Hubert Gordon Thompson

“ If an average freight-charge be taken for different countries of the world, it is found that our net railway receipts are among the highest, and as the volume of traffic per mile is greater than in any other country, the net income ought to be proportionately large, but the want of system in laying out the lines, and the exorbitant cost of land and preliminary expenses, have so inflated the capital accounts that no considerable cheapening of the cost of transportation can be expected from the Railway Companies. ”

“ In water transport the question of cost, as in railway transport, is affected by many elements, such as the size of the canal and of the vessels employed, the number of locks with their mechanical appliances, the rate of speed, the system of traction, and other obvious factors previously mentioned. ”

“ Railway Transport Cost The cost of transport by Railway differs considerably from that by Canal. It has often been argued that the actual charge imposed by the Railway Companies is a likely criterion of the cost of the service, but this is distinctly a fallacy. In the United Kingdom the Railway Companies have openly proclaimed that the amount of traffic that a particular route will bear, and not the cost of the services rendered, is their basis of charge. ”

“ Other things being equal, the nation possessing the cheapest means of conveyance must gain the day in the struggle for industrial supremacy.
The rapid increase in commerce of the Nineteenth, and the still more rapid increase already experienced in the Twentieth Century, must be met, in this country, by a corresponding increase in facility of transport, in order that England may retain her position of commercial pre-eminence: a position which can only be maintained by the constant and careful investigation of the economy of each contributory factor. ”

“ The speed of boats on canals is regulated by several conditions, such as—the sectional area of the canal, radius of curve, changes of level, &c.—and thus even where locks and other obstructions are absent, a greater speed than 412 to 5 miles per hour is impossible without great damage being done to the banks. Hence the dimensions of the canal are of the first importance, since they not only fix the size of the boats, but also to a very great extent regulate the speed and economy with which it may be navigated. ”

“ The brilliant example of France in the modernisation of her Canals, Rivers and Ports, and the thorough and effective way in which by maintaining her inland navigations toll free she has tried to aid her manufacturers with the cheapest possible method of transport for goods, are worthy of high praise and close imitation. ”

“ Individual Enterprise. But although there has been no general or Government scheme for Canal improvement, yet the enterprise of a few individual Companies, such as the Aire and Calder and Weaver Navigations, has shewn that an up-to-date system will command success. Such success is shewn by the Board of Trade returns for 1890, when these navigations, constituting 114 out of a total of 3,935 miles of English waterways, together carried over 10% of the total freight on English Canals, or 3,750,000 tons out of a total of 34,325,000 tons transported on our Canals. ”

“ As matters stand at present, a trader who wishes to make use of a through canal route in England has generally to negotiate with a number of small companies, every one of which has its own rate of toll, and none of which is disposed to give too much facility to the other companies. ”

“ Dimensions and Speed. The number of locks naturally forms a most important factor in determining the speed at which a boat will traverse a given distance. It has been estimated that on the English canal system there is one lock to every 1·37 miles of waterway, and that a delay of at least six minutes is incurred at each change of level. [21] All these small losses of time reduce the total speed, and it is on the claim of quicker delivery that the chief advantage of the railway over the canal rests, a claim which we propose to consider for a short space. ”

“ Railways & Canals in conjunction It has often been urged that the Canal and the Railway should be combined under one management and that were the canals of sufficient size, with uniform gauge and capacity, they could be worked side by side with the railway to their mutual advantage, thus largely replacing the goods train with its consequent risk of both accident and delay caused by the shunting, etc., incidental to goods traffic. ”

“ One man is required to drive the motor, and the barge, which is merely connected by a towrope with the motor would have the usual two hands aboard. The estimated cost of haulage ranges from 912d. to 12d. per barge mile and the speed would be from 212 to 3 miles per hour.
Should the experiments be carried out and be found to facilitate navigation and cheapen transport to the extent anticipated, this system will doubtless be introduced on most of the canals of this country, as the aggregate saving on the volume of canal traffic would be very large. ”

“ Further, as canal traffic with electric haulage can be carried on both by night and by day, the average speed per day can be greatly increased, while the generating and distributing plant are constantly in use.
Statistics have been prepared showing the cost of haulage (i.) by horses, (ii.) by electric locomotives at the same running speed as with horses, and (iii.) by electric locomotives at a higher speed (four miles per hour) .
A length of 30 miles of level canal has been taken with an annual traffic of 100,000 tons per mile. ”

“ The state of dis-repair into which the banks have fallen, the want of dredging and consequent shallowness of the water, the small dimensions of locks and of the canals themselves, all combine to forbid the use of mechanical appliances, except upon those routes that have not these disadvantages.
Steam-haulage. The economy of steam haulage, where it is possible, is beyond dispute, but to the actual cost by steamer must also be added an amount for the depreciation and injury done to the banks of the canal when unprotected. ”

“ If the figures given are anything like correct for regular working, then the electric is undoubtedly the haulage of the future. For the present, the adoption of steam haulage is slowly on the increase, especially by those Canal Companies which are most enterprising, and which are consequently carrying the most traffic.
Speed on Canals. The greatest drawback to Inland Navigation is the slow rate of speed at which goods can be carried. ”

“ The present condition of our inland transport is a subject which calls for the close attention of all who are in any way interested in the commercial prosperity of the country at large. The enormous increase in our imports and exports demands a corresponding increase in the facilities for inland transport. ”

“ The London and Hampshire is one of the few Canals which act as Carriers—in fact its revenue is almost entirely derived from carrying Freights.
The Regent's is only a short Canal of 1012 miles length, and runs from East to West of London.
The Thames Navigation has a connection with the Severn by two routes but part of each route is owned by the Gt. Western Railway Co.
III.—Humber Group. Humber group is composed entirely of barge Canals. The chief being:—
The Aire and Calder is one of the most successful of our barge Canals, both as a Carrier and a Toll-taker. ”

“ That no canal shall be transferred to, or placed directly or indirectly under the control of any Railway Company, nor shall any temporary lease of any canal to a Railway Company be renewed,until it has been conclusively ascertained that the canal cannot be amalgamated with or worked by adjacent canals, or by a trust owning an adjacent inland navigation. ”

“ Developed transport increased Exports. Similarly our Export Trade was of a most restricted nature before the development of inland navigation, but with its progress the facilities for transit were greatly improved, and the exports of Great Britain soon increased to much greater proportions. ”

“ The lift system thereby differing from the lock system also requires the attention of skilled men, entailing extra expense. Whilst it may be said that locks are wasteful of water, and that this waste must be made up by pumping, there is this advantage over a mechanical arrangement, that in times of large rainfall no cost is incurred in supply. ”

“ Canal Cos. as Toll-takers and carriers The subject of administration raises the question as to whether Canal Companies should act as carriers or only as toll-takers. Of the fifteen canals in England and Wales acting as carriers, seven are independent, and the remaining eight owned by railways. ”

“ There are also a few steam barges employed which carry about 150 tons and can tow a second barge. The traffic towards Berlin is much heavier than towards Stettin, and as a consequence three-quarters of the barges return light from the metropolis. Traction is generally effected by horses, there being a tow-path on each bank, but on the down journey man traction is not infrequently relied on. In any case the speed is slow, and, including stops, does not average more than about 114 miles per hour. ”

“ The shortest runs from the Mersey via the Bridgewater, Rochdale, Aston, Huddersfield, Sir John Eamsden's, and the Calder and Hebble, to the Aire and Calder Canal. The control of this through-route system between the Mersey and the Humber, excluding navigation authorities, is in the hands of no less than eight different companies; and a consignment of goods has to traverse ten distinct waterways—the gauges of locks on which range through various grades from 50 feet by 14 feet by 412 feet on Sir John Kamsden's canal to 212 feet by 22 feet by 912 feet on the Aire and Calder. ”

“ The great difficulty in bringing home the deadly effect of this change of ownership, is due to the fact that no trustworthy statistics upon the subject are available—yet statistics are hardly necessary, for the most casual observer cannot fail to note the decayed condition not only of the traffic but of the antiquated locks and general structure of our inland navigations. ”

“ On the Manchester Ship Canal and the Weaver, the culvert-openings are distributed along the side walls, but even then, with only a fall of 16 ft., great care is necessary to prevent damage to small craft during the filling of the lock.
Pumping for Locks. The only way of meeting the difficulty of a deficient water supply for the use of the lock, is by pumping. ”

“ This was noticed in one of the finest orations of Edmund Burke who thus describes the growth of our exports to the Colonies, which had then reached the value of £6,000,000:—
"When we speak of the [increase of] commerce with our Colonies, fiction lags after truth, invention is unfruitful, and imagination cold and barren." ”

“ Morton told the Select Committee of 1883 that so long a time is spent in correspondence and arranging a suitable rate of toll, that very frequently the traffic passes away before a suitable rate can be arranged for it. There is one worthy exception to this rule; for since 1897, The Grand Junction Canal have entered into arrangement with the other companies forming the route between London and Birmingham under which they can quote Through Tolls. ”

“ Thwaite-Cawley System—Cost. The Thwaite-Cawley is another form of electric haulage. In this system an aerial railway is provided at an elevation of 9 ft. or 10 ft. above the towing path, supported by cast-iron or wooden posts placed at 30 ft. intervals. Along this elevated track run a number of four-wheeled electric motors, with two of the wheels on the upper and two on the lower surface of the rail, the axles being proportioned so as to regulate the pressure of the wheels upon the track. The tow-rope is attached to a link at the back of each motor. ”

“ Freightage 1750, Manchester and Nottingham. The charges for transit from Manchester to Nottingham were over £6 per ton, and to Leicester over £8. These rates were reduced to £2 and £2 6s. 8d. respectively after the opening of the Trent and Mersey Canal, which also reduced the cost of transport from Manchester to Hull to less than £2 per ton owing to the back carriage secured from that port, together with the tide service of eighty miles up the Humber and the Trent. ”

“ Austria-Hungary. In Austria-Hungary no navigation Tolls are levied and the capital expended by the State in developing and improving the waterway is sunk for the common weal, and no direct interest on the invested capital is looked for.
Belgium. In Belgium the capital expended by the State during the period extending from 1875 to 1900 on the improvement and up-keep of the navigable waterways, harbours, and coasts is estimated at a total of 400,000,000 fr. ”

“ The great advantage of this method, however, is the great saving of time and water and as this latter is a matter of the most vital importance in a district where the water supply is poor, this method is one which bids fair to be adopted, in order to effect the changes of level in future canal construction.
Economy of Systems for effecting changes of level. The study of the economy of the different systems for effecting changes of level points to the lock system as the cheapest. ”

“ The landing or shipment of cargo is not necessarily confined to certain fixed stations, as is obligatory on railways, but boats can stop at any point on their journey to load and unload, and discharge their cargoes direct over the ship's side. ”