INLAND NAVIGATION.

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appear to persons of more sober understanding, were no obstacle to thegenius of Charles XII. The same author informs us, that the celebratedengineer Polhem laid before that king a proposal for rendering the ca-taracts of Trolhaetta navigable; and for opening a communication, notonly between Gotheborg and Stockholm, but also with the Wenner,tire Vetter, and Nordkioping, sufficient for the passage of very largevessels. Polhem’s plan was directly approved, and begun by Charles,ever fond of extraordinary projects; and though it was interrupted forsome time by the king’s death, it was again revived, with fresh vigour,under the late sovereign Adolphus Frederic.

This plan may be divided into three principal parts. I. The junc-tion of the Hielmar with the Maeler. 2. That of the Hiehnar with theWenner. 3. That of the Wenner with the German ocean.

First, the junction of the Maeler with the Hielmar. These two lakesare united by the small river Ulvison, and the canal of Arboga : the for-mer rises to the west of Arboga, flows through the town, and falls intothe Maeler at Kungsaer. The canal of Arboga is cut from the Hielmar,and continued to the Ulvjsson, about half a mile to the east of the town.It was begun in the reign of Christina; but, being only calculated forsmall vessels, was widened and deepened by order of Charles XI. andcompleted under his successor Charles XII. It belonged to the crownuntil 1769, at which period it had been so much neglected, as scarcelyto be of any use ; but a company of seven merchants of Orebro under-took to cleanse and repair it at their own expence, upon condition of re-ceiving the toll of all vessels which shall pass through it. The canal is,,excepting in a few parts, sufficiently broad to receive two vessels a-breast;its lower depth is eight feet. It is chiefly supplied with water from thelake Hielmar, the surface of which is eighty feet perpendicular higherthan its level. It consists of eight sluices or locks. The vessels it admitsare the fame which navigate the lakes; they are decked and fingle-mastcd, feventy-six feet long, about forty-three tons burden, and draw5 between