70 



THE MADRAS HARBOUR. 



I may mention that the slope in front of the damaged 

 part has since been extended and covered with a mass of large 

 blocks below water, and though many equally heavy seas 

 have attacked the place, no further damage has been done. 

 The dropped blocks are obvious to any one passing along the 

 pier. 



The mode in which these "protection blocks" were placed 

 in position may be worth record. A bank of laterite about 

 10 feet wide was formed against the north face of the break- 

 water nearly level with its top. Upon this 10 feet were 

 built during the fine weather at the latter end of the south- 

 west monsoon a number of blocks each about 8 feet cube 

 and 32 tons weight. While the sea was smooth the loose 

 laterite on which they stood was undisturbed, but with the 

 north-east monsoon seas of November and December it was 

 cut away from under the blocks and the latter fell just into 

 the place where they were required to protect the foot of the 

 breakwater blocks. Thus the destructive action of the sea 

 was utilized against itself. 



We now enter upon a new and very important chapter in 

 the history of the north pier. It has now reached a depth 

 of about 15 feet ; there is a thin bed of rubble stone under 

 the blocks, which are three deep ; deeper water is ahead ; 

 some rubble base had been deposited ready for advancing 

 the block work, and all looked promising for our soon reach- 

 ing that depth of water which we looked upon as the limit 

 of our transitional difficulties. But it was not to be yet. 

 15 feet of wa/ter over sand on a surf-beaten' coast is a trea- 

 cherous condition of things. My colleagues and myself were 

 well aware of this, and in writing to Mr. Thorowgood in 

 March I incidentally mentioned that I thought some changes 

 of the bottom might be anticipated with the change of the 

 monsoon. This letter crossed one from him announcing 

 that on examining the bottom at the foot of the blocks on 



