Savannah morning news., 1886-05-13
THE RIVER CLYDE.
A Stream that has Impressed Eeself ON
the History of COnnierce.

3 Hf' From The Glas0oar AGil.
The largest vessels afoat may now
steam up the Clyde into the hearto of Glas-
Cow with perfect freedom and safety. For
some years they have been. confined to
narrow channel just above Rentrew, but
now they Will have the whole width OF
the river, with plenty OF waterat all tides.
The last and greatest obstacle To the free
navigation OF the stream was removed
about fortnight ago by the Blowing up
OF, all that remained of the EIderslie Rock
at a less depth than twenty feet beneath
low water, and since then wOrkmen have
been busy lifting the blasted material.
This Is the end Of a remarkable engineer
ing achievement, accomplished by novel
methods and under exceptional difficult
ties. The existence of the rock was not
discovered till 1854, when large steamer,
the Glasgow, stuck fast and had to be
| lightened of her cargo before she could be
got of. Up to that time the obstruction
| had been thought to be a sandbank, and
it was known as Blarthill sand. Before
the Glasgow corporation began the inn
provement Of the Clyde there had been
! shallow ford at this place. By means Of
dredging the channel was deepened, until
| 1885 there was depth of over IL feet at
! high water. All the sand had been
dredged away by 1854, and then it
was proved that wall Of hard whinstone,
about 800 feet broad, extended across
! the bed of the river. In 1860 blasting
with gunpowder for its removal was be-
| gun. and alter seven years one half OF the
wi idth of the river was cleared so as to
give a depth OF IA feet at low water, the
other half having only feet. 1t was re-
solved in 1880 that the whole of the rock
should be removed to give depth OF 20
feet at low wafer and 30 feet inches at
high water. This is the work which has
now been completed. Col. Beaumonts
diamond drills have been used for the
boring and dynamite has been the prlnci'
pie agent for the blasting. The opera
tions have been carried out by means
OF ingenious machinery on a floating
2. barge, diving being almost entirely dis
pensed with. and in this has been the
novelty of the proceedings, which have
been entirely successful, without loss o.
life or injury of limb. About 100000 tons
OF rock have been removed, and the tOta
2 cost has been nearly $4,000. The WORK
is worth the money. The whole width o.
the river is available, and no vessel tha
has left the stocks has a draught toC
| great for the depth of water. Great things
have beendone by the Clyde Trust, bu
nothing more useful than this removal O
the last barrier to the increasing trade o
the port. We have all reason to be prOu(
of the ClYde-eXceptlng IT'S needless I'M
purities. The enterprise of Glasgow hat
made it what IL Is. That which is now
noble nayigable river was a hun
dred years ago winding, shall
low, fordable stream. Its trans
formation has cost about Ell 100000, ye
the weight Of this enormous expenditure
is scarcely felt, because the work ha
been done gradually, to meet the exten
II sion OF trade and the growth in the siz
of vessels, and tbere)has been an encOuT
aging return for the Investment. In 17S
the incomeof heClyde Trust was 91,515
In 1880 1t was f223, 700; now 1t is abou
e3O0,C0O. The difference between the re
, ceipts of 1880 and the present annual in
, come is more than sufficient to pay th
, whole cost of the removal of Eldersli
Rock. .sPTogress" is still the watchwor
, of the Clyde Trust; and when we hav
! the new docks at GOVan we shall be abl
to say that the second city Of the empir
! has river and a harb0r second to none