Evening journal., 1897-08-10
THE MIsP1LLIoN BLUNDER.

mlseraDle failure, not because OF the pc
culiar natural conditions of the mouth
OF the river, as stated in an evening
paper, but because OF the inability OF
General Smith to devise means for
the Improvement, and his unwilling
ness to accept the advice OF those in his
employ, who are competent to give 1t.
There Is no movement started for its
Improvement except the movement in
augurated by the congressman from
Delaware In 1890. IL is true that Con-
gress made provision in that year for
the secretary of war to make survey
OF the mouth of the river, with the view
OF making a low-water channel six feet
deep to the six-foot curve in the Della
ware river. The survey was made, and,
from that time to the present, what
has been done is matter OF record
open to any who may be interested
enough to read 1t, and 1t can be found
in the annual reports of General Smith.
The facts in connection with this
work are that A. Sterile, assistant en-
gineer to General Smith, was assigned
10 the work by the general to make the
survey and report to him what was nee
essary to accomplish the six-foot chan
mel. This report was returned to the
general by Mr. Sterile on October 81,
1891, after a complete and expensive
survey and thorough study OF the
subject. Mr.. Stierlie's report is worth
reading, especially since the late de-
velopments, and can be found in Gen
eral Smiths annual report of 1892.
Among other things he says: "The
cheapest possible plan, TO do the work
successfully, will cost S65,000. This in
cludes the cost OF dikes ON each side OF
the cut, through the foreshore or sand
beach, to keep the material from run
ming back In the dredged cut. Without
the dikes It will be impossible to keep
the cut from filling in"
On November 5, five days after Mr..
Sterile reported to the general, the
general sent the report to Washington,
with the following recommendation:
"The commerce OF the river does not,
in my opinion, Justify the outlay OF
$4,000, which would be constantly
needing expenditures to keep it in con-
dition. / would recommend the cut as
laid down on the map marked c. c.,
sent under separate cover, the material
from the cut to be used in. making a
mud wall to protect it from filling in.
This work will require hundred and
twenty thousand yards of dredging, at
20 cents per yard, making $4,000 for
the improvement complete"
This recommendation of General
Smiths was adopted and Congress ap-
proprlated $4,000 with which to COM
mence the work, on October "a, of the
same year The work was started, and
after Il had been prosecuted about a
month, the general requested the de-
partment to allow him to stop the work
until some protection could be devised
to keep the material from running in,
as about 1000 yards had been dredged,
and nearly all of 1t had run back. In
fact, ne said the dredge could not be
kept afiOat, on account of the sand run
ming IN. His request was granted on
June 81, 1898. The general then planned
several small dikes, all OF which the de-
partment allowed him to build in order
TO protect the work. Congress apprC-
priated $4,000 more in August, 1894.
Dredging and dixie building was then
continued by the general until $l7 500 Is
out Of the $4,000 was spent on the
work.
The dixie upset, the channel com.
pletely filled up, the money was gone
three years of labor wasted, and the
general was forced to acknowledge his
mistake, and admitted what Mr.. Sterile
reported three years before, as the only
plan 20 adopt. He sends the following
in the annual report to Washington
in June, 1895: Experience and the ex
pendlture of the appropriations of 1892
had shown that 1t would be useless L
excayate channel not covered by
good dixie OF piling, the cost Of whicl
would be far in excess of the origina
estimate fer this improvement, whicl
was $24 0OO," and asked that work b.
stopped until Congress will appropriat
$50 700 for this purpose.
Again, in June, 1896 he reported 4
the department as follows: "Withou
the dixie. which is estimated to cos
s50,7OO, the improvements cannot be
success, nor can they be made even paI
TALLY available for navigation unti
they are nearly or entirely completed.
General Smith has recently awarde
a contract to redredge the mouth Of tn
river with the small balance of the al
preparation. notwithstanding the faC
that it has twice filled up, and he say
that It cannot be maintained. There
less water now at the mouth of tn
river than ever before in its histor,
and the people interested in its navig'
tf,r oro dfcoo,,ro ood 70 find this Il "A