Morning journal and courier., 1882-11-20
Long Island Sound

1of ocean Steamers-The GranRrteS of the West-The Sound Route vs. Now Orleans ROute-The HOosac Tun el and New Haven - Fast Time to Europe The Route for Travel to the East The Coast Defenses. The great importance of Long Island Sound l IS an eastern entrance to the port of New | York Gin special reference to European con1- nerce) is becoming more and more appre- 1 ,iated by New York commercial kings and others interested in our foreign commerce. It's value for commercial purposes in time of peace will doubt be greatly enhanced for reasons and by methods given below, while it's use by foreign foe an avenue of 3D. proach to New York or to cities along the Sound is a subject which to the thinking man becomes fraught with importance. We first speak of the great commercial advan- vantages to New York of the eastern ap- proach. The Bronx river divides New York from Westchester in Westchester county. New York lies on the island and now in- cludes point of land between the Bronx and Harlem rivers extending northward to- ward Woodlawn cemetery's northern bound ary. It extends over large territory, finally reaching to within four miles of the Sound. Thus Long Island Sound has be- come near outlet to the port of New York, and the importance of this fact is vividly ap- parent when it is considered that New York city is more easily and safely approached from the east than via Sandy Hook. Steamers find abundant depth of water by this route sll the way from the ocean to New York. At the New York end of the passage there is 8 much greater depth of water than Ut Sandy Hook, and no bar. Let these two facts be specially impressed on the mind of the reader. Let the fact also be remembered that there is 8 greater depth of water by the eastern entrance via Long Island Sound to Port Morris than by the southern entrance via Sandy Hook bar Furthermore, the island forms great natural barrier or breakwater against the heavy swells and force of the ocean in storms, making the in land passage specially desirable on that &C., count. The inland passage is, comparatively speaking, 0 smooth sea. Then again it is freer from fogs than on the south side. The reason of this is interesting and conclusive. The Gulf stream, which passes up the At- lantic coast off the south coast of the island meets the ice cold water which comes from the Arctic seas, from Labradors coast down along the shores of Nova Scotia, and these two opposing forces of different tempera- lures create the fog which is a source ot such great inconvenience to navigators on the south side. From this obstacle the north side approach is comparatively free.
 CLOSE PROXIMITY TO LIVERPOOL.
 Again, another important advantage of the north, or Sound route, over the other, is its closer proximity to Liverpool. An ocean steamer, let us say, starts by way of the Sound. The steamer by the Sound route saves from twenty to thirty miles in the dis tance, to say nothing of the possible ten hours delay at Sandy Hook bar. Time, let it be remembered, is money to thousands oi passengers to Europe and to merchants on account of mail matter. The importance ot this route will be shown further on in refer ence to it as route from the great granaries of the West to Europe.
 Let any person turn to chart of the world on Mercator's projection, and notice this fact of which we speak, the gain by the Sound route in voyage to Europe in shortened dis tance. This is exclusive of the other advan. tages of the route in it's comparative freedom from fog and the greater smoothness of the water and the obviating of the danger of de- tention at Sandy Hook bar by lack of sufi cient depth of water. By the Sandy Hook 1 route there is also the danger of 8 hindrance in winter by the fresh water ice from the North river when steamers are going up o, down the bay. This advocacy of the Sound l route is no new matter. It has long beer 1 talked of and urged, especially with regard | to heavy draft vessels.
 1 HEAVY DRAFT VESSELS.
 ! The Great Eastern made one or two trips
 to New York via Sandy Hook, but being l nearly caught on the bar, and thereby ex | posed to great danger of serious damage, the
 steamer on her subsequent trips took thu
 Sound route and several times discharged
 and loaded her cargo off Flushing.
 We now come to another importan point in this connection. At Port Morris l the terminus of the Harlem railroad, on Eas ! river, are fine docks, and here the water i
 sixty feet in depth at mean low tide. O. Sandy Hook bar the water is but twenty fee
 in depth at mean low tide. This is, of course
 an important matter to large vessels. Nov
 let anyone look at the map and see wher
 the granaries of the West are located. Fror
 these granaries millions upon millions o
 dollars worth of grain are exported annual
 to the markets of the world, and the trafh
 is yearly increasing. There are two princi
 pal outlets for all this immense stream o
 commerce, one via the Mississippi river t.
 New Orleans the other eastward via th
 great lakes and the New York Central sys
 tenn, branching off at Albany to Now York
 or Boston via the Hoosac Tunnel.
 l THE HoosAC TUNNEL.
 | Boston capitalists saw millions of dollar
 of commerce going to Europe which the
 thought belonged to Boston. Hence tn
 Hoosao Tunnel, costing millions, va
 built by the State of Massachusetts
 "regardless of expense" The objec
 was to bring transportation to Boston. Tn
 Hoosec Tunnel is connected direct with Ney | Haven by the New Haven and Northampto
 railroad, and New Haven, when the breakws
 ter is built, may easily become sharer in thi
 great department of ocean commerce. It
 easy to sec that with the advantage of tn
 Sound route and it's great facilities for tn
 transportation to Europe, the Sound rout | uoy oo AAaoo dh AAApoitduI pC11t HI tu6 uoh
 future for ths reshipment of cargoes iron the granaries of the West to Europe.
 l ADVANTAGES FOR GRAIN SHIPMENT.
 Look at the advantage of the Sound rout
 for grain shipment over the route down tn
 Mississippi to New Orleans, thence bac
 northward up the East Atlantic coast an
 thence to Europe. It is we'll known to nav
 gators and those interested in commerce ths
 the ships from the Gulf of Mexico have t
 come far to the northward Following tn
 Gulf Stream) before they strike across tn
 broad ocean for Europe. They do not, g
 the amateur would suppose, sail directl
 across the ocean from south of Florida
 Europe. There is no such sair line' rout taken. Why? Because 1t is quicker, safe
 and better every way to come north alon the Gulf Stream and follow the route ths steamers and vessels take that sail out (
 New York, Philadelphia and ports of th Chesapeake. They do so because the