Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1868-11-01
THE LITTLE RoCK r. r.
Proposition for a New Route
from Helena.
HrLrNA. 49,. al. % 1ses

HELENA ARK, OCT. y, 1858.
Messrs. Editors: If you will permit :
Helena man to stste a few facts on the
subject Of railroads, / will tell your read,
ers something which they have probably
forgotten, at least in regard to the Mem
PMS and Little Rock Railroad.
/ contend, sir, that all the money
Memphis spends in the St. Francis
swamp on railroads, either to Little r Jck
n 81. Louis, will be thrown swey, ultI
hat swamp is reclaimed from overflow
And IN estimating the cost Of such 8
work, I would cali the attention Of those
Interested to the difference 10 the
rise and fall of the river at
Memphis and Cairo. At Cairo the
difference between high and low water
aark Is about forty tt0o e42) feet. A
Memphis it is not more than t~l0enty-nane
(29) feet-a difference OF thirteen feet
Here at Helena the difference is forty
three (43) feet. This great difference il
made by the overflow between Cairo
and Memphis, the thirteen feet OF water
passing west OF Hopsield instead OF
east. Common sense would teach
that II would take 3 levee at
least thirteen feet above the high
water mark at HCpeieid TO pass all the
water of the Mississippi east OF that
place. 1t requires forty three (43) feet
20 pass the water east Of Helena, not
withstauding the overflow from Mem.
phis d9wn on the Mississippi side.
As a proof of the necessity of this re-
clamation, look at the history Of the
Memphis and Little Rock r ,ilrOad.
Ic was completed about 1857. The
nigh water of 1858 broke the
iavees above and tore the road W
so badly that it took the whole year to
repair II. Shortly after it commenced
running to Madison, the high water of
1859 again 0veIfOWed it and destroyed
the embankments so that il took until
about 1852 to repair it. The high water
Of 1862 made The route almost 3 navi-
gable stream, and Capt. Bowman had a
notion of taking it as q near eut to Mem
phis from Madison. Last year you went
20 work again, and you have got a lou
WdteT road to Madison but nOtWiCh-
standing the water vas five feet and four
inches below high water at Cairo, a loco
motive could not go from H0pedeld TO
Madison LAST spring.
Now what 1 want to show to your
Memphis readers and also to the people
Of ST. Louis, (which last want railroad
connection with the Mississippi 6eIoG0
JOW Wdter and ice(, is hat the only point
HLGGAG N2A1 NBAIEG = 10 DAtoAAP .
at this place, where Cr0wley's Ridge
comes within four hundred yards OF
The bank OF the river, and where, OF
course, a levee csn be built above the
highest high water mark, and at a small
expense. The connection with Memphis
must be by steamboats,.
The railroad from st. Louis to Helena
will pass west OF Crowley's Ridge, and
entirely independent of the Mississippi
river. st. Louis is now ~endesvOriug 70
build the Iron Mountain road to Bel
mont, opposite Columbus. This route
will have the same difficulty to contend
with as Memphis, except that the dis
lance to believed IL only about sixty
miles, and the levee will not have To be
go large, from Commerce, No 10 Bel
mont, whereas it is near three hundred
to Memphis.
You say Memphis has sunk one mill
lion dollars on the Memphis and Little
Rock road. I think she has sunk ali she
las advanced, and will sink all SIZE may
advance hereafter. Il will do for q I0W
Wdter road, but nothing more.
Should you see proper to publish this, l
will have something else to say about the
reclamation of the bottom or swamp
lands, rs soon as the election is over.
Yours, etc,
JAMES B. MILES.
We entirely uG'grSe VIII mr. IN mies.
reasoning and cOnc,us,h US auu VIII
few days present n our reaI-.S d memo
rial, prepa ed by q skilifui snG veil
kn,Twu civil engineer, who has devoted
years TO the study Of this subject, In
which It Il shown that by a proper sys-
tenn of waste weirs and dykes, the Whole
OF the IoWlsnds above the mouth OF the
Arkansas may and Will be reclaimed
from overflow, Immediately, and those
beLosU that river by u nAJursl process,
graduslly filed up IN such 8 manner as
10 a very few years to govern and control
tba bign waters and rises. With this
SYSTEM OF weiTs and dykes, the present
49, rnti-nad 10 Little R lck is The line