ENGLISH CHANNEL, or THE CHAN NEL (Rom. Mare Britannicus, French La Manche), an arm of the Atlantic Ocean ex tending into the west coast of Europe to the Strait of Dover, by which it is connected with the North Sea. The land bodies senarated by this channel are England and France. Its length from the Strait of Dover to the Atlantic Ocean is about 350 miles; its greatest breadth, from Saint Malo, in France, to Sidmouth, in England, is 140 miles; its narrowest width, called the Strait of Dover, is about 20 miles. At its juncture with the Atlantic Ocean it is about 100 miles wide. Its total area is about 30,000 square miles. The average depth of the western half is about 300 feet, the maxi mum about 500. In the eastern half the aver age is only 200, and in the Strait of Dover the depth varies from 6 to 120 feet. The length of the north coastal line, from Land's End to Dover, is 390 miles; and of the south coastal line from Calais to Ushant is 570 miles. Some of the largest indentations on the coast of Eng land are the bays of Falmouth, Plymouth, Lyme, Weymouth, Spithead and The Solent. On the coast of France are Baie de la Seine, Bale de Saint Brieuc and Baie de Mont Saint Michel. The principal islands in the Channel are: Isle of Wight, Channel Islands and sev eral other islands near the coast of France; Scilly Isles and Ushant at the entrance. The most important ports are: on the English coast, Falmouth, Plymouth, Southampton, Ports mouth, Brighton, Folkestone, Andover; on the French coast, Cherbourg, Le Havre, Dieppe, Boulogne and Calais. Many of these and many other towns and villages on both coasts have become famous as watering places and seaside resorts. The tides, coming both from the Atlantic Ocean and from the North Sea, possess many peculiarities and make navigation difficult at times. There are many lighthouses and light ships the most famous of which, per haps, is the Eddystone Light off Plymouth. The prevalent winds are most westerly. Gales are frequent, especially between October and January. Fog and thick weather are also fre quent occurrences throughout the entire year.
The water, most of the time, is rough and makes travel in the Channel as a rule a most unpleasant experience. This has been a chief factor in bringing forth many plans for a direct non-water connection between England and France, either by means of a bridge or a tun nel. Of the former the most important has been a project put forward by the famous French engineering firm, Schneider & Co., Le Creusot, in conjunction with English and French engineers, which provided for a bridge 24 miles long with 120 piers and permitting the passage of ships beneath it. The tunnel project was found feasible from an engineering point of view, and preliminary shafts and headways were started on both coasts. On the English side the shaft at Shakespeare's Cliff, Dover, is 164 feet deep,and a driftway, 7 feet in di ameter at an inclination of 1 in 72, extends eastward under the Channel for 2,300 yards. During the borings valuable coal beds were dis covered. So far, however, neither the bridge nor the tunnel projects have been able to get the final approval of either the English or the French government. Many historic naval engagements have been fought in the Channel. Consult Channel Bridge and Railway Co., 'Pont sur la Manche' (Pans 1890) ; Great Britain, Admi ralty, Hydrographic Department,