The record-union., 1896-04-11
TAKING AN OBJECT LESSON.
Government Debris Inspectors Adoat on
the Yuba River.
They See Marysville Below tho Rive,
Bed and Houses Buried Under
40 meath the Slickens.

The United States Debris Commits
sioners took q trip to Marysyille on
Thursday to look at the rivers in that
vicinity, Major Davis and Captain
Gillette going up, but Colonel Suter be-
ing unable to go.
The visit was in pursuance of an in
vitation Of the Anti-Debris Associa-
ton for them to make a casual inspec-
ton Of the ruin wrought by hydraulic
mining In the vicinity Of Marysville
and Wheatland. In company with w.
I. Phipps, c. E. Stone, John C. White,
D. E. knight and Mayor Ellis, they
started at an early hour from Marys-
vile and drove to De Guerre Point,
near which it has been proposed to
build the restraining dam on the Yuba
River. AS the water was at the me-
dunn stage, it was deemed advisable
to take f1atboat and float down the
river to Marysville, thus getting an ex-
cellent opportunity to compare the
present condition of affairs with that
which existed before hydraulic min
ing was begun, as described by the old
residents who accompanied the party
AT De Guerre Point many old oak trees,
which were large at that place, are al
most entirely hidden by the slickens on
the low land between the Ievees and
are dead from the effects The fill in
the original channel proper at this
point is perhaps forty or fifty feet
From there to Marysville the river has
a very steep but uniform grade, the
present bed Of the river at the foot of
D street in Marysville being about
eight feet above the level Of the street
INT fy1n
was pointed out to the commission
that the debris against the levee is
fifteen or twenty feet higher than the
land on the inside of the levee, which
was, in 1853 or 1860, considered high
land as compared with the river bot
tom. The fact was also pointed out
that the river has absolutely at times
left it's former channels and shifted
about between the levees from De
Guerre Point to Marysvile, which are
from one to three miles apart, accord
ing to location, and nothing but these
levees is now keeping the river within
this space. Before hydraulic mining
injured the river, all the land between
these levees. except the channel Of the
river, was of the richest bottom land
producing alfalfa and fruit.
I The party reached Marysville about
2 p. m, and from there, IN company
with Mr. Phipps, they We're taken on to
Bear River, in the vicinity of Wheat
land, and under the guidance Of r. Fl.
burst, many important points showing
the damage done by debris were shown.
The examination of Bear River began
at the Parks dam, of which nothing now
remains but q few feet Of brush near
the levee at the north end. The COM
mission drove down the river on top of
the levee, securing a good view of the
land on both sides. 1t was shown that
this river has covered the bottom land
along the whole distance Of the levee
to hight of fifteen to thirty feet oblit
erating.sdhe old channel. There is
leyee and high land on the south side,
and between these levees the river
shifts its channel at will.
At distance of a mile and half be-
low Wheatland there is no effort to con-
fine the water by levee on the north
side and the water spreads out over the
country. Both streams carry heavy
gravel to near their mouths, much Of it
being as large as a hens egg. Those
who were old residents and accompanied
the party, pointed out the places where
houses which once stood there have
been entirely covered up, and nothing
remains to mark the spots where they
stood except groups of cottonwood
trees, which are not injured by slick
ems.
The trip was made by the Commis-
sioners for the purpose Of gathering in
formation, and they admitted that the
condition Is very serious one Captain
Gillette said that 1T was more serious
than he had supposed, as he had had no
idea Of such widespread destruction be-
fore ~ 80 *@
The Commissioners were naturally
reticent, as 1t was their first inspection
Of the river, and they did not want to
form a hasty judgment, but 1t was evil
dent that they were convinced that the
heavy gravel they saw that had been
rolled down by the waters almost to the
mouths OF the Yuba and Bear Rivers
was not the result Of natural wash or Of
stock grazing over the hillsides.