BRIDGING THE CHANNEL.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume IV, Issue 103, 4 May 1869, Page 2

BRIDGING THE CHANNEL.

That much ridiculed idea of establishing a solid highway between England and France, both for passengers and merchandise, is now very likely to become a realised fact. In spite of the oftrepeated declaration that it was physically impossible, it appears that a railway tunnel, under the sea, or a railway bridge over the sea, from Dover to Calais' is not only possible, but tolerably certain of accomplishment. At the same time it is almost overwhelming to think of a bridge more than 20 miles long, with its foundations laid in the bed of the sea ! But there is no mistake 83 to the spirit in which the mutter is being taken up on both sides of the Channel. French and English engineers are bending their best energies to the question, and the Kmperor Napoleon seems quite enthusiastic on lise subject, His Majesty has liberally subscribed to the object, and has placed one of the largest public buildings of Faris at the command of the Company recently formed for the purpose of constructing and testing various working models, preliminary to the commencement of the great work itself. The whole of this vast bridge, piers as well as superstructure, will be of iron, and it is therefore not difficult to imagine that an enormous impetus will be given to the iron trade for materials to make a bridge over •JO miles long, with its foundations resting on the bed of the ocean, and sufficiently elevated to enable the tallest ships to pass free. The English in Paris are as much in earnest about the project as the French themselves, and one sporting lord has a bet with the Paris Jockey Club that a train will pass by this bridge from England to France before any of the P. and O. Company's steamers get through the Suez Canal. Of course a bridge 20 miles long, on land, would be merely a question of time and cost ; but across 20 miles of sea, othtr considerations than that of expense have to be t'tken into account. Still, even 40 or 50 yards depth of sea-water is no trifling impediment in the way of putting down 20 miles of foundations; but it is believed the great work will be accomplished. A proposal has been made to make the balus:rades of the bridge air-tight tubes, so as to render them available for the propulsion of letters and small packets by atmospheiic pressure. There will then be an hourly | ost and parcel delivery between Paris and London ! The following is a precise description of the intended structure: — "It is proposed to construct the bridge from the t->liakespere Cliff, near Dover, to Cap Blanc Nez, a short distance from Calais, this route, although somewhat longer than the GrisNez route, p eventing certain important advantages, the soundings of which show a perfectly regular and gradual descent from each snore, and a maximum depth of 157 feet 6 inches. The total length of the bridge is to be 32.822 yards, divided into ten arches of uniform span, resting on nine piers, rising to a height of 360 feet above the sea, so as to allow of the free passage of ships of the largest class. The arclies are constructed on a new system, by which absolute rigidity is secured by the use of wire cables and wrought-iron — an ingenious and very simple system of scaffolding, rendering the placing of the parts extremely easy. Metallic framework piers, with foundations about 400 feet long, by 2 ">0 feet wide at the top, are to be employed, the centre pile being half as large again as the others. The piers are to be screw ed down by 70 or 80 powerful screws, and are so arranged that they can be constructed on land, floated into position and fixed at once, the floating and fixing being calculated to occupy not more than half-a-day."