Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1890-05-18
First Deep Water Port.
San Aptauio light

The problem of a deep water port on
the coast of Texas seems solved beyond
all reasonable doubt at the mouth of the
Brazos river, despite the official verdict
of the government engineers that 1t
could not be done. Authentic informA-
ton to the Light is to the effect that the
Brazos river channel and dock com pany i,
who are constructing the jetty works
there with their own money, without any
government aid at all, now have four
teen feet of water on the bar, and from
twenty-six to twenty eight feet between
jetties as far IS built; that the bar is
rapidly deepening, and that from twenty
to twenty-four feet of water over the bar
is confidently looked for in short time,
the work already done and result at
tanned warranting this expectation. The
mouth OF the Brazos has now the deepest
water over the bar of any port IN Texas,
made SO by private capital after being
abandoned as hopeless by United States
engineers. The company have the terri
tory to build mighty city upon, free
from danger of overflow, as at Calves
ton, being on the main land, and well
supplied with pure artesian water.
The mouth of the Brazos is only forty
miles from the Santa Fe at Alvin, eigh-
teen miles from the International at
Chenango; sixty miles from the Sunset
at Rosenberg junction, only few miles
further to the Arkansas Pass at Sealy
and less than 100 from the Missouri
Kansas and Texas terminus at New Ulm.
Not only so, the Brazos company will
soon build q road TO Houston, connecting
with the entire railroad system OF the
state. What use then to spend Sc ,200,-
600 of the peoples money in the Calves
ton experiment, when there is a deep
water port already at hand within so
short O distance, and readily accessible
by rail? Before the first million, of
which that Sc 200 200 may only be the
beginning, can be expended at Calves
ton, Brazos will have several railways to
her mouth, and the plea of no railway
communication cannot be accepted as q
valid excuse for any member OF con-
gress voting the appropriation for the
Galveston experiment.
The outcome at BraZos is only verifl-
cation of the wisdom of the late Ia
mented Eads as contrasted with that OF
the government engineers, and shows
the larger results attainable with private
capital directed by competent civil engi-
neers, as against government money ex-
pended by West Point officers. called en-
gineers, who are too generally but dis
bursting officers of the government. Now
that the success OF this enterprise OF the
mouth of the Brazos seems so fully
assured, let It be seen what Arkansas
Pass can do with private capital. Let
President Harrison sign the Arkansas Pass
bill and Western Texas, by the expendi-
ture of private capital, Will have deep
water port before Galveston can fairly
begin work.
If it be true. as the Light is reliably in
formed, that Galveston people have ex-
pended $3.50 900 to lobby their bill as far
as it has gone, it seems self evident that
they have more confidence in govern
ment aid than in their own efforts to help
themselves. Had Galveston felt sure of
deep water, with any outlay, she would
long since have put money into the hands
Of the government engineers to supple
ment the appropriations and hasten the
completion of the work. This lobby
money expended on the bar would have
given the country much more faith In
the possibilities of deep water at Calves
ton than the country now has. It looks
very mucns as the Light saia some days