Southern sentinel. [volume] (Plaquemine, Parish of Iberville [La.]) 1848-1858, 1857-03-14

thereby forming worthless s~'amps where
otherwise would exist one Of the richest and
best agricultural portions of the State, teen
ing with wealth and a busy population.
The damage of overflow from this cause is
rapidly extending, and swamps, or rather lakes,
are forming above Bayou Goula, between
Plaquemine and the Mississippi, with nearly
four feet Of water now in them, where but a
few years ago was dry and arabic land.
Were RATS permitted to remain in the Bay.
GU Plaquemine, it would in a short time en-
tirely fill up, and in consequence of the great
er elevation OF the Mississippi, would over.
flow its banks and leves, and inundate the
greatest portions CT the land within ten miles
Of the bank of Grand River, down to Berwick's
Bay, also backing up over the rich settlements
on Bayou Crosse Iete and Fausse River, and
extending IFS overflows upon the Atchafalaya
lands nearly 10 the Latenache.
Lower Grand River being closed, the water
cannot escape through its former channels,
has TO seek other routes, and now The course
OF drainage is reversed for twenty miles.
Instead Of flowing down from the Atchafa-
laya throughout Grand Rriver, it now runs up
Grand River, from Plaquemiue up 10 the Ten
sas, and in consequence Of this change, and the
declination of The plane of the country being
from west to east, the water, TO escape, rises
higher than it did formerly, overlooking both
banks of Grand River for twenty miles, mum
dating all the land between the river and Lake
Chicot on one side. and backing up the Atclaf.
alaya, destroying the drainage of over two
hundred thousand acres between The Atrhaf
alaya and the Mississippi, north Of Grand Riv-
eT.
in consequence Of that change of drainage
a bar has formed in Grand River, commencing
immediately above Plaquemine, and now ex>
tends up seven miles, leaving q narrow bayou
not over fifty or sixty feet wide, and in low
water less than three feet deep, where a few
years ago there was a river thirty feet deep
and nearly two hundred yards wide.
1t is all important that a good steamboat
route should be preserved between the Attak<
apas country and the Mississippi River. P!a-
qnemine has never been a safe Bayou for nav
igation, and in consequence of the large guam
tity of dritt~wood and sand deposited by il, in
the bayous below it, there is great probability
that it will, At an early day, destroy what little
steamboat navigation there is now left. Pia-
quemine cannot answer the necessities Of The
interior country, as 1t is not navigate over
three months in a year on an average. and
there Is great danger that it will form a raft in
Upper Grand River, during The next spflng
flood OF the Mississippi, WHjcl wlll DESTROY
thai, the only remaining steamboat route. In
fact. We are indebted TO the great and desola-
ting storm which desolated our State in Au-
gust, for n passage, for the smallest class of
boats at the present time.
Lake Chicot is being rapidly filed up with
RATS formed with drift-wood, which passes
through Is you Plaquemine. and there is every
probability that within a few years this outlet
for drift. wood will be closed. Whenever this
tlkes place. Bayou SorreI, from its mouth to
It's source, and Grand River, from the Snrrel to
the Plaqnemine, aud that Bayou itself will De-
filed up from one extremity to the other. which
will overflow and render worthless for agricil-
ture, a tract of country embracing six bundled
thousand acres of land, in the most fertile part
of the State. BY now closing this bayou near
the Mississippi River, we wi ] avert this great
misfortune and reclaim several hundred thou>
sand acres now comparatively worthless.
If the bayon is kept open, in order to pre-
serve the navigable streams vet open, works
will have to be erected in the Mississippi Riv-
er which will cost an hundred thousand dollars
and which, after being completed, will require
annual rfp1irs costing ten thousand dollars to
maintain Them in good order.
To keep The bayou open. it will require the
attendance of at least two OF the State
boats. and their crews, throughout the entire
working season-untit the works referred to
are built in the Mississippi River.
The foregoing reasons plainly indicate the
time policy Of the State to cause that bayou
to be closed near the Mississippi; at least tenn
.porarily, to preserve the navigibIe routes yet
existing. This can easily be done by driving
piles across the bayon,near The river, 50 as to
prevent the passage Of drift wood and admit
The passage Of wafer the bayou would then
close itself gradually, during which the Mis-
sissippi River would accommodate itself to
any surplus water and may be confined in its
banks. The attention of the State Engineer
be drawn Immediately TO clearing out
all the distractions pow existing in the diff
ferent rivers, lakes, and bayous here described,
which when done would increase the capacity
of the Atclafalaya River; so as to carry
double the quantity of water it now does ;
and if ever It is desired to remove the dam
thus formed, it can be done at less than one
tenth of the expense now required to remove
the raft which annually forms in Bayou Sorrei.
As a retaining measure, it is The most i'm
portant in the State, as until this is done but
little benefit will ever be derived from The
heavy expenditures of money in the Second
Land District.
E. w. FULLER,
s. VANWICKLE,
EUG. w. OLIVIER,
n n WOODS.