Evening journal., 1913-01-20

which was sufficient in those days for
the commerce Of the port. Just be-
low the Horse Shoe, the fourth place
referred to by Mr.. Fisher he evident
ly means the ridge that existed in the
middle Of the river. running parallel
with the river from the Point House
Wharf up to Kaighn's Point Here
there was but IL feet Of water at low
tide.
Had the Government refused TO i'm
prove the stream and had the river
been left entiley TO itself without
dredging. it would have been i'm
possible today to have brought a yes
sci to Philadelphia drawing in excess
of 20 feet, except by waiting for the
tides In my argument as to-the vast
/ Improvement in the channel, let me
state that had a steamer drawing 20
/ feet left here twenty-five years ago,
or say before the authorization and
completion of the 26-foot channel
project. she would have been COM
PEELED to anchor at Deep Water Point
for the rising tide Today II is pos
sible for vessel drawing q or %
feet of water Ia go to sea at any stage
Of the tide II is also possible for a
steamer drawing 80 feet, if gotten
under way at League Island on the
first of the flood tide, to 30 to sea
without anchoring.
1t occurs 10 me that another strong
argument as to the improved condi-
ton of the Delaware river channel is
contained il the successful operation
between Philadelphia and Hamburg
of the German Steamship Graf Wal.
dersee," 1898 tons gross register
= SCI feet long 81 feet beam and 81 feet
z inch deptl of hold This is partic.
ularly so Wien it is recalled that the
American line, some seventeen OF
eighteen yeats ago, withdrew from
p the service ihtwoen Philadelphia ant
Liverpool thi steamships Southwark
I. and 'KensinIton" built especially foi
the trade. cid ming that there was no
! sufficient deuh of channel to success
r fully operatd them out OF the port o
a Philadelphia. The Southwark" an,
l.'Kensington9 were ships S,607 toni
4 gross registf, $50 feet long, 81 fee
K beam and q feet / inch depth o
h hold Recetly the British STEAMSHIP
e "Indranf Arrived at thompson
l. Point. beloi Philadelphia, drawing 81
+ feet of wter. This vessel enterel
o the Delavlre Capes on the first o
n the food ide, proceeding without de
l. lay to az anchorage of Thompson
e Point Unjust seven hours, where ad
ditional hrgo was to be taken.
= Whilehere are no means of check
- ing up ne accuracy of the old char
- referra to, can speak of condition
. previos to the 26-foot channel pro
IN iect hitch was before the time o
et dikesi
,r TIL records Of the Board of Por
is WARNS, since its establishment II
10 1866 which records are now in tn
s. POSSESSION of the Board of Commits
o. siokrs of Navigation, show that tn
ar mabers of this body, even in tn
n eay days, were not infrequentl
as cfffonted with difficulties arisin
te fim the inadequate depth of chan
~ Il, and the consequent grounding q
ed le small type of vessels engaged I
Is lDmmerce. Perhaps a vast filing u
ed Il the channel took place betwee
haRevolutionary times referred to- an
the period of twenty-five years agl
b and this may have been due to in
i. destruction of the forests along III
I banks of the Delaware and the cor
Z version of the forest area into farl
/ lands. with the consequent washin
into the uue-way at every freshet {
) the light top soil under cultivation.