The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1902-10-24

"oS AEA
| at the rooms of the chamber, No. IA
Princess street, in pursuance OF the
| call Of the president, to TAX action con-
corning the transfer OF Captain E. W.
| Van Court Lucas to Memphis. Tenn.
There was a large attendance, those
present being President James II. Chad
bourn, Secretary James Kyle, and
| Messrs. Gabriel Holmes. George r.
French, w. E. WORTH. II. w. Malloy. F.
W. Kerchner. II. c. Mcqueen. John
Frank, G.. ]. Boney. 8. T. Hall. Sol
| Bear, NJ. w. jacob, Walker Taylor. NJ.
6. Willard, c. II. Robinson, H. G. Small
bones, T. c. James, J. H. Boatwright,
HI. K. Nash, w. r. Kenan. E. T. Bailey,
Chas. w. Worth. r. A. Parsley, w. P.
Oldham, William Calde-, NJ. j. Corbett
and P. Pearsall.
Captain Lucas, who has been engineer
in charge Of our river ard harbor i'm
| provements for nearly -four years, was
| present by invitation.
President Chadbourn stated that he
regretted to announce that Captain
Lucas had been transferred to Memphis
and would leave here October 10Th for
his new field. He stated thai the meet
ing had been called in view of this fact
and declared it open for business.
Mr.. w. E Worth. chairman of the
committee on harbor, shipping n com
| merce, ~thereuDon said:
Mr.. President:
ut was with a sense of deep regret
that your river and ndrbor committee
learned of the order Of emoval of Cap
tain Lucas to another sphere Of useful
ness, and we deemed it but fitting that
+! you hould call a special rnt citing of this
chamber to give expression to our ap.
probation of what he has done for us
! as an engineer. and the esteem we have
for him as a man. In behalf of the
| river n harbor committee, 1 wish to
| offer the following resolutions.
wilmington, n. c., October Is.
AT a called meeting of the Chamber
Of Commerce of Wilmington, N. c., on
this day, the following preamble and
resolutions were adopted:
Whereas, The Chambe' of Commerce
has learned with regret that Captain
z. w. VanC. Lucas, corps of engineers,
has been ordered to another post. and
that he will depart from Wilmington at
the end of the current month, it is
unanimously resolved that the thanks
of this chamber be rendered Captain
/ Lucas for his constant personal and
! official courteSieS and for his faithful
and devoted service in the great work
which has been S Skillcuily projected
and sustained by the corps Of engineers,
and which. with inadequate financial
support from congress, has nevertheless
been largely effective Iii providing for
an increased m and a much
deeper class of vessels.
"A review by our river and harboI
committee of the river and harbor, and
fertilization work in the vicinity OF
Wilmington, N. c., under Captain
Lucas direction since March 1899, show.
that ON the Cape Fear river below Viii.
mirgton, the least depth through the
ten shoals between Wilmington and
Southport has been increased from Is
to 20 feet at mean low water, for a least
| width of 14S feet. To complete the pro-
ject these dredged cuts mast be widen
ed to 279 feet. The channel across the
bar has been increased in width from
$50 feet for a depth of 200 feet or more
at mean low water. The least depth in
| the center Of this bar channel is now
q feet, and the depth mas been main
| tanned remarkably we'll for over a yeaI
| past while the suction dredge has beer
absent from the district. Owing to the
failure Of the proposed river and harboI
bill of 1901. the plant a to be laid VI
" IVA " Soi oAio q " NotA-
Sequent shoaling in some of the dredged
cuts. but the two dredges are now al
work on the worst shoals and are rapid.
ly restoring the entire channel to its
best previous condition.
1T is to be regretted that the appro-
| p~riation, in the last river and harbol
bill, for the lower Cape Fea river, is sc
small it will probably be impossible fol
two years to any work toward widening
the 20 feet channel beyond it's present
minimum of 14S feet. Further progress
TOWARD completion of the project viii
, have to await congressional action.
ION the river above Wilmington 3
radical change has been made, and the
old project contemplating a low water
| depth of DOT 2 feet between Whining.
ton and Fayetteville has been super.
seeded by a new project to obtain al
eight foot channe bet veen Wilmington
and Fayetteville all the year round AL
though but $780, 100000 o. the estimated
cost of 81, $50, 100000, has been so far alp
p~ropriated for this woIk congressional
sanction has been obtained for the pro
ject and its completion will depend upol