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258 the end of the famous timber wharves on the western seaboard. _ The new piers, known respectively as Nos. 38 and 40, are situated at the foot of First street, San Francisco, where there is plenty of deep water TAE MarINe. REVIEW constructed at the inner end of the piers. Work on the sea wall was com- menced in June, 1907, and the wall was completed June 4, 1908. The method of building the sea wall was as follows: First a trench about 100 and room for maneuvering large ves- sels. The docks are designed - for handling' over-sea freight of miscel- laneous. character and for berthing ocean going vessels. The designed safe floor load is 500 lb. per square foot. _ The piers are 650 ft. in length and 130 feet in width, supported on rein- forced concrete piles, with reinforced concrete floors and walls. No wood S: S. CALIFoRNIA AT Pier 40, Jury 28, 1909. feet wide was dredged to hard bottom or as. near thereto as_ practicable. Broken rock, the pieces varying in weight from five pounds to. several tons, was then dumped into the trench, forming a core wall of loose rock about 60 ft. thick. On the top and water side of this core an armor of stones varying in size from one to four cubic feet was placed, the armor being hand laid above low water. This July, 1910 tide through it, which carries away the fill behind the wall, making it dif- ficult to maintain the thoroughfare approaching the piers. It is also faulty from the fact that it is difficult to obtain a foundation which will pre- vent the settlement of a wall of this type." - Mr. Barker recommends a type of sea wall impervious to tides, and built on a foundation which will not settle. The piers are built out at right angles to the sea wall but are not de- pendent upon it for any support. On account of the ravages of sea- worms, pile or timber wharves are very difficult to maintain on the Pa- whatever is used and the structure is absolutely fireproof. The warehouses are 108 ft. wide and 630 ft. long, leav- ing ll-ft. open gangways on either side and 20 ft. at the outer end. A' sea wall 1,127 ft. in length was Piers 38 anp 49, Juzy 7, 1909. wall cost $97,249.95 or about $87 per foot of length. In the opinion of the assistant state engineer, Ralph Barker, this type wall is not satisfactory. Mr. Barker states: "Its principal -fault lies in that it allows the free flow of the cific: coast and the problem of proper- ly and economically supporting the new wharves was the most serious one which the engineers had to meet. Some engineers advocated solid stone piers or piers built with a heavy stone fac-