made by reconstructing with timber and stone. In October and November the repairs were made by day labor, at a total cost of $296.74, and it is believed that the new end is stronger than the rest of the pier, owing to the manner of tying in the timbers and the placing of iron straps on the corner. An examination of the channel was made in June, 1904. Between the piers depths are greater than 21 feet for full width. Outside the piers the limiting depth is about WM. T. BLUNT, 19.5 feet. Very respectfully, Maj. DAN C. KINGMAN, United States Assistant Engineer. Corps of Engineers. PP 5. IMPROVEMENT OF VERMILION HARBOR, OHIO. For a description and history of this improvement see page 2696, Report of Chief of Engineers, 1898. No funds were available for the improvement of this harbor at the beginning of the fiscal year 1903, and no work was undertaken. An allotment of $250 from the appropriation for "Examinations, Surveys, and Contingencies of Rivers and Harbors" was made to enable an examination to be had as required by the river and harbor act of June 13, 1902. Such an examination was made and the report published as House of Representatives Document No. 252, Fifty-eighth Congress, second session. No additional improvement was recommended for this harbor. The only expenditure advised was for the purpose of securing and permanently maintaining the existing works. The total estimated cost for this purpose was $42,350. All of this money could easily be expended before the 30th of June, 1906, if Congress so directed, but from the nature of the work no special economy would result from a single appropriation, and an estimate is therefore submitted of $20,000 for the purpose of maintaining the harbor of Vermilion, Ohio. Attention is respectfully invited to the report of Asst. Engineer William T. Blunt, which is transmitted herewith. Money statement. (Amount that can be profitably expended in fiscal year ending June 30, 1906, for maintenance of improvement... $20,000. CO Submitted in compliance with requirements of sundry civil act of June 4, 1897, and of section 7 of the river and harbor act of 1899. COMMERCIAL STATISTICS. The following statistics for the year 1903, relative to the commerce of the harbor of Vermilion, Ohio, were compiled from information furnished by the collector of customs and others: SIR: I have the honor to submit the following report upon Vermilion Harbor, Ohio, for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1904. All depths mentioned are given at mean level of Lake Erie 1860-1875, the surface being now about eight-tenths foot above that level. No works for the improvement of the harbor have been under way during the year. The piers are in bad condition, the west pier especially being in imminent danger of being broken through. In August, 1903, under the provisions of the river and harbor act of June, 1902, and by your direction, a survey was made of the harbor and its vicinity with a view to its improvement. A topographical survey by transit and stadia, based on an observed meridian, extended about 1 mile east and west, and a half mile south to a little beyond the Lake Shore and Michigan Southern Railway. Soundings were taken through the river up to the Lake Shore and Michigan Southern Railway and out to 19 feet depth in the lake. The work was platted on scale 1:2,000, and a project was made for improvement by reinforcing the old piers with stone riprap. The repair work done in 1902, at the junction of the east pier and shore, has proven completely successful, and the beach has recovered its height and has extended considerably. An inspection of the harbor in June, 1904, showed the east pier to be in fair condition, while the west pier is rapidly being broken up. The channel depths are better than usual, there being 13 to 14 feet depth between and outside the piers, but there are occasional rock or bowlder obstructions having not over 10 feet depth. Very respectfully, Maj. DAN. C KINGMAN, WM. T. BLUNT, United States Assistant Engineer. Corps of Engineers. PP 6. IMPROVEMENT OF BLACK RIVER (LORAIN) HARBOR, OHIO. A description of the location, conditions, and projects for improvement of this harbor is given on page 2658 of the Report of the Chief of Engineers, 1898. The execution of the approved project, as far as the means available would allow, is now being carried out under a continuous contract with Patrick Keohane, of Fayetteville, N. Y., dated October 27, 1900, and modified by a supplementary agreement which provides for widening the jetty channel to 300 feet. During the present fiscal year the contractor has built 1,192 running feet of concrete superstructure, which completes all but 188 feet of this kind of work. He has also deposited 17,903 tons of stone in the foundation of the west breakwater, and 21,989.7 tons of shale to form the core. While the work done by this firm is generally good, the rate of progress is very unsatisfactory. Seventy-two per cent of the time allowed for the completion of the work has already elapsed, and only 54 per cent has been completed. What remains to be done, however, is of a nature which could be carried forward rapidly, and it is possible for him to complete the work within the contract time. After the new east jetty was completed the shore line showed a decided tendency to recede near the shore end of the structure, and this recession was so rapid that it seemed likely that the structure would be turned and a connection formed around the inner end of it between the lake and the river. A large amount of riprap stone was deposited, prolonging the jetty about 100 feet. Above water the stone was laid so as to generally conform to the jetty profile; but the recession continued until it reached the inner end of this extension. It was no doubt augmented by a condition which occurred in January, 1904, when, as the result of a severe freshet, an ice jam formed between the jetties, raising the water in the river 8 or 10 feet and causing it to flow across the flats into the lake around the inner end of the east jetty. Recently a brush and stone mattress, 20 feet wide and 600 feet long, has been built in place along the original shore line in water which is now from 1 to 4 feet in depth. This is stopping the recession of the shore and gradually re-forming the beach. The deposit is extending from the east toward the west. About 160,000 cubic yards of material dredged by the city of Lorain from the Black River had been dumped in the angle between the jetty and the beach as far inshore as the scows could be taken. It is hoped that this material will aid in re-forming the beach, but it does not appear to have done so as yet. The same freshet which cut away the shore injured the channel between the jetties by forming lumps and ridges upon which there was less than the required depth of water. To restore safe navigation, the U. S. dredge Maumee was sent to Lorain, and at the close of the fiscal year was engaged in removing these obstructions. The plan for the improvement of this harbor provides for the complete rebuilding of a section 365 feet in length of the west jetty, but it makes no provision for rebuilding or repairing the remaining 645 feet of this structure. The under-water portion of the jetty is in fairly good condition, the cribs having been built in recent years and sunk in dredged trenches upon proper foundations, but the superstructure, which is of timber, is rapidly decaying. Provision should be made in the way of maintenance for sheathing the under-water portion of the jetty, both on the lake and the channel side with hard-wood plank. The timber superstructure should be removed and replaced by a concrete top to conform to that already built. The estimated cost of this work, which is strictly maintenance, was $50,000, and the amount should be available as soon as possible. This harbor is constantly growing in importance. The United States Steel Corporation and the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Company are both increasing their docks and terminal facilities. The city of Lorain is expending $200,000 in widening and straightening the Black River within the shore line. The receipts and shipments from this harbor, while they show some falling off from 1902, are still large, and the loss can be more than accounted for by the reduction in the receipts of ore which took place at this as at all of the Lake Erie harbors. For a description of the work done during the present fiscal year, and for accurate tabular statements of the material and cost, attention is respectfully invited to the report of Assistant Engineer G. T. Nelles, which is transmitted herewith. Money statement. July 1, 1903, balance unexpended.. -$309, 506. 69 100,000.00 409, 506. 69 $65, 084.20 71, 084. 20 338, 422.49 14, 366.67 324,055. 82 July 1, 1904, amount covered by uncompleted contracts.. 223,520. 35 (Amount (estimated) required for completion of existing project. Amount that can be profitably expended in fiscal year ending June 30, 1906, in addition to the balance unexpended July 1, 1904: 256,000.00 For works of improvement... $86,000.00 60,000.00 146,000.00 Submitted in compliance with requirements of sundry civil act of June 4, 1897, and of section 7 of the river and harbor act of 1899. ENG 1904-199 LIST OF CONTRACTS IN FORCE DURING THE FISCAL YEAR ENDING JUNE 30, 1904. Contract for constructing west breakwater, two pierheads, and removing and rebuilding parts of east and west piers. Name of contractor: Patrick Keohane, Fayetteville, N. Y. Date of contract: October 27, 1900. Date of approval: November 22, 1900. Date of completion: Continuous contract. COMMERCIAL STATISTICS. The following statistics for the year 1903 relative to the commerce of the harbor of Black River (Lorain), Ohio, were compiled from information furnished by the collector of customs and others: i |