Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1884-04-28
THE RIVER FLATS IMPROVE.
MENT.
Major Peter G.. HainS Before the River
and IHarbOr Committee.
THE WORK NECESSARY FOR NAVIGATION.

Td6 WOhk NECESSARY FUR NAVIGATION.
The House river and harbor committee had the
improvement OF the Potomac river and Washington
harbor under consideration to-day. Major Hains
the engineer experimenting the work. was before
the committee by request, and was asked by Mr.
Bayne II the object OF the work was to improve
the flats or for the benefit OF navigation merely
The whole appropriation asked for, he answered,
was for the improvement Of navigation, which was
absolutely necessary. In making the estimates.
the improvement to the flats, which would be ne
cessar1ly effected by the improvement Of the chan
mel, had not been taken into consideration at all
In answer to further questions he said the object
was to secure channel for navigation four hun
dred feet wide and twenty feet Deep and do this
they proposed to I'LL up the flats as wall to con-
fine the waters The fats served as dumping
ground for the dredgers and at the same time fur.
would conflne the water within such limits as to
keep the channel open, with sufficient depth
and width for free navigation. He said that the
only dlnerence between putting the deposit dredged
from the bottom OF the river on the lts and allow
ing 1t to be washed down the river was that by
putting On dn the ss They had it where
allowed to wash they could not tell where it would
be deposited, and they might have to dredge it out
again.
THE WALL NEEDED 10 coNP1Ns THE RIVER.
In fact they needed the wall to confne the river.
and the dump from the dredges served as material
for 1t. The improvement OF the fats was not what
they had In view. That was something which
naturally followed from the improvement OF the
navigation and could not be helped. They wanted
to raise these grounds above the high freshet point
His estimates did not contemplate any parking or
beauufy1ng, but merely the Improvement OF navi.
cation. The proposed lake. he said, was not an or.
nament; it was not intended to be beautiful; but
was designed to supply water to the washington
channel It would furnish about hundred million
gallons OF water at dow tide, and would he
the only means OF maintaining navigation in the
Washington channel AS yet, he said, no work had
been confined to the Georgetown Channel The
present contract would complete q stretch abOut
$50 feet wide and 20 feet Deep but would not extend
to much OF the most important work which de-
manded their attention.
THE MOST PRESSING DEMAND At PRESENT.
Mr.. Willis asked what was the most pressing part
Of the improvement at present.
Major Hams replied that there were a number of
important points II the work that ought to be
the line Of the proposed improvements: the wash.
ington channel should be dredged and the SUNNY
lake dug OUT the banks filled In, and an Increased
width ana depth given the river for the discharge
was taken nom the river for this purpose would nj
Nj. G. B. Church made fewremarks to the com.
mittee, calling their attention to the Importance
OF the work our commerce amounting, he said, to
Mr.. j. l. Barbour was present also.
TIE coA&ITTEH QUESTIONED MAJoR HAMS
very closely concerning the nature OF the improve
ment and relations between that to navigation and
that 70 tho AatA, ana seemed very wen SATISFIED
with b19l 9lfQGepent2. AT frst one or two members
thought thAS 6hek0 might be q part Of tho money
asked for that would be rather for tho nat
improvements than for navigation, but Major
Ha1ns stAtamenk made the matter quite clear, and
the committee seemed 70 appreciate the Importance
Of continuing thu work to complet3on