The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1880-05-20
Broad River Improvement.

States Engineer upon tne pIacIicaDll!ty
ofopening the Wateree and Santee Riv-
ers to navigation should encourage re-.
newed effort to secure boating facilities
on the Broad and Congaree Rivers, so
that boats may have unobstructed pass
age from the mountains to the sea.
A small appropriation having been
made by Congress for survey of Broad
River, Mr.. J. P. Carson, Chief Engineer,
under the direction of General Gilmore,
of the United States Engineer Corps,
made survey of the Broad River last
Winter, assisted by our townsman, Mr..
J. Reed Stoney. Mr.. Carson, at the re-
quest of Colonel. S. A. Pearce, Chair
man of the Committee on Navigation of
the Columbia Board of Trade, gives 8
summary of hisleport, which is as fol-
lows, viz:
I recommend that the river he opened
to a uniform chaunel of five yards wide
and two feet deep from Bull sluice to the
foot of Ninety Nine Island Shoals, a dis
tance of ninety-four and a quarter miles,
at cost of SS7, 900; repairing the old
Lockhart Canal $4,000; a channel from
Ninety-nine Islands to Green River, N.
c., forty-six and three-quarter miles,
S38, 900; total $80,000. i,
Also, that for improving the Tiger and
Pacolet Rivers $4,000 he expended. A
channel of this size will be sufficient for
pole boats of more than double the pres
ent capacity of those now used. To con-
struct channel 20 yards wide and 80
inches deep, suitable for steamers for
the 94t miles without considering the
difficulties to be encountered on some of
the shoals where the grade is from 10 to
Is feet to the mile, would cost ten times
the above amount, which the condition
of the country will not justify. The
population is AZ to the square mile
Cotton produced per square mile 31.5
bales, and of country on either side of the
river which would be benefited equal to
81 miles.
Colonel Pearce has received further
information upon this subject, which
the following Communication will show:
UNITED STATES ENGINEERS OFFICE,
New YORK, May 6, 1880.
S. 4 Psarce, Esq, Chairman Committee
Oh, Navigation, Columbia Is. C) Board
Of Trade:
S1R-In reply to your enquiry of the
oath ultimo I have to inform you that
my report on the examination. of Broad
River, S. c., was submitted to the Chief
of Engineers on the 18th of April. It
will probably be referred to the Com.
mittee on Commerce of the House Of
Representatives, and printed during the
present session of Congress.
Very respectfully,
Your obedient servant,
@. A. GILMORE,
Lieutenant Colonel of Engineers, Breyet
Major General q. S. A.
In a communication to the Hon. J. 81.
Evins, member of Congress, upon this
subject, the Chairman of the Committee
says: ut strikes me that this condition
does Justify and loudly calls for cheaper
method of transportation for the upper
section of the State. i believe that moth
ing would do more to encourage the
planter than to give him his transporta-
ClOu VI ulS CUttou ouu OtuoA pAoouSsAOno
to market for one-third its present cost.
With cheap transportation a larger area
would be planted, lands would increase
in value and emigrants would be at
tracted; TO say nothing of the effect it
would have upon the development of the
mineral resources of the State and in
giving additional value to timber lands"
The opening of these rivers to nayiga-
tions is of greater importance to the State
than even cotton manufactures. Will the
State Convention, which assemblies here
on the 1st pro1imo, take little time to
consider these questions which affect the
material prosperity of the State3 Will
our Senators and Representatives in
Congress take up this matter in esrnestf
Will not the people of the State join in
petitioning Congress to open the Broad,
Congaree, Wateree and Santee Rivers for
steam navigation ?-no pole boat arrange
ment that is too slow for South Caro-
lina.-Colunabia Register.