ENGINEERING. 575 



rope about one thousand miles nearer, and shorten the ocean 

 voyage by this distance, by rendering possible the establish- 

 ment of a steamship line from St. Johns, having direct rail- 

 way connection with New York and other centres of traffic 

 in the United States. 



THE CAPE COD SHIP-CANAL 



project, so long mooted, was ably advocated during the past 

 year by Mr. Clemens Herschel, of Boston. He pointed out 

 that, while for purposes of commerce the building of the 

 Hoosac Tunnel had materially aided the city in question by 

 enabling it to compete with New York and Philadelphia for 

 the Western trade, so far as ocean outlet is concerned, it still 

 remained landlocked, save due eastwards, where passage to 

 Liverpool is unblocked. To overcome these natural obstacles 

 the proposal is made to make a short-cut ship-canal from 

 deep-water at Barnstable Bay to deep-water at Buzzard's 

 Bay. The line of canal proposed is seven and a half miles 

 through a low valley, the soil of which is described as "a 

 diluvium of sand and gravel, with some boulders." At the 

 narrowest point the valley is two hundred and twenty yards 

 wide, and an average depth of eighteen feet at mean low- 

 water would require but thirty- five feet of easy cutting. 

 Mr. Herschel's plan contemplates a canal twenty feet below 

 sea-level at the southern, and twenty-two and a half feet 

 at the northern end, giving at high-water twenty-two feet 

 at the southern and twentv- seven at the northern. The 

 width on bottom would be sixty feet, with side slope of one 

 and a quarter, giving a surface width of one hundred and 

 eleven to one hundred and thirty-four feet. Buzzard's Bay 

 has a natural harbor, but a small auxiliarv harbor will be 

 required at Barnstable. Part of the Old Colony Railroad 

 must be re-located ; there must be a drawbridge for the rail- 

 road and highway, and one ferry each at North and West 

 Sandwich. The total estimates for this work figure up to 

 $1,984,900. Mr. Herschel advocates a free channel with nat- 

 ural current, and he forcibly points out the inconveniences 

 and dangers of the present roundabout route. 



DELAWARE AND MARYLAND SHIP-CANAL. 

 In pursuance of an act of the last Congress, appropriating 



