The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1888-04-26
Maine Matters.



Congress. of survey upon the Penob>cot Riy-
er made last fall during the months of Septenl-
Der. October and November between Bangor
and Bucksport Narrows. The amount of funds
allotted for the survey being very small. the
| work was limited to the portion included be-
tween Winterport and Bucksport. Major smith
says: below Winterport the river makes a
| bend SO that the direction of the current is
changed to about right angle from its former
course. At this place the river becomes near
| iN three times wide as il will average ut
points above, and ii i, fully twice a> wide as
al any place in the river where good channel
| Is maintained by natural conditions. The place
is known as Frankfort Flats. Being in bend
the great width is less prcjudrial than if it
| would hc in Il straight reach because the strong
e>t current follows the outer part of the bend
| and l. thus more rapid than if il were more uni
formy diiused. Opposite the middle of the
flats is a tidal arm and tributary of the Penob-
scot known a> Marsh river. The ebh tide from
tins river SETS out very strongly aud assists i'll
producing effects in thc current below it,
| mouth. which causes great irreglilariiy in the
channel.
Annexed to Maj. Smiths report is the report
| of Assistant Engineer \. (. Booth. who made
| the >GrNev He states that the depth now a> all
| able in this part OF the river for safe NAY i@a-
| tion is about III feel at mean low water. bN
| using great care single vessels drawing Is feet
may be taken through this channel. Nearly all
the Vessels bound for or sailing from Bangor
| maintained between Bangor and the mouth of
| The river. Fort Point. - miles below. and a.
| most of the fow> consist of from >iX to twelve
and more vessels. the tOrtUous courses which
are necessary to be followed by deep laden ves
Sels cannot he made with that accuracy repur
| ed for their safe passage over existing bars.
The mean rise and fall of the tide here being
! l3 II feet, the high water depth would lie
about y feet. The draught Of the largest cla>>
of vessels loading at Bangor for foreign por>
On Il "A
to Obtain a low water depth for the channel
| hetween Winterport and Buck>port, of not less
| than ~ feet. OF if possible. n feet that these
vessels arriving here at time OF low water may
| be able to pass with safety and without delay.
| From observations ma'ic during the survey
feel inclined to believe that these shoals consist
mostly Of slabs, edgingS and >awtlu>t deposited
! here by favorable ed,lie> and accumulated dur
| Ing many wears.
| Works for improving the clannci have been
| projected. They consist mainly OF a system Of
| iettie, and some dredging. should ii he found
| necessary. The work which the .lcttie> are in-
| tended 10 perform is tWo-fod and closely de-
| pendent upon each other. First. y contraction
| of the cross section of the river at the different
| places to such an extent that the currents re-
| ~uting thcrefrom shall tend to >cour he mater
| ial and carry The same to deep water to procure
| Il continuous channel of at least 500 feet width
| and - feet depth TIN oush these shoals. Second.
| To direct the currents III such manner that he
| whether obtained by >courin. or dredging or
both combined. The channels once obtained
will be permanently preserved hy the current
IL then directed
| Should future examination of the shoals re-
veal the fact that dredging has to be resorted to
in order 10 assist the securing action. il is pro-
| posed to cul width of 100 feet and Il depth OF
- feet at mean low water and leave the rcnlaiii
ing >hoal grounds to be secured 10y the currents.
| In lew Of the scarcity of brush in the vicinity
# .
granite quarrie> it is proposed to build the JET
| ties Of granite grout. which can be had in large
quantities at a reasonable cost The design of
the Jettie4 gives an elevation of feet above
mean low water, SO As not to obStruct the river
too much at times of heavy fre>hetS and ice.
which would endanger the stability of the jet
ties. unless bult very massive.
The jctte> are proposed to Lee 10 feet wide on
top. constructed ly Systematically dumping tie
stone in place and above the level of low water
| the top to he finished with heavy split stone of
about feet rise and ten feet in length.
The ends of the etties should be protected
by strong headings TO resist the current and ice.
These headings OF piers are planned a> fru>
trnm> of pyramids. the tops At high water
level. surmountng these are stone heacol> T.
T. feet high. They are proposed to he built
of split dimension stone. in five courses > II
feet rise. lower course II feet square and upper
feet. The estimated cost of the projected im-
provement> il: ,Jcttc> S2U3 3.3lJ.,lo: drcdgin.
bt.lf
Ooa.
THE SMITH MAINE BATTERY NJ CULPEPEE.
The following intere,tin. letter written hy
Captain Edwin B. Dow. of the 9Th Me. battery.
giving particulars of the desperate fight at tu-
rcper court House. was printed at The time,
but the copy was lost and WAS found a few
days ago by member of Mr. Dow'> family
while looking over an Old book:
'ulpeper Court House, August II, lS,i2.
Nv Dear Fathcr.-Our forces under General
Banks came up with the enemy at Calyern'>
tavern. ; miles beyond this town. They were
| very strongly posted: the attack commenced
| At 1 O'Clock L. NJ. and lasted till 30: each
army occupying its OWN ground. General
Si@efs corps then came up. when we fell back
| and he occupied our position. The night was
passed in buryin@ the dead and caring for til"
wounded. with occasional shots from our side
10 keep the scce-h awake. In the morning
>igcl opened again to renew the battle. hul
WAS Intellectual in dom" So the enemy retreat
ing towards the Rnpdan river, here they are
| now posted.
The enemy are under Jackson and Ewci,
and have been reinforced by Long>treet'> ,liN-
sion: being about 60.000 strong. We had only
/ 1000 in the fight. with fifty pieces of artillery
Our artillery did the business for them: they
could not stand it, bat their infantry fought
like tigers. Both sides Were badly cut up.
Our battery has immortaliZed itself. Cen
eral Greene said we were all heroes. We were
the only battery protecting the left flank un',r
General Greene.
The rebels under General Windcr. 5000
| strong, tried to flank Us but the rapidtv of
| our firing and the splendid accuracy of our
shell moved them down like chaif. and they
had to leave the wood and skedaddlc. They
| >ignalled to silence our battery, when we We're
opened on by three rebel batteries in a cross
| fire. which swept our poor boys down fast;
| but there we stood. General Augur sent an
| aid to us to hold the position until we fired
| our last shot. They >ilenced my section of
| rifle pieces in twenty minutes, but | took
| charge Of the centre and left under the captain.
| and maintained the fight until we fired our last
| round when the cavalry charged on them. and
| it was all up with that flank movement. We
| had held the most important position again>l
| three batteries and Il brigade of infantry. al.
alone. and as the General said. saved the armyl
| Bat it was desperate. We lost fifteen men and
eighteen horses.
| never was cooler in my life than when the
shells were bursting all around me. felt the
prOtectin" hand of God over me. | was not
touched. although shell burst right over the
| tail of my horse. and a round shot passed un-
| der his head. The bullets of sharps hooters
whistled close by my head but am safe while
| dozens of my acquaintance are wounded. |
| am writing this in the room where four of my
| friends, officers of the 1921 New York, lie
wounded. General Prince is wounded and Il
prisoner 1t was terrible hard fight; the
hardest that ever occurred in this valley. We
We're splendidly commandedb 10y General Banks.
| THE METHoDIsTs AND TEMPERANCE.
| The following is the complete report of the
| committee on temperance of the Methodist
| Conference:
1t needs no argument of ours to show that
the liquor traffic and its inevitable product the
drinking saloon the most gigantic and for
| midable foes of our Christian civilization; the
| sworn, bitter and persistent enemy of the
| Gospel of Christ; the destroying angel. blast
| ing the home, and social life: the worm that
never dies and the unquenchablc fire, eating
away and consuming by lingering torture the
| very life of the nation; the personification of
almost all evil, parayzing the right arm of the
church; the deadly miasma injecting all the
! vital sources of social Christian life; the many
headed monster crushing beneath his iron heel
and strangling with his dcmoniacal grip the
great parties of the land, which lie so PROSTATE
and pless in the tolls of the rum power. that
the tears, sighs and pleadings of the agOniZed
| wives, mothers. sisters and daughters of its
victims, even when voiced by the most benet-
cient and heavenborn organization of the Wom-
ans Christian Temperance Union fail to dis
turb the sea of political agitation and strife for
party power by SO much as a single ripple of
| compassion, or provoke one effort from either
of them for the prohibition of the liquor traffic
or the suppression of the liquor saloons.
I'm the judgment of your committee, the
prohibition Of the liquor traffic is the most i'm
portant and vital issue before the American
people.
The improvement of the navy. the coast de-
fence the fish question, the so-calIed civil SER