Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1899-02-18

| channel in this way, the river also broad
tned and Swallowed. The current slacken-
81, and the deposits carried down by 1t
were dropped inside. instead of outside. the
mouth. while throughout the little road
stead inside the old mouth islets formed. 50
that there We're few good places for "A boat
! to lie. even if anything more than the
shpaleSt dTaught could have got in over the
bars at the mouth.
So Marshtield remained behind its barrier
of sand and peat until the night Of NoVcm-
b"r 26, when the big storm set in. All
night long the hercc northeast gaze piled
the water up against the outside Of the
rromontory, ana on the following day, in
COM unction with the gale, came one of the
highest tides Of the year. The water rose
until At length il broke clear over a low
place IN the promonJory. between what are
known a. third and fourth cliffs and swept
up into the river with all the power of the
high tide and hurricane ut its back. The
river was filled unit! the water rose over
the bridge and up into the streets at
Marshheld. and hundreds Of acres Of the
blS mars hes lying to the southeast OF the
town. and from which il takes its name
were covered several feet deep with water.
When all this immense body of water
started on its return to tn with the
falling tide, it vas impossible for it TO get
out quickly enough by the shallow and
devious way through the mouth Of the
river, 50 I V ent out in thu way most Of IL
had come in, by the break made by the sea
over the promo ntory. and the securing Of
this strong tide undid in single night the
work of many years. When the MarshiielI
folk visited the place the next cay they
found. where there had been solid ground
forty-elght hours before. clean-cut chan
mel, two hundred ana fifty feet wide and
thirteen feet deep for its fun width,
through which the tide ran like millrace.
while in The older mouth Of the river there
was hardly any movement For a mile
more outside Of the cut the water WAS dis
colOred by the dirt and refuse which werg
being carried out by the current, and even
then ii was evident the bars and islets
which had filled the harbor were being
washed away.
The work that began then has been 20
ing steadily on ever since. Many of the lit
tie isiets which had formed in thu harbo
have entirely disappeared, and others al
growing smaller every day. There is
str9 light, free entrance 10 The SEA, which j.,
in a mere direct lire with The flow of III
river Than even the old mouth Of yeaI
ago. and through which a good-Szed YES
sci can enter At any stage Of the tide. IL
side Of it is 4 harbor large enough f.
quite fleet to anchor with good holdin:
ground and from thirty to forty feet g.
water in most places, while the rush of II.
tide appears 10 be deepening both channc
and roadStead.
If matters continue as faVorably as tha1
have begun, the harbor thus strangel,
created will be very valuable one, lo
only to Marshfield itself, but to our coas.
Shippir <, and oven more to our yachtsmau
Up to now there has not been a single goo,
harbor on the south shore, as the outer
harbor of Plymouth is not safe anchorae,
for small craft, and the inner harbor car
be gained only by a skilled pilot. Between
Plymouth and Hull there are only Scituat,
and Cohasse Both of these are shoal and
the latter is without sufficient protection
from a northeast gale.