The state rights democrat. [volume] (Albany, Linn County, Oregon) 1865-1900, 1879-03-21
THAT .rROrOsED RREAKwArER." ]"


recommended that Port Oxford, away
down in Curry county, be chosen for
the proposed breakwater-and this in
the very face of the report of U. s.
Assistant Engineer Habersham, of
their own city, who last year surveyed
the Foulweather site and recommended
it as in every way superior to any other
point for this important auxiliary to
our ocean commerce, And Capt. Haber-
sham is not alone in his estimate of the
relative cost of the breakwater at the
two points named The report of Col
Wilson, U. S. Engineer, shows that
while the construction of breakwater
at Port Oxford would cost tho enor-
nous sum of 80, ,405, 900, suitable
one for all purposes required can be
built at Foulweather for less than
seven hundred thousand dollars
And then, after all, what benefits
are to accrue to the commercial inter
ests of Oregon by the establishment Of
this harbor at Port Orfordl 1t is en-
tireiy ont of the way of any line of
land travel, and the almost impassable
mountains which shut it Off from the
thickly settled portions of our State
preclude the establishment OF any line
of transportation to its margin for
years to come. 1t never would be
likely to afford connection for COM
merce by land and sea, and hence
would never supply that which our
people so much desire,-an entrepot
on our coast that will give us direct
communication with the high seas.
Portland of course desires that YES
sells should forever enter and depart
over the Columbia Bar, thus perpetual.
ing that city as the commercial metropo
lis of Oregon; and knowing that while
Por: Oxford Ii ever could, for obvious
reasons, become u rival for commercial
purposes, which Foulweather so plain
ly threatens to do, her keen-scented
Board of Trade, inflated with a self
, imputed Importance which heretofore
the ''cow county towns have never
thought it worth while to cavil with
proceed with their usual pomposity tc
''resolute" and instruct that the appro
priation for breakwater be expended
at Port Oxford
Bearing upon this point W.T. extract
the following from a communication IN
the Oregonian o.. the 18th inst, writer
by Mr.. Denlinger After expressing
his preference for Foulweathcr, Mr.. d
! adds:
'EThe official estimate of the cost Of
construction Of a breakwater at Port
, Oxford, to enclose 90 acres, is S3,427
900; to enclose 100 acres ut Cape
Foulweather, $685. 90. Mr. Haber
sham states in his report that the Foul
: weather hsrbor is so naturally well
: protected from the most dreaded south
east winds that the opinion was express
ed by the seamen who made the sur.
vey that if buoys were placed to define
the entrance, vessels of any draft could
run in and find safe anchorage; and this
opinion is substantiated by the fact
that during the recent severe storm
persons who were then at Foulweather
say that while the south side of the
cape (exposed like Port Orford) was
'lashed into fury, the north side pre-
sented an area of fifty acres as smooth
as mill pond, covered with innumera-
BILE sea fowl"
The river and harbor appropriation
bill, pissed by congress (of which 5000
900 has been allowed for our harbor OF
refugee is generally denounced by the
press as extravagant. We, therefore,
cannot expect more than like amount
to be appropriated each year. If 5000
900 be expended each year at Port Or
ford, for Sictee1s years, we will have
a harbor lin the language of the report)
Sufficient for present necessities" Ii
the 100000 be expended at Foul
weather, in placing buoys and commenc-
ing the sea wall as proposed by Engi-
neer Habershams report, a har6or
sufficient for present requirements"
can be available the coming winter, and
the harbor can be enlarged year after
year as the needs of commerce demand
or the bounty Of government allows"
We have just received a printed
pamphlet containing Senator Mitchells
speech or this important subject, de-
livered in the U. S. Senate on Jan.
10Th last, from which we learn many
valuable statistics and much useful
information on this point. After show
ing up, in glowing language, the vast
Importance of the commerce of the
North Pacific coast, Mr.. Mitchell pro-
ceeds to illustrate the absolute nece1si-
ty of a, marine asylum for ships by
giving table of the number of ves-
sells lost or damaged as well AZ loss of
life, on the North Pacific coast from
1861 to the close of last year. The
number of vessels totally lost is l89 !;
vessels damaged, 240, and number of
lives lost (abOut) 800 This long list
Of marine disasters on our northwest
coast is surely sufficiently appalling to
show the Importance of a suitable, con-
venient and safe harbor of refuge which