Baton-Rouge gazette. [volume] (Baton-Rouge, La.) 1819-1856, 1850-02-23

IN pCOUHDle DHSIS VI representative
hoy established 3-by rule or arbi-
trarilyf &c, are matters for sober
reflection and will be inquired into
hereafter. CONSERVATOR.
We insert the following correspondence
ofthe' Concordia LteHtgencer, believing
that ID cannot fail to le Interesting ut the
present time, etnanating from 50 distin-
euished aud scientific Il source ns Pruf.
G. G.I Forahcy.
haw ORLEtSs. la.
Fell. III. 1850.
High Irafer - Intimidation = G,erassrs-
aity proiertjon and Letee System.
JaMEs EpwAnpa--I)cur Str. ]
Thdsaa arr the s~ulirx.t< we hpnr e%ontinn.
nlly. ;1ha lie lislatmre will give ~ This
s%,t,ipc3 more attention than tn all others.
What will lm done. 10 hnmat, tu,gus ran
trlI. They arr called Oh 10 art, with MI
the information on The %sn'jert totally I'M.
diues cd. A few days are not sufici"n. to
reduce this chaos 10 ~ Ter. and the success
"fthe Legislature in doing III" l,esi III ny.
will be little more than al accident.
Gov. Walkers tnpssag" on this subject
IL certainly a wise one. The ATTEST and
best experienced mrn should be brought
together to deliberate on the matter ard
digest d system Of internal improvements,
respecting the river aud lis contrl.
The report If The state engineer, we hope
will rot be the guide. Though handsome.
" written. well drawn up, and containing
evidence Of industry and devotion to the
interests Of the State, and in many respects
undoubtedly correct, still in matter of mana-
ging the Mississippi river, il Is, in my
| opinion, totally erroneous. | say. this with
all Difference aud respect 70 Mr.. Wood
! ridge, Tor whose intelligence and accom-.
pl,shmrnt, rs n scholar and n gentleman |
entertain very high respect.
have ncith,r time nor roo'n here Ia
review the nport. But | give you In as
few words as possible the sons of my
almost entire disagreement with the
doctrine Of hat report.
]. For about fifty years, the levee system
may be sal Ia have been IN till opefa,io,i
in the yicini', OF New Orleans. and for
some fifty miles below, TO 100 miles above.
.. The water does not rise higher at
present than before levees were known.
Proof. Sonle registers have been kept
Ivy nature, such ns the alluNial drsposse.
at Burthe's. ut Sonia,'s and at alternate
points from the Buras settlement, so miles
below the city, up to Lake I, evidence,
showing at present a surface level az high
and even higher thanhhe water Of 1898. or
1919. The ,irer must hare risen high
enough TO depositc those points, and, hence,
must have ra isrd higher, in those days than
since the lpvees re introduced.
Again. Some registers have heen kept
by observers which for 80 years give us a
fair test. From the year 1917, when there
were very few levccs about Concordia. TO
lS47, when the levees were extended al.
| nnsi continuously from Is miles above the
mouth If Red river, 10 n distance of 300
miles up. there was a register OF the rivers
hurtuation--rise and ialI--kept at Vidalia,
by Gov. Sargent first, and continued by
Mr.. ! amntl Davis up to ls40, aud by
myself shence tn ls47. E
The mean high.water of 10 years up 10
1927, before levees were used was l5
inches bighsr than for the next ten " ars up
to 1897, while lcvees were being extended;
aud the mcan ofthose ten years give US n
higher mark than the last 10 up to ls47,
by II inches. o
Therefore we conclude from this fact,
what WI should have inferred from H hydro.
logy. lll't the ttf.ct of coniining the winters
Ia The chanNel is not to raise, but 10 depress
the level.
We .hmaM infer from theory that the
effect OF levers would be 10 incre ,se ahra.
sion, and hence to enlarge the capacity OF
the chatnel. Hence, the caying away
ofbanks.
QucrJs Bat what Is the remedy
Ans. Make better levees--widrr, higher
stronger. ta,ther back from the river. place
their mana grn,cnt IN the hands of salaried
officers, Awho give high bonds for the mitlf !
discharge of ,lieir duty, who have charge
OF DISTRICTS Indicated by the topography Of
the couat'y. alive them p'rnary powers Z;
place Iunds at their disposal, that they may
act promptly, when the planter Is delin-
quent. .....
"a. Place The public road Of, The sum.
nit of the levee, andslet all the work done
on both fherctotore, BE- limited to the one.
Thus We shall have security.
Beliesing as we 90, that all outlets
weakruthe abrasive force # the waters
the present channel can only be kept clear
by combining tbemSv thin levees. It may
indeed. snd probably would be destructiv.
ofthe mouths Of the river. to weaken the
growing power ofthe water, which at pre-
seu' is thr only force at work keeping the
channctnpen All waste.weirs Or outlet!
cpetedJ must, 10 my opinion, operate in
jurio"sly on the rivers channel.
We have settled and improved a coun-
try lying chiefly beloiv high. water. W.
Cannot abandon It. We have reclaimed
/ these lands l,y levers. 10 them we NV,
our present habIIations. 1t would he vii,
/ to lose al,r faith III them because those W,
have built are too near the bank and TOO
weak toAesist The Increased abrasive fore,
of the river. and the lashiags Of the never
resting Steamboat waves. .
/: In haste,
G. G. FORSHEY.