Morning journal and courier., 1885-11-23
NEW HAVEN HARBOR.

Long Island SOund-EstImated Cost of Completing the Channel Improve ments and the BreakW kWator-AmOunt ~ Asked From she Government for This Year.
 To form an idea of the enormous amount of tonnage which passes through Long Isl and Sound to the port of New York by day light a glance a. the marine list as published in the New York Herald from day to day sufices, and will convince anyone of the importance of this great highway to theSport of New York We have before us in the Herald of Nov. 20th, 1885, nearly whole column of arrivals reported from the news station at Whitestone, near Throg's Neck. The list embraces steamers, ships, barks and schooners, and a large part of the schooners are three-masters, carrying from 1000 to 1,400 tons each-larger than many ships. And this report says nothing of the passages by night, or of the steamship lines to New Bedford, Newport, Fall River, Provi- dence, Stonington, New London, New Hav- en, Hartford, Bridgeport and the numerous harbors of Long Island and harbors on the Maine coast to the eastward. Nor is there in the list any mention made of the vast amount of tonnage carried by the num- erous barge lines plying on the Sound: A correspondent says:
 ''By comparing the Sound traffic with the traffic via Sandy Hook 1t justifes most ply the statement of the president of the New York Chamber of Commerce that more value is brought into New York through the Sound than over Sandy Hook bar, and that this all proves that the great national inn of off tha If New Haven has not been commenced any too soon for the general benefit of commerce, as in stormy weather, especially in winter gales of great violence, these fleets can there find refuge. Great credit is given in high quar- ters to the eminent engineers of the U. s. A. Humphrey Wright, Newton and McFarland) for anticipating the wants of the present well as the future commerce of the coast in selecting off this port harbor of refuge so long needed. Appended is the report of General Newton, chief of engineers, which ably shows the recommendations for the year 1SS6:'
 An advance copy of the annual report of the chief of engineers of the United States army contains the following New Haven harbor, Connecticut-The original available low water depth in the channel of this har- Dor was about nine feet. Previous to 1878 channel thirteen feet deep had been obtained mainly by dredging, but in 1878 it was de- cided to provide for a channel sixteen feet deep:and not less than 400 feet wide
 The total amount appropriated for this harbor up to July l. 1885, was $241 1000, with which the required depth and width have been nearly obtained, excepting across the Fort Hale bar, where the depth is thirteen feet. The channel, however, is still too mar row for convenient use, as the great number of vessels which anchor in it make it at times almost impossible for the tugs, steam CTS, sailing vessels and barges which move up and down it, and it ought to be widened to roo or 800 feet in it's upper part, which al teration would cost not less than $50,000.
 The deepening of the channel over Fort Hale bar is to be accomplished by the aid of dke running from Sandy Point, on the west shore, out into the harbor and then parallel with the channel, which will cost, cording to the estimate, $100,000
 The above arm of this diks and 254 feet of the part parallel to the channel have been built at a cost of about $3O,000 About B. 900 feet of the dike remains to be built, which will cost, according to the original esti- mate, 1000.
 An appropriation of s1O0,OO is asked for to complete the dike and to widen the chan nel in the upper psrt of the harbor.
 Proposals were invited during the fiscal year for the extension of the dike under the Appropriation of July 5, 1884, but the prices and nc work las bsgnf 1l nfbe 66bs Fslsess to apply the available funds to dredging in Eno larDOr.
 July 1884, amount available .........$ 5o3.1s Amount appropriated by act approved
 1o.5os.18
 fiscal year exclusive of outstanding
 liabilities, July 1, 1884. 226.36 July 1, 1885, amount available .........$ 1o27es2 Amount (estimated) required for compile tion of existing project, $100,000.
 kat 1a a11 lol in fiscal year ending June 30, 1887, $100, ,000. Submitted in compliance with require ments of section of River and Harbor acts of 1866 and 1867.
 Breakwater at New Haven harbor, Connec- ticut-ln 1879 Q project adopted for making large and convenient harbor of refuge by the construction of two riprap breakwaters at the entrance of New Haven harbor, their estimated cost being $1 ,311,- 134. The total amount appropriated for this purpose up to July 1, 1885, was $220, 900, and with it length of ?, 147 linear feet of the east breakwater has been constructed, containing 1S0,60S tons of granite.
 The length built during tho past fiscal year is 330 feet, 29,006 tons of granite being used. The Board of Engineers in rec ommending the project advised that ''after the completion of certain portion of the easterly breakwater the westerly should be commenced" and it would seem advisable to commence it's construction and push it
 
 funds can be procured; $500, ,000 could be prohtably expended on the breakwater dur Ing the ensuing year.
 July 1, 1884, amount available. ......... $60s.0 Amount appropriated by act approved
 s4o,eos.os July 1, 1885, amount expended during
 fiscal year exclusive of outstanding lia,
 bilities July l, 1SS4. S37, ,57559 July l. 1885, amount available .........S a,O3a. 49 Amount (estimated) for completion of existing Amount that can be proftably expended in fiscal year ending June go, 1887, $500 ooO .,-s iss7 iss7!0" oi fi'er ana n"r00r act or i'00 ana As shown above the report asks that $5OO,- 900 be appropriated for the completion of the work on the breakwater at the mouth of our harbor; another that $1O0, 900 be appropri- ated for the dredging of New Haven harbor. It is recommended that $6,000 be spent in improving Milford harbor. Captain Charles H. Townshend, of this city, land Congressman Mitchell called on the chief engineer in Wash ington during the past week and learned many interesting points about the coast survey. The Sound survey is complete as far east Faulkner's Island, the coast survey as far as Norwalk and extends some miles out into the Sound. It has been learned that many of the reefs on the old charts were misloca- ted; other important mistakes have been cor rected by the survey. The sur yey as yet has not extended further norlh than the track of the New York railroad, but it is designed to carry the survey back much further from the shore and to have an available war chart of all the coast north of line drawn from Narragan- sett bay to the North river. Congressman Mitchell authentic reports say, has been in defatigable in his efforts to promote the in terests of the breakwater and New Haven harbor generally.
 THE COURT RECORD.
 City Court Criminal Side Judge
 Deming.
 Nnuannhar O1 -Charlan Rack norruir,.r