Lateral Earth Pressures on Flexible Retaining Walls

The Bureau of Yards and Docks, United States Navy Department, has always been deeply involved in the problems of heavy earthwork. Much of the Navy's shore establishment is located on existing harbors and waterways, where the engineer must accept foundation and subsoil conditions as he finds them. Almost any harbor improvement project involves filling out beyond the natural shore line, building a quay wall or bulkhead, and dredging outside it. In many cases the engineering problems of the Navy are rendered more difficult because of the heavy surcharges to be provided for. The weights of guns, barbettes, turrets, armor, and other components of capital ships, the generally heavy character of equipment, and the tendency to do more and more prefabrication and preassembly-all lead to heavier types of shore construction.