356 
Report on a Route across 
[No. 4, 
of (143 *f 33 + 12 + 153) 341 hours. The direct line of China 
steamers touching at Singapore would probably delay, ordinarily 
6 hours at Penang and 12 at Singapore,—this added to the steam 
distance gives 300 hours, making a difference in point of time in favour 
of the Krau route, via Akyab, of 19 hours, while the latter picks 
up all the trade. The valuable goods (opium especially) and the 
mail from England might be sent by a single steamer running twice 
a month to and from Calcutta to Krau. The cost of this steamer 
is shown in Table IV. and the capital for construction of rail¬ 
road would be reduced to £700,000, much more than sufficient, 
however. This arrangement of running a steamer direct to Krau 
from Calcutta would beat the direct line to China via Singapore, by 
93 hours as follows :— 
From Calcutta to Krau, 
• • • »•i 
102 hours. 
From Krau to Tayoung, 
• • • ♦ • • 
12 
V 
„ Tayoung to Hong-kong, 
• M • • • 
153 
Total— 
-267 
From Calcutta to Singapore, 
• • • « • • 
179 
»> 
Stoppages, 
• • # 
18 
» 
Hong-kong, 
Ml IM 
163 
77 
Difference, 93 hours, 
... Total— 
-360 
77 
and would give a regular weekly communication with Calcutta as 
shown in last para, while the line running via Akyab gives to the 
eastern coast of the Bay of Bengal all the advantages of early 
communication with home, which its western coast enj oys via. 
Madras. But the steamers via Akyab, should not have to go up 
the "Rangoon and Maulmein rivers, by which means other 32 
hours would be saved, making a total saving, even after touching 
at all the four posts (for Mergui would probably be moved to the 
Pakchan) of (19 + 3 -f- 12) 34 hours over the Singapore line. Ele¬ 
phant Point and Amherst Point should be the respective posts of 
call, for Rangoon and Maulmein, with telegraphic communication 
between those places and the capitals of Pegu, and the Martaban 
and Tenasserim provinces. 
