DEEPENING THE HARBOR.

Evening Star, Issue 4294, 30 November 1876, Page 3

DEEPENING THE HARBOR.

To ihe Editor. Sir, —Capt Thomson’s letter to the Engineer of the Dunedin Harbor Board appears to show a sad want of knowledge of the navigation of narrow channels. He says : “Suppose the channel only 100 feet wide, and a vessel 250 feet being towed up on the flood tide and against the wind, suddenly tho wind increases so that the tug cannot make headway, or, it may be, the steamer breaks down, then there is nothing for it but to let go the anchor, and that quickly, which being done, the ship immediate! y swings with the tide, and if not sufficient width of channel to admit of her doing so, she is caught at both ends, and not improbably she might stick in such position during the ebb ; and if so, the vessel, unsupported in the midship section, would be wrecked. It might be said let go an anchor from the stem in order to avoid the swinging. Well, it might in a measure meet the difficulty, only vessels are not fitted with the necessary appliances for such an operation.” Let him then ask how the long steamers of the “Anchor” Line from New York are brought up the Clyde to Glasgow. No doubt plenty of masters of vessels can tell him that there is such a thing as one tug astern, as well as one ahead, which manoeuvre would have cer.ainly been resorted to by St. Paul had tugs been in vogue at his time.—l am, &c., . Voyageue, Dunedin, November 29.