Whig and tribune. [volume] (Jackson, Tenn.) 1870-1877, 1872-08-24
NIISsIssIPPILE VEE.
Messrs. Editors:

1t may at first seem strange to
some of your readers to find the
columns of your paper used in the
advocacy of levee upon the Mis-
sissippi River; but besides the i'm
mediate benefit to our own city,
which the successful termination of
the project certainly will be, they
must Peeollect that q great number
of the inhabitants of the counties
to be benefited by the enterprise,
moved from Madison and Hender-
son counties, and that the "Old
Whig' is the first paper they ever
read, and then, the idea of stopping
their subscription, because moving
OFF is in magnitude, no less a crime
than among the ancients in the
NEUROLOGICAL age, would have been
the abandonment upon their imi-
grafton of their household gods.
They must know that your paper
has the most general and wide
spread circulation OF any In that Sec
ton.
The object desired is the construc-
ton of leVee along the Mississippi !
River, from the "edge of the over
fiow," two miles below Hickman, !
KY, to the high ground of Madrid |
Bend, near Island No. 10, distance
Of about seventeen miles. To better |
show the advantages to come from
its construction, to those unac-
quainted with the geography of the
river and country, it will be neces-
sary to give general outline of it.
Lake county lies between the riY-
er and Reelfoot Lake, and contains
about two hundred and fifty square
miles of territory, one halfof which
if not more, is overlooked land,
farther down the river lie not less
than one hundred square miles in
the counties of Obion and Dyer
which are overlooked, and while
this levee, as projected would redeem
and protect the greater portion of
this land in Lake and all of that in
Obion and Dyer counties, lies long
distance below where the levee
would be; but down the river
from Tiptonville, the county
seat of Lake, which is situated be-
low,th Bend, is narrow ridge of
land a short distance from theriver
which prevents its Spreading, and
behind this lies the low land. This
low land is overlooked from the
Lake directly, and the Lake re-
ceives its water from the river, be-
tween Hickman and the Bend, the
section to be levied. After the
building of the levee, there will be
continued break water, first by
the levee down to the Bend, then
the Bend to Tiptonville; then the |
ridge of high ground above men
toned for a considerable distance
down the river, the sum of which |
by the river would be near seventy |
miles.
1t was mypurpose when this arti-
Gle was commenced to show the |
ways and means by which the OBJ
ject could be accomplished, but hav-
ing gone into the geography of the |
country, somewhat, it may be as
well to continue in this line at pres
ent, and show its Importance in an
other view.
1t will be recOllected that Hick-
man, KY, is the present terminus
of the North Western Rail Road,
now owned and operated by the
Nashville s. Chattanooga r. r. Com
pany, over which is the great emf
grant travel in the Middle States
from East to West-this road has
no connection to the West of the
river with any other road, and can
have none opposite Hickman, that
it can not be without this levee is
extended to Madrid Bend, but when
built, the top of the levee would be
a most excellent road bed without
additional expense, and over it the
road could be carried to Point Pleas
ant, eight miles above TiptonviIe,
by the river, opposite which is the
only road through the great Negro
Wool Swamp, passible the whole
year, along which this point is
reached, interest will dictate the
building of a branch to connect
with it from the Iron Mountain r.
r., extended as now contemplated,
and thus, through Arkansas to Texas
and the great West, would con-
nected line be made, and place that
section, now entirely cut off from
facilities, ON one the of great
est highways of the Union. And
right at this point is to be seen one
IF the advantages to our little city. I
Already have we began to regard
he road from Huntingdon here as !
he next thing to an accomplished :
act, which would belong to the 3