Morning journal and courier., 1881-02-11
shefie1d Scientific school.

Sheffield Scientific School. The Winter COurse-Lecture by Prof.
 Brewer-The NKfssHssfppi Jettfes-Capt.
 Eads and his MasterIy Engineering
 Prof. Brewers Visit.
 Prof. Brewer interested and entertained quite good sized audience at the North Shef- field Hall last evening, although the walking and weather were unfavorable delivering a lecture-the first in the annual winter course to mechanics-on the subject "The Missis- sippi Jetties.n The Professor visited the jetties not many months ago, and some months ago, while in California, had the pleasure of meeting Capt. Eads. The Pro- lessor was much interested in the jetties, and his visit to the far South was mainly to see these masterly triumphs of engineering and to verify theory he entertained by way Of accounting for the spissitude of the mud deposits at the mouth of the Mississippi, or the extreme tenacious doggy, clayey character of this compound which formed one of the hindrances to the commerce of the great Father of Waters Prof. Brewer held that the pe- culiar character of this clayey compound was owing to the action of salt water upon the earthly matters washed down the great river, perhaps for many hundreds of miles. To demonstrate this he brought home good sized sample of the dense black mud in the mouth of the great river, also samples of roily, turbid water from the upper Missis- sippi and the Missouri rivers; and then sub- iected the sediment of the roily water to the action of salt water from our own harbor, the result being demonstration of his the ek,-okf o1o1n baf his audience during the progress of the lec- ture last evening. Prof. Brewer mentioned this theory to Capt. Eads when the two chanced to meet in California, but the great engineer was not at home in this branch of science and not ready to accept demonstrated last evening. The lecture of Prof. Brewer was divided into the following notifications:
 1st. The river, it's extent, importance etc.
 2nd. The delta, size, topography, soil,etc
 4th. The relations the sediment to the velocity of the current and to water
 5th. Topography and nature of the mouths and
 eth. The bar and the mud Jumps.
 9th. His plan and his fight for it.
 10th Nature of the work the history of it's progress and it's present condition.
 11th. Future prospects,. Is it permanent?
 The jetties, as will be recollected, were opened in 1879, and in the short time that has elapsed, owing to the great work, New Or leans has, from a very inferior commercial position jumped to the fourth rank city in commercial importance as a grain shipping port in the United States. Before the jetties were built 13 foot channel was the best that could be had under the most favorable circumstances. with the arm of the delta having the deepest water. But a few words from the lecture as to Capt. Eads:
 Capt. Jas B. Eads is a western man, about 57 or 5S years old. He did not have the advantages of a regular engineering edu- cation. As lad he was in straitened cir cumstances, but while a clerk in mercan- tile house he studied such engineer ing books as he had access to, and finally be- came member of a firm whose business it was to seek out and raise sunken steamboats.
 As a diver he got that practical experience of the currents and windings of the Missis- sippi which stood him in such good purpose in the great engineering work at its mouth. He first came before the public, however, in the war when he built seven ironclad gum boats in one hundred days from the standing timber.
 Next we hear of him as the engineer of the great St. Louis bridge, where peculiar prob lens had to be met He successfully carried down the piers through shifting quicksands down 100 feet to the bed rock beneath, and put up the steel spans without staging, al though some of these were 800 feetin length
 In May, 1873, he visited the mouth of the Mississippi with large congressional delega- tion, and then gave his opinion that the way to open the river to the sea was by way of parallel dikes or jetties at the mouth which should confine the current out to bar.
 In February, 1874, seven years ago this month, he made final proposition to Con gress to open the river by contract by this method, and to keep it open through the southwest pass for ten millions of dollars Not dollar was to be paid by the govern ment until he had depth of twenty feet, when he was to have one million. Afterwards one million for each two feet 'z til he had a depth of twenty-eight feet O. :. Sotal of five millions. The other half was to be paid in annual installments for the next ten years conditional on the permanence of the channel for those ten years
 This proposition, which seemed so safe and fair to the United States government, which was to cost the government nothing if not successful, met the bitterest oppos; sion. First there were the United States engineers, who opposed the whole scheme with a persistency and power which I wonder did not prevail Carl Schurz, then in the Senate, espoused the cause of Eads, and his speech in his support stands yet as model of it's kind.
 It is needless to say that took an abiding interest in the fight. It was fight of the United States military engineers of education and power against civilian engineer, and my sympathies were with him, although I thought it most probable that they were right and he was wrong. Railroad opposi- tion was not 50 open, but just as powerful It was to the interests of railroads that this great free pathway of commerce should 11ot be opened, and they had these organs just as now. This very week, when every newspa- per in the United States which happens to be under the control of some great railroad magnate is rejoicing over the defeat of the recent Rivers and Harbors Improvement bill so it was then in St. Louis and all those northern cities which were tied up by and in railroads, they sternly opposing this engi- neering scheme. New Orleans wanted the river opened, but wanted 8 ship canal. The Chamber of Commerce and trades organizations were very strong in favor of ship canal (for which there were variety of schemes, one of which was to get Congress to pay $1O,- 900, GOO and private parties $3,OOO, OOO), and they employed the best civil engineer of the State to oppose the Eads scheme.
 They succeeded in staving off the bill, but Eads fought so hard that commission was appointed, which visited Europe, Egypt and other countries, and reported the next year in favor of the system of jetties with esti- mates of the cost, and bill was introduced Feb. 8, 1875, just six years ago. But still further opposition was met with before the engineer could proceed in his great achieve ment.
 Prof. Brewer spoke further of the indom- itable spirit of Capt. Eads, and the whole lecture was fraught with interest to the au- dience which numbered 300 or 400 per sons, including many who have be- come prominent in various walks of life As to the permanent value of the great work of Capt. Eads, the Professor thought favorably. Time had shown noth- ing at all alarming or threatening. Congress had allowed about $1O0, GOO year to the great engineer to keep the work in order, and made it's permanence for 20 years the condition for the payment of the total cost of the work, something over five million dol lars A part of the five millions has been paid, the remainder being contingent on the permanent character of the work. The jet ties are under double surveillance. The government engineers watch them in the interest of the government and Capt. Eads has engineers who watch also. government engineer goes up and down the work once week and sounds it the whole length, and if he finds the depth of water in any spot less than thirty feet he makes re- port. Eads' engineers sound the passage twice a week. At times of low water there may be danger, and if so in goes Eads' great hydraulic dredge, said to be the most power full steam dredge in the world. It is said that Eads keeps the requisite depth of water and everything shipshape for a good