Sacramento daily record-union., 1881-11-17

| lied earth. I've seen since 1867 some of the
same character on my land, that I saw in the
mountains and mines. Originally my place
was nearly mile above the mouth of the
American, and until 1923. The American
rises rapidly, and viii raise ten or twelve feet
in as many hours, and come down In five and
six.foot swells the whole middle of the river.
At first it is confined to the channel, but as it
rises it cuts away each side, and meanders
from side to side, and rolls down like big
| dam, the water bearing on its surface all
| kinds Of timber, logs, parts OF houses, and
many mining blocks kind Of block used in
the fumes, part round and square, and about
| IL and is or "a inches in width, and some six
inches thick. They are made by cutting off
| log ends. They are used to protect the bot
| toms of fumes. I've seen the river surface
almost covered with em. We used to catch
'em at the bridge,
| At this point, 1890 P. NJ. the Court took
recess until 2 P. NJ.
Afternoon Session.
Court reassemble6 at 2 P. N.
| Mr.. Hoagland continued-The water in
the American originally was very clear. The
mining blocks I speak of were badly worn,
some worn out. They came down the Amer
ican frequently during high water. The
American river caused an overflow Of my
place three years ago-1s7s. It also over
flowed last winter and overtopped the levee
ell along it left two very bad breaks. The
current set across from the american and ran
over my place forsthree months. At one
time it was ten feet deep. The sheet of water
extended frem Brytes to Washington, dis
tance OF three miles. This water set across
from the American river, and it left on my
place deposits of sand, in some places ten
feet deep. The heaviest deposit is half
mile from the river bank, and extends back
to Captain Hodgkin's place, which is about
west of M street. Sacramento city. This de-
posit is mile and half long; the land is
destroyed for agricultural purposes. l am
practical agricuturist, Of twenty years ex-
psrience Deposits of this character cannot
be successfully cultivated will grow nothing
but willows aud cottonwoods. This class OF
timber, of very heavy growth, is standing
on the ground at present. The cur
rent of the American, which crosses the
Sacramento river, has southerly direction.
HOLSTERS place is eighteen miles south Of
Sacramento. Have never been below Hol-
listers. The current from the American
during food times has destroyed the town Of
Washington, and has discouraged those owH-
ing land Some have abandoned their homes.
/ do not consider it a safe place to reside dur
isg the winter season. The soil On the bank
of the Sacramento river, from Bryte's to
Steamboat slough, is the best land in the
State and peculiarly adapted to the raising
of fruits. 1t is susceptible of raising
THREE CROPS
Annually, Of different produce. From 1852
to 1868 we had no trouble in raising fifty to
sixty bushels OF wheat to the acre on this
land. 1t was prior to 1868, the finest orchard
land in the world. These overhows from the
American river have destroyed nearly all the
most entirely destroyed. This overflow es-
capes through river slough, thirty miles
south of Sacramento. l have been to San
Francisco on steamers several times since
1854. When the American river is low it is
small stream, and occupies only about one
fourth of the width of its bed. Immediately
after large freshets bar is formed in the Sac.
ramento river below the mouth of the Ameri-
can, extending sometimes to the bridge be-
tween Sacramento city and the town of
Washington. I have seen one bar there q
mile long, five hundred feet wide, and five
feet above low.water mark. There is bar
there to-day extending from the mouth of
the American river to the Pioneer Mills.
The old mouth of the American is completely
filled up. There is left no evidence to indi-
cate that it had ever been river charhhel.
Inc DSI aOONe buG lOuScT NlllS OCCuplSo OIt
half the width of the present river channel
and all of its original bed. This bar has Been
for the last ten years
GREAT ANNOYANCE
To the steamers which land at the Pionee,
Mills. The lbsr below the bridge, on the
} west side of the river, during the years
1875 '76, " and rs, was a serious impedi-
nent to steamers passing through the draw
of the bridge. This bar is q mile in length
and occupies one-half of the river channel.
This bar has been in the river more or less
since 1856. Opposite NJ street it is narrower.
Tie steamers now plying the river do not
draw as much water as the New World,
Antelops, Chrysopolis and other steamers
which formerly Piled its waters. The steam
er5 now draw only from three to three and
half feet. The Antelope was sharp
keel boat and drew much more water than
the steamers running on the river at pres
eat. The Senator, Wilson G. Hunt, Nc
Kim and New World were all very large
boats. The Senator is nov plying an
ocean steamer on the Oregon line. The
channel Of the Sacramento river opposite
street is $50 feet narrower now than it was
when l first came to Sacramento. The
early overfows of the Sacramento river
below Bryte's place, prior to 1868, did
our agricultural interests but little harm ;
did not destroy nor hurt the growth Of the
trees.
THE ORCHARDS
In my vicinity were planted between 1851
and 1854. The water up TO 1868 did not hurt
the trees. My place was destroyed in 1868.
My sisters place, adjoining mine, also suf-
fered the same fate. The overfows in early
days did not cut the banks much. have
tried TO cultivate this sandy deposit. Where
the deposit is slight, and mixes with the soil,
il produces well, but where it has any depth
il is worthless. This deposit always grows a
heavy crop of willows, which is hard TO grub
out.
Cross examination by Mr.. Catlin: The
channel of the Sacramento river now occupies
the place where my house formerly stood. /
think that during the months of July and
August the Sacramento river carries three
times as much water as the American. The
American is much more rapid stream its
water has greater velocity than the Sacra-
menso. The floating capacity Of the Sacra-
mento river, above the mouth of the Aneri-
can, is ten times that of the latter. The
immediate cause of the destruction Of my
place was by the changing of the American
river channel. Not all the water of the
American ran over my place some of the
water of the Sacramento ran there. Portions
of both rivers ran over my place. The cur
rent ran swiftly, and cut up the original soil.
Where that landed do not know. Some
trees were carried five miles. That year there
was no evidence of deposits on my land, but
some on the road below. Naturally the coil
would go into the tules, but L never
found any OF it there. My land
was first overfowed in the spring
of 1858. Very little water was on my
place in 40. Some was on the back psrt Of
it. It came there from the Sacramento. The
American was then below me. In '51 and 90
there was no overflow on my land In the
'52 and '53 food we had but little water on
my land. The Sacramento in high stages
used to flow out of its banks above us and
pour through sloughs back into the river be-
low. That was the action of all the upper
rivers above us. I've noticed that we gener-
ally have high water in the spring, and some
Of those foods have overfowed through
sloughs above and below me. After '53 those
sloughs were leveed across mostly. That was
about the first leveeing done. That made
the water some higher in the river. The
higher it is the more the water draws to the
center. 1T does not necessarily make greater
pressure on the banks. The filing of the
slough-rnouths still left the sloughs and when
the water got over the banks it flowed to the
slouehs and went off into the tules or wasfed
out the enbankments again, which generally
then were but light. In 1858 we had food,
and in 1861 2, and they went over all the