The New Orleans bulletin. [volume] (New Orleans [La.]) 1874-1876, 1874-05-01
Communicated
BEAUREGARD'S REPLY TO EADS.
New ORLEANS, April 90, 1?7

ASA/A y - AeA/A ~ ~ AtA"os
New ORLEANS, April 90, 1874.
Dear Sir-On my arrival here from Texas
found yonr letter of the 9th inst, ad-
dressed to Messrs. Highly, Oglesby, myself
and others, awaiting my return. / regret
that can make now only few remarks in
reply.
am not an opponent of the jetty system
per sc, but only give the preference to the
Fort st. Philip Canal as a less costly under
taking, more likely to be permanent in it's
results-"nOt that / love Caesar less, but
Rome more
In 1852, when l was member of the
board of United States officers ordered to
examine the mouths Of the Mississippi River,
to determine upon the best mode of obtain
ing deep channel across the bars, was at
first the only strong advocate of the jetty
system. Major Chase favored the Fort ST.
Philip Canal, and Major Barnard the dredg-
ing system. After several days of warm
discussion, we finally compromised, if l
recollect correctly, by recommending that
these three plans be fairly tried in success
sion until one or the other proved success
full. About the time We had concluded our
report, the "Towboat Association of New
Orleans" offered to try the experiment of
narrowing and scraping' for a channel,
proposition was accepted, recommended for
trial to the Secretary Of War, who approved
it, and placed it under my supervision as
local engineer officer. In twelve months
time that company made, as per contract, a
channel in the Southwest Pass bar of IL
feet in depth at ordinary low water mark,
by 300 feet wide, for the small sum Of
5000.
Before the adjournment of the Board,
however, | devised plan for obtaining a
channel over alluvium bars, by Self
acting Bar Excavator," which was to per-
form its work by concentrating the river
done by jetties. That plan was submitted
by me to the Board, and the following was
their opinion:
awe have examined the plan and details
of your SelfactiIg Bar Excavator.'
"Your explanations of the whole opera
tons which it is designed to perform, leave
little doubt in our minds Gas regards it's Ill
innate success) as any untried machine will
admit of.
"One excellence pertains to your inven-
tion--it is, that an experiment may be had
Of its applicability to the purposes intended
at very small expense.
Should the experiment succeed, great
desideratum will have been attained in all
may be used as the forcing power" Signed
by w. X. Latimer, Captain L. :. Navy; w.
H. Chase, Major U. S. Engineers; J. G. Bar
nard, Brevet Major u. S. Engineers w. H.
Stevens Lieutenant U. S. Engineers.
This plan improved greatly in 1856; but
before it could be tried the late war oc-
cured, and it was laid on the shelf for an
indefinite future. am still confident of its
great economy and ultimate success.
If you are to apply your system of
"jetties" entirely at your risk, commencing
the work at once, and prosecuting it con-
tinuonsly to final completion, l can but
admit that, to avoid unnecessary contentious
and delays, you should be allowed to give
the system fair trial; the Government,
meanwhile. improving the time by making
further investigations relative to the Fort
st. Philip Canal.
| am not prepared, however, to admit that
the bar will not be reformed outside OF your
jetties in the course of a much shorter pc
riod than You seem to anticipate. 1t is only
by changing the volume and velocity of the
water which passes in one of the branches
of the Mississippi delta that the regimen at
It's mouth can be permanently altered.
Thus, at various times the several passes of
the ri yec have varied in depth, according to
the direction of the main thread of the
river current. Many wears ago, the NofII,
Northeast and South passes were deepest;
now they are the shallowest, owing to the
occurrence of the jump, Ga break about half
way between the delta and the forts) which
deepened the Southwest Pass and Pass-a-
la Loutre, the only two now in use by
large sea-going vessels; hence, when | adj
vocated in 1852, jetties at the Southwest
Pass, recommended also other engineering
works, to gradually increase the volume Of
water which pass through it, so as to change
permanently its regimen.
With regard to the "jetties" constructed
by Craig and Rightor at the Southwest Pass,
about the year 1856, they hardly deserve the
name of jettes. l was the United States
Engineer when those contractors commenced
their work condemned their plan as soon
as explained to me, and the result justified
my conclusion.
know not what your plan of jetties may
be, but agree with you in the opinion that
there are few obstacles in engineering that
" dollars and sense cannot overcome.
remain, yours most truly,
G. T. BEAUREGARD.
Capt. J. B. Eads Civil Engineer, etc. Washington,