Year: 1867

ll'rom the Baltimore Americana


Before giving sketch of the new town,
to which reference has Just been made, and
speaking of what we saw there, we will give
some particular account of the great boom
of the "Cecil and Hartford County Boom
Company" The Company, as already
stated, was chartered at the last session of
the State Legislature, with capital of
100000, with the privilege of increasing
the same to 100000. They Immediately
set to work constructing their boom, which,
as we are gratifed to say, has so far pro.
gressed toward completion as to leave no
doubt that it will be in readiness to receive
logs early next spring, or so soon as the sea.


IT'S LOCATION.


The charter Of the Company gives them
authority to erect their boom in the Susquc.
hanna river above sloop navigation, with a
SHE boom or booms lower down the river,
so us not to interfere with the general nav.
CATION of the river


The side boom is that portion of the struc.
ture just about completed, and of which we
first propose to speak. This side boom
commences at Coolies Point, on the right
bank of the river, about IL miles above
IIavre dc Grace and within y miles of the
head oi tidc.water. The construction may
he described as follows: Immense cribs Of
the heaviest timber strongly boltcd together,
forming an oblonG frame work DO feet by 20
feet at the base, slomns upward Oh one side
50 rs to make the structure at the top 20 feet
square, are filled with heavy stone and sunk
20 as to rest securely on the bed of the river,
forming what are called tue piers of the
boom. These piers project several feet
above high water, and are placed at intervals
of $50 feet apart. The side boom com.
rnepces with a pier at the shore, from which
q line Of nine piers, each lao feet apart,
runs straight out toward the channel for
distance Of about 1,2o0 feet. This forms
the nasc line Of the boom. From the ninth
pier another line of piers, each $50 feet
apart. start northward up the river, at
an obliquc angle from the base line, to
distance of ~ miles, gradually approaching
the chalneot the river. The boom proper,
is made of heavy pieces of timber 20 inches
square, which are united together by cleviccS
and heavy chains OF wrought iron. These
,ilnbers thus united together, form the boom
and float upon the water, outside the piers
we have been describing, to which they are
all securely attached by pondcrous links of
chain. Thus, we have q line forming vast
basin one and a-haif miles long, twelve hun
ared feet wide at the base, with its upper
end open and expanding toward The central
portion of the river, SO as to perGnt the en-
trance of floating logs as they drift down
is the "side boom" At a point farther up
the river, just beyond sloop navigation,
another line of piers, yet to be constructed,
starts from the opposite or eastern bank Of
the river forming an oblique angle with that
side of the Susquehanna and extending
down the stream in the direction Of the up.
,es end Of the basin of the side boom, first
ilescritsd.. These piers are to be supplied
with n line Of beam timbers, attached in the
same manner as those OF the side BOOM
The dover end Of this main boom will ter
minale sc nae distance north OF the side boom,
l,ut slightly within its onter edge. Tins, j.
will readily be perceived that logs drifting
down the river must, on reaching any por.
ton of this upper boom, be carried by the
currents over toward the right or western
bank Of the river, and finally bring up within
the basin Of the side boom. AS we have
already said, this portion of the boom is not
yet constructed, but this will not seriously
Interfere with the use of the side boom, as
it is proposed to have Q temporary line of
boom timhers extending from the upper pier
in line reaching obliguely up and we'll
across the eastern half of the river, TO be
secured in their places by heavy anchors
Of course, care will be taken to guard against
ohstructing the main channel but it should
also be remembered that at this point of the
river there is really no navigation except for
RATS coming down from the lumber regions
of Pennsylvania.


THE RIVER NOT oBsTRUCTED.


No doubt. by this time some of our read.
ers are imagining that the Susquehanna must
be pretty well blocked up, and are ready to
nredict that the whole affair, piers and all,
must inevitably be swept off by the masses
of ice and floods which come down the river
whom winter breaks up. We will stop
moment to meet and answer these difficul.
ties, which quite naturally suggest them
selves to those not familiar with 6oonotoW.
First. il must be borne in mind that the sea-
son for drifting logs, in the parlance of um'
bermen, does not commence until after the
genial warmth of spring has cleared the
channels of our rivers from the icy accnMu-
lations of winter; and so, as our boom folks
don't expect to begin catching logs in their
mammoth giU net until after the spring
foods come on, they wisely unship their
boom timbcrs, as soon MS winter appears,
and stow them snugly away in some secure
haven until they receive tidngs, from the
great lumber regions, two or three hundred
miles away, that "the foods are OUT and
that they may soon begin to look for the
drifting logs cut from brave old oaks, tow
ering pines and tough hemlocks, as they
come gliding along, at the rate OF twenty to
thirty miles pei day, on the swollen bosom
of the susauehanna. Then, and not till
then, is the boom really boom at all. But
then.the boom tmbers are carefully moored
in their places, and all Is made snug for
harvesting the coming crop. The, Boom.
Master will be on the alert, and send out bis
boats with stout crews armed with timbcr
hooks, ready to arrest and change the course
of stray logs Gst ass ma may oo sn
be sure, there is some difficulty and little
danger in all this, but the boom men are not