Hocking Canal, and on that portion of the Ohio Canal between Carroll and Columbus, will no doubt increase greatly for some years to come, and require much more water than can be furnished by the present Reservoir. The Board, therefore, respectfully call the attention of the General Assembly to the necessity of enlarging that Reservoir, to meet the wants of the Hocking, and that part of the Ohio Canal dependent upon it. We would again call the attention of the General Assembly to the termination of the Ohio Canal at Portsmouth, and renew our recommendations, contained in previous reports, to assist in the construction of a bridge across the Scioto, from the city to the bank of the Canal. This would undoubtedly facilitate and increase the business on the Canal greatly. The interests of the Ohio Canal, as well as justice to shippers, require not only a bridge, which has been undertaken of late by private enterprise, but that the canal should be widened above the lower lock, to give sufficient room for boats to load and unload. There is little doubt that the increased business on the canal at this point, if these improvements were made, would repay all extra expense in a few years. The Board would likewise call the attention of the General Assembly to the importance of building a weight-lock at Carroll, or Lockbourne; one that would accommodate both the Hocking and Ohio Canals. Experience has shown that the weighlocks already built at Cleveland and Toledo save a large amount of revenue to the State; and such, no doubt, would be the case if one were constructed at some convenient point on this Division of the Canals. There has been paid on Section No. 2, for the year ending November 15, 1856, by check of Wayne Griswold, Acting Commissioner, on the Auditor of StateOn contracts for superintendence and repairs.. For engineers' salaries, printing and incidentals... For unfinished work, under contract prior to Nov. 15, 1855--- Total... $22,355 46 360 95 300 00 $23,016 41 There has been paid on Section No. 3, for the year ending November 15, 1856, by check of Wayne Griswold, Acting Commissioner, on the Auditor of State On contracts for superintendence and repairs... For engineers' salaries, attorneys' fees and incidental expenses.- On awards for damages.... For scales for weigh-lock Total... $34,736 60 2.588 65 6,581 10 3,041 80 460 00 $47,408 15 SECTION NO. 4-HOCKING CANAL. The water was drawn from this Section, for spring repairs, about the middle of March, and returned on the 10th of April. All the ordinary repairs have been made. Several pairs of new lock-gates have been built, and the dams graveled and otherwise secured. Navigation upon this canal, with the exception of the side-cut, was good up to the twenty-fifth of June, when the water was drawn from the side-cut for the purpose of deepening and widening it, from Lancaster to Carroll, and returned again on the eighth of October. It was impossible, during this time, to feed the canal sufficiently below Lancaster to keep navigation in good order. During the latter part of the season the severe drouth and the consequent fail ure of the water in the Licking Summit Reservoir rendered it impossible to maintain a good navigation on this work, yet a large amount of business has been done since opening the side-cut, with a good prospect of its being largely increased in future. The contract for deepening and widening the Lancaster side-cut was awarded to Dennis McCarthy & Co. They commenced the work on the twenty-eighth of June, with a large force, and continued to work until the eighth of October, when the water was let into it again. The removal of the muck and quick-sand from the bottom of the canal was far more difficult and expensive than had been anticipated before draining the water. Over four miles of it was one continued slough, which could be worked only by building frequent coffer-dams, and bailing the water from one to the other, until the mud was scooped out. Had it not been an extremely dry season it would have been impossible to have done the work at all The first six miles from Carroll, including all the worst part of the Canal, is entirely completed. In some places, owing to slides and quicksand, the contractors were required to excavate a width of thirty-two feet at bottom. The two miles next to Lancaster were excavated to a width of twenty feet only, as the appropriation was exhausted, and the contractors had drawn on their private means to complete the work sufficiently to make the channel good for navigation. About twenty thousand yards of dry earth remain to be removed from the sides of the canal on these two miles. The estimate of the work done amounts to $41,795 14. The resources of the Hocking valley are being rapidly developed, and the transportation of coal, iron, stone and the agricultural products, will make an extensive business for this canal, now that the side-cut is open for good navigation, and more especially if the Licking Summit Reservoir should be enlarged, so as to furnish a constant supply of water. There has been paid on this section, for the year ending November 15th, 1856, by check of Wayne Griswold, Acting Commissioner, on the Auditor of StateOn contract for superintendence and repairs -For Engineers' salary, special superintendence, and incidental ex penses... $9,092 88 For work under contract prior to November 15, 1855. 1,398 25 82 14 30,500 00 $41,073 27 Total_____ SECTION NO. 5-MUSKINGUM IMPROVEMENT. This branch of the Public Works, like the balance, has suffered greatly during the past season from the severe drouth. Most of the dams have been graveled and otherwise repaired, and the Canal oleaned out, yet the water became so low that it was impossible to keep up navigation for the larger class of boats, during the latter part of the season, or to supply water for the mills. DRESDEN. Large bars formed at the mouth of the lock, obstructing the entrance into the Ohio Canal, have been removed. SYMMES' CREEK. The locks cribs and gates have been repaired, the dam graveled, new sheeting put on a part of it, and the banks protected with stone. ZANESVILLE. Part of the Canal has been dredged out, the dam graveled and planked, and some of the slope wall re-built. TAYLORSVILLE. The dam has been gravelled and planked, a part of the slope wall re-built, the Canal dredged out, the banks ditched, and the East crib re-built. ROKEBY. A part of the two lower aprons have been re-built on a foundation of piles, the crib on the East side re-built, and the dam thoroughly repaired. MCCONNELLSVILLE. The aprons have been renewed in part, the cribs filled with stone, the dam graveled and repaired. and the bars dredged away below the lock. WINDSOR. The two lower aprons on the West side have been re-built, the cribs filled with stone, and the dam graveled and repaired. LUKE CHUTE. The dam has been graveled, partly renewed by piles driven below, the aprons repaired, and the cribs filled with stone. This, and the Windsor dam, required, and received, thorough repairs to protect and render them safe. BEVERLY. The dam has been graveled, the lock and gates repaired, and the Canal dredged out. LOWELL. The Canal has been dredged out, and the dam repaired and graveled. DEVOLS. The lower aprons have been rebuilt in part, the dam repaired, and the cribs filled with stone. MARIETTA. The lower aprons and cribs, forming the breast work, were partly re-built, and piles driven for the foundation of the aprons, the cribs filled with stone, and the dam otherwise repaired and graveled. The repairs in this Improvement have been thoroughly done, although the contractors could not get their materials ready by as early in the season as they will be enabled to do hereafter. $24,522 17 There has been paid on this section, for the year, ending November 15, 1856, by check of Wayne Griswold, Acting Commissioner, on the Auditor of State▬▬ On contract for superintendence and repairs.... For Engineer's salary and incidental expenses. For work under contract prior to November 15, 1855 For awards for damages by Board of Public Works.. Total. 1,020 00 1,794 48 60 25 $27,396 90 There has been paid out of the Contingent Fund of the Board, for Total..... 35-PUB. DOO. PART I. $1,202 92 2,058 49% $3,261 41 It will be seen by an examination of the annexed tabular statement that the gross receipts for tolls, water-rents and fines on the Public Works for the year ending November 15, 1856, are.. The receipts for the year ending November, 15, 1855, were. Showing a diminution in the receipts for 1856, as compared with those of 1855, of.......... $427,813 09 468,831 93 $41,018 84 About six thousand dollars of this diminution in the revenue occurred on the Ohio Canal, five thousand on the Hocking Canal, and thirty thousand on the Miami and Erie Canal, while on both the Muskingum Improvement, and the Walhonding Canal, there is a slight increase. It is confidently believed that the loss in tolls on the Ohio, and Hocking Canals would not have occurred had navigation remained uninterrupted on the Lancaster Side Cut, notwithstanding the failure in the supply of water from the Licking Summit Reservoir. There is no reason to believe that the export of coal from the Hocking Valley would have been less, in any event, than it was last year, had not the work on the Side Cut prevented its shipment, and there is good reason to believe it would have been greater. If this supposition be correct the offices at Logan and Carroll would have made up the deficiency on these two works. This shows that notwithstanding the unfavorable crops of the last two or three years, and the interruption to navigation from want of sufficient supply of water, the business of the eastern portion of our Public Works is increasing, a result due undoubtedly to the gradual augmentation of the business of the country, and more especially to the increase of the coal and iron trade. The diminished income of the Miami and Erie Canal is attributable entirely to the want of a sufficient supply of water on the Loramie Summit, noticed in another part of this report. The facilities for shipment by railroad are now so great that any interruption, of the kind experienced on this work during the past season, results in the immediate withdrawal of freight from the Canal, and its transfer to the rival routes. The aggregate of checks drawn on the canals of the State during the fiscal year ending November 15, 1856, it will be seen, is $401,498 00. This sum, however, does not properly represent the expenditures chargeable to the current repairs for the year, as in it are included large payments for work previously performed, as well as others for repairs of a character not likely to occur again. The amount of these items on the several works is as follows: |