Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1881-01-22
TIE DEBRIS INVESTIGATION.

adjournment II tue AsssnpAg chfHnNeti u
Brown in the chair.
w. F. Knox, one of the Drainage Commits
sioners. was sworn and testified: was APP
pointed on the Commission on the 10Th OF
January; was present at the meeting OF the
Board when the contracts were let have
viewed the dams on the Yuba river. The
contracts were invariably let to the low
est bidder, and the bids were accom-
panied by certified checks. The plans
were altered after the contracts were
let. The original plans were given by Mr..
Hall for brush dams eight feet high, after
wards they were changed to six feet. The
changes were made at the suggestion of Mr..
| Eads and Colonel Mendel The contracts
were let by the yard for the different ma
| terials. I never had any interest direct or in
direct in the contracts. The contractors,
with one or two exceptions, were total stran-
gers to me. Some Of the levee work was
/ stopped before it was completed. 1t was my
| aim TO expend the money so as to benefit
/ the greatest number of people. Our
! first object was the dams and
! impoundiug the debris. After that we let
| the contracts for the levees in places where
we thought it would do the most good. The
/ work was in charge of a resident engineer,
under the general supervision of the State
Engineer, and was not personally inspected
by the Commissioners. A good many assist
ant engineers were employed, and all the work,
after the estimates had been made by the eE-
gineers, had to be finally approved by the
Board. We have audited some $500, 900. As
| to the balance due, we cannot state yet, I'M
til our Secretary has completed the table he
is now preparing.
w. H. Parks next made q statement. He
said There is an entire willingness Co show
| all the business connected with the Commits
sion, and we will shortly have ready list of
the contracts let, the number OF bids, to whom
awarded, the price, number OF cubic yards,
aggregate expenditures, etc. Some delay has
been experienced so far for the reason that
the estimates are still in the hands of the en-
gineers. The law does not allow us to create
debt in any one year exceeding the esti
mated amount of the income derived
The amount last year was estimated
at about 100000 We have not ex-
pended that much, and it is our policy to
keep strictly within the law. MIR. Parks
then explained the method adopted by the
Board tor the letting OF contracts, which was
substantially the same was stated by MIR.
Knox. The change made in the plans of the
dams, Mr.. Parks said, was very much to the
disadvantage of the contractors, who COM
planned at it. The contract prices were not
increased and the State gained by the change
l.
near Marysville frequently. The sections
of the works named were completed ac-
cording to the plans and well executed,
| was not in any way interested in the con-
tracts. The storage capacity of the Yuba |
dam, when perfected, is about rs, 900, 900 |
cubic yards. For a reasonable sum of money |
L can store between Marysville and the foot. |
hills all the debris that will come into the
Yuba river in twenty years, and l can |
4 ta Of tn
the satisfaction of any engineer. Between
the Yuba and American rivers there are, so
it has been estimated. some zoe, 900, 600 cubic |
yards of earth, which it would require |
100 years or more to remove. The suspension |
of hydraulic mining would not stay the dam
age. Enough debris now existed in the riv-
ers to destroy the Sacramento valley. Be- |
tween the Sacramento and Feather rivers
there is some $50, 900 or 800 600 acres of fer |
tile land, worth millions of dollars, which |
will surely be destroyed if the work of the
Drainage Commissioners be not carried out. |
Navigation from the junction of Feather |
river to the bay would also be ruined. The |
drainage problem, if properly comprehended, |
was Of as much interest to Oakland and San
Francisco as TO any of the counties in the |
State There is no break in the Yuba Dam.
The water has broken through between the |
wood and the brush and carried away $50
feet of the earth. That is all the damage
which has occurred.
At the conclusi1S of the testimony of Mr.,
Parks, Mr.. Long, who had been examining
the witnesses, at the request of the Chairman
stated that before the close Of the investiga
ton he was DESTROYS of hearing a detailed
statement from Judge Niles Se2rles, man for
whom he had the highest respect. He also
said that the committee was anxious to make
a full and impartial investigation, and
was DESTROYS of hearing testimony on all sides.
He hoped therefore, that if there were any
witnesses who wished to testify, and had not
yet done so. that they would appear before
the committee without delay, and not wait
until it was too late, and then complain that
they were unable to get hearing.
The committee then adjourned until Tues
day evening.
COMMITTEE ON CoRPoRATIoNs.-The AS
sembly Committee on Municipal Corpora
tons met last evening, Mr.. Edwards in the
chair. A A. Cohen, representing Alameda,
Professor E. S. Lippitt. representing the
County Government Convention held last
summer in San Francisco, and Mr.. Treadwell
of Woodland, appeared before the committee
and gave their suggestions relative to Assem-
bly, Bill No. 40, introduced by Mr. Baker of
YOlo, an Act for the incorporation and the
reincorporation of municipal corporations.
After discussing the subject in detail and
making several amendments to the bill, the
committee adjourned.
CONSIDERABLY SENTENCED.-Jo hn Clark,
the convict who escaped from State Prison at
San Quentin, on the 14th instant, was sent
from Butte county in 1869 for two years for
burglary, under the above name. In 1871 he
was sent for two years from Sonoma county,
r,I1D tha nf
He was again sent in 1874 from Shasta coun
ty for stage robbery, for q years, when he
gave the name of Jacob Clark. In the fol-
lowing March he was taken out and tried in
Placer county for robbery, and sentenced for
an additional term of 80 years. He was one
of the noted Shorty Hayes" gang.
MERCHANDISE REPoBT.-The following
freight for Sacramento passed Ogden on the
19th: For Huntington, Hopkins & Co., 8
cases hardware; w. b Davis, key saul
paper; Baker & Hamilton, box hardware
| Whittier, Fuller & Co, l box looking-glass
plates Scofield & Tevis, $40 cases coal oil
Hale Bros & Co., box towels, 2 boxes I'M
derwsar, l bale worsted, bales bats Vein
stock & Lubin, s boxes boots Central Pa
cifc Railroad Company, 1000 car springs.
THE ENGLISH BRzAK.-The small steamer
used by the State Engineering Corps went
up to the English break, five miles above the
city. There went upon the steamer Commits
sioner Knox, party of engineers, and sew
eral newspaper representatives. The party
found the new waste weir to be in the very
best condition The sediment has accumu-
lated so rapidly upon it that there is now
very little percolation, and the water pours
over the crest Of the weir uniform depth
It's entire length, exactly as was intended.
REPRESENTATIVE a regular meeting
of Columbia Lodge, No. AZ, X of P, held
last evening Past Chancellors William E.
Oughton, Richard Brown, Ell. H. Mckee
and George w. Lorenz were elected Repre-
sentatives to the Grand Lodge, which is to
meet in San Francisco on the Sth of Febru-
ary. and Past Chancellor Richard Brown was
elected as delegate to the Bureau of Relief,
which meets at the same place on the 9TH in
slant.
Masonic DEDIcATIoN.-M. D. Boruck,
Secretary of the Senate, has received an in
vitation and accepted it, to act as Grand
Orator on the occasion of the dedication OF
the new Masonic Temple at Oakland. and
will deliver the Grafton at the happening OF
that event, which will take place February
22d