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 Dapt.of the'^'T^'-V °*J*"** 
 
 Library & R«cordj5. 
 
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 ftoom 
 
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 •mmfv^ 
 
 HARBOUR COMMISSIONERS 
 OF MONTREAL. 
 
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 REPORT 
 
 ON TriF. 
 
 ST, limCE BRIDGE & MiilFACTeiK} Ml. 
 
 iiV 
 
 John Kennedy, M. Inst. C. E 
 
 13tii Decembek. 1882. 
 
 PRINTED UV 1). UENTI.EY & CO, NOTRE DAME STREET, MONTREAL 
 
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REPOET 
 
 St. 
 
 JOHN KENNEDY, M. INST. C. E. 
 
 1t)aiboui' (JTominiBsioncra of iHontrcal, 
 
 CHIEF ENQINEER'S OFFICE, 
 
 .MONTRKAL, Ukce.mhkr ijtii, 1882 
 II. D. UIHTNEY, Esq. 
 
 Secretary- TVeasurer 
 
 Hakhouk Commissioners Of Monireal. 
 
 Sib. 
 
 In coiiiplinuoo willi instructions from the lioard of 
 Harbour (.'ouiini.ssioiier.s, and ai.so of tho Drpartuiciit ot Puhiic Woriis. con- 
 veyed throuirli tho ('ommis.sioncrs, 1 l)c'u' to make Ihi' loilovving Itoport upon 
 The Si. Lairreiire Bndge und Mann fad urini; Sclieme usually called The Sheurer Scheme. 
 
 Tlio instrui'lions din'ct nic to report upon the li'asil)ility of the .seheme 
 i.nd upon its prol)al)lr I'llfcl upon (he i!arl)our if carried out. l!y. the fcasil)!- 
 lity of the sehcnic 1 undcrsiand nut only llie praeticahijily ol' constructinu' the 
 proposed Works, hul also Ihi' leasihiliiy of ultaiiiing the purposes lor which the 
 \\(irlis are desiuiied. and 1 iia\i' ih.'vefori' innsidcrcd tlu' (jui'stion in this sense. 
 
 I'he iid'oiinai ion I'urnislied me a-, to ilie s.heme consists of copies of the 
 dlai't ol' the propose<l .\i I of lueoipoialion, presented at ihi- last Session ol' the 
 Dominion I'avliameni, and a K'eport addressed to the Hon. the Minister of I'uhlic 
 Works, on the |Sth .laniiary. \XH-2. hy Mr. 1-'. l'ov|,.|- liatenian. M. Inst. ('. K., 
 ICnuineer for the projeetois. liesides these I have been laMired with personal 
 explanations by Mr. James Shearer, the oriiiinalor ol the Scheme, ami by 
 Mr. Uat.'maii. 
 
 PROPOSED WORKS. 
 
 The main leaiures of the Selienie as set lortli in the Uill and in Mr. 
 l?atemanV IJeporl. are an emb;inkmeni dam across the main Channel ot the 
 St. Lawi-euri'. Irom the Montreal abutment ol the \ ietoria liridi^-i' to St. Helen's 
 Island, and a liiL'h b \ <■! jiriduc aeioss the remaining- i>art of the liiver between St. 
 Helen'.-. Island and the flast or St. Lambert Shore. 
 
 'I'he emi)anknienl is intended to be • T'i feet wide at the loji, with a solid 
 masonry wall on the river or upper side, and will be lel'l on the harbour side in 
 an uiilinished condition, at a slopi' ol :! to I. until such time as the re(|uiremi'nls 
 of the Harbour of Montreal may necessitate from time to lime the jinisiiine- of 
 portions on that side 
 
 ■' .\ highway .'10 I'l'ct wide, with a trotioir 10 I'l'ct wide, anil a double track 
 oi rails will run aloim' the embankment, flie toj) of the masonry w'all on the 
 outer or river side ol' I lie embankment, at the ]ioinl at which it starts (the north- 
 west corner of the west abutmeid ol' Victoria Hridu-c) will be of the sauu> height 
 as that abutnuMit. or about "lO feet above the ordinary level of the St. Lawrence. 
 It will run Ihenci! to St. Helen's Island, risim.;- eradually to a heiu;ht of (10 feet 
 above the <n'dinary water level, which heieht it will attain when it arrives at the 
 l)oiiit at whiih the proposed bridue will commence." 
 
" The ombiinkmi'iit will Ix- piovidfil with tlirec st'rieK of controllini? Hluioes. 
 Thpsc sluices will 1)0 rnpaMc oi' p;issiiii>- into the lliirbour -IHti million cuhic I'col 
 of wut.'i- per hour, and will I,., pja.od al I I fivl C iii.'lifs l.flow llio asrertaiiiwl 
 low level of (hi' water of the St, l.awreiiei'." 
 
 ■The emhuikiiieiit will luvthei- !).■ Mipi)iie(l with thirty- live sluices, for 
 
 inilliiiir, lilts and niaiiufaclnriiiy purpows. These sluices will 1 apahle of 
 
 discliariri,,!,' into the Harhoiu- al.out :;tl4 million euhie feet of water per hour. 
 They should he iiviierall) sMi.erinlende.l and controlled hy the Harhour Hoard, 
 hut will he used at the sam.' lime iiidep. ndently and without restriction for the 
 above-mentioned |)ur])oseN." 
 
 "The hiirhway and railroad will run alonsr the embankment havinjr con- 
 nection with thedillen.nt lines runninir to Montreal, with a irradicnt ,.f alxmt 
 1 to IT.O to the point on St. ib'lens Islan.l from which it is i)ropo.sed to throw the 
 bridn'e across the rivc'." 
 
 The bri.U l)etv.'een St. Helen's Island and the St. Lambert shore will be 
 3,();V) feet clear leni;lh between the abutments, and will have eh'ven lattice si)ans 
 of 250 to -294 feet each, or sliould Covernnn-nt require it. a suspi'iision hride-e with 
 four op..nini;'s will be snhsiinited. The clear heie-hl Innn hiyh water to ii„. 
 bottom of the brido'e is show u on the jdans as about 4b feet. 
 
 It is ])ropo.sed (o remove Ab)llats Island, the old St. Lambert or (irand 
 Trunk Wharf and all obsiruetions to th,- How of water and ice throUffh the South 
 Channel, ,)r that beiween St. II.. lens Island and the St. Lambei-i' Shore; to 
 straiditen and widen it at rerlain points, and excavate thnm-houl its U'wjih a 
 naviuable channel, which, accn-dinu to the I'.ill shall not be of a less widtlHhan 
 :!ilO feet, with a low water de|.i]i of not less than P! feel. 
 
 The Channel between St. Iblen's Island and II.. Rond.'. will be straiirhl- 
 en.'d and widened, so as to pa.ss a nmximum quantitv .n- wat.^r oi' some Ho 
 million cubi.- f...'! p.M- hour. 
 
 L..ve.'s will b.' Imilt wh.Mever necessary, to pn^v.^nt th.' Iloodi.ig of low 
 Inndft, either nbov.' or below ih.' works. 
 
 Power is ask.'d in ih.. liill for the eonstru.ti..n .if Jiasins and Wharves, 
 but th.'ir proposed character and jiosition are not d.lin.'d. 
 
 ADVANTAGES CLAIMED. 
 
 The promoters of th,. s.'liem... state, in elfecl, in the preamble to the Ihll, 
 and in the Engineers Keport.that the in-opos.^d works will, amonfr,st .)ther thimj.s, 
 secure the following advantages : — 
 
 1 In.reaNcd Harbour a.commodation in th.. Port of Montreal. 
 
 ■2. Th.. rapid current of li' mil.-- an h.mr l)etween Sous le Mont and Il(> Verte 
 will be conipli.t..ly don., away wiih. 
 
 3. Th.' i)r.'.s,.nt .nrrying down of detritus i>y th.. ic... and deposit .)!' th.' sam... 
 
 in th.. de..p portions of th.' Harbour will be stoppi.d. and th.. se.liin..ni 
 fornn'd by local laus.'s may be scour.-d out at hiuh water by th.. dis.hai^e 
 from till' larav sluici's. 
 
 4. Th.. Current St. Mary will be rednc.'d from its i)r.'s,'nt rat., of S.i miles per 
 
 hour, to a maximum rate ol' ."> mil.'.s i).'r hour. 
 
 6. The water in the llarb.mr will not be lowered, but th.' Harbour Hoard will 
 be able to regulate it and kcp it at a uniform depth by means of the slui.es 
 in the erabankm..nt. 
 
 6. The ])aekin!.>- of i<v in the Current St. Mary, and .onsequeut ri-^e .,f water in 
 the Harbour and lower p.)rtions of the City, and the piling of ice on the 
 wharves, will be prevented. 
 
8 
 
 7. The fiiilmnkini-nt and hridirc will iillow oC riiihvuy connection hotwi'ini 
 Montrcnl ami llii' 8l. l>Hnil)i'it .sliorc 
 
 « A I'ootpalh anil roadway will },<■ provided for li.ot paNNonjfors and ordinary 
 vehicles. 
 
 9. Water power will l>e pro\ ided l)y thirty-live .slniees for niillinff, lifl.s and 
 niannliiei iirin^' purpowos. 
 
 In lookinir at tho scheme as llius sketched ont. it ai>i)ears lo me. (hat as a 
 more matter of eonstrnction an<i niiiinlennnce, the i)ro|)ose(l works are entirely 
 fonsible. Il can hardly he ealiecj ,in .'asy ihint;- lo l.uild the portion of the dam 
 and tho sluices which are lu he phiced in the deep channel, hut (here aro no 
 oxtrome dilliculties in the way. The huildinir of ,|ie hridnv is a simple mattter 
 and presents no dilliculties. Noilher is (here ;iny(iiino- in the main features of 
 tho desifrn which need make ii dijliciill lo secure ihc dciMiis from danni<>v by the 
 action of the ice. 
 
 In considering the feasihiliiy ol the scheme in (he wider sense of pro- 
 ducinc^ the physi<'al otl'ects lor wlii.li ii is desiuned, I purpose to touch upon the 
 ahove points of ndvanlam' cluimcd hy the projec(ors, and (hen (o deal with other 
 features which a[>pear to me of importance. 
 
 ]. — hirrensn/ Hnrhimr Anummoilnliini. 
 
 The Bill, in Section H. asks lor power 'to constrmi and n)aintain locks, 
 '•^^ates, sluices, basins, wharves, water-powers, mills, machinery, warehou.sos, 
 "sheds, buildinjis. elevators, weij.li-bcams. and all sncli other work ; " and esjie- 
 cially "for faciliiaiinu' th.' unlomlint;-. sliipmeiu. siorins,' and handlin^r of 
 "merchandi.se.- etc.. 'such erections heinii' subject to the approval and consent 
 '■of (he Hoard of Harbour Commissioners of the I'ort of Montreal." 
 
 Tlu- j.owi'rs asked for arc merely permissive. an<l would uive the Company 
 the rijiht. un<ler the ii|)proval of ih,. Ibnbour Comrnis.sioners. to make basins, 
 wharves, .'tc,. should ihey choo.s, to do .so ; but neith.'r here nor .-Isewhere in the 
 Itill. nor by the plan, do I tind that the Company is obliM,.,! i,, con.struct anythiuff 
 which woidd. in the ordinary sense, allord mcrea.sed harbour accommodatioir 
 The plan shows an embankment wide enouiih Ibr railways and roadways, and a 
 line of possible widcnina-. but no basins nor wharves arc shown. Mr. liidcman's 
 Report however explains tlint it is intended that the emb;inkim'n( • would be 
 "left on the Harbour side in an unlinishi'd condition at a slope of three (o one 
 " un(il such time as ihe re(|uiremcnts of the Harbour of Mon(real may necessitate 
 "from lime to lime (he liiushiim-oi pordons on that si.!,.. ■ and also that, as the 
 removal of MoHUCs Island and (he cx.avntion in the soulh channel will not yii-ld 
 sulliiient material lo tinish the embaiiknicni. (he bahmce mus( be (akeu from the 
 Harbour, and therefore the propo.sed C.mpany will be able -'to oll'er (o (he 
 " Harbour Commissioners the ad\antau,' of deepening- the Harbour to whatever 
 "depth niiuhi be .'onsidered necessary within reasonable di.stance of (he proposed 
 "sKe of the einbankment. without any considerable extra cost to them.selves." 
 
 TakiiiuMr. Halemans n.p,„t as indicating Ih." nliimate intention of the 
 Company, and that the Ibll may y,'t be amended .so as to include it. it appears to 
 me (hat thi' increased Harbour accommodation will a( lirst be merely .such 
 increa.seddcplh or area of basins as this .'xcavatiim will make, and at subsciueiit 
 limes, when the embankment may be wi.lcned.it will be provided wilh a line 
 of wharf on its Harbour side. 
 
 Mr, BiUenianhiis kindly informcHl me that he estimates about a million cubic 
 yardsof excavation will thus be rc,,uired in the lirst instance fnmi the Harbour. In 
 .onsiderin-' how this may be uiilize<l. it appears to me that at lirst some KKI.OUO 
 cubic yards will be taken up in lowerin<!- the present bottom of (he u])per portions of 
 
thi- Ilnrlwur, in ovcUt to I'limptMiHiite for tht^ lowcriiijj of the watwr Nurfii.(> which 
 I Ihiiik will lako plaoc lor loasoiiN hi'i-cal'li-r irivoii. To ijt't a practiial itlca of 
 what may he doni' vvilh tlu' n-maiiulfi' ol' tho excavation, it may 1m> conHitli'i'i'd 
 UN NUtlidicnt to make the tlccp wali-r of llic llarhour 'JHO fcrt wider lliaii at 
 pri'si'iit. I'rom tho hcail of the Windmill Point liasin to tho lower ond oi Victoria 
 Pier. Tiiis, or sonn'thintf equivalent, would he fell as a very ffrent oonvenionee 
 in nioviuif vessels in the ll.irhour, hut it could not he eonsidered as inen-aNed 
 ueconunodalion, in the isen.sMil providinif more herlhf* fdr .ship-i. The inereaMe, in 
 that wi'nse, would only he made when the ('oini>any from time to time, liiiislied 
 up portions olthe llarhonr side ol' the euihiinkmenl, and I'aeed them willi wharves. 
 Th>' whole, when eomph'ti'd, and without inierleriniif with the Itell, Newton and 
 Flemini,' sehenie, would allord a rnnire of ahout (1,000 feet, or 1 '/7 miles of m-w 
 wharl'a<jv fiunlin^' the t'ltv and exlendinu' from opposite lllack's Hridiro to the 
 head of St. Helens Island As to aeeess liy land, for eartaue, its ui)per end 
 would he distant, for instanee. from (he Custom House ahuut I if miles, or a little 
 farther th;in the Adams Tohaeeo l'"aetory, while the St. Hehn's Island end would he 
 *J" 11] miles, or nearlv the same as U'nisseau Miuvon, hut wiili the additional di.s- 
 ;id\ aillau'e of the inlerv eninir draw-l>ridi;('> on the Laeliiin' < 'anal. 
 
 ■fhe conlrolliu'^ sluices are shown on the jilan as ^rraimed in three yroups, 
 ihe middle irroup faeinu- the Island Wharf and the others at ahout l.OOOfeel, 
 elear distance on each side. In t he intervenintr spaces, and in t he spaces towards the 
 ends of tluM'ml)ankment, are arranu'ed the mill or scourin"- sluices. Hacli uronp of 
 controilinii- sluices occupies 4i')0 feet, or in all l,:l")n toel. and the remainine- 4,4'>n 
 leel of the wharf is occupied with the mill sluices; that is to say, the whole 
 wharfauv w ill he |)ier<'ed with opcninsi-s tlirouuh which it is intended to pour 
 uhout ihree-lourllis of the low uiMer How of the ."^t. Lawrence. Each of the 
 thirty controlling sluices is iiucmled to di>ch iriii', when needed. l(l,'JO(),oOO cuhic 
 feet (d' water per hour tluouiih a cuhcrl 40 feel wide, and each of the thirty-live 
 mill sluiics is to discharu«' in. 400.00(1 cuhic feet per liour through a culvert lio 
 feet wide. Thedeplhsofthesluicesal llu' lini^hed oitlei are not show n on the jilans ; 
 hut supposinu'i licui lolie. >:u -J'J leet.oras deep an ordiuiirv ilasiii would well allow, 
 ihe conirollinu' sluice^ would e:icli discliMiu-i' a slvc;iui oi In Ic.'i w ule l)\ _':J Icet 
 deep, with a sjiecil of ■)}, milc> :in Icun-. while ihc mill sluices would cich (|i>- 
 charu'e a stream liO feci hy __ led al l.l miles pel lioui'. 
 
 Wilhin ihe leniilh ol an ordinary steamer there wonM Ix- at least two of 
 the mill sluices, or ahoui live of the 'jreai loiilroUinu' sluices, ami ii is. I think, 
 obvious that, with such powcilul di^chaiuf- ol water no \ es>el , oidd either moor 
 or move in front of thciu with .-ai'ety. or in other words the w harf with the sluices 
 as arranged woidd he unlit lor herthinn \ cv-,1-. 
 
 .\ more favorable airanuciuenl ol sluices can doubtless be nnide ; but atthe 
 l)est, thiee-fourths of tin- water w hicli Hows under the Viitoria liridue in autumn 
 must he broHu'lit throiiuh a wharl which is shorter than t he cl,Mr openiiio- of 
 the Bridge by two spans, and the How will certainly create currents of most 
 objectioiuible kind and strength. 
 
 •2, — Abolishing the ni/tiU i-iirrml nf 1 2 »//fcs an hour helwerii Soiix Ic Moiil iiinl llf Vnte. 
 
 The onlv point theicnliouts at whi('h there is a enrreiit approachiiii;- this 
 rate, is that known as Sault Ndrinnnd, where the water drops over the sid<' of a 
 shoid and s!iow> as a liiokm i.ipid at low .-ta-cs ,,|' ili,' ijvi^r. 'I'his sank is 
 diroi-tly below the middli' liioup of ili.' 'ji.mI controilinii- sluices, and luiiil the 
 shoal is removed ihi' water liom the >luic,> will How over it, am' make, 1 thiid<, 
 a current practically the same as at pivscni. .\ller the wharf is built and a deep 
 water basin made in front ol it, th<' site ol the >aidt will be occupied hy the larger but 
 slower How from the sluici's already described. This will certainly be a con- 
 sequence of the completion of the scheme, but it appears to me rather as an 
 incidental matter than a poiin of advantage in itself. 
 
 .Vltoii'et her clear of the Satdl Normand. and S(mis le Mont d between 
 
 them and lie Verte, there is the Boat and Uali Channel, the head of the pocket 
 
in fact, with a < iii'i4>iil. iivorii);iug only til iiiili>N mi hour thrnugli which the river 
 stonmiTB run with isusi-, luul very oltcii tow barjj;o» beHidos. ThiH important 
 Chiiniicl <iin hiinliy lie siiid to Ixi ultcrcd hy thi- I'mJumlxinciit, lor il vvill Ixs 
 piiliri'ly 1 lo.scd, mid it thorclorc i'orms a i'l'uturi' in thi' Nchciuc oi'Nuch nioniiMi( uh 
 to ri'i|iiirn Mttparnto conHiduriition 
 
 3. — The slo/i/Kifff of /III- /irexrii/ riirr//iiiic (/own iij i/iiritiis b// the ire ami Ihr drposit i>f 
 the siiiiif. ill Iht: llnrhour, nnd the /irorisioii for sniiiriiifj out litviil lie/msil hi/ the 
 xt Hires. 
 
 Thu nhoalN inimcdiattdy above tlio Harbour are I'ornu'd uimoHt entirely of 
 Hoft rock ovcrliiid in |iiiici's with hoiildcrN nnd uriivi'l. Houldors oven ol' Imx" 
 n'v/.t', an' iinown to be occiisionnlly iilii'd by the ice iind dropped m tlic Harbour, 
 and onoUjLfh ufravel is Hcoured down by the violent currents lornicd und(M' the ice 
 jams to be It'll in the cost ol" dreduinii'. I cannot, however, think this ii matter of 
 serious expense ; lor it must be reiiiciiibi'red that the jOfreat bulk of the dredirinq' of 
 reeeni years lias been for deepeiiiii'j- lie' Harbour to keep pace with the deepeninif 
 of the Ship Channel, and not ioi' mculy clearing out yearly deposit. Hut 
 whether muoh or little be mow l>riiiii;ht down, I (juite atrree with Mr. Ilalonian 
 that the cmbanknieiit wouhl elleetiiidly slop il lor l)ie future. 
 
 As to the deposit from local enuses. by which I understand sewaiye deposit, 
 rubbish from ships, etc., which collects at the \\liar\es, I cannot see how the 
 lesser scour wbicli would bi- obtained from liie sluices would clear ibis out when 
 the winter and sprinu' llood ol ilie river at present fail to do so On tlu' eouiraj'y, 
 it seems to mi' that the reduced current, especially duvinn' winter, would allow 
 the depo.sil of some of the sewatie uiatter iu)w swept away. 
 
 4. — liedurtioii of Ihr .>7. Mari/s Ciirreiil from ih iiiesnd nitr of Si inilen to a mnximuin 
 of •') miles an hour. 
 
 At low water 1 liiul the hiirbcst mean rait-, taken with a loaded rod. of 
 :2t) feet depth, and showim;- fairly what a ship has to stem, to be about 4| miles 
 at the hi'ad of r>t. Helen's Island; •! miles at the Ca.iadian Rubber Factory, 
 rapincau S(|uare. and 7 miles at the ii'iddle of lli' Uoiule. where il at., i'ls the 
 hiiiliest speed. At ordiuaiy liieli water of 22 feel on 'he sill, the rate at lib ivonde 
 rises to 7A miles, and at other places in proportion, in e\ erv case the speed falls 
 olf rapidly towards the shores, and vessels aerordim;' to their draft can liiul water 
 at one lourth looue-ihird less sp.'ed of current, flic highest rate at lie U'onde 
 extends oidy :dn)ut a (piarter nl'a mile in leiiiilh up and down. 
 
 With the embankment imilt and lt->.'> million cubic feci per hour llowiiii^ 
 past III' Koiide. the maximum rale of current at the ceui e at low water would, 
 I estimate, be reduced to about 'y\ iiiilis an iiour. ami at liieli water it would be 
 reduced to Iv miles. 
 
 These reductions are less than Mr. liatemaii <>rivi's. but llun' are 
 enouijh to be felt as a ureal ri'lief to slow vessels, and esix-c ially to lows in 
 ascendini;- the ( iirreut. Hut troublesome as the current St. Mary is. it does not 
 seem to represent a very serious lUduey loss. An avcraac of lour ordinary screw 
 tUijs do all the casual towinn' and moving of ves.se Is of all sorts about the Har- 
 bour, and l(\ss than half their lime is sp.'nt in the curreut. or because of il. The 
 Harbour Commissioners' chain tusr. built under sjiecial circumstances expressly 
 to do the lowing in the current, ami successful nieeliauically. was lound to be 
 unneeded. Alter lying on her station, ready at signal for two nr three seasons 
 with nothino- lo do, she was withdrawn, and has been laid up uuealled lor 
 during the past four years With lhe.se facts in iniiul as regards the whole 
 current, it would seem that takingaway only about a third of it.s rate can hardly 
 be ol sui'li practical valui' as to be much felt. 
 
fi — Thr iriifrr in fhr ffurhtmr not to hr Inweml. hiil fhf Itnrhtmr Hitnri/ hi/ meam of 
 lilt! SlmcfH Id hr nhlv la icfiulnlf it In a iiHifintii ilf/ilh. 
 
 Mr. Biiti'iimn inukcN thi- pn-Ht'iit miiniuer lull, or (lillurcnco in level bt'twuen 
 till' Niirrueo ol'tlic wali'r ul tht* Tool of the liiifhino ('unul uml tho loot of tho Current 
 St. Mary, to hi- - ft'i-t ■'( inchi's, My own ohM,'r>atioiis innkc il Hoiii.'wliiil less thun 
 this, and iro to hIiow (lint il may ln' tnki-n a>4 ImMwi-i'm ll ami '21 incln'.M 1 linil, 
 too, tlint the .swil't water nl' the Current Si, Miiry does not wuildenly lose luuirly 
 all its veloiity, but at the lludon Cotlon Mill has n rale of nearly J miles, and at 
 Huiile I'nriher down, :<! miles an hour, and also that on heinir redueed in veli.eity 
 al the I'ootnl' lie lioii(|i> it throws up a slationary wave of only uliout 1 J lo.'l iiiehes. 
 From this and I he ))re.sent current rates, 1 estinnitt' that with I he sluiees in the 
 •'uihankment diseharuinir W> per eent. of tlu'ir intended cnpacity. or ^^'<!i mil- 
 million euhie i'eet pi'r hour, there would, al time of low waler, he about eijjrhl 
 inehes Ic t wator in thu Harbour at the loot ol' the < anal than at present. 
 the loss u eiisinu; to about six inches tit the middle ol' lie Konde, and runnini,' 
 out to nothiuuMl the lludon Cotlon Mills. At hiub water of -J-J feet on ihe hick 
 sill, the loss above Mililiuy Uasin would be |:l to 14 inches, and bi'low that it 
 woidd run out lo noihiiinat lloohplaya 
 
 These results dill'er considerably Irom Mr llateunui's, a8 a nuue nnitter ol 
 data and calculation, but pradieally the ditlerenee is ol' litlle imjiorlanee ; I'or, at 
 the worst, the loss ol' .S iui'hes and under, al the time ol' low water, loulil be 
 easily compensated fur in the drediiina- whiih must be done to iind nuilerial I'or 
 the embankment, and ihe laryer lowerinu" (d" Hi inehes when the ri\er is as hiuh 
 as 22 I'eet on the sill, or ;') I'eet above low water, wimld be rather a beiielit than 
 otjierwise. 
 
 6. — The /irrfenliiin iif Ihe imikiii;! of ice in Ihe Ciirrenl Si. Man/, and vonsequenl me 
 of waler in Ihe lliirhoiir iiiiil Inieer jiurh nf lh<' Cil//, iinil Ihe /lilinu o/' ire on Ihe 
 Whiirres. 
 
 The packinu- i>\' ice in ihe Current Si. Mary, would, 1 il'ink, most certainly 
 be stopped by the proposeil embankinenl II' ihi' conlniiiiiit;' sluices be kepi 
 closed in winU-r as inlende<l, ihe whole Harbour from the lludon Coiioii Mill up, 
 would have only about one-liflh ihe present raie of enrieiiis. and would freeze 
 over in a smooth sheet like any other slack water. So much of the rise in the 
 upper jiari of the Harbour, as is due lo ice Jams in St. Mary's Current, would 
 also be prevented, but below that matters would probably be just the same as now ; 
 iior it must be remembered that a frecpient cause of the rise from ice jams is Ihe 
 ice iidrye helnir Si. Mary's Curreul, and not in il or above it. In the ureal Hood 
 of 181)1, when (irillinlown. Victoria Si|iiai-e. and St, rani Siiiel w ere o\crllowed. 
 thewaterat the fool of McCill Street was al the worst (.iily :! fi^el li iiiihes hiiiher 
 than al Hex hela<fa, and about iiall of till- Would be due to the luuural fall 
 bi'tween these ))oinls. 
 
 Guatiiiuis are ke])t at llochelaffa only occasionally, so llnit neither 
 uveragi's nor extremes can be irot al with exactness, but from a number of 
 isolated measureinenis and e-eueral kuowledue of the mailer. I should estimate 
 that the hitjfher Hoods would bi' one lo four feel less with the jiroposed eini)ank- 
 meiit than without il. I'his uoidd by no means do away with Hoods, but it 
 would be a very beiu'iicial reduction. 
 
 As reirards Ihe hidirini;- of ice on the wharves in the spriiie-. there woidd 
 with the enibankment be no i)iled upmassi's as aiv often left now. but ihe wharves 
 would overflow from the rise of the river below as at jiresent, and sheet ice 
 forminii' at the hiirli level wottld often be left oil top of them when the water 
 fell. There Would be no current lo form piles as now, but there might be 
 plenty of smooth sheet ice instead. 
 
 7. — Proridinf^ Railicni/ nmneiiinn helireen Mimlredl and St. Lamberl Shores. 
 
 It is obvious that this most important object would be attained, and in 
 what seems to me a most excellent and effective manner. 
 
^—-tJighwnn mil/ /oolhpaih nmiieiiion hrlireni Montreal am/ St Limherl. 
 
 Thin iii>w uiid iiiiportaiil dt'8i<li«rutiun vvouhl iUno l»t» attuiiu'd, thoin^h iicr- 
 lm|)H not in (|uiti' iih cunvi'nicnt u lnini w CDuld In' wiHlicil Tlif ki'-uI hfij^lit of 
 the hiiduc tin- Icnuth ol' tin' ronihini'd hiidyv iind I'lnlninkini'ul. and the pDNition 
 ol' thn Nliorn ciuIn, would, I think, iilwiiyK he I'elt us diMudviintiiffes in no imjiortunt 
 II tlioroiiii'iif'iiri'. 
 
 .' 
 
 9. — Providing Water Pmrer ul the Emlxtnkmenl. 
 
 Thi' Scht'iiit' would ttMtninly mipply wivtiT power of i^ifiit oxtont imd fairly 
 HiitiNfnclDry clmracli'r duriiitr NUiniiinr, hut in winliT it would, f think, ho ho 
 incDUHtant iih I(< \w praclically usi'Icmh. 
 
 iMirintfthe tnkinirnnd hreakinjf tipof tiit- iio in I'vcry aulinnn and Hprinir, 
 Ihcrc arc pcriodM, varyinir Irom a few diiyN to wi'veral wci^kn, wluMi the river at 
 and hi'low iIii(li(daK:a and the Itoiiehervilie IslandH, is nearly or \vhi>lly covered 
 with Mtatioiiary iee, while rnmi there |o Laehine, and often ihroni^h Lake St l^uis, 
 there i8 open water uiid runnini^ iee. Duriny nuch limeN thts lloatiiii>: ice hrought 
 dow n hy the Machine HapidN and passed ihn>u!'-!i the Harhour, paeks \indor and 
 ainon^sl I he htalioiiary ii'e and norifeN ihe ( haniiej heiow the I'ity. The 
 hydraulic condilion of the riv er helow is also ihanuod from an open chimiud to a 
 eloNed one with donided p.'iiiiieler, and from llie.se eause.s the siirfaee levid rise.s 
 NO as to cihlileiiile llie swift ( urreni at Ihe sih' ol the emhankineiit ; or in other 
 words, the water power ut such times would he drowned mil hv haek water. 
 
 Followini,' the drowuinuf nnt ol' the ourreiit. and after a lapse of time (!(«■ 
 termined hy tiie f|uantity of runniimiee, eome thei^reat " ice shoves,"' for which the 
 SI iiawrenee at MtnUreal is noted. A •rlanee at the map of ihe river and its 
 Hhoulu opposite the City, revenln Ihe cnnweN which make Ihe main hody of Ihe water 
 How strou!>-ly towards the Montreal shore, briiiffiiiu' with il lields of ice 
 which are thrown au'iiinst Ihe Imnk and piled up in lnu;e masses From the 
 plan of till' scheme too, it will he seen thai the line of emhaiikujeut is almost 
 exactly i>arallel with the Montreal shore. The main shoals, the deepest water, 
 the set of the current ahove the dam. and tlie narrowiny in of the river helow 
 il, all hear suhslanlially siuiilar relalioiis to each other and to the dam, as the 
 same feiiiuri's do l<i each other and to I lie sliori' oj)po>iii' the reniial part of the ( 'itv ; 
 and plainly the causes which now worK to heap up iiioniids of ice on Ihe 
 City front would lierealler act upon Ihe dii.n. and would as certainly lodij-e the 
 ice in similar ureal musses rcachiiiii- t(i the holtoni and ehokinu- the sluices bevoud 
 pcissihility of usrfuhicss uniil ciisucd in lli' sprinu-. 
 
 In all our norlhern rivers thai are usimI for wal.T powiM-, and do not freeze 
 over, it is well known thai more or less (Ijlilriiliy is exix'rieiiced from anchor iee 
 or /W(.s//, hul prohahly in no ri\cr is il loiined on a u-randev scale Ihan in the 
 ."^1. Lawrence, and at lew places is il ualheied in urealer (piantity than at 
 Montreal. 
 
 The long sirelch of open and aiiilated wiiter in and ahove Ihe Laehine 
 Jfajiids, supply the re(|uircil londilioiis for its forinalioii and siorai,'e in vast 
 (juaiilities, and with evi'iy rise of |eiiii>eralure masses are del ached and swi'pt 
 (h)wn and lodued under the solid ice ol' I|||. Laprairie I'.asiii. ihe Harhour of 
 Montreal and the h'iver far helow. 
 
 Winter siirvi'vs in the 1 larhour, show that iieaily the whole area from 
 Victoria iilidne to lloehelaua, is lilled to (le],llis of lo, 1.") or evtui ;'>0 feel, and 
 great spaces are oficn packed lull to the hoitom. And this oceiirs not only, uor 
 chielly, in Ihe slacker currents, hut in the fastest as well In the swiftest part 
 of St. Mary's ("urreiil, il is always found, and sometimes in such (juanlily as to 
 occupy at least one-third of Ihe ch.aiinel section. Last winter the St. Lambert 
 Channel at the site of the proposed bridge, was also lilled so as to reduce it to less 
 than half its effective capacity. 
 
With this enormous supply oi franil, mul witli ^c curront swooping the 
 front of thi^ onibaiikiiu'iil, Ihi' condilions an* prctisfly siu;li us arc rocniisitc 
 to till tlio .sluifcs and lliimi's, and cli'^ki' IV.st the gati'.s and walor wlift'ls, 
 and thus further eontrilmte to render useless the water power dnrinir the 
 winter. 
 
 But a scheme of water power tit for use only in summer, cannot he 
 considered a completely, or at least a eommercially, feasible one. Few mills 
 or faetories usinj- lari^e power, can alibrd to he idle durinjjf winter, and if they 
 cannot have water ihey must have steam, whicli in thi.s case would mean steam 
 power lour or live months of the year with water wheels and Humes of ixnusually 
 large size, in order to utilize a very low watt>r fall for the reuuuning months. 
 
 There are some .lolahli! examph's of factories on the St. Lawrence Canals, 
 where the power is from water purl of the year, and steam and water together 
 the remainder, but in these cases the falls are hisih, and therefore the wheels and 
 Humes small, construct ion and land arc cheap, and the lease or jiurchase ol 
 water merely nominal. With the present .^chen>e all ihese woulil he reversed. 
 
 Lifts and warehouses for goods and liiain are nu'ntioncd as ea.ses in which 
 a summer power only is required, hut all that would prohahly he needed in this 
 way on a mile and a (piartcr of wharf, would not utilize the power of a single 
 sluice of the size projiosed. 
 
 OTHER EFFECTS OF THE SCHEME. 
 Flotxls from Ice Shoves. 
 
 By far the u'realest (piestion raised by the Scheme is that of its |>r<)bable 
 effect ixpou the height of the liiver at liie time of the great "Ice Shoves.' Sir 
 \Vm. Logan has vividly desorihcd, and clearly discussed the causes of these grand 
 phenomena of the St. Lawrence, and (he following extract from his description 
 will e-reatly assist in considering ihem in relation ti) the (juestion in hand: — 
 
 " The frosts commence about the end of November, ii iil u umrL'iii of ice oi' .-oiiie strength 
 ^oon tbriiw uloiii; the cliores of th-.: river and around every i.^laiid and iirojeetini; rock in it ; and 
 wtii-revir tliere is Mti] water it is imnndiatrly caked over. 'I'Ih^ wind aetiriu on tlii.'i >;liieiii Cringe, 
 breaks off ]iortions in variou.s |iart.s, and these proeeedinu' down the stream, eniistitute a moving 
 border on tlie outside ot the; stationary oik' whieh, as the intensity of tli<' cold inereases. is con- 
 tinually aUL'niented by the adherence of tin- iee sheets which liave been coaslinj; alonj: it ; and as 
 the stationary one thu- robs tlie movin;.; one this still I'urlher outHanks the other, until in some 
 jiarts thi' margins from the o|i|)osit<' slions nearly uieetinL'. the floating iee becomes jatnnn'il U]p 
 between them, and a nii;lit of severe frost forms a bridy;(^ across the river. Thi' first ice bridire 
 below Montreal is usually formed at the entrance of the river into Lake St. Peter, where the 
 many channels into which tlie stream is split up greatly a.ssist8 the process. 
 
 As soon as this winter barrier is thrown across (generally towards Christmas) it ol emiriie 
 rapidly iucrease.s by stopping; the ]>rouriss of the downward floatiu'.: iee. which has by this time 
 as-sumed a character of considerable i;rainlenr, marly the whole surlaee of the stream being 
 covered with it. and the ijiiantity is so irreat. that to ai'e(;:int lor the supply, many, unsatisfied 
 with the supposition of a marginal origin, have reeuur.-e to the hypoibe^is that a very lariri' portion 
 is formed on, aud derived from the bottom of the river where rapid eurrenis exist. 
 
 IJnt wlial<ver its orijrin it now moves in soliil an<l ixteiisive lields, and v.herever it meets 
 with obstacles ill its course thi' momentum of the ina.ss breaks up tln^ strikirii: [laek into hui;e frag- 
 ments that pile over one another, ir if ihi' object be stationary iee, the frajiments are driven 
 under it. aud there closely packed. Heneath the constantly widening iee barrier nienticnied. an 
 enormous ((Uantity i,s thus driven, particularly when the barrier gains any position where the cur- 
 rent is .itronL'i r than usual. The augmented I'orei with which the masses thin move pushes and 
 pack.s so much below that the space kept lor thi' river to How in is ^'really diminished, and the con- 
 8ci|uence is a perceptible rise of the waters above, which indeed from the very first taking of the 
 " bridge," gradually and slowly incrcasen for a con.siderable way up. 
 
 There is no place on tlie St. liawrcnee where all the phenomena of thi' taking, packing, 
 and shoving of the ice are .o yrandly displayed as in the neiubourhood of Montreal. The vio- 
 lence of the currents here is so '.xreal, and the river in some places expands to such a width, that 
 whether we consider the prodigious rxlent of the mas.<cs moved, or tlie force witii 'vhieh they are 
 propelled, uolbing can afford a were majestic spectacle i"- impress the mind more thoroughly with a 
 sense of irresistible jiower. ."staniling for hours t.Mji'ther upon the bank overlooking i^t. Mary's 
 eunent, I have seen league after Iragne of iee eruslud and broken a^jainst the barrier lower down, 
 and there submergi d and cramiued beneath. And when we relleet that an operation similar to 
 this occurs in sev.:al parte, from Lake St. Peter upwards, it will not surprise us that the liver 
 should gradually swell. 
 
 ^ 
 
9 
 
 By tho time the ico Ims bncomo stiitinnary iit tho foot of St. Mary's ourn^iit, tlu! waters of 
 tlic St. Lawrencu have usually risen several foot iji the Ilarboiir of Montreal, and s\* tho .space 
 through whieh this c'lrront (lows afTunls a di'e|i :ind narrow piissa;;(! lor nearly the wholes body of 
 tho river, it may well be ima'^ined tliat wiion the paekinf^ here bni;ins, thi; iimnlation r;ipidly 
 inoreasoH. The confined nature of this jiart of the eliaiinel affinU a more ready resistaue.! to the 
 pro};res.s of tho ice, whilr tho violenc! of the eurront brini;s suoh an al)Undant supnly, and paeks 
 it with so inueh force that the river, diininiod up by the barrier wbioh in many places roaches to 
 the bottom, attains in the Harbour a lici'^iht usually twenty, and sometimes twenty-five feet above 
 its summer level ; and it is not unoomnion between this point anil the f )ot of the current, within 
 tho distance of a mile, to see a difforeneo in elevation of several feet which underi;oos niiiny rapid 
 clian^es, the waters cbbinj; or flowini; according to the amount of in'pediraent they meet with in 
 tlicir progress, from submerged ice. 
 
 It is at this period that the jjrandest movements of the ico occur. From tlie cfiect of 
 packing mid piliuL.', and tlio accumulation of the snows of the season, the .saturation of these with 
 water and tlio (reezinj; of iIk' whole into a solid body, it attains tho tliickness of ten to twenty 
 feel and even more; and often it has liecomo fixed as far as tlie cyocan roach, a suddin ri.se in the 
 Water (occasioned uo doubt in tbi! manner mentioned) lifting' up a wide expansi! of the whole 
 eoverini; of the river, .so hi;.'li as to free and start it, from the many points of rock and resistance 
 offered by the bottom, whore it liad bc^en packed deep enough to touch it, tlie vast mass is set in 
 motion by the whole hydiaulie power of this L'i.raiitio stream. Proccerlini; onward with a truly 
 terrilie majo.'-ty it piles up over every obstacle it encounters; and wlien forced into a narrow part 
 of the channel the lateral pressure it there asserts drives the bordairc up the banks, whore it some- 
 times accumulates to the heiglit of forty or fifty feet." 
 
 Ill lookiiio- more i-losi'ly nt the i)liysio;il chaviicti'vistics whii'h contributt! 
 to produic Ihi'.sc <^raiid plicuomciia, it will hn .seen that iil'tcr [)a.ssiiiii- (ln> J.,a(hiue 
 lia])i(ls with a fall of .some 30 loet, the River widens into the Laprairie Basin 
 4 miles ill breadth, tiiid is a<>'aiii narrowed hy the abutments of the Victoria 
 Hridsre to (),.J70 feet, or 1 i mile-.. ( )pposite Montreal, where divided by St. Helen's 
 Island, it has a width of l,!l()(l feet in the Montreal ehannel, and 2,7(10 feet in the 
 Si. l^ambert cliannel, makiiiij 4.ti00 feet, or ; of a mile total water way, measured 
 at tlie liiirh water iiiii'. Bel w St. Helen's and lie Konde the river unites and 
 passes l.ion<riieuii with a breadth of | of a mile, and au-aiii widens out to the 
 Boui herville Islands which it passes in a main channel l\ miles wide, and another 
 a (quarter of a mile wide. Between the St, l^ambert and tho old Brassey 
 wharf. Just below the Victoria Bridge, the river's bretidth is reduced to -"i.dOO feet, 
 ova little under a mile, (countino- in the openinsfs in tlie St Lambert pier,) but 
 at hio-h water these wharves sire submerged to a considerable dejjtli and lloatiny 
 ice pa.sses freelv over them. .\t He l{oiide too, where the St. Marys current is 
 narrowed, tho Island is sul)merged at hiuh wat(>r, and the loss ot breadth is made 
 lip by the enlargement and deepening of thi' channel between He Rondo and 
 St. Helen's. 
 
 The heiiilit of the river at which the great ice packs take place, varies 
 very hmkIi. btii takiim- 1.5 feet above low water at Montreal anil 10 I'eet aV)Ove 
 low wilier 111 the Lajirairie Basin as common heights, the dejith of water 
 over a laro-e area in the eciitvnl part of the Basin, will then be from Jo to •2-'> feet, 
 and at the Victoria liridLsv 14 to 28 feel. In th<' Current St. Mary. l.'.iOO feel 
 wide, the irreatest depth will })e 65 feel, and the average 3') feet, giving a cross 
 section of water way of about 73.000 si|UMve feet. The St. Lambert Channel of 
 2,700 feel, tor say .J a mile.) is 2ti I'ect maximum, and 1") I'eot average deiith with 
 40,00(1 s(|uare feet cross section, lu the two channels at St. Helen's, there is 
 therel'ore at this height of water a sectional area of l»:l.o00 scjuare feet, equiva- 
 lent to an average depth of 24^ feel over the whole 4.000 feel width. At 
 Victoria Bridtje the sectional area, .ilier deducting the piers, is about the same ; 
 at Longueuil it is coiisiderablv hirucr, and at Bouchervilli> it is v'er twice as large. 
 
 j\s leo'ards currents, the motive power in ice shoves, there is in summer 
 a rate of about IJ to :^ miles an hour iit the main channel through the Laprairie 
 Basin ; 8 to 6 miles between lh(> piers of the Victoria Bridge ; 4i to 7J miles in 
 the St. Mary's Current : ^h to 4 miles at Hochelaga, and about 21 miles further 
 down. In winter the jiackinff of the ii-e into inverted shoals, solid islands and 
 dams of every size, often throws the currents entirely out of their ordinary 
 courses and changes them to any speed Irom a sluao-ish How lo a rush of 10 or 
 15 miles an hour. 
 
10 
 
 The condition ol" tlif iic itself iind the force with whi(;h it is bronirht down 
 by the currents, arc well (li's.rihcd l)y Sir \Vm, Lofran in the extract already uiven ; 
 but it must be noted, tiiat as regards the Harbour, tiie ice fields are now limited 
 in their breath to the 330 and 240 feet which can pass the spans of the Victoria 
 Bridge. 
 
 The irorijinsj of llie river and the formation of ice dams are, however, not 
 due to the size of Ihe masses, hut to tlieir (quantity, for only such blocks as can be 
 rolled under the stationary ice are efleetive in ehokina' up the water channel. 
 
 In inve8ti<rating the practical consequences of ice Jams, as distinct from 
 their causes, it appears at once that it is only the Hoods which acc(mipany the 
 .jams that are of serious importance. The movements of the ice itsell' lor the 
 mo.st part occur withir. well known limits and are easily guarded against, but 
 the Hoods extend over great and iiuleiinite areas and work serious damage. 
 
 For instance the flood of April, 18i!l, already mcMitioncd, was caused by 
 the packing of the ice at one or more places ab()ut the Itoucherville Islands The 
 water rose until at ^IcGill Street it stood l'."> It '2 ins. above low water, {4'2 ft. - ins. 
 above the lower lock sill, Lachine Canal) flooding the low parts of the ("ity and 
 causing great sufli'ring and damage. A considerable pari of [..ongueuil, St. I.,ambert 
 and Laprairie Viliaiies. and a large area ol' country on that side of the Kiver, and 
 along the Lower Lachine Road on tiie other side, were also submerged and serious 
 damage done. In April, 1865, another flood occurred, only 1 ft. 6 ins. lower, and 
 with proportionate damage. In April. 1H.")><, a Hood occnrreil from a jam some- 
 where in the neiii'liborliood of the Victoria jiridu'e. and thi> wati'r in thi' Lai)rairie 
 Basin was raised to 44 feet aliovi> tlie level of tin- Lock Sill, or about 14 feet above 
 low water, and oversowed niiiri> than linif t!ie liidund from Point SI. Charles to half 
 a mile above the St. I'ierre Jioad. and i)elwecii the river and tlie Water Works 
 Aqueduct. In January. 18.')7, during a period of unusual cold, a gre.it i)art ol 
 the ordinarily open water of the Lachine Wapids was frozen ovei'. and o,i the ice 
 l)n'akinn' loose slionly alter, it packed in the upper part of the Lapraiiie liasin^ 
 then partly Imrst away and relornied at Nun"s Island, when tiie wali'r in the 
 Basin abdVe suddenly rose to 17 feet over low water at the Si. I'ii'rre IJoad. lU feet 
 at Mr. J. S. Hall's, and 24 feet at Mr. LeNause's. The Lachiiu' lia(.id.s were almost 
 obliterated : Ihe whole country Ix'tween the Ifiverand the Aqueduct overflow ed ; 
 the Aqueduct banks were sufUciently ov<'rllowed to pour river water down the 
 Aqueduct and Hood the Water-works ^\■he»>l-hou.se ; the ice shoved over the river 
 bank and road near Nun's Island, and deniolislied two bou.ses and did much petty 
 damage. 
 
 'I'iiese and other ln^(ance^ wliieli miiilll be (pioled, all iTo In show that llie 
 channels of the river are already too small, that they are liable to hi' eliokeil 
 with ice in any winter, and the experii'iices of the past to be repeated. 
 
 But in the Scheme ii is (>roposeil to close up the Main Channel on the 
 Montreal side of St. Helen's Island, which is Iwo-lhinN of ilie whole water way 
 of the river, and turn it.-- How iliroueh the other lliird aloiie. 
 
 It is not at all a <iiiestion of the cajiacity of the St. i.,ami)ert Channel as 
 compared to that of the Montreal Channel; bnl as compared to their capacities 
 combined; and as compared to the capacity of tht> whole river channel in the 
 vicinity. Whatever iiu rease of capacity the St. Lambert Channel can have ixiven 
 it bv the hiu'hest permissible ri.se of water with the comi)leted scheme, it may 
 have, and does have now ; and it has the main, or Montreal channel, beside, 
 with all the a<ldilion that the same rise ol water will make in that too It is 
 not proposed to do anything of importance towards enlartfine- the Si Lambert 
 Channel; for the deepening of a portion for tin.' boat channi'l will just about 
 compensate for the space taken by the piers of the proposed bride-e and will leave its 
 cajiacily practically the same as now. The water is intended to be raised high 
 enouii'h to force itself through, but no elevation of the surlace, within the safe 
 Hood level, can give this channel alone a sectional area equal to that of both 
 
11 
 
 channels. Bixt it is not a mere question of sectional aren, for manifestly the 
 great depth of the central part of St. Mary's current, is a safe-guard against its 
 being choked by the ice while a shiillow one is especially liable. If however a 
 pack does take place in the deep chanuid of sufficient extent to retard the water 
 and cause it to rise farther np, the iSt. Lambert Channel comes in to assist, and 
 the two together pass the water with ease. 
 
 The bottom of the St. Lambert Channel, even when cleaned out as con- 
 templated in the scheme, will be higher than the river bottom elsewhere in the 
 vicinity. Apart from the boat channel in it, the l)ottom will be about live feet 
 higher than th(^ present bed of the 'iver in the main channel above it ; in fact the 
 embankment and the St. Lambert shore may t»c looked upon as the banks of a 
 huge mill rac, and the bottom at the site of the jiroposed bridge, as the weir over 
 which the surplus water is to pass. Or. to place it in a form v.'hicli we may 
 more readily realize : — Supjjose that eleven of the south-eastern spans of the 
 Victoria Bridge on the St. LMml)ert shoals he left open, and that the intended 
 embankment, sluices and all, to l)e placed from the eleventh to Nuns' Island, so 
 as to close the remaining Iburteon spiins on this side, and to pass thi; whole river, 
 or at least seven-eighths of it, through the eleven open spans. Ai.d, to complete 
 the comparison, snpiujse the river bank at St. Lamberts to l)e lilled out above the 
 bridg(! to the end of the abutment, there would then be practically the same 
 condition of things as ]>roposed in the scheme. There would be the same funnel 
 shape for the ice to wedsi'e into, and the same bridne and sliallow bottom to 
 ol)struct its getting throiiiih. With siicli conditions, and they are faiily similar, 
 anyresident ol Montreal will readily sec the certainly of'su-h ici' jams as would 
 produce most disastnnis Hoods over tie' whole banks of Laprairio liasin. 
 
 Bui returning to the actual scheme; it will be remembered that the 
 controlling sluic;'N are intended to be shut in the fall and kept so until spring, 
 and o'lly the mill sluice.s, with a nominal dischariiing capacity of about one- 
 fourth of till ri\i r, are to be ke|>t <)j)eii. The contingency of an ice jam at 
 the i>roposecl bridsic f-uu'm'sis tlie openini;' of the shiices to pass th(? surplus 
 water thn vigh the embankment, but it i.-- more than probable that such a jam 
 would also (^hoke the mouths of the sluices iind iciulcr tlieni unlit for use precisely 
 when needed for relief 
 
 It has been suggested that tin' speed of the current in the St. fjambert Chan- 
 nel, after I he carryintr out ot the Sclicnu', would sweep the ice throuah it and 
 l)revcnt a serious block ; hut Mr. Itateman csiimales that tiie current in the 
 St. Lambert Channel would be 1 .\ miles less, or at most no u-reater, than that in 
 the ,'^1. Mary's Current, where so much packing now takes place. 
 
 Mr. Bateman's report states that levees will be Imilt wherever necessary, 
 to prevent low lands jieiniv Hooded, bm nothing of the kind is mentioned in the 
 Bill, nor shown on the plans, and it lan luirdly bi' understood that the brief state- 
 ment in the report wo'.ild insure ih.> lonsiruciion of works of (he required 
 magnitude. In fad, Mr. ISaleman, says that while the i)roposed works are 
 expected to raise tht> water at fjaprairie only 4^ feet, the lowest land is some 
 11 feet above present water, and it is therefore impossible that it would be 
 Hooded. But it Hoods already. Willi all the channels we now have, .several 
 square miles of country have been subnn'rged and people have paddled over 
 their farms in canoe,s. 
 
 In view, tlieii'fore, of thi' known choking of the St. Lawrence by ice in the 
 greatly larger, and deeper, and beyer formed channels in the vicinity of Montreal, 
 I am decidedly of the opinion that to attempt to confine the river to the St. 
 Lambert Channel in winter, is proposi'd in the Scheme, would cause much greater 
 and more fre(pu'nt Hoods, on the banks of the Laprairie Basin an.d in the neigh- 
 borhood of the proposed embankment, than have hitherto occurred. 
 
 ■WaijaMM 
 
 Miiii 
 
 MMHHBMI 
 
12 
 
 Deviation of (he Naviijnhlc Channel betioeen the lltirhuiir ami Victoria Bridge. 
 
 The new (■haiincl which is proposed in componsution I'or closiiipf the 
 present one, would i)iis.s round the south-ciist side ol' St. Helen's and lie Ifonde, 
 nda o'lter the ILirhour at lioehejaiia. It would, aeeordiuir to the hill, he not less 
 than oOO leet wide and 10 loet deep at low water, and its ijreatesi current as 
 estimated hy Mr. llatenian, would not he over 7 miles an hour. It is intended too, 
 that i);issnn<4ers may h;' landed from the Lapr'iirie and other hoats on the up 
 stream .«ide oI" the emhankment. 
 
 The hreadlh and depth of the proposed new channel east ol' St. Helen '.s, 
 appear to me to be sullicient I'or the requirements of naviiration, and althousfh I 
 am at a loss to si'e how its current, under ihe eouditions sketched out in l!ie hill, 
 would not consi(K'ral>ly e.\cee(] " miles an hour, I inive no donl)! ihat it could easily 
 be so arranged as Id iiave speeds not exeeedini;' some of those in the present 
 current. Its chief disadvantaii'e is ohvionsjv it.'» circuitous course : it would add 
 2} miles to every trip lo and from thi- upper i)art of the harlxiur. with the 
 additional disadvanlaue that there would either he the Current St Mary, or that 
 ill the new chiinnel In he ascended everv trip; while now there is a current 
 only one way. Practically, it woidd amount to about 20 minuies extra running- 
 in eacli down trip, ami 30 minutes in each up trip of a boat capable of makin<r 12 
 miles an hour in still water. Heyond the extra runniiur of boats, and loss of 
 time to tiieir passengers, I see no inii>ortant objection to tlie propo.sed deviation 
 of the .hanuel. 
 
 lM:)r rafts, the St. Lambi>rt Channel would he eipially as u'ood as the present 
 Main Channel and it would be a beuelit of some importance to have them 
 prevented from iiassiiiff ihrouuh the harbour. 
 
 The plans show a clear jieadway undci- the proposed brid<re of only aliout 
 4S feet, which is 12 fert less than that under tie' \'ictoiia Ihidue. And this is. I 
 think, an objectionable feature in the Sihemc. 
 
 .Vllhouffh not strictly within the .scope of ni\ insii-uctioii>. it max not be 
 out of jilaoe to draw atteiiliou to the fact that the wharl'Miic proposed in the 
 Scheme, would be within the boundaries of the Montii'.il Harbour. The bill, as 
 I understand it. would I'onfcr upon the Company indi'iiciideni powers l<> act as 
 wharliiiu'ers at their own wharves, and there mitrht thus be established within 
 the Harbour a system of wharlaijre. which to say the least, miiiiit be very 
 embarrassinii- to the Harbour Commissioners in carryiuji out their I'uhlic Trust. 
 
 Yoixrs respectfully. 
 
 .lUliX KKNNEDV. 
 
 Chirf Kngimrr. 
 
 M 
 
I' I! 
 
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