The record-union., 1892-05-30
OUT INTO TIE TULES.
One of the Weak Spots in the YoIo
Levee Gives Way,
And Great Volume of Water. is Nov
Pouring Through-No Serious
Damage Expected.

At last the Yolo levee has broken, and
steady decline IN the volume of water
flowing in the river may now be looked
for.
The break occurred yesterday forenoon
on the Clark place, some seven miles
south of the town of Washington, and by
last evening the gap had widened to about
200 feet.
Parties who visited the spot state that
the place where the levee gave way is the
site of an old break that occurred several
years ago, and has been the weakest spot
IN the 4olo levee during the present high
water, having been submerged much oi
the time.
The place was formerly known as a part
OF the West ranch, but was lately pur-
chased by Clark for the timber growing
on it, the same being cut for hop poles.
A RECoRD-UNIoN reporter had a talk
with the Messrs. Todhunter and ex-Fish
Commissioner Buckingham of Washing
ton last evening, and these gentlemen
agreed that the leyee could not have
broken in better place. The water, they
say, Will run out into the tule and willow
swamps and continue down west OF
Clarksburg through Winchester Lake
and the chain of slOughs in that locality,
and will probably do very little damage.
1t will but slightly affect the Portu-
guese vegetable gardens near the river,
which have been already damaged by
seepage water about as much as they
could stand. The break is two ranches
south Of Buckman Il Carragher's breed
ing farm, and their back levees will, it is
thought, keep off any back-water that
NAV find its waV nOFtlWard,
AT the place where the leVee flew out
there were no Improvements to be in
iured, the torrent pouring out into the
tule and willow thickets, which is very
fortunate, as there are several nicely i'm
proved farms along the river, and had
the levee given way opposite one Of them
the damage would have been heavy to the
owners.
Within a few hours after the break oc-
Cured there was perceptible lowering
Of the river all the way to Freeport. The
fall was not as rapid at this point as
might have been supposed, the gauge
showing a decline of two inches at
midnight. But as the gap widens and
the water cuts the levee down to the
original bank the volume of water going
through will increase, and the effect will
soon be material lowering of the river
here. There is comparatively little water
coming down from the mountains, hence
IilOAS w III NC iiOlHiils W h0Gp Tic river up
here for any length Of time. All it needed
was an outlet, and the Yolo crevasse will
doubtless give the required relief
The present high-water crisis has re-
viVed the talk among the river ranchers
of a relief canal from Knights Landing
down across the country TO Suisun Bay
as the only possible means of avoiding
widespread disaster in the years to come.
The experience of this spring has shown
that it is almost useless to attempt to con-
fine all the flood waters within the Sacra-
mentu River. unless the channel be inn
proved by dredging and the Strengthening
ofthe banks. Even then if the San Joaquin
should be running full, it will largely in
terfere with the emptying of the Sacra-
nento. But if another stream can be
taken out of the Sacramento at about
Knights Landing, or somewhere in that
vicinity, and emptied into the bay west
of the mouth of the Sacramento, there
will be little or no danger of the river
rising so high that it cannot be readily
controlled by levees.
Sol Runyon Of Courtland was in the
city on Saturday and stated that in some
manner the river seemed to be choked up
between this city and Clarksburg, some
seventeen or eighteen miles down the
river. The hight of the water from there
dOwn-at Courtland, Walnut Grove and
other places-is not troubling the levees
at all.
Mr. RunyOn states that he has seen
more water in the country at this time of
year before now, but the levees are hold
ing better than ever before, which is the
reason the water has been so high in the
vicinity of Freeport,