The record-union., 1896-05-27

two days I enjoyed the gracious hos
pitality of one of the pleasantest homes
which / ever visited in my life. The
host was so much Of a gentlemen that
he never mentioned harbor to me. But
on Sunday, having nothing to do, went
prospecting on harbor business. I
looked off onto Santa Monica Bay right
from a high bluff; right up here dndi-
cating). Here is Santa Monica. 1 was
right here on this bluff, and looked out
into this beautiful bay. It was a still
day, and the bay looked like lake. I
thought had never seen in my life a
better place made by the Almighty for
q harbor than that was. 1t seemed to
be absolutely perfect No northeast
wind, no north wind, no southeast wind,
nc southwest wind could touch it; it
was a remarkably well-protected rest
ing-place, and it did not need a great
expenditure to make it absolutely safe,
so it seemed to me. I have never di-
vested myself of that first opinion,
which I formed then, notwithst tanding
the reports of two boards Of army engi
neers; and the other board, which is
proposed now, If it should come to the
same conclusion, would leave ME IN pre-
cisely the same spot. That may seem
like Obstinacy, but it is a deep, we'll
fixed judgment of my own.
came home told my experience to
the committee, and they voted against
an appropriation for San Pedro, as has
been announced, indicating influence
which I did not suppose I possessed
with the committee or with the Senate.
We had another board. appointed.
That board went out, as has been
stated, and made the usual examina-
tion made by boards. They followed very
largely in the footsteps of the first. I
never dreamed they would come to a
conclusion in favor Of San Pedro. I
took it for granted that they would de-
eide in favor of Santa Monica. 1 know
them better now. You cannot get one
department officer ever to overrule an
other one, his predecessor; yau cannot
get an army board of engineers to over
rule in the essentials a prior board Of
army engineers. You put one on the
board provided for in the amendment
and he never will overrule the Chief of
the Corps of Engineers, who has been
on one of the boards. The last board,
however, differed from the first very
essentially in this: They said that the
harbor would not fill up with sand if
there was continuous breakwater
from the shore out. The other said it
would; Corthell said it would; Hood
said it would. This board said it would
not. AS I told you a while ago, they
provided for wharves attached to a
breakwater that would rise ten feet
above the level of the ocean. I am sailor
enough to know that that will not do,
and l think any Senator here is sailor
enough to know it will not do. That
board made it's report, and still the Com
mittee on Commerce would not make
the appropriation for San Pedro, and.
in my judgment, never will. You send
out a board now of Geodetic Survey
men and a naval officer without that
provision, that If they decide in favor
Of San Pedro then the Secretary Of War
shall make the contract, and let that
report come before the Committee on
Commerce, I will guarantee that that
committee will not provide for an out
side harbor at San Pedro. That is so;
they would not do 1t. The inner harbor
at San Pedro is enough at that point.
What comes next? I am not con-
ceited enough to set my judgment
against army engineers, not at all.
felt good deal Of anxiety about this
matter, and one day I heard that the
Southern Pacific Railroad Company,
which had been trying to induce me to
favor San Pedro had deserted San Pc
dro and gone to Santa Monica. / made
some inquiries in relation to that.
found that the name of their engin eer
was Hood. I wrote to Mr.. Hood and
asked him If it was true that the change
had been made, to send me his repor.
on which the change had been lnade
He sent 1T. 1 regard this as the strong
est argument in favor of Santa Morica
which can be made by any Senator
The Southern Pacific Railroad instead
of having invested S1,0O0,0O0 had in
vested So, 100000 at San Pedro. They
own nearly all the land on the north
side of San Pedro. They had spent
| 5000, 900 trying to get wharves, and the
time came when their commerce was in
creasing to such an extent that wharf
age was an absolute necessity.
| Why do you suppose they selected
Mr.. Hood? To do their will? Not al
all. Because he was a fool? Not al
all. These great railroad corporations
is in the world, and they pay the requi-
! site salaries to obtain the talent They
had to pay my friend sitting there, the
Senator from Nebraska (Mr. Thurs
| ton) handsome salary to obtain his
| legal abilities in their interest. They
succeed in getting the best there is, and
why not? When they are seeking ar
engineer for whom do they look? They
look for a man upon whose judgment
may depend the expenditure of mill
ions and millions of dollars, upon whose
| judgment success or defeat lies. The
Southern Pacific Railroad Company Sc.
| lected Mr.. Hood, one Of the best en-.
gineers in the country. Mr.. Huntington
said to Mr.. Hood: Mr.. Hood, the time
has come when we must make some
expenditures. I want you to investi.
gate the harbor of San Pedro thor
oughly, completely, and make your re.
port to me-"
| Mr.. Hood made the examination
spending all the necessary time He
made all the requisite soundings, found
out all about the bottom Of the ocean
! found out all about the winds, found
out all about the waves, looked 1t al
over to see where wharves could be
constructed. Then he made a report tc
Mr.. Huntington that San Pedro could
not be improved; that you could not
make safe harbor there; that it would
with the best breakwater that ever was
built, be open to the southeast gales
and no ship could lie there in a south.
east gale whether she was anchored of
or was inshore at the wharf He SAID
that large part of the area within tht
| breakwater was upon rocky bottom
and there was no proper holding
ground. The fact that kelp is CROWNS