THE face of the earth presents no invitation to enterprise comparable to this. The facility of execution reduces to dimensions, not exceeding the resources of a parish, a work which would unite and enrich two quarters of the globe, which would add in security and wealth to the Empire, more than the conquest of a powerful kingdom.

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But the

The Danube, running in nearly a straight line from the centre of Hungary, to within a few miles of the coast, suddenly turns up to the North, and after a devious and intricate course, loses itself through shallower channels, amongst noxious marshes, in the Black Sea. Its useless wanderings extend a hundred and fifty miles, carrying it away from the direction of its usefulness, and bringing its navigation within autumn's fatal miasmata, and winter's icy chains. degrees of northing it attains exposes it to worse infection than that, which strikes the flesh, and to more benumbing thrall than that of polar snows: the fabled dragon of the Pontine eastern coast, called to-day into virulent existence, guards and covers the inhospitable western shore; guards but to crush, covers to devour. From these to set free the kings of rivers to open the floodgates of fertility on the heaven-blessed and man-cursed Dacian plains; to cast off -no, to escape from,-the hard dominion of lawless might and direr craft, such are the guerdons of a labour which every consideration of prudence recommends to the wonderworking ingenuity of our Phoenician times.

The exports of the countries watered by the Danube have to pass through the Bosphorus to reach their ultimate destination, so that for commercial purposes, the river may be considered a continuation of those straits and the Dardanelles : in former times these were considered a continuation of the Danube. The winding of the river lengthens the voyage two or three hundred miles but the difference in time has to be calculated by months. The marshy nature of the country through which the crews have to track the vessels to the ports of shipment, occasions loss of life; and the accumulation of sand at the only mouth, necessitates the unloading of vessels of any size; political and sanitary obstacles affect vessels of every class and nation, and consequently the freights are so much increased as to amount to a charge of fifty per cent. on the staple produce of the country.

The proposed canal would bring the Danube straight out into the Euxine, clear of obstruction, fever, and violence; and for all practical purposes, the inland countries of Transylvania Serbia, and Hungary would find themselves possessed of a maritime coast.

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These countries have not yet gone through our laborious experience, in advancing from the pack-saddle to the cart, track-boat and railway waggon; they have not made even the first step. They would at once attain to the most perfect communications being destitute of the worst. By reference to the map, it will be seen, that the river passes along the great plain of Hungary, and afterwards takes the very centre of the rich alluvial lands, lying between the Carpathians and the Hamus: these are the two largest and richest plains in Europe; they are inhabited by 23,000,000 of an almost exclusively agricultural and pastoral population. The tributary Theisse traverses the centre of the plain lands of Hungary; the Save comes down almost from the head of the Adriatic:

*Yet springs are a Hungarian invention, first applied by Matthias Corvinus to relieve his gouty leg; and from the village, where his essay was made, Cotzi, comes our "coach." The Turks still retain the original word.

various small confluents afford limited ranges of navigation transversely through Wallachia; and the Pruth and the Sereth bring down the produce of Moldavia from the north and from the west all the communications converge to that point where the river is nearest to the Black Sea, and to Constantinople. The river in itself, and its chief confluents, present an inland navigation of two thousand miles; the stream is not rapid; vessels, properly rigged and managed, might aide themselves greatly by sails, but in consequence of its being shut out from the sea every process is rude and bar barous; in fact, nothing has been done by art, to turn to account the incalculable resources of this region, or to profit by the unrivalled facilities of this river.

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It would be natural to suppose that this work has been hitherto prevented by obstructions such as rocks, mountains, or sand. There is, however, nothing of the kind; in fact the Danube anciently discharged its water through this channel, and all that is to be effected is the reopening of the ancient mouth, which is indeed through half its course at present" filled with water.

The western coast of the Black Sea is difficult and inaboardable; the canal would in a great measure be deprived of its utility if there were no port and no shelter for vessels at the point where it meets the sea; but it so happens that at that very point a headland runs out to the eastward, affording shelter. The ruins, no less than ancient reports, show that it has been a place of importance; although by the shoaling of the waters, and the drifting of the sands, it is now of comparative insignificance, it might however at very little cost be made to serve for the purposes of the canal.

In 1844 the Austrian government, in consequence of the interruption of its navigation for the larger vessels by the shoaling of the waters, and urged by the Austrian Lloyd Company, adopted this project, and sent engineers to make the necessary surveys, who estimated the expense at under half a million sterling. Negotiations were then opened with

the Turkish government; it was not unfavourably disposed, yet difficulties arose, and altercations ensued, which wore carried to such a pitch that the representative of Austria threatened to demand his passports, and the project was finally abandoned. It is said, however, that Russia expended £100,000 in bribes,.. [

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The Austrian project was for a ship canal, to enable her large steamers to pass up the river; the expense was consequently calculated on this scale; the facilities afforded by the long lake of Carason had to be neglected. However, it is by no means requisite that the canal should be for sea-.. going ships; if for smaller vessels the expense would be reduced one half, and considering the matter from the point of view of Turkish interests, greater advantages would accrue, for a new class of vessels would arise fitted for sea and river navigation. These would penetrate high into the interior, and by short and rapid voyages transfer at small cost the produce of the Danubian provinces to Constantinople, which would thus become the centre of the grain trade of the South, a trade which carries many others along with it. These small vessels would also be capable of being tracked by their crews against the currents of the Bosphorus, where the large seagoing vessels are sometimes detained for months.

The Black Sea contains immense maritime resources in timber, iron, hemp, pitch, at a quarter of the cost in Europe. Around its coasts there is a numerous maritime population to whom an impulse would be given by this new traffic, and a new class of vessels to be built. Meanwhile their enterprise would be let into the Danube and its confluents, where ‹ everything connected with navigation is of the rudest and most primitive description... Their barges being of the burden sometimes of 2000 tons are utterly unmanageable, the use of sails is scarcely known, and their oars are unfashioned pieces of wood. With all these advantages Turkey would obtain a nursery of native seamen, strengthening her in her weak point, and guarding her in her exposed quarter:

in this respect alone the Danube canal would be to her more important than Newfoundland to England. The Genoese, when they had their establishments at Galata and in the Crimea, had recourse to the same plan. They had a small class of vessels which navigated the Black Sea, and brought the corn down to Constantinople, whence the vessels from Europe carried it away.

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By restricting the dimensions of the canal, the purpose of the larger one would be more than attained, without its expense works at Kustendji, would be no longer required, for these hoys would be able to enter at once the basin opening on a tideless sea. This coast is not exposed to the dangers of the other portions of the Euxine. Fogs, low invisible coasts, deceptive appearances, or a current setting on shore, render perilous every other frequented port, such as the mouths of the Danube, Odessa, Taganrog, and the entrance of the Bosphorus. The current here sets off shore; the land is not low, and is well defined; against the prevailing westerly and northerly winds there is shelter; with a southerly wind there is no danger in making the coast; the holding ground is good. At the present rate of exportation, 2000 of these craft would be required, making five or six trips in the year; they would employ 15,000 seamen. The enterprise would thus be reduced to very manageable proportions, and the character of the workmanship brought nearer to the level of what the country can supply.

We may then be safe in setting down the cost as not above £2000 per mile for the cutting, or £1000 for dredging, banking, pile driving, &c. on the Lake of Carasou, which would bring the expense under £60,000, for the line itself; the entire expenditure would be amply covered by £200,000.

Everything consumed by 10,000,000 of people, every article produced on 60,000 square miles of arable land, would pass through it. A considerable proportion of what is consumed by other 16,000,000 of people and the larger amount of the exported produce of their 120,000 square