S TJ 3VC ]yc ^ E. "Z" 
 
 REPORT 
 
 ON THE 
 
 HURON AND ONTAKIO 
 
 8HIP CANAL. 
 
 /;*c«Jr-*.-MWStt,MMfe»s«*,^«Mtf*jB«t". 
 
 TORONTO : 
 PRINTED BY J A M P] S LOVELL, 
 
 07 YONfiK .STUEl'/r. 
 
 18G8. 
 
\ 
 
S TJ IM: 3^ A. K/ "^ 
 
 REPORT 
 
 OK THE 
 
 HURON AND ONTAKIO 
 
 SHIP CANAL. 
 
 TORONTO : 
 
 PRINTED BY JAMES LOVELL, 
 
 67 YONGE STREET. . 
 
 1868. ..•''•' 
 
<z^ y / z. z~^ 
 
 MAY 19 1944 
 
 FR1.DERIC C. Capreol, Esquire, President. 
 Robert Cassels, Esquire, Vice-President. 
 Honorable Donald McDonald. 
 TuoMAe R. Ferguson, Esquire, M.P.P. 
 Thomas Grahame, Esquire, M.P.P. 
 Adam Crooks, Esquire. 
 Henry Fowler, Esquire. 
 
 John Hawkshaw, Esquire, C.E., F.R.S., London. 
 A. M. Rendel. Esquire, C.E., London. 
 
 William Sykes, Esquire, C.E., Toronto. 
 
 Honorable William Caylbt. 
 
 - Gi 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 The Huron and Ontario Ship Canal Company, having 
 effected an agreement with prominent and well known cap- 
 italists and contractors, in Britain and the United States, 
 whereby the latter undertake to enter into the necessary ar- 
 rangements with the Company for the construction of the 
 proposed canal and the subscription of the capital stock of 
 $40,000,000, provided that the Government and Legislature 
 of Ontario will aid the work, by a free grant of ten millions 
 acres of the public [lands and of the unconceded waste or 
 marsh lands of the^HoUand and Nottawasaga Rivers, along 
 the line of the canal ;_the following summary or digest of 
 the general report' has been prepared for the information of 
 the Government and Legislature, by which the Company's 
 petition for the desired aid must be considered and discussed. 
 
 In the general report,"of which this is only an abstract and 
 synopsis, the various^merits of the projected canal are fully set 
 forth, namely, the general purposes which it is designed (o 
 serve — the vast extent, in British, Canadian and United States 
 territory, which is the"source of its prospective traffic — the nu- 
 merous interests, [commercial, manufacturing, agricultural, 
 national and political, as well as local, provincial, federal and 
 British, which its construction will promote — the physical 
 description of its route, and its engineering features and diffi- 
 culties, and]the manner in which the latter may be overcome — 
 the various works and^structures throughout, with the neces- 
 sary maps, plans,"profile or section of the line, drawings and 
 specifications, illustrative and explanatory thereof— compar- 
 
ison with other and competitive, actual and projected, channels 
 of communication with the West — estimated magnitude and 
 probable increase of the prospective traffic — the great reduction 
 in cost of transportation which must follow its construction — 
 the estimated cost of construction, and of maintenance and 
 management — the proposed rate of toll and probable revenue, 
 &c., &c. A very large portion of this wide range of subjects 
 is quite beyond the scope and object of the present summary, 
 which is not intended to demonstrate the practicability of the 
 undertaking (that point being sufficiently established, by the 
 confirmation of the views of the Company's interim engineer, 
 and the endorsement thereof by the first engineers in 
 England, Messieurs John Hawkshaw, and A. M. Rendel of 
 London) nor to advance arguments calculated to influence 
 subscriptions of stock, which are not expected nor looked for' 
 in t'Js country; but only to present to the members of our 
 Provincial Government and Legislature a general view of the 
 project, the important ends it is designed to serve, and its 
 claims on Provincial aid, in as concise a form as possible. 
 
HURON AND ONTARIO SHIP CANAL 
 
 The rapid settlement and occupation of the North Western 
 portion of the United States, the fertility of its soil and the un- 
 paralled increase of its cereal products ; the occupation and ■ 
 development of the vast mineral region surrounding Lake 
 Superior, both in Canadian and United States territory, sur- 
 passing in richness (especially in copper) all other parts of the 
 known world ; the prospect of the early acquisition, by Can- 
 ada, of the North West Territory (now held by the Hudson's 
 Bay Company) and the opening up to settlement and cultiva- 
 tion, of the millions of acres of the fertile agricultural lands in 
 the valleys of the Saskatchawan and Assiniboine rivers ; all 
 combine to impress upon the public mind a sense of the urgent 
 and growing necessity for some important increase of the fa-- 
 cilities for the conveyance of the teeming products of the Great 
 North West to the sea-board and the markets of the world. 
 
 A glance at the map of North America will show that the 
 Saint Lawrence river and the chain of lakes which constitute 
 its head waters are the natural outlet of all this vast territory ; 
 and if this magnificent water communication has hitherto 
 failed to secure to itself the immense carrying trade of the 
 West, it is only for the want of such ameliorations and improve- 
 ments in its course, as the advanced intelligence of the present 
 age dictates, and which, if accomplished, would place it be- 
 yond the reach of successful rivalry or competition. 
 
 To supply this great desideratum and provide a shorter and 
 better route from the upper lakes, it is proposed to avoid the 
 extensive detour through lakes St. Clair and Erie and to make 
 a direct communication between the waters of lakes Huron 
 and Ontario, by means of a ship canal of such dimensions as 
 
shall permit the passage of sea-going vessels of 1200 tons bur- 
 then.* 
 
 It will, of course, be necejsary to the completenejs of the 
 communication with the sea, that the St. Lawrence Canals be 
 correspondingly enlarged, and that some improvements be 
 made to the natural channel of the river, but as these works 
 would involve only a, comparatively, small cost, it may be 
 assumed that they will either immediately follow the construc- 
 of this Canal or be executed simultaneously therewith. 
 
 The effect of this canal will be, to diminish the distance be- 
 tween the upper lakes and tide-water, whether at Quebec or 
 New York, about 400 miles ; to avoid the tedious and com- 
 paratively unsafe navigation of lakes St. Clair and Erie, and 
 the shoal waters of the St. Clair Flats, and to enable a class 
 of large screw steamers and ocean-going vessels to pass from 
 any of the upper lake ports to the sea, or across the Atlantic, 
 
 • The origin of this project is thus described by Kivas Tully, Esq., C. E., 
 in a report to the Toronto Board of Trade in 186G. 
 
 " The proposed route of the canal, to unite the waters of Laltes Huron, 
 Simcoc and Ontario, was first explored by me in 1846, In 1851 a second 
 exploration was made, and I ran a line of levels between the head waters of 
 the Humber and Holland Rivers, on the Simcoe level, but no action was 
 taken in the matter by the gentlemen who employed me, namely. Sheriff 
 Jarvis, Dr. Roes, Dr. Hayes, and the late Vicc-Chancellor Jamieson." 
 
 In 1857 a charter was granted incorporating the Toronto and Georgian 
 Bay Canal Company, with a capital stock of $24,000,000. Under a Provi- 
 sional Board of Directors, Mr. Tully's scrvict . were again engaged, and as 
 engineer of the work, he made a complete survey of the line, locating the 
 canal, and published his report with maps, profile, &c., estimating the pro- 
 bab!e cost at $22,170,750. No further action, however, was then taken. 
 
 In 1865 the present Provisional Directors obtained an amended charter 
 under the name of the Huron and Ontario Ship Canal Company. Mr. Tully 
 was, at their fin t meeting, appointed Engineer, but shortly afterwards re- 
 signed on account of the claims of other professional engagements. It must 
 be gratifying to him, after having so firmly maintained the perfect feasibility 
 of this great work, agr.iu.stthe contrary opinion very generally expressed, to 
 find his judgment confirmed by the first Engineers in Britain. His profes- 
 sional labours on this project, formed the ground-work for his successor, Mr. 
 Sykes, but all the details of the work, as .set forth in Mr. Sykcs' report, are 
 entirely his own, and he estimates the cost at $35,989,800. The accompanying 
 Maps were published by Mr. Tully in 1857. 
 
without breaking bulk. Whether th*; carrying trade to Europe 
 be done with or without transhipment, at tide-Avater, about 
 which opinions vary, it matters little to the merits of this canal 
 — but it is clearly demonstrable that, whether transhipment be 
 "iade (at Quebec or Montreal, for example) or ?iot, a cargo of 
 grain shipped from Chicago or other upper lake port, via this 
 canal and the Saint Lawrence River and Gulf, could reach 
 Liverpool quite as soon as another, simultaMcously shipped, 
 via Buffalo and Erie Canal, could reach New York ; while, in 
 consequence ol the saving of time and transhipment, the trans- 
 portation charges might be reduced one half, and be remune- 
 rative to the ship-owner. 
 
 That such manifest advantages as these must secure to this 
 canal the vast carrying trade of the Weft, can hardly be doubt- 
 ed, and it may fairly be considered that, if the western export 
 trade be secured to the channel of the St. Lawrence, that would 
 be an important step towards the acquisition of the import 
 trade likewise, or a large portion or it, for the obvious reason 
 that vessels carrying cargoes of grain eastwards could afford to 
 iccept a minimum rate, on their return cargo, rather than come 
 back empty. In the carriage of goods from Europe to the 
 Western Suites, New York vessels could not compete, because, 
 from the import trade of New York being greatly in excess of 
 its export trade, high or full rates of freight westward must 
 always be the rule. It can hardly be expected that western 
 consvimers will long submit to the importation of their sup- 
 plies by the expensive route via New York, if they can com- 
 mand freight, via the St. Lawrencf;, at half the rate, and it 
 would be for their interest to establish a regular traffic both 
 ways, as it is only by return cargoes or fre ight both ways, that 
 the rates of transhipment can be reduced to their remunerative 
 minimum. 
 
 The City of Chicago, with its population of 250,000, is not 
 only the chief port of entry and shipment for the vast region on 
 its north, west and south, but has latterly become the seat of a 
 direct import trade from Europe. This trade has already as- 
 
8 
 
 Slimed large proportions, and it must increase with the growth 
 and progress of the country beyond it, and the facilities for its 
 prosecution. Situate on the margin of Lake Michigan, and 
 accessible from sea by the St. Lawrence, with a back country 
 exteiiJing to the Rocky Mountains, and possessing an almost 
 unlimited capability of production, it occupies the eminent po- 
 sition of an inland seaport, with a trade which seems destined, 
 ultimately, to rival that of New York in magnitude and im- 
 portance. 
 
 The magnitude of the Western carrying trade, and the 
 beneficial effects of its being secured, to Canadian channels, 
 are not appreciated by any but those who have been led to 
 give the subject careful consideration. Few are aware that 
 the teeming products of the great West and their increase, in 
 the ratio which the experience of past years indicates, must, 
 before the Huron and Ontario Canal can be completed, present 
 an eastward movement of freight (the bulk of which could not 
 fail to seek this outlet as the most favourable, whether for New 
 York or Quebec) sufficient to employ a fleet of vessels greater 
 than all that now resort to the St. Lawrence for timber and 
 other cargoes. 
 
 The advantages, to this country, of such a carrying trade, and 
 the impetus it would impart to many important branches of 
 trade and industry, can hardly be overrated. Such a fleet of 
 vessels, continuously passing through the entire length of the 
 of the Provinces of Ontario and Quebec, would create a 
 large outlay of money for repairs, outfit, provisions, ship- 
 chandlery, &c. The vessels themselves would probably be, to 
 a large extent, built and owned in this Province, as we can 
 build ships here cheaper than they can be built in the United 
 States, while the supply of iron or composite steam vessels for 
 this traffic and for ocean navigation, would be of great impor- 
 tance to British ship building interests. Such a traffic may 
 reasonably be expected to impart a greatly increased stimulus 
 to the cultivation of hemp and flax (now in its infancy) and 
 their manufacture into cordage and sail canvas for the us? of 
 the vessels engaged in it. 
 
MINING TRADE. 
 
 The statistics of this trade, on the Soutli side of Lake 
 Superior, and in United States territory, show that the com- 
 mencement of the copper mining operations was in 1845, in 
 which year , 1 SOOlbs. of copper, of the value of $290, were got 
 out ; and that notwithstanding the great deficiency of facilities 
 for transportation and the necessity for land carnage, to get 
 past the St. Mary's Falls, the value of the copper products 
 yearly increased to $805,000 in 1854, and the aggregate 
 amount for that decade of years reached $2,846,509. The 
 year 1855 witnessed the opening of the St. Mary's Canal, and 
 a new era in the mining trade of that region. The value Oi 
 the copper shipped that year was $1,437,000 ; and, in 1864, it 
 had increased to $6,318,550, the aggregate value for that 
 decade bring $31,701,000. 
 
 The iron trade of that district commenced on the opening 
 of the St. Mary's Canal, in 1855, with a product that year of 
 the value of $14,470, and steadily and rapidly increased till it 
 reached, for the year 1864, $1,957,890; and made, for the 
 total product of the ten years, $6,244,920. 
 
 The mining trade of North Michigan, both in copper and 
 iron is now being vigorously prosecuted, while the supply of 
 ore seems incxhaustable and the production of the pure 
 metals limited only by the facilities for their development and 
 carriage to market. 
 
 Although the British side of the lake does not exhibit a cor- 
 responding degree of activity, there is, nevertheless, abundant 
 evidence of a boundless and profitable field, for the employ- 
 ment of money and labor, when such powerful stimulants as 
 capital, enterprise, and cheap transportation shall be brought 
 to bear upon its now almost dormant resourcies. 
 
10 
 
 GRAIN TRADE. 
 
 The following table shows the total annual shipments of 
 grain, of all kinds, from the Ports of Chicago and Milwaukee, 
 from the commencement of the trade in 1838. 
 
 TEAB. 
 
 FROM CHICAGO. 
 
 FROM MILWATTKEE. 
 
 TOTAL. 
 
 
 Bushels. 
 
 Bushels. 
 
 Bushels. 
 
 1838 
 
 78 
 
 ■ 
 
 78 
 
 1839 
 
 3,678 
 
 
 3,678 
 
 1840 
 
 10,000 
 
 
 10,000 
 
 1841 
 
 40,000 
 
 
 40,000 
 
 1842 
 
 586,907 
 
 
 586,907 
 
 1843 
 
 688,907 
 
 
 688,907 
 
 1844 
 
 923,294 
 
 
 923.494 
 
 1845 
 
 1,024,620 
 
 133,260 
 
 1,157,880 
 
 1846 
 
 1,599.619 
 
 292,288 
 
 1,891,847 
 
 1847 
 
 2,243,901 
 
 772,611 
 
 3,016,512 
 
 1848 
 
 3,001,740 
 
 1,066,134 
 
 4,067,894 
 
 1849 
 
 2,769,111 
 
 1,840,808 
 
 4,609,919 
 
 1850 
 
 1,830,938 
 
 820,042 
 
 2,650,980 
 
 1851 
 
 4,646,291 
 
 702,290 
 
 5,348,581 
 
 1852 
 
 5,873,141 
 
 1,772,753 
 
 7,645,894 
 
 1853 
 
 6,412,181 
 
 1,981,249 
 
 8,393,430 
 
 1854 
 
 12,932,320 
 
 3,549.301 
 
 16,841,621 
 
 1855 
 
 16,633,700 
 
 3,758,960 
 
 20,392,660 
 
 1856 
 
 21,583,221 
 
 3,720.311 
 
 25,303,532 
 
 1857 
 
 18,032,678 
 
 3,727,570 
 
 21,760,248 
 
 1858 
 
 20,035,166 
 
 6,162,234 
 
 27,097,400 
 
 1859 
 
 16,771,812 
 
 6,552,896 
 
 23,324,708 
 
 1860 
 
 31,108,759 
 
 9,995,010 
 
 41,103,769 
 
 1861 
 
 50,481,862 
 
 16,710,580 
 
 67,192,452 
 
 1862 
 
 56,484,110 
 
 18,726,389 
 
 75,210,499 
 
 1863 
 
 64,741,829 
 
 16,993,335 
 
 71,735,174 
 
 1864 
 
 47,124,494 
 
 12,066,754 
 
 59,291,248 
 
 1865 
 
 53,212,224 
 
 13,706,773 
 
 67,008,597 
 
 1866 
 
 66,736,660 
 
 17,627,994 
 
 84,364,654 
 
 A digest of this table will show that the increase, in the 
 cereal exports of Chicago and Milwaukee, has steadily been 
 in a ratio of more than three-fold every five years, and more 
 than equal to a yearly increase of 25 per cent. 
 
 ■l-V: 
 
11 
 
 For example, the shipmenis in 1842 were 688,907 bushels, 
 which tripled 
 
 for 1847 gives 2,066,721, the actual shipm'ts being 3,016,512 
 
 «' 1852 " 6,200,163, " " 7,645,894 
 
 " 1857 " 18,600,489, " " " 21,760,248 
 
 ■' 1862 " 55,801,467, " " " 75,210,499 
 
 At this period (1862) the late civil war interrupted the 
 course of production and trade, by suspending immigration 
 and withdrawing labor from argriculture for military service ; 
 but already, since the close of the war in 1866, the usual con- 
 dition of progress has been restored, and the shipments from 
 Chicago and Milwaukee (which had declined in 1864 to 59,- 
 291,248 bushels) had again advanced to 84,364,654 bushels. 
 If three years be allowed, for lost time during the war, and the 
 next five-yearly period, from 1862, be extended to 1870, a con- 
 tinuation of the same ratio of increase would shew, for the 
 year 1875, when the Huron and Ontario Canal may be com- 
 pleted aud open for trafic, the western shioments of cereals, at 
 over 600,000,000 bushels — less than the half of which would 
 (at the moderate toll of 80 cents per ton or about two cents per 
 bushel — one-third of the toll levied on the Erie Canal) yield a 
 handsome dividend on the cost of the canal, even if it reached 
 the sum of $50,000,000. 
 
 Of course, it may be said that the production oi wheat cannot 
 be expected to increase at the rate indicated, but wheat alone 
 was not referred to, but cereals generally. It must be remem- 
 bered that the chief cereal product of the West is Indian corn, 
 the production of which, beyond the demand for local con- 
 sumption, has been checked by the heavy expenses attending 
 its conveyance from the interior to the lake ports, and thence, 
 by Buflfaio to New York and Liverpool, with transhipment at 
 each point. It is considered that, out of the average market 
 value of Indian corn at Liverpool, equal to about 70 cents of U.S. 
 currency, in gold, only about ten cents reach the producer, the 
 remaining 60 cents being consumed in' freight, insurance, com- 
 mission and other charges. The consequence is that there is no 
 inducement to grow more than will meet the demand for local 
 consumption, any surplus, beyond that quantity, being more 
 
12 
 
 profitably disposed of zsjael for the generation of steam power, 
 than by its exportation. 
 
 It is computed th^t the annual product, in Indian corn, of 
 the States of Illinois, Wisconsin, and Iowa, exceeds 600,000,- 
 000 bushels, and. as the quantity of grain, of all kinds, annually 
 shipped has not yet exceeded 100,000,000 bushels, it is clea* 
 that more than 600,000,000 bushels of Indian Corn must find 
 a local market. This vast quantity is consumed, mainly, as 
 food for cattle and swine. There cannot be a doubt that if 
 the cost of its transportation could be so reduced that its cul- 
 tivation, for export, would pay the farmer, and if a sufficient 
 market for it could be found, these states would soon produce 
 an exportable surplus of 500,000,000 of bushels more. 
 
 The construction of the Huron and Ontario Canal will have 
 the effect of reducing the cost of carriage, by water, between 
 the lake ports and Europe from 30 to 50 per cent and if the 
 cost of this valuable cereal can be reduced to the consumer, in 
 Britain or Europe, there cannot be a question or doubt that a 
 market may be found for almost any quantity of it. It is uni- 
 versally acknowledged to be, not only, admirable but the very 
 best food for cattle and especially for swine. The population 
 of Great Britain and Ireland may be considered to be about 
 equal to that of the United States, and as animal food enters, 
 at the least, as largely, into the consumption of the former as 
 the latter, it follows that there must be as large a number of 
 animals to be fed and therefore as large a market there for In- 
 dian Corn, as in the United States, the only necessary condi- 
 tion being, that it must be supplied at a price sufficiently low 
 to enable it to supersede or compete with other descriptions of 
 food. 
 
 It is considered that a price, in Britain, equal to GO cents of 
 U. S. currency, in gold, would do this, and that all the charges 
 to which it is subject, between the producer and the consumer 
 may be kept within 40 cents, leaving, at the least, 20 cents f v 
 the remote producers, while those, nearer to the point of ship- 
 meat, would realize a somewhat larger return from the savirg 
 of inland carriage. 
 
 Although cereals constitute very much the largest feature of 
 
13 
 
 Western products, the estimates of traffic must not be confined 
 to them, seeing that there are other large and increasing items 
 of produce such as Ores, Metals, Lumber, Provisions, &c., and 
 when these are taken into account, we have only the Eastward 
 movement of freights, leaving the entire Westward movement 
 still to be considered. 
 
 TIMBER TRADE. 
 
 The construction of this canal will, by providing an outlet 
 for a region hitherto shut out from means of access to a mar- 
 ket, open up an immense district of well timbered land north 
 and west of the Georgian Bay. The Honorable James Skead, 
 M.L.C., in a paper read at the Mercantile Convention, ai 
 Detroit, in 1865, stated that the " The portion of Canada lying 
 *' north of the River Severn, and east of French River, a district 
 " well provided with streams discharging into Georgian Bay, 
 " contains 12,800 square miles of timber lands ; and that an- 
 " other portion lying west of French River and east of Pigeon 
 " River on lake Superior, contains 48,000 square miles, well 
 " stocked with white and red pine, oak, elm, maple, birch, 
 " spiuce, tamarack, ash and white cedar.'' If to these area of 
 supply be added the extensive region of forest lands in Michi- 
 gan, we have, around the head of this canal, an extent of timber 
 country four times as great as the area exhausted, in Canada, 
 during the whole history of the timber trade since 1806. 
 
 The statistics of the lumber trade of Buffalo, chiefly sup- 
 plied from these sources, shew a steady progressive increase, 
 amounting in 1862 1o three times the quantity of 1846, and re, 
 present, for the former year, a total of 300,000 tons. This 
 quantity, large although it be, is small compared with what 
 may be looked for in the trade in clear lumber and staves, if 
 the Canadian Government succeeds in establishing satisfactory 
 trade relations with the West Indiaa Islands. Their consump- 
 tion of these commodities is enormous and is considered suffi- 
 cient to furnish full employment for 500,000 tons of shipping, 
 a very large portion of which would inevitably be drawn from 
 these regions, for which returns would be made in molasses, 
 sugarj rum, &c. 
 
14 
 
 A direct communication between the West and Liverpool 
 would also secure a large export trade to that port in staves 
 and square oak timber which, in consequence of the expense 
 of transportation, cannot now be carried on. Ornamental tim- 
 ber, such as walnut,, butternut, bird-eye-maple, &c,, suitable 
 for house furniture and cabinet ware, might also be largely 
 exported to Britain and Europe. Taking all these sources of 
 supply and markets into consideration, it would be quite rea- 
 sonable to reckon on a lumber traffic of five or six hundred 
 thousand tons, in the year 1875. 
 
 COAL AND SALT TRADE. 
 
 The supply of Coal and Salt for western consumption, will 
 form important items in the carrying trade, as Oswego is much 
 nearer the sources of production of these commodities than 
 BufTalo, whence they are now mainly shipped. The western 
 consumption of coal is chiefly Anthracite, which is not 
 obtainable nearer than Scranton, at the eastern extremity of 
 Permsylvania and nearly due south from Oswego, whence 
 there is both canal and rail communications. 
 
 Syracuse, the chief source of salt supply is only 36 miles, 
 by canal, from Oswego, while it is now carried 150 miles 
 farther to Buftalo for shipment. It may be said that salt is 
 obtainable much nearer to the markets of the West, but it must 
 be remembered that the cost of carriage, on such cheap and 
 bulky commodities as Coal and Salt goes to make up their 
 chief market value, and carriage may always be had the cheap- 
 est on established lines of traffic. The fact that vessels taking 
 cargoes of grain to Oswego, for local or eastern markets, could 
 afford to take back Coal or Salt at nearly nominal rates (if 
 necessary) is sufficient to secure the supply of those articles to 
 that port. 
 
 The Chicago Board of Trade statistics shew the imports, 
 there, of Coal and Salt, by lake, to have been as follows : 
 
 Coal, 1863 244,624 Tons. 
 
 1864 251,038 
 
 1865 288,771 
 
 1866 378,731 
 
 Salt, 1866 109,789 Tons. 
 
15 
 
 and the port of Milwaukee must likewise have received a 
 proportionate quantity. The western consumption of Coal 
 must increase, not only in the ratio of general progress, but in 
 proportion to the yearly diminished supply and advancing cost 
 of firewood, and the influence which this canal is calculated 
 to exercise in the development of the mining trade, both on 
 the United States and Canadian shores of lake Huron and 
 Superior must extend to the coal trade, by calling it into use 
 for smelting purposes In Salt the consumption must likewise 
 steadily increase and be very important, as the Pork trade is 
 essential to the prosperity of the Western States for the con- 
 version of its staple cereal, Indian corn, and without salt that 
 conversion cannot be effected. 
 
 EMIGRANT PASSENGER TRAFFIC. 
 
 The neccessity for return cargoes froi i Europe suggests a 
 branch of trade for which ocean-going screw steamers would 
 be admirably adapted — the conveyance of emigrant passen- 
 gers. Every year witnesses the arrival at New York of large 
 numbers of emigrants from the thickly populated countries of 
 the old world. Germany, Prussia, Denmark, Norway, Swe- 
 den, and other European countries, as well as the British 
 Islands, annually contribute their quota to the tide of emigra- 
 tion which constantly flows to the American shores. These 
 settlers are chiefly destined to the " Far West," where they 
 expect to get land at merely nominal prices, and where the 
 prairies present a field for their labor, whence they may, at once, 
 derive the means of subsistence, without the hardship and de- 
 lay of clearing forest land. The hardship to which these poor 
 people are subjected, in their inland journey, with their fam- 
 ilies and luggage, from the port of arrival to their destination, 
 by canals, railways and steamboats, with frequent changes, 
 must be inconceivably great, and might be rrach diminished, 
 if they could embark at a British or European port, on board 
 a good screw-steamer that would take them and their encum- 
 brances, not only across the Atlantic but also through our in- 
 land waters to the extremity of lake navigation. Even if a 
 change of conveyance was necessary, from the sea-going ves- 
 
16 
 
 sel to the inland craft, it would still be an immense advantage 
 over the present system, if the emigrant and his family could 
 be taken the rest of the way in one conveyance of safe and 
 comfortable description. If a trade of this kind were once 
 established on a steady and regular system, there cannot be a 
 doubt that the Saint Lawrence and tiie lakes would become 
 the highway for emigration to the West — that the journey 
 would be performed much more economically, comfortably 
 and expeditiously than at present, ard that the trade would be 
 a profitable one to the ships employed in it, and be a consid- 
 erable source of revenue to the proposed caual. 
 
 SOURCES OF TRAFFIC AND COMPARISON WITH 
 
 OTHER ROUTES. 
 
 The Company's General Report on the projected canal, its 
 engineering characteristics and works throughout, its sources 
 and prospects of traffic, and the collateral advantages to this 
 country, consequent upon its construction, treats all these sub- 
 jects in detail and exhaustively, and contains full and complete 
 table of statistics which, if reproduced here, would make this 
 summary too lengthy. 
 
 It is therein shewn that, large as western production has 
 already become, it is in its incipiency ; for, of the whole area 
 of the States of Michigan, Illinois, Iowa, Wisconsin, Minne- 
 sota, Nebraska, and Decotah, extending over 614,548 square 
 miles, only 39,037 square miles, or G| per cent, were under 
 cultivation in 1860, leaving 93 1 per cent, of its lands, there- 
 after to be brought into a condition of productiveness toswell 
 future statements of prosperity and advancement. 
 
 It is also therein clearly shewn that the Erie Canal, which 
 is now, practicably, the channel for the western carrying trade 
 to the sea-board (although its insufficiency is loudly complain- 
 ed of) cannot be a competitor with the Huron and Ontario 
 Canal for the trade of the country west of lake Huron, because 
 it has a more local and increasing source of traffic which 
 must, in all future time, give it full employment. 
 
 For the trade of the States of Ohio. Indiana, Missouri, 
 Kentucky, and Kansas, lake Erie ^-^ the natural reservoir, and 
 
17 
 
 the Erie and Welland Canals are its outlets. The entire area of 
 these States is 221,153 square miles, of which only 42,8^-7 
 square miles, or about 2J per cent, were under cultivation in 
 1860, leaving 80 per cent, of their lands then unproductive 
 and waiting development. From this statement it must be 
 apparent that these Stales present a sufficient field for the 
 future increase of their productions, to tax the utmost capa- 
 city of the Erie Canal and effectually prevent it from being a 
 competitor for the remoter traffic of the Great West, for which 
 the Huron and Ontario Canal is specially designed to pro- 
 vide. 
 
 The only other competitive chani Is of communication are 
 the Welland Canal and the proposed Ottawa and French 
 River navigation. The foregoing remarks, respecting the suffi- 
 ciency of the area of production, of which lake Erie is the 
 reservoir, and the Erie Canal the chief outlet, apply equally to 
 the Welland Canal, besides which it has all the portion of the 
 Western Canadian Peninsula, which is tributary to lake Erie, 
 as its natural source of traffic. The insufficiency of the Welland 
 Canal to accomplish the proposed object of its projectors, by 
 the attraction of the Western Carrying trade to Canadian 
 waters is sufficiently exemplified by the fact that the statis- 
 tics of that trade, shew that the average proportion which 
 seeks that channel does not exceed ten per cent., while even 
 that small per centage, is chiefly destined for Oswego. 
 
 With respect to the projected Ottawa and French River 
 route to Montreal, it is unnecessary to raise the question of the 
 practicability of making a ship canal by that route, which 
 some deny, because such an argument, used here, would have 
 no more value than a similar one, by its advocates, against the 
 Huron and Ontario project. Its feasibility is therefore assum- 
 ed. At the first sight, this project seems as if conceived 
 specially tn the interest of Montreal, in order to convey 
 the western traffic directly to her door, while it is not 
 adapted to serve any general purpose that may not be 
 better accomplished otherwise. If its projectors really 
 sought the attraction of the western carrying trade to 
 
18 
 
 he channel of the Saint Lawrence that object would be 
 much better accomplished by drawing it into Lake Ontario, 
 by which it would reach that chiinnel more directly; while, 
 as a highway to Montreal, Quebec or the Ocean, that Lake 
 and the River Saint Lawrence offer a navigation incompara- 
 tively superior to that of the Ottawa River. Any route that 
 does not fnlly meet western interests and requirements must 
 fail to command its trade and that by the Ottawa and French 
 River certainly does not. What western shippers want and 
 have loudly asked for, is direct access lo Lake Ontario, as a 
 distributing centre for their produce, whence it may pursue 
 its way to Montreal, Quebec, or the Atlantic, or whence they 
 may avail themselves of any of their own artificial communi- 
 cations, by canal or railway, with the Hudson River and New 
 York, or with other of their Atlantic sea-ports. While it is 
 necessary to conciliate and satisfy all western interests, Canada 
 has little to fear from the competition of American artificial 
 channels, and may rely on the advantages of the saving of 
 transhipment, and the shortness of the Atlantic voyage, (Que- 
 bec being 500 miles nearer than New York, to Liverpool) to 
 make the Saint Lawrence, ultimately, both the outlet and inlet 
 for Western American trade. The accomplishment of this ob- 
 ject has been a prominent subject of Canadian Legislation 
 during the last thirty years, and a large portion of the public 
 debt has been creatcu by the execution of public works for 
 that express purpose. That the efforts hitherto made have not 
 been successful only proves the insufficiency of the means 
 adopted, and should not deter or discourage perseverance* 
 when nature has so decidedly indicated the appropriate chan- 
 nel. 
 
 The more northerly situation of the Ottawa River route na- 
 turally places it under the serious disadvantage of a greatly 
 shortened season for traffic, as its close waters will inevitably 
 be several weeks later in opening in the spring, and as much 
 earlier closed by frost in the fall. 
 
 A popular scheme with our neighbours, of the United States, 
 for supplying the great and growing want of the West, has lat- 
 
19 
 
 terly been the construction of a ship canal round the Falls of 
 Niagara. There appear, however, to be powerful local influ- 
 ences operating against it, and it must be obvious that the 
 commercial facilities and benefits sought by its means, would 
 be ecjually secured by the Huron and Ontario Canal ; while 
 the saving in distance is a material jjoint in favor of the latter 
 project, so that its construction would satisfy all present re- 
 quirements, and render the proposed Niagara Ship Canal 
 unnecessary. 
 
 Reference to the map and the following comparative state- 
 ment of distances from the principal western shipping port to 
 the sea-board and Europe, will exemplify the great ad 
 vantages of the route, via the Huron and Ontario Canal, over 
 all others ; and to the saving in distance may be added the 
 further advantage of a superior navigation to that of lakes St. 
 Clair and Erie. 
 
 Chicago to Quebec. Miles. 
 
 via Lake Erie and Welland Canal and St. Lawrence.. 1664 
 
 via Huron and Ontario Canal and St. Lawrence 1236 
 
 Chicago to New Yerk. 
 
 viA Lake Erie and Erie Canal 1615 
 
 via Welland Canal and Oswego 1670 
 
 via Huron and Ontario Canal and Oswego 1210 
 
 Chicago to Liverpool. 
 
 via Mississippi and New Orleans 6000 
 
 via Erie Canal and New York 4600 
 
 via Welland Canal and St. Lawrence 4180 
 
 via Huron and Ontario Canal and St. Lawrence 3736 
 
 For the Huron and Cntario Ship Canal the following mani- 
 fest and important advantages are claimed. 
 
 1. The intricacies and dangers of the shoals and flats of 
 Lakes Erie and St. Clair avoided and a saving of aljout 500 
 miles affected. 
 
 2. Cargoes of 1,000 or 1,200 tons may be taken from Chicago? 
 or other lake port, to tide water or across the Atlantic, without 
 transhipment. 
 
 3. Instead of 360 miles distance and fourteen days of time, 
 on the warm and shallow water of the Erie Canal (exposing 
 grain to risk of heating), the Huron and Ontario Canal, and 
 
20 
 
 St. Lawrence Canals, together, will have only 120 miles of 
 length with fourteen ffjet of water, the rest of the navigation 
 being equal to any in the world. 
 
 4. Quebec being 600 miles nearer than New York to Liver- 
 pool, there will be a saving of that distance in the sea voyage. 
 
 5. A cargo of 1,000 or 1,200 tons shipped at Chicago for 
 Liverpool, via Huron and Ontario Canal would, under ordi- 
 nary circumstances, and whether transhipped at Quebec or 
 not, reach Liverpool before another cargo shipped at same 
 time, via Buffalo and Erie Canal, could reach New York. 
 
 6. With the advantages of the great saving of time and dis- 
 tance, and the passage of large cargoes without transhipment, 
 the transportation charges, as well between Chicago and 
 Oswego, as between Chicago and Liverpool, may be reduced 
 nearly 50 per cent. 
 
 The statement that this cand will have the effect of reduc- 
 ing the rates of freight nearly 50 per cent, is founded on esti- 
 mates caitifuUy made, with the assistance and confirmation of 
 shippers, ship-owners, and ship-masters, thoroughly conver- 
 sant with the whole question, of the cost of first-class vessels 
 adopted for the service — (both inland and marine) the expenses 
 of their management, repairs and insurance — interest at 7 per 
 cent, and a yearly profit of 20 per cent, to enable them to clear 
 themselves and become profit to their owners at the end of five 
 years — all of which estimates are set forth in full detail in the 
 General Report. The result is the demonstration that grain 
 may be profitably carried, (transhipment, time and distance 
 being saved) via th\s canal, at the rates set down in the follow- 
 ing comparison with present current rates : 
 
 ■ 
 
 ■ 
 
 Kates at which it 
 
 
 
 Present average 
 
 may be carried 
 
 Kates by 
 
 
 cost of trans- 
 
 in sailing vessels 
 
 steamers, via 
 
 Eoute, 
 
 port of wheat p. 
 
 via II. and 0. 
 
 H. and 0. 
 
 
 bushel. 
 
 Canal. 
 
 Canal. 
 
 Chicago to Oswego 
 
 12 cents. 
 
 • 6 cents 
 
 7 cents 
 
 do Montreal 
 
 14 do 
 
 8 do 
 
 10 do 
 
 do Boston 
 
 25 do 
 
 13 do 
 
 17i do 
 
 do New York. 
 
 20 do 
 
 13i do 
 
 171 do 
 
 do Liverpool 
 
 34 do 
 
 16 do 
 
 18 do -V 
 
21 
 
 PROBABLE TRAFFIC. 
 
 Based on the various data, hereinbefore recited, tiie follow- 
 ing estimate is made of the probable movement of freight of 
 all kinds, between the West and the East, both ways, by tlie 
 year 1875. 
 
 EASTWARD MOVEMENT. 
 
 TONS. 
 
 Cereals, Wheat, Corn, Barley, Oats, Rye 6,000,000 
 
 Provisions, Beef, Pork, Lard, &c 200,000 
 
 Minerals and Ores 750,000 
 
 Timber, Lumber, and Staves 600,000 
 
 7,550,000 
 
 WESTWARD MOVEMENT. 
 
 TONS. 
 
 Coals from Oswego 800,000 
 
 Salt from Oswego 300,000 
 
 General Merchandize from New York, 
 &c., via Oswego, and from Europe 
 by the St. Lawrence, say ^t\\ of 
 
 Eastward movement 1 ,900,000 
 
 3,000,000 
 
 Total Tons 10,560,000 
 
 In view of the great advantages which this route will offer, 
 compared with all others, it would be reasonable to assume 
 that it will command the largest portion of the freights to be 
 carried between the country west of Lake Huron and the 
 East and sea-board— say, at the least, two-thirds of the 
 Grain, Provisions, Minerals, Lumber and General Merchan- 
 dise, and all the Coals and Salt from Oswego. 
 
 Not to strain the point, however, let it suffice, for our pre- 
 sent purpose, to assume what, it is conceived, no reasonable 
 and intelligent mind will refuse assent to, that one-AaZ/'of the 
 above estimated total of freight passing between the West 
 and the East, or 5,275,000 tons, must be commanded by this 
 Canal, if completed and ready for business in 1875. 
 
 The rale of toll to be levied on property passing through 
 the Canal, is a point of grave importance, because, while it is 
 
 % 
 
necessary that it be such as will ensure, to the holder of shares 
 in the work, a reasonable dividend on his capital, so invested, 
 it is equally necessary that it be such as shall not impose any 
 restriction on the traffic from which it is derived. A o^.reful 
 consideration of the subject has led to the adoption, for the 
 purpose of estimating the probable revenue, of 80 cents per 
 gross ton, as a rate which will equitably meet both conditions. 
 Of course, consideration may hereafter be given to a judicious 
 classification of rates ol toll, on Vessels or their Cargoes, but 
 it is sufficient, here, to assume that the tolls, however classi- 
 fied, should be equivalent to 80 cents per gross ton on all 
 property passing through the Canal. With a toll of 80 cents 
 on the Huron and Ontario Canal, and 20 cems on the St. 
 Lawrence Canals, western vessels would be clear of all 
 Canadian navigation charges to the sea-board, for one dollar 
 per ton, or less than one half of the charge to which they are 
 now subject, on passing through the Erie Canal. This rate 
 would also be less than the Western shipper is prepared and 
 willing to pay for the privilege of the free navigation of the 
 St. Lawrence, with such ameliorations and improvements as 
 shall permit tlie passage of large cargoes without tranship- 
 ment ; as the speeches made at the Detroit Convention in 
 1865 and at the various agricultural conventions held subse- 
 quently, in other Western towns, testily. 
 
 DESCRIPTION OF THE CANAL. 
 
 This canal, its route, engineering features, ar. 1 works 
 throughout, may be brieMy described as follows : — 
 
 It will connect Lake Ontario (234 feet above the sea,) with 
 Lake Huron (574 feet above the sea,) and have Lake Simcoe, 
 P04 feet above the sea,) situated midway between them, for 
 its summit level and feeder. The distance between its 
 Southern terminus, in Humber Bay, of Lake Ontario, and its 
 Northern terminus in Georgian Bay of Lake Huron is 100 
 miles, of which 24 miles are deep water navigation, through 
 Lake Simcoe, and 16 miles slack water navigation, in the 
 Northern extremity of the Nottawasaga River to its mouth ir 
 Georgian Bay ; so that there will be only 60 miles of canal 
 
23 
 
 proper of which 30 miles will be summit level and only 30 
 miles interrupted by lockage. The canal will, therefore, be 
 in two divisions — one South of Lake Simcoe 47 miles in 
 length, and the other North of Lake Simcoe, and (including 
 the Nottawasaga River,) 29 miles in length. The Southern 
 division will commence in the Humber Bay, at a point about 
 25 chains west of the mouth of the Humber River, where it 
 is proposed to make three lift locks in the solid ground, 
 elevating the canal 45 feet and carrying it, by means of a stone 
 aqueduct, over the Lake Shore Road, Great Western Railway 
 and side road. From the Northern extremity of this aqueduct, 
 the canal will be coruinued, through the solid ground, to the 
 village of Lambton, a distance of three miles, where it will join 
 thfe river and receive us water supply. Following the valley 
 of the Humber River for about three miles farther, to Weston, 
 it will there intersect the Grand Trunk Railway, wnich is 
 carried over the valley of the Humber by a viaduct about 60 
 feet above the water level. There the canal will be brought, 
 by the necessary excavation in the bed of the stream, under- 
 neath the Railway, at a level to afford 100 feet clear headway 
 for the passage of masts of vessels ; its elevation to the natural 
 level being effected, after passing beneath the viaduct, by 
 three lift locks. 
 
 From Lambton the canal will follow the valley of the Hum- 
 ber River and its Eastern branch, to the boundary line between 
 the townships of Vaughan and King ; in which distance of 21 
 miles, an ascent of 470 feet to the summit level will have been 
 effected by means of 31 locks, of an average lift of 15 feet 2 
 inches. At this point the largest feature of the work will be 
 encountered. The highlands of the township of King there 
 continue to rise until they attain a height of 186 feet above 
 the level of Lake Simcoe, (the summit,) and then decline 
 to that level, within a distance of nine miles. The average 
 depth of the necessary cut through this ridge is about 80 feet, 
 and the total excavation is computed at 36,000,000 cubic 
 yards. It has been satisfactorily ascertained, by test-pits and 
 boring, that the nucleus of this elevated ground consists of 
 
24 
 
 indurated clay and gravel, very similar to the exposed cliffs, 
 on Yonge Street, near York Mills, which appear to be a por- 
 tion of the same geological formation ; and that the upper or 
 surface portion is clay, gravel and sand of a friable nature. 
 Notwithstanding the admitted formidable nature and magni- 
 tude of this ' atting, it is confidently believed that there is no 
 insuperable obstacle in the way of its accomplishment, in a 
 permanent and satisfactory manner. Through the entire 
 length of this cutting, there will be massive continuous piers, 
 formed of boulders, and concrete, and faced with close piling, 
 secured to back stay piles, on both sides, to protect the foot of 
 the slope. 
 
 This cut will bring the canal lo its connection with the 
 Holland River, the course of which it will follow, through an 
 extended flat, known as the Holland Marsh, for fourteen miles, 
 to its mouth on Lake Simcoe. Passing through Lake Simcoe 
 and out of it at Kcmperfeldt Bay, another cut or excavation 
 will be neceseary, averaging about fifty feet for five miles, to 
 reach the Nottawasaga River, the course of which will be fol- 
 lowed to within three miles of its mouth in Nottawasaga Bay, 
 where, in order to save an extensive bend in the river, there 
 will be a cut of about 40 feet deep for about a mile and a half, 
 through a sand hill with clay bottom. This last cut will 
 bring it to its northern terminus. 
 
 On the northern division of 29 miles, there is a descent of 
 130 feet, effected by eleven locks, of which six will have an ^ 
 average fall of 15 feet, and five of 8 feet. The only extraor- 
 dinary work on this portion of the route will be the railway 
 and road crossings over the Holland River near Bradford, 
 where the unsatisfactory character of the ground calls for 
 special structures, to secure sufficient foundations for iron 
 F.ving bridges. 
 
 The total lockage on the canal will be 600 feet, and the 
 number of locks forty-two. The width of tiie canal will be 
 100 feet at the water surface and 80 feet in the bottom, and its 
 depth 13 feet, except where these dimensions are necessarily — 
 exceeded by the width of the valleys and char j of the 
 
25 
 
 rivers through which it will pass, and through the deep exca- 
 vation, where its width will be 80 feet, both at the surface and 
 bottom, with vertical piers on both sides. 
 
 All the locks will be detached, to prevent the loss of time 
 and consequent diminution of practical capacity for traffic, 
 which would attend the grouping of locks together, in com- 
 bination. 
 
 The locks, sluices, and swing bridges will be operated 
 by hydraulic power, except at the summit level, where 
 steam power will be used. 
 
 The works, throughout the line, will mainly consist of: 
 
 A stone aqueduct, to carry the canal over the Great Western 
 
 Railway and two public roads. 
 Modification of the Weston Viaduct to allow the passage 
 
 of the canal under the Grand Trunk Railway. 
 About 10,000,000 cubic yards dredging in the rivers. 
 About 50,000,000 cubic yards excavatio? 
 16 miles retaining piers on both sides oi ^ep excavation. 
 60 miles of other slope protections. 
 
 42 locks complete, 250 >\ 35 feet, with 13 feet on the sills. 
 25 miles Iron Hydraulic Main, for operating lock gates, sluices 
 
 and swing bridges. 
 4 special fixed bridges over the deep excavation. 
 4 special railway bridges. 
 
 24 iron swing bridges, for ordinary road crossings. 
 Entrance harbors at each terminus. 
 Dams, waste-weirs, ofliets, culverts and inlets. 
 Crib protections in Lake Simcoe. 
 Offices, work-shops, store-houses, lock and bridge-keepers' 
 
 houses. 
 145 miles of towing path. 
 About 140 miles permanent fencing. 
 
 The time required for passing through the Canal is com- 
 puted at 43 hours, thus : 
 
 24 miles lake navigation, at 8 miles per hour 3 
 
 62^ miles River and Canal, lont; reaches, 3 1 miles per hour 15 
 
 20 miles River and Canal, short reaches, 2 miles pei koup 10 
 
 3| miles, 42 locks, at 20 minutes each 14 
 
 '•V 
 
 .,- » » • k 
 
 iV'' 
 
26 
 
 This' rate of speed applies to steam-propelled vessels. 
 Sailing vessels, to attain to it, nnust be towed. Steam Tugs 
 will be specially provided for towage through the long reaches 
 and the hydraulic power provided for operating the lock 
 gates, sluices and swing bridges will be available for the 
 short warping po' ds. 
 
 The estimated cost of all the works is $36,000,000, to which 
 must be added the interest on expenditure during construc- 
 tion, which, together, vill absorb the authorized capital of 
 $40,000,000. 
 
 ST. LAWRENCE CANALS. 
 
 The probable cost of the reconstruction of the St. Lawrence 
 Canals, and the necessary improvement of the channel of the 
 river and lakes St. Francis and St. Louis, are estimated at 
 $5,000,000, viz. : 
 
 Reconstruction of Canals $3,500,000 
 
 Improvement of the navigation of the river and 
 
 lakes 1,500,000 
 
 $5,000,000 
 The outlay of this sum must be met by an increase of 
 revenue equal to the following items : 
 
 Present nett revenue, say $50,000 
 
 Increased Expense of Maintenance and Manage- 
 ment 50,000 
 
 Interest at 7 per cent, on new expenditure of 
 
 $5,000,000 -. 350,000 
 
 $450,000 
 
 The tonnage relied on, for the Huron and Ontario Canal, at 
 its outset, is 5,275,000 tons ; and, ahv wing that one half of 
 this may be destined for Oswego or other U. S. ports, there 
 would remain 2,637,600 tons to pass through the St. Lawrence 
 Canals, whicb^ at 20 cents per ton, would yield a revenue of 
 ^27,600, and quite sufficient to warrant tlie expenditure. 
 
 COLLATERAL ADVANTAGES. 
 
 The collateral advantages which may reasonably be expect- 
 ed to follow the completion of this important work, may pro- 
 perly Be classified as 
 
 /. Local. 
 
 II. Provincial and Federal. 
 
 III. National and Political. 
 
 in .* 1 •' ', • 
 
27 
 
 I. LOCAL ADVANTAGES. 
 
 So large an expenditure as M0,000,000, during a period of 
 from five t seven years, within a space of only 100 
 miles, the whole of which is tributary to the business of 
 Toronto, cannot fail to be a powerful attraction to population 
 and will probably double the number of its inhabitants and 
 proportionately enhance the value of real estate, both in the 
 town and in the country. To the farmers of the Counties of 
 York and Simcoe it will secure a home market and high prices 
 for all descriptions of agricultural produce, cattle and horses! 
 
 The construction of this work will create an almost unlimit- 
 ed water power along the first twenty-four miles of the Canal 
 between lake Ontario and the summit level, under the most 
 favorable circumstances for its application to manufactures • 
 while the Canal itself will afford the greatest facility for obtain- 
 ing supplies of raw materials and the shipment of manufac- 
 tured stuffs. To the City of Toronto it will offer the invaluable 
 benefit of an abundant supply of water for domestic and sani- 
 tary purposes ; and the pressure that may be commanded, 
 from its source being 470 feet above lake Ontario, will make 
 it so important a protection against the ravages of fire, as must 
 reduce the rate of fire insurance, at the least, 25 per cent, and 
 be equivalent to a corresponding reduction of taxation. The 
 water power which may be made available within the city 
 will be of great convenience and value, as by the aid of modern 
 improvements in its application, and the use of high pressure 
 water engines, motive power may be supplied for whatever 
 purposes required. All the printing presses now worked by 
 steam, and sewing and other labor saving machines may be 
 worked by it, and the power obtained by the simple'process of 
 turning a lap, while the consumption of water may be regis- 
 tered by a metre, and the charge made thereforjaccording to an 
 established tariff. 
 
 n. PROVL^CIAL AND FEDERAL ADVANTAGES. 
 
 During the construction of the work, which may extend 
 over seven years of time, the consumption of dutiable and ex- 
 cisable commodities, by the large number of laboring men and 
 
28 
 
 their families, which so stupendous an excavation and other 
 works, will necessitate, will bring an important accession to 
 to the public income, through the customs and excise. 
 
 Wheu completed, the immense carryng trade which it will 
 attract and accommodate, will be a constant source of profit to 
 both Provinces of Ontario and Quebec, in the necessary expen- 
 diture of so large a fleet in its continuous passage through their 
 entire length for repairs, outfit, provisions, ship stores, &c. 
 
 Ship building, and tlie cultivation of hemp and flax and 
 their manufacture into cordage and sail canvas are interests 
 of provincial importance which will be greatly stimulated. 
 
 The most important of its influences on Provincial and 
 Federal prosperity will, however, be found in its powerful 
 agency in the development of the vast region of Canadian and 
 British territory north and west of Georgian Bay ; rich in all 
 the various products of the lake, the forest, and the mine, 
 and presenting, for future ages, a lucrilive field for Canadian 
 enterprise and industry. 
 
 To the Federal Union this Canal will be of incalculable 
 advantage, through its contribution to more intimate commer- 
 cial intercourse with the Maratime Paovinces of New Bruns- 
 wick and Nova Scotia, to which their necessary supplies of 
 breadstuff's will be furnished at greatly reduced charges of 
 freight, while an extensive market will be opened for their 
 coal, for the supply of steam vessels engaged in the carrying 
 trade to the United States seaboard, and Europe. 
 
 As an important feature of the highway for commercial 
 traffic through the Dominion, it will perform its part in the 
 formation of the most enduring band of Union, and by its 
 attraction of the products of the Western States to Cannadiaa 
 channels, and its development of our own West and North- 
 West possessions, it will be an invaluable feeder to all 
 Eastern viaducts of traffic, and especially to our projected 
 federal work, the Intercolonial Railway. 
 
 Nor, in its federal relation, should its value be lost sight of, 
 as an important link in the chain of communication between 
 the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, through British territory. 
 
29 
 
 Connected with the opening up of the portions of the 
 North-West territory, suitable for colonization and settle- 
 ment, the concurrent works, which will be called for, in the 
 improvement of the lakes and rivers and their connection with 
 each other, by land roads and railways, cannot be long 
 deferred. The key to the effective use of this important route 
 will be the Huron and Ontario Canal. 
 
 The following statement of distances between the most 
 prominent points of the route from Thunder Bay, on Lake 
 Superior, to the mouth of the Fraser River, opposite Vancou- 
 vre's Island, and of the time necessary to traverse them, are 
 taken from the report, to the Canadian Government, of Mr. 
 S. J. Dawson, C. E., on the Red River Expedition. 
 
 MILES. 
 
 From Thunder Bay to Dog Lake 
 
 Through Dog Lake and Dog River to Prairie Portage... 
 
 Over Prairie and Savanne Portages 
 
 By Savanne River and Lac des Milles Lacs to Little 
 
 Falls, River Seine 
 
 From Little Falls to Rainy Lake 
 
 Through Rainy Lake, Rainy River, and Lake of the 
 
 Woods, to Western Extremity of Lac Plat 
 
 From Lac Plat to Fort Garry 
 
 From Fort Garry to Grand Rapid of the Saskatchewan 
 From Grand Rapid of Saskatchewan to Lac Bourbon . . 
 From Lac Bourbon to Acton House, near the Rocky 
 
 Mountains 
 
 From Acton House to Navigable Water of Fraser River 
 
 (across the Mountains) 
 
 Thence to Mouth of Fraser River 
 
 That is to say, 511 miles of land roads, and 1468 miles of 
 navigation — in all 1979 miles from Thunder Bay, of Lake Su- 
 perior to the Fraser River on the Pacific Ocean. If good land 
 roads were made between the navigable reaches, and steamers 
 placed on the latter, it might be traversed as follows : 
 
30 
 
 d. h. m. 
 
 1468 miles navigation, at 10 miles per hour 6 2 48 
 
 511 " land roads, at 5 miles per hour 4 6 12 
 
 13 transhipments, say 1 hour each 13 00 
 
 Days < 10 22 00 
 
 Or if railways were constructed ; 
 
 d. h. m. 
 
 1468 miles navigation, at 10 miles per hour 6 2 48 
 
 511 " railway, at 22 J miles per hour 22 42 
 
 13 transhipments 13 00 
 
 Days 7 14 30 
 
 III. BRITISH, NATIONAL, AND POLITICAL ADVAN- 
 TAGES. 
 
 That the population of Great Britain is directly interested in 
 the scccessf'ul carrying out of this project cannot be question- 
 ed, if its effect be materially to reduce the expenses of the car- 
 riage of breadsluffs from the place of their chief production to 
 Europe. If a saving of fifteen cents per bushel be effected in 
 this way, it is a reasonable assumption, and one that experi- 
 ence will probably verify, that this saving will be nearly 
 equally divided between the producer and the customer. If 
 such a saving may be predicated in the case of grain imported 
 into Britain from America, then a corresponding reduction 
 must be produced in all grain imported. If the average im- 
 portation of grain into Britain be taken at twenty million of 
 quarters (equal to 160,000,000 bushels), which is about the 
 present figure, a reduction in the price, of 7^ cents per bushel 
 would amount ro $12,000,000 or £2,400,000 sterling, and be 
 an annual saving of that amount to the British customer, in 
 the most important necessary of life. 
 
 In our relations with our neighbors of the United States, 
 this canal will so identify the c< mmercial interests of Canada 
 and the Western States, as to constitute a most powerful and 
 enduring bond of peace, and with the prabability that it will 
 be censtructed by the joint efforts of the capitalists and con- 
 tractors of both Great Britain and the United States, and that 
 the capital stock will be held, in nearly equal proportions, by 
 the subjects of both countries, such a community of interest 
 will be established as will afford the strongest possible secu- 
 rity for the maintainance of friendly relations, and as will be 
 ready, at all times, to interpose a check to any tendency to an 
 interruption of international amity. 
 
31 
 
 PETITION TO THE LEGISLATURE OF ONTARIO 
 FOR GRANT OF LAND. 
 
 To the Honorable, the Legislative Assembly, 
 of the Province of Ontario, in Provincial 
 Parliament assembled. 
 
 The Petition of the Huron and Ontario Ship 
 Canal Company. 
 
 Humbly Sheweth, — That your Petitioners are incorporated 
 under an Act of the Parliamc i, of the late Province of 
 Canada, passed the 29th year ol Her Majesty's reign, chap- 
 tered 78, and entituled "an Act to amend the act incorporating 
 the Toronto and Georgian Bay Canal Company," which last 
 mentioned act was passed in the 19th and 20th years of Her 
 Majesty's reign, and was chaptered 118. 
 
 That under the provisions of their said acts of incorporation, 
 your petitioners are empowered to construct a ship Canal, to 
 connect the waters of Lakes Huron and Ontario, and thereby 
 provide a shorter and better channel of communication 
 between the upper lakes of this Province and the river St. 
 Lawrence. 
 
 That, by the said acts, the capital stock of this company is 
 fixed at forty millions of dollars, and your petititioners are 
 thereby empowered to take posession of and hold all such 
 lands as may be necessary for carrying into effect the objects of 
 the said acts, as therein set forth, and further, to hold all such 
 other lands as may, at any time, be granted to them, by Her 
 Majesty, Her Heirs, or Successors, in furtherence of the said 
 objects. 
 
 That your Petitioners, in the original conception of the pro- 
 ject to construct the proposed Canal, always contemplated the 
 necessity of aid by a grant of land from the public domain, as 
 the experience of British and foreign capitalists, in their invest- 
 ments in Canadian public works, has heretofore been so 
 unfavourable as to render such aid indispensable. 
 
 That, your Petitioners humbly submit, for the corisideration 
 of your Honourable House, that the appropriation of the public 
 lands to the promotion and encouragement of public works of 
 tmdoubled utility, is quite consistent with sound policy and 
 general interests, provided that such grants be made with the 
 utmost possible security for the exploration, survey, and occu- 
 pation of such lands, so as to ensure the early development of 
 their agricultural, forestial, mineral, and other resources. 
 
 That, your Petitioners further, humbly ^submit, that the 
 
32 
 
 fjroject, in aid of which they are applicants for such a grant of 
 and, is one of surpassing importance, not only to the interests 
 of the Province of Ontario, but also to the general prosperity 
 of the Dominion of Canada, 
 
 That the object of thb constrnction of the proposed 
 Canal is not only to provide a channel which shall 
 secure the immense and growing carrying trade of 
 the Western United States to Canadian waters, and thereby 
 provide employment for our existing, but now unpro- 
 ductive, public works, but also to afford the shortest and best 
 communication with the valuable mineral regions bordering 
 on lakes Huron and Superior, and the fertile valleys of the 
 Saskatchewan and Assineboine rivers, and to supply an im- 
 portant link in the chain of communication between the 
 Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, through British territory. 
 
 That your Petitioners have effected arrangements with 
 capitalists and contractors of the highest character in Britain 
 and the United States, to supply the necessary capital, and 
 carry into effect the construction of the proposed Canal, 
 without the incurring of any debt by the people or the gov- 
 ernment of this Province or of Canada, on the condition that 
 it shall please the Executive Government of this Province, by 
 and with the consent of Your Honorable House, to give to our 
 Company a free grant of ten millions of acres of the public 
 lands, together with such waste or marsh lands, on the line 
 of the proposed Canal, as may be in possession of the Crown ; 
 such grants to be made under such conditions, securing the 
 object thereof, as your Honorable House may see fit to impose, 
 for perfectly protecting the public interests. 
 
 Your petitioners, therefore, humbly pray, that it may please 
 Your Honorable House, to take the premises into your favor- 
 able consideration, and to pass such a measure as will best 
 secure the fulfillment, by your Petitioners, of the great and 
 important objects which they have been incorporated to accom- 
 plish, and, to that end, that your Petitioners may receive, under, 
 conditions, the grints of land herein before referred to. 
 And your Petitioners will ever pray, &c. 
 
 Signed by two of the Provisional Directors' 
 and sealed with the Company's Seal, 
 under resolution of the Board, of this 
 date. 
 
 DONALD McDonald, 
 
 [L.S.] HENRY FOWLER. 
 
 Toronto, 29th January, 1868. 
 
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