NATURE 



THURSDAY, JUNE 21, lyoO. 



BRITISH INLAND NAVIGATION. 



< ' ir Watcncavs. A History of Inland Navigation 

 lOiisiJercd as a Branch 0/ Water Conservancy. By 

 Urquhart A. Foibcs .-ind W. H. R. Ashford. 

 Pp. xv + j.16. (London : John Munay, 1906.) Price 

 \2S. net. 



I]" w.-is originally intended to deal in this volume 

 with the whole subject of water conservancy, 

 which has been defined as " the scientific treatment 

 and regulation of all the water received in these 

 islands, from its first arrival in the form of dew or 

 rain till its final disappearance in the ocean," tracing 

 the evolution and subsequent history of the various 

 branches of water conservancy, which, in addition 

 to inland navigation, comprise fisheries, water-supply, 

 the mitigation of floods, and the prevention of river 

 pollution. Owing, however, to the greatly increased 

 interest displayed in the improvement and utilisation 

 of our inland waterways, this subject has been given 

 j)recedence of the other branches, and forms the 

 main purport of this book, though the other branches 

 are occasionally referred to. 



The appearance of the volume is in any case very 

 opportune, for it has appro.ximately coincided with 

 the appointment of a Royal Commission to inquire 

 into the condition of the inland waterways of the 

 I'niled Kingdom, and to investigate whether it might 

 be possible to devise some scheme by which inland 

 navigation in the British Isles, so long neglected, 

 may be revived and improved, so as to serve pro- 

 fitably for the conveyance of bulky goods, and thereby 

 reduce the cost of carriage, and thus place British 

 manufacturers in a more favourable condition for 

 competing with their foreign rivals, and especially 

 with those for whom a paternal Government has 

 ])royided the facilities of free and commodious inland 

 waterways. 



.After a short introductory chapter on " The Objects 

 of Water Conservancy," the rainfall, drainage areas, 

 and principal rivers of the British Isles are referred 

 to in a chapter on " The Water System of the United 

 Kingdom," and certain important changes noted; 

 whilst in the next chapter the legal aspects of water 

 conservancy are dealt with. The authors trace three 

 distinct periods in the history of the navigation of 

 our waterways, namely, the first period, dating from 

 early times up to near the close of the sixteenth 

 century, when the rivers were used for navigation 

 in their natural condition, as described in a chapter 

 on the " Natural Waterways " of England; a second 

 period, from the close of the sixteenth century to the 

 commencement of the Bridgevvater Canal in 1759, in- 

 augurating the canal system in England, during 

 which time inland navigation on the rivers was im- 

 proved and extended by deepening their channels, of 

 \\hich some account is given in chapter y. ; and, 

 lastly, the canal era, dating from the construction 

 of the Bridgewater Canal, which, after a chapter 

 on ancient and early British canals, is dealt with in 

 two chapters in regard to England and Wales. .\ 

 NO. 191 2, VOL. 74] 



chapter on " The Conservancy of Rivers in England 

 and Wales since the Eighteenth Century " brings 

 the history of English rivers down to the present 

 time; whilst another chapter, on " Rivers and Canals 

 in Ireland and Scotland," where the development of 

 inland waterways was only commenced in the 

 eighteenth century, completes the sketch of river and 

 canal navigations in the United Kingdom. In 

 chapter xi. the decline of inland navigation in the 

 face of railway competition, and by the purchase of 

 important links by the railway companies, is referred 

 to, and statistics as to the total length of canals in 

 the United Kingdom, their traffic and revenues arc 

 given ; whilst the various causes which have con- 

 tributed to the very depressed condition of the great 

 majority of the canal companies are explained. 



Though the book contains, as indicated by the 

 preceding summary, a considerable amount of in- 

 formation as to the rise, progress, and present con- 

 dition of the inland waterways of the United King- 

 dom, as well as the legislative enactments controlling 

 them, which Mr. Forbes, as a barrister, is specially 

 qualified to deal \yith, the most interesting subject 

 at the present time is undoubtedly the one considered 

 in the last chapter, namely, " The Resuscitation 

 of Our Waterways," to which the previous portion 

 of the book has gradually led up. In dealing, how- 

 ever, with this subject, it is important to draw a 

 very definite distinction between the inland water- 

 ways with which the authors are concerned and 

 the maritime waterways of the United Kingdom, such 

 as the tidal estuaries and rivers and the Manchester 

 Ship Canal, which, though referred to amongst in- 

 land waterways, are quite outside the scope of the 

 book, and are in no need of resuscitation. The 

 flourishing sea-going trade of Great Britain is, in- 

 deed, due to her maritime waterways, many of which 

 have been greatly improved to keep pace with the 

 growth of traffic and the increasing draught of large 

 vessels; whilst the Manchester Ship Canal, though 

 proceeding inland, and having unfavourably affected 

 schemes for the development of inland waterways 

 by its unsatisfactory financial results, is essentially 

 a maritime \yaterwny, and has proved of great 

 value to the sea-going trade of the district by con- 

 verting the inland city of Manchester into a seaport, 

 independent of Liverpool and the railways. 



Whereas, however, the United Kingdom, with its 

 very extensive coast-line and numerous important 

 tidal rivers, is exceptionally well fitted by nature for 

 maritime trade, its restricted area and small river- 

 basins, resulting in small rivers above their tidal 

 limit, separated by high water-partings in proportion 

 to the moderate distance between them requiring to 

 be surmounted by a canal, place this country at a 

 serious disadvantage in regard to inland navigation 

 as compared with the continent of Europe, with 

 its very extensive river-basins draining into large 

 rivers flowing for long distances over comparatively 

 level plains, and capable in some cases of being joined 

 across their water-parting by a canal of requisite 

 size, without having to rise to a considerable eleva- 

 tion, and at a reasonable cost. In spite, nevertheless, 



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