The weekly Iberian. (New Iberia, La.) 1894-1946, 1905-01-21
PLAQUEMINE LOCKS.
Continued from First Page.

shall commence work within sixty
days after approval of contract,
and shall complete the work on or
before the 3Oth day of June,
1903"
@. 8. Will the work DO complet
ed within the time fixed in the
original contract!
A. The entire work will be com
pleted within the time fixed in
the original contract. (Exhibi'
"A'D.
The contract not being complet
ed within the time specified in the
contract. on March 3, 1904, ad
dressed another letter of inquiry
to the present Chief of Engineers,
Gen. Mackenzie.
A reading OF the questions and
answers to this letter will show
that the contract with Stewart &
Go. was abrogated and another
contract entered into looking to
the completion Of the lock gates,
the date Of completion of this
work being August %, 1903.
Annexed please fiad letter re.
ferred to above attached as Elk
hibit "B".
BY reference to the report of the
local engineer on this subject l
find the progress Of the work to
be recited as follows:
"Work on the lock has been at a
standstill since November Is.
1900, although there still remains.
to complete the contract, the ex
cavation between the lock and the
railroad bridge, the fill behind the
lock walls, the erection of the
gates, the building of connecting
levees, and the excavation of the
river approach; estimated cost,
1874, 653.1O." (Col. Adams Report,
1902, Appendix "T", page 1884 }
.There has been no actual work
under this (Plaquemine lock) con-
tract during the last two fiscal
years." (Col. Adams report. 1908,
Appendix "U", page l2S9.)
"*s* No work on the ground
at Plaquemine had been CON-
menced by the contractors to the
end of the fiscal year. ct is un'
derstood that working and detail
drawings for the gates have been
made by the contractors, and pre-
parations made for constructing
the mater al for the gates.)' (COl.
Adams's Report, 1904, Appendix
49," page 1896.
So that it appears from the re-
port of the engineers that though
the locks are not completed, the
work has been at a standstill since
November Is, 1900, or for four
years and over. | submit that this
showing of the engineers would
seem to Indicate an utter neglect
of the work which practically
amounts to abandonment of it des
pite the fact that during the
whole time ample funds were In
hand, as l understand the reports,
and contracts in existence for the
performance of the work.
As stated to you by Senator
Foster and myself yesterday, the
people interested in seeing this
work completed have come to)
look upon the efforts of the engi
neers as not serious. They re-
gard statments that the work will
be pushed to q conclusion as
meaningless, and they have been
so anxious that serious efforts be
put, and business methods be EN-
ployed, to complete this work that
they have summoned every chan
mel Of communication to impress
upon us and upon your Depart
ment that the management Of this
work be thoroughly investigated
and serious aspect of the pro.
ject taken. As illustrative Of this
feeling l shall merely annex q few
Of the evidences of their efforts in
chat direction.
q / annex hereto concurrent resO
luton of the Legislature Of LOuisi
ana, adopted at the session of