The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1889-05-16
DEEP WATER.
Interesting Letter from Mr.. j. F.
Pope on the Subject.

AUSTIN, May Is, 1889.
To the Editor of the Statesman.
Now that the United States government
has commissioned three eminent eppin-
GERS to examine the coast of Texas to de-
teImine the most favorable locat on for
deep water port along its coast line, /
think it would be opportune to republish
my letter in your issue of the 21st of
June of last year.
without unduly disparaging the capa-
bilities of other points on the coast of
Texas as possible future ports for large,
sea-going vessels, invite attention to the
following remarks on the feasibility of
forming a port at the mouth of the
Brazos at less cost than any other point
along that coast:
1t will he seen, by an inspection of the
map of Texas, that every one of it's numer-
GUS rivers, the Brazos alone excepted,
instead of debouching directly into the
sea, emptles itself into practically land
locked bay or lagoon, into which, though
there is deep, secure anchorage within,
large sea-goiDg vessels cannot enter, owing
to an obstruction or bar across the outlet
to the sea. In the perpetually recurring
formation of these bars, lies the difficulty
and failure of the attempts made to d.
velop these otherwise fine inland harbors
into seaports. Time and again attempts,
have been made for the removal of
these distractions, with but limited suc,<
cess. 1t is not necessary to discuss here
the cause of the failures of these attempts
to deepen the passages from these inland
bays to the sea; suffice it to state that, not
outstanding these efforts, the fact re-
mains that the great state of Texas, with
its 500 miles of sea coast and numerous
large rivers, has no seaport worthy of the
name. The experience derived from these
many attempts at improvement may be
summed up in the statement that, taking
it for granted that competent skill has
been employed in these undertakings,
the conclusion we must come to is that
it is impractioable to convert these land
looked bays into harbors, unless at cost
not commensurate with the expenditure.
But though the above statement NAV
be true in regard to the land locked bays
of Texas, it does not apply to the differ
ing circumstance of the Brazos, which
pours it's waters directly into the sea. The
difficulty here lies in the fact that, at
times, the volume of water in this river is
30 low that its current ceases to offer suf-
ficient force to the counter action of the
waves and current of the Gulf Stream and
that the more or less deep channel it has
soooped out when in full flow is rapidly
filled again by the counter action of the
forces mentioned above when the
volume of water in the river and
the action of its current decreases.
This loss of volume in the Brazos
can be remedied by turning into
it the Colorado, which converges
toward it as they both approach
the sea. The contiguity of the two rivers
renders 1t possible to economically COM
bine their waters; and, to add to the con-
venience of doing 80, nature has placed
the San Bernard between them. dam
across the Colorado below the town of
Wharton, on the Southern Pacific railway,
and canal thence to the San Bernard;
thence utilizing the channel of the San
Bernard until it approaches the Brazos,
near Brazoria; a dam across the San
Bernard here, and canal to convey the
united waters of itself and the Colorado
into the Brazos and thus increase its vol
ume and current sufficiently to aid engi-
neering skill to prevent the formation of
obstructive bars at its mouth. The dams
across the Colorado and the San Bernard
should be 30 designed as to regulate
the supply to be conveyed to the Brazos;
the surplus waters of these rivers when in
flood being discharged through their
original channels as at present. By these
means large volume of water and strong
current would be ensured at the mouth of
the Brazos, for though the Colorado and
Brazos converge somewhat as they ap-
proaoh the Gull, yet they drain two large
diUarnant traOta IF ,;e ~,
area nearly one-half of Texas. Their rain
so that the drainage of the one or the
other, and at times of both, will always
keep Rlarge volume of water in the
Brazos below their junction. 1t must,
however, be stated that not even the cur
mt thus created by the combine ton
of the three rivers will, in itself,
suffice to maintain permanent
deep water chanel to the sea. The action
of their united currents must be supple
mented by sea wall starting from the
termination of the west or right bank of
the river, and projecting some distance
into the sea. The direction of this wall at
its sea end must curve as much as practi
cable in the direction of the current of the
Gulf Stream, and thus guide the two cur
rents of the river and Gulf Stream in the
one direction. The total cost of the above,
namely, the regulating dams across the
two rivers, the two canals and the sea wall
and other necessary protective works,
would be under $6OO0,000. Galveston
might be connected through Oyster bay
with the deep water channel of the Brazos
and thence with the open sea, and thus
become veritable first class port for sea
going. IF. POPE.
Civil Engineer.