Mr. REDMAN said, that a few facts had come to his knowledge since the Paper had been prepared. H e had referred to the modern buoyage of the Prince's Channel as being deeper than the Quecn's Channel to the south of it, to illustrate the changes in the Thames' estuary. From the most recent surveys of the sand-banks and channels, it appeared that other changes had lately occurred in the first-named channel. The west entrance, the Girdler Channel, had, two years back, been superseded by a channel more to the N.E. between the West Girdler and Shingles, called the Shingles Channel, up to the arrival of the Princess Alexandra, who passed through it, subsequently it was called the Alexandra Channel. Owing to the breaking away of the crest of the West Girder sand, the western outlet of the Prince's Channel, the Girdler Channel, was rapidly shoaling, and the Alexandra Channel had also lost depth, but at the east end of the Prince's Channel, bctween the Girdler and Long Sands, Bullock's Channel had broken through the sand separabing its deep-water head from the 'Black Deep,' and at that point it was now 20 feet.deeper than shown in the last-published charts. This channel, not yet buoyed, was 3 miles long, and 1 mile wide, and 40 feet to 50 feet deep, throughout. Should the west approaches to the Prince's Channel continue to shoal, the lights would in all probability be removed, and the Bullock Channel, leading into the ' Black Deeps ' of the South Channel, would be lighted and used instead. This channel would be wider and freer for navigation, but would be 16 mile longer. The Middle, and Overland Channels to the westward wcre also 226 THE EAST COAST. low water, with a channel on the north side 20 feet deep, and a channel 15 feet on the south side. At IIarwich the ' Beach End ' buoy, moored in 18 feet of water, laid in 1.842, was shifted each year, and last moored in February, 1863. He did not know the amount of movement each year, but it would in all probability closely coincide with the late Admiral Washington's estimate, of 12 yards per annum. By comparing the Admiralty surveys of 1842 with others of the present time, he found the S.W. progression in the last twenty years, was 200 yards, equal to 10 ynrds per annum. Respecting the engineering and commercial value of the question, he had prepared from Mr. Ingham's *shipping returns for the years 1856-1859 and 1862 (Appendix) the registered tonnage of the thirteen ports from Maldon to Boston, within the limits of coast described. It would be seen that the aggregate registered tonnage-nearly a stationary quantit,y for the last seven yearswas nearly 130,000 tons ; and the amount of exports and imports, coasting, colonial, and foreign, from the various ports along the coast reviewed, was nearly 14 million of tons ; the colonial (a small amount) nearly stationary ; the foreign slightly falling 0% and the coasting considerably so, for that, on the whole, there was a falling off due to the extension of railways and the diversion of the carrying trade to London. Still the amount ...

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TIDAL NAVIGATIONS,for, by nature, in the subsequent lowering of the outfall. The outward progress of the floods, or of the drainage, may be safely intrusted t,o the impulsion of the natural head of water coming fiom the inland district. MTith an enlarged view of the subject, it cannot be considered, that the navigations of the Ouse, the Nene, the Welland and the TVitham are adequa.te, in their present state, to the vast extent of land for the drainage of which they constitute the respec,tive outlets. I t is, however, a subject of national importance, and well worthy the consideration of the Legislature, whether, an efficient system should not be immediately adopted, which should have the effect of concentrating the useful effect of the backwater upon one, or two capacious and deep channels, alike beneficial to the navigation and to the drainage.Mr. R. STEPHENSON, M.P., V.P., said the Paper recapitulated, as general principles, a series of accepted truisms ; but some of the conclusions, deduced from the reasonings, were not quite in accordance with his experience. It was somewhat difficult to col-

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