57G ANNUAL RECORD OF SCIENCE AND INDUSTRY. 



$15,000 for the survey of a route for a ship-canal to connect 

 Baltimore with the ocean, Major Hutton, Chief of Maryland 

 Division of United States Engineers, has been actively en- 

 gaged in examining the several routes that appear to be avail- 

 able for that purpose. Three routes are spoken of. One would 

 use the Choptank River (some fifty miles from Baltimore) as 

 far as what is known as Indian Creek, thence directly across 

 to the northwest fork of the Nauticoke, and thence in a 

 straight line to Broadkiln Creek, some three miles above the 

 breakwater. This line will be about forty miles in length. 

 A second route proposes to strike the St. Michael River 

 (about forty miles from Baltimore) at Royal Oak, from there 

 to the Choptank to a point above Lord's Landing, thence to 

 Cabin Creek, from which the line will be carried directly 

 to the Broadkiln on the Delaware. Another route is from 

 the Sassefras River (thirty-five miles from Baltimore) across 

 to Deep Water Point, making use of Blackbird Creek. 

 From what can be learned, however, the most desirable 

 seems to be the Chester River route, which runs from Balti- 

 more to Queenstown (twenty-eight miles), and then directly 

 to the Broadkiln on the Delaware, a distance of fifty-five 

 miles. For this improvement the following advantages are 

 claimed, viz. : by connecting the Chesapeake and Delaware 

 bays it will shorten the distance from Baltimore to the ocean 

 by about two hundred miles; and, furthermore, the commerce 

 of that city would be materially benefited. The city of 

 Baltimore was authorized by the Legislature of Maryland at 

 its last session to appropriate $500,000 towards the comple- 

 tion of the canal, which, with the assistance of Congress, is 

 expected to be shortly realized. 



A canal across the peninsula of Matanzas Inlet on the At- 

 lantic to Fort Wood or Clay Landing on the Suwanee River 

 in Florida is projected. It would require about seventy-five 

 miles of canal, but would have an excellent harbor on both 

 sides, with no obstructions. It would, it is said, reclaim at 

 least 1,000,000 acres of fertile land, and would shorten the 

 route between New York and New Orleans by about one 

 thousand or twelve hundred miles, saving about two thou- 

 sand miles on the round trip. 



