Evening journal., 1899-04-10
LOCAL NAVIGATION.
Chairman Morrison's Report
to Board of Trade.
APPROPRIATION LAWS SET FORTH

TIANA RIVER SET FORTH BY THE
COMMITTEE ON NAVIGATION.
Chairman Morrison, of the standing
committee on navigation, has presented
TO the Board Of Trade his annual report,
which is as follows:
To the President and Members Or the
Board Of Trade
Gentlemen Your committee on naviga-
tion beg leave 10 report as follows: At
the beginning Of the year IL was stated
before the board by the United States
engineer officer that the deplorable con
dition Of the Chrlstiana river was due TO
the meagre appropriations made from
time to time by Congress. Your com
mittee. with the able assistance of tho
state representatives. in Congress- then
made an effort to show Congress the Inn
portance Of the Christiana river and
Wilmington harbor, and the economy and
necessity in making a more liberal appro.
priation. with the following result (as
previously reported) in July last S2O5, SAC
was appropriated. There being project
before Congress at that time for exten.
| sive improvements to cost $476,G25 your
committee in December last asked Con
| gress to appropriate an additional sum
sufficient to complete the project In
| January, 1899, the House passed the fol-
lowing bill:
Improving harbor al Wilmington and
chrlstiana river. Delaware: Continuing
! improvement, forty-five thousand dollars
/ Of which amount twenty thousand dol.
lars, or so much thereof as may be nee
/ essary, shall be used for maintenance.
/ and the secretary of war may enter into
a contract or contracts for such mater
ials and work as may be necessary TO
complete the approved project of inn
provement, to be paid for as appropria-
tions may from time to time be made by
law, not to exceed In the aggregate one
hundred and seventy thousand seven
hundred and eighty dollars, exclusive Of
the amount herein and heretofore appro.
priated, that being the amount reported
by the chief of engineers as necessary to
complete said project"
The amount named in the House bill
being less than the amount required for
the project your representative in Con.
gress asked the War Department for
statement showing how the amount was
ascertained, and received the following:
MEMORANDA REGARDING WHINING.
TON HARBOR.
The River and Harbor act Of June 3
1895, provided as follows:
Improving harbor at Wilmington and
christiana river. Delaware. continuing
improvement. In accordance with the
modified project $4,000. provided :
and provided further that contracts may
be entered into by the secretary Of war
for such materials and work as may be
necessary TO complete the project Of inn.
provement, not including estimate for
flushing basin and extention of jetty, tc
be paid for as appropriations may from
time to time be made by law not TO ex.
eeed in the aggregate $225, ,S46
The modified project referred to is a
part Of the project submitted by General
Smith, August Is, 1896 for 2l-foot chan.
mel, and the limit Of cost is supposed to
have been made up as follows-the items
being included in General Smiths esti.
mate:
Dredging l,429oOo cubic yards at
l5c .-...-.. ...... .,.................Sl SlS5. 77C
Removal Of rock, 6,4si cubic
yards. at Observation-Disclosures. 9O.O7t
Il s275. .s4i
Fifty thousand dollars being arbitraril,
subtracted with the thought that tn,
b continuing contract would result in lower
prices
The limit of cost Of items OF Genera
Smiths project adopted by Congress
should have been $Sos,4sl, made up as fol
lows:
Dredging $4,000 cubic yards at
lSc........ 49,. ......................S 1885, n
Removal of rock, CASA cubic
yards, ct sl4 ....................... sO.G
s275, 81
70 per cent for contingencies. 2z5s
s9O3. .4s
The limit Of cost being too low to per
/ NIT Of completion it was decided tn
work could not be commenced 1t ais
+ being the opinion OF General Smith tina
! the project adopted by Congress coul
not be successfully carried out, boar
Of engineers was organized by the chic
Of engineers to consider and report upo
the improvement.
The report of this board is published 4
report of the chief Of engineers for 1897
part 2, pages 1255-1259
The figures given BY this board in thei
: report permitted the figures Of Genera
Smiths estimate for dredging, etc, i
accordance with project OF Congress.
be revised as follows; The price Of dredg
ing was increased cents per yard, add
ing to estimate SIS 595.
The amount of material to be dredge
! was increased adding to estimate sS9, ,60
: Giving as the revised cost Of the pre-
Z ject for dredging and rock removal be
ing the modified project as adopted b
| Congress-
General Smiths estimate ,-...... s3O3, A
Added for increased cost Of
dredging $50. -. ......... ....... 1S,5!
Added for increased amount Of
dredging ........ ..... .............. S9,6'
Il si2i. 81
Q Less appropriations made .....-.. PISS
$685.
Giving as the revised estimate
= amount required to complete the mod
u Ead proiect of Ctonprnssfs the abox-a s1t,