The New Orleans Democrat. (New Orleans, La.) 1875-1876, 1876-05-18
The BARATARIA CANAL.
uTs DEPTHS " DISTANCE - AND IT'S
SAFETY As A HAnBOR.
Neither ths Fort ~. Philip Canal nor
narataria Canal likely tn inter
ferr with the Jetties.
ny G, q. FORsHEy.

WG nave DGIDTF us Tue map I'll captain
Cowdon. which we take ms q true repre-
ssntation Of the route from Harveys
Canal TO the Gulf of Mexico. or rs near
ly SO rs the rough map he draws. and
the extemporaneous sounding he has
made. would allow.
It. is bold proposition 10 make that
route the line Of commerce. from this
city TO the Gulf. In the many embar-
easements which this city experiences
in her efforts to get deep water to the
sea. we would examine oil the plans.
The merits Of this upon its face are
THE DISTANCE.
IT. would appear by the route Of Capt.
Cowtou that the distance. usually es-
tirnated by his route Of seventy miles, is
reduced to fifty three miles. Another
advantage is the absence Of
u.-TowsGB AGAINST CURRENT.
The route by the southwest Pass has
us miles Of townge against y three mile
current. which. added to the distance.
eivesu I ~ plus Sc, equals Id miles, ana
is compared to the still water distance
Of the Bhrntnfa, Should the ietties
prove d success. it will make but five
miles Of difference But besides the
towage. Earatara gives u q
MA HAREor INSIDE,
in which ship could take refuge. OF IL
! lleet find anchor in assembling fpi war
purposes Security would be given
under our guns from an enemy 5 attack.
In constructing u work for deep water
over the bar. We would have u sand bar
to which jetties 10 apply. aud not
IygAA SEDIMENT BEARING RIVER.
TO create new bars forever. thus defying
the work 1T man beyond u temporary
relief
But TO accomplish The work there are
certain Disadvantages which must be
put into the opposite scale At tho sen
the bar is nearly as wide rs the bar ut
the South Pass. and with less water than
either of the othGr passes by six feet.
ia nan or ONE ANp oNr-HAtf MILES
WtTH NINE FEET WATER
must he removed and work construct
ed to maintain it.. This is Mt sea, aud
without any protection against storms.
True. il Is II bar If sand. and onro con
struoted it would maintain its depth by
the ebb aud How of tide, like Pensacola
bar. IT has an area Of 700 square miles
to fill aud empty daily for scour.
inside the barbor has two miles Of
deep water, and al indefinite distance
somewhat less deep. distance of
seven and e4half miles through Grand
Lake would require dredging to n con
siderable depth before coming to four
fathom water in the Bayou st. Denis
Thence the work would be trifling for
a distance Of ten miles to tho bend in
the bayou. Here navigation would
have to stop. or q clean cut be made
through woods and marsh for about
eight miles. This is to avoid II tortuous
route through Little Lake and Bayou
Rigolets. which has always been the OBJ
staee to navigation in this direction.
Thence. through Bayou Barataria
with three to four fathoms. to Bayou
De Famille the cut would be trifiing
But here the difficulties begin. 1t would
be doubtful whether the straight line
should not commence here and tlow
obliquely into Harvey's Canal. II Ia
still eight miles to the river. and chiefly
clean cut.
And now we have just commenced
with our difficulties. The
2-D1FrERgNGE or Level
between the river. opposite the Sixth
District of New Orleans. and tho level
of the aea would present itself at once.
That difference is fifteen aud ono half
feet
The elevation is quite too great for
one left In u lock. Two or three locks
would be required and would suggest
the question whether there should be
lock at all or
"a porTAaE.
OF direct transfer of freigbts from the
river to the basin or canal. Suppose Z.
basin OF huge dimensions. with ships
land docks. to DO constructed and filled
from about FIVE miles, say from Lake
Salvador or Cato,iatchie. Let this basin
be brought up To tho river or near IL,
and the portage established and transfer
made from the river direct to the level
Of the sea. would not commerce be
accommodated better than by locks
which should transfer the vessels2 A
ship could lade from the barge in the
river with as much ease ns if the ship
was lying in the river All the freights
have toEe hauled to the ship wherever
she may be.
This and similar projects suggest
themselves to those who believe that the
Mississippi should be utilized and her
bar DO fiankcd III II cannot be removed.
This IL not n wild or visionary scheme,
but is within the reach Of n few millions
of dollars, and II the present experiment
ut South Pass should not succeed we
shall be prepared to elaborate this
scheme In addition tothe Fort St Philip
Canal That canal hns one lock in its
pan, ana UHS Ill Tie tcWHpf ullHtuitleS.
and IL has nearly double the distance of
the Baraturia route.
Neither Of the schemes are likely to in
terfere with the contract ut the South
Pass. That will be ut an end pro or con
In few months. The great West can
not walt. Commerce IL King" and his
mandates must be obeyed. Men and
their interests must stand aside, or be
whelmed aud swallowed up by his
behests.
DEPTHs IN THE GULF.
And now let us inquire what interest
has prompted the wholesale mis-. state
ment contained in the article in the
Times or Monday, 18th, signed ''R. A.
w" aud dated at Southwest Pass.
Capt. Sigsbee and the Blake, with
their deep sea" soundings has never
been In the Barataria Bay. He could not
have got into the Pass; nor do his
charts show anything respecting the
Barataria route. The few soundings
found on Hardee's chart were probably
~ - III A