“ At Savannah the river is navigable and within the ebb and flow of the tide. Opposite the city is Hutchinson's island, a strip of which on the side towards the city was owned by the claimant. He there conducted a plant for repairing vessels. Among his facilities used in the business were a marine railway and a wharf. The former extended into the river and was protected by sheet piling 'where in the water.' A substantial portion of it lay below the mean high-water line, and the wharf seems also to have been below that line, although its location is not precisely stated. ”

“ In the summer of 1892 the condition of the claimant's wharf and piling became such that it was necessary to rebuild the one and to renew the other. While he was so engaged the engineer officer in charge of the harbor improvements requested him to desist and to remove all of his facilities that were within the harbor area as defined by the Secretary of War in 1889. The request was followed by a letter from the United States attorney for that district, notifying the claimant that in driving the piling he was obstructing navigation contrary to the act of September 19, 1890, chap. ”

“ Rep. 528; Philadelphia Co. v. Stimson, 223 U.S. 605, 623, 56 L. ed. 570, 578, 32 Sup. Ct. Rep. 340. No taking resulted from the request that he remove his facilities, for it was neither acceded to nor enforced. And the contract for cutting away a part of the land was also without effect, because there was no attempt at performance. Thus, at best, the asserted taking rested upon the acts of the engineer officer and the district attorney in preventing the claimant from renewing his piling and rebuilding his wharf. ”