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HOXORABLE JOHN Hi:NlJY DUNX, Eso.ure,) „ ,, Receiver Geneual or the Ph«,vince. | ^'^^'"^f"''- HONORABLE WILLIAM ALLAN, Esoui«e, r/a-P, .wA ;.^. HENHY J. BOl ETON. EsynnE, i SoLiciTon-GEXEKAi. OK THE Provinci: j ^'^^''' ^^'ce-PrmdcnL HONORABLE JAMES IRVINE, Esoi ,rk, Q/Wa.. SIMON M'GILLIVRAV, Esgumn, Montreal. GEORGE KEEPER, Esoure, l ^VILLI AM HAMILTON MERRITT, Esqure, j '^ '^i''^'«' THE CORPORATION OF THE BANK OF UPPER CANADA. MTLLIAM HAMILTON MERRITT, E.^mm, i MOxN'TREAL: PRINTED IJY I AMES LANE. 1826. 9itttt0V^» l^tpt^vU TO UTS EXCELLENCY SIR PEPxEGIMXE MAITLAXD, K. C. B. LIEUIKNANT GOVEll-NOK, &c. &c. bcc. TO THE HONORABLE LE(1ISLATI\ E COUNCIL, AND TO THE HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY OF THE PROVINCE OF UPPER CANADA; TO THE PR()PRn:TORS OF THE WELLAND CANAL, AND TO THE PUBLIC; THE DIRECTORS RESPECTFULLY SUBMIT THE FOLLOWING REPORT: Viz: An Act pusstid the Legiclature of the Province of I, pper Cfinada, in February 1824., incorporating a Company, with a capital of £4.0,000, to cut a Ciinal for hoat navigation round tlie cataract of Nia- gara, and thus to open a navipratibn from lake Ontario to lake Erie, by means, in part, of the river WellmuU which flows into the Niagara river above the falls, and from wldch the Company took its name, being incorporated under the style and title of the JVelland Canal Company. About ten thou- sand pounds, or one-fourth of the Avhole capitnl, was immediately subscrilied, the Company was regularly organized, and the work commenced; but the Directors, upon a minuate inspection of the uncommon natural facilities which presented themselves on the line of the Canal, were induced to postpone their operali«»ns, from the conviction that such a vast object as that of comiecting the ujiper %^ ith the lower basin of the St. Lawrence, demanded a water eommunicatioji of far greater dimensions tb '.n the one contemplated, and capable of admitting all sucli vessels as usually navigate the lakes. On referring the plans and estimates to the Stockholders, the conduct of the Directors was highly Approved, and it was determinetl to petition the Legislature for an Act. authorising them to increase, their capital stock to £200,000, a sum, trifling as it ap})ears to be, coni))ared with the magnificence of the object to be obtained, yet quite suflicient to com})lete a Canal capable of allowing vessels of con- siderable burthen to pass from one lake into the other: dius opening a continued hiternal navi'j-a* tion, witliout breakhig bulk, of more than a thor.sand miles. ■i Till' fA'oislituri' li;»»'>uent of the Company nmhr British uilhu'iicc;, they .Uii rniinfil lo n-.stirvt! a con- siiUrabh^ part of thi> iiurcii^-id stock, in ordt i to bt- oHea-d, ni tin- first in^taiuf, to snl)srrib0, more than one half had i^'cn MibM-ribrd in New-York, and till re was little doii!)l luit that tlie wjioh' capital recpnred ini^lit at o large an amonnt. I'eehiig lite expediency of itinuediately obtaining means to oroceed with tlie works which had already been commenced, and at the same tiuie being (K'sirons that at loast a maiority of th ■ Stockhohlers shouhl lie BrilisJi ^uV)jels, the Directors je- solvcd to limit the subscriptions in New-York to £T.>,0()(), which >>um was ininu;diately taken n)> by the old StockhoUhrs, to whom the option was iirsi given, so that at a pnblic meeiing which had been adverlised i\)r opening books and receiving subscriplions,. no stibscrij)tion eonid be accepted, tnid such was the general o])inion of tlic Jjemfii projnised by the undertaking, that more than the whole capi- tal would, at tlitit meeting, iiave readily been subscribed, but the J'resiilent of the (Company, who was present in person, refused to receive move than the £^'i^i)0(). Ol the remaining stock £25,000 has been subscribed in the Canadas, and thus 1'100,0()0, oi one moiety t»f the whole, remains to be sub* scribed lii London. It was deemed reqni.site that one of tlie Directors should proceed to London to nilbrd such explanations and local information as jnight be requisit, and to make the necessary ar- rangenie;Us for obtaining the reciiiired subscriptions, 'Chis jnission Avas entrnstd to Mr. Solieitor- (Jeneral Boui/rox, late \'ice-Piesident of the Company, who resigned that office on his recent ile- ]>arture lor England, and with whom Mr. M'Gii.livhay, another of the Directors-, ]>cing about to return to England, is now associated. The delay which has taken place in submitting the object of their mission to the jmblic in the British metropolis, has arisen from the necessity ol" procuring correct maps of the country througli which the Canal is to p.iss, and proper sections, reports .'Uid estimates of the v.-nrk irself, for the infonn,",i\in of those who might desire to I'ecome subscribers. In the mean time the C iina! i-^ ii;i)idly advancing, for die Directors, under the impression that more stock than they, require would readily be taken In Eondoii, aiul assnreil that at all events it would be taken in New-, York, if an appeal to foreigners should become requisite, did not think it necessary to delay enter- ing into contracts till the subscription was full. In <>ir('ring half the stock oi'tho Welland Canal to the merchants ami capitalists of the first com- ing vcial city in the world, tlu^ Directors act with confidence upon two facts: First, that the other moi- ety has been already taken up by the merchants and capitalists in New-York and the Canailas, v.ho are well accjuainted with the couiury which this Canal is intended to unite, and Avho althougli in the habit of obtaining six 'pcv cent for their money, the legal interest in these countries, consider this a far more profitable method i>f employing their cg})ital. The second fact ]n-esents Itself on viewing the iuap of the country, l)y v.iiicit i; will be seen that the Canal must be the avenue of greater wealth and (.•ommcrce than unv ollu r now ,,>ii the face of the earth. :tili lio llie llir the iud Hill lU order to i-viidcr this n-ijjluy undertaking familliir to the Riiiish pnl>lii', the Diivctors hrq; I') hv ;hdiil>r(.(| in irivinir !i shDVl review of the t's which led to its I'oinnienceiiU'nt, and to the ;":.'- (onisliing results v, hieh init«.t tolU)\v its comjih^tio.i. F-i >r!reh, |N07. llie Sennte of (he I'nited StnlLS of Aiuericti pissed a ic^dlutiou reciiiiririg the Sinefiir. d' the 'J^«>ii-,nr\. Mr. dalhitin, tn nport to th<'in, at their next session, on iho suhject of IJcads mik! CuMaU, In obedience to tliis order, tho Secretary delivcret' un the Irh April, ISOS, .i nio-i !,l)!r statr-jiaper, in wliieh a i^eneral view is taken of the ffrealer nuuilier of practicable Canals which could be niadt with advantage in nny part of the I'liion. Some olllrinji benefits which miower and wealth of tho lUpidili(. Aiiiong other Canals, one Ibi' a sloop navigation round the falls of Niagara, was suggested, in order lo (niife lake Ontario witli lakes Pirie, Michigan, 1 luron and Superior. Anil to ])re.servc the advantage of Ixing the carriers and exporters of (heir own })roduce, another Canal, as a contiinialion of the line from hike Ontario to the lluiison, is also pro- pro})os<;d in the same elaborate document. It is (juite evident tliai tliis able et^nnnunication of Mr. Cfallatin's. if it iias not suggested, has en- couraged tiie (liiferent States to undertake and cinnplett- many Canals now in o])eiatiot); and among others, that stupenduous work of time tiundred and flftv three miles lonn, which connects lake Erie with the tide waters of the Hudson river: for it follows the line, or nearly si>, which Mr. Ciallatill points out, till it reaches the place where it Ix'comes necessary to diverge either to hike Ontario or hike lu'ie. The Secretary's report was for sevt.ral vears eoie/ideved speculative', and visionary; and wiien the j)racticability of this magnillceiit Catial was nr-t aruiounci'd by souie eminent e.nd intelligent men of the State of New-^'ork, tlie most distinguished of whom «as Cro\enior (.Linton, who still lives to en- joy the fruits of his patriotic and pcrseverhig exertions, it wjis triated with contempt and derision. It appeared to be a century before the age; and men nuapable nf eidarge»l views; while tfiey were forc- ed to admit that it was splendid on paper, pass an Act u\ 18J 1, to })rovide for the im}>rovement of the internal navigation of the State. The Commissioners, apjwinted under this law, procured plans and surveys of the proposed Canal, by which it appeared tlnit the expense would be ntnch less than had been anticipated even by the most frugal c.ilculators. This perhaps arose from the fact, that two sources of expense, which in other countries are extremely heavy, here cost nothing, viz: Land for the bed of the Canal, and the water tiecessarv for its supply. The laml was readily anil joyfully given by the proprietors, and abundance of water wiis found wherev,.; :t wai> wanted. These estimates and" c ilic fadlitlcs which the face of tlio ooiiiilry cxluliilod, openctl tin; eyes of the public, and ni length good sense triiinipliiii;! ovor every opposition. A water conMniiiiictition to join tlu« Hiulsoii uidi tin; %v(stcn) I.!:kcs was now so far from being considered, imjiractifablc, or attended with rniiauis e\|)ens.i', lliiit il was deemed of easy nccoJiipii.^li- nient, nnti of t(M» nir.ih utiliiy t(» be longer ilflityed. It neverllK;le>s still app( aiid an undertaking far tr,o great ibr a C'lMVipany, or even for a single; Slate, and an apj)ra.ation was tliercforo made to the general govi-rnment, as well as to those States wliieli were more:; nnmediately interested in its acconi- pljalimem, foi- pt;eiiniary assiistanee. No aid was gi\en: (. ongiess pronounced il a provincial, not a national objeet, and the other States immediately interested, had either no available funds, or were Dot sijflieienlly convinced of the benefit to themsehts to justify any saeriHce. The State of New- York was therelbre left entirely to its own resources. Hut disappointment did not chill the ardour of the fi lends of the measure; on the contrary, il increased their f Niagara should be for a ship navi- gation, since it v.as truh a national object, and (aighl lo be executed on a scale of unrivalled magni- tude. That it was a task, which if properly completed, would be of equal duration with the world, and ought therefore to-be accom])liKhe(i at any cost, and at any trouble, not grudging the most liberal .sui)plies, or negleeiing to apply them with unremitted altention and perseverance, till the objeet is attained. Such a Canal, said they, has been estimated at £250,000, but il is more than probable, that it will cost more than five times that sum, and yet it will be cheap, for of its vast ))roduetiveness tliere can Ik; no doubt. Already the trade with the western States is great, notwiihstandiiigthc difticiilties which it has to encounter, but the rapidity of its increase from the growth ol" population, when these difficulties are roniov(?d, it is not easy to conjecture. Through this Canal must the whole comm<*rce of the western countries for evei pass, wliether dislined to the St. Lawrence, or to the Hudson, to New- York, or Montreal. Once afloat on lake Ontario, a Canal round the rapids of Oswego, will present a fair comjietition between both markets, and the commodity will reach the one where its price is higher. This alone is tlie interest oi" the producer, and indirectly of the consumer, and by such a communication only can justice be done to the inhabitants of the l.^uited States, living on the banks of the Canadian lakes. To this it was answered, that to cut a Ca/ial round the falls of Niagara, in order to admit the pro-, ductioiyj of the western States into lake Ontario, would be to commit suicide, as it were, on the corn-- niej:c<; of ISew-York,. i'ox ohc<; afloat iu the bosom of Ontario, every thing would proceed to Mon^«. 8: real, v.iierc llie htvt mrirkcl will goncrall)' l)c foiuiil. T5iit were tlic tu.'nkrt-. equal, or even (i little bt'tttT ill N'cw-Voik tliMii !il Moiilival, tlio roiniiKKlitios p;is>ii).) tlircuLrli lit" Caiinl wmild proci'tnl to tlif latter, as llier va)uI(1 ivach Pruscott or Oifdonsbiirtrli. onh i.iic liiiiMlred anrt!'r'i nl'the (.'anal, and who, a- nii'^ht have l>e loss ol' a trade sn lu- crative and ininiense, hy allowinfj; ii ( ven a ehiiiiee olptussinti; thnxiyh another channel. It was there- tore determined to extend the C'anal at once to lake K.rie: so that nltvr the productions ol' tlie vast countries west of the falls of Niajjara should In t)ii(v unloaded from the vessels on the lake into boat'^ on the Canal, there mi^hl be no dan^^er ol" thiir being diverted Irom the Ne'.v-N'ork market by the irmptation arising from the greater fueiliiy of conveyance to Montreal. Tiiere were doubtless other eoii.si(h'rntion.-< nhich had great weight with the Legislature of the State of \ew-York. in persuading them to adopt the present line of C'anal, in prefeience to the route by lake Ontario. The pul)lic mind was indeed too enlightened on the subject of Canals, to i-elinqui'-h the one piopostd iKHwecn lake I-lrie and the tide waters of the Hudson; but assistance from other .Stales, end the general government, had Im n asked and refused, and llierefore the ex- pense of the niort! magnifieent work appeared ihv beyond th.eir iibilities. .Some were even nfnud that a boat Canal through so vast an extent of e(av!itry would exhaust the revenues of the .State; and it was not without much a})prehension that the attempt was made, on the very reduced scale of forty feet wide at the top, with four leet of water: to extend from the Hudson, at Albany, to Jkift'aloe and Black Rock, on lake Erie, a distance of three hundred and fifty three miles. The comnitMicejnent of this sfupenihutus work, excited the most earnest attention of the inhabi- tants of l^pper-Canada. It was likely to deprive them ed, and a prospect was opened to tlie Colonies of a free- s foinmcive with all miiiojiji, mul of recoi\in;2 prcntiM- privilij;os niul ndvantn^es in the ports of the Parent State, as well us in those ol eaeli other, a new spirit was infused into fhi' Province, and en- f|iiirics wt'ie made to iiNcri tain what natural Ijieilities olli'ii'd tlieinsclve.s ft)r the inij)rovi-n)ent of in- ternal n.ui^'ation. Areonlin^ly in IHai, an Act was |;i»,s>,cd l»y ih»; Le^i^hlture, appointing " Hoard of Couinnssioners to report ii])on tins itilercstinjf '•nhjtcl. It is due to the memory of the lute Mr, Nielioi, formerly an active aiid very intelligent mci)d)er of the I.en;i>latnre, to remark, that his /.cal in the cause of public insprovcments oceusioned this meu- sure to be brought forward at un earlier period than ii otherwise would have been; and that so long (IS he livcil, he perse\ered very faithfully in carrying it into effect. The exumj)le of the State of New-\'ork, vigoroicsiy engagetl in completing an inland navigation, from tlie Canadian lakes to the ocean, a work which might have xvt-II been thought to exceed its pow- er, directed the attention of the Commissioners to the joining ol' hikes Erie and Ontario by a sloop navigation. This was not only the most obvious, but the most injportaiit work which could engage their nltention; and accordingly a survey was made by an a'ole engineer, .ini\ citimates of the proba- ble expense carefully calculated. Subse(|uent •-xperience, and examination, have shewn that the route chosen by the ('omntissioners, though possessing some peculiar advantages, was too circuitous; by which the expense was very much enhanced. The conception was indeed niagniiicein; the Canal was to have seven feet water, and to iidmit all such vessels ns usiudly navigate the hikes; but the execution was llir beyond the resources of the Provij\ce, and the Legislature was compt-lletl, thoiigii not without reluctance, to defer the un- tlertiiking till more propitious times, and the gi owing weitlth of the Colony might justify its com- mencement. This delay, instead of checking. Increased tlie ardour A)r internal improvement; even persons of moilerate temperament were encouraged by the success which attended the opening of every mile of the New-York Canal. No sooner was one sectioi; iinished, and the water introduced, than the tolls did more than rej>ay the interest of the capital expenjee ravines, and the abuntiant and inexhaustible supply of water, afford an almost unlimited power of lijtlraulic inacliiiiery, which it is intended to con- nect with the talis at the different lix-ks, and which it is ho|)ed will soon aff'ord a considerable revenue to the P'oprielor'j of the Canal. The diil'erence of level hoiu lake OiUa.'io to the river Welland, is nbout throe hund.''d and thn'teen feet, reie, there is a strong current in the river, and besides avoiding this impediment to the navigatioi;, in the case of vessels ascen«ling, there are other important advantages which will be attained by the intended opening of the Canal into lake Erie, through the Grand Kiver. ITierefore 'n additioi: to the towing path from the Canal to the mouth of the Welland, there is another towing path to be con>tructeil ascending the course of the river, for a distance of eleven miles, which may be described as constituting the second great section of the Canal. The third great section, is a cut of about twelve miles from the Welland to the Grand River, through a flat swampy tract of country, called the Canboro' or W'ainfleet Marsh, the surface of which is about eight feet higher than the level of lake Erie. It was at first proposed to cut the Canal on a level with the surface of this tract of country, and to supply it with water by a feeder from the Grand River above the rapids; but the present, and the more iinjiroved plan is, to cut an excavation through the Canboro' March, to the depth of sixteen feet, which will render lake Erie at once the summit level, and the feeder of the Welland Canal throughout its whole extent. At the mouth of the Grand River there is a harbour to the constructed, and it will thus be seen, that the Canal has two outlets for vessels ascending from lake O.itario; one through t'.ie Niagara ri- ver, into the eastern extremity of lake Erie, and opposite to the entrance of the Ameiican grand Etie Canal; and anotlur through the Grand River, into lake Erie, at a ilistance of forty miles nearer to the central and western shores of the lake; besides which retluction of distance in lake sailing, the route by the Grand River offers other important advantages to vessels from the u >per part of lake Erie. From the Grand River to Fort Erie, the navigation on the north shore of lake Erie is dan- gerous, and at Fort Erie there is no good harbour, nor is it ascertained if the new American harbours iit Buffalo and Black Rock, will resist the severe gales of wind which are frequent in the fall of the year, and the heavy surf which rolls on the beach at that end of the lake, where the coast is much more exposed to its violence, than at the mouth of the Grand River. The prevailing winds in the lake, ure from tlie westward; and by a glance at the map it will at once be seen, that a gale of wuid 1 11 ■ I from that qunrter, sots on the beach at Buffaloe, with an uninterrupted sweep of above two hundred miles; wlitreas the mouth otthe Grand River is partially protected by headlands on each side of its rwn bay, and further sheltered from the gales of wind b} Long Point, wliith projects near thirty miles into the lake. Another circumstance is to be noticed, peculiarly advantageous to tlie Canal entering at the mouth of the Grand River, and which arises from the form of lake Erie, the prevalence of westerly wuids, and the gradual, though scarcely preceptible, flow of the current towards the oudet of the lake, mto the Niagara river, where the current being at length contracted as into a funnel, an accumulatioji of ice from the lake regularly takes place every spring, and effectually blocks up the channel; thus form- ing a barrier which prevents the opening of the navigation at Buffaloe and Fort Erie, for a certain time after the ice has disappeared in the rest of the lake, and after the opening of the Grand River, which as it flows into the lake without obstruction, carries away the ice before it with the first freshet in the spring. This difference of time betwixt the oj)ening of the navigation of the Grand River and the river Niagara, has seldom been less than three weeks, and in some seasons has been five weeks; but estimating it at the shorter period, it gives to the Wtlland Canal the advantage of being open before the American Canal for three weeks of the most important part of each season. These general inductions are deemed suflicient for this place; the details and estmiates are in the hands of the Directors, who will most cheerfully submit them to the inspection of any person who may be disposed tt» examine them. They have been drawn up and calculated by a engineer of great intelligence and professional knowledge, on whose accuracy, the Directors, from long experience, have the most perfect reliance. Froni the whf)!e it is seen at how little expense the Canal may be constructed, and how much the bounty of nature assists in its formation. It was happy for Upper-Canada that the Canal undertaken in the State of New- York, and luiw almost completed, is on a scale so very small, and is nevertheless attended with immense profit, for this example encouraged the colonists to attempt what perhaps they never would have dared even to imagine, a Canal of similar dimensions. This attempt led to a minute examination of the route, the facilities of which appeared so great, that their views gradually expanded, and they began to consider a Canal on a far greater scale iv, jiossiblo, and not greatly beyond their resources; the more they exa- mined the country through which it must pas*, the more easy of accomplishment did it appear; and from considering it possible, they began to think it advisable, and even despise the nu)re humble at- tempt wliich they had formerly conceived. It was therefore equally fortunate that a Canal of similar ilimensions with that of our neighbours was first proj)osed, and that it has been enlarged from a con- viction, arising from the existence of local advantages, which will render it infinitely nuire profitable, convenient and important. Such are the causes that led to the project now going forward, of unit- ing the great lakes of Caiuula, by a sloop navigation. In touching upon these mightly results, which must attend, or soon follow, the completion of the Welland Canal, the truth will assume the appearance of the most extravagant exaggeration to those who do not make themselves acquainted with the singular geography of North America. We there- fore desire all those who are astonish«>d at our remarks, and feel inclined to pronounce them errone- ous, to take this preliminary step, by |)lacing a map before them, and estimating the wonderful water capabilities which present themselves, and tlie immense countries which can approach the sea only by 12 the St. Lawrence. Moreover, to judge correctly, those conversant with the largest and most produc- tive i)f European Canals, must divest theuisqlvos of all prejudices in their favour, and only tivke in- to account the facilities, of Cijmniunication which they otti^r, when compared to those which will he opened by the Wtliand Canal. Darby, one of the most faithful of geographers, wlio never pnblished a map till he had traversed on foot the coinitry which it represents, estimates the valley of the St. Lawrence above the falls of Niagara, exclusive of tUe lakes, at 186,700 s(juare mile-i: to which we may add tho valley of the Ohio, containing 226,000 square miles, when tlie Canal now cutting between that river and lake Lrie shall be finished. Thus, the connnercial intercourse between the sea anil upwards of four humlred thou- sand square miles of fertile land, must pass through the \\'elland C^anal, or the smaller one belong- ing to the State of New- York. When this liact is considered, the first idea tliat strikes us is, the im- possibility that the produce of countries so vastly extensive can j)ass through these two Canals, and the necessity that soon umst arise for opening other communications to meet tlie increase of com- merce; but as no other can be made with any j)rospect of success, except by the straits of Niagara, the Welland Canal need fear no competition. The reader will have a more distinct conception of the magnitude of the intercourse that must soon be carried on through these two Canals, by supposing Great-Britain, Spain, France, untl Ger- ; many, to be so situated, that all their intercourse with other nations must come through one narrow valley, admitting onlj' two or three convenient Roads or Canals. Such a supposition gives a vivid image of what nuist be the case at the straits which divide lake Erie from lake Ontario, and will enable us to forni some estimate of the ships and boats that must pass through these Canals, bejiring the riches of the western world to the Atlantic Ocean. Nor are these ^'ountries in a state of nature, and without inhabitants: th y are indeed thinly peopled, in proportion to.their extent, but nearly three millions are scattered over them; and from the known rapidity of the increase of population in new countries, the period is at hand when the quantities of produce will be so great as to compel an en- largement of the present dimensions of the Canal, great and magnificent as they are. It has been found from experience, that when agricultural produce had to be carted one hundred and thirty miles, it ceased to be w«)rth raising, as the expense of bringing it (a barrel of flour for ex- ample,) so far, added to that of raising it, exceeds or equals what can be obtained for it in the market, hence at this distance a check is put upon agriculture and the improvement of any country. It has also been found, that water communication, such as that which the Welland Canal opens, is to land carriage as one to twenty five; consequently, commodities can be conveyed by Canal and lake navigation three thousand two hundred and fifty miles, as cheaply as one hundred and thirty by cartage. But as one hundre now practioihle at hi^h water; in the sprins^ leaded boats of a cimsidcrable sj/.e pass from lakf Michigan into tlit- Illinois rivur, wliirh tails into the Mis- sissippi, and from lake Micliietwetj the ditlerent parts of this vast continent. It is presumed that enough has lieen -tated, to show the great (]uantities of pro- duce whicli, ot necessity, must pass through the \\ eiiand C'an.il, and ii is easy to mfer the conse- quent profits which must accrue to the P»'opnetors. As the Wetland Canal, and thai whicli pusses through the State of New- York from lake Erie to the tide waters of the Hudson, are in some «)egree rivals, it may not be out t^if place, to state the supe- rior advantages of the former; but in doing this, the Directors disclaim all wish or intention of dispa- raging the mighty work of their neighbours: for to its astonishnig success they Jire indebted for the commencement t)f their own. 'I'hey confine themst^lves to matters of fact, and to the fair exposition of such matters as are necessary to enable those whose assistance they are soliciting, to form a cor- rect judgment on the ^ubjt;ct. 1. — The Welland Canal passing on the diameter of an elli]>sis, forty one miles h)ng, unites both lakes at little more than half the length of the present conumuiicatiou by BuilIiU)e and the fulls of I^iagara. 2. — Ships passing the Grand Hiver where the Welland Canal begins, have to sail down lake Erie about forty miles, to the mouth of the New- York Canal, and here they are nearly as far from lake Ontario, as if thev were at the entrance of the Welland Canal. 3. — The Wellaiul Canal, as has been already noticed, has two outlets: Vessels may pass from lake Ontario l)y the Grand River into the broadest part of lake Erie; or they may proceed down the Welland into Niagara river, and thence to Iluttaloe and lake Erie, 4. — Vessels have access three or four weeks sooner every year to the mouth of the Welland Ca- nal, on lake Eric, than to that of the N'ew-\ork Canal at Black Hock; a(UI to this, that vessels are often detained many days in the Narrows between Black Kock and Point Abino, a distance of t:ine miles; but vessels passing through die Welland Canal, get at once into the broad lake, iuid there- fore make gootl their passage. 5. — The New-York Canal commences about live hundred miles from the sea, of which three hundred and fifty three, is a boat navigation, at the enil of which, you are farther from the market of New-York, than you are from Montreal at the extremity of the ship navigation opened by the Wel- land CanaL 6. — The W^elland Canal will bring all the comnunlities of the western countries, without break- ing bulk, within one hundred and twenty miles of Montreal, anti the distance may be passed in less than two djiys, by large boat^s, on account of the rapitlity of the stream: suid it will, probably in a few years, be rendered capable of steam navigation. 7, — The Welland Caiud opens an interrupted navigation from Preseott .iiid Ogdensburgh, on the river St. Lawrence, for all craft used in navigating the CanatUan sejis, to the western •jhores of lakes Huron, Michigan, and by removing a trifling obstruction, to the head of lake Superior, u dis* tauce of more tlian twelve hundred mileji, or upwards of U^ree thousand miles of coast. . a 4. The late ^Ir. Fulton, jitstlj' colebratctl for applyiiin; stcnni, wltli efr<,'Ct,;to the^|)«rpQ?esof ««xij(«- ticwi, culcuiiited that one nijll ion ot tons would juiss the CaKal, IVoin lidValwe to tJK* UUe.wmears (kxtjlin Hutison, in a vesy lew years after it^iconijileUoi:, (ami ten tiiries tUnt qium.tity iniO sjWrt.pwrii^li) which at one hunilrcdth part of a dollar per mile, tiikiii^ tlie.Ieiifrih ofthe Civtml at thvee humir^d and fifty miles, to avoid broken numbers, will yield a revenue to the State (;f vhr.ee. euUl a.h»Jt"niilli- ons of dollars per annum. This he reckoned as triflinp; to the revenue arising frouj the Ciariabwlt^i •the vast reirions west of ihe avtsn'aet of Niagara, became full ol' inhabitants. .>Suppi(Miug.»n equal <|MHn- tity, or one million of tons, to pass throtjgh the .Wellaud Canal, at Uie same time, .it will .give 'four hundnd aJid ten tlunisand dollars per amunn, or more than fifty per cent, on the ouigjnsb expense. -Suppose only one half this (juantity to pass, or th.it tlie one millioti of,tons is. equally divided betw^ein the two Canals, we have still two hundretl and five thousand dollars.per annuw, ,or;r,ath«r.uiQl»lhwi twenty five per cent on the capitiil expended. . ^ If it be said that the iState of New- York may remit, or greatly lessen, the toll: we answer .that -the cost of keepiiu? so long a. line of Canal in gootl repair, is very great, luid will never atUnit «t connnotlities entering the Wei land Cfina I, c^m be conveyed. at less expense to Montreal iUid Qiiebec, than the same can be carried to Ne-w-York, were the whole toll remitted. Hence it may be reasonably expected, that this magnilicent work will, as a lucrative specitkyion for the Company, that is, when accomplished,. be far sujjerior in its ;jdyant8ges to any sJn»ilar under- taking yet -attemptetl in any i)art of the world; and it is therefojre confidently dffercd lUid recouuuentl- ed to the attention of the public, bodi in Great Bi:itain and in;the Cttnadasj.es a project cuiiihiuiog the prospect of grtat profits to the Stockholders, widi dmt of most impoctaut bene/Us tO:tJ»e^blic. It will teml to drawforth the latent resources of this rising Colony; bring to jour .|M)rts.a poj-lion.«f the riches of the more fertile half of the L'nitcd States: and.wliile itxuu^t-proiluce immense prdfjtto the Company, it is jui object houorabU; to those by whom it.is.to.be accomplished, and a oohle £xam- ple of euterjM'ise to our more wealthy and more po}>ulous sister colonies. But, iii atldition to pecuniary advantages to the Company, corumercial advantages to the Prodnw, ami honorable distinction to those, under wliose auspices, and by whose means, this unportaat umlec- taking is to be accomplishet!, it is a public measure, connected with even higher. considerations. .Im- provements suggest .ami -assist each other, anil tend to the nourishment and developemeiit i>f tiutt vi- rifying priucijjJe, which exalts one nation above another, and which connect* die distant bi'2mdaes;of one jiarent stem to each odier, by the ties of a common origin, of mutual attachment, and of Keotpru- cal advantage; that principle which has enabled Great Britain to maintain the cliaracterof being jit the same time the first nation in war, tlie first in manufactures, the first in public improvements; that principle which enabled the small and saittered ^lopulation of this youtig Proviuce, suoceasfidlv to resist the rei^e^ed inroads of their powerful invaders in 'a'ar,.aad which it is hoped may in peuae ea- able them to follow the great examjile of the Mother Country in tlie career of imfirovement; Kiiiid.likc her to derive wealth ami.juiwer from die honorable exertion of indiviilual enterprise. In tlte progress of iimirovemeuLs, and amwigi^t those jMii/jc uwX-s which: bestow nxalth and paiti!or on nations, and which confer permanent distinction on individuals, ihene are none, of equal impor- tance or celebrity with the consUructioti i»f Cuualai. The (;oui]UQsts of (Louis the Xl^' aic forgotten. 15 or romcml)cn-il only to ho Ik-UI up to fxernition, l)ut the Canal cf LnngiuHloo reTn;iiiis a blessinpr to FraiU'o, ;iii(l It) /lis iiamt', a iiiunuincnt of" iirij)iri->lisil)]c rciunvii. 'Ihv D-ake of Bridgwatt-r's rank and wealth wowUI not have presfrved Wis name iVoin oblivion; Ixit \ic will always he renienilHreil, as tlie man who enibarketl iiis fortune in constructing the first ("anal in On at Britain, reganlk'ss alikf t>f popular prejudices, of friendly remonsiraiico, and of prt)})h« tie threats of ruin: And in our own times, and in our ininiediute neij^hl)ourhe, it is prohahle that the name <»f Dewitt Clinton will always re- inain associated with tfie (irand Krie Canal of the 8tate of Ne\v-N ork. when the names and the mea- sures of other cot«'mporary Chief Magistrates of States and of Nations, will be consigned to the aame forgi'tfulness which ha- already swallowtti up so many of their predecessors. The Directors of the Wetland Canal Coniijany profess not to he insensihle to the honour con- ferred upon them, in being chosen to begin so noble a work as a Canal, for shi|) navigation, round the cataract of Niagara, and as their services are gratuitous, the lionor of conducting the undeitak- iiiff is their oidv reward. It is one of those rare measures, which thoujfh of immense mannitude, is of comparatively easy, and absolutely certain accomplishment. The natural advantages of the ground, combined with the inexhaustible supply of water are such, as no other Canal ever had, and such as can be found for no other Canal; and when finished, on the inteiuled scale, it will be one of the grand- est work* ever elFected by any country, or by any nation. No work in Europe, or in Asia, a?itient or modern, will bear a comparison with it in usefulness, to an etpial extent of territory; and it will yield only to the Canal which may hereafter unite the Pacific with the Atlantic Ocean, throught the Isth- mus of Darien. ^ But each undertaMnj^as its own peculiar advantages; and the Welland Canal will possess some advantages even over flie projected Canal of Darien. The I'acific Ocean is already accessible by navigating round the Cape of Good llt^pe or Cape Horn; but the interior seas of North America, which contain more than half of the fresh water in this Planet, and the fertile and extensive shores of which, are destined to be peopled by an active, an intelligent, and an enterprising, race — boasting their descent from England, and preserving and perpetuating her language and her institutions: these interior seas can be approached in shijis only through the Welland Canal. Such is the importance, and such will be the splemlid anil immense results of the work now of- fered to the notice of those enterprising and enlightened capitalists, who may be disposed to conti'i- |)nte to its completion; at the same time that they secure for themselves a participation in its advan- tages, and a share of the liberal profits which it may reasonably and speedily be expected to produce. fcr- N. B. — In consequence of the delay which ha^ arisen in making the projjosed application for ob- taining in England a certain part of the increased capital of the Welland Canal Company, in consi- deration of a Petition presented by the Directors, at the opening of the present Session of the Pro- vincial Parliament, and in order to prevent any delay in the progress of the works now under con- tract, a bill has been introduced for granting to the Company, a loan of £25,000, or an hu.ndred thousand dollars. This bill has already been passed by the House of Assembly, and it is not doubt- ed that the measure will obtain the sanction of the other branches of the Provincial Legislature. 3I5; DccE-MREn, 1825. ( /•:' '^%B« !• #. im\ ^'