Wilmington journal. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1844-1895, 1853-11-25
The works At Is.lyhead IIarbor.

The magnificent works which are being car,;.
out for the formation of Holyhead Harbor W.
commenced in 1849 and intended to secure tot.s
area of 800 acres for the purpose of harbor tvo
thirds of that space having minimum depth r.
seven fathoms ut low water. Accommodated WI,
thus be provided for about 400 vessels of all class
Including 70 men OF war as large as the Duke r.
w ellington. The north OF great breakwater will
be s. 600 feet long and 10 feet wide, and of this
mense work 1000 feet have already been Countless
to low wafer mark3 500 feet of it being from "a
To Is feet above high water The depth at low ~.
fer thus filled up is from 45 to 4S feet, and so,
idea may be formed Of the magnitude of this. moi.
from the fact that the stone work which summons.
it is about 80 feet above the foundation The small
err or eastern hreakwater, which protects the ha,
Dor on the landward side will be 2,l00 feet lons
and ], 900 feet of have already been formed in
depth of 80 feet at low water, and to width ~
100 feet.
Since 184g when the works were begun, 2,4oO,
600 ions of stone, in blocks varying in weight fron
10 tons downward, have been deposited in the s.o
and the rate at which this gigantic operation car
red on is said to be from $4,000 to $4,000 tens no,
week and from 1000 to 900 tons per DAP Tbs
quarries which have been opened to supply so pro,
digisus demand for material wherewith to contng
the waves are hardly less remarkable objects of A.
tention than the undertaking to which they are spb
ordinated. They realize the fabulous stories os
mountains removed and cast into the sea. As muoS,
as four tons of powder is frequently exploded in them
tone blast, or more properly expressed) in ono.
mining operations and thus 20, 900 and 5000 tons
of stone are often at once set free for the constru
ton of the breakwaters. The plan adopted is to-
blow away huge section of the base OF the moun
tain, when o superintendent mass of rock, $50 fee.
high, being unsupported. tumbles down after it,
This great economy of time has been effected by thu
use of piled Stages carrying railways, which, project
ing boldly into The sea, present mechanical arranr,
.ment for conducting the operations at once simple
convenient and independent Of both tides and wind
Mr. Rendei was secuted as a.visionary when he fra
proposed so daring plan tor facilitating The work
and it was confidently predicted that rails thus sup.
ported on scaffolding would never answer. Nor is
wonderful that persons less experienced than Mr. Rem
del should have such msgvngs for the piles which sup
lengths of the timber commonly used for building pur
poses. Thus, resting upon precarions framework Of
wood with water more than 40 feet deep below, and
required to carry long trains of heavily loaded trucks
the railways of the Holyhead breakwater do not i'm
press an unprofessonal mind With any extraordinary
confidence in their security.
There is however, no answer to the successful ex.
perience of four years in this matter, during which
time thousands of tons of stone have been daily
brought down from the quarries and deposited in the
sea. large proportion of the material thus removed
consists of fragments OF rock, weighing from FIVE 10
ten tons, each and calculated by their weight to
come, with the least possible delay, the momentum Of
the ocean. 1t may, therefore. be readily conceived
how severely Mr.. Rendels bold plan OF carrying on
the work has been tested, and how complete his
triumph has been. The contract under which the
harbor is being constructed contempates on expen.
dture of about E8OO 00O and The outlay so far un.
der R4OO.OOO London Times.