Editing Wilts & Berks Canal (section)

==Operation==
Following completion, further acts were obtained. The '''{{visible anchor|Wilts. and Berks. Canal Act 1810}}''' ([[50 Geo. 3]]. c. cxlviii) contained a small number of clauses concerning money, and a much more important clause altering conditions for the carriage of coal on the River Thames.{{sfn |Priestley |1831 |p=679}} When the 1795 Act was passed, there had been opposition from merchants who brought coal by sea to London, and they had instigated a clause in the Act banning the carriage of coal which had been conveyed by canal boats below [[Reading, Berkshire|Reading]]. The new Act repealed this ban, moving the [[coal-tax post|City coal limits]] to Staines, despite serious opposition from ship owners and the proprietors of collieries in the north-east of England.{{sfn |Hadfield |1969 |pp=277,281}} The '''{{visible anchor|Wilts. and Berks. Canal Navigation Act 1813}}''' ([[53 Geo. 3-1813|53 Geo. 3]]. c. cxx), sought to resolve issues with water supply. When the canal opened, the main water supply was a deep well near Swindon, but this could not supply sufficient water for the canal's operation.{{sfn |Hadfield |1969 |p=280}} The proprietors had constructed a feeder from the Ashbury Brook, but this had caused consternation among landowners, and the Act was passed to prevent them extracting water from the Beckett Estate at Shrivenham, and to ensure that the feeder was filled in.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukla/Geo3/53/120/pdfs/ukla_18130120_en.pdf |title=Text of the 1813 Act |publisher=legislation.gov.uk}}</ref> A third act, the '''{{visible anchor|Wilts. and Berks. Canal Navigation Act 1815}}''' ([[55 Geo. 3-1815|55 Geo. 3]]. c. vi), was passed in 1815 to allow the company to raise £100,000, which they used to pay off debts collected during the construction of the canal and to construct a reservoir.{{sfn |Priestley |1831 |pp=679–680}} The Act also allowed them to invest in the North Wilts Canal.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukla/Geo3/55/6/pdfs/ukla_18150006_en.pdf |title=Text of the 1815 Act |publisher=legislation.gov.uk}}</ref>

Outgoing traffic consisted of corn and agricultural products, collected from the rural communities bordering the canal and taken westwards to Bristol and Bath via the Kennet and Avon Canal. This amounted to {{convert|11740|LT|t|abbr=off}} in 1843. In the reverse direction, coal came from the [[Radstock]] and [[Paulton]] mines in the [[Somerset coalfield]] by way of the [[Somersetshire Coal Canal]], which joined the Kennet and Avon Canal near the [[Dundas Aqueduct]]. In 1837, {{convert|43642|LT|t|abbr=off}} of coal were transported via the Wilts & Berks from the Somerset coalfield, with {{convert|10669|LT|t|abbr=off}} being handled at Abingdon wharf.{{sfn |Clew |1970}} The Wilts & Berks thus became a link in the chain of canals providing a transport route between the [[West Country]] and the [[English Midlands|Midlands]]. Water supply was always a problem and a reservoir was constructed near Swindon to supply the canal, now known as [[Coate Water]].{{sfn |Child |2002}} From the reservoir, a feeder meandered northwards and eastwards, to feed water into the canal near Marston Locks.{{sfn |Hadfield |1969 |p=279}}

Income from tolls rose from £5,523 for the first year of operation to £12,877 in 1837, after which they were affected by railway building. The company paid a dividend to shareholders in 1812, but decided to forego any further payments until debts had been repaid, improvements made, and issues with water supply resolved. This was achieved by 1831, when dividend payments resumed. A total of £7,000 in dividends was paid in 1837, which only represented a return of about two per cent for the shareholders. Other major outgoings were repayments to the [[Exchequer Bill Loan Commission]]ers, for money borrowed to finance the construction of the North Wilts Canal. The final payment was made in 1839.{{sfn |Hadfield |1969 |pp=285–286}} Income rose significantly after 1838, as they canal carried materials for building railways, but decreased again from 1842 onwards. The company used the unexpected windfall to build hoses, buy a wharf at Oxford, construct Tockenham Reservoir, pay off loans, and retained the rest as reserves.{{sfn |Hadfield |1969 |p=289}}