HYDROLOGY OF NEW YORK 



797 



and ordinary shallow canals and who were acquainted with the 

 history of canal transportation as affected by the competition of 

 railways and who had the knowledge that would enable us to 

 profit by the experience of* other countries in these matters. 



This committee, which was known as the Canal Committee, 

 reported, under date of January 15, 1900, in favor of enlarging the 

 canal enough to take a barge of 1000 tons capacity. In order to 



Fig. 61 Earth section of original Erie canal. Width of bottom of 

 canal 26 feet. 



accomplish this, a canal 12 feet deep is required, 75 feet wide at 

 the bottom and 123 feet wide at water surface. 



Seymour plan for enlargement of Eric canal. The canal im- 

 provement of 1895 was formulated by State Engineer and Sur- 

 veyor, Horatio Seymour, Jr., in 1878. 



The Canal Committee considered the Seymour plan and re- 

 ported that the cost of completing it would be $12,923,639. This 

 estimate includes the work required to deepen the prism of the 

 canal to 9 feet and to give not less than 8 feet across aqueducts, 



Fig. 65 Earth section of enlargement of Erie canal of 1862. Width 

 of bottom of canal 52 feet. 



mitre sills, culverts and other permanent structures, and for 

 lengthening and improving locks remaining to be lengthened. 

 The estimates are considered large enough to cover the increased 

 cost due to the eight-hour law and the increase in cost of labor 

 and materials and for engineering and inspection. 



The Seymour-Adams plan. In his report for 1896 State Engi- 

 neer Adams proposed an extension or modification of the original 

 project authorized for the Erie canal under the "$9,000,000 act." 

 His proposition was to obtain a depth of 9 feet throughout the 



