The North-Carolinian. [volume] (Fayetteville [N.C.]) 1839-1861, 1852-09-18

Fr>m the wilmisgtoa connsfsial
CAPE FEAR .ANDaOEEP RIVER M
PROvEMENT.
we. the undersigned. President aud
Directors of the Cape Fear and Deep River
Navigation Company, having been shown
an article taken from the Wilmington
Journal. which charges the Chief efEnglneef
Of said Company, w. B. 1bompssnv ESQ.,,
'.with want of business competenfy aud
crergv.;'-fe take great pleasure say
ing :tllat we know the 3Aprnal
,6nhf6tenti6n3l!y 10 sIod6f5 sfeal |ee
having been officially associated wnkCo'.
Thompson since the commencement Of,
aud during the prosecution Of this great
work, we have had ample opportunities of
testing both his business competency
and energy" and assert that he has shown
himself to be deficient in neither. but on
the contrary, we regard him as rery ener-
gefic and Of great business competency, and
we believe he will in point Of science COM
pare lavorably with any Engineer in the
country. AS regards what is said OF :he
wilful or ignorant m'scalc ulatIons ut the
cost Of the work. we on y deem it necessary
to say. that Col. Thompson is gentleman
of too iSh character Intentionally to de-
ceive any one, and that the increased cost
Of the work over the estimate, has arisen
from causes beyond the cuntrnl Of the
Engineer. We further state, that it never
was pretended that the work could be done
in one season; but it is true that the con-
tractors stipulated to finish it in two years,
which we DO not doubt light have been
done with proper force and energy on
their part. We also entirely differ from
the editor in the opinion that the Company
have been unfortunate in the choice Of an
Engineer.
]. II. HAUGHTON,)
THOMAS HILL,
L. J. HAUGHTON. Directors.
p G.. EVANS,
ELIAS BRYAN,
ISAAC CLEGG. President.
Pittsboro'. ". c., Aug. 18th, 1852.
might rest the case here with perfect
safety, as the above spontaneous certificate,
from gentlemen entirely cognizant Of all
my acts since entered into the service Of
the Company, and who from their position,
| are better able to Judge than any others,
su iii cientiy refutes the calumnies pe,pe-
| trated against me In tse coium,i> 70: the
Journal. But as have indicated an in
tention in my reply to those charges, (which
the editor of the Journal had not the fair
ness to publish) to make a statement Of
facts in regard to the Cape Fear aud Deep
River Improvement, and feeling as do,
that great mi ustice has been done. not
only to me. but to the Directors of the
work, will succinctly and briefly. for
The Information Of those ,cho take an, inter
est in the improvement, state few facts.
from which all unprejudiced minds can
form their own conclusions.
From time imme mortal the Timber and
Lumber interests Of the Cape Fear, below
Snailey's FaEs. have been able upon every
! little swell Of four Or five feet. to unmoo,
their RATS and proceed on to Wilmington.
and in this way the Steam Mills in that
city have been supplied, aud large aud
lucrative interest has in consequence
grown up. This has necessarily been in
terfered with in the prosecution Of thi,
work as tits impos sble to build .ams
over the River without, for the time bein4
interruptins this trade. Many gentlemen
Of liberality and experience residing upo,
the Cape Fear and its tributary, Little
River, have from patriotic motives borne
with his temporary inconVenience in theil
desire to promote the genera: good. ant
develcpe other great interests upon til.
river. But very large ma inrity of thi.
interest has been decidedly opposed to tn.
improvement. aud more or less hostile t.
all III any way connected with it. Ever,
raft that found its way to Wilmington bad
some dreadful tale to relate about the
work. until the minds Of some Of the Mil
| ow ners. whose interests have also been in
iuriously affected, have become poisoned i,
regard to the work !; mismana.emcnt i:
charged somewhere and a victim bein, re-
qured, the Eng ineer, who is generally The
scape goat In such cases, is fixed upon.
In regard to the increased cost of tht
work. over and above the original estimate
| stated. in reply to the call OF the com
mittee to whom was referred the Engineer
report, at the late Stockholders meeting
the different points at which extra worl
had been done. mot contemplated IN th'
original Estimate. as would be seen by at
examination of this Estimated and also it
character, but the shortness Of the time d!,
not allow Of my taking out OF the aggregate
cost the several amounts. These VIII now
be found in the Appendix notes to that r."
port, and consist Of the following items
-Four additional Locks and Dams An in
creased Lif of feet to every riuer Lock
Dam on the Cape Fear t" the foot OF Smiley
Falls. named in the original report /; Tn
len gthening Of al the Lock chon'6ers IL
feet The Uidening oM TO "a feet the fhre
iower Lock chambers -Four .7p'ons 10 tt'
four io,cer Dams Sfrdiniag beams ane
bmtress trails 10 fvo Of the Lacks ; Cos
of the Yadkin surrey Land Damages
Iofo.oef 1r,J rho su}uriPS Of (JfNcSf5. x.c