The Evening critic., 1882-07-31
Jetty.JObbIng Eads.
TO the Editor OF The Eren,nq Critic:


The notorious Jetty.Jobbing Eads has a
letter In the Post defending his 1otties at tho
mouth OF the Mississippi and also his ship
railroad across the Isthmus OF Tehuantepec.
on the 9Th OF July, 1868, published In the
EreninD Star an article headed, "Panama
ShipRailroad," fully describing tho plan fora
ship.railroad to connect the two oceans. With
the size of ships and steamers at that time,
the plan was doubtless practicable, but the In.
crease In size In twenty.four years mako them
too heavy for any ship.railroad, and now
think that n tide-level canal Is the only fea-
slble plan. Over twenty years after my article
Jetty Eads came out with the same plan, as II
II was new, and, notwithstanding the enor-
nous Size OF ships, and constantly increasing,
he is still urging its construction, asking Con.
gress to guarantee the work to the amount OF
s5O,O00,OOO.
But this proposition is doubtless merely an
addcnda TO his famous and failing Jetties at
the mouth OF tho Mississippi, and n ''sido-
show" TO attract Congress to his great system
OF jetties to improve tho navigation Of that
great river, for which nearly S6,0O0,00O has
been voted In the River and Harbor bill. 1t Is
estimated by Captain Cowdon and other com.
expended In this way, and tho .river be made
worse than now. This plan is to narrow the
river by !etties at all tho bars, and thus to
make the current cut 1t out deep for navigac
tion. But II this is ever done 1t Will fail, as n
such plans have failed in all tho rivers Of thB
world whore 1t has been tried. Cowdon's
plan OF outlets Is doubtless the best.
Several instances could be cited in Europe
where this plan has failed, but the most noted
was In the Clyde, Scotland. Congress and the
President, in acting upon this Important ques-
tion, should read the article in the Encyclopp-
dia Britannica, ofthe incomplete edition, 1870,
article "Harbor OF Glasgow" They will there
see that 200 Jetties were put In the Clyde In
only twenty miles from Glasgow to the sea, or
ten for each mile, with connecting walls bo-
tween, making the river straight.walled
canal, the object being to make the current of
the river cut out the mud and carry IL out to
the sea. But after expending some 20,000,-
600 at this work 1t was found to be a failure,
and the entire twenty miles had to be dredged
out at an additional cost OF S15,000,000. The
river now has twenty-five feet OF water at low
tide.
Congress and tho President should also note
| that this plan OF jetties or narrowing the
| river to cause a current and cut 1t out is the
| same as that proposed by the nat-nllers to i'm
prove tho Washington harbor, and tho result
| will be precisely as In the river Clyde 1t Will
| cost, perhaps, SOC, 100000 and then fail. Nc
current can be made In the Potomac River a'
this point by narrowing 1t, and, besides, 1t viii
| flood the city twice as high as now. The true
| remedy should be the same as In the Clyde
| to dredge out all the flats which can be done
| at one-fourth tho cost and in one-fourth tint
| time that they can be filed in, and thus pre-
vent oil injury from floods.
| A. WATSON, Q. Z.
| Washington, D. O., July 81, 1882.