New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1894-01-11
4 NERTC4V PUBLIC WORhS.
A CRITICISM or ARMY ENGINEERS.

| A CRITICISM or ARMY ENGINEERS.
UNDERTAKINGS THAT ARE NOT CARRIED TO
COMPLETION WITH INTELLrGENcE
AND ENERGY.
| To the Editor OF The Tribune.
! Sir II does not require a very observing mind
! to perceive that commerce Is more and more m-
perative in It's demands for Increased facilities ana
! that It's demands needed in other countries
and in our own when Independent Of the United
States Engineer Corps: in the case OF the build
ing OF the Erie Canal by De witt clinton win us
seventy-two locks and It's SOB miles Of length
through the prlmeval forests OF the State Of New
York: completed in 1925 In about eight years al
cost Of $7.oo0O00 The Hoosac Tunnel was b"It IN
twelve years N a cost Of Ni,00W0, rs well as the
Brooklyn Bridge and the Mississippi River jetties,
all without the aid of the Engineer Corps, ana they
were promptly carried on To cOmpletion
Foreign public works teach the same lesson the
Suez Canal. built by De lessers IN eleven years
costing with Its two harbors s900Oo000. The
Mount Cents Tunnel under the Alps. eight miles
in length. costing $lj,Ococo0, was finished IN thr-
! teen years The ST. GOthard. another tunnel
through the Alps. nine and quarter Mills in length
| finished in eight years, cost S,VDCoJ francs. Inc
! New-Amsterdam and the Weland canals were be-
gun and completed promptly. as well as the Corinth
Canal in Greece which was opened TO commerce
on June H. 1885, having cost S2.00COo. The 81.
Petersburg Canal. TO connect ~. Petersburg with
CrOnstadt seventeen miles through the Say OF
Finland Is formed by two enormous parallel
breakwaters. affordng a channel twenty-five lee'
deep The work was mostly done in the winter
from the ice involving the sinking Of about l2vD"~
cubic feet Of rock. while to deepen the channel
2WcOOpo cubic feet OF earth hal 10 be removed.
The largest vessel in the Baltic may NOW pass up
from the to II. Petersburg. saving %'o"W an
nualy In ghterage. Last. but not least comes
the Manchester Ship Canal to connect Manchester
.f.L
th.rty-nye and a half miles, involving rise OF
some seventy feet BY three large triple locks
Begun in 1891. ii has just been completed at an
outlay Of $i0eO0CO. the process of the work belns
attended with great engineering dlihcuiu's 10 DC
overcome not to speak Of the violent opposition to
The engineer states that there were ili'9 men ana
wagons and cars. and 2lS miles OF railway. Two
thousand tons OF Portland cement ana lVVV IONS
of coal were consumed monthly. ,.u.., ,.oro
The aforementioned works. when begun were
promptly carried on TO completion Dt nov nov ulv ,
country with which the United states Engineer
corps mas hsd TO o. oycrnm aI could have had
straight nsi le canal. better than " VIII now .dt
Of Charging a moderate foliage for twenty years,
then in is entirety revert T. m. lhl'ri ~ =
desiring the opportunity - SHOW his skin IN
blasting rrue. the small blast At llai.tts font.
when he came To- Old Flood rock IN IN ,, Sard,
h the second crack Of doom that tn Honorable
- Vim ON october 10. 1855. it grand
nzzlr Flood Rock would not bulge from lis moor
ings for all the arguments OF the engineer; ,
N SiHf,e .' century Of tine have nee rxpenlel
one can foreicl how much more VIII be- rcluTrt, 10
render the He'll Gate channel safe anu "''A'o'e
Aga Gn,' The Harlem River canal. which has been
lcgsla-,i upon since iS-f. and for Whien = PAIN;
AUTHORIZATION was made on June j.. 40 coud
have been furnished - me nitr! st!.'S ~ fsS1
FOR The sum Of s97oooo but the engineer hostile 10
, gT1' RIVER canal should not built upon such
an economical basis athouSh ne a, -. -
with when 'hy r,sht . 9l W. bis CIV stated To- the
able 10 obtain the right OF way ana mat II hau
laid aside all work relating thereto G' tne
~ ttnnet ',e tx ,i,S = fro,osl 10 build ihe
Cover men, roNp. sf,,i The ptrtiss who would
b.v. hon ,s,ociqiel with the writer wer,
,rnronehly conversant with such works. and would
j.n.,gh ,heF engineer had declared that i won.d
co.t Xxx; u.s. making the rigAt Of way cost an
IT,, isat money was appropriated FOR This T9ri
In ls12 but only one-third II % Is nov don' am r
enc. o engineers In his annual rriort CHS i2i
sJtrN 90 complete me- work. yr' ne ,n', , ~ w.
tsat even mat sum VII suii,' 10, -, , o,.er
cina prism has Tor ihe s.ronh 'lms u.n in
flooded ihroqgh me clfsl 2 D., ', ne ,roees
Vork has also been Improperly done. large puanti-
tcs Of rock and d"prl, nS;nS Y c,rey ol,cla.
the channel should havr been, th'rt"y rU'GI' ~
a -iarr curve Small stones nav hr'h h9'l l"t
Sides thu canal prism walls. hHt lH
WIS cute enough To- avoid using the maroe n"'f,S
I'm rh, work Itself the result being ine creation 81
nni,. cluster 81 marble dwellings on IN" banks oi
Ia. ..hnnnr and evidently much good building stone
was removed As lncTc1dI'il~'. ,
rr,fnsal rendered the Z, 'r,fffa'nf ON 60
t,ber ~ ISIS To build the Harlem Canal for IA"
sum OF $4,000 was made in good fdlth. win aDHlty
To- execute to the letter the proposed contract ana
'ongr-,s manifested readiness - alpppIi"l'
rornutlv the required sum. Thus far. the lituc Har-
lem work requiring 10 locks. has been done IN
A s,lpshod manner that would not be t"ieiAt"l 10y
any foreign Government. while IN Importance 10
IN, commerce of The world II Is second 10 none |
forming as II Will Eastern outlet for the lrcgh;s
from Inc West passing through Tho Erie Canal |
and down through tn" centre OF the clt} ~ .N"W-
York and out Port Morris, on Long Isians SOUND
In vl.v, Of these facts not conclude That
The Government Of the United states. beginning nee
cssary public works, lacks the energy ana the |
abrity TO carry them to promp, completion?
'' ~ CHARLES STOU CLIFTON. |
Nnrk Iur