Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1890-05-09
FAVOR A TUNNEL.
A Hole In the Ground Under
Detroit River.
REPORT OF THE ARMY ENGINEERS.

A Tunnel Entirely Praoticsble at Half
the Cost of fridge-Important Mat
ter for the Railways--Pressing Appeal
to Uncle Sam from San Francisco-The
Heliograph as q Dispatcher of Back
County Election Returns-Notes.
WASHINGTON CITY, May 9.-Several weeks
ago joint resolution passed congress di'
recting the secretary Of war to appoint a
board of army engineers to proceed to De-
troit and make an examination of the
pfacticability, feasibility, and approx
mate cost of tunnel under the Detroit
river at that point. The board was there
upon appointed, composed of Col. Poe, the
engineer officer in charge of the govern
ment works upon the great lakes, and
MATS Adams and Allen, of the engineer
corps. They spent week in investigating
congress yesterday.
The Tunnel Entirely Practicable.
The board reports that a tunnel is en-
tirely practicable and feasible and that its
cost, including approaches, exclusive of
land damages, would be about 50, SOC, 900.
The board made an examination of the
tunnel which is now being constructed by
the Grand Trunk railroad between Port
Huron and Sarina and pronounce the
work an entire success For many years
the subject of some means of crossing the
river at Detroit other than the present
ferry system has been the burning issue.
The vessel interests of the great lakes are
very much opposed to bridge, claiming
that it would be serious obstruction to
navigation.
Objections to Bridge.
The same board of army engineers re-
Gently investigated the bridge subject, and
reported that a bridge would be practical
BILE. but very expensive, and also an OBJ
struction to vessels The report seems TO
favor the tunnel project, so far as the rec
concentration of the war department is
concerned The board of engineers say
that the price estimated as the cost of a
tunnel is only about one-half of what a
high bridge would cost, or, in other words,
that two single-track tunnels could be
constructed for the amount that it would
cost to build high bridge. A bill has al
ready been introduced in congress author
izing the construction of tunnel, and it
will probably be given an impetus by-this
report.
No Especial Difficulties.
The army board that met In Detroit
gave hearing to the promoters of several
tunnel schemes of more or less merit. In
their report the board says that the con
struction of tunnel at Detroit would en-
counter no more difficulties than were met
with in the construction of tunnels in
England and those across the Hudson
river in New York and the st. Clair river
at Port Huron. The various railroads
crossing at Detroit, including the Michi-
gan Central, the Great Western, the Can
andian Pacific, the Wabash and others,
have been for years endeavoring to secure
some means OF transfer across the river in
addition to the present ferry system, which
has proved to be entirely inadequate.
Friends of the Tunnel Ahead.
Railroad men have been rather in favor
of bridge, and the Vanderbilt system
particularly has been inclined to think
that tunnel is impracticable. The var
ious railroads interested have been for
some time engaged in organizing COM
pany 10 ask of congress authority for the
construction of high bridge. Several
tunnel companies have also been formed,
and the struggle has been between them to
get an Endorsement from the war depart
ment The friends of a tunnel now seem
to be ahead in the race, as the report of the
board of engineers is entirely on the side of
the practibility, feasibility, and economy
of a tunnel as against bridge.