Feliciana sentinel. [volume] (St. Francisville, La.) 1877-1892, 1878-05-18
OUR LEVEES.
LETTER TO CAPT AIKEN FROM hon.
T.. w .ttOBERTSON--~ --~"hETAlNG
~ AROUr THE New ORLEANS
. y ,f'fs 't + RESS.

-
so,, c,,,;rr,a,, of the Levee Committee: "
Red river from Shreveport, La, to it's &
month distance about 500 miles, was, II
previous to the building OF levees al"hS a
its banks, a shoal stream having rise G
and fal. of from eight to twelve feet, ov- 1
er7owinn II 8 banks during every hlsh
water and inundating the country 1or ;
miles on either side. AS the country be-
came settled, the planters built ieVees 10
protect their lands from the annual over
flows. At about the year lsoo thesc N'
ees. from Loygy Bayou to Alexandria, {
distance 200 miles, had become connect
ed and continuous, presenting an "horo-
Len line on each bank. 1t was soon
| f,,,a +bot, the concentration of tho wa
! fer and increased current, caused ny inc
leyees was washing out and lowering 'ne
he'd of the river, and the effect has oech
80 great that along this sectlop Oh inc
| river the rise and fall is now as mHch us
twenty-fye to thirty feet: and the 'ah''s
have not been inundated for years. There
are leyees standing to-day, four feet h'sh |
above their base, that the highes: floods
have not touched for years. Since 'he
war the levees have been extended ABOVE
Loprv Bayou to Robinson's, distance
about twelve miles, and the same deep
eninr or lowering Of the river bed mas
been the result. i'' A@s ,-'' -.
From Robinson's to. Shreveport, DIS
tance about ninety miles, there are OUT
lets ON either side; the levees are ho'
continuous and connected as theS, were
;, below the lands still overflow ana the
river is gradually shoallng. Below Alex
. nari, the river is in about the same con-
Ia |d;tion as when first navigated by steam
-, boats viz: TO perfect system OF levees'
:. no lowering of its bed, open outlets all"
annual overhows-
VI Rcd river runs Its entire course below
~ Shreveport through aliuv'ai son 'slu''ia'
if in all respects to that OF the Misssi'sslPp'
~ There can be no disputing the facts as t'
he the Red river levces having lowered tn
~ river he'd and deepcncd the channel a
~ above described. There are th""sand
of neonle living on it's banks to testify
re the truth of this statements, ana as In
~ Mississippi and Rcd rivers are similar
nd all respects except as to the Noluhle
.ks their waters, it seems reasohao1e 10 On
mar nact that a perfect system OF ieVces O
.,t the Mississippi would deepen that rive
s7s and improve its navigation. In fact, 1t
known to old Mississippi steamhoatmt
zee that tho permanent depth OF water :
ron the shoalest bars had been increases"
eco several feet along the sections or I'll
oro river that had been leveed, and Tn
and since the breaking of the levees TINS dee
ecn cninr process has ceased. lt IS al
,ons known to them that bars form opr"s
Loot and the river shoals below any perm
in neut break or crevasse III a levee-
orn As to the effect of fjctties on river p'
@ in we state that Shaggy Point bar OH
tho T.; YER seventy-five miles above It's mo"
for and Alexandria bar, three miles bel
tho town of that name, had always, II,
lin, recently, been almost impassablc,
hat Structiops to boats in low water seli
n in in these seasons having depths over III
,tton of more than fifteen to twenty four lnci
,.ot- Dnrinv the low water season or 1870
,f ~ Nav Orleans and Red River IIanspo
VI tion Company placed jetties made OF
no of low ma "tresses on Shaggy, and i'll
from than fifty hours the depth OF the ct
r.,e mol had Increased from twenty inche
,hout five and q half feet. After the hlGh
how fer of the following year had subsl
omis. the ietties were found intact ana
cron channel so deep and well defined
ever not a single boat had moments &c
rbeot t;on at that place throughout the e'
wear season (fall of 1877. which was OF
over uusual low water. During the I'LL
co in 1877 this same company placed Jettlt
nd IN Alexandria bar, when there was but
n the teen inches water a'''. '
70 ner puttinc off all cargo, found it impos
,r,sl,, to mill over The channel lmmlHi
,tuckv deepened, and although the river
T. wear. timed to fail for several weeks
~ Tn ward there was at no time throus
be Is the season less th'i Ao' :,
FIVE feet water. Freight charges
rr,i,n hoats we're lowered one-third at OF
f1icult, consequence VI 'h'' ''D Ioe AK
,ate Of 'O' a.
til past On receipt of above, Col Robe
nmense writes AS follows to Capt Aiken:
N'' WASHINGTON, D. c., May 4, 1
a, and ,:,.. Now Orleans.
tn and Cap'' '''' A., g..
~ Dsor S;r-Your favor OF the hr
from IL stant IS just received. cohs'oer VI
o1 +bis t;mouv of Capt. Leathers before th'
equal mltteo rs VI >''S S ,; :.
"a acre would ask you to urge upon MN u
-. INV, f,,lv reduce it to writing, and send
,,os,r. os vou have stated in Jour letter
= ,r,,,- ,buss of the New Orleans papers
;,rt +, to mo entirely out Of place, not
:. > Iut thrv are iujuring the eau