The herald., 1895-06-02

The address on San Pedro by H Haw-
gOCd ar. Inst. G. f.. was as follows:
In 1870 the California legislature petit
tIcVs,d congress for an appropriation of
S35C,000 ior improvements to Wilmington
.harLUI. At that time there was depth
II on e 1ot,u at the entrance of the harbor
sf mean low tide. The position of the
e5trah ce Was unstable, being sometimes
'brtweeu a'imm's Point and Deadman's
island, :,nd at others between Rattlesnake
and De;,dl mans islands. The nature OF
the lmpr.ov ements for which the appro-
priation W. as asked is given in detail by
Brig. Gen. q. S. Alexander (Lieutenant
Colonel corp of engineers). in his report
which accom- lpanied the petition.
1t having )een observed that where the
tidal waters <,f Wilmington lagoon were
confined to a width of from three to
four hundred feet that the depth ranged
from eleven TO eighteen feet at low water,
General Alex;r lder based upon that fact
two general pm positions:
"First-To "a milne all the water flow
ing into and oS Of the harbor to the west
side of Deadm1l l 5 island and to restrain
them to certsai II width between that is
land and the la, yer end of Rattlesnake is
land.
'Secondly-To arrest and hold the sand
between these tw islands which is now
carried in by the surf or driven in bv
southeast storms. because it is this sand
which is constaln tly filling up the chan
mel which the escs ping waters OF the ebb
tide would othervy ise form.
Beyond the fores ;ong general mention,
nothing further il said regarding works
tu restrain the wab er to a certain width
the remainder OF u lie report being devoted
to the details of loo alton and con nstructlon
Of a breakwater to con1ine all waters
to the wes side of Deadman's $
island ''for which work the appreciation
was especially soug hi. The b-eakwater
was to be 1000 feet long on the base, 1850
feet of which was b,!r ut low water. The
structure was to bt, OF cribs and piling
and the report goes Oh to say that there
can be no doubt, il there was wooden
construction, or III fact any construction
built along this line strong enough to re-
sist the force of the heaviest storms and
carried up to some six feet above hign
water that the southeast storms would
pile the sand against it to / Is full hei ght in
"a few years. thus practically carrying Rat
tlesnake Island down until Dead Mans
island should form its term mus. And if
this be the effect the sand bank would
be increased in widtIi, particularly at
its upper end. from year to year, thus add
ing to its strength and to the security OF
the channel. In coursesof time, however
the increase OF it's width would cease and
the shore On the east side become per-
manent, like the shore of Rattlesnake
island.
The work of improving the harbor was
commenced in ls72, since which time
it has been carried on as continuously as
the grant ng OF appropriations wo uld per-
NIT, TIE total expenditure TO date being
somewhat over $500, UOU
III the i'm provements have followed the
general plan outlined in General Alexan-
def's report, OF artilicially creating an
estuary with a narrow neck. The results
have been most satisfactory, with the ex-
cepton that the channel at tie bar is
crooked.
The tidal volume of the estuary, esti-
mated at 2j7 800. 900 cubic feet aided by
dredging on hard bottom has produced
and permanen ~ maintains q channel of
about fourteen feet in depth at mean low
water. 1t is confidently expected that
continuance of the work will give sixteen
feet. and perhaps twenty feet may be oo-
taineu. More than twenty feet cannot
be looked Tor on the present plan of oper-
at ons. Any further depth must be OBJ
tanned by dredging done in the open sea-
way without shelter 1t would therefore
l." p-ohihitory in cost. Ever if the work
we're done it is very questionable if the
suu channel would be permanent.
| nder the harbor plan that will be out
lined later on this dredging could be ac-
complished at reasonable cost and with
every prospect of permanent results.
The predictions OF General Alexander