Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1880-02-04
THE DRAINAGE REPORT.
Toos11suED PROM THIRD PAGE.


necessities of the case if such practicable I'M
Iess relief may be had without increasing the burden
70 be borne elsewhere.
This latter exception is seldom tne case LOT III
conducting food waters down valley any acceera-
tion in rapdty of drainage in its upper divisions,
by precipitating the flood below, increases the mo
mentary volume theIe, and necessltates more urain,
.0e-way for its accommodation, else nundatioh WIZ
follow This is particularly the case Whefe, as IN
the Sacramento valley, there are large tributaries
ioining the main stream, whose freshets arrive AT
the point of junction before the waters from us up
ner valleys get there. The first hood-Waye thus
presenting itself to the main channel should nave al
the time possible in which to move away Deiore
another is brought down upon 1t. ,,
The only exception to the general rule oiseoun-
tenaucing increase in rapidlty Of drainage from the
head of an alluvial plain when the stream oeio"
is deficient in capacity, is to be found where us
waters can be conducted to separate outiall thal
is not brought down to meet other hooos' nave
not been enabled to see how this can DC accolh
plished from the Upper Sacramento and henEe con-
elude that the wise and just plan to follow VIII DC 10
do all that can be construct works a. ieAs' up
to the standard reached elsewhere IN the Vaie9-
prevent the spread OF the waters whlch causes %
much injury below When this IS accompiishee Tue
Goods will appear less formidable. hope to nave
an opportunity hereafter OF presenting much aeVai
OF fact concerning this problem, whlch "ou.u uii
necessarily proong this already lengthy report ior
the present the subject will be considered only upon
the principles involved in dealing win the noou
waters and the rivers
CHANNEL, NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. CoLUsA.
From what has been said concerning the relative
nsc;tv az the river above Butte slough or Colusa,
and below those points, the Importance OF limiting
the discharge from the upper divisions INTO Ina'
heoy to as small maximum quantity as PoSsiDie,
yjiI he readily recognized. The capacity below Is
already deficient it will take time to increase IL,
therefore the waters from above must not Dc uhuuy
presented if possible to prevent IT. -,
The greater the storage room IN the stream tsei'
ahove the oint of least capacity the less the maxi
mum outflow from the upper divisions need De 10
prevent disaster TO the levees there. hehce, aooNe
Co,sa it Is necessary that the eyees shouu oe lar
apart Fortunately other circumstances contribute
.pother argument for this disposition The lmme-
diate hanks OF the river in this region generally 10
moi afford safe foundation for evees, Tor they are
continually caving down but favorable LOCATION
is found in the hard plain lands, wnlch eNten1 vi
either side Of the river, at the distance Ol lie Vi
more from rim 10 rim.
lands one great object Of the work Will have oeen
aceomplshed-a large reservoir capacity attained
shove portion Of the river where the capacity TO
mass the water is comparatively small
IL has been stated that another object OF work IN
this division above Cousa should be to prevent the
too rapid passage Of the waters to the DIVISION De-
low.
The natural tendency OF the river is continually
to shorten its by cutting across the long s
uous bends at time OF high water, and then wneh 1t
falls within banks increase its tortuous course BY
Bends and SO add to its length again
Thus at any one of many different points cut-on
NAV at any time occur, which would shorten tne
route of the main volume OF water from nan hle
to two or three miles, The rate of fall is thus In
creased by shortening the distance between points.
The resistance to onward flow, presented by the SIN
uous course OF the river is done away with al tha1
LEGALITY, and more rapid advance Oh 9he oou wave
is the result =, -.
This result is just what is not wanted in the divi;
sion under consideration, for the general good
sought by drainage system for the valley hence
it seems reasonable that cut-ons above Colusa
should he prevented and the river should be en-
coragsd to increase the snuostes Of its course up
to the point wherein the reservoir capacity IN thls
division is brought to the highest inquire IN volume
it can be put TO without overlapping evees Oh SAFE
and reasonable elevation and cost We're the CHAM
rel more crooked than it now is it would be longer
and the storage capacity greater in 1t, the slope
would be less and hence 1t could be the more resu
ily made nayigable and kept so all the year round
WORKS ABOVE ooLUsA.
Upon this general plan the principal works essen
Sa above COusa to Stony and Chico creeks will be
First-A levee from eight to fourteen feet in
hight on each side of the river the two as far apart
as the topography Of the country and character oil
the soil will admit up TO maximum limit OF Two
miles, with an average OF about one and quarter
miles.
Standardization of banks to prevent caving
where the river manfests disposition to make cut
offs.
Third-Encouragement of caving at points where
II is desirable to increase the length or give better
trend to the channel way and 80 prevent the lorna
zion OF bars.
PsurthLTraining Of current to cut channels of
moderate depth through the very shoal places, and
30 increase the lagability OF the stream and pre-
serve its stability where desired.
Fifth-Production Of growth OF timber and I'M
derwood on a large portion OF the country between
the levees, to hold back the flood waters when
above the natural surface Of the ground and so pre-
vent downward rush thereof by the short route
across points and the formation OF cutoffs, which
would thus occur.
1t NAV be thought well to divert water from this
channel near the head of the division under con-
sideration, and conduct it by canal through the
Butte basin, alongside OF it, to some other point
on the stream below, and thus diminish the ne
cesstY extended work along he rverin this upper
division.
After what has been said, moments reflection
should lead US 70 recognize the fact that this would
constitute one big cut-off-a cutting off Of all the
bends at once-for part OF the waters at least If
the principle is wrong in the one instance under ex-
isting circumstances, it is wrong in the other.
Ii the waters from the upper Sacramento are
brought to the river below sooner and in greater
volume than they would come down thro1gha natural
channel OF good regimen-even capacity to hold or
pass the water as 1t is presented to 1.-THE problem
of drainage IS rendered more difficult The lower
regions would be OOdedfor the relief OF those above,
and it reasonable first, at least to do all that
be done to prevent this result before 1t is de-
hberately sought after.
CHANNEL IMPRovEMEET-coLUsA TO FEATHER
RIVER.
While above Colusa an object to be held in view,
under existing circumstances, is to prevent unnec
essay rapidity Of movement in the flood wave, be-
low that place the point Of balance is past and
thenceforward, to the mouth Of Feather, and, in
deed to the bay it is necessary to assist every way
the carrying capacity Of the channel in order that
the waters may be conducted onward as promptly as
they will be presented from above.
In the division below Colusa or Butte slough,
rather the channel Is extremely crooked and narrow
The fall is small compared to that above as will be
seen by the description given elsewhere.
In the "a. miles OF the route from Butte slough
TO the mouth Of Feather the fall in the flood line Vi
1879 was % Is feet OF this fall about 80 to 35 per
cent was consumed IN bend resistance that is, if
the channel straight one, or one OF moderate
and gradual curvature, the same amount OF water
would run through it with IS per cent. less fall.
The importance Of cutting off some of the worst
bends in this region is here m de apparent.
Aside from this line of treatment, to increase the
food slope and diminish bend resistance, in this
portion of the river we may apply the expedient
proposed for generally enlaging the capacity of this
stream below the mouth of Feather, namely,
through leveeing, and working the channel up to
its full capacity without allowing the levees to be
preached for as long time each season as the river
will furnish the supply.
But above the mouth Of the Feather greater OBJ
gtacles are to be in the securing process
than below, in the form of harder bottom and banks
more firm. Soft is possible that the power in the
running waters would have to be assisted by artl-
fcial excavations TO much greater extent than be-
low.
Perhaps this channel would not at first carry all
OF the water presented to it during the passage Of
the crest of the food waves down the valley.
Admitting this the period of time when it might
not thus pass all presented ", uld be short-three
or four days at most-snd for that time all in ex-
cess of the maximum capacity may be taken
through the levees by means of suitable weirs or
dood-gates and conducted in embarked channels to
the two basins, from whence it could be drawn out
again so soon as the river would fall
The Suffer basin, for instance, is now unusually
flooded The water enters it from both ends, CON-
mencing with the first rise of the river each
probably in November and it is not drained until
as late as July.
Quite frequently there is not water pre-
scented to the river past these basins than it could
readily carry, until the end of January middle of
February if treated as heretofore described.
This was the in the season last past, the
floods of which were observed by this department
Yet the Suffer basin was well filed in January,
1879, six weeks before the highest freshet came
And on only one occasion during the season. for
days from the 5th to the 18th of March, was there
more water presented than this channel would car
ry in its present condition. if evenly eveed and the
river below presented good outfall, it would if
the svstem If works outlined for il were carried