Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1872-03-20
RIVER News.

The river was rising yesterday, with s.
feet reported on Harpeth Shoals. Weather
warm and pleasant during the day, bu
cloudy and clustering last night.
The huntsville arrived yesterday from the
Upper Cumberland, her round trip from
this point to the head of the river and retlrr
being made in less than six days, and heav.
lily loaded both ways. Her cargo consisted
80 hhds tobacco-65 for New Orleans. ls
for Louisville and for Nashville. She also
had 300 sacks corn, y dozen chickens and
turkeys for New Orleans, 2,1OO dozen eggs
for New Orleans, and {, 900 dozen for Nash
uille, 10000 lbs loose bacon, besides the
usual amount of barter.
| The Tyrone arrived from Cairo last night
heavily loaded.
Tom Tinsley, an old Upper Cumberland
river pilot, after preaching several years in
Illinois, has returned to his first love, and is
now doing the star gazing on the Burks-
vile. They had to enlarge the pilot house
to get him in.
The Ella Hughes, from the Upper Cum
berland, is expected to-day.
The l. n. Phillips, from the Poplar
Mountain coal mines, is due.
The faVorite steamer Tyrone, Capt. Tom
Harmon, is the regular packet for Cairo to-
day at p. m. Register your names with
the Hard brothers.
The Burksville will return to the head of
the river, leaving this evening at 4 O'Clock.
She is commanded by the experienced mari
ner, Capt. Carroll, withal prince of good
fellows, W. E. Byers, in the office.
We regret to hear Of the continued illness
of Capt. Will Harmon, Superintendent of
be Nashville and Cairo Packet COMPANY.
From Mr.. VIM. Weston's report on the
Cumberland dam, made to Col. w. E. Mer-
rill, and presented in the House of Repre-
sentatives March l, and referred to the
Committee on Commerce, we make the fol-
lowing extracts: The total length of the
dam is $500 feet. About one-fifh of this.
being that portion in the main channel of
the river, near Dog Island, is covered from
) TO feet at low water. There is no gan
or breach through any portion of the dam.
and the indications are that, whatever sub
sidenCe has taken place, has been general,
and without any displacement of the rock.
The difference Of leyel between the water
surface above and below the dam was half a
foot at the time Of the survey; at extreme
low water it is greater, and in high water
much less. The highest part of the dam is
400 feet from the eastern end, where il is
"a above low water. At this point verv
little, if any change has taken place in height
or condition since 1858, date of the last
work on it. West of this, toward the
main channel, the dam gets gradually lower
till it runs beneath the low water surface at
the west side of the "V." Its width on ton |
from the "V'' to Cumberland Island varies |
from 20 to so feet, and with the gravel that |
is packed against it is, in some places, up- |
wards of hundred feet. From the "Vn |
west, the general width on top is from Is to |
30 feet, with the side slopes quite steep
across the deep water. The bar opposite
has been the controlling bar
Of the lower Ohio for the past low water
season; boats that passed other bars without
difficulty almost invariably stuck here. Du
ring the time of the survey there was only
4 portion of one day when there was not
1ne or more boats laboring to get over this
BAR. The only low water steamboat chan
lel is now on the west side of the island
passing over the dam, and it is quite plain
hat the dam, as it is, is only an obstruction
o this channel. Its effect is to give shoaler
water on Hamletsburg bar, and to make a
,urrent at the dam so strong that mauy ofthe
matler towboats have to break their lows to
TEN it. At the head of the Kentucky chute
he wreck of the steamer Robert Moore.
accompanied by pile Of snags, lies in what
title channel there is, and at the foot of the
sland the chute at the left of the tow-head
5 very narrow and perilous, while the for
ner main channel between the tow-bead
nd island has little depth of water in it. In
word, the effect fEthe dam in it's present
ondtiOn is the anomalous one of not i'm
rowing the Kentucky chute, while it makes
be main channel unnaturally bad. The
ecessity and importance of opening the ,
-entucky chute to navigation at all stages {
f water Is generally acknowledged. When !
is considered that the navigation of the
cumberland river must find an outlet ,
trough this chaonel of the Ohio, no further Z
rgument is needed to show why attention +
Mould be given to keeping open this chute r
preference to the other, although this is +
aturally the main channel The same ar +
ument that enlisted for building the dam +
ew exists for its repair. A single incident !
ill show how the case stands: In June,
3G7, the steamboat Robert Moore, valued.
it'll cargo, at $4,000, came down the Cum e
erlaDd without difficulty, made an unsuc- 4
.ssful effort at each end of the chute be- !
ind Cumberland Island to get through, u
nd upon third attempt struck, and sunk 4
the upper chute, and proved a total loss. a
he loss by this accident was enough to re-
lid the dam. No objection has been q
ade by the river men or liver interests to y
aving the dam rebuilt, as there is plenty of y,
idth of navigation in the Kentucky chan \
/. n
By Telegraph. :.
CINCINNATI, March 10.-The river has
sen 10 inches; 20 feet IL inches in the G,
lannel. h
YANKToN, DAKOTA, March 10.-The 2
issoun river broke at this place at an y
rly hour this morning, being just three :,
eeks later than last year. The river is .
sing radidly, and in case of a gorge some
image to property on the bottoms is an r,
cipated. Advices from Fort Randall, IS Fl
lies above here, report a breakup this :,