book The projeit was begun in 1 7 5 7, but was much negleiled;
.— ,— 1 until the acceffion o f his prefent majefty, who warmly patronized
the arduous undertaking. At the commencent of
the works £ 2 5,0 00 were annually expended upon them;
which fum has been leifened to about ¿6,000 per annum-
and the number o f docks reduced to twenty.
The follow ing was the ilate o f thefe work s in March , 1 779.
The firft large bafon was finiihed. Its dimeniions are 250
feet in length, x 1 o in breadth, and 32 in depth. The greateft
part has been hollowed out o f the rock, which was perforated
under water, and the excavations filled with gun-powder
introduced and exploded through hollow tubes. The
rock being thus blown up and removed, the bottom and fides
were afterwards fmoothed, cemented with puzzulana
brought from Naples, and nicely finiihed to an even furface.
Three o f the fides are faced with hewn granite; and the
fourth is defended from the violence o f the waves by a pier
o f the fame material.
The two entrances into the fmaller bafons were nearly
completed, and the fluice-gates, o f a fingular conftruilion,
were building: they are hollow machines, and are fo contrived,
that, when filled with water, they afford a palfage to
the ihip by finking, and rife again when emptied. The
principle o f mechanicks by which they ad is fomewhat fi-
milar to that o f the kameels employed in conveying large
veflels over the bars at Amfterdam and Peteriburgh *. The
two fmaller bafons, formed by excavations o f the rock, and
o f a iemi-circular ihape, were partly finiihed.
With refpeil to the docks, the materials were prepared
for their conftruilion ; and the rock in fome places had been
4
* See p . 523 o f this volume.
blown
blown away, and in others the earth had been removed. The CHAP-
bottom o f one was already completed ; its fhape was e l í ip t i - ^ 1 »
c a l; the platform and lower part o f the walls were compofed
o f hewn granite, and cemented with puzzulana; and the
ftones, upon which the keel o f a new ihip was to be laid
down, were adjufted. It was expeéted that this dock would
be entirely covered in before the end o f 1779. It was computed,
that one new dock would be annually finiihed ; and
that in twenty years this grand undertaking would be
carried into execution. The water will be introduced, and
pumped out, by windmills, or by hands, as occafion requires.
The primary view and intention o f this grand plan was to
obtain dry docks, for the purpofe o f keeping the whole fleet
entirely covered from wind and weather. It has, however,
been a queftion much agitated in Sweden, whether large
veflels are not more effedtually preferved in water, than when
fecured in dry docks; a iolution o f which can only be given
by perfons well experienced in naval affairs. But ihould
this be allowed, yet thefe docks will ftill be greatly fer-
viceable for the con ft ruction and repairing, i f not for the
prefervation o f ihips.
The ihips are built at Garlfcrona, chiefly by Engliíh artizaos.
Though the provinces o f Blekinge and Skone
abound with oaks, yet, as there is not a fufficiency for a continued
fupply, the Swedes procure their ihip-timber from
Germany. They made their two laft contraéis with the king
o f Pruifia; the firft for 400,000 Swediih cubick feet*; the
laft for 200,000. The latter were delivered, in 1778 at
the rate o f 5s. lo d . per cubick foot. They are fupplied from
their own territories with mails and deals, pitch and tar, and
the greateft part o f the flax ufed in the na vy ; and manu-
* 10 2 7 iS-tyedlíh fe e t ±r io o o E n g liíh fe e t .
T *■ 1 2 failure