The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1897-03-20
THE coUNTYs DRAINAGE.
POLICY OF THE NEW BOARD NOT
YET DECIDED ON.

The whole Hoard VIII Take n Look
over the County Tuesday-Buek-
halter swamp Likely to BE the
Next Important Drainage Work
Taken Up-CIeaning of bitches and
Drains Around the City to Begin
Next Month-The work That Is
Now Being Done.
The new board Of county commissioners
is making arrangements to look carefully
into the drainage work of the county.
which is yet to be done but just what poll
Icy will be pursued with regard to it has
not yet been determined.
The whole board will go out Tuesday
afternoon for the purpose of looking over
the Buckbalter swamp and section, which
under a resolution of the commissioners
passed some time ago, will be the next
important drainage work which the coun-
tV will take up. The commissioners ex-
pect to make frequent trips around the
county and will also give their attention
to other drainage work, and see what Is
most important and pressing.
Chairman F. S. Lathrop of the drainage
committee of the board was asked yester-
day what its policy would be with regard
to the county drainage, but he said it is a
little too early yet to give any definite idea
of Just what it will be.
Il cannot tell yet" he said, Just what
the work will be and what will have 20
be done. 1 have not even seen the Buck
halter section, but expect to go out with
the other members of the board and look
it over within few days. Chairman Dale
and myself were out with Superintendent
Chaplin and Mr.. b. s. Wells yesterday.
and took a look at the Harmon and Hemp
stead canals. which cross the White Bluff
road and drain sections to the south of
the city. There has been a good deal of
complaint about these canals not being
able to carry off the water of that section.
and 1t Is likely that something will have
to be done for them. AS for the drainage
work around the city, almost the whole
chain-gang force will be put to work
cleaning and slushing the drains and
bitches within very short time. This is
the regular spring cleaning, and it will
require, l suppose, about two months to
complete IT,"
Chairman J. ]. Dale, in speaking about
the matter, said he did not know Just
what course the commissioners would pur-
sue. An order was passed sometime ago
he said. providing that the Buckhalter
section be the next important drainage
work taken up, but whether the present
board would approve 1t or not he could
not say
Il consider that section an important
one to the city," he said Some of it's
ramifcations come within three miles of
the city limits and the drainage is to the
south, a different direction from that
taken by the canals which drain territory
almost contiguous to it,
we win begin the spring cleaning of
the bitches and drains around the city
next month. and this work has now got
ten to be a very extensive one. 1t takes
pretty near the whole force of conVicts
two months to complete it, and 1t is one
of the most important works they have
to attend to. 1 do not think there will
be any trouble with the board. 1t will
do some good work for Chatham county,
and great deal more, think, than has
been done. The work will be carried
along all right, and l do not think the
city or the county will suffer"
Mr.. Dale said, too that something
would probably have to be done for the
Harmon and Hampstead canals just south
OF the city as they are clearly not large
enough to carry off all the water that
comes into them, especially in a heavy
rain. There are now about 107 convlcts at
work on the drainage and about IS are
doing road work. OF the former sixty are
working on the new DeRenne canal dig
cling the cut off to the new Casey canal.
while the others are employed on drain
age work around The Meadows and Col
iinsville to the east of the city.