CANADA HEMP 318 CANAL CANADA HEMP, a perennial herb, apocynutn cannabinum, of the dogbane family, native of North America. It has a strong fiber, used by the Indians for twine, nets, woven fabrics, etc. CANADIAN RIVER, a river that rises in the N. E. part of New Mexico, and runs generally E. through Texas and Indian Territory to the Arkansas. Its length is about 900 miles, but it is rather shallow and not important for navigation. Its largest tributary is the Rio Nutria, or North Fork of the Cana- dian, which runs parallel to the main stream for about 600 miles. CANAL, an artificial water-course or channel, especially used for the passage of boats. The Egyptians very early made a canal connecting the Nile and the Red Sea. It was reopened by Pha- raoh Necho about 605 b. C, and at inter- vals by others after him. Most of the ancient nations had canals. The great canal of China was constructed partly in the 7th and partly in the 9th century A. D.; it is 825 miles long. The first known English canal was cut by the Ro- mans at Caerdike. The Trent and the Witham were joined in 1134, and the Bridgewater canal was commenced in 1759, The Caledonian canal was pro- jected in 1803, but not opened till 1822. The Erie canal was begun in 1817 and completed in 1825. The Amsterdam, or Great North Holland canal, was com- pleted in 1825. It is 125 feet wide at the water surface, 88 feet and 7 inches wide at the bottom, and has a depth of 20 feet; it extends from Amsterdam to the Helder, 51 miles. The Languedoc, or Canal du Midi, connecting the Atlantic with the Mediterranean, was completed in 1861; its length is 148 miles; it has more than 100 locks and about 50 aque- ducts, and its highest part is 600 feet above the sea; it is navigable for vessels of upward of 600 tons. The Suez canal, connecting the Mediterranean and the Red Sea, was opened on Nov. 17, 1869. Its length is 99 miles, with a width of 327 feet for 77 miles, and 196 for the remaining 22 miles. Its depth is 26 feet. Its success suggested the project of cut- ting through the isthmus joining North and South America. This undertaking, begun by the renowned engineer of the Suez canal, M. de Lesseps, was, after a prosecution to a stage near completion, abandoned in 1892, as a result of a ter- rific scandal, in which nearly every func- tionary connected with the enterprise was involved. A number of them (in- cluding the venerable M. de Lesseps) were tried in France and convicted of bribery and misappropriation of funds, the result of the agitation being to shake public confidence in the enterprise to a degree that rendered it impossible to raise money for its further continuance — ^f or the time being at least. The great Manchester ship canal, extending from Eastham (the head of navigation of the Mersey river near Liverpool) to Man- chester, England, was opened Jan. 1, 1894. The Corinth ship canal, across the Isthmus of Corinth, was opened by King George of Greece, Aug. 6, 1893. It is nearly four miles long, 80 feet SV2 inches wide, 24 feet 3 inches deep, and cost $15,000,000. On June 20, 1895, the great Baltic and North Sea canal was opened by the German Emperor in the presence of a navy representing all nations. Work began on the great Chicago drainage canal Sept. 3, 1892, and by Jan. 1, 1900, it was completed. The main channel is 29 miles long, of which about nine miles was cut through solid rock 22 feet deep. The Cape Cod canal is an artificial canal excavated across Cape Cod, con- necting Buzzard's Bay with Barnstable Bay. It was practically completed in 1914. The canal cuts off about 70 miles in the distance traveled by steamers be- tween New York and Boston. The canal was taken over by the United States Government on July 23, 1918, following an attack made by a German submarine on several coal barges passing through the canal. Considerable dredging was carried on in enlarging the canal during 1918. As a result vessels of 7,000 tons were able to pass through. Other im- portant canals, either in process of con- * struction or in contemplation in 1919, in- cluded a deep water-way to connect the Chicago Drainage canal with the Illinois river. The bill providing for this was passed by the Illinois Legislature. The fourth lock of the Sault Ste. Marie canal in Michigan was opened to traffic on Sept. 18, 1919. The construction of this lock greatly increased the facilities of this canal. The Sault Ste. Marie canal, although only one and one-third miles in length, was constructed at a cost of over $4,000,000. Other notable canals in the United States are the Chesapeake and Ohio canal, 185 miles long, costing over $11,000,000, and extending from Cum- berland, Md., to Washington, D. C. ; the Florida Coast Line canal, 370 miles long, costing $3,500,000 and extending from Mayport, Fla., to Miami, Fla. ; the Illi- nois and Michigan canal, 96 miles long, costing over $6,000,000, and extending from Chicago to La Salle, 111. ; the Hen- nepin canal, 75 miles long, costing over $7,000,000 and extending from the Illi' nois river to the Mississippi river near Rock Island, 111. ; the New Jersey Coastal Inland Waterway, 114 miles long, cost- ing $415,000, extending from Cape May
