Press and daily Dakotaian. (Yankton, Dakota Territory [S.D.]) 1880-1889, 1882-07-17
Improving the Missouri River.
A Glance at What is Being Done
Below Yankton.
And q Suggestion Of What Could
be Done Above to Render the
Landing at this Point
Permanent.

A representative Of the Press and Da
kotaian last week took occasion to visit
and examine the work now being done
under the appropriation for improving
the channel of the Missouri river be.
tween Yankton and Vermillion. Hav-
ing seen great deal of the irresistible
force Of the river and witnessed its rava-
ges where strong efforts at prevention
had been made in vain, he felt much GU
riosity to witness the means adopted by
tho United States engineers to control
the channel.
The work is under the direction OF
Major Q. +. Potter, of Vermillion, and is
being performed by large crew of men
At times there have been fifty men or
more engaged, but at present there up.
pears to be but sixteen or eighteen. The
location of the work is about one mile
below the mouth of the Bow river and
three and one half hours ride by skif
fir ON this city. On passing the bluffs
below the mouth of the Bow row of
piling was seen to stretch out from the
last bluff into the river like the posts of
wire fence. 1t reached away down
stream about q mile and half, making
slight curve with the current. About
midway the boats used in the work were
moored along the piling. These are the
barges which were built at Yankton last
season under the direction of Lieut.. Pot.
ter and Mr.. Meredith. Across the river
from the boats is the encampment of the
engineers and workmen. Here we find q
commodious cook-house and dining hall
built among the willows with eight OF
ten tents as sleeping apart.
ments. The effect of the
wire fence is quite apparent in crossing
to the camp, as the channel is narrowed
and greatly strengthened by its means,
and the bank on which the tents are sit.
uated, has begun to cut away.
The dam erected to turn the waters OF
the Missouri, is in fact, nothing more
or less than wire fence. As one ap.
proaches it from above, he sees a wide
network of iron wire attached.to stur.
dy tree at the foot of tho bluff, and
stretched thence into the water along
the row Of piles. This netting is called
mattress" and is woven from coils o
No. IL wire by the men. A huge reel il
erected upon one of the barges, upor
which it is wound as fast as woven, anG
then moved to where it is to be attached
to the piles, and "paid out" from the
reel. A small cable called the selvedge
wire is formed Of four wires twisted to.
gether and attached to each side of the
netting to give it greater strength. The
meshes of the net are about foot across
and the mattresses are woven from twen
ty to forty feet wide.
The piles are green cot
tonwood logs OF suitable
length, about foot in diameter. A
small steam engine upon the largest
barge runs the pile driver and sends then
down with force and accuracy. The,
are said to pass through six or seven fee
of sand, and then enter the substratum
of clay and gravel. 1t is claimed that
the piles are driven from twenty tc
twenty-four feet into the river bed. They
stand about twenty feet apart in single
row, and are connected first by q hori
zontal pole of nearly the same size
bolted to the piles above water. Each
pole is long enough to extend across
three or four piles.
The next step is that of hanging ur
the wire mattress against the piling, like
fish net hung on fence. The upper
selvedge wire is looped once round eacl
pile, and the lower edge is extended out
on the bottom, as far as possible from
the piling, SO that the mattress slopes
from under the current to the top of the
water. To hold the bottom selvedge te
its place, boat loads of chalk rock are
foated down from the bluffs and pilec
upon the lower edge at the bottom O.
the river. This comprises all the gov
ernment puts in to conine the channel
the river itself furnishes all the rest.
Doubtless many will regard as prepos
ferrous the idea Of controlling the waters
of the mighty Missouri with thin net
of wire, which small boy could swim
through at any point. But rs soon ~
the wires are suspended in the water
they begin to catch the fbrous roots ant
grasses that are moving along in til,
muddy stream. In short time the thil
wire net becomes thick, bulky mass
and offers quite resistance to the water
On the channel side Of the dyke, tn
water rolls up as if it had struck
sunken reef; while on the other side O
the fence the water is smooth and cur
rent gentle. It is we'll known that th
muddy water deposits its sediment rap
idly wherever the current is retarded
and the result will undoubtedly be i
this case to fill up with mud the slac
water area behind the dyke. But unfor
tunately the June rise has attached no
only grass roots to the wire, but masse
OF brush. drift wood and great logs whic
the Yankton drift catchers neglectfull,
allowed to pass the city. And SO great
the resistance of these upon the fenc,
that now aud then half dozen of Il,
piles snap off and great gap is seen j