The Tilbury Docks are ditTerently arranged from the Victoria and Albert docks, the basins extending inland from the bank of the Thames. They comprise a tidal basin, the entrance to which is 100 yards in width. The entrance to the Main basin is through a lack SO feet in width. 'rue walls are of concrete and the gates of the large lock are opened and closed by hy dranlie payer. large graving or dry docks form a feature of these works. These may be tilled with water from the tidal basin or from the main dock through •nlverts. The total area or the outer tidal basin is acre-. It con 2I feet of Water at low tide and 4(' feet at high The main dock covers about 23 acres and has a depth of 3.5 feet. Three branch clocks contain 01i, and 11 acres. tire sufficient to illustrate the magnitude of the work. The docks of London also comprise the London Docks and the Saint Catharine's flocks, having an aggregate area of about 50 the Surrey Commercial Docks, having an area of 135 acres; the East and \Vest India Ducks, with an aggregate area of about 124 acres: and the Docks, with an area of about 35 acres.
The Liverpool dock system is one of the largest and best in the world. Its construction was be gun nearly a century and a half ago, but its principal develop• ment has oc curred during the last fifty years of the nineteenth century. In 1s57 the Murray Docks and I la rbor Boa rd by an Act of Par liament was given the control and management of all the docks of Liv erpool, including those of Birken head on the oppo site side of the river. In 19‘: this board had charge of ti7 wet docks and 23 dry docks, having a frontage of about seven miles. The dock area is about 1100 acres: the largest dock- are the Canada, about IS acres: the Langton, 1St4 acres: and the Alexandra. 17 t5 acres. The total cost of the Liverpool dock system was estimated in IS9S to have been S200.000.000. Among the other British ports which have notable docks are: Cardiff, Penarth, Barrow, Kingston. Leith. and Tyne. On the Continent the docks at Havre. France. are particularly notable: they consist of t WO principal basins, haying an area of about 171 acres.