The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1893-08-15
A SOURCE OF pANaER.
MAJ. Blandford's Report on the oonai-

. ~ HNa 4ANAAAAAA@ANA ~ a. AtNtA . va wa
tion Of Affairs at Dundee swamp.
/ Mai Blandiord submitted yesterday TO
/ Chairman Carson, of the committee on
drainage from the county commissioners,
/ his report on the condition Of Dundee
/ swamp and the OEeochee canal, resulting
from the turning of the waters Of the
/ canal into the swamp.
/ Mai Blaudford begins with the plan
/ formerly proposed by himself for drain
ing the lands through which the Ogeechee
/ canal runs and bringing them TO "a state
| in which they could be cultivated That
plan contemplated turning into each
swamp through which the canal passes
the water properly belonging to the
watershed of that swamp, thus giving to
each only that which originally belonged
to it, The waters Of that portion Of the
canal adjacent TO the Dundee swamp
would have been carried into the Savan-
nah river through the Dundee canal on
its completion.
The second plan contemplated using the
canal both for the purpose Of drainage
and of navigation. This plan was agreed
upon, but IN the meantime the Central
went into the hands of the Richmond and
Danville, and nothing further could be
done This is mentioned to show what
were the intentions Of the former board
Of county commissioners with regard to
the canal.
Within the last twelve months he goes
on to show that a dam has been built in
the Ogeechee canal just above the Telfair
bridge, and a trunk put in the bank above
this dam, which causes all the waters of
the canal 10 flow into Dundee swamp.
by whose advice or what authority
this was done" continues Mai Bland
ford, / do not know. l am not aware
that it was done by any action of the
board of county commissioners, or with
their knowledge or consent. If it was
deemed by those who did it to be for the
best to protect the health Of the city by
diverting the water of the canal away
from it, it would seem that they
would have sought to make outlets
TO discharge as much of II
as possible through those swamps which
would have carried it directly away from
the city into the Little Ogeechee instead
of discharging the whole into Dundee,
the nearest swamp to the city along its
line. / do not question the honesty of
purpose of those who did it, but l do
question the soundness Of the advice upon
which they ordered it done, if they acted
upon the theory above stated"
Mai Blandford says if the trunk was
only two by four feet 1t is large enough
with constant head of water to dis
charge 1000, 600 gallons an hour.
''The immediate effect has been to the
county to retard the progress of the work
of drainage now being executed in that
swamp; to the people living in that sec
ton or owning lands there, to overflow
their lands there.
81 respectfully hold that the subse-
quent effect will be much more serious.
The rank. luxuriant vegetation which
quickly sprung up and is nurtured by
such conditions will, under the hot rays
of the sun, when the heavy rains have
ceased, and the water in the swamp has
subsidized, as rapidly decay. and
from a vegetable muck the foulest
and most dangerous of vegetable decom-
positions, and this, together with the
stagnation of the water left standing in
the shallow pools ana ponds throughout
the swamp, will certainly produce condi-
tons most favorable for the termination
and dissemination of diseases incident ito
such a state
Maj. Brandford says it would have en-
dangered the health Of the county and
city less if it had been allowed to run in
it's regular channel to the river.
Mai. Blandford' s report will probably
be considered at meeting of the com
missioners at an early day, and action on
it discussed.