The Houston daily post. [volume] (Houston, Tex.) 1886-1903, 1897-08-29
he RIVER PROBLEM.
!. Editor of The Post.

me u ne TOht.
The Post Of May /, 1897, / notice an
tcrial, the caption OF which reads 1.-THE
N River Problem" having, of course,
renee to the Mississippi river. which
IN annual, II not semi annual, habit
playing high jinks'' with the people
ng Its banks, destroying their crops,
wning their stock, chasing their mig
to high ground, and very often car
Of away their habitations. no matter
heavy the mortgage on the same may
II this were all that this erratic
eam was chareable with we might grin
bear it," but this is not all, by large
ority. Hundreds of cur citizens are
wned, thousands are ruined financially
these antics, and where not entirely
life as to discourage and unit them
continue the fight, for they have no as
xnce that another three or four years
uggle with the hoe and the plow and
patient mule will not be as suddenly
completely, torn away from them as
accumulations of previous years have
70 by the present flood.
MIS- very sensible article in The Post Of
" starts off in this way.
The proposition to offer prizes by the
Neral government for plans from emf
BIZ engineers for solving the Mississippi
er problem has met with some not ed
orsements, Congressman Savers OF our
he, among Others being In favor Of first
second prizes of $4,000 and $25,0n.,
pectively.''
Now, Mr.. Editor, am not an eminent
sineer," and, to tell the truth. am net
engineer, eminent or otherwise, but /
bt to write on this subject, ana II you
allow me to be little long wlnded,'
franble a little in my homely efforts to
NAN myself, will do so. Should the
kMnment see fit to award me the first
b for this suggestion, you may be sure
shall feel very thankful. Should the
Aorities at Washington arrive at the
hdusion that the second prizc of s25,-
3 all that is my due, | shall gracefully
emit. IL, on the other hand, both prizes
denied me, stand ready to conpro-
Non 25 cents.
~ The Post, in the editorial spoken Of.
ny says. the present fearful disaster
Ics the Mississippi and its principal
hutaries has fully convinced all thinking
ple that this problem must be solved,
thst too, without any unnecessary de-
n. That the States. individually, are
able to handle the matter, and that
general government is alone powerful
Mgh to subdue this raging monster. and
Harness. and direct it's now wasted forces
y make the surplus waters obedient
subservient to the teeming millions
y will eventually populate this great
lv Is q contamination devoutly to be
lied.
mat the problem Is an intricate and
picking one all will admit. That 1t
be costly one is readily conceded.
however perplexing and costly ii may
must be done, and the sooner the
yer. II billion dollars shall be nee
~ for the purpose, a billion it must
And we don't want any kicking abont
either.
Now. Mr.. Editor. told you in the begin
as OF this article that. in order to have
Proposition understood, should want
ramble little.' What l meant was,
should want to go back into the
re and misty past" how far back
no means OF knowing, but for a
ner will only go back to
sM1THSoN.
ZONE Of your readers will doubtless ask
nno is Smithson, and what the devil has
A,nson got to do with this thing, any
It's this way: James Lewis Macie
mad adopted the family name OF his
uer Tor a time, but afterward resumed
OF ms father) was an Englishman, a
saih son OF Hugh Smithson Duke oil
who died in 1929, and by
WI lett sum of money (something
WI half million dollars) to the United
government for the purpose Of found
al institute to be called the smith
an institution the object OF which
a. . IN the Will, was for the increase
ulnusion OF knowledge among men,
=, .aei idea OF Smithson being to ait
encourage scientific research on the
Ec,IsN continent, then and still mos
cauc Held OF discovery.
Nhere. some time, have read tina
tusoh made two trips to this countr,
hsas early days. accompanied by Ind.r
orsd anu white companion or two, ex
rtr,oa considerable portion OF North
ac,sS a. end the feature that most 1T
,nr ana interested him was the in
: III ,hti ana numerous evideaces OF tn
.sTA this portion, OF the great bal
mud and water known as the earth ha,
n,,'.. tne centuries past and gone, dense
saspu'ated-sc densely, In fact, as mad
nN ssariiy problem of government I,
dwhi. ehese hordes to keep them out 0
lse.sa, or TO prevent them from starving
s, ssc men sent out by the Smithsonian
: ocssE 70 investigate on these lines hay
r ~. stories to tell to the people o
rpsalc age. II their reports soun,
srrhy tales, the proofs adduced are
n, s indisputable. Who ihes
= " We're. where they came from, hos
~ mere. where they went to is
none bnt their Creator may sat
n ,.ney We're people of which no his
N ihh.as, and the only trace of ther
: ,tsn ~ indestructible evidences az thei
ae~ scattered over the American con
! they are spoken Of as
The MOUND BUILDERS,
iu,m e writer's have suggested the pos
~ q their being one OF the Los
fc,ac ~ Israel" They are designated :
EseSu builders" from the thousands Z
~. ney have left In all paris Of Mort
outn Amertca. Many OF your read
fr's probably aware that a suburb
y known as Mound City, Ther
,Shy OF these mounds in that yicinit
{ cay leveled thsm mercilessly ,