Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1881-05-16
The River Flats Nuusauc..
PETITION TO THR SENATE COMMITTEE on TEE
DISTRICT.

DISTINCT.
The following communication was yesterday
sent to bon. John J. Ingalls,. chairman OF the
Senate committee On the District OF columbia:
lecture by the most distinguished OF
American sanitary engineers, Col waring, 10
response 70 the question. what shall be done
WIN the kidwell ratss was unfortunately de-
nVereo upon the day OF the Hanlsn- Riley boat
nn tie $50, 70 me subject matter OF that lecture
fective sewerage OF the lower norton Of fne
CITY, these things are confessed Desirable: ].
!, rnas some,ning n a snAm be done quickly. That
done cheaply. After due consideration OF the
various plans which have been proposed. m
seems TO us that Col Warnings is the only one
which viii comply with these three CONDITIONS.
We desire, therefore, to bring it TO the atfen-
ton or your committee. Briefly stated, the
points OF Col Warnings oounsels are these: l.
He advises us TO avoid the inevitable delay OF
costly experiments ana 10 60 for guidance 10 a
people who, for three hundred years, have
been reclsiming land under water, who con-
Time TO reclaim II every year, for mere Rgri-
cultural purposes. and whose engineers have
become so experienced that they can solve the
problem OF time and cost with as much Ger
tainty as our American engineers can estimate
ior an ordinary railroad emoankmeDt 2. The
Holland system, as fs shown by Col Waring,
when applied TO the ktdwen fiaus, Ia coniunc-
ton with sewerage, will have the same effect
as low eripg the river; that Is TO say it would
virtually raise the city ten feet, and do away
with the back water iu the lower portions
which In the lower portions is now an expen-
sive and dangerous nuisance. 5. In two years
the Kldwell flats can be transformed into an
attractive park OF 800 acres, possessing
beautiful drive around the river front aud or
namental lakes and streams within. The soil
Will be more fertile than the gravel refuse with
which the flats would otherwise be filled IN and
the depression OF the ground will be too trivial
TO Affect the landscape.
It is manifest to us and TO everybody that N
the Kidwell fats are filled In rapidly. the cost
VIII be enormous, and that II the work be done
dumping ground-it will 60 on for q century.
IL is also manifest that filling ir the hats viii
not prevent the high water OF the river from
backing up Ia our sewers, nor In any way i'm
prove the condition OF our sewerage Finally
II is manifest that II Col Warnings plan should
not prove satisfactory, 1t will at least be good
temporary expedient: that nothing Will be lost
GO on with The present nuisance substantially
abated.
We therefore respectfully press upon the at
0ntion OF your committee the manifest advis-
ability OF adopting the Holland system and OF
gttting the work done. To that end we sug-
gest IL be committed TO commission, one of
whom shall be Col Waring and another an
commission be authorized TO begin ami carry
the Work 10 completion without waiting for
further legislation. The line OF frontage can
oe determined by Congress at the outset from
surveys already made, and the statute which
creates the commission can tell them what
they are TO do. In word, we not only desire
10 see the work begun, but want TO see iJ IN.
ished.
We are SIR. very respectfully yours, Chas. c.
Mott. w. NJ. Gait, Andrew j. Joyce, w. B. jack
son. J. b. Bryan, Albert W. Bacon, Leonard
Whitney.