ROME AS A SEAPORT.

Evening Post, Volume LXVIII, Issue 56, 3 September 1904, Page 13

ROME AS A SEAPORT.

. King Victor Emmanuel's pet ambition is to signalise- his reign in the annals of Italy by converting Romo into a seaport. The project of connecting tho Eternal City with tho sea by moans of a ship canal is, of course, not a new ono. In fact, it ha« been urged a number of timcfi. But now, lhanka to the energy ami determination of Uio king, tho schemeis about to be put iato execution. The Tiber, which should be tho natural mams of navigation between the metropolis and tho «ca, is unfortunately useless for tho purpose, tx» the. shifting sandy at its mouth, its winding course and its everchangiiig fchoais and pools, not merely render it unavailable- for any seagoing craft, but nro ltkewiso of a nature to preclude any attempt to render it navigublo for ships of large tonnng« by means of dredging. Tho canal, however, could easily bo constructed, and offers no engineering difficulties. Tho total cost has been estimated at £2,200,000, the idea being to make it Avido and deep enough to enable two vessels of big tonnage to pass each olhor. The timo required for the construction would ba between four and five years. T?he distance from Rome to the sea is considerably under fifty miles, and the canal would have the effect of draining and malting sanitary a considerable, portion of that Roman Campagna. which ia now rendered almost uninhabitable by malaria. — New York Tribune.