The Evening critic., 1883-01-09
ADJUSTMENTS TONIGHT.


NATIONAL THgATRE-Lotta, In 'Mu-
sette."
FoRD's oPERA-HoUsE-Mlie. Rhca. "Au
Unequal Match"
THEATRE CoMIQUE - Varieties, now bal
let's olios and burlesque.
DIME MUSEUM-At the Old Capital Thea
tire on Pennsylvania avenue. "Uncle Toms
Cabin" and other novelties.
DRIVERS Colonel Rogers and Professor
Anders, in their old fashioned vocal and In
strumental concerts in the studio.
SKATING RINK Monday, Wednesday and
Friday nights and Saturday matinee.
GENERAL JOIN d. GORDON, of Georgia,
comts home from Europe proud OF his coun.
tiy. uesald to n reporter; 'It Is enough to
mnke an American proud to ride through the
streets OF London, with its civilization OF 1000
years and see American implements, Amerl-
can sewing machines, American tools and
American goods displayed on every hand, and
know that American watches are being sold In
the stores, and American fields are feeding
the Englieh people and American factories be.
ginning TO clothe them.'
Could this result have beea attained
with system of free trade Would be
pleased to hear from Ssmcox and Samrau-
dali.
THE House Special Committee on the
succeeded in getting before the public some
very valuable facts. The witnesses ex.
amined by it have demonstrated, beyond
all peradventure of doubt, that the
plans of the River Commission are ex-
periments-that is, as General Comstock
frankly admitted, 'guesswork." Aud their
guessing ranges, in dollars and cents, all
the way from $23,000000 to 81, 600 ,000,0 900.
Or, in plain English, as General Comstock
said last session to the House Committee
on Levees and Improvements of tho Missis-
sippi River, +" The Treasury of the United
States is (not) adequate to it" q. e. the
carrying out of the plans of the River Com
mission).
According to this high authority all that
the River Commission is doing is expert
menting-a sort of "now you see it and
now you don't sec it" game.
Now, why would it not be wise in Con-
gress to test Captain Cowdon's plans? He
proposes to let off the surplus waters of the
river by an outlet at Lake Borgne. This
outlet will at the same time increase the
velocity of the current above it and deepen
the channel by causing the waters to scour
the bottom down to its natural bed.
For this work he asks nothing until it is
done, and not then unless the outlet, or
flood-mouth, discharges 100000 cubic feet
per second. After the required results are
accomplished the modest sum OF
$500,000 will recoup him for his
trouble. If, however, he succeeds in
lowering the flood-line at New Orleans
four feet in sixty days he thinks he
should be entitled to S1,O00,000 more. Then
for each and every foot he deepens the low
water channel from Cairo to New Orleans
he believes that he should receive $10,000,-
600. If Cowdon is correct he will reduce
the flood level ten feet and will receive
therefor S21 100000 after, after, be it re-
marked, he has accomplished the results he
set out to accomplish.
The chief objection urged to his plan i!
that the main volume of the river may bt
diverted and go out through the Lake
Borgne outlet. This is palpable impossi
bility. The channel is 100 feet deep at thil
point, and Lake Borgnc is simply shallow
inlet of the gulf, only some ten or twelve
feet deep and forty to fifty miles from deer
water. Besides, the engineers themselve!
say. that this would be impossible, because
the bottom of the lake is composed of a
hard blue-clay mixed with shells, which
will not scour.
/. The plain, simple fact is that the sur
plus aood-waters only would so out at thest
outlets or hood-mouths, and when the gul
level is reached the normal current would
ensue, as at the Jump, which has beer
open for the past forty years.
Captain Cowdon's plans are neither scien
tific Experiments nor unscientifc guess
work. They are the conclusions arrived
at from experience. They will do tn,
work at less cost than the lowest estimate
put upon the River Commissions "experi
ments." The people want the Mississippi
River made what it would be but for tn,
"improvine" hand of man, navigable in
land sea, connecting our grain field
directly with the worlds grain consumer,
Let Congress authorize Captain Cowdon t
go ahead.