The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1880-03-17

very slow. and on examination II was founa
that The ss nd had been entirely swept of
many places +, leaving a harder surface oI
cobbles,one. ,hingle, and gravel. The sand
vet remaininl' In places in the channel
should rather / classed as fine gravel. Un-
der these circuu stances dredging has been
resortcd TO 10 b, 'sten the deepening OF the
channel. The ne, cuts are being made TO
| 1st feet at high ii, tc, and in the direction
ihe currents indicate as the best for mante-
nance.
A channel 90 feet i, width was dredo ed
through Randolph's fa in June and July.
This seems TO have ma tntained its depth,
and to have been somewl. at widened by the
rise of December last.
The channel over Wa. wick bar was
widened in two places, and vas also further
improved by the rise of Dece. tDer. All the
wingdams built during the y ear are on the
last two sboa.; and the effect sf these will
he to widen and deepen the ,%hanne's in
future.
The work done below Warwick bar has
been stated in the first part OF this report.
DEPTH OF THE CHANNEL.
When the new addition TO the ctannel
oyer Rockets reel Is opened there wall be q
depth in the channel from the city wbarves
to tie Chesapeake and Ohio railway wbarves
OF at least 10 feet at mean high tide, and
small amount OF work below the reef will
add ! foot or more to this depth. From
the Chesapeake and Ohio railway wbaryes
to the head Of Richmond bar there are i64
feet depth: limited by the depth over
Goodies rocks. From the head OF Richmond
bar to below Warwick bar, using the new
channel over Richmond bar, there is
greater depth. | know OF no point in
channel OF fair width with less than IL feet
at mean high tide.
Below Warwick bar the shoaest spots
| are at Dutch Gap cutoff and Farina. until
Harrison's bar Is reached; these two places
have about Is feet depth Of channel at high
| tide. HarrisOn's bar and GO0se-lIill flats
have about Il feet. The two latter shoals
are now being deeped to at least Is feet at
| low tide.
These depths are given for mean high
tide. In many places the channel is not over
| 100 feet wide, and in some places 1t Is some
what less, with these depths. The height
OF tide raises considerably with the direction
and force OF the wind. In the past year the
tide on one occasion was nearly 2 feet higher
than the mean, and one high tide was .
feet lower than the mean-showing an eX-
treme range In high tides Of feet - inches.
The very high tide was not cue to fresbet,
and the observations taken during freshets
are excluded in calculating the mean. Du-
ring the prevalence OF westerly winds the
depth Of channel will be less, and in east
erly winds the depth will be more. About
new or full moon the tides are nearly 8
inches higher, and at or shortly after the
quarters they are about inches lower. y
gauge reading lj5 feet at mean high tide
has been placed at the Chesapeake and ONO
ra;iway wharyeS, and the channel below, II
it remains aS at present, will always have !
foot mole water than the reading OF the
gauge. Another gauge will tc set at Rock
etts when the new channel is opened, read
ing foot less than the depth OF the chan
mel above the Chesapeake and Ohio railway
wharyes. Shippers can then regulate the
draught to waicl vessels should be loaded
by those gauges, according to their own
ideas OF safety.
The rise and fall Of the tides from Feb
rllary lSt to December 3lst averaged , fee'
81 inches the least mean monthly rise wa
, , feet q inches IN February but the meau
low tide was about | foot above our zero
so that mean high tide was over the average
The greatest mean monthly rise and fall wa
feet o. inches i'm November, but the lo0
that the high tides were hall foot below
/ the mean OF former years. In this mortl
the river was very IOw and westerly wind
prevailed In December the river averaget
at both high and low tides the mean Of tn
/ whole year, excluding January, in whlc
month no observations were taken.
: FREsHETs.
r An account Of the ice freshct and gorg
in
e the last annual report. Since then tber
;, has been no considerable rise in the river
The largcs', and in fact the only one noted
n was G feet inches on the 10Th Of Deceu
Der. Owing to the want OF current in th
d river the dikes and wing-dlms have nc
d had the effect noticed in former years. no
II are we able TO determine what further cN
tensions may b. needed.
p TIE river was extremely low from Ma
until the 18th OF December, except for
n few davS in August. Notwithstanding tn
n eXceOti0nal condition Tie mean high tide
ii only Il inches lower than The mean OF Il
: four previous years. This is due to t.
Il fact that the rise and fail Of the tlte
W greater when the current from above
smaller. In freshets OF l. feet rise The fi(
e, cannot be detected at Richmond. II "
!; accent the past year IS a standard the Ztl
20 or level Of low tide must be lowered
e. inches: the rise and fall OF tides must
mt increased from 3 feet inches to , feet
inches: and height 81 high tides above q
ut nresent zero reduced from feet inches
3 feet u inches.
g. The deepening Of the shoals below Ci
= Point, now in progress, VIII permit Vessc
OF twenty.fcet draught to load at that plIc
II further appropriations are made by Co
oresS we may expect that the deeper cha
lS mel will be brought nearer 20 the city. I'll
=, desirable condition could be hasten
u by liberal appropriation from {
ie CITY: so that the work betwe
ne Warwick bar and City Point could
IL commenced Immediately. The remand
e: Of The last appropriation by the GeneI
ia Government, except so much as Will be
omred for The work below City Point, W
'c' I've needed 10 further enlarge and deep
" the channel near Richmond, and VIII pI
r. blbly be exhausted some months before
nc other appropriation will be ayailaOIe.
rs As IN former years, the city appropr
no ;lons have been expended in strct conioi
!! tv 10 the plans OF Colonel william
'e Craighil, Corps Of Engineers, Unlteu nial
III ~ army, who b1s the general direction OF |
l. work, and whose attention to the iniere
'e- of t.e Improvement merits the thanks
your committee.
| take pleasure in saying that the e
ltS ploy Is on this work have been iathiui
10, The discharge OF their duties.
ed '''' "'- --------
Ms FoRp,s COMEDY COMPANY II Il
es- CIyDg."-Mr. Ford's Comedy Compa
at will play two nights in ms cl'Y-lo-nls !
ed and tomorrow night-on their way Nor
ne They hpve just returned ron CHaries'!
Id. and the Sunday Mems, Of thl: CITY. mas