New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1870-07-03


large lagoons on the Pacific. A canal at
! hitting vessels Of twenty feet draft OF waite
with railway on it, banks e an auxiliary
would accommodate three-fourths OF tn
commerce of the globe, IS ships OF create
draft than that could be lightered and re
loaded. A deeper canal would present o plI
difficulties OF pecuniary consideration. Bu
limit seems to have been reached in tn
draft Of merchant vessels, and the universe
tendency is to decrease rather than to aug
ment it.
On the Gulf of Mexico. the mouth of tn
Goat zacoalcos offers an abundantly safe ant
capacious harbOr, with bar on Whlc
there is already depth of eighteen feet a
mean low water. which could be increased
fic side there are no very formidable DIN
culties in the way Of opening and improV
ing the two fagoons, SO as to admit tne
largest vessels to completely protected
haven. The importance OF safe haroori
can hardly be over estimated. The climate
of the Isthmus of Tehusntepec is salubrl
GUS, the soil fertile, and not only could
supplies of all kinds be obtained in album
dance, but depots for coal and facilities fol
ship repairs could be readily established
and maintained. Telegraphic communities
ton with the rest Of the world could be
readily established, both by land lines and
ocean cables, while almost continuous mail
connections could be made without diff
| Guilty.
Should we acquire Cuba, q not by any
means impossib event, the gulf of Mexico
would become absolutely under the control
of the United States, conformity with our Sis
ter republic of Mexico, whose interests are
in the main, identical with our own. The
ports of New Orleans and San Francisco are
| nearer to each other by more than $500 miles,
by way of Tehuantepec than by Darien, and
q similar argument holds good, in varied
proportions, with reference to the Atlantic
ports of the United States and Western
| Europe, end the Pacific shores of North
America and Asia.
The gulf of Mexico has two main en-.
frances; on the east between the Florida
| Keys and Cuba, and on the southeast be.
tween Cuba and the Peninsula of Yucatan.
Both of these are narrow, and in case OF
war could be so easily defended as to make
the Gulf q mare clauSuna, and assure the
neutrality of the ship canal. A canal by
way of Tehuantepec, as at any other point,
would be suitably protected, from its very
inception, by adequate treaty stipulations.
The first step is the construction of the pro.
posed railway, and this is certain Of speedy
completion.
The commercial and political advan-
tages here urged for this route, with the
fact that it was used by Cortes as a road,
and that it has been surveyed by the
Mexican government, within whose do
main it entirely is, should be considered,
and have doubtless had their effect upon
the Committee of Foreign Relations in
the Senate, Of which Mr.. Sumner is chair
man. Doubtlessly, all available informa-
nation was placed before the committee
before the step was taken which is indi-
Gated in the dispatch from Washington.
Vice-Admiral Porter, Admiral Dahlgreen,
General Nickles, and others of the navy
and army, could have given the fullest
information, for soundings have been
taken by our government officers of every
foot of the rivers and lakes, and harbors on
both the Gulf and Pacific side of this route.
A large folio volume of about three hum
dred pages was published near score of
years ago detailing the results of survey
for railroad over this route, under the
direction of Major (now GeneraD J.
G. Barnard, of the United States En-
gineers, illustrated with maps and en-
cravings, arranged and prepared for the
Tehuantepec Railroad Company of New
Orleans. A vast amount Of geological,
geographical and other information was
thus afforded our government. And
,hough it was only intended to demon
'trate, as it did, the practicabilty and
cost of the road, the journals of
he survey were full and permanent as to
is topography, geology and vegetable
,rowth-as to valuable productions for
'ommerce-timbers, stone for building,
tic. Mr.. Adams paper is but a repetition
If these facts. And these but confirm
What Cortes had written in his official dis
patches to the Emperor Charles V. three
hundred aud fifty years ago lin 1920,
n which he says. for example, of Cortes'
urvey of the harbor on the Gulf coast:
They found two fathoms and a half of |
vater at its entrance, in the shallowest |
art, and ascending twelve leagues, the
east they found was five or six fathoms."
bout the same soundings were found by |
ur officers three hundred and thirty years
ater, an important fact as proving that
be material of which the bar is formed |
oes not change it's position. General
Barnard is still active in urging this route
pom Congress.
The chief objection urged against the
route mas been the existence
f a formidable sand bar on the northern
7 gulf side. General Barnard and off.
ers of the coast survey have, however,
eported that this bar is found to have a
ubstratum of mud, in which case the said
bstacle could be definitely removed by
redging. The only matter to learn is
neither there be sufficient water at the
ummit of said isthmus for ship canal.
It the instance of the friends of the route,
resolution was offered to Congress by
enator Fenton, on the eighteenth of
[arch, asking for corps of engineers to
9 detailed for this purpose, and if suffi-
lent water were found, complete survey
n ship canal should be made. 1t was
eferred to the Committee on Foreign Re-
ltions, and yesterday we had the result.
is sufficiently evident from the
lrveys of twenty years ago, of which
e speak, that there is water enough