New-York tribune., 1885-10-18
COAST SURVEY WORK IN TIE B4 T.
INVESTIGATING TIDES AND CURRENTS.
EXPERIMENTS TO DETERMINE WHICH SHIP CHAN

EXPERIMENTS TO DETERMINE WHICH SHIP CHAN
MEL CAN BEST DE KEPT OPEN.
All summer four Coast Survey schooners
were at work In Newly lIarbor They were -luc
Eager, Panurus, scOresby and Drift. Tie hrst t"o
confined their work TO making survey ofthe hhrDor anu
its shores The others engaged In various unu7 vi
photographic work. tho object of which was to ascertain
the centre OF effort OF the different tides and currents
which meet and mng.e in tho harbor Inc DrlIt le-
lnaincd In commission for some time htcf tue o'hcI
Coast Survey schooncrs had gone ont OF commission anu
in the cold brcczes OF October Lieutenant Carter Ensign
sherman AMI Mr.. Hassen chased tide hoats over tno
rough waters OF the Lower Bay going Ill 'he'r h''o
steam launches ont Of sight OF land
The first work of Lieutenant Carter and his assistants
and the civil IartT the Scorcsby was 10 uelerno
the volume Of water entering and leaving the UPPER
Bay 1t was highly desirable that observations shon'u
be made simultaneously at the various places whero
water enters the bay, but as tho entire aro
priaon for the survey OF the harbor was ouy $4,000
WAS Impossible to BY means Of electric meters
observations were made OF the volume of the HUDSON ~
Dob5's Ferry OF the incoming and outgoing tides o tn'
East River at Old Ferry Point and at point above tue
Brooklyn Bridge OF the water coming throlSh the hl
Won Kull ut New Shton and OF the waters that eDo
aud flow through tho Narrows At Dobb's Ferry Lieu
tenant Cartcr found that willie strong current was com
ing down the stream salt flood tide was running UP ~
the bottom OF the river and itnS tho whole mass o'
water, that while the tide was really running hoou'
Was apparently on the chb The same thing III lesser
degree was observed In the Upper Bay. The electric
meters show ed many neutral planes In which the water
was 2ericcty still while above 1nd below stronS currents
were running Tho volume OF water entering the lower
Bay from Earitan Bay and from tho kiyon-kul'
southwest Of STATEN Island viii be taken before the Work
In tia, direction will be finished
Lately experiments have been made with tide hoats
Poles twelve ce ong. loaded at one end 80 that When
placed IA the water end would stick mp about two
feet above tho surface wero started from point GboVc
tie Narro,ys on an cbD tide. Lieutenant Carter In
steam launch would follow two OF these noats a. they
driftc -tcnniu from 10 the other and every ten
minutes determining tho position OF the hoas by tr anSu
i11n ana noting In "a book. Ensign sherman ana ar
H.,.rn. the ono In launch ana tue othcr ia alus4
each followed two other nnNts ana determined thelr
,o-nu every ten minutes In the same manner enteDg
lkrwi-. 10 took. Day after DAY noa- were started
SD2is YS12s. l"S AMI chSI unit, the returning arrested
tncr progress. From tne data gathered ia M, way ~
Lieutenant Carter aud , ~ NJ l' 3otie,t ,l', T, M
hc formed of tho action OF The cs ana currents IN n'
harbor. the centre Of effort of the contehds FORCES
From the Concy Island shore to sandT Hook extend
series of shoals VIII ch form the 1D-trucuph 20 the en-
trance oI the harhor OF Ne" 'ih' IuI'o G
through these shoals the EASTERN NWlrh anu hA ~ 7
channels Frou tho Main ship aud SWa-h chaunes JGst
outside sandy Hook. Itlhel c"'hb'' ''' a. Us ~
bar and south channel U1cr- waterway 10 Nt'''I'
SEQ feet wide and thirty deep o. mean low I'd.
through the IasicrI caaun,l l,"JlV'" cupc I'ot u
I'm. through the Main SHY aul GcdAey's chanic!,'
100000 cubic fe't. AMI through the 7Ta,h ana "rd
= iH
moved. 10 open in this manner The wash am ao"t.
clnpuc 100000 cul lc feet would have 1 60 rms oi
course vii take large amount Of money ~ tho uln
cuc, ucricne hy large osscs ia gcng INTO OF "u'
az Nrw.N of IabOr become 80 Etc"' u ~ Aoh-c
thing must hc done. -, H. ,t,.,
N t object 1. to aud the centre Of 6f'rt OF tho udal
f, and currents and then o. assist NItui' 10 "i"hHS
ard kceiuu- oIra fee pI.s1ec - tLr sea ahd h" 20
ont n,e Nor. Hence n. ,c.p"imtnt- OF I"'d''""h'
tr,,r and l, .o,iatr.. Valuable - the experiment.
nI-ey male ar. tAcy are by nI'has e"n'.ult" III
orier II Il, ,rrm.c accurately the tAiuf HohS"r a'h
cyprr.ncut, sAoaI be muIr I'm more tHar ono season.
ns inr force. of Nature vary at dirt"ui times ,,
In the Office Coast AMI btDirl'c survey ~ '"l'
civ is "a perfect represent til0u. on -m'l a'i "'
N,y-l,rk II4ruur. the Ut,' rluuu- mt IT, a"i lh'
arm. of the sen stretching from f. Experiments VIII pr
made OF turning water th- model ri" That Il VII 10"
INTO the miniature bay az nearly - p'--e tc same
pressure prorOr,Inuntcy. a. IT nowr Into Tue ch' Jay
. water. sal! Ice dincicutly Copicl ~ tpai their course
can BE- traced. Tor instance, a rri ritcim WI p'".
down the Hudson, \ blue one dp~u The Last liver I"
b,rk one ont uf the XII Won hu. AEd 80 on FROM
tl rYreriMeut good idea viii be obtained ol tlr WY
tie different currents the hty. Whom All tho ti
rfleut, nave hcru completed, the tuI-t survey I'",
,yil have pretty fair LrI of tue notion "t tue ti'H Az
cur,nt- In the hnrbor. with tn, nS basis tbry Wv
cnu-i.r which channel ~ j. most feasible 10 open ana
l,c oppu when 81 the channel, j. "l"aca to lho
r,o-ei width aud dcIt1. string oi lighted Du"ys Wl
iu n uL ntrl street. nui ltrs" vessels can chteF
OF leave the harJor al any time OF tho day Or night