Heppner gazette. [volume] (Heppner, Morrow County, Or.) 1892-1912, 1903-04-30
aRE FRIENDS OF OREGON
Board of Engineers Favorable
to Open River.
WILL BE FULLYCONSIDERED
Necessity for Providing for an Open
River Recognized No
Pains Spared.
WILL BE FULLY CONSIDERED

Washington, April 23.-The Army
Engineers are friends of Oregon, par
ticularly the boards that have beer
designated from time to time, in late
years. to consider river and fharbor i'm
proyements for that state, This may be
partly because the late Chief of En-
gineers, General Wilson, and the present
Chief, General Gillespie, are interested
in the Columbia River and its trbu.
taries; but nevertheless the fact remains
that the state has the goodwill Of this
eminent corps of experts, and will reap
the benefit of its best labors. One evl
dence of this was the report prepared
and submitted on the Improvement of
the mouth of the Columbia River. An
other evidence of good will is shown in
the manner in which the Dalles.Ce
Board has spared no pains to devise a
scheme for opening the upper river in
practical and substantial way.
This board has intended making re.
port within few weeks, based on in.
formation il gathered last Summer, and
subsequent data submitted by Major
Langftt. 1t found, howryer, that in
this way it would not do justice to the
work, whose merits it recognizes. so it
decided to hold a second meeting in
Oregon and to 90 over all data iu detail,
and again visit the scene of the proposed
improvement, in order to agree upon
plan that will meet with general ap.
proval, and yet come within reasonable
cost. If the board were at liberty to de.
wise a plan for opening the river, regard
less o. cost, any number of practical
plans could be outlined, any one of
which would be substantial, practlca
and permanent. But by the act of
the last Congress the Engineers take it |
that thev are limited as to the cost of
the work ; hence the close figuring, and |
the revision and altering of plans.
The board, every member of it, recog-
nizes the necessity for providing an open
river so as to give the farmers of the
great Inland Empire an all-water route
to the sea. The members are likewise
agreed that a portage road is not the
kind of Government work that should |
be undertaken. While such a road is
good enough as a temporary expedient,
it is not what is demanded by the pros
pective commerce; hence the anxiety of
the board to devise plan that will afford
an unobstructed water channel from the
head of navigation IN the Columbia TO
he sea. One of the Oldest schemes
for opening the river has been
he construction of a continuous channel
rom the head of Cello Rapids to the
Big Eddy, but because of the fact that
lch canal would have to be blasted
put of solid rock the cost would be an.
palling. Recent Investigations have
shown that south of the river bank are
several natural channels through the
rocks which might be utilized as a part
Of canal system, and with this aid 1t
might be possible, by blasting medium.
:ized canal at first, to enlarge il later.
Is the demands of commerce increased.
)ne thing is assured: At its coming
Meeting the board will give full con-
ideration to every scheme hereafter
that bears any resemblance to
and whatever plan can be