral hu.-iness."

'riioy stiitti further ( pa^o r>;{) : ■ This canal cnnnof he coiisid(!i'-
'• od apart from IIh' canals of llu* St. liawrence as a ( 'ana-
"dian canal, ;is Saidt Sle. .Marie is the natural commeiioMntMit fd'
" the im|irovemenl> ol' (he inland navii^^aliiui <d ihe I)omini(Ui, so
"the woi'k ihroiiuji tiie Utinnus of Chi^^necto is the inovihihlo
" conclusion neces-ary to ^-ive unity and completeness to Ihe
"whole syslem. 1 1 is Canadian in dosii^n and must prove
" national in its ri^sulis.''

On l)aift* 7!' tho Commissioners say : " TIm; evidence suhmitled
"points out with romarlcalile force ami unaiiimily tho noces>ity
"of opening; a llin'hway for commereo hi'twcen tho (lulf ol SI.
" rjiiwrence and the luiul w;iloi's of tho Hay of i"'untly lhrou<^h
'■ lh(! Isthmus of Chii:iu'clo dividini;" IIumd."

The ahove slalemeiils arc now twenty years old, and Iho t(ni-
nai^eof Ihe porl> a lja<'enl to the 1st Ionian Transit has more than
douhled itself sinci> lho>c worcU wore written.

The Chief l'lni:;ineer lurllicr said, that "Assuming thai the
''importance (da Ship ilii^hway over tho Istlimus was, at tho
"time of tho Coinmi>sionors' lloport so groat as thoroin stateil,
"it must hi' much n'reater low considei'iiii;' thci l!irL;'e increa.so
" since that date in tho trade of tho country alloctcd hy tho pr<)-
" posod work'."

Tho proposal of the author was accoptod hy tho flovornmont,
a|)pi(»vod hy I'arliamtnl, and a comi»any inoorporalod to carry
out tho undertakini;'. Tho provisional Directors were: Mr.
Thomas C. Keofer, C.M.(;., (ho first prosidont (d the Canadian
Society of Civil haiy-ineors ; .Mr. I'lwin (.Mark, the eminent
engineer and inventoi' of tho Hydraulic Ship liii'l ; Mi-. C R.
Cokor, Lloyd,^ Siirvo3-or of Shipping; Mr. IJ. <{. Lunl, Ihe well-
known Stcamhoat Managei-; and tho author.

.Ml.

.")O.OnO fnr LT,
ta llu' Slim of

slide: "Tilt"
route, via llu^
lid li(( rt'iliiceil
Dili 100 miles,
led liy li.') per
eries, iiiid iii-

it lie coiisidei"-
'e Jis a ( 'aiiit-
me!i('<'iiit!iil ol'
l)nmiiii(>ii, sii
Iho inevilulilo
U'liess ((> the
must priive

leo sulmulled
llio nocos.sity
(liilf of SI.
iiidy ll»roiii;li

and Iho loii-
as more tlian

in^ that tlu^
s was, al Iho
lorcin stilled,
ii":;;e increase
1 l>y Iho pr.)-

'loveiiimoiil,
ted lo ejirry
were: Mr.
lie (■anadiaii
(he eminent
! ; Mr. C. R.
lit, Iho woll-

///r Chigmrlo Slit/) Ihiihraij.

'i'ho Hoard of Trade of St. .lolni, New I'.ninswlck, passed the
follMwinfi rooliilidiis on the liOiii Ooioher, iss;i :

" Whcrnts, Means ol'commiiniealion hetweon the waleiN of the
" l?ay ^A' Kiindy and the (lull' of St. riawicnr,., wheiehv prnilnds
"of llio s(*veral I'rovinces horderiiiH; thcKM.ii mnv |„. i|it,.r.
"ejilin^od wilhoitt eiicoillileriiii; the daiii,n'ioii- iiax i^al iun dj' the
" Atlantic. Coast oC Nova Scotia, wherchy sieiimcis mihI -.ailin"
'• v«>ssels. adapted as well lor inland as tor oicaii navigation, mav
" ho sal'ely convoyed acro>s the Isthmus orChiM'n,. do willioiu the
" cost anil delay of transhipnienl or hrealuiiu' liiiUc.and whiiidiv
" liie sailini,' (jislance hel ween this port and :ill p.il-- hoilh and
" wost oC s.'iid I^llimns may he rediiee(l ;dpoiit COO mihvs, woiild
" increase Iho voliimo of trade and henelil ihc shippini,' iiileresis

" ol' this poi'l and othei' ports in the I '.ay o|' !•' iy I (iiill'of Si .

" rjawrcmco; and

'■ ir/((7VY/,s, I'y means of a Ship liailway across th(< !>llimii->,
"the (dijecls aforesaid may he accompli-hrd, ami thus sliniiilato
"the development of IIk; ai^riculliiral, nilniiiL;', liiinherinif and
" tishinn' resources of the dislricf conlii,Mions to ihc ;iforesaid
'' ports ; and

'■ Whi'i't'd^, A company has heon Coi'imvl t^r tli(> const niclion
''and operation ol' a Shij) Ifailway, with cominodioiis |)oi Ics and
'' Hydraulic l;il'ts f()r raisini;- and Iransporiino- over ils lino la(h'n
" vessels of 1,000 tons roi;"ister; Iherol'ore

" licxoliuul , Tiiat lliis r.oai'd is of opinion I hat the iunl(wlal<inLj
of said company would " ijreatly fa(Mlilale iradeand commeri'o
hetween tlie lOastern and Wostorn I'lovincc-. ; and furllior

" Rcsobu'd, Tliat thin Hoard cordiiilly ;ip|iroves iho project for
" huilditii;- tlio said ship railway, heliovini.!; I hat this is a movement
" which will commend itself to all cl.as-os, and prove If) ho of
''^rcat convonionco and honelit to our trade and commerce i;on-
" orally."

In March, ISSH, a foimal contract was enlei-ed into hy Iho
Company witli the (lovcrnmiMit which made a chanyo in the
annual payments of tiio suhsidy, hut reduced the time over
which it extended from 2;') years to i!0 yoais. Tiio company was
not to call upon the (Jovcriiinont for any portion of the suhsidy
except what might he required to make up the not earnings of 7
per cent, on the authorized capital of .Sr),r»00,000, and the com

2-i

Ketchum on iSliip Tran$poftation and

pany iigreetl to pay over to tlio GovcM'titnont ono-lialf tlio HUi-pluH
prolitrt Iio3-oii(l the 7 por coiii. until tho wholo of tho Huhsidy
wliicli niuy tluiii liuvo been |)aid to tho company Hhall liavo been
rep.'iiil In the (Jovei'iinictit.

AClor varioiiH unsucet'HHf'ul attonipts by the author to j^ct par-
ties to undertalve tliin novel and ditHcult woik, and tind the
money, at hint, in the early i)art ol" tho year 188S, Mr. John
(1. Moi^gH, the eminent eontraetor of South American fame,
oH'eied tlirou^'h the author to form a company in London to
carry out the undortaliin^, pi-ovided an extension of time could
be made to the contract aii-eady entered into with the (Jovorn-
tuent.

Apjilieation was aci-ordingly made and tho extension of time
jj;raMted by the Dominion (government and Parliament in tho
Hpring of 1H88.

The plans were prepared and Hubmitted to tho Chief Engineer
of the Department of liaihvays and Canals, and formal approval
given Ity the (Joveinor (ienoral in Council in, May, 1888.

The line of railway and docks were then tinally located under
the instructions of the author by Mr. J. S, Armstrong, M. Can.
,Soc. ('. Vj., and tendeis invited foi' the grading, masonry, and the
various works.

I'he Company was re-organized in London, the preliminary
stock subscribed, and the directors appointetl.

Tho Hoard consists of Mi-. Thomas Wood, President ; Col.
Paget Mosley, Vice-President; Mr. A. D. Provand, M.P.., Mr.
VV. II. Camj)bell, Mr. A. It. llobertson, and Mr. Arthur Serena,
Directors.

Sir John Fowlor, Sir B. IJaker, and IT. (i. C. Ketchum wore
appointed Kngineers.

A contract was then entered into lieiween tho Company and
Messrs. .loliM (J^. Meiggs k Son for the jxocution of tho work, and
subsefiuontly £050,000 of the capital was raised in London by
subscription; £.500,000 being in preferred shares and £350,000 in
first mortgage Bonds.

Under this contract, work was commenced by tho Company
in October, 188S. Messrs. Meiggs & Son contracted with Messrs.
Dawson, Symmes and Ussher, of Niagara Palls, for tho earth-
work and masonry, for tho line of railway and docks, tho dredg-

VM*M

the Chii^mrto Ship liailwti//.

iii^ of lli»< (.'ntrancc clmrincls, and tli(> iiltiiclayin^ and liallantiti;; ;
uUo lor tlio oroclioii of the moles ai, Tidiii-li. With M.-sf-rf.
KuMtoii k Andoi'Hoii foi- tlie suppl}- of iIk- liydnmru' lilt nun liirn-rv ,
itH oi'octioii and wockiii^'. With Mdshis. I.'liodo.-*, Ciiiry iV ('<>.,
of Anihorrtt, for biiildin/^N eonlainin;^' tlic jdiiiipiti;,' marhinciy.
Thoy also HU))|>licd tho heavy piiio slee|)«'rs for a<'i'oiiiil (if Mi'hmi-m.
I'awKoii iV Co. MosHTH. ('aimiudi iV Co., of Sheftleld, Mi|i|>lied the
Hteel railn, wluLdi are 1)0 Ihs. to the yard <il' toinihtMieil -.tecl.
MeHHi'M. llaiidyHido A:, Co., of horhy, Kiipplied the ship eradh's.
which aro inailo entindy t>i' sit'ol. Messiv. Ilanis iV <'•»., of St.
.lohn, eonti'actod for the cradlo wlictds, and the ( anadian liueo-
motivo and KnyinoCo., of Kiimston, are hiiildinLT llio heavy lardi
locomotivoH.

The cnf^inceringHtatf, under MoHHrH. Fowler. liaUorc*^ Ketchiiin,
consisted of Mr. F. V. S. KoUey, resident i-n/^ineer; Mr. .1. S.
Ai-mstrong, j)rincipal assistant; iMr. .M. Fii/inaiu'ict*, assistant
enginoor; Mv. S. J. Syinonds, inspector, and others, on iiehalf of
the Company : Mr. (leorgo liiieliaiian, engineer, and Mr. .\ithur
W. Hateson, agent, for the Chief Contractors : Mr. .1. H. Denison,
and Mr. G. F. May, engineers for the Hydraulic Wi»iks: and
Mr. J. P. O'Rourko, engineer tor the Suh-ivontraetors.

The land required lor tiio line of railway and doidis was pi'e-
sented aa a gift l)y the Muncipality of the County of (!uinheiland.
Nova Scotia.

The works wore prosecuted vigorously tioin the date of com-
mencement to the end of Jul}', 1>^!U, when tl;ey were unfortu-
nately stopped because of the impossihiliiy of floating th*- re-
maining bonclH which tlie company had in hand (vi/., L';!r)0,()OO)
in the present critical state of the money market.

Up to the time of suspension, the engineer's ceititieates foi-
work done anil materials furnished by the contractors, amoiiiiied
to jt;G70,804 5s., ])aid in cash, bonds and sliart'S, and the etigineei'-
ing and administration expenses of the('ornpany amounted to
about £;]0,000 in addition.

From a careful estimate made of the cost to finish tl)e works,
to equip with rolling stock, to provide interest on capital, to
finance the remaining debentures, and to provide foi- further-
engineering and administrative expenses, it, is calculated that
31,500,000 will fully cover all expenses.

Ketckum on Ship Trnnaportation and

The whole work may bo siiid to bo thi-oo-fourtlis done, and it
would take but one sunnnor Hcuson's wofk to entii-cly tinisli the
Ship liailwuy and J)()clvs tit foroponiii^ to the pul)lic.

Tlio pi'iru'ipiil oxcavation yot to bo done in that for tho on-
tianco channels at each end of tiie line, which have been coin-
inonccd and are considerably advanced, but can not be entirely
finished until the hydraulic machinery for lifting tho vessels is
ei'cctod.

All (he hydraidic machinery has been manufactured and de-
livered. All the rails, sleei)ers, and permanent way materials
have been delivered. The whole of the line of railway has been
graded with the exception of about a mile of broken work.
Twelve miles of ti-ack have hcen laid, and the greater part of tho
bottom has been ballasted with broken slone. The costly' work
remaining to be done is tho masoniy and gate of the basin at
tho l)ay of p'undy end of the line, and the masonry of the two
lifting (lo(d\s. The buildings containing the hydraulic pumping
machinery have been nearly tiidshed and the machineiy in them
erected.

The ships' cradles, manufactured of steel, and the locomotives,
are neai'ly i-eady for delivery. The moles protecting the r>asin
on Northumberliind Stiaits, have been enliieh' fmisheil and ac-
cepted. The tirm of Kaslon ^ Anderson, who undertook the
suj)ply and erection of hydraulic machinery, as well as tho
traversers for shunting vessels, has agreed fur a speciliod sum
to woik and maintain this machineiy in good oi'der for one
year from the date of tho opening of (he line, the Company being
required to pi'ovidc the coal.

Tho si/,0 of ves.sel provided for is 1,000 tons register; the
maximum length vynmU be 2:;,") foet,breadth 50 feet,draught 15 feet,
with a displacement of 2,000 tons. Accommodation space for six
vessels of this size has Ik en pi-ovided in the Basins at each ter-
minus of tlieShip llailway. This is tho only instance in tho
history of Canada where a wet dock and harbor basins and dredg-
ed entrance channels have been provided at the expense of a
private company. Tho cost to (he Company of these entrance
channels, dock ga(es, sea walls, basins and moles will be, when
finished, about one million dollars, exfdusive of tho hydraulic-
lifts.

The following extract from Sir Benjamin Baker's description

Cs«

the Chignecto Ship Rnilirm/.

of tho Chignccto Ship Eiiihvjiy, as published in the Nineteenth
Century Maijazine for Miirch, 185*1, cannot he improved upon, and
it is, (horclore, emhodied in this paper:

" Tho hydraulic, lifts, when raised, form a pait of the main
railway as I'Ci^'^ards lino and level ; and when lowercMJ with tho
cratUe tho deiifh of water ovoi" the keel-hloeks on the latter is
that requisite for floating Iho vessel on tho hloidcs. Walls of
massive masonry, 50 feet in licii^ht from foundation tr) ([uaylevol,
surround the hj'draulic lifts. The latter each consist cif twenty
hydraulic i-ams of 25 inchesdiamoler and 40 feet stroke, cnch)sed
in 2n-inch diameter cylinders ]»rovided with stuffini,^-lif)xes iit the
ujipei" ends, .md with inlet pi|)es for the admission of water at a
test ])ressure of 1,;]00 Ihs. ]ier square inch. On the top of eaidi
ram is a ci'ossdiead, from whicli lianL;; two lifliui^ links, con-
nected at the lower ends with tho gridiron upon which the shi|i
and cradle rest when heinij; lifted, The ^-ridiron, 'l?>'i feet in
length and ()0 feet in width, consists of a very sfilV combination
of longitudinal and cross girders made of steel and lirmly riveieii
togethei'. When lifted to the level of the i-ailway the ends of the
cross girders arc supported on the <iuay walls by iron cIum k-
blocks worked by hydraulic ])ower, so that the giidiron then in
oilect constitutes a solid pait, as hofori; said, of th<> main line.
Hydraulic pumping machinery is jirovidcd of sulUcient powci- to
raise a vessel weighing 2,0(1(1 tons, or, including the gridiron and
cradle, u total weight, of I!, 500 tons, the requii'od height of forty
feet n twenty minutes. Hydrauiic, power is also provided for
capsfai s and wintdies foi- manunvring the vessels, and aii--com-
prc'scrs ;ti'(,; fui-nished for clearing the ]»ipi's and (.'ylinders quick-
ly of wa'or — a precaution specially necessaiy in a northern
cliniat(;. Special arrangements are made in the enginediouse to
enable the .'j.gincman to ensure the c([uablo and simultaneous
motion ■>! li^c ten lij'ting rams on each side of the deck, so that
no strain! ig of the gridiron may occur.

"A doubi ? line of i-ailway of the ordinary 4 feet S->7 inches
gauge is laid along the lo[> of the griuir(Mi, upon which the shij)-
cradles ai'o run. Tho>e ci'adles are provided in seclional lengths
of 75 feet and 57 to accommodate vessels of ranging dinuMisions.
l.>r a. ship of 2,000 tons dead weigh! three sections would be
usid, T!ie cradles, like the gridirons, arc formed of u ligiil
con'i>ination of steel girders carr^-ing keebblocks and sliding

Ketchum on Ship TransportaHon and

bilge-blocks of llie usual lifting-dock typo. Each 75 feet section
of craille is MU|>porte(l on sixty-four solid wheels of thi'eo feet
diameter, having double beaiiigs and four spiral spi-ings of ex-
ceptional strength. Unlike ordinary ship cradles, therefore, a
(•<)nsid('rablo amount of elasticity is provided in the present case.
It need hardly bo remarked that many interesting problems have
bad to be worked out in connection with these cradles whicli it is
impossible to refer to here.

" The onk'i" of procedure in raising a vessel and transporting it
seventeen >niles across this isthmus to the sea on the other side
woulil be as follows: A vessel coming up the Bay of Fundy on
the flood tide would jiass through the gate entrance into the
clock and wait its turn ' » bo lifted. If the vessel were a ' trader '
on this I'oute, its dimei' 'ould have been recorded, and the

keel and bilge blocks woulu ' vo been got ready on the cradle,
telegraphic notice having been received of the probable arrival of
the ship. Ifshowerea 'tramp,' a ship's carpenter would have
to go on board and take some leading meaBurcments for the
arrangement of the blocking on the cradle. The blocking being
arranged, the cradle and gridiron would bo lowered by the hydrau-
lic rams into the water and the vessel would be hauled over it by
capstans and winches in the usual way. The gridiron would then
be slowly raised until iho vessel rested on the keel-blocks through-
out her whole length, after which the sliding bilge-blocks would
bo pulled tight against the ship's bilge by chains attached to the
blocks and carried up to the quay on either side. Lifting would
then proceed until the rails on the gridiron attained the same
level as those on the main lino of railwa}', when, as before ex-
plained, the ends of the girders would be securely blocked. The
ship and cradle would then be hauled off the gridiron on to the
railway by jjoworful hydraulic winches, and after a final adjust-
ment of the blocking, the vessel would be taken in hand by two
of the giant loconiv, fives already referred to, and be transported
across the isthmus on to the hydraulic lift on the other side, where
the converse operations would be effected to enable the vessel to
resume her ocean voyage.

" Various plans have been proposed from time to time for the
([uick and elHoient blocking of the curved surface of a ship's hull
to the flat top of the cradle. Hinge bilge blocks, hydraulic rams,
elastic bags tilled with air or water, and many other contrivances

)j<tyfiorct

the Cki^neifo Ship Railway.

have been sufjgested, but the present universal pi-jictioe in dock
ing or in launching a ship is to use simple wooden keel ami bilgo
blocks. In docking a vessel, nearly the whole oC the weight
comes on the keel blocks, and the bilge blocks !iio lew in numboi-
and extend only for about the middle third of the ships length.
In launching a vessel, the weight is transfenod from the kcol-
blocks on to the launching-ways on each side of the same liy
means of a couple of narrow cradles or bilge-logs, of hard wood
packed up to the hull of the vessel by soft wood tilling. These
cradles carry the ships down the too often imperfectly bedded
inclined launching-ways at a sjjeed of some twelve miles an hour-
As the vessel is leaving the launching-ways her stern is water-
borne whilst the bow is pi-essing hard on the shore i>ut yet it is
the rarest thing for any misha|» to occur to a vessel even uiulei-
this singularly lOugh treatment. The best way of blocking n
ship on a railway cradle will be quickly detei-mined after a lew
weeks' expei'ience, but at Chignecto the method ado|»ted in the
first instance will ceitainly be the well-tried one of timber keel
and bilge-blocks.

" Nothing calls for special notice as regards the line oi' railway.
It is, as before stated, a double line of oitlinary gauge, but the
space between the two lines is five feet wider than usual. Very
strong steel rails, weighing 110 lbs. i»er yard, tirid exceptionally
large sleepers, spaced very closely togethei-, give the required
support on the ballast to the heavily laden ship cradle. Near the
Amherst end a long and deep moss oi- bog hud to Ije crossed, ami,
as the floating system adopted by Stej)hen.-sou for the original
Manchester and Liverpool Eailway acioss Chat Moss would ob-
viously be inappropriate for the heavy loads of a ship railwa}-,
there was no alternative but to form a solid rock embaid<nieMt
across the bog, and this has now been successfully conqtletcd.
On other }»arts of the lino there is a heavy roek cutting and u
river bridge, but beyond these matters there are no works of
importance on the line."

During the construction of the railway Mr. H. L, Corthell, C.
E., a distinguished American engineer of Chicago, paid a visit to
the Ship Railway for the purpose of ascertaining its merits and
to examine into the facilities which Canada could piovide foi- the
carrying trade of the West, and, in a letter published in the
Toronto Globe, he reports as follows respecting the Ship Kailwuy :

Ketc/mm on Ship 'IntuspoiUUiou mid

" Tlio ciitiro work, in mII ils ^I'lieral fujiliires, ;ih well as in itH
"details, lias boon viM-y fai'orully studied out, and the inaleiial
" liUM lieen propoily arrani^ed and well put t(),ii,ellier lor all ot the
" niuelianieul work'. I also made careful '.ni|uiries and oliiaiiied
" reliable data in regard lo the connnereial I'ealurrs of this pro-
'• jert. 'IMiere is no ([iiestion, in my opinion, about the enlin^
'' success of this work from u commiu'cial and linancial point (»l'
" view. There is ii lai'ge commerce now exi>tin;^ which will
" certainly seek this shorter and more economical route. The
'' ojiening- of u line ol' communicalion ior ships across the i.^tliniiis
" will develoj)e new conimei'ci', and 1 ilo not hesitate to |iredicl,
" in view of all that I heard and >aw in reixard to the commercial
" features, that witiiin ihreeyi'ars from the openiui;- ol" the line for
" business it will have all it can handle. A Company allied to
" the Ship Railway Company has been formed in I'lngland foi- the
'' ])urpose oi' buikliiii;' for this new I'oute several side-wheel steam-
" boats adapted to the trade between Prince l-klward island and
" the New IJrunswick and .Maine coast, which, I have no doubt,
" will have all the biisi es.-. ;l c.in attend to."

Mr. Corthell also in a pa}»er read before this Society in j'cbru
ai-y, 18!)0, referrini;' to the Chi,^,necto Shij) liailway, re|)eated
that, " There is no doubt in his mind of the entire success in the
'' construction, oj)eiation and economy of this railway. There is
'• nothinii; novel in the method only in the combination of
" methods. Vessels ai'e at present raised out of the water coii-
" tinually, whether loaded or unloailed, on liyilraulic lifts either
" by Marine Hallways or by Floating; Docks.

"The increasing si/.e of rolling stock, both motive powiu'and
" freight cars, on ordinary railroads, has proven the great ad-
" vantage in carrying greater ami grcatoi' \o'm\^ at one time. A
" lew years ago 10-ton cars were the rule in this country. Now
"30 tons ai-e becoming more and more numerous. Cars foi- still
" large)' loads for special pur])oses are bvcoming more and more
" common, and the locomotives have increased in weight and
" power from 30 and 40 tons to 90 and 100 tons, and the cost of
" transportation has been reduced from 2h cents to h cent i)er ton
" mile.

"A Ship Railway is the logical result of the continual ini-
" ])rovements in railroad methods from the time of the tirst rail-
" road to the present. If it is j)ossiblo to raise vessels and

y^cixflorct 2z=:

the Chigneiio S/ii/i Raihraij.

" transport tlioni ovei-liiiid with sul'oly and t'cononiy, wliy sliuiild
"they ho compolied to iiiaUo ^Mvat dolours roslin-- tiino and
'' money ?

"Jftlie immenso iMisincss Ixtlweeii llio St. Lawrence and (lie
" coast of New Hriinswiek and New l-lii-land <an save 500 to 700
"miles liy ojieratin"'- a railway 17 miles loiin; j, mmss llu3 ('liiu-.
"iieeto Isditnus, why slioiikl it continue to take this lon^' ai"l
"dan-erouH voya---e ai'oiind Nova Seolia?"

Aeeor.lin-' to the ollieial returns from the Rcjioit on 'I'rade
and Navigation for the year endinir .'{Olh .liine, ISIM), the tonnage
arrivliii;- and dcpai-lint;- at the various ports eonti<^iioiis to the
Ship Ifaihvay was as follows : —

IV.v.V(/.s'. 'r<i}i;:.

(iidf of bt. Lawrence -JS,7>S7 <5,-l2L^!t7i;

Prince Kdward Island S,7o;{ l.;;(iL',S(;i

Kay of Fundy ;j3;j4r) ;],Hr,r),!t;{2

(Jrand Total 70,!I25 1 1,<; tl,7(i:»

The rate of increu.-e for several years has hei'n half u million
tons per annum according; to official Blue B' oks.

This lonnai^e does not include any port west of (Juehec or on
the Atlantic coast of the Peninsula of Nova Scotia. Althou'^h
the Ports of J/ortland and Boston might come within the sphere
of trade, they, like Montreal, Toronto, and ports west of (Quebec,
are omitted in the above talde.

The (Jompany's estimate of ti'aflic is h;ised on only seven per
cent, of the tonnage of the (lulf and Bay, or SOU, 000 tons.
Should the Ship Itailway draw this moderate jiroportion of the
tonnage it is estimated that there would he a revenue nearly
Kutlieient to |)ay a dividentl of seven per cent, on the eai)ilal of
the (!omj)any without calling on the tiovcrnment for any portion
of the guarantee, as appears from the fullowing figures : —
800,000 tons fi eight at an average of TjO cents per ton . ...$400,000
800,000 tons vessels' hulls at an average of 12^ els. per ion, 100,000

Hstimated J{ecei]»ls SodO.OOO

Working exjKMises and administration as per estimate of

Sir B. Baker, being 30 per cent, of the receipts 150,000

Net Revenue $;]5(),000

Setting apart the subsidy to provide interest on the bonds for
20 years, a traffic of only 320,000 tons at the above rates, would

82 Ketchum on Ship Transporlulion ami

provitlo 7 per cent, on tho proforcod Mliure capital, and 7 per
cent, on tho ordinai'y share capital, thus:

320,000 Ions at tlio avoraj^^o i-ato of 50 cents per ton SKIO.OOO

320,000 tons vessels' hulls at tho average rate of 12i cents

per ton 40,000

Receipts $200,000

Working expenses, 30 per cent G0,000

Net Eevenuc S140,000

7 per cent, on Sl,r)00,OOtyi.^e{iM-mUhares $105,000

7 per cent, on $500,000 ]iiie4'Biitiiirsharcs 35,000

Total dividend $140,000

The working expcnsos of the Shi)) Eailway, as compared with
a railway of the ordinary type, should be very small indeed.
The line is perfectly straight. One half of it is absolutely level.
Tho other half has gradients not exceeding 10 feet to tho mile.
The woi'ks are solidly built, the rails heavy; the sleepers of un-
usual size; tho ballast, broken rock, it is believed me cost of
maintenance of way will be reduced to a minimum. It may bo
considered a freight line, without the usual terminal oxponscs.
The freight, that is the vessel with its cargo, loads and unloads
itself automatically on and otl" tho railway. The speed will bo
slow, not exceeding ton miles an hour. Fuel is cheap in the coal
])roducing county of Cumberland, Nova Scotia. Besides tho cost
of lifting vessels to the level of the railway and depositing them
afterwards into the sea, which is veiy small, the principal cost
will be the locomotive i)Ower, which on ordinary i-ailways bears
the proportion of about 17^ pe- cent, to tho gross earnings. It is
lielieved, therefore, that the estimate of 30 per cent, for working
ex])enses is full. The estimate of working expenses was based
on the Usual cost of maintenance and repairs on a double track
railway for the whole year. Without any especial oftbrt to
economize, the Ship Railway might be worked for $50,000 per
annum, which would, of course, poi'mit of the same profits with
very much less tonnage. A regular daily line of steamers
between St. John and Charlottetown over tho line of Ship Eail-
way would contribute largely to tho business expected. The
Chignecto Steamship Company has been formed in London, with
a capital of £60,000, for this purpose ; the untoward financial

TyTTyToTa ^^^

-^Krt3P

</ttf Chignecio SIii'/j Rttilirtu/.

crisis so fai- 1ms prevented this dlijocl tVoiu ln-iiii;' citnsiiiiunateii,
but it is steadily kept iit view.

The tolls to bo charged on the Ship Railway must be sanction-
ed by the Crovernor-(joneral in Council before lieinir levied and
collected by the »Jom])any.

The estimated avei-age rate of tifty cents per ton is thei-eforo
only suggested as the probal)le rate that the <iovei'nment would
bo inclined to sanction for the freight cai'ried. \nv it is, in fact,
very similar to the charges prevalent on the Welland Canal,
which have been levied by the Goveinment itself. Thepi'oposed
rates, whicii, although tlioy amount in the average to half a
dollai- a ton, will scarcely be felt when levied on the bushel or
banel by the shipper, who is accustomod to the JMgh freights
levied by the foreign steam lines running lluoiigh thi- Straits of
Can.xo to Boston. At this rate one dollar will lie >aved on all
freight going i-ound to St. John by water. The freight from St.
John to Baie Verto being 82.50 ))er ton, while that to the head
of the Bay of Fundy is one dollar por ton. there is a diti'erence of
81.50 per ton, and deducting 50 cents per ton for the transport
acro.ss the Isthmus, there is one dollar saved in the freight, not
to count the saving of time and insurance.

The charges on freight caigoes would be at the same rate, no
matter by what description of vessel carried, but the rates on the
hull would probably be requii'ed to be on a >liding scale accord-
ing to the size of the vessel, the highest rate being on the
smallest vessels, because a small-sized vessel would occupy the
railwa}' as long as a large sized one, anil the revenue otherwise
obtainable from small vessels would not bring a protit to the
Company. The estimated propo>ed average rate of I2h cents
per ton would be a fair i-ate to charge on hulls as compared with
that on Canals where the co>t of towage is considered ; the lattei-
being done on the Ship Railway liy locomotivo and on the
Canals by steam tug-hoat>.

Respecting the time to be saved and the >arety of vessels on
the Ship Railway, no less than twenty-lour prominent tirms of
shi])0wners in London and Liverpool, having experience of the
coast of Nova Scotia, have certified that a ^aving of ten days
would generally be made In' sailing vessels cleai'ing fi-om ])orts
on the Gulf, ami making for St. John. Portland and Boston, by
Using the Ship Railway, and so avoiding the weathering of Cape

miwfiHiiiiiiirojin

i^WPfi

Ketchum on l^hijt Transj/ortationy etc.

N<»rth and Capo Cjimho, us by jirosont louto. Thoy liavocortiticil
al«o that loadeil vessels wonkl not bo injured on the J?ailway, if
supported on a ciadio such as is used on all marine wlips.

The most ])roininent naval architects of the day, Sir E. J. JJeed,
the late Sir William Peaice, Sir Nathaniel Barnaby, and Mr.
"William John, all certify to there being no danger to the ship nor
cai'go during trans|)ortation from sea to sea.

Mr. Bindon B. Stoney, the authority on "strains," says, " A
ship resembles a tubular structure, more or less rectangular in
section, underneath which the points of 8up])ort are continually
r »ving, so that when the waves are high and far apart the deck
a.id bottom of the vessel are alternately extended and compressed,
in the same way that the flanges of a continuous girder are, near
the points of inflection, when traversed by a passing train." No
such strain as this is possible on the Ship Eailway.

There is reason to believe, therefore, that the Ship liailway,
when completed, will be an undoubted success in every way, and
become the pioneer of many works of like character.

In conclusion, the author would allude to the assiduous care
and attention bcstowetl on this work by his colleagues, Sir John
Fowler and Sir Benjamin Baker, the engineers who designed
and carried to a successful completion the equally novel enter-
prise of the Forth Bridge. Without their powerful aid and co-
operation the work could hardly have reached its present ad-
vanced state of progress. Should it be the success we anticipate
Mr.. Meiggs also, who undertook to raise the capital in England,
as well as to contract for th^j execution of all the works, will be
entitled to a principal share of the credit which should attach to
the inauguration of a new and economic system of transportation
for the benefit alike of Canada and the whole world.

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