Idaho County free press. [volume] (Grangeville, Idaho Territory) 1886-current, 1888-09-14
MOVING WESTWARD.
,.rkabIe Change I'm the Course OF
American Rivers.

~, <>unarkADto Ohen6o - ~--~ -
American Rivers.
r ,eople who live on the banks of
I,s Mississippi river are accustomed to
hs astonishing activity of this vast
.iume of moving water in shifting its
vannel and cutting away its banks in
ns Mace while 1t builds up new terri
Nv at another. The entire alluvial
zion of the Mississippi valley was
.rsated by the river. and the land it
has built up is ever at the mercy of the
forces that made it.
So long as the changes wrought by
.his mighty current are all in the same
a.doual limits no political complica-
lions are possible consequent upon the
rsvages of the river and its power to
transfer territory from one place to
another. 1t would be different if two
nstionalities were concerned, and
something like this is coming into view
n the case of the Rio Grande. which
4 the boundary for a long distance
hetween the United States and Mexico.
In this connection the following state
msnt. which comes from Mexico, is of
interest:
Governor GARLIC of the State of Chi
buahua has recently made trip of in
yestigation along the banks Of the Rio
Grande from Paso del Norte down for
| adistance of about one hundred miles.
He found to his establishment that the
river was making slow but constant in
MnvsAnV co
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 ascertained from tbs leading inhab-
itants of that section OF country that
this had been going on for over a gen
Grafton. and that large numbers of
people has thus been made homeless
and forced to leave the country, many
Of them going to the New Mexican
settlements of, Mesilla, Chamberino,
Launiore, Las Cruces and Socorro. Gov
ernor GARLIC ascertained also that great
losses of valuable territory had been
taking place in the vicinity of Paso del
Norte, at which town defensive works
are now being erected by competent
engineers. The Governor has, since
his return to Chihuahua, indicated that
he is fully impressed with the impor-
lance of the subject, and that he in
tends to advise not only the State rep
resentatives 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 mattressing and riprapping
the river bank at all exposed points
He says these encroachments of the
river, unless speedily stopped, vii
cause a loss of national wealth, irrepar-
able loss to Paso del Norte, and the
financial ruin of hundreds of families.
Apart from the international inter-
ests involved. there are speculations OF
scientific nature suggested in the
premises which may be worthy of men
ton. 1t appears that the western and
and southwestern bank of the Rio
Grande is the one which suffers mos,
from the abrasion of the current Why
does the river show this tendency to-
work to the westward P Somethin.
like this appears in the case of the Mis-
sissppi. Formerly the river had it,
principal debouchment into the SCI:
through Bayou Manchac and the lakes
In the course of time that route WA
abandoned for the one now known II.
the main river. which is very consid-
erably to the westward Of the old our.
let In the mean time the river hn'
shown a disposition to transfer il
channel still further to the westwals
through the Atchafalaya- Can IL b.
made to appear from these facts tina
there is tendency in great rivers flow
ing in general directions along meridi
ans of the earth's longitude to swerv,
to the westward ? Can it be held tina
because of the rotation OF the earth o.
its axis to the eastward the weight.
the water in such longitudinal river
Is thrown by the centrifugal fore,
against the western banks so as t,
abrade them with increased energy
and effect The matter is worth ex-
animation. N O. Picayune.