The Portland daily press., 1897-10-22
Chief Wilson Tells What is Being
Done.
NEW SITE PURCHASED IN PORT
LAND AND ANOTHER WANTED.
Attention Also Paid to the KenneDec ana
Penob.cot Riyers-Great Range of Mod
ern Guns Make Tt Necessary For De
fences to be Farther Removed FROM
Towns.

Towns.
Washington, October sl.-In his report
General Wilson, chief of the engineers Oh
the army, on the subject OF fortlllcatlohs'
says: "The system of sea coast defenses
now in progress of construction, is paseo
upon the report of the board of fortlnca-
ton and other defenses, appointed by the
President under the provisions of the act
of March 3,lSo5. The report of this board,
generally known as the Endicott board,
was published in 1886. Under lnstruc-
! t1ons from the chief OF engineers dated
March %, 1887, the board of engineers
undertook the study and preparation OF
detailed projects for the artillery and sub
marine mine defense Of the principal sea
and lake ports of the United States. Up
TO the present time projects have been
prepared and have received the approval
of the Secretary of War for the following
ports, viz: Penobscot river. Me. /;
Kennebec river, Me-; Portland, Me-;
Portsmouth, N. H.; Boston, Mass; New
Bedford, Mass; Narragansett Bay, Il. 1. !;
Eastern entrance to Long Island sound; |;
New York, Philadelphia, Baltimore,
Washington, Hampton Roads, Whining
ton, Charleston, Savannah, Key West,
Pensacola, Mobile, New Orleans, Calves
ton, San Diego, San Francisco, mouth Of
the Columbia river, Washington and
Oregon, Puget Sound, Washington;
Lake Champlain, New York.
Projects for the defense of other ports
are still under consideration.
The great range of modern high power
| IL .f IATfn
sive lines at distances from the cities and
harbors considerably greater taan hereto
fore deemed necessary. AT many har-
bors the sites of the older type works are
at distances from the objects to be
protected, insufficient of a proper defense
under modern conditions.
At other harbors the areas OF the older
sites, when otherwise suitable are too
small to accommodate the modern de-
fenses.
The acquisition of suitable sites has,
therefore, been necessary feature of the
construction of 6he modern system of
| seacoast defenses. During the past fiscal
year title has been obtained to sites at
Portland Me-, eastern entrance to Long
Key West, Galveston, San Diego and
Puget Sound.
Negotiations are still in progress for
sites at Portland, Boston, Narragansett
Bay, eastern entrance to Long Island
sound, Key West, Galveston and Puget
Sound. All available funds for the pur-
chase of sites for seacoast defenses have
been pledged. A number of important
sites still remain to be acquired to carry
out the approved projects and should be
secured as promptly as possible, SO that
no delays may be experienced in the con-
! struction Of the emplacements when
funds become available. An appropria-
tion of $500,000 is earnestly required to
continue the purchase of necessary sites.
| Congress has authorized snthe contract
| system in work for Notifications, but it
is not approved by Gen. Wilson, who
says: "The contract system in Its appli-
| cation to Notifications is open to grave
objections, chief amongst which is the
| undue publicity necessarily given to the
plans to enable intending bidders to sub
| NIT proposals intellig ntly. The charac-
ter of the work is such that perfect free
dom to introduce changes during con-
truotion is extremely desirable, freedom
that is seriously hampered by the exist
ence of contract. A comparison of the
results accomplished during the past
fiscal year between the contract and hired
| labor system shows that the latter is in
every way superior, being more rapid,
satisfactory and equally economical. A
continuance of the contract system in
connection with the construction of forti-
cation cannot be recommended