The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1877-08-30
The City Of Sc. Charles en- Danger OF
ucsup Left Two Miles from the River.

Especial to The st. Louis Times.J
| ST. CHARLES, Mo-, August a. "A new anu
alarming danger threatens st. Charles, or
rather the bridge that crosses the Missouri
river at this point. Unless vigorous mea-
sures are soon put into operation there Is
strong probability that the bridge will be
| deserted by the hayward stream 1t now
spans, while theriVer makes new channci
| for itself several miles to the southwark
leaving the costly bridge in the awkward
| attitude OF only crossing nh exhaustive sand
| bar.
The river at this point makes considera-
bic bend. Above and below this point the
Missouri ia. in fact, nothing but series OF
curves bending in upon each other in a
| strange, unaccountable way. These bends
| are continually changing through the action
OF the river, which quickly eats its way into
the soft sandy soil, narrowing the neck OF
| land which forms the curve, until mt the
annual rise it is able to sweep clean across,
| whcrcupon the old channel Is abandoned
and a new one formed. The current,
sweeping against bank that presents to it
an oblique angle, scoops out by long,
| sweeping movement, like scythe,
vast quantity of the soft alluviai soil daily.
almost hourly, and it requires but short
time, comparatively speaking, to work out
an entirely new channel. The cut-of ut 81.
| Joseph cost the Government heavily. Al
| Omaha threatening movement OF the
river, imperiling the Union Paclhc ma
chine-shops, the smelting-workS, ana othef
property, is being resisted by rp-faps
which are being constructed at the cost OF
several hundred thousand dollars. Mess
something OF the kind is done here, IL Is
hard to see how the danger referred to can
| be avcrtcd. .r.....-
The bend at this point presents its con-
ycy side to the city, which is on the north
bank. The danger threatens the southern
SHORE. About mile above the bridge the
river strikes the shore obliqucly, and is cat
ing out the bank at the rate OF seventy or
eighty feet day. This is apparently unap-
preciahle, perhaps, on 4 neck OF land three
quarters OF mile wide. But it should be
rcmemberea that this isthmus is interscctcd
with sloughs, some OF which are very eX-
! tcnsiye. In addition; it should be said that
the bank on the river is higher and harder
than the, soil immediately in its rear. Into
this bank the river has eaten its way, az
has been said. When the current strikes
the low lands beyond, it will proceed
with much greater rapidly. This neck OF
| land is at present covered with fine farms,
and should these he swept away the loss
would very extensive. There Is no ap-
prchcnson OF cutoff Immediately, but
the rapid way which it has gone on so far
makes the prospect very direful when the
next rise takes place. The real danger ap-
parcntly lies in delay. A cutoff, such as
that described, would probably necessitate
the building OF another bridge. The COM
mcrcial interests OF st. Charles demand
that il should not be left in the interior. II
the calamity described is to be avcrted. I'M
mediate steps should he taken to see how
the current can be changed.