RIDEAU CANAL 



5014 



RIDING 



ankles. The weak legs become bowed, the 

 skull bulges out, the spine bends forward or 

 sideways, and the child becomes "chicken- 

 breasted." Soft spots in the head may fail 

 to close for months beyond the natural time. 

 The bones become so tender that even gentle 

 handling of the child causes it pain, and at 

 night it is restless and perspires profusely. Un- 

 less the disease is checked permanent deformi- 

 ties may result. As soon as the symptoms are 

 noticed a child with rickets should be placed 

 in the care of a physician. Dieting and atten- 

 tion to hygienic rules must be carefully ob- 

 served. Proper nourishment, fresh air and 

 clean and suitable clothing are the best aids to 

 recovery. The standard medicine for cases of 

 rickets is cod-liver oil, and in some instances 

 physicians may prescribe phosphorus and other 

 tonics. 



RIDEAU, re doh' , CANAL, sometimes called 

 the OTTAWA-RIDEAU CANAL, is a Canadian 

 waterway extending from Kingston, on Lake 

 Ontario, to Ottawa, on the Ottawa River. From 

 Ottawa vessels can proceed down the Ottawa 

 River to Montreal; thus the system provides 

 a waterway between Montreal and Lake On- 

 tario and avoids the rapids of the Saint Law- 

 rence River (see map, page 1110). The dis- 

 tance between Montreal and Kingston by this 

 route is 246 miles. When the Rideau Canal 

 was begun, in 1826, this connection was of 

 vital military importance, but the subsequent 

 construction of railways destroyed its military 

 value. It maintained its commercial impor- 

 tance, however, for years, and is still used ex- 

 tensively, although chiefly for local traffic. 



The Rideau Canal was completed in 1832, 

 and the first vessel passed through on May 29 

 of that year. It was built under the direction 

 of Colonel John By, the British officer who 

 founded Ottawa (which see, subhead History). 

 The cost of construction was a little more than 

 $4,000,000. The canal is 126 miles long, has a 

 navigable depth of four and one-half feet, and 

 includes forty-seven locks, each 134 feet long 

 by thirty-three feet wide. A considerable por- 

 tion of the Rideau system is canalized lake 

 and river, beginning with the Cataraqui River 

 at Kingston; farther north is Rideau Lake, 

 from which the Rideau River flows into the 

 Ottawa River at Ottawa. 



Strictly considered, the Rideau Canal is the 

 waterway from Ottawa to Kingston. The Ot- 

 tawa Canals include three features, the Gren- 

 ville and Carillon canals and the Saint Anne 

 Lock, all on the Ottawa River and constructed 



to perfect the water connection between Ot- 

 tawa and Montreal. The Saint Anne Lock 

 cost $1,170,000; and the Grenville and Carillon 

 canals, which are usually regarded as one canal, 

 cost $4,000,000. The locks on this system are 

 200 feet long by forty-five feet wide. The 

 traffic through the combined Ottawa-Rideau 

 system is about 500,000 tons a year, of which 

 one-half is the product of mines and more than 

 one-third is lumber. Of the total traffic the 

 Rideau Canal carries only 150,000 tons, the 

 balance being between Montreal and Ottawa. 

 There is practically no passenger traffic on the 

 canals, although in recent years an increasing 

 number of motor boats use certain parts of 

 the waterway for short pleasure trips. 



RIDGWAY, rij'wa, ROBERT (1850- ), a 

 leading American ornithologist, was born at 

 Mount Carmel, 111. From his boyhood he 

 showed a remarkably intelligent interest in 

 natural history, and when but seventeen years 

 of age was zoologist to the Clarence King geo- 

 graphical exploration of the fortieth parallel. 

 In 1880 he became curator of the bird depart- 

 ment in the National Museum at Washington, 

 a post which he has retained ever since ; and in 

 1883 he helped to found the American Orni- 

 thologists' Union, of which he later became 

 president. He wrote A Nomenclature of Col- 

 ors jor Naturalists, a Manual of North Ameri- 

 can Birds and The Birds of North and Middle 

 America, this last his chief work. It appeared 

 in eight volumes, and ranks as one of the most 

 important works on ornithology ever written, 

 though very technical in form. 



RIDING, ride 'ing, when used in the sense of 

 horsemanship, is a term which defines the art 

 of keeping an easy and graceful seat on the 

 back of a horse. Different peoples ride in dif- 

 ferent ways, and consequently have different 

 standards of excellence; but it is generally ad- 

 mitted that the Cossacks of the Russian 

 steppes, the wandering horsemen of Arabia and 

 the cowboys of North America are among the 

 world's most wonderful riders. The Cossacks 

 and the cowboy are noted, in particular, for 

 the ease with which they follow the rhythm 

 of the horse's movements, so as almost to 

 become a part of his body. Poise and con- 

 stant practice are required for such riding. 



The horse has naturally three paces the 

 walk, the trot and the canter, or gallop. A so- 

 called "gaited" horse has been broken to still 

 other paces, more comfortable for the rider, 

 but the expert horseman adapts himself easily 

 to any gait- He sits upright in the saddle, 



