The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1871-10-18
Deepening James River.

At tut time there Is no matter of public
concern 80 important as the deepening and
clearing OF James river. That river is the /
very throat Of our commerce !, and as in the !;
animal economy diseased, ulccrCd, and
ohslructed throat will lead to the worst
consequences, so Will the ohstructlons III
our river bring upon commercial inter-
course the most serious injuries.
We have begun boldly and arc progress
SIM most earnestly with the work OF deep
ening the channel below Rockets. That
work l. ono 50 cmincntly valuable that the
desire to see II hurried forward with super
human energy should possess all hearts. we
zee Glasgow with twenty-five feet OF water
at high tide in the river Clyde, on whose
shores il stands, when that river thirty
years ago had only twelve ,nches o' water
in the channel at low tide in summer. We
zee Glasgow with half million OF lnhabl-
tants and we see Greenoch on the Firth OF
Clyde lin effect on the sea itscli), with a
population Of only forty-hve thousand
Glasgow has won her greatness by
the energy and enterprise of her people.
What a reward is held out to us through
her example! She Is manufacturing
town. SO is Richmond, while she has ten
fold better advantages than Glasgow. Gas-
gov has deepened her river from twelve
inches to twenty-five feet. Cannot Rich
mond deepen hers from ten feet to t,centy-
ttros Do that, anl the triumph will he
complete. We have q commerce Glasgow
has bat little-hcr river serving mainly for
the export of her own fabrics and for the
passage of the noble iron ships she has beer
building and sending out to the world
Our reason to hope for reward is greater
than Glasgow's could have been.
With these facts before us, what a Crane
estimate we should put upon our river
Each citizen should consider it his especia
duty TO guard and defend 1t, and to do al
ho can TO hasten its Improvement to thai
stage that will enable it to meet the de
mauds Of the immense commerce soon tt
be thrown upon it.
Now, not only is 1t in deepening III,
channel that we are To improve jane
river. ltmust be kept free from the debri
thrown or washed into it in such immens,
quantities for years past. This tiebrts ha
been steadily washed down the channel
and has very much assisted in forming tn
bars which have so annoyed our commerce
AS put of the system of deepening AM
Keeping clear the river, the most rici,
regulations for preventing the throwing o
ofal and earth or any kind of waste matte
into the river should be adopted and en-
forced. The sand-burs above Rocket
should be removed, and the river opened
from shore to shore, SO that the water shall
always have unobstructed flow.
For health and a good appearance, a
we'll as for utility, this should be done. L
is sad to see the river with its sand bed:
exposed at low tide at the very poin,
abreast Of the city where the sight is most oh
noxious. The city government should pay
prompt attention to this subject. The dredg.
ing-machincs will assuredly have enough
to do us long as the volume of ofial, &C.,
now poured into the river Is allowed to be
30 disposed Of Clean up and straighten
the shores, elevate the banks, remove
the dreary bars above Rockets, or keep
them from increasing, and work will have
been done whose value we cannot over.
estimate.