Evening star., 1926-08-15

Park. and, being largely bare at low
water were considered an active
agent in the propagation Of malaria
and other diseases.
The Washington Channel was only
about 10 feet deep. so the engineers
went to work on the killtwo-birds-
with principle. doubling the
depth of the channel and using the
dredged material to reclaim the flats.
The Virginia Channel was likewise
made 20 feet deep, and both channels
were widened.
Below Washington a channel "a feet
deep "at mean low water" and 200
feet wide was dreadged to the mouth
of the river This was an immense
undertaking, authorized in 1899 and
completed in 1905.
The reclamation project around
Washington was not finished until
1913 In examining the channels a
| total of $4,000 soundings were taken
and $50 miles of sounding lines were
run. covering a length Of 20 miles of
channels along the river. The area
embraced In this sounding work was
| 25 square miles.
No redredging has been done on
the seven shoals which obstruct the
river below Washington since the
tOIIlplCllOIl vi lIiC VI ASailcLi IA wv AiA
1905. During the intervening 20
years the channels have shoaled so
that the controlling depth IS only 21
feet instead of the "a feet recon-
mended by the plan. For this reason
| the engineers Office has requested an
appropriation for redredging the
channels in 1927. Nearly a million
and a half cubic Yards of material
were excavated during the first dredg-
ing, and it is expected that greater
amount will be removed next year.
Two dredges are kept constantly on
hand for use around Washington. and
more can be obtained from other dis
| tricts If necessary. The dredges are
at present working in the Virginia
| Channel. where Columbia Island. a
| part of the Memorial Bridge project,
is being built by the same reclama-
| ton process that was used in the con-
struction of Potomac Park.
The largest dredge is operated 16
| hours a day and requires crew of
| 35 men. When 1t has finished its
| share of the work on Columbia Island
it will begin another big reclamation
| task along the west side of the river
between Washington and Alexandria,
That locality is familiar to all Wash
ingtonians, for the RIVER is mile
wide there. and excursion boat pas
sengers often wonder, in passing it,
why the captain does not steer nearer
the center of the stream. 1t is impos.
sible to see from the deck OF a steam
er that the broad eXpanse of water is
only 3 feet deep, and few take into
! consideration that If their boat gets
out of the channel it will be as eff
| fectively grounded as in a dry dock
Besides their reclamation work the
| dredges of the District engineer
| office have to redredge the Virginia
| Channel once every two years. The
! Washington Channel does not require
redredging, being kept at the requi.
site depth by an ingenious system of
flushing worked by the inlet and out
| let gates of the Tidal Basin. When
the tide is coming in those gates
which open into the Washington
| Channel are closed. while those at
| the opposite end of the basin are
| opened. allowing the water to enter
| from the Virginia Channel. When
| closed and the lower opened, permit
| ting the water to wash back past the
wharves, effectively removing any
| sediment that may have accumulated
| The engineers Office notes with nc
| small degree of satisfaction, use of
| the Potomac in recent years by an in.
creasing number of ships drawing 20
| to "a feet. Perhaps the largest of
| these is the St. Mihiel, with a draft
of "a feet. operating between Wash
ington and Quantico. The Red Bird
carrying sulphur to Alexandria, draws
% feet 10 inches. while the Paraguay
and the Henderson, each with a draft
| of 20 feet inches. bring gas-making
| oil to Washington. Freight and pas
senger traffic have also reached i'm
posing figures of late. Last year over
/ SIS. 900 900 worth of freight and near
| ly half a million passengers passed
| through the local wharves. One hun.
dred and fifty thousand visitors sailed
/ down the river to Mount Vernon
! 90.000 went by boat to Norfolk and
| so 900 rode to Colonial Beach. Six
| thousand took the leisurely but en-
| joyable water route from Washing
ton to Baltimore,