The Hood River glacier. (Hood River, Or.) 1889-1933, 1903-06-11
KILL HARTS' PLAN
GOVERNMENT ENGINEERS HAVE NEW
CELLO SCHEME.
They Favor a Ship Canal Submerged
Dam Is Held to Be ImpracticabIe
Work VIII Now Be Held Up Until
1904 = Major Langfitt Ordered to
Make Surveys.

Washington, June 10-The Board of
Army Engineers that recently. visited
the obstructions in the Columbia River
between The Dalles and Cello, has de.
cided to abandon the Harts plan for
opening of the rive rat that point.
and In lien thereof will prepare plans
and estimates for a continuous shin ca.
nal from the foot of the dalles rapids
to the head of Cello Falls. The Harts
plan, as has been heretofore explained.
contemplated the construction of n sub
merged dam in the Columbia. with a
view to draining out Five Mile Rapids
Inc river was then to be opened
around other distractions by means of
TWO or three short canals.
The engineers, on their recent trir
20 oregon, visited the scene of the pro.
posed Improvement, and, after study
ing the natural conditions and sur.
Toundings, concluded by unanimous
vote, that the dam proposition was al.
together impracticable. In the first
place, while Captain Harts proposed
constructing this dam at a point where
1he river is but 200 feet wide. he sun.
posed its dept was only 40 or so feet.
and so based the calculations. Major
Langftt determined, after careful
soundings, that the depth was over
lou feet, and the velocity of the current
so great that 1t would be practically
impossible to place in position the ma.
terlai for the dam. The members OF
the Doard concluded that a stream of
5umcient volume and great enough
current to cut gorge 200 feet wide.
and OF nearly the same depth through
Solld rock, could not be damned arti.
1cially for anything short of an unwar
ranted sum, and they entertain grave
oouDts whether a dam could ever be
successfully built there at any cost.
When they found that the keystone
of Harts' plan could not be considered
ana determined that even a modifica.
tion OF the Harts plan on a practical
OASIS, could not be carried out for the
amount that has been authorized for
thls Improvement, the board determin.
ed 10 prepare rough plans and esti
mates Tor the construction of con-
tlnuous canal, extending around all the
instructions between The Dalles and
Cello.
In accordance with this determine
ton, the board requested authority for
tne making of necessary SURVEYS for
shcn canal, and authority has been
granted, the work to be carried out un-
der direction of Major Langftt. At
thls time the board will venture no
rough estimate of the cost of a con.
tiuous canal, although an estimate
made by an old board placed the figure
at $lO,OO0OOO. whereas the Harts pro.
lect was estimated to cost approxi-
mately $4,000.000. 1t is by no means
assuered that the new estimates will
ne as high as the former figure. as
me BOARD, before reporting. will have
q comprehensive survey upon which to
uase lts estimates and a fairly accu.
rate estimate of the cost of the i'm.
provements is expected.
The board has not reported to the
ChleI OF Engineers, and probably will
uot 90 so until it has completed the
estmate Tor a continuous canal This
ueIay means that no work will be dome
looking to the opening of the river
curing the present season. Should the
war Department approve the boards
report In favor of continuous canal
ana this will unquestionably be done,
since there has always been doubt as
10 the thorough practicability of the
harts plan, no work can be undertaken
until Congress has authorized the new
project. The last river and harbor bill
authorized the work, provided it could
De done within the estimate on the
Harts project, but not otherwise.