Baton Rouge tri-weekly gazette & comet. [volume] (Baton Rouge, La.) 1865-18??, 1866-05-31
A Subject of Great Moment.

ls forced to appeal through hel
Board Of Levee Commissioners tC
the General Government to take the
subject under its control. With this
view, the Board of Commissioners
have drawn up memorial and ap
pendix setting forth such statements
and furnishing such data as may be
calculated to enlist (if such a thing
be possible), the favorable attention
of the United States Congress in
behalf of the same, and finally to
secure the favorable action of that
body thereupon. The documents
thus prepared, the Board have dis
patched to Washington through the
hands of Messrs. J. V. Durable and
Il. l.. Claiborne, who are to represent
at headquarters the interests Of our
State upon the vastly important
questions involved in the protection of
the alluvial lands of the Mississippi.
The commissioners assume, says
the New Orleans Crescent, that the
levee system will suffice to protect
the low lands, provided that the en-
bankments be constructed of suffi-
Gent height and breadth of base; in
other words, provided they be of
sufficient strength. The only ques-
ton then to be solved is in reference
to the means necessary to defray the
cost. The conclusion is, that the
system should be under the control
of the Federal government, because
that government has ample means,
whereas the riparian States are des-
titute of funds, and because cone
uniform system would be adopted,
extending from Cairo to the Balize,
and the levees be located by officers
not under the influence of private
persons, and who would perform
their entire duty irrespective of in
dividual interests"
In consequence of the failure of the
government to provide means for ac-
complishing the objects for which
General Humphreys was sent to this
State, much valuable time was lost,
and the hopes of averting an inun-
dation this year were disappointed.
The rise of the river found the levees
in an unfinished state, and even be-
fore the waters reached their maxi
mum height. the levees broke, and
"we are now Witnessing the same
destruction of crops and stock which
broug ht misery and starvation on so
many families last year." The food
is now pouring through the Bass
levee, the Morganza and Grand
levees in Pointe Coupee, and the
Chinn and Robertson levees in West
Baton Rouge. The waters flowing
through these crevasses seriously
affect the whole basin, commencing
at the Arkansas line, and bounded
on the west by Red River and on
the south by Bayou Lafourche. This
region embraces the finest cotton and |
sugar lands in the State. In order
to show its productive capacity,
table is given exhibiting the amount
of the agricultural products in 1859
Of the alluvial parishes subject to
overflow by the waters of the Missis-
sippi The list embraces twenty
five parishes, but from four of these
St. Landry, st. John, Jefferson and
Orleans, no returns are given.
The remaining twenty-one par
ishes produced 2s4,044 bales of cot
ton, 269,S2S hhds. of sugar, 388,665
bbls. of molasses, 6,158, 548 bushels
Of corn, and 26,477 bbls. of rice.
The cotton at $3.50 per bale, sugar
at S17o per hid, corn at 81 90 per
bushel, molasses at 81 90 per gallon,
and rice at $50 90 per Dbl, would
be worth $105,656, o98. This i'm
mense product was yielded by $780,