The weekly Floridian. [volume] (Tallahassee, Fla.) 1867-19??, 1884-06-03

Our esteemed contemporary, the Tin e.. tissn,
has assumed that the granting OF appr' ptiasEns
for the improvement of several hnrbors M rt3frs
in State antagonizes the most import mi. :Ne
do net so regard it The deepening of lhe wSter
on Volusia bar, for instance, Which ca be SAns
with few thousand dollars, does not ahtag fpze
the improvement of Tampa or Of Per saeolM OF
Fernandina or the st. Johns bar. II l. real
work needed, and is of more immt diate fn'
portance to the people of the upper st. joins
than the bar at its mouth. If we wer: selhekly
to argue the question upon the line tai ON btNhe
Times Union, we could readily show, as we ave
heretofore shown, that the barber Mt Fernan'isPa,
known as the entrance to Cumberland SoundE Is
of paramount Importance TO the State over tAny
other work on the Atlantic coast Flofipa-
We affirm that it has always been so regarded.
In 1855, in a report to the Legislature 'igne1fa y
j. T. Archer, A. S. Baldwin, j c. Pc OF. r. III.
Long and D. L. Yulee, it was said in r,4crSlce
to the ocean terminus of the system of railroads.:
Upon the Atlantic we possess the harbA;of
Fernandina. The harbor is perfectly ahd
closely landlocked, with an average depth Of B5
to 40 feet, entirely without shoals, AMI anchdI
age, with good holding ground, extensi &c euoaeh
for the largest possible commerce, and ha, iug
frontage of over two miles. iompared
with the neighbOring harbOrs CT Savannah SID
Charleston, the harbor is much sup erior. Al
Charleston the depth on the main ship channel
| does not exceed ten and halt feet at low Watfr,
and at Savannah vessels cannot reach he city pt
| low water with more than eighi feet craft"
| This was in 1855 Since thai pcrioc Congreks
| - 10 nNn -
creasing the dept to % feet, End 81 BOZ COO to
Charleston, while only the sum of 81 5000 has
been appropriated to Fernanlina What has
been the result? Fcrnaudins, The haiboH 81
which in 1855 was superior to either Savannah
or Charleston, is lett behind and is re egateds I'd
an inferior position and FloId is lie without
any harbor on her Athnic coast which tail
compete with the potts nj her neghborinE
States, and hence her products are carried 'nts
hundred and sixty miles bcy"nc her orders 70
be carried to market in Georgia steam 'hips ana
to swell the commerce of Savannah, being place q
to the credit of that port. What rem edy do;s
the Times Union propose? WIN, smp Instead
Of giving to Fernar dina IA sum ec' sSa Y IN give
the requisite depth OF 20 feet Al low Ae,, civ 6
Florida deep sea Iarbor and restore CT quail
ty with the neighhpring ports OF Slva NAH and
Charleston, it is gravely and persis.,nly pros
pos that an inferior entrance, now Ia vim; but
eight feet at low wafer shall take prec dcnre o!
all other improvem .nts in order to car y on he
uncertain experiment OF obtaining IS much
water as there is now at Fcrnanlina.
What will be the result 10 The Stl't of such
suicidal folly? The products If Flo ida, the
trade of Florida will continue to 20, with tia
ever. increasing volume, to swell the commerce,
the business, the trade Of Savann III AMI five or
ten years from now will be fir mly est abli shed
in that channel that Florida will not be recog-
| niZed as having any harbor cntil;rd 10 attention
or recognition from the Federal Cove -nment
This is exactly what the counsel and III, policy
of the 7ynae,- Union means
Ii means that the great inleres Of Worlds
its fruit interests, its vegetable interests coast
towns all to he kept back and inju ed be-
cause nature has i, terpoSel barrier at the
mouth of the ST JOIN which it is elaine must
be first removed or ellie Florida be depr we'd of
any Atlantic harbor whatever. The self ,hncss
of this plea is too apparent to need comment.
Ii is an injustice to the rest of the State which
will not be tolerated when it is fully cons lere,i
and understood. Ii i! just and ght thll the
ST Johns bar should lave such tsr share and
proportion as the Engineer Depar mcnt ippor-
toned to it is not Just fair that Mr. l.tsbes
should urge the com ntee To take fnln the
amount apportiontd to F-rnnndina bnr an
thinks The latter the more important.