The New Orleans bulletin. [volume] (New Orleans [La.]) 1874-1876, 1874-06-30
LEVEEs OR NO LEvEEs.

The following suggestions OF a friend OF tn
BULLETIN are certainly worthy Of considers
ton, and we commend them to the serious at
tention of those gentlemen who have made
the subject of overfows a study, and to whom
levees have been at once nuisance and puz
| zle.
Some one asked, the other day, where thu
the high water mark would have been if al
the waters Of the Mississippi had been confined
within its banks and the man does not live who
could give any satisfactory answer to that ques
ton. And yet we shall be compelled to meet
that conundrum fairly, or We may discover, at
| ter the expenditure or billions Of money, thai
all our efforts to confne the current Of the IT.
resistible river to channel upon the top Of an
ever increasing ridge, are the most laughable
and expensive farce ever enacted by a brainy
and ingenious people. The idea Of leveling or
cutting every levee from the mouth Of the Mis-
sissippi to Cairo will no doubt strike almost
every one as preposterous We confess it had
that appearance to us at first blush,
but continued reflection has convinced
us that it is worthy of consideration.
No doubt many grave objections can and
will be raised, and it may be that they will
prove insuperable; but let us examine the
matter carefully, and see if the good to result
therefrom will not more than counterbalance
the evil We invite communications on this
subject from thoughtful people and scientific
engineers, and would like to know specially
what would be the probable depth Of water
over the adjacent bottom lands Of the Missis-
sippi if there We're no levees anywhere, except
around cities, towns, dwellings, etc, to check
the overflow.
Contributions from the Levee Company not
desired.
To the Editor New Orleans Bulletin:
Levees having been discussed so much Of
late, and the subject being deemed OF such
universal interest to planter, merchant clerk,
artisan and laborer in our low country, why
is it not an appropriate time to argue the
question of no euees.
We hear from various sections of the re-
Gently overlooked country of the wonderful
growth Of crops that have been put into the
ground as the waters receded. The earth
seems to have grown so fat by the rich deposit
left upon it as to "laugh with a harvest"
without even the usual necessary tickling with
a hoe The cane starts forward with renewed
life, cotton springs up almost Sin a night,
and grows marvellously, so that to-day there
are fields that have not received the same
grateful baptism as children of the Missis-
sippi" Corn more than makes up for lost
time, while rice, Of course, could not feel
happier Md n:vo =, ,o.,, e .he ANNA, oreraow.
of the Nile and their wonderful effects on
vegetation. Of Siam we are told of the
gorgeous rites which celebrate the yearly
inundation by its rivers.
The proverbial richness Of the Mississippi
bottoms is due to the great stores Of rich loan
precipitated over the land during the annual
high tide of the mighty river.
To one unacquainted with the particular
reasons that may make levees necessary, this
yearly visit of the wealth-bearing waters APP
pears to be rich gift of God, for which
only are due What then, are
the peculiar causes to make us dread the de-
linquencies Of the Levee Company and
tremble in view Of the posi- bic ravages Of the
terrible crayfsh? Why are these earthen
raised, at such great cost, to hold
at bay the friendly, wealth-giving river?
few lines from one acquainted with the
facts may sho v the absurdity Of a suggestion
of doing without levees. In that event no
harm will be done, and commendable Gu
riosity will be gratifed, for doubtless many
persons who know nothing about planting
seasons, have wondered why planters did not
build slight levees around their houses, stables,
and garden patches, and take holiday for a
few weeks while the rich waters filtered price
less manures on their fields ? F.