The most important of the new works are those for the additional supply of water. They comprise pumping-stations at Pierre-la-Treiche and Valcourt, near Toul, at both of which the pumps are actuated by turbines, and a steam-pumping station at Vacon, as well as ducts for conveying the water from the pumping-stations to the canal, and an impounding reservoir at Paroy.
| Gallons. | |
| The total amount of water required annually for | |
| the Rhine-Marne canal is | 1,364,620,000 |
| The total amount of water required annually for | |
| the East canal is | 748,340,000 |
| Total | 2,112,960,000 |
| In addition to which there is the Meurthe | |
| branch, requiring | 462,210,000 |
| Making a grand total of | 2,575,170,000 |
Besides the above artificial sources, the canals are fed by springs at Vacon, and by the Moselle, &c.
The arrangements at Pierre-la-Treiche and at Valcourt are nearly similar. There are two turbines, actuating force pumps, capable of raising from 143 to 198 gallons per second to a height of 131 feet 3 inches, through a line of cast-iron pipes of 2 feet 7½ inches diameter, delivering into an open duct connecting with the east end of the Pagny Reach of the canal. This duct commences at Pierre-la-Treiche, and is 8¼ miles long, and feeds both canals.
| £ | |
| The cost of these works was | 51,920 |
| Of which the pumping station at Pierre-la-Treiche cost | 15,616 |
| And the pumping station at Valcourt | 26,908 |
The steam pumping-station at Vacon is near the west end of the Pagny Reach. The pumps are 250 H.P., and capable of lifting 8,804,000 gallons per twenty-four hours to a height of 121 feet 4 inches, or 110 gallons per second. The water is conveyed into a duct, which also carries the water from the Vacon springs, and empties into the Pagny Reach. The reservoir at Paroy has an area of 180 acres, and contains 376,371,000 gallons. The dam is 1378 feet long, and 18 feet 3 inches high; the cost of construction was 20,800l. The canal traffic in 1884 amounted to 634,936 tons.[68]
The Canalisation of the Moselle.—The French Government, in the period from 1836 to 1860, undertook the regulation of this river from Frouard to the Prussian frontier by means of works parallel to the existing river-bed, and by embankments; but sandbanks and shoals were nevertheless deposited which impeded the navigation, and led to the proposal, in 1860, to erect a series of sluices and movable weirs extending from Frouard to Thionville, which would, if constructed, entail an estimated outlay of 11½ millions of francs, the total distance being 92 kilometres, and the minimum depth of water to be maintained being set down as 1·6 metre. Owing to the opposition of some of the Communes, who dreaded the injury to their land by the alterations in the water-level, the plans were modified, and only certain reaches of the river, where the riparian conditions were favourable, were kept up by weirs and locks, side-channels fed from the main stream being constructed to connect these deepened sections.
The Proposed Mediterranean and Biscay Canal.—The project for connecting the Mediterranean and the Bay of Biscay by a ship canal has often been under discussion, and would, no doubt, if carried out, prove of considerable utility. Not only would such a canal shorten by several days the distance between the principal ports on the North Sea and the eastern basin of the Mediterranean—thereby bringing England into closer contact with the far Orient—but there would be a greater security to shipping, as a result of avoiding the stormy coasts of Spain and Portugal during the winter months. The proposed canal has been variously named the “Canal de deux Mers,” the “Canal du Midi,” &c., but it would practically be identical with the Languedoc Canal already described, and by means of which boats of small size are even now passed between the two seas.[69]
The route proposed for the Mediterranean and Bay of Biscay Ship Canal is from Bordeaux to Cette by Agen, Montauban, Toulouse, Carcassonne, and Béziers. The canal, after following largely the course of the Garonne, from Bordeaux, would tap the Dorpt, the Lot, the Aveyron, and the Tarn, whence it would draw its water supply. From Toulouse, the canal would follow the course of the South Canal, and would thence proceed by Béziers, to the Lake of Thau, which would be transformed into an inland port. The financial and other difficulties in the way of the project have, however, proved insurmountable up to the present time. Both the City of Bordeaux, which is the port chiefly interested, and the Government of France have declined to aid in the realisation of the project; and the State has even refused to grant the necessary concession for its construction, on the ground that its cost would be quite out of proportion to its utility, that it would isolate a large portion of French territory, and that costly works would have, in any case, to be provided by the Government at both ends of the canal.
It is pointed out,[70] on the other hand, and with some force, that in the case of a maritime war between France and England, the proposed Atlantic and Mediterranean Canal would allow of vessels reaching the former sea without passing Gibraltar. Brest and Toulon could also be brought into more rapid activity, and the concentration of troops could be more readily effected. A plan and profile of the proposed route appears at [p. 101.]