The Davenport daily gazette. [volume] (Davenport, Iowa) 1856-1869, 1857-09-22
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS,
TUESDAY, ------ SEPTEMBER, e


4 Isl WYNN III snc NAsCA ASsosUS kDsu8U So1cy
now on trial At Chicsgo.
The following is from the Mayor Of Rock
Island
DSpos,rlox Of PArsIcK 0arco.--Is May
| or Of Rock Island. Has had constant eyre
rience for twenty years Of the Rock Island
rapids. Knows the location Of the bridge.
The current passes through . straight .
water can pass through piers. Has seen
steamboats, pass through every day. Saw
twenty floats pass through straight; saw
them from the Rock Island side az the turn
table pier. Has often passed over the rapids
IN steamboat- Thinks there is no difficulty
for steamboats, properly navinted to pass
through the draw At an ordinary stage of
the water the navigation was moro difficult
az Sycamore chain, and Duck Greek Chain,
~ to rapidiry of current and cross currepts
thinks the bridge not material obstruction.
&ih Gurasy, Bridge Master, recalled. The
number Of boats that passed with one barge
IN tow. from August I 1856, to September
~ 1867, IL ~ bound up; bound down IL
beats with two basges bound up, Al; bound
down, IA; with three bargcs, bound up, 4;
bound down, 1; with Four barges, bound up,
| bound down. ); whole number hound up
with barges, l2j; bound down, 81 whole
number passing with bargcs, l62 the Kate
Cassie passed through with the hull sf
burnt boat in tow besides bargcs the Reso
lutte passed with the Ben Coursin alongxidc,
bound down she hit. These were passages,
| not an many different boats. Whole mum.
Der Of hits with bargcs IL four. These are
included in the hits ! gave in my previous
testimony /; tue Hat boats are from IL 20 %
feet wide. maybe some thirty have the
charge II one Is feet wide by No fcct long.
Testimony of JOHN b. JGRvrs-WG
President OF the road most at the time the
bridge was bcing built the bridge was one
oG the Inducements used To sell bonds first
saw the Mississippi at the bridge in june,
1851 looked at the river occasionally in ref.
erencc Ia the bridge ; has said TO the stock
holders that without hydrographic survey
he could not tell much in reference TO the
currents under currents cannot be told hy
the eye; the large eddy on the Iowa eide
tends to ohstruct the pasaage Of the water;
did include the eddy ia calculating tho adj
tional rise caused by the restricted passage
thinks the angling position Of the pier would
tend "a check the currents down the Illjuois
side the greatest fall Il between the two
piers thinks there il tendency to create
\ wave ON the surface there IL tendency
To crowd the lines Of tue current towards
tho short pier the head of the pier might
BE- semi-ellipse two sections Of regular
circle are more often used; q hyperbolic
curve would give the beat current suppose
4 could be made the more pointed the piers
the easier the water flows the tendency to-
wards the short pier il not strong enough
to counterfeit the current coming straight
down putting boat straight in the draw
Is the most favorable position for the cur
rents thinks the action of tho wheel makes
little difference with the velocity Of the cur
rent putting boat angling with the cur
rent has tendency to throw IL OF from the
current the current passes across the boat
and makes somewhat VI q current the bow
being stationary the stern would swing with
tho current the moro angling the boat 10,
the more water Is stopped up and the great
or the tendency TO throw the boat oil; Il Is
bad navigation not tn strike the current
straight; considers that boats are thrown TO
the right hand pier BY the action of the d.
rect current and not by cross currents lf
rod Heats were used At oil depths from one
20 twelve fect, they would demonstrate all
currents Of any kind . flag At the top would
make known everything that took place At
the bottom don't think there il any appre-
draw the form q the pier head 10 gsnerxl-
~ used where there Is Ice To contend with
> slender point on the Rock Island pier
would be likely to get knocked to pieces
Jsmofhy Uocd, deposition read live at
Moline, am Il years IL agc, and am in tho
lumber trade and have run rats on the ri,.
or ] have seen good many boats pass the
bridge and have passed myself thrce times
on boat. have noticed the current on the
Rock Island side of the long pier run little
toward Il above the head, and passed down
through straight with the pier. have ties
ted these currents with various floating bod
les know the current, il il not No swift
A. a. Sycamore Chain think the bridge M
obstruction to navigation Ny opinion Is
based upon experiments, and from passing
up aud down in steamboats, aud on RATS.
Daead Barnes, called and sworn--I live
at Rock Island, ami tnr years have been
engaged ~ the lumber trade. Have gone
through the draw with RATS. Usually run
logs thraigh cast &c the draw. | had q
raft 400 feet long, IS feet wide. got fast on
Sycamore Chain and got il of when had
no pilot, and IL went down into the steam
beat channel leading to tho draw, and ]
could not get out of il to 60 to tho usual
place, and then gave il up and sho went
straight down through the draw without
touching. After turning tho shoulder Of
the long pier the current runs straight with
out any cross current. That was about
September, 1858, in low water.
r. n. Crary, deposition rcad--My age ID
81, live At Rock Island. and have Tor three
years past my employment railroad agent.
] saw the lille Alton after she len the levee
about o'cIock, saw her in the draw . 10
o'clock did not seem 60 be much swung
round; went "a breakfast; just a. got through
breakfast heard the blowing Of tho boat,
went cut and saw the boat floating down.
] have made tests and they showed he cur
rent To run parallel with the pier. | saw
bodies of Ice eame straight down l0O rods
and 60 straight Ia line through the draw
! have Teen oter The bridge nearly every
week sinru IL wa. built The time which
| elapsed rum the time first saw the Ellie
Alton till xaw her floating down was an
hour and half. ! do not think tho bridge
= an obstruction. eat breakfast from
Il 10 IL o'clock. know the time that
first saw the boats because IL the time il
took me 20 do certain acts, and know il
was before O'Clock because the morning
train bad not left.
Nsno Posrs, called and swovn.--I live
NJ nTk isianu. am nave Tor Sx or y years,
sometimes nj st. Louis. I have been 1
clerk on the river Cor Is ycarx. am now
| IN the commission business I quit the
river in the fall of 1854 hayo had charge
Of boats few trips, but am not u pilot
have been over the Rapids, suppose 100
times. know the bridge; have been
through five or six tunes ON the Greek
Slave, Royal Arch and the Kate Cassie.
noticed tho current on tho Illinois eide Of
the draw, particularly when pasai,sg in the
Royal Arch, and from the bridge have
sen floating objects pam; never noticed
any current across from the long pier the
wood put in at tho head, came out one or
two net nearer the foot of the long pier
keeping . straight line boats used to run
about where tho long pier 10; water was
deep enough on either side boats come out
from stnbbs eddy till they get in line with
the draw, aud then 60 straight through
Deposition Of Rosrar SEpcwIcK.--L,yes
At Moline hes bssn on the bridge to notice
its construction and the currsnts saw the
currents tested Nay 9Th; NV drifiwood,
pieces Of boards and Sticks loaded nut In
and paN- down; dsscriba the current
. ks-Ix- q