Wilmington journal. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1844-1895, 1873-01-03

of the Chief of Engineers to the Secre-
harbOr improvements in North Carroll
na. I should have forwarded copies
of the report to the newspapers before
the recess of Congress, but I only re-
ceived this one (unbound) copy few
days before the recess. and sickness
has prevented me from attending to
the matter sooner The improvement
of the Cape Fear river, SO that our
port may be what il was before the
breaking out of New Inlet) one of the
best harbors on the. South Atlantic
coast is subject in which, as repre-
Sentative Of the State and as a citizen
OF Wilmington, I feel d deep interest; l
and to the accomplishment of which /
have been and stin am watchfully -ex-
erting myself At the last session of
Congress the Committee on Commerce
determined to give but $50, 900 to this
work, and the gentlemen from this city
who went to Washington at nay re-
quest to urge the appropriation will
remember the dependency with which
they left the Committee Room upon
receiving the positive announcement
from the Committee that no more than
the sum above named could or. would
be allowed us. When the bill passed
it contained an appropriation of $780,
900 for this work, and those who are
informed on the subject know hov and
by aohOna the original amount was
doubled. -..
/ You will see that at the date of the
Report the amount available for the
year ending June 80, 1873, was $97,-
O49. SO, and the estimate of what will
1>o f0r no
80, 1874, is $15O,OOO ~
- OF course cannot tell whether we
will get the amount of the estimate,
lit is very rarely done but am strongly
encouraged, both by the Engineers
| Report and by conversations / have
had with the Chairman of the Com
! mittee, to believe that q sim as large
as the last appropriation, at least, will
| be allowed. l shall certainly do all
can to get the largest sum possible,
| and know that my colleagues will
I cheerfully aid me in doing So
- A survey of the Cape Fear and
Deep rivers, as high up as LAGRANGE,
| tCarbonton) in Chatham county, was
ordered by the appropriation bill of
March 3, 1871, and was commenced at
LaGrange in June following, and ex-.
| tended to Reeves Point, 10 miles be-
low Wilmington. An elaborate report
was made 10y Mr.. George II. Elliott,
the officer in charge, in which his
tory of the attempts by the State of
| North Carolina to improve Deep River
was given, rs also description of the
country, its products, mineral resour-
ces, &c, &c. Extracts from Captain
(now AdmiraD Wilkes Report, in
1858, on the same subjects, and from
! Professor EmmOns' reports, while he
was State Geologist, are also given
The report of Mr.. Elliott is so long
that l cannot ask you to publish it,
! His estimate of the entire improve
ment, from LAGRANGE to Wilmington,
| is little oyer two and quarter mil
lions of dollars-an amount that l
| fear cannot be obtained, but which
would be well expended in that work.
I hope to see the Government take
hold of it yet !; but there is Il para
graph in the report which is signif-
cant, and which l quote without COM
ment IA follows. Speaking of the
F.; Navigation Company he says -
AS it would be manifestly UNI
just that any company should
exact tolls where improvements
are made by the General Government,
| and as the Secretary of the Navigation
Company informed me that the Com
pany wonld continue to exact the tolls
unless the Government purchased their
stock at a good valuation, the exact
status of this Company should be as
certainel before any improvements are
made The Chief Engineer says ''the
improvement of Cape Fear River,
above Wilmington, and its tributaries,
/ III <>1~r
and, under the circumstances, l re-
! frain from making any recommenda-
tlons for appropriations.
In regard to the work now progress
sing bcio,r and Mt the mouth of the
river, the following is the Engineers
report, in which, as You will see, he
says he feels justified Sin urging a
liberal appropriation by Congress for
carrying on the work. -
IMPROVEMENT OF THE MOUTH OF CAPE
FEAR RIVER, NORTH CAROLINA.
The operations Of the year have
of the work for closing the opening
between the head of Smiths Island
and Zeke's Island, at the New Inlet.
On the 30th of June, 1871, this work
extended seven hundred and fifty-seven
| feet from Smiths Island to Zeke's.
On the Both of june, 1872, it was
twelve thousand nine hundred and
! fifteen feet in length. The sand accu-
mulates around it with gratifying
| rapidity.
In addition, attention has been given
to the maintenance of existing sand
hills and beaches and the formation of
new ones by the use of cheap catch
sand fences, which have succeeded
we'll Shruhbery and other vegetation
suited to the locality have also been
| planted and cultivated to advantage
with the same object.
! A Board of Engineers met at VIII
mington early in 1872, t consider the
results of the work already done, and
to give opinions as to the proper steps
to be taken in the future. A final re-
port has not been made, the Board
| having concluded that no change,
at least for the present, was needed in
the project of operations in execution,
and that it was expedient to defer
Judgment until the completion of a
survey, then in progress, of the mouths
of the river under the supervisor of
| the Superintendent of the United States
Coast Survey.
The data will soon, it is hoped, be
provided to enable the Board to sub
NIT Il report. In the meantime it may
| be proper to call attention to two i'm
port facts.
The stone jettee which protected the
lower end OF Smiths Island, called
Baldhead Point, has been separated
from the beach by the action of the
| winds, waves, and currents in wearing
! away the latter simultaneously there
are indications of new and straight
channel through the Baldhead entrance.
This channel seems we'll defined, in
| creasing in depth, and nearly in
the position of the ancient deep
channel which existed before the