Los Angeles daily herald., 1873-12-16
The harbor.

Our neighbor still hoOts at the pro-
position of the HERALD to extend the
railroad to the breakwater, as absurd.
If as the Express so confidently states,
the bar is outside the breakwater, and
there is nothing to do but cut through
the bar, and with deep water and
plain sailing ride gaily up to Whining
ton, then indeed this position is
ridiculous. But, unfortunately no
such state of things exists. If there
is from Is to 20 feet Of water in the
channel to Wilmington, will the Ex-
press be kind enough to inform us
why vessel only drawing six feet,
often has trouble to find her way out?
That the people interested may see
what others think of this matter we
copy from the last issue of the San
Bernradino Guardian, the following:
At the ports of San Luis, Santa Bar
bara and San Diego, ,wharves have been
constructed, and freight delivered
from the slings. Yet nothing of the
kind exists ut San Pedro, which dis
patches and receives the great bulk of
all the freight moving along the coast.
Instead of that, the old, cumbrous,
and expensive, the ruinously expen-
sive system of lighterage is fastened
upon you, and from which there seems
to be but little hope of deliverance.
The business of Los Angeles and
San Bernardino cannot sustain
this pressure, this burden, and
prosper. They cannot thrive under it.
San Pedro cannot compete with neigh
boring landings where freight is hand
led but once. 1t should be the great
distributing point for the southern
counties 1t is Stunned by all.
We are told there Is remedy for all
this-when the breakwater shall be-
come success. Aye, when it shall
become q success. Granting all the
most sanguine advocates of the break
water claim for it, and we are among
that number, when will that be? Ger
tainly not for wears What is to be-
come OF ilc::; :-.HScies, yvui city and
county, their progress, their advance
ment, in the mean time? We cannot
answer that question. But at the end
of those years, and the dredging COM
pleted, will large ships and steamers
attempt the tOrtuous navigation of
Wilmington slough? Looking at the
space required at the San Francisco
docks for towing in or working out
our own steamers, he would be bold
man who would assert that the cap
tains would take such risk. Is there
remedy? There is-an expensive
one, it is true. But still, in the long
run, economical. 1t has been forced
upon our consideration by the repeti-
ton of the delays alluded to. If your
merchants, producers, consumers, want
cheap freight, if your landholders want
to dispose Of their lands, and induce
intelligence and industry to occupy
them, better, thousand times better
it would be for them, to construct
substantial wharf ut San Pedro, con-
meet it by rail with the present road at
the nearest dry land point, avoiding
the Wilmington swamp altogether,
and present 1t to the company, on the
simple condition that they shall MAIN
tain the road, and thus bring car and
ship together, reducing the charges
correspOndingly. sga.
The writer appreciates the situation,
and substantially advocates the same
means of improving it, the only differ
ence being that he proposes building
the road to San Pedro instead of to
Deadman's island. He calls atten-
tion to the fact that "the passengers
Of the Mohongo, after visiting COM
pulsorily all the little ports on the
coast, were detained sixteen mortal
hours rocking in the bay of San Pedro,
because the tug would not come and
take them Off" eissgsf sslH a 1850
Do we want this state of affairs to
continue? We guess not. Even if the
whole harbor up as far as Wilmington
can in time be made accessible to the
largest craft, We do not relish the idea
of running our commerce by waiting
for that work to be accomplished, and
believe there is money in extending
the road as suggested, even if it is