Reporter and farmer. [volume] (Webster, Day County, Dakota [S.D.]) 188?-1946, 1894-03-29

channel, one mile long, would have to be
made from upper st. Croix lake to the head
waters Of the Brule, and Ii would be neces-
sary to build dams and locks and make
slack water its entire length, forty-fve
miles, which has a descent of 400 feet.
There Is, moreover, ut its mouth no natural
harbor. The distance from Taylor's Falls
to the lakes Is 165 miles.
The third route, marked No. 3 In the cut,
commences at the mouth Of the Kettle river,
one OF the largest tributaries OF the st.
Croix. This is, for the first nine miles,
very rapid, and would be required to be
damned. One dam with locks at the head
of the rapid would provide slack water for
sixteen miles.
Then at Pine Island another lam would
lie needed to s!acken the water to the falls
OF Kettle river. The lower fal.e are some
eighteen feet; from head to foot from the
head OF the lower falls TO the head OF the
upper falls, four anu a half miles, the river
fails another twenty-five feet, but II the
sandrock in which the country abounds
was found suitable for dams not much
expense would be incurred In building
the necessary dams and locks. From the
head OF the upepr falls to the mouth OF the
Moose river and from this point to Moose
lake four dams would be necessary. From
Moose LAKE to the crossing OF the old
Lake Superior & Mississippi four dams
would be required and the canal would have
to be cut to Black Hoof river, a tributary OF
Left Hand river, flowing into Lake superior.
1t would be very expensive to make these
latter streams nayigable.
Besides these three routes the commits
sioner5 also examined the 81, Louis river
with reference to "A canal from Fond du Lac
to the Mississippi. This Is route No. l in the
cut. lfey reported the 81. Louis river
from Fond du Lac TO the head Of Knife
Falls, twenty-five miles, impracticable for
navigation, but thought that a canal might
be constructed from a point above KNIFE
Falls to the head of the Moose Horn river,
or that the 81. Louis river might be used
a-- a. faAia- &C., N M ~ an ShA ar rn1tEA
examined by the commission. From Knife
Falls up stream the river Is 800 hundred
feet wide with good banks and rock bottom.
Six miles from Knife Falls there are rapids
nve miles long; four mics above these are
the Cloquet rapids one mile long, and from
tie Cloquet river to the East Savannah
there are nineteeia miles Of slack water, and
from the head Of East Savannah to West
Savannah, tributary to Sandy LAKE, a canal
four miles long could be made by damming
both streams. The " est Savannah Is twelve
miles long to Sandy lake and through Sandy
lake to the Mississippi Ii is five miles.
In summing up their observations the COM
uissioners stated that they deemed the
Namecigon river route too long. The short
est ana best route would be the one via
the Bots Brule and the st. Croix, except
that there was no natural harDOr at the
mouth OF the former. The route by the
Kettle and Lett Hand rivers they con-
sidered would be the most expensive.
1t will be noticed that there is on the map
Lumuers showing the Elevation at various
important points. The elevation of Lake
Superior Is COZ feet above sea level. while
lower water mark at 81. Paul Is 6S2.5 feet,
showing a difference of on,y 81 feet. The
divide intervenes Between these points. Of
course. as Is shown by the figures show
Ing the elevation at Sandy lake, Mile i.acs
and olner points on the routes. The route
numbered l In the cut consists OF more
miles of navigahle water way than the
uti.y. routes described and wauid fnv5ive few
dams TO provide slack water and only one
canal untA the Mississippi was reached
AT Brainerd, Little Falls ana 81. Cloud
canals would have TO he built around the
falls, though dams at present exist at all
three points. This route also has nm album
dant supply OF water at the highest eleva-
ton. anu Mile Lacs lake by On outlet not
shown In the cut cou,d be used as a feeder
on account OF its high elevation, forty feet
above the highest point, Sandy lake. along
the route.