The St. Lucie County tribune. (Fort Pierce, St. Lucie County, Fla.) 1905-1920, 1906-09-14
PROGRESSES
Being MADE
The Fort Pierce Drainage Canal
is Being Deepened
WILL DRAIN fine LANDS
This Canal Extends five Miles Into Back
Country and viii Drain Large Area
of Valuable Lands

The work of draining the low lands
west of Fort Pierce is now
fully under way, and being pushed as
rapidly as possible by the Florida East
Coast railway. The steam shovel, which
is mounted on the bank of the canal, is
working steadily and progress is being
made.
A TRIBUNE representative visited the
scene of operation Monday afternoon
and was agreeably surprised at the ad
vancement in the work.
L. Y. King, of Dade county, who has
the contract for deepening the canal,
arrived here about the middle of July
with force of four men, and imme-
diately set to work constructing
dredge. The frame contains on the
lower floor all the machinery Of the
dredging outfit, while overhead is the
sleeping quarters and dining room of
the wOrkmen. The shovel is worked by
an IS horsepower gasoline motor which
also is attached to block and tackle
connection that propells the machine
forward on a track laid on the banks
of the old canal. This latter arrange
ment is just completed and by its work.
ings the whole dregde moves forward
constantly or at will of the workmen
while the shovel works necessarily on
the rear.
The actual work of digging was com
menced about three weeks ago at the
west end of town but has not been
regular until this week, on account of
several unavoidable accidents. At first
the dipper was worked from the front
of the structure but this was found UNI
satisfactory as well as dangerous to the
work men, and therefore delay was
caused by turning the outfit around.
However, Monday it was working in
good shape and we were informed they
expected no more bitches in the
work.
The "orange peel dipper is used for
working in hard-pan or rock and has
been found far superior to other dippers,
and most of the work will be through
hardpan.
1t is peculiar shaped dipper and de-
riyes its name from the fact that the
four prongs or scoops are the counter
part of a large orange peeling when
sliced into four parts. These prongS
sink into the ground and the mechanism
forces the points together at the bottom
and the dirt, rock, hard-pan or other
substance has no chance for escape.
II is fitted ON boom about thirty feet
in length which swings and deposits
the eXcavated matter about twenty
five feet from the bank Of the canal.
This is not the digging Of a new
canal, but the deepening OF canal
already dug by the company, and when
the dredge shall have passed over the
entire route, which is about three miles
it will be deep enough 20 allow the
water of considerable area to enter and
pass into the Indian River.
While the canal viii dram hundreds
of acres of valuable lands, there VIII he
other hundreds of acres, where bitches
will have to be dug to allow the water
ia pass into the canal. However, this
will be small matter, for, with the
drainage canal within reach small
amount of ditching will drain almost
anv of the lands of our back country.
The work will be finished before the
new year and practically all the lands
living between Fort Pierce and Tel
Mile creek will have been drained
This will open Up for settlement some
Of the best orange and vegetable liant
I'M the East Coast and another yea
should witness many transformation
in this section. 1t goes without sayln'
that Fort Pierce will be benefited b,
the settlement of this back country.
a The Florida East Coast Railwa
Company owns most of the lands tina
y are to be drained by this canal an
they are behind the movement, and thl
is assurance enough that it will b
carried out successfully.