San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1895-10-02
DEEP WATER.
THE FAMILY OF FITzsIMMoNs AT
CORPUS CHRISTI.
A Visit TO the Works at Aran
sas Pass - How 1t is Done.
Good Prospects

70 SdkLSTl, Tex, sept. 81.
To the San Antonio LIGHT:
Inc casual traveller, with a phi
losophic turn of mind, will often
note with quick glances the scenes
as they present themselves
in the ever changing panorama
as it is viewed from the win
dow OF a rapid railway train.
Autumnal leaves in many hues
on the trees, cotton fields over
which the "picker" has Como the
last time, and an occasional team
engaged in fall blowing were
some Of the subjects for eve
and thought, when we were going
over the Arkansas Pass railway to-
ward Corpus Christi, on Wednes-
day last. Arriving at kennedy juno
ton on schedule time, the number
of our "personale" was increased
by receiving from the west-bound
train Mrs. II. Fitzsimmons, accom-.
panied by her mother, Mrs. Julian.
They were coming in advance to
Corpus Christi, to take possession OF
the provided quarters for the great
pugilist. The ladies, after arriving
at the depot were driven to the
Constantine hotel for temporary
quarters. The following day your
scribe received an introduction,
and was informed by Mrs. Fitzsim- I
mons that even from what little
she had seen, she was delighted
with Corpus Christi, to all OF which
her mother readily agreed. We
found the lady courteous and poll
ished, and as we were not of the
professional reporter tribe, we did
not talk of the momentous issue OF
either the probable result OF the
forthcoming fight, nor of the con-
tending elements now gatheri ,g
OF pros and cons in the legislative
halls at the capital.
On Friday evening we boarded
the steam tug Seminole, the largest
one in the service, of one hundred
and thirty horse power, and shared
the soft side OF plank with Cap
tain Fed. johnson, at the early
hour OF 2:30 u. m. Saturday morn
ing she start d GA her regular trip
To the pass with one barge in tow
loaded with rock. Those barges
are OF sufficient size to take aboard
about eighteen car loads of rock for
y load. The speed is naturally
slow, the route is very much in all
possible directions through a chan
mel which is marked 10y stakes and
buoVs and requires the constant at
tendance of the captain and his as
sistants. We arrived at the pass
at 10 a. m. The landing place is on
the north end of Mustang Island
| where also is located the United
States life saving station.
From Capt. Chas. Clarke, who
gives his personal supervision to
the work, We learned that they
have begun building at a point i'll
the gulf where there is eighteen
feet OF water and are now pushing
the work toward the south beach
OF st. Joseph Island. TO this
date they have built about from
1900 to 200O feet. This already
shows good results for the
shallowest part Of the bar
where formerly there was not more
than nine feet then is now with
strict measurement at ordinary
tide eleven feet and little over.
These figures are correct, aud your
correspondent has been requested
by several gentlemen who are d.
recJly interested to deny any and
all OF the false bombastic reports
as published by sensational and
ponsible parties and papers.
The mattresses are made of scrub
oak and sweet bay brush OF about
eighteen inches in thickness aud
fifty by one hundred feet in size on
inclined platforms or planes SINH
lar to the "ships. ways" in a ship
yard, and when completed they
slide with good pull from the
steam tug, down in the water and
are then pulled out to the place
where they are sunk by the rock
from the barges. On the day that
We visited the place OF operation,
there were put down three OF these
mattresses and two barge loads Of
stone unloaded. "Thi,," said Mr..
Clarke, eve consider big
days work with a force OF
men mum boring seventy-five in
all" Mr.. Clarke also informed us
that the progress of the work is
even more than ordinarily satis-
factory and prospects for deep
water will realize even sooner than
Workers Of fall gardens and pro-
dGcers OF garden truck were happy
by grand down-pour of rain dur
ing the night from Saturday to