St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1893-05-08
.BOEN'S BIG SCHEME.
How Freight Rates May Be
Reduced From the Red
River Valley,
And Disastrous Floods in Fut-
ure Prevented in That
Section.
A System OF Water Ways at
Small Cost and Entirely
Feasible.
Results Of a Survey Of the
Red River and Tribu-
tapieS.
Special to the Globe.

Special to the Globe
WASHINGTON, May 7.-Congressmar
Boen's plan for the prevention of great
floods in the Red river valley in the
future may be the means of inducing
the government to open water com
munication between the Red river val
ley and st. Paul and Minneapolis by
means of the improvement of the Min
nesota river, Big Stone lake. Lake
Traverse and the Red River of the
North. By making the two lakes just
mentioned storage reservoirs for water,
not only can the inundatlon of the Red
river valley be prevented, but vast
amount of water can be turnedinto both
the Minnesota and the Red rivers dur
ing the dry season, thus furnishing
enough water to make the upper Mis-
sissippi navigable for larger vessels at
times when, as things are at present, 1t
is next to impossible.
Years ago the improvement of the
Minnesota to its source was a pet
scheme of many Minnesota men, but
the building Of railroads caused them to
drop the matter. The people Of the Red
river valley have desired that river to
be improved, but the fact that its outlet
is in the British possessions and at a
point from which low freight rates can
not be secured caused the government
to look coldly upon the scheme and ar
rive at the decision that as the river
could be used only for local traffic, the
expense would not be justified. Two
years ago. however. Maj. w. A. Jones,
of the United States corps ct engineers,
was detailed under the act Of congress
of Sept. 49, 1890, to report the result of
A Preliminary Examination
of the "Red river and tributaries above
Fergus Falls and Crookston and of Big
Stone lake with a view to improving
navigation thereon by the erection of
suitable dams, or by such other means
as may be deemed best, together with
an estimate OF cost"
The report of Maj. Jones was favor
able to the Improvement of the Red
river and excited no small amount OF i'll
terest at the time. He was unable by
the terms of the resolution to do more
than Indicate the feasibility of connect
ing the Minnesota and the Red river
and thus furnishing the upper Missis-
sippi with a large volume of water
during the dry season. This he did,
however, in speaking OF the Big Stone
lake reservoir, as follows:
ut would hardly be reasonable to pass
by the effects of this reservoir upon the
Minnesota and Mississippi rivers. This
reservoir with ten foot Of rise would
carry 5,227, 235, 600 cubic, feet; which,
added to tie surplus from
Lake Traverse, would make, say
II .306, co., 900 cubic feet. But the prob
able average output of the drainage
area of the lake is 20.l45, 897, 04S cubic
feet. Hence, if additional holding
ground can be found below Big Stone
lake, and this is probable, we could
expect to have for the Min
nesOta river 1925, III, 900 cubic feet
during the whole Of
An Average Wear.
This would permit the following dis
charge into the river: One thousand
eight hundred cubic feet per second for
90 days, during the extreme low water
period Of Aug. Is, September, October,
INOYs 1Os ~ ClDlG lCCG DCI OCSOIId 1Ot
1872 days, during April Is, May, June,
July, Aug. Is; Zoo cubic feet per second
for 1872 DAYS, OF during the winter
when the rivers are frozen up.
1t is evident that 1,600 cubic feet per
second added to the Mississippi between
St. Paul and the mouth of the st. CroiX
during extreme low stage will have con-
siderable effect upon thatreach of river,
and probably enable boats to reach st.
Paul during the whole boating season.
During the year 1891, when the MiSsis-
sippi fell to zero stage at points just
below the influence of the reservoirs on
its head waters these reservoirs main
tanned a stage OF about 1.5 at st. Paul.
From a table of gaugingS made in the
same year it appears that had ], 800 cubic
feet per second been added from the
the combined reservoir effect
would have produced a stage OF over
2.5 at ST. Paul. AT this stage boats from
St Louis can readily come up"
All Are Interested.
So much for the Improvement of the
Minnesota, and the making of storage
reservoir out of Big Stone lake. Leav-
ing out of the question the great lOca
traffic between the Red river valley and
local points on the Red and Minnesota
rivers, and the effects on freight rates
certain to be eXerted the Improvement
would be justified by the necessities of
the Mississippi alone. On this PROPOSE
ton all the Minnesota congress
men can work together. Senator
Tawney is interested in promoting
the Improvement of the Mississippi, as
is Congressman Hall. Col. Kiefer and
Your UncIe'' Loren Fletcher are
vitality interested, being at the head of
on the Father of Waters.
Prof, McCleary is also interested, be
cause the Minnesota river for hun
dred miles skirts or flows through the
Second district. Congressman Baldwin
favors improvement of water courses
everywhere. and Representative Boen,
the man who has started the discussion,
is enthusiastic over it because he sees a
way to reduce freight rates to the Red