The Bossier banner. [volume] (Bellevue, Bossier Parish, La.) 1859-1952, 1872-08-10
Mack's Bayou and BOdcau Hayi-
cation.

To the Hon. Hoard of Trade of
the city of Shreveport, La:
Your committee to whom was
referred the petition of the presii,
dent of the Lake Bodcaaand Gross:
Bayou Navigation Company, re.
specially beg leave to- report as
follows:
Your committee find, from ina
formation entirely reliable, that
a few miles below the city of
Shreveport on the east side, a. large
bayou puts out from the river.
known as Mack's bayou, which
opens into Cross bayou. which.
runs through the bottoms of the
river into the foot of Lake Bodcau
and thence northerly. Said lake
is fed by a large stream known,as
Bodcau bayou, which rises in.
Hampstead county, State of Ar.
kansas.
We find that said streams pre-
sent and will afford good practical
navigation, the greater portion of
tho year, to within ten or fifteen
miles of LewiSviile and Magnolia.
and traverSes through the richest
upland counties in the South, a
great portion of which is now we'll
settled and produces large crops.
of cotton and corn, a very small
portion of which rs brought TO our
city.
The opening Of the navigation
Of these bayouS we consider, and
report to be, of great Importance
to the commerce Of our city, as it.
not only brings to our market cot
ton, the great staple, but opens at
once the immense pine and cy-
press forests, SO necessary to the
building and manufacturing inter
eSts of our city
We report further that the
opening of those bayous are not
only of very graat interest to our
trade directly, but Of great inter-
est to the landed interests in the
bottoms contiguous to the city,
for by cleaning out and deepening
the channels the water at time
of floods will pass off with facility,
thus protecting the lands from
overflow, and thus giving encour.
agement to the great agricultu.
raj interests upon which our CON-
meree aud manufactures depend.
We find the impediments to
the successful navigation of this
important route consist, first, in
several bridges that have been
built across one of these bayons;
and in Lake BOdceau and the
bayou above the lake the channel
is Obstrucscd in places by trees and
cypress stumpS.
The removal of the said bridge
is in the control of the Police Ju-
~ of the parish of BOssier, and in
default of the action of that au-
thority, then in the Grand Jury
and courts of said parish.
We therefore respectfully sug-
gest and recommend that this
Board of Trade earnestly en-
courage the enterprise of opening
the navigation of this route, aud
memorabilia the Police Jury of
BoSsier parish to either remove
the bridges on Cross bayou or re-
quire that any bridge built across
any of said bayous provide safe
and cOmmodtOus draws so that
navigation be not hindered or re-
tarded.
We do not deem it necessary to
urge your body to recognize tho
fact that if we expect trade to
come to our mart, that we must
aid IN opening the way for it to
reach us. The fact that our peo-
pie have subscribed so liberally
to railroad enterprises shows their,
Wisdom in this particular. By
pursuing this same wise line OF.
policy in regard to the enterprise
IN question, a very heavy trade
is secured TO US that now goes
elsewhere-a trade we shall de-
serve to lose if we neglect to take
the means to secure it.
N. w. MURPHY.
JAS. Il. ARNOLD.