Facts and Figures in Favour of the Proposed Manchester Ship Canal

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Excerpt from Facts and Figures in Favour of the Proposed Manchester Ship Canal: Showing How to Solve the Cheap Transport Problem for the Great Import and Export Trade of Lancashire and the West RidingIt is becoming more evident every day that the industrial interests in this country can no longer afford to neglect the cheap transit problem. There are widespread complaints of the decay and, in some cases, total extinction of important industries, these disastrous effects resulting entirely, from the too great cost of carriage between the producing centres and the consuming markets abroad. Moreover, the pernicious effects of the high rates charged for carriage are not confined to the foreign trade of the country they operate just as mischievously on the far greater volume of trade arising from the production and distribution of goods intended for consumption in these islands. It has come to pass that the great bulk of the inland carrying trade is monopolised by the railways. The railway interest has grown to such an extent as to become a great power in the State. So secure in their monopoly do they feel, that, notwithstanding the obvious injury to trade arising from the operation of excessive railway rates, the railway companies have hitherto paid' but little attention to the complaints of merchants. However, the loudclamours of the manufacturing, mercantile, and mining interests could no longer be resisted, and, with a view to special legisla tion, Parliament ordered a committee to investigate into the subject of railway rates. This committee sat during the session of 1881, and its labours were continued during the past session: The inquiries of this Parliamentary Committee on Railway Rates have resulted in the accumulation of a vast amount of evidence illustrative of the alarming effects on our trade which attend the existing monopoly of inland transit by the railway companies. N ow, as it is doubtful whether much relief can be hoped for from the interference of the legislature, the question arises, would it not more effectually destroy this monopoly were the railways subjected to a strong, healthy competition, of a kind which they could neither bribe nor smother.About the PublisherForgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.comThis book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully, any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.