CANALS. 107 



Dublin to Cloondara on the Shannon ; and the Foyle navigation, by the 

 Marquis of Abercorn, from Strabane to the River Foyle. 



According- to the Report of the Committee of the Irish House of Com- 

 mons already quoted, the following- sums had been issued before 1800 bv the 

 Treasury from the produce of the tillage duties, and under grants of Parlia- 

 ment and King's letters for promoting inland navigation, viz.: — 



Issued from the produce of tillage duties from 1730 to 1790 ;!^35 1,946 

 Under grants of Parliament and King's Letters from 



1750 to 1800, including the Lap-an local duties, . 505,436 



Total, . . . ;^857,382 



In the year 1800 a new plan was adopted for promoting, completing, and 



controlling inland navigation in Ireland. A statute 



Appointment of a (40th of George III., chap. 51), was passed which, 



Board of Directors- after reciting that the means heretofore provided 



General of against the improvident expenditure of public money 



A JJ 'rf +• towards the furtherance of inland navigation have not 



Inland Navigation, answered the purpose expected, gives the Lord Lieu- 



1800-1831. tenant power to appoint five persons to be Directors of 



all works relating to inland navigation, with full power and authority to 



order, direct, regulate, and appoint all matters and things whatsoever relating 



to inland navigation. A sum of ;^5oo,ooo was by the same Act granted for 



inland navigation and for the improvement of the Port of Dublin, which sum 



was to be expended as recommended bv the Directors. All navigations and 



canals managed by local corporations and not private property were vested 



by the same Act in the Directors. The following is a list of the navigations 



either wholly or partially completed in 1800, when the Directors assumed 



office: — 



1. The Maigue, 7. The Barrow, 



2. The iNewry, 8. The Grand Canal, 



3. The Tyrone, 9. The Royal Canal, 



4. The Lower Boyne, 10. The Foyle, 



5. The Shannon, 11. The Lagan. 



6. The Upper Boyne, 



The four first-named became vested in the Directors as not being private 

 property. The fifth (the Shannon) was partly vested in the Directors and 

 partlv in private companies. The six last continued to be managed as private 

 undertakings. From 1800 to 183 1 the inland navigation of the country was 

 directly or indirectly managed by the new Board, and large sums of public 

 money, in addition to the ;^5oo,ooo granted by the 40th of George the Third, 

 were given on their recommendation for the completion and support of the 

 various navigations, both public and private. No new navigation was com- 

 menced during the rule of the Directors-General, but all those that were un- 

 finished in 1800 were, except the Shannon, completed. The Royal Canal 

 Company having become insolvent, the Royal Canal was vested in the Direc- 

 tors in 1814, and was finished by them. This canal was handed over to a new 

 Company in 1822. The Grand Canal Company also became much embar- 

 rassed, but having received a large grant of money from Parliament in 1813 

 continued to manage their business themselves. The other private navi- 

 gations likewise received large support from the public funds, but we are 

 unable to state the exact amounts granted to each. The entire expenditure, 

 both public and private, was, as will be seen further on, very great. In 



