The record-union., 1897-04-03

the direction of Colonel Wilkes, con-
Quoted an exploring expedition up the
Sacramento River, and in accordance
with orders from his chief took sound
ings from its mouth to the head or
navigation, and the record of those
soundings has been carefully compared
with those made in 1873, 1894 and
1895.
HORSESHOE BEND.
The soundings of 1S41 from Collins
vile to Toland's Landing Horseshoe
Bend averaged from 20 to % feet. The
wide estuary around the bend showed
s feet of water at low, and 10 feet at
high tide From Toland's Landing to
Rio Vista the water was uniformly
deep the shallowest sounding show
ing 20 feet At Rio Vista, however,
the deepest channel showed feet at
low and 10 feet at high tide. From Col
linsville to Rio Vista the bed of the
river has remained unchanged. AS it
was fifty-six years ago, SO it is to-day.
The damage has been done above that
point, and this very fact goes far tow
ards proving the theory Of Engineer
Price. that the Newtown Shoals, Situ-
ated a short distance above Rio Vista,
are largely responsible for the condi-
ton of the river
NEWTOWN SHOALS
Newtown Shoals, as they are called
by river men, are situated at the con-
junction of Cache Slough, Steamboat
Slough and Old River, and are, it is
believed, composed Of sand Up to the
present time, however, no thorough ex-
animation has been made, and it is the
intention of Commissioner of Public
Works, Leake, to make bOrings at an
early date, to determine the nature of
the obstruction. The river is $500 feet
wide at the shoals, and will average
four feet in depth at low tide. There
is near the west shore, a narrow chan
mel with depth of seven feet when
the tide is out. The water of the
stream is spread out over 2,9OO feet of
bed, and nowhere, except in the mar
row channel already mentioned, is it
more than two and one-half feet in
depth, the channel giving an average
of four feet to the entire stream. 1t
is worthy of remark that Newtown
Shoals showed the same depth of wat
er when the lead was heaved in 1871, as
they do at the present time.
For a distance of three miles below
the shoals the river is but 600 feet in
width, and has an average depth below
low tide, of twentyfour feet. Thus it
will be seen that below Newtown
Shoals the river is for purposes Of prac-
1cal navigation, the same as it was in
1871. No silt, to amount to anything.
has been deposited. The Newtown
Shoals have acted as q restraining dam.
the equal of which has never been de-
signed by mining engineers In early
days Steamboat Slough was the prin-
cipal navigable channel, and from the
lower end Of Grand Island to it's head.
there was but one point where the
lead showed less than twenty-four feet
Of water at low tide. The exception
was at Walkers Landing. commonly
known as the hogs back" Even
there, eight feet of water was regis
tered at low tide.
But times have changed. The sedi-
ment from the mines has encroached
upon the waters of Steamboat Slough,
and where fifty years ago was twenty
four feet OF water, to-day there is no
more than four feet On the Hogs
back" at low tide the average depth is
/ 80 feet, and Steam boat Slough is no
longer navigable, even for scows
Old River is the only navigable chan
mel past Grand Island at the present
time, and it is shoaling rapidly, so that
navigation even for river craft of the
present time is fraught with difficulties.
The cause Of this shoaling is traceable
+ n Ia lei hat hoe y S,a
Georgiana Slough which heads at the
northern point of Grand Island and
empties into the Mokelumne River at a
point near Walnut Grove. The slough
from the point it leaves the Sacramento
to its junction with the Mokelurnne. has
a fall of I feet and is navigable its entire
distance for boats Of 20 feet draft The
water needed to fill the slough is drawn
directly from the supply Of the Sacra-
mensO so that from the head to the foot
of Grand Island both the volume and
the velocity and consequently the scour-
ing power of the stream is lost, to be
regained when the several branches
once more unite below the island
ABOVE GRAND ISLAND.
From the head Of Grand Island to Hol-
average depth Of 2S feet. AT HOLSTERS
the lead showed II feet at low tide. Be
tween HOLSTERS and Freeport the shall
lowest soundings showed IS feet, and
the deepest so feet. The bar at Suffer-
vile showed from II to Is feet at low
water, and from that point to Sacra-
mento City there was deep water ex-
cept at a point about mile below the
city where soundings at low tide showed
8 feet.
SOUNDINGS OF 1873.
Soundings taken in 1878 showed that
from the head of Grand Island to Sac
ramento City the river had filled in so
that the bottom of the stream had been
raised from ) feet to - feet Navigation
had been practically ruined. 1t was in
1878 that injunctions were served upon
the miners and since that time, while