The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1846-03-06
Estimated cost with COM

Estimated cost with COM
poslie Locks sI55,7l6 80
Accompanying this report is a
map and profile of the river, the map
is laid down from surveys of the
townships along the river, furnished
at the general land office at St. Lou
is, Mo-, the profile is on a scale OF
two miles to an inch, and soundings
OF the river put on it every mile ;
soundings were made every 800 feet
in deep water, and as often as the
sounding pole could be put into the
water as the boat was moving along
on the bars and shoals ; these sound
ings are laid down accurately be-
tween the mile lines marked on the
profile the locations of the dams
are also laid down upon the profile,
the height of the banks; extraordin-
AIRY high water mark, ordinary high
water mark, and bench marks will
be given in a table; from Hennepin
down; the ice usually melts away
before moving off, or rather becomes
very rotton and soft; works con-
structed upon the river below this
point would not be injured by ice or
flood wood, as there is but little
flood wood passing with the water,
and ice is too much broken up and
too soft to do much damage; the
current in high water does not much
exceed that in low water; the Mis-
sissippi in ordinary high water it is
said backs over the Beardstown bar,
ordinary high water in the Missis-
sippi at the mouth of the Illinois is
10 feet, my estimated fall from the
bar to the mouth is IA feet 8 inches;
at the mouth of Coperas creek, /
was told that high water, in the
summer Of 1914 backed as high as
that place; high water mark of 1914
at the mouth OF the river is 29.O9
feet, if my estimate of the fall in the
river is correct, the water must have
backed above this point; these COM
parsons go to prove the accuracy
of my estimate of the fall in the river
from this point down; above this |
have nothing 10 guide me, but I think
If | have erred, it has been in esti-
mating the fall too much.
The information gathered and en-
bodied in this report and shown up
on the map and profile is, think,
all that is necessary; did not com
mence my examinations till the 23d
of September; the water was then
lower than it had ever been known
before, which made it very favora.
BILE for an examination of the river,
and | was anxious to see the whole
of the river before a rise took place,
this hurried me along faster than |
otherwise should have gone, but
enough has been shown to decide
upon the. propriety of having care
full examination of the river made.
That something must be done to i'm
prove the navigation of the stream
is evident; the interest of the ge-
neral government in the improve
ment by increasing the demand for
all unsold lands along and back of
the river, and as communication
between the Gulf of Mexico and the
lakes, the interest the state has in
having the lands settled along and
back of the river, and its interests
in the Illinois and Michigan canal,
which is an imperfect improvement
in itself without the improvement of
the river, call for it, and call for il
Immediately.
With regard to an improvement of
the river necessary for its navigation
by ships drawing ten or twelve feet
OF water, l can say but little more
tlian that 1t Is practicable by means
oil locks and dams and excavations,
but would not pretend to estimate
the cost without an examination of
the river particularly made for that
purpose, a great number oflocks and
dams would be required, their loca-
fions would often come at points at
which their erection would be very
expensive, and the amount of exca-
walton required would be difficult to
ascertain or estimate without par.
ticular examination. There were
but three and a half feet of water
upon some of the bars in the Missis-
sippi between the mouth Of the iii
nofs and st. Louis, and between that