The Greenville times. [volume] (Greenville, Miss.) 1868-1917, 1882-05-20

ceased, and a portion of the levee
was nearly up to grade when the
Hoods washed il away before CON-
pletion. The washing away FOR
this second time of the initiatory
work at head of Lake Bolivar was
just as plainly, also, from the bad
management in execution of this
important work. Such a work
should have been commenced in
the Summer, or early in the Fall,
and prosecuted with a large force
TO early completion, SO as to place
it beyond the reach of the Spring
floods against the less secure lev
ees it was designed to supercede.
The work, however, was commen-
ced very late in the Fall, and be.
fore half completed was overtaken
Dy tne MOOD again.
There never has been compile
ted leyee on the line in question,
and not from any impossibility in
location, but purely and simply
from the dilatory, slow and negli.
gent process of construction. on.
failing disaster; and popular opin-
ion has jumped to the conclusion
of cOndemning the location, when
there is not particle of reason
for it.
And as to the sable engineers
| maintain, without fear of contra
diction, that no engineer who has
examined the location, but has
concurred in the entire practica-
bility of constructing a durable
levee on it; and / do not except
even the Engineer-in-Ch Chief, on up
to Minor Merriwether. The first
named officer, even after the expe.
ricnce of the original work, inau-
gurated a second commencement
on the self-same location, with all
favorable indications of success.
His recent ridiculous advocacy OF
the line on the east bank and its
funny location, for reasons too ap.
parent for concealment, and with
his own prccedents against him
when under official responsibility,
can hardly be considered as a Sc.
rious conclusion Of engineering
science.
The third position taken is
"That from information we believe
a line of levees rebuilt where the
broken levees stood will be diff
cult to hold, on account of the
baggiLg of the water by Cat6sl
Point and the narrowness of the
river, and will require to be of I'M
mense SIZE"
Again here is the sad want o1
correct information. Instead OF
any NARRowNEss of the river, il
is here extraordinarily wide, clear
around from Bolivar Landing to
Easton's-hardly less than a mile
at any point-and with all Arkan
sas open beyond; and this is re
ally the mischievOus feature. BE.
sides, on the proposed line across
head of the Lake there will be nc
rebuilding "where the broken
levees Stood" 1t is to avoid that
very thing this line is desirable
even to the views of the petitioners
4th. "That a levee Oh the east
bank will be comparatively SMALL
/ reviewed this point feebly il
a previous communication, and the
estimates of the engineer will,
am sure, show otherwise.
9th. ave furthermore believe
that the abandonment of the Cat
fish Point levee will allow the
floods to pass off and relieve the
levees from the enormous pressure
and bagging of the water that ex
listed where the line of levee now
stands.n
Here, again, is the confoundinl
of "the line where the evee now
stands " with the totally differen'
one crossing the head of LAX,
; Bolivar. For cursory study o
J the direction and manner of build
, ing the protection levees abou
! Bolivar Landing-under forma
| protest of the present Engineer
in-Chief-and to which Mr.. VIM
L. Nugent called public attention
at the time-will convince any rea
sonable mind of the error of lay
J ing the disasters there invited t.
J the line proposed across the heat
of the Lake.
Besides, under this point ! woul'
ask. if letting the water flow across
Catfish Point land it is not at al
certain that these levees would il
any event be erased, or not actu
ally held by the government,
would be of such immense benefit
} why is it that when similar ex
; pertinent is in actual oDeratiol