Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1889-02-22
The Best Site for the Navy Yard.

OF course, every point on the Sound
available for the purpose Will be con
sidered by its advocates as the best.
The lower harbors adjacent TO Fuca
Straits are most convenient OF access.
The enemy, SO to speak, could be met
at the threshold Lake Washington
Is called the safest, as the entrance to
the lake could be effectually closed by
a temporary destruction OF the canal.
But that would render useless, what
ever armament we may be able to con
stTuct. A. our navy, AZ Vet, can
hardly he said to exist At all, in COM
pari>on with the ponderous fleets of
Europe. We OF Olympia, are sure that
our claims are paramount. We are
above the narrows, the only really de-
feasible part of Pugct Sound. ii we
cannot, at present, meet an enemy on
equal footing on the high seas, we can
furnish a site for the navy yard that
an enemy cannot reach. \ great deal
has been said about the benefits of Il
fresh water harbor But, is such a
harbor needed? Salt water preserves
wooden vessels, while fresh water de-
Gays. 1t has been noted that the old
Russian Navy, when confined to the
Baltic Sea, only lasted about II years,
and all because OF the freshness OF its
waters. To remove barnacles, and re-
pair vessels, dry-docks are required.
Here at the head Of the Sound is the
place for them. For deep-sea- going
ships, excavations for dry-docks must
be 80 feet in depth. As our tides here
rise and fall some 90 or more feet,
and that can be done with great facil-
ity at low tide. The frames for the
docks can also be placed at low water
and conveniently constructed. In
Lake Washington excavations, if near
the shore, would have to be made OF
great depths, as there is no tide to
take advantage of or, If placed farther
out, to obviate dredging, even then all
the water would have to be pumped
out, while up here at Olympia all, or
nearly all, would run out at low tide.
A vessel by it's own weight would ex-
pei nearly all the water remaining in
the dock ut low tide, thus saving nearly
all expense OF pumping it out. AS to
an abundant and cheap supply OF
good water to be supplied from a
natural head, we can defy all coinpeti.
ton. In the Black Hills, southwest
OF town, some or 6 miles distant are
large flowing creeks mt an altitude OF
/ from 200 to 300 feet above tide-water
These streams are fed by springs that
are supplied by the melting SHOWS OF
the Olympic range near by. No ex.
pensive water-works to elevate them
are required. Our railroad facilities
will soon be so extended that all re-
quirements for the support of Il navy
yard can be furnished Concerning
Olympia harbor it is sufficient to say
that it is here to stay. When the
down-flowing sediment OF The Puyallul
river shall have filled up Commence.
! mrn. Nv. and covered 'hr water ron
flats and bids fair to block up the
narrows below us, then it will be time
enough to move the navy yard down
to Port Discovery, for Uncle Sam by
that time will be big enough and great
enough to defend our coast without
a navy. As to the purpetuity of oul
harbor, we mean just what We say
Our harbor does not fill up apprecia
bly,. Just enough sediment has
flowed into the inlets Mt the head Of
the Sound to make good anchorage
for from 10 to Is miles down, while
nearly all the harbors on the east side
of the Sound (of the same age geolog
ically) have already filled up from 81
to 40, and in case of the Skagit 81
miles, and are now converted from
salt water inlets, into fertile river bot
toms. But it will take few hun
bred years more. to convert the uppel
Sound above the narrows into fresh
water lake, as Lake Washington ha
been, by the sediment of the Ceda
and White rivers, which built up TIT
Rack river and Duwamish bottoms
and thus checked the outflow, from
Lake Washington, raising its level l!
feet above tide-water of Elliott bay.