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2034

HEARINGS

ON

H. R. 8914

HELD BEFORE THE

COMMITTEE ON RIVERS AND HARBORS
11. S. Congress, HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

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SIXTY-EIGHTH CONGRESS

FIRST SESSION

CONSISTING OF

S. WALLACE DEMPSEY, New York, Chairman.

RICHARD P. FREEMAN, Connecticut.
NATHAN L. STRONG, Pennsylvania.
CLEVELAND A. NEWTON, Missouri.
JAMES J. CONNOLLY, Pennsylvania.
M. A. MICHAELSON, Illinois.
WALTER F. LINEBERGER, California.
WILLIAM M. MORGAN, Ohio.
WILLIAM E. HULL, Illinois.
GEORGE N. SEGER, New Jersey.
HUBERT H. PEAVEY, Wisconsin.
THADDEUS C. SWEET, New York.

JOSEPH J. MANSFIELD, Texas.
JOHN MCDUFFIE, Alabama.
JOHN J. KINDRED, New York.
HOMER L. LYON, North Carolina.
JOSEPH T. DEAL, Virginia.
DANIEL F. MINAHAN, New Jersey.
WILLIAM E. WILSON, Indiana.
WILLIAM H. BOYCE, Delaware.

JAMES O'CONNOR, Louisiana.

9.0.0.57/24/24

RIVER AND HARBOR BILL

COMMITTEE ON RIVERS AND HARBORS,
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES,
Thursday, April 3, 1924.

The committee met at 1.30 o'clock p. m., Hon. S. Wallace Dempsey (chairman) presiding.

STATEMENT OF MAJ. GEN. LANSING H. BEACH, CHIEF OF ENGINEERS, UNITED STATES ARMY

The CHAIRMAN. General, I thought we would take these up in the order that you deemed them important. Take up the one that you think will have the largest commerce and that demands attention more immediately than any others and then we will go along with them in that order. Which do you think we had better take up first?

MIAMI HARBOR, FLA.

General BEACH. Mr. Chairman, I do not think it is necessarily the one with the largest commerce that is the most important, because sometimes there are localities where a small amount of money will produce a great relief. We can get a good deal of benefit from a small amount and the relief is very important. So I do not think it is necessarily a question of the amount of commerce that is involved.

Taking them up in some order of importance, I would state that Miami Harbor, Fla., is a locality which we might consider.

The CHAIRMAN. Would we need a map, General for the purpose of your testimony as to that harbor?

General BEACH. I doubt if you do. I have one right here attached to the report, which I can pass around.

Mr. MCDUFFIE. General, what district is that in?,

General BEACH. Jacksonville.

The CHAIRMAN. General, will you just tell us what the proposed improvement is and then go on with the details?

General BEACH. The improvement desired, which is that recommended by the Board of Engineers for rivers and harbors and myself, is for a channel 25 feet deep at mean low water, 500 feet wide from the 25-foot depth in the ocean to near the outer ends of the jetties, thence 300 feet wide to the entrance, reducing to 200 feet wide across Biscayne Bay and following the route of the existing municipal channel, at an estimated cost of $1,605,000.

The present channel across the bay is only 100 feet wide. It is too narrow for vessels to navigate in in a strong cross-wind.

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