Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1886-02-20

the state, she viii soon need tDe compeu-
tive rates OF freights by seq that VIII be
furnished at those points.
Your letter Is but an embodiment Of
Galveston ideas, or, to speak more &C
curateiy, OF few gentlemen who reside
| In that city, aud who for several years
have endeavored to Undue the public
mind with their peculiar views. Those
ideas are First, that All harbor improve
ments 70 be constructed undeT the super
vision OF the government engineers nave
been, and niece -sarily r0ust be, failures,
and that this Is especially so In Texas.
Second, that all money TO be appropri-
ated by the government for harbor Inn
proyement In Texas should be appropri-
ated exclusively for the benefit OF Gal
weston. | dissent from both Of the propo-
sitions.
The report OF the government engi-
neers now before Fae negatives most con
clusively the first.
At Brazos Santiago, with out limited
appropriations, and with no nppropria-
tions at all for great part OF the time
since the beginning OF the project In 1881,
the work has resulted In maintaining a
greatly improved channel OF entrance
Az Arkansas Pass the appropriations have
/ been stlnted, mud, like ala other harbor Inn
| proyement In Texas, much of the time
siuce the beginning of the work has been
without any appropriation and yet the re-
| port shows that instead Of u depth OF hye
| aud I'VE and half feet on the bar, as was
! formerly the case, there Is now across 1t
/ q tirm, straight channel OF not less than
ten and a half feet at low mean tide.
/ At Pass Cavallo the work has resulted
IN making a markedimprovement In the
depth OF the channel across the bar and
lgiylngtbe channel peTmanency OF position
i In a direction more suitable for naviga-
ton. The mouth OF the Brazos, though
lsusceptiOle Of being made splendid har-
Dor, has received Dut little benefit be-
cause OF the want of sufficient apprO-
prlatiOn. The misfortune OF this point IL
that II Is in the same congressional dis
trtct with Galveston and very near to IL,
aud heretofore has received but little
attention At Galveston the engineer
states the result Of tine work TO be an i'm
provement in the inner bar developing
u channel across so as To have 1t in a depth
of twenty feet where before but eleven
feet were fouad." The outer bar with
hut eleven feet in 1867 mad in
1882 eleven and half feet, and In 1883
the depth OF thirteen feet, which has been
held for the last two and one-half years,
! know there are gentlemen in Galveston
who deny that any appreciuble increase
| Of depth has been obtained on the outer
bar at Galveston, but Col Mansfield, the
uflcGr in charge OF the work, makes u
very different report, aud he IL sustained
by the books OF the Galveston Pilots as
ISOLATION, which as evidence are OF more
practical value than the assertions of gen
tlemcn who have not had better means Of
Information. More than one and one-half
millions Of dollars has been expended
upon the Improvement OF Galveston har-
Dor, At Sabine Pass work ON the pres.
ent project was commenced In 1882,
and although greatly delayed for the
want Of appropriations the irttles have
reached the crest OF the bar, and between
the ietty walls there Is an Increased
depth of from eighteen inches TO two
feet. Until the jetues cross the bar no
apprcciable depth Of water on the bar
could have been expected, but recent
soundiugs show that there has been an
increased depth on the bar Of nearly If
not two feet.
These facts are sufficient to prove that
the statement made in the letter that the
works of harbor Improvement in Texas
have not produced practical results, Is
not true. They not only prove practical
results, but those results are Of such
character as to give assurance OF larger
and more perfect success In the future.
l II the engineers In charge OF these works
had larger and more regular appropria-
tons, greater and more speedy success
would be obtained. But this country is
so large and has so many rivers and har-
bois to provide for that IL Is almost I'm
practicable TO obtain much greater APP
proprialions, But IL is insisted by the
petitioners that all these points on our
coast except Galveston, not Nithstanding
the vast amount Of money that has been
expended by the government In their im-
provement, aud which has been attended
with fair results, shall now be aban-
doned and the appropriations now to be
made must be exclusively for Galveston
That all OF Texas west OF the Colorado
must be made tributary TO Galveston;
that the city OF San Antonio shall have
no outlet TO the gulf; that all Eastern
Texas must he deprived OF the benefits
that would accrue TO 1t through the open
Ing of its natural outlet--Sabine Pass. Is
IL possible that the gentlemen who signed
the petition are In earnest in making this
equest OF me? cannot believe IL
WAY should Galyeston's influence pre-
vail In Houston TO the extent of making
such request of me, when Galveston
has made no demand OF her own Inn
mediate representative Has Galveston
asked Mr.. Grain To throttle Bra2os, San
tago, Arkansas Pass, Pass Cavalio and the
mouth of the Il azcs1 have not heard
of IL. Then why make war ON Sabine
! Pass and ask that II be crushedg
was placed on the river aud harbor
committee not merely to represent one
locality, but AZ u representative OF the
interests OF my grand state, embracing in
It's area more than PA 900 square miles.
with population of more than 1000, 900,
and capable OF supporting population
OF 60,000,000, or the whole of the United
States to-day, and whose people are
vitality interested IN the full development
OF every harbor on its great shore line,
and were TO conhne my labor to one
point on our coast should feel that
had been disloyal TO my state, unfaithful
to my colleagues, and unworthy of the
confidence which has been reposed In me-
Honestly entertaining the opinions
have herein expressed, aud differing with