The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1883-06-07
A PLEA FOR GALVESTON.

1OI anu oil PlOROOAIkOA0
seem probable to him. He conceived
and had built the Suez canal; he will
certainly connect the oceans at Pana-
ma, and there are one or two small
affairs, requiring only few millions
of dollars, which he will have put
through without attracting attention.
in Africa, devoid of vegetation,
barren waste, across which
no beast but the camel can travel with
safety to life. The surface of the
Desert of Sahara is in places one
thousand feet below the sea level and
the proposition, which was presented
in the French Academy of Sciences
in 1877 by M. De Lesseps, is that
canal be cut from the Mediterranean
sea to the desert, through which may
flow briny waters, thus forming, in the
interior of Africa, vast sea,
that it is claimed will change the
entire climatic conditions of that now
parched and barren region. 1t is GER
tainly q bold and grand scheme. but
money and men can accomplish the
work in less time than it has been
considered. Up to the time of late
publication made by Mr.. r. w.
Wright, no opposition to the proprie-
ty of opening this canal has been
made, 1t was accepted as reasonable
and proper, and the natural conclusion
was that it would, by changing eli
matte condition, make of vast I'M
productive region one adapted to IN
limited agricultural development.
Mr.. Wright admits the possibility of
the undertaking, but calls atteption
to the point that no reliable topogra-
ply of the great desert has been
given, nor has the great French
savant given information as to what
compensating advantages the civil
lied world is to gain in
place of certain positive
benefits accruing therefrom. Among
the latter Mr.. Wright mentions that
the desert is "a great radiator of heat,
many times greater in fact than the
gulf stream" 1t operates, like that
oceanic current, to force the thermal
equator" nerthward, and to change it
as proposed would affect the
mean temperature of all Europe,
and might seriously modify
its area of civilization; that the desert
acts "as a great aerial sponge" alb
sorbing atmospheric moisture over a
wide and rainless region, thus
ameliorating the climate of a large
portion of the east; that the vast sand
plain acts as a storm barrier" arrest
lug and breaking up the torpadoes on
their way from the tropics to deyas-
tate Europe. 1t is a mistake to sup
=. We that these destructive winds are
p po a-aiad amid the solitudes of the
S Sonort The cause Of the simeon,
u Whicb zen takes on the alarming
form of a h, Nge sand spout, is the fact
that when a To- ~dado strikes the desert
it. begins at once to lap up the par,
ticIes of sand. until il has thus gathered
into itself thousands ct tons, wRlch
finally load it down beyond its carry
ing power, and it falls with us , on
den and finds its fury spehg.
The sands of Saraha act as great alb
sorbent of malaria, thus preventing
the fatal maladies of Africa from in
vading Europe. The desert
is known to be absolutely free
from malaria, for the good reason
that it contains nothing to produce it.
The equatorial regions south OF the
desert breed the most dreadful dis
eases known on the globe. Subst1-
tute an inland sea for the waste OF
sand, and the pestilential winds
would sweep more swiftly across TO
precipitate their plague germs
on the population OF Europe.
But the greatest objection pre-
sented by Mr.. Wright is that the
moving OF the waters into the desert
would create a dead sea" similar to
that in Palestine, and on a much
larger scale. The Tunisian canal
would let in the salt water from the
Mediterranean, which would become
more and more briny by constant
evaporation, increased further by the
extensive natural deposits OF salt
already known to exist IN portions OF
the desert. The inevitable result
would be the creation OF nfeless,
terrible waste of dead waters, enyl-
roned by dreary salt hills and dismal
marshes like those that now surround
the site of ancient Sodom. 1t is said
the desert is three thousand miles
long and eight hundred miles
wide. nearly equal IN area area
to the United States. But
Mr.. Wright fails to consider the dis
turbance of water levels that might
result from the flooding of this great
sandy plain that would take as much
or more water under the sand than
on top of it. A protest ought to go
up from Galveston. The flooding
of this great area might
destroy all hope of deep water on the
Galveston bar. 1t would take more
than twice the waters of the Gulf OF
Mexico to fill this great basin, and
after the rush of water had passed
into it Galveston would see her sand
hills rise high and dry. 1t
would take over one mil
lion cubic miles of water
to fill the basin, and it would take
nearly twice that amount to saturate
the depth of sand underlying it. 1t
would help the mouth of the Missis-
sippi river. build up New Orleans,
and thus detract further from the
Island City. 1t might be that Gal
weston would even cease to be an
Island City, for the bay.
north of it, reduced to
marshes, would soon fill up, and there
would be no further excuse for the
expense of millions by the govern
ment in trying to make jetties.
There would be nothing left to jet.
The Mississippi river would flow
more swiftly to the sea, and thus
deepen its channel; but the waters of
Buffalo Bayou would all be required
at Houston for sanitary purposes.
Hon. Thoc. p. Ochiltree is now in
Europe, having gone over there to re-
ceive the congratulations of royalty.
He should be requested to at once
see M. yDeLesseps, and present a.
protest against the canal undertake
ing. Should he fail to
awe him into submission. and since
it is a French enterprise, Hon. Tom
might be induced to lead the powers,
not in the triple alliance, to declare
war against France. lie would have
the ear ofQueen Victoria and of Emper-
or William and Car Alexander, and of
King Leopold; and he could cause a
stir in Europe that would make;
France speedily stop this tremendous
Job. Galveston must be protected to
the detriment of Africa, and at the
expense of treasure and men by the
European powers. The congressman
from the Galveston district is on the
ground, and it is only necessary for
him to put in his work for the
Island City, that a general European
war, in her interest, may ensue. May
it not be that qalyeston's congress
man started the pen Of Mr.. Wright,
that the world may come earlier to
understand his influence and his sp-
perlatiye grandeur, to realize the in
x.rotor v1ana1n