The Yazoo Democrat., 1858-10-09
From the Mississippian.
TIE LEYEE SYSTEM.

lie LLH EE y > 1 EM. aH|
Mr.. ]. +. SlMM,- Dear SIR. From pro-
trscled indisposlllun, have been prevented
from earlier replylng 10 your address to me
and Others, in the M,SSiSSippian Of tile 26 h
ultino, upon The Levee System, and now
embrace the earlesI opportunity Of complying
with you request, TO Investigate Tue subject,
and respond through the public journals be
fore the meeting OF the Legislature, atfor>
ding you all the information IN my power.
and will endeavor to .epy seriatim.
In the first place, you say that "The po-
sitiou assumed by the river counies is, thai
all the aIluya or overiowed lands in Sun
flower, Yazoo, Holmes, Carroll, Tsllahatch~
ie and Pontotoc counties, should be taxed for
levee purposes, for the SIMPLE reason that as
they are protected by the levee, they should
assist in building it."
Nv experience, from aresdence OF twenty
three years, Immediately upon the western
bank OF the Yazoo river, three miles above
Yazoo City, and one hundred and ten miles
above its confluence with the Mississippi,
has afforded me great opportunities of deter
mining upon the advantages Of the levees
upon the front counties, and Of the protec:
non afforded to Yazoo aud the Other ba k
counties, as was anticipated 10y those frleud>
Iy to the Ieyee system, and | regret to say
that have been entirely disappointed.
was mpruber OF the Senate at the time
the question was brought before the consld>
Grafton of the Legislature, and believing that
the system as represented, would work well
and redeem the submerged lands in the whole
Delta, and protect the back counties lnciden
tally | advocated the measure.
An act was passed granting to the river
counties the whole OF The subm rged lands,
which had been donated by the General
Government to The Stale OF Mississippi for
evee purposes large portion OF which
lay iu the back counties. Another act was
passed at the instance Of the river coun-
lies, (which act they framed) fixing he prce
oil those lands sold for scrip, and Tue scrip
applied to the building OF the levees. They
also received the amount OF sales Of lands
forfeited to the Siate tOr taxes, besides other
money drawn from the treasury. The river
counties hen and there expressed themselves
perfectly content aud satisfied, aud pledged
themselves TO retrieve all tue submerged
lsnds,, and to keep up The IeVees perPetaatly.
The whole OF the subme ged lands (Which
you now seek to TAX, lying in be back
counties, were surrendered by them to the
nver counties, without any equivalent whal-
ever, save the promise Of Iedenpuon, aud
protection How faithfully these promises
have been fulfilled, lnstlg gated by The doua-
ion OF an immense territory, besl es lalge
sums ot money, aud The generous SURRENDER
by he back counties vi their right aud III.
teresl to that portion lying within thelI
boundaries, may be learned tIOm the hsto'
ry Of the devastating consequ noes orcasloned
by tn. total failure ol the levee system.
1t is my opinion (aud | am not singular
in The belief, having exchanged views witt
large number OF experienced swamp plan
lers) that the back counties would be decl
dedly lnore secure, II the ievee system W 81,
entirety dispensed with. Aud the following
are my reasons:
Sixteen years before the leyee system com
inenced, the back count Us suffered litlle frou
lnundauons, wh,Ist Oh The contrary, III 1886
1874, lS47 1850 and 1854, The iron, couu
les suffered severely from The overtlowin.
OF The Mississippi In 1890 the hlgnes
tleshet On the la'laEatcbe, YalIubusha AM
Yazoo slnce 1928, oi IN memory OF lh,
4 uldesl InhaDltanl, and one loot highe il
YazoJ than III the pres.pi year, 1898; onll
uccasloned partial injury, and theu Oh lh,
lowest Vi Oui arnab,e ands and tor lwenty
Two consecuuv1 years We have sustained un
important njur.es from overflow, only osein,
an inconslderabe quantity ol our lowest land
which we were willing 10 risk tor the sake 0
squaling ous field. Th S tact lncontestlbl,
proves, that the back counLes have survive,
prolecuon from evees on the river countie
up 10 1882 and are independent of sucI
pr teclon now or hereafter. And the reasol
ls.paIpabIe. The Mississippi, was then up t
; 1852, not damned oul, but permitted Il
f ru'sue It's natural course, land nature is Al
, excellent workman relieving itself OF tn
; superabundance OF water at various point
though natural channels, aud ex,ravasallu.
upon extremely low krounds, uncertain unde
any circumstances lime was then atforde,
Tor The waters 10 react, aud following tb
natural drainage, swept down through th
various channeis, aud glalually receded, hk
il approached, before 1t effected the bacI
cOuuues.
Bul what have been the consequences sine
Tue levee system has beeu adopted Th
VERY tiIsl serlo,.s tlesh4t on The Mississippi
the wafer being damned out By the eyee
10 an ex'raUrdnoIy height, (as you affirm
Lnrty feet at The Pass levee,) lrresistabIy tor
away so vast portion OF those Ieyees, a
prec'pltately 10 cast suca an overwhem min,
gulPh towards us;destroyng all no Of tor
ner safety; nevertheless this tremendou
head Of water, ACCOMPLISHING for mouths
When all the bayous, lagoous and other Low
lands we're lull, ard by journ il accounts, th
Mississippi gher than in memory of th,
Oldest Inhabta"ts," The Vazoo did not eacI
the height OF 1850, by one foot substan
tlalDg the fact, that the grounds on III,
Yazoo are higher II is a philosophical max
lm that " the SAME causes will produce lh
same eHeet;' therefore, instead Of submit