Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1885-08-26
A INDUSTRIOUS PROPOSITION.

The San Francisco Aita has fatty de-
clared against the further prosperity of the
valley, in favor of non-action in the matter
of saving the Sacrapento river and for the
sacrifice of the river sections of the State
to the mining interests.
The distractions in the river it treats as
temporary Inconvenience" That is to
say, the filling of the river bed from fifteen
to twenty feet with mining sands is only
temporary inconvenience" and not a Sc
rious injury.
1t quotes Captain Payson to the effect
that the river will never be completely
unnavigable. Perhaps not, for it would
not be wholly unnavigable if a ten-inch
draught trading-boat was able to come up
stream once year, but who would be SO
bold as to claim that such condition of
the river would suffice to answer the needs
of the Sacramento valley for free water
highway?
In other years boats have stuck on the
bars, says our contemporary. True, but
they were deep-draught boats, and the
river bed was not then filled up to the
grade it now has. THE rivers will pre-
serve themselves from destruction if per-
mitted to have their own way" But how
have the valley people interfered with
them? 1t is eminently true, as the Alta
puts it, if the reference applies to hydraulic
mining Had the rivers never been as
sailed by that process they would not be
in the deplorable condition we to-day find
them.
Bars viii form from time to time, here
and there, and it will require constant atten-
ton from the General Government to pre-
vent them from becoming impossible OBJ
stacles But, aside from this slight aid
from art by turning the current to compel
it to cat out the bars, it will be best to let
nature take her course" 1t might profit
our contemporary to inquire what agency
has thus far prevented nature from taxing
her course. Certainly it cannot be said
that any act of the valley has interfered
with natural processes in that respect.
The rivers will preserve themselves
from destruction if permitted to have their
own way California rivers excayate their
channels and build up their banks in the
season of winter foods, when the waters
so out over the adjacent country, and in
their impetuous rush carry with them a
part of the silt and sand that have accu-
mulated In the channels during the period
OF low water. Attempts to dixie the banks.
preventing the overflow of the winter
floods, is combating nature and balkine
her beneheent designs" The Alta will
crafty population occupying vast area
of agricultural land in the river section. If
1t points out where the river has done any
BODYBUILDING, and just to what extent the
Sacramento has excavated lis channel
The popular belief in all the valley, based
upon the testimony that is born Of ebserva-
ton, IS that the river has done a wonderful
work in cnannel-flling and bank-destroy-
ing, under the influence of hydraulic min
ing.
If artificial banks, so high that the
floods are confined, should be raised, the
deposits In the channels cannot be removed
laterally, and must remain or be pushed
forward into San Francisco Bay If this
means anything at all, it means an appeal
to the narrow, selfish and wholly puIscless
sentiment that would demand the destruc-
ton Of river sections in order to postpone
for time the descent of the debris de-