Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1870-01-25
TOT tne Spectator.
Virginia Canal-No. 2.

virginia Cau6l-NO. q.
In order to remove all doubt from the mind
of every friend of this Improvement it might
be well to look to the main facts respecting its
practicablllty.
But first let US consider the mpracticabiity
Of other routes that could supply the place. of
this one or that could come in competition
with it. In the entire distance from New York
to New Orleans, which is more than thou
sand miles, air line, Or fifteen hundred by Rail-
road, it is universally admitted that there is no
other route for connecting the waters of the
Ohio and the Atlantic that will compare with
this one through Virginia. None that would
be so short and direct, or that can be made at
so small cost, or command half the freight,
none that would pass through a section that
would compare with this In mineral wealth Or
timber, In word there is 70 other route that,
if at all practicable, will compare with tn 8
in any respect for water carriage from the Ohio
Valley to the Atlantic Ocean The great diff
Guilty in this matter arises from the height of
the dividing ridge. the Allegheny Mountain
and want of sufficient volume of water near the
summit Nature has been particularly favor
able to this route 10 this particular; the waters
on the West Of the Allegheny are considerably
more elevated than on the hast side, and the
Allegheny ridge has several depressions in the
Greenbrier region, which can be so far overcome
that by means Of dam at the Droop Moun-
tain, near The county line betgeen Greenbrier
and Pocahontas counties that superabundance
of water can be conveyed to the summt-level
Of the Canal
In the Report of Engineers Gwinn and Lor-
raine in 1852, they have taken much pains TO
show that other streams will furnish sufficient
and its branches, and Howard Greek, and
possibly they might for boats of small size,
such as they were using on that Canal, but the
demands of the world are Increasing the pro-
duction of the West is three-fold now what it
was then while the demand at the East for
coal aud lumber is beyond all comparison now
to what it was eighteen years ago, and every
kind of freight is rapidly Increasing 1t is by
no means presumable that men OF capital would
invest in an enterprise at this day having no
better foundation than that which was contem-
plated then.
But the bare assertion OF the fact that the
Greenbrier will furnish a supply OF water at
the summit will not, nor should hot satisfy any
one.; facts we'll established is the thing wanted,
and it is gratifying to know that they are to be
had in abundance if we will only look after
them, sufficient to convince the most incredu-
lous that it is not only practicable but marvel
Gus that it has not long since been completed
The waters OF the Greenbrier have their
source more than seventy miles above the pro-
posed dam, and of varying width from twelve
miles and upward embracing a territory of from
800 to 1000 or more square miles. The result
Of several years observations OF rsin-guages at
Anthony's Greek, and at the White Sulphur
Springs show that the average fall Of water
per annum on the surface Is about thirty-seven
and half inches. Now We will allow two
thirds of this amount for absorption, eyapora-
f,or 1roeto hof.,re 1t roonhac tho ,,,a;n W
nal, which is from four to six per cent more al
lowance for waste than any calculation | have
seen. This leaves US twelve and half inches
OF water on the surface of say 800 square miles
Of territory, which amounts 10 more than $50
millions of cubic yards per annum, and two
millions three hundred thousand per day for
use at the summit-leve This is our supply
after making every reasonable allowance for
loss by abaorpson, evaporation, and other
waste.
We will now examine the demand required
to pass one boat every SIX minutes either East
or West, and we will suppose the Chambers of
the locks to be 200 feet long, 40 feet wide and
the boat to rise or fall ten feet in the chamber,
this will require 90 400 cubic yards per hour,
and 2,2l7 600 per day, or 800 millions per year,
which is 80 millions more OF supply than our
demand, but the greater part of this surplus
will be required to replace the leakage of six
teen miles of the Canal before reaching any ad-
ditional feeder 1t will no doubt be admitted
by all that these calculations are liberal and the
supply is ample without taking into the account
the waters of Anthony's Greek and Howard $
Creek, which could be added if necessary, and
which those Engineers undertook to prove Is
years ago would be sufficient for the Canal with
out the River
AS to the practicabiliiy Of conveying the wa
ter from the River to the summit as feeder,
the admissions of Gwin and Lorraine are sufii-
Gent, but they also quote the authority Of
Capt. VIM. G. McNeill, of the U. s. Topo-
graphical Engineers, who after his survey in
the year 1927 II ade expressly for that purpose
pronounced it practicable to feed from ht
Greenbyler But we shall have occasion to re-
fer 10 this again WREN we come to examine the
cost of construction, tonnage, &c.
A VIRGINIAN.
A guilty conscience is the devils anvil, OF
which he fabricates all those swords and spears
with which the sinner pierces himself.
| The world is sea of glass affliction scat
| ters eur path with sand and ashes, in order Il