574 



BRITISH RAILWAYS 



settled in Canada. There has also been considerable increase of the imports of frozen 

 meat. The port dues grew from 146,565 in 1911 to 155,284 in 1912. The latter 

 figures are the highest on record, and the trade has doubled since 1882. Grain and 

 provisions continue to be among the chief imports, and petroleum and fruit have been 

 imported in increasing quantities of late." There is still a heavy call on the'rates to meet 

 the deficiency in dock revenue, the amount .of aid in 1912 being 140,000 compared with 

 154,000 in. 1911. The . city's indebtedness considerably exceed^ 8,000,000, over 

 5,750,000 being for docks, after allowing for accumulations in the Sinking Fund. 



Humbcr and Lincolnshire Coast. At Hull an important addition to the facilities for 

 the coal export trade was made in 1910 by the installation of coaling beds at the Victoria 

 Docks. This method of shipping coaf, the appliance for which has a capacity of 6op 

 tons per hour, had not previously been employed in England. The extension of the 

 joint dock was completed in 1912. 



The greatest undertaking on the east coast has been the construction by the Great 

 Central Railway of the Immingham Dock, opened by the King on July 22, 1912. Six 

 miles from Grimsby and nine miles nearer the North Sea than Hull, Immingham pos- 

 sesses many advantages, providing free ingress and egress at any state of the tide* The 

 area of the dock property, which is two and a half miles in length and one mile in 

 breadth, is just over 1,000 acres, and the railway sidings and lines extend to 170 miles, 

 being sufficient to take 11,600 waggons carrying upwards of 10,000 tons. The water 

 area is 45 acres. There are eight hydraulic steam hoists capable of shipping 5,600 tons 

 per hour. From Grimsby itself the coal shipments to foreign ports in 1911 exceeded 

 1,500,000 tons. At Boston dock extension has been taken in hand. 



Wrecks. The number of vessels belonging to the United Kingdom totally lost at sea in 

 1910 was 319, of 150,142 tons (sailing 195 of 32,547 tons, steam 124 of 117,595 tons). 



Communications: Railways. Table XXVIII gives particulars for the railways of 

 the United Kingdom in 1911, the figures being also analysed under the three divisions 

 of the kingdom for purposes of comparison. 



..'>;. I V-f :-.., H -fill!':.' -";'. : ; * -..-;.: fffifj .+ .!! 



Table XXVIII. Railway Statistics, 1911. 



The percentage of working expenditure to total receipts was 62 for the whole kingdom, 

 63 for England and Wales, 56 for Scotland and 62 for Ireland. 



The (ireat Western Railway company, having shortened its route between Birmingham 

 and London by making a new line via Aynho, has spent upwards of 2,000,000 in the Birming- 

 ham district in widening and improving the line north and south of the city, rebuilding Snow 

 Hill Station and constructing a new passenger station and a large goods station at Moor 

 Street, near the public markets. The London and North- Western Railway company are 

 preparing an important scheme for the improvement of New Street Station, Birmingham, 

 and the extension of the adjoining Queen's Hotel. A new line is projected from Coventry 

 to Arlcy in conjunction with the Whitacrc and Nuneaton branch of the London and Nprth- 

 Western, for the purpose of developing the coalfield in the neighbourhood of Coventry. ' In 

 connection with recent labour disputes it may be mentioned that the North- Western company 



1 Excluding season-ticket holders. 



