The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1889-07-09

plying public moneys. or incompetent engineer
Ing is due states under oath, that be does not
charge that money has been dishonesty use9
in any way nor does he wish to be UNDERSTOOD
as criticizing the plans, but, ne goes on anu
says, But when these plans were Iouhd "
be defective, to carry on the "ofk ule-oi
the existing plans and existing spec acd-
tons was very poor engineering, unless II was
done as Capt Greene originally informed me,
through his advice. To have place "here nc
could put on stone instead Of paying denluITage
on vessels when he could not put IL any "3eIS
else" His charge is not dish )uesty, but 6al
judgment. Now do not let Us lose from nn!nu
the fact that in 1854 this same mr.. GURUS
while mere in charge of river ana nAIooI M ~
prOvenentS, submitted to his lnueuldOo C NC
Capt. Bailey, of whom he has expressed th5
very highest opinion. a plan and estimate Ior
repairing this same dam. l eau ma no re-
monStrance against 1t, on account o. NJ esti-
money or because Of bad engineering ms esLl-
mate for about Si9UUO, AM ~
states that Lieut.. Carter, ne unu tIil
Stood repaired it for $3.50. now, VIC
facts are, that after receiving Mr.. Curtis sHeCGh,
or plan and estimate for repairing crosS-uu5s
dan, Capt. Bailey wrote a letter copy appeuu,
ed and marked DID, to Lieut.. Carter, VINO hau
relieved Mr. Curtis in the meantime, that ne
would proceed with the repairs aud raising OF
the dam, and to submit plans and prooaole cost.
The plan and cost as submitted by Lieut. Gar
ter are found in EE Of the appendix In re "a
ing over the recommendations OF Mr. Gurus
and Lieut. Carter it seemed TO me that they
both propose the same general plan, 70 wa
make use of tie old dam as an apron, ana 10
cate the new work upon the nppcr lace o. VIZ
old dam. Their estimates of the cost or the wore
did not differ very widely. Mr.. carter
plan was carried Ito execution by contract aS
an actual cost OF about $4,000 l requeStec
Mr. Curtis to draw pencil line on one OF Cn5
office maps showing wherein his plan dltered
from that of Lieut.. Carter and he drew Tue inc
Indicated IN the tracing inserted IN ms stAIo-
ment, Mr.. Cooper, assistant engineer. dreW Sne
lima al fkfa 10 q vruG TkAFN1 W.
Curtis expected to repair the dam according "
the line he traced on the map, In my presence
and still avail himself of the old dam as an
apron for his new structure he condemns MIN.
self as an engineer for he estimated the cost OF
hls project at less than $4,000, While 70 nave
built the dam he now swearS he proposed Woulu
have required at least ten times S%u,oOO.
NOT LATE PROJECT.
The cross-tides dam i no late project. MOI
very long after Oglethorpe located Savannah IL
was found that the water of the river was IN
clined to flow into back river through the cross
tides and leave shoal water in Front river winch
flows along the city front. In the first decade
of the current century efforts were made to stop
the receding waters by Gamming the cross-tides;
The plan was to drive piles That having laleu
to keep up the required depth of water along
the city front resort was had, a few years later
to dredging.
In 1925 the harbor commissioners recon-,
mended a dam at cross tides. The general
government took up the matter, approved Tue
f<;i II
to build the dam, but the contractor IAN "a
and taere seems to have been general tallure
of the work. Later on an engineer ofilcer rec
ommended throwing jettY out from the heau
of Hutchinson'S Island. His recommendation
was not accepted. In 1858 a commission ChaC
had been appointed recon- nended at u.
tlecting work" should b. built just above h. &
island. with view to throwing an increased
volume of water into Front river. This dehect-
ing work was afterward constructed. The pro
ject Of Gen. Q. A. Gilmore, submitted IN 800
xtrpc or IN, oil MIA n n
the crOSS-tideS in order to force heavier How OF
water down Front river. This project was SUD
mitted to a board of engineers COMPOSED OF
Brevet Mai Gen. u. b. Tower, Brevet Nal. ten.
II. G. Wright, Brevet Maj. Gen. John Newton
aad Brevet Maj. Gen. Q. A. Gilmore. The report
of the board was as follows:
"A temporary def citing jetty at cross-tides,
projecting down stream from the lower emu Oh
Argyle Island. AS bare question OF engineer
ing crib dam at crOSS-tideS is preferred by the
board to a DETECTING JetJy. either tenn Dorary
or permanent, but, inasmuch as the cost OF a
permanent dam cannot be betrayed from the
existing appropriations without diminishing
the amount of dredging that seems necessary
al points below the city, and inasmuch as IL
appears to be very desirable that tue volume or
flow in the Front river should be increased as
soon as practicable in order that works at
points lower down may be conducted with
reference to the new physical conditions thus
imposed upon the stream, the jetty Is recon-
mended a temporary device for increasing
the volume Of ebb-liow along the city front and
the securing force upon Garden bank and upon
the shoal at the Wrecks The old jetty pro-
jecting from the upper end of King : Island
should be removed in whole or in greater part
if the amount of the appropriation will admit
Of it,"
The chief of engineers, Gen. Humphreys, ap-
proved the recommendation Of this board
invite attention to the fact that the only
service ever resorted to, other than o6strucing
above Kings Island is recommended by this
board of distinguished engineers TO bs removed
In whole or in part
In 1879 we find another board appointed to
consider and report upon the further improve
ment of the Savannah river and harbor, Geor-
gia. This board was composed of Bvt Maj. Gen.
Z. B. Tower, Bvt. Maj Gen. John Newton and
Bvt. Maj. Gen. Q A. Gilmore.
This board recommended That the cross-tides
dam should not exceed So feet above the
bottom until the expectancy of raising it might
b. determined by results. This dam was com
pletet in November, 1880. Not long after its
completion it determined to q id TO It's
hight in order, as Gen. Gilmore expressed it,
ito reduce, to some extent, the large volume of
water still flowing into Back river. "
A PLAN THAT WAS APPROVED.
Another modification of the plans for the
improvement of the river and harDor of Savan-
nah, Ca, was submitted in January 1882. In
this plan 1t was proposed to raise the dam
cross-tides to the level of mean high water. This
plan was sub nitted, approved and the money
appropriated for carrying it into execution be-
fore Lieut.. Carter came to this engineering dis
trict. Lieut.. Carriers part in the crOSS-tideS
dam has been that of a supervising subordin-
e. But one fact is patent to all, viz, that the
Improvements made in ie Savannah river have
revolutionzed the business of the port of Sa-
vannah, and instead of remaining a port at
which only vessels o light draught might come
up to the city wharves as was the case when
Gen Gilmore submitted his project in 1873, Sa-
vannah has become a great port at which large
merchant ships may he seen loading aud un-
loadin.; along the city front. The latest sound
ings show that there are fifteen fest at low water
from the City to the sea, with the exception OF
one places of about 200 feet, where a lump has
lately formed that can be removed in a very
short time by means of a dredGe while the
photographic charts show that The river in
front of the city had a depth of but eleven feet
at low water in 1873 There is a six.foat tide at
the city. The dam at cross tides may not
be good engineering but if such is the
case that fact is yet to be proven.
1t has been advocated for almost century by
many of our most able and disting IiSned engi-
neers Map appended and marked Ape ldx
II, shows the location of all the points men
toned, and in addition there is q profile draw
ins, showing the condition of the channel of
the Savannah river in 1873. befor. these pro-
1ected improvements were begun, and also the
coalition of the channel on the date of the last
survey After a ca[eful examination of this
map, no remarks of mine can strengthen the
that has attended the ende3vors of the corps
of engineers of the army to improve the river
and harbOr of Savannah Ga.
In conclusion desire to say that in all nv
army career, which covers nearly thirty years
1t has never beel my misfortune to have my at
tentlon called to a more false, tratorous and
dastardly attack than the one under consider