THE HISTORY AND ECONOMIC VALUE OF CANALS. 47 



this canal have foundations extending 35 feet under water; hence I am inclined 

 to believe that it would be desirable if the depth of 25 feet could be increased to 

 accommodate vessels of a draught of at least 35 feet. The Panama Canal is to 

 have 40 feet of water in it, and as the Cape Cod Canal will certainly have to 

 accommodate a large majority of all the commerce passing by sea from Boston to 

 New York and vice versa, I incline to the belief that the promoters of this great 

 enterprise should seriously consider a draught of water of at least 30 feet, and still 

 better 35 feet, and as the material to be removed can all be handled by dredges, 

 and transported by scows, the increased cost will be much less in proportion than 

 it would be if excavated dry and the soil transported by rail. 



Commodore MiIvLER: — ^The matter of depth of the canal had very grave 

 consideration on the part of the corporation of which I have the honor to be vice- 

 president. Ours is a commercial company building a waterway for the coast-wise 

 commerce of the United States. This commerce necessitates not more than 

 twenty-five feet depth at low water. From a business and financial point of view 

 we see no necessity of any deeper channel. May I say incidentall}^ that, consider- 

 ing the skepticism of the past, the Belmont syndicate is showing wisdom in so 

 doing. The people, the Government and the State of Massachusetts should appre- 

 ciate that while other organizations are demanding aid, we are building this first 

 of the Atlantic coast canals with our own resources for the merchant marine of 

 the country and the coast. If the Navy wishes a thirty-four or forty-foot canal 

 we will, however, as patriotic citizens be ready to listen to any proposition that 

 the Government may make. Foreseeing that there may be some possibilit}^ of 

 deepening the canal for battleships at some future period, we are going to the 

 great expense of making the foundations of our bridges deep enough for such a 

 contingency, and are about to place our wharves sufficiently far back from the 

 center of the canal so that they will not interfere with any greater depth required 

 by the Navy. Such is my answer from the business, financial and commercial 

 side of the question. 



If it were put to me as vice-president of this Society, and an ex-officer of 

 the Navy, my answer would be as follows: — 



While well aware that the place for a battleship is the open sea and off shore, 

 still I can conceive of some crucial moment when the squadrons at such strategical 

 points as New York, Boston and Narragansett Bay should be united with the 

 utmost celerity as a fleet to quickly oppose a united enemy of large force. In 

 such an event if the canal were thirt}^ feet in depth at low water, 150 miles could 

 be saved over the route outside of Nantucket, and such saving warrants the addi- 

 tional outlay of about $3,000,000, and I will venture to prophesy that that extra 

 depth will eventually be made and at a cost far exceeding what it can be done 

 for during the present process of construction. It would be a trifle if it insured a 

 victory by uniting squadrons in the time of need. 



Again, the Government has now under consideration the deepening of the 



