The herald., 1898-09-20
AN EXPENSIVE PROJECT
WHAT ENGINEERS THINK OF A
SHIP CANAL
Perfectly Feasible, But Too Costly an
Operation to Prove RemunsrativA
Contractor Neu's Suggestion

80 - -
Contractor Neu's idea of a ship canal
from San Pedro to this city took The Her
AIDS readers by surprise yesterday morn
Ing when they read Of this extreme plan
for the needs Of commercial Los Angeles
Mr.. Neu in the interview reported was very
calm and decided about the matter. He ex-
pressed himself as sure that such an en-
terprise would be required by the city very
soon-'in the near future"-and that 1t
could be built at no greater cost than the
breakwater he is about to construct.
The Herald secured the opinions of sew
eral of the leading engineers OF the city
yesterday, and, while they all agree on the
feasibility of the idea. they also about agree
on the fact that the cost Of the canal would
be such as to prevent its appealing to bust
ness men as an enterprise, and that as no
adequate returns could be had from 1t for
an indefinite time to come, there would
not be much use In figuring on 1t as pos
| s!bility.
Henry Hawgood, the engineer of the Free
Harbor league, when asked about the mai
ter, said: II think the difficulties In the
way are Of such nature that the plan
could not be presented as good business
proposition. You see this city is about two
hundred feet above sea level, which entails
in a canal that all vessels be first lifted that
distance and then lowered as much when
they go out Every time the locks were
used large quantity Of water would. Of
couse, pass from the upper reaches Of the
canal to the lower, and we have no run
ming streams below the city which could
| or to main al n
the loss by evaporation and seepage. If
pumping were resorted to 1t would increase
the cost Of operation to such a point that
train service would be much cheaper.
"Of course. there are no practical diff
culties in building such a canal. 1t would
simply be question of raising sufficient
money! for the work There Is one point
about the matter which is worthy Of some
consideration, and that is that such canal
could be built to point comparatively near
the city at minimum cost for such an
enterprise This could be done by utilizing
what is known as Niger slough, which Is
adjacent to Gardena, that would bring the
canal within about thirteen or fourteen
miles Of the city. The deeper portions Of
Nigger slough are below the sea level, so
that an inflow could be had to that point
from the sea, and perhaps It would be
found that the cutting would not present
any expensive problems. But once you
come this way from Gardena the levels
rise rapidly, until, as I have said, they
reach the two hundred foot mark at the
city. But what the business man would
want to know Is, not could the canal be
built, but would 1t pay?"
Engineer Gerva!se Purcell, when asked
for his opinion, coincided largely with the
views expressed by Mr.. Hawgood, and
added that It would be doubtful If much use
for such canal would be had for twenty
five or fifty years.
Secretary Virgins of the chamber Of
commerce said he had talked with Mr..
Neu on the subject and found him enthusi-
astic about 1t. In fact, It was the first
| thing Mr.. Neu had spoken about when lie
found out who Mr.. Virgins was in SUBJ
stantially the same terms he had used to
The Herald reporter
1.-THE first thing Mr.. Neu said to me-"
said Mr.. Virgins, was that one of the
advantages of having the harbor would be
that it would lead to a ship canal to this
city, and that one almost existed now half
way to the city. I suppose in this he had
reference to Niger slough"
| Fred Wood, whose standing as an en-
gineer Is of the highest, had not given the
| subject any consideration so he was, of
course. very guarded In what he had TO say.
He said that he remembered in one Of the
meetings Of the Engineers associa ton some
years ago that the fact was brought out
by report of some engineer that Niger
slough was below the sea level and that
| then there had been some talk as to the
possibility of utilizing 1t as a waterway
that far from the coast. AS to the utility
Of such canal, its cost and other details
Mr.. Wood would not speak without looking
UP some of the facts.
| T. E. Gibbon of the Terminal railway wa
rather doubtful of the value of the project
"Engineering science" he said "is yearly
making the words impossible and i'm
practicable of less and less use, but while
there are probably no difficulties of an en-.
gineering character in the way Of such a
work, there Is the question of value to the
community which must decide its practi-
cability. On account of the fact that the
city is something over two hundred feet
above sea level, 1t appears to me the under
taking would be Of a very expensive nature
and would not be likely to prove of a re-
many years to come. Experience has shown
that for such distances, considering the
capital involved. railways can more than
compete with the charges that have to be
made for interest and maintenance of such
enterprises. hTere Is one thing, however, I
must admit, and that is If the same prog
ress Is made in the next ten years in re-
ducing the cost of moving earth and stone,
there is no question but what such a canal
could then be constructed at a cost that
might make 1t profitable investment.
There Is also the question Of the city's
growth to be considered. If that is main
tanned In the future as 1t has been in the
past 1t would change the situation, though
in that case the city would soon be al San
Pedro"
Two Famous Misers
OF William and John Scott, afterward
Lord Stowell and Lord Edon. Lord John
Russell used to tell with infinite zest a
rxyI,i hn dao1, to ha h;<rbJ