THE CAPE COD CANAL 



187 



through a sea-level channel ; that no lit- 

 toral sand-drift would clog the entrance, 

 or that the anticipated quicksands ex- 

 isted, and that a modern up-to-date chan- 

 nel, comparable in dimensions to the ones 

 at Kiel and Manchester, was practicable, 

 while the tolls from the thousands of 

 vessels now rounding Cape Cod would 

 provide a return upon the money ex- 

 pended. 



The result is that a private corporation 

 is about to finish this much-needed water- 

 way. Its financial success being assured, 

 money for other essential ones along the 

 Atlantic coast probably can be obtained, 

 and thus the Treasury of the United 

 States will be relieved from the many 

 demands made upon it in "river and har- 

 bor bills," while the merchant marine can 

 afford to pay for the increased safety. 

 Governmental taxes will not be increased 

 and the consumer will receive his raw 

 product at less cost. 



The point must be kept in mind that 

 the Cape Cod Canal is a commercial 

 proposition. In a recent address Mr. 

 Belmont made the following statement: 

 "The present canal as planned is ample 

 for all commercial purposes. We are 

 satisfied with it , need no help to construct 

 it and want none " And yet a study of 

 the chronology and histor}^ of the Cape 

 Cod problem shows that since the days 

 of the P evolution continued stress has 

 been laid upon its military aspect. Its 

 importance as an interior line of defense 

 is greater today than ever before. 



The preceding pages have been neces- 

 sarily limited to a mere outline of the 

 efforts of far-seeing men to accomplish 

 a boon to navigation and to humanity. 

 Let us now take an imaginary trip 

 through the canal. 



Approaching the western end of the 

 canal either by train or motor, we find 

 ourselves at the railroad station of the 

 village of Buzzards Bay. A walk of a 

 few hundred yards brings us to the new 

 2,200-ton railroad bridge, with its single- 

 lift span of i6o feet in width. This can 

 be raised for the passage of ships in less 

 than one minute. Over the structure 

 runs the railroad both to Provincetown 

 and Woods Hole. As the line down the 

 cape crossed the canal valley in three 

 places, this bridge was essential to bring 



the New Haven road entirely on the 

 south bank of the new channel. From it 

 and as far as Sagamore side tracks will 

 be possible for new industries, requiring 

 both marine and land facilities. 



Standing upon the bridge, the reclama- 

 tion of the lowlands is noticeable, the 

 excavation from the prism having been 

 used to create level and solid ground. 

 The outlook from this point down the 

 bay is interesting, including as it does a 

 view of Grey Gables, the former home 

 of Grover Cleveland, and a stretch of the 

 5-mile approach deepened by the Canal 

 Company in order to reach the 30-foot 

 contour off Wings Neck. All the ex- 

 pense for the improvement of these 

 waters of the United States, as well as 

 that incident to building the bridges and 

 four miles of railroad, have been borne 

 by the Canal Compan}'-. 



Retracing our steps to the station, we 

 take our motor and, proceeding along 

 the main road, come to the new highway 

 bridge crossing the canal at Bourne. It 

 is elevated 35 feet above water to allow 

 minor craft to pass without opening the 

 draw. The foundations of this as well 

 as of all other bridges are sunk for a 

 prospective depth of 35 feet. Here we ob- 

 tain our first view of the lovely Bourne- 

 dale Valley, the bordering wooded hills 

 seemingly a barrier through which it 

 would be difficult to cut. 



This was the spot where Miles Stand- 

 ish met the Dutch sloops. It has taken 

 291 years to cut through the short inter- 

 vening barrier of less than four miles be- 

 tween the shallow waters of the bays. 



Turning on our tracks, we follow the 

 road along the north bank, and from its 

 summit look down upon a ribbon of 

 sparkling water, wider and deeper than 

 de Lesseps' original canal at Suez. Here 

 three months ago shovels were snorting 

 and locomotives puffing as they tugged 

 at boulders set like teeth in the stone wall 

 of glacial deposit. 



At our feet traces of the old river bed 

 are still visible, and perhaps a portion of 

 the dam protecting the contractor's plant 

 as it worked, with immense centrifugal 

 pumps, to keep the cut dry and create a 

 channel 12 feet below sea-level. The 

 dams were cut in April, and two great 

 "dipper" dredges, removing over 20,000 



