Morning journal and courier., 1888-05-16
RIVERS MOVING HAYWARD.
 ls this Accounted for by She Revolution ofBhe Earth on its AxIs4

AS tM1s AccOuRge01o 1or 6y she ReVolut10n n ofthe Earth on its Axis9
 1 From the New Orleans Picsyunel The people who live on the banks of the Mississippi river are accustomed to | the astonishing activity of this vast volume | of moving water in shifting it's channe1 and cutting away it's banks in one place while it builds up new territory at another. The en- 1 tire alluvial region of the Mississippi valley ! was created by the river, and the land it has built up is ever at the mercy of the forces that made it.
 50 long as the changes wrought by this mighty current are all in the same national l limits no political complications are possible consequent upon the ravages of the river and it's power to transfer territory from one place 10 another It would be differ ent if two nationalities were concerned and something like this is coming into view in the case of the Rio Grande, which is the boundary for long distance between the United States and Mexico. In this connection the following statement, which comes from Mexico, is Of interest: Gov. Carillo Of the State of Chihuahua has recently made trip of investigation along the banks of the Rio Grande from Paso del Norte down for a distance of
 
 ishment that the river was making slow
 but constant inroads into Mexican terri- tory, eating away the Mexican banks and depositing them on the American side, and that thus many thousand acres of the most fertile lands in the Rio Grande valley on the Mexican side had been washed away. Upon inquiry into this subject he ascertaned from the leading inhabitants of that section of country that this had been going on for over a generation, and that large numbers of people had thus been made homeless and forced to leave the country, many of them going to the New Mexican set dement's of Mesil1a, Chamberino, Launiore, Las Cruces and Socorro. Governor Carillo ascertained also that great losses of valuable territory had been taking place in the vicini- ty of Paso del Norte, at which town defen- sive works are now being erected by compe- tent engineers. The Governor has, since his return to Chihuahua, indicated that he is fully impressed with the importance of the subject, and that he intends to advise not only the State representatives at the city of Chihuahua, but also the national Congress now in session in the City of Mexico, to make appropriations to be expended in forti- flying and undressing and riprappIng the river bank at all exposed points. He says these encroachments of the river, unless speedily stopped, will cause a loss of nation al wealth, irreparable loss to Paso del Norte | and the financial ruin of hundreds of families. ! Apart rom the 1nternaClOn61 interests 1n- I volved, there are speculations of scientific l nature suggested iq the premises which may be worth mention. It appears that the west | ern and southwestern bank of the Rio Grande | is the one which suffers most from the abra- l sion of the current. Why does the river ! show this tendency to work to the westwards Something like this appears in the case of the Mississippi. Formerly the river had its principal debouchment into the sea through Bayou Manchac and the lakes. In the course of time that route was abandoned for the one now known as the main river, which is very considerably to the westward of the old out- let In the meantime the river has shown a disposition to transfer it's channel still fur ther to the westward through the Atchafa- laya. Can 1t be made to appear from these facts that there is tendency in great rivers. flowing in general direction along meridians of the earth's longitude to swerye to the westwarda Can it be held that because of the rotation of the earth on its axis to the eastward the weight of the water in such longitudinal rivers is thrown by the centri- fugal foree against the western. banks so as to abrade them with increased energy and effeeta The matter is worth examination.