The Rice belt journal. (Welsh, Calcasieu Parish, La.) 1900-19??, 1912-02-09
THE HARBORS or The WORLD
70 RECOMMEND TO CONGRESS A
STANDARD DEPTH OF WATER.
As Unrestricted Deepening Continues
the Ocean Liners Will Increase.
Would Affect Panama Canal.

Philadelphia, pam international
agreement which shall fix standard
depth of water to which the important
harbors of the world should be i'm
proved is forecast in reports which
with be laid before the twelfth Inter
national Congress OF Navigation,
which will begin its session In Phila-
delphia on May %. This Is one of the
questions which will doubtless result
In extended discussion by the world
famous experts who will attend the
congress, for it touches directly upon
proposed great expenditures for the
Improvement of the leading harbors
Of the United States.
To what degree shall American sea.
ports make possible the continued eX-
pansion in the size OF ocean liners?
For the problem Of the size Of the
great ocean carriers and the problem
of the depth of the great Atlantic
ports are obviously dependent one
upon the other Again, both Of these
have their direct bearing upon the
question of the dimensions which are
| to be given to maritime canals.
Some indication of the direction
which this important discussion will
take in the coming International Con
gress is given in the report OF G. f.
Grunsky, a we'll known consulting en-.
gineer of San Francisco. In this i'm.
portant report the papers OF six dis
tinguished engineers who are author
ity on the dimensions to be given
canals are summarized.
Mr.. Grunsky is of the opinion that
if the deepening Of the harbors and Of
harbor approaches is continued with
out restriction the size Of ocean liners
will continue to increase. He makes
plain that the growth Of vessels exerts
a strong influence upon the concentra-
ton Of export and import business at
certain ports where adequate facilities
for their entrance are provided He
points out that it naturally follows
that it is to the interest of the port
which is less favored by natural CON
ditions that some artificial limit be
set to the size of ocean carriers par
ticularly in the matter Of draught, so
that in any scheme of harbor deepen
ing there may be reasonable certainty
that the depth will be adequate for
future requirements. Mr. Grunsky
maintains that there should be an in.
ternational agreement fixing the depth
of water at low tide in important har-
bors and that there should be no gov.
eminent aid in the form of subsidy or
otherwise to vessels whose dimensions
are such as to make the entrance into
harbor of standard depth impossible.
For the United States to lend en-
enlargement to the building OF vessels
of so great size that they can not pass
through the locks of the Panama canal
would, he declares, be an unwtse pol
icy. BY the construction Of the canal
and the dimensions given to locks he
contends that the government has
practically set an extreme limit upon
: the dimensions of vessels which it can
= encourage. He points out that the
canal and the lock system have cost
too much to be easily changed. The
lock length of the canal is now 1,O0C
feet, the width 10 feet and the depth
of water over the stills Of the lock
gates is Ais feet. This is equal tC
forty feet draught in salt water. This
it is contended absolutely fixes the
maximum size not only of warships
+ but of all other vessels to be con
r structed by the government or will
0 its aid.
D 1t is altogether likely that this view
of the great problem Of ocean liner
construction will raise in the coming
8 sessions of the congress the question
n whether the government can consist
= emily set limit upon the size Of YES
e sells without also fixing the same limi
in the improvements of its harbors.