136 Notices respecting New Books. 
i 
the North and Atlantic seas by a canal, which from its large 
scale, and the extensive lakes through which it passes, should 
rather be looked upon as an artificial arm of the sea, on which 
ships of 4 and 500 tons and 20 feet draught of water ean sail. 
The other work,—the jetty at Plymouth,—reminds us of the 
grand works at Cherbourg. The bold conception achieved at 
Cherbourg, of founding in the open sea a huge mole, an artifi- 
cial island, intended to secure a space of water, forming a road, 
against the winds and waves, has been likewise applied to Ply- 
mouth. But the English had not, like us, large and expensive 
experiments to try, in order to construct that mole which they 
call by a term denoting its destination, Break-water. Themole, 
erected at three miles from the bottom of the road (the Sound), 
stretches to an extent of 4200 feet in a straight chief line, ter- 
minated by two short ones slightly directed inwards, between 
which and the shore there are two passes, the one westerly, the 
cther easterly. It is built in the way termed by us @ pierres 
perdues, with enormous blocks of stone, of more than 20,000 
pounds weight, which form the nucleus. The hollow and uneven 
parts of this enormous heap are filled up by smaller blocks let 
down according to fixed lines; but confusedly, and as it were 
given up to the water and waves to be enchased and sloped. This 
huge wall rises, or rather sinks, to a depth of 57 feet, and is 300 
feet wide at the basis and 30 at the top, which is raised 3 feet 
only above the level of spring-tides. This stupendous work, 
planned and directed by Mr. Rennie, has been going on these 
five years; it will require as many years more to be finished, and 
an expense of 1,000,000/. sterling. The particular description of 
all the means used for the extracting, conveying, and launching 
of the enormous blocks of stone, is executed by M. Dupin with 
the utmost care, and makes in some degree the reader present 
at thé execution of this great work, which reminds us of the an- 
cient and celebrated monuments known by the appellation of 
Cyclopeen constructions. 
‘It is chiefly in considering (as the author has done in hoth 
these descriptions) a great work as a whole, and then in all its 
details, that we are struck with the perfection which the English 
have been enabled to give to most of their machines, and to the’ 
application of inventions which often produced in French soil, 
could not thrive there. ‘To this the essays of every kind which 
the extension of English industry and their numerous establish-, 
ments allowed them to multiply, must undoubtedly have con- 
tributed. But there is still another cause to be looked for in 
the difference of national characters: An Englishman is satisfied 
if he has added any improvement, how little soever, to a ma~' 
chine, to an invention; without ‘aspiring to make it his own, by 
changes 
