The Helena independent. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1875-1943, 1892-04-30
MIR. HILGER'S SIDE.
He Tells why He Opposes the Building of
the Stubbs' Ferry Dana.

HI Tells why He Opposes the building of
the Stubs Ferry Dana.
To The INDEPENDENT: Permit to explain
TO my friends my actions in opposing the
building of a thirty-foot dam in the Mis-
souri, river at stubbs' ferry. Some accuse
me of opposing Helena's welfare in this,
and that she would not get the benefit of
the water power that would thereby be ore
ated. l do mot oppose the water power,
but I oppose the dam. as it would be- q
great danger to all the people living along
the low bottoms of the river below for fifty
miles. Ihave my ranch and home on the
river below the dam site. my house is but
five feet above high water mark, and the
river being confined above and mmedlatel
below by the narrow and pernend!cuia
walls of the Gate of the Mountains below
and above American bar, so that the break
of such a dam holding q body OF water
thirty feet deep and extending back over
eight miles, would sweep everything before
it without a moments warming. My house.
home and improvements, as we'll as myself
and family. would be swept from the face
Of the earth. But the promoters of the
dam saw they will build q safe dam. All
dams, as we'll as railroad bridges, are safe
until they break. The dam in Massaehu-
setts a few years ago was as hne q structure
az engineers could design. stu It broke
md RWaOk LOWAS 4 dA1Ak w."
Tie people before it. The Johnstown dam
ia another illustration of a safe dam-which
killed thousands Of people and ruined mil
lions of property. and that dam only held
the water back three niles and was only
twenty-five feet deep. and another big dam
in Arizona, which cost nearly q million OF
dollars, likewise broke without warning
and swept the country below: but fo!tu-
nately but few people lived in the narrow
CANYON below, or else Johnstown would
have been but a small affair in comparison.
We we'll remember, not many years ago, IN
vicinity of Helena, the breaking OF NAT.
Cheeseman's little dam on Ten Mile, which
drowned people and swept eyerythlng before
it. We have hangers enough. suoh as We
can not guard against. without building
new ones mora destructive than all others,
and by private companies for personal gam.
do not oppose the utilizing Of the river
for water power. Mr.. T. 81. Kleinschmldt
stated on the hearing before Capt, Powell
that he was going to build an lrrlSating
canal from the Missouri river. commencing
above Ioston and extend it over the bench
lands Of the Missouri valley. to the vicinity
Of CANYON Ferry. That this canal would
take most all the water in the river, leaving
but little if any for navigation.
Now, what is there to hinder this power
company from likewise building a canal to
carry all the water they want to their
works.
survey, shows that Canyon Ferry is thirty
feet higher than their proposed dam and
place for works. An eight-mile canal VIII
give them all the power that the dam Will.
There are now a score or more canals taken
out of the Missouri river without dams
and more are being taken out yearly
Nobody opposes them, not even IT they
took the last drop of water. If this com
nanv ia sincere about their great water
mower and benefits for Helena, Butte and
the whole country, they can get all the
power they want BY canal and not endange1
the lives and property of all the people fo'
miles below. They need not call on the
Helena Board of Trade and the engineers
and attorneys of the Northern Pacific rail
road to declare the Missouri river not navi-
gable. and ask the secretary of war to jolr
in and give them a right to build such
costly and risky dam.
would here further state that l own n
property in Great Falls, that my interes
lies in the welfare OF Helena. nave opene'
at my own expense, without subsidy, one Q
the finest pleasure resorts on the globe.
have shown thousands of Helena people
tradesmen, mechanics, doctors, lawyers
business men. bankers, families, olergymel
and their congregations, people from al
over the United States and Europe, AM
even our chief executive. the president o
Lib CulU6A btNupo bklthp pA4o
%navigable above Great Falls, especial.
through the Gate of the Mountains, and tn
finest and grandest scenery on the globe
situated but eighteen miles from Helena
That for the paltry sum of SIS excursion
parties are taken at Helena by comfortabl
c~onveyances and carried eighteen miles t.
tie Gate of the Mountains, then CARRIE
nine miles down the river OF a safe an
comfortable steamer, stopping on the wa,
at the most interesting and grandest place
in the CANYON, returning in about five hour
to the Gate and then in their carriage
home to Helena the same having eight
cen miles of steamboat ride and thirty>si
miles ride in the band wagon. Not S3 70
q four-mile ride, as Mr.. Parchen stated e
the hearing. l have and still do max
much lower rates to families and people j
needy circumstances, so Mr.. Parohen an
some of his wealthy friends need not sta
back on account Of the price. MessrI
Parehen, Kleinschmidt, Muth 4 Co. can ge
q good pleasure steamboat that will sail u
and down the Missouri river to Great Fal.
or to Gallatin, especially from Stubbs' {
Canyon Ferry, where the river ID good al
the season.
They need not a dam there to sail il
The little propeller which they keep @
Flathead lake for pleasure would not ha'
power to hold itself on this dam. The win
would blow it over, and it could not sail q
EQt IlS6l dUONO IL odA. 1CSIAS III
GUS boats that haye navigated the ssriv
Messrs. Hotter Bros. have RATED million
of feet of lumber down the river fro
Craig to Great Falls; also from other poin
above. Townsend and Billings raft'
lumber from American bar, abo'
the Gate of the Mountains, to Sun riv
oyer twenty years ago.. Thu steam dred
boat built last year and operated at Thr
Forks, taking the gold out of the bed a,
banks OF the river, is but a f%orerunner
scores of other suoh boats to mine the 40
and sapphire mines discovered and locat
in the river bed and shores from the Thu
forks to Craig. All the railroads in Il
country parallel with the river could 4
mine the gold and sapphires in the ri,
without such boats, and these boats lea
the river unobstructed to move I'D a
down.
Perhaps when Mr.. Kleinschmidt has
canal built he will conclude instead
using it for irrigation, to use it to furn
Helena and Butte with ali the elect
power they need-it having a fall of over
feet at the lower end-Would not need
much water AZ our dam builders with
thirty feet fall. | am not afraid to expr
my sentiments to men who oppose, &
who told me in this matter that it wo,
be profitable for me to keep my mouth 81
about the navigabiiity of the river-t
they could injurs and ruin my busin,
ETC." Messrs. Cox and HOWE will benr
out in my assertlon-I was one of the
who fought railroad subsidies against
united press Of Montana & few wears a
The Northern Pacific, not contented "
one-half of the whole county. wanted
millions in a subsidy to build into Mont
after their charter had expired. So |
not afraid now to oppose a few scheu
yyh, hrnntnr I HpQtrn Yy0t r,,l n n 4