The Forrest City times., 1897-07-02
Mississippi River Commission.

Mississippi River Commission evi- dently feel they did the greatest good to the greatest number. This was possibly forced upon them by the lower part of the river in Louisiana and Mississippl by the organized pressure brought to their assistance by the commercial interest of those sections, to i'm press the commission of the mag nitude of the interests to be pro- tected, and the losses that would be sustained by overhows. Each levec district was represented by large delegations of their citizens including their congressman and senators, and Gov. McLaurin, of Mississippi, also the large railroad corporations including the Illinois Central, one of the largest corpo- ratlons Tn the United States.
 The St. Francis Levee Board was unable to unite the railroad interests in an effort 10 secure from the commission an adequate l share of the appropriation. Not withstanding the fact that they had communicates with the different railroads crossing the basin, urg- ing upon them the importance and necessity of their cooperation in the great work. The Little Rock < Memphis and the Iron Mountain railroads expressed their willing ness to send representatives, but failed to do so. The Kansas City road refused to participate in the effort.
 While the allotment to the lower St. Francis was unreason- ably. small. the upper St. Francis district and the districts lying above that, on the Mississippi river, were wholly ignored, mani festing the disposition of the com mission to levee the big river from it's mouth up.
 The policy is unscientife in principle and frought with untold danger to the people of the upper districts. The recent flood has de. monstrated to the commission the feasibility of reel aiming all the valley from the overflow by means of the levee and they will rccom' mend to congress, in their report, the continued and increase of ap. propriation for levee purposes.
 In the discussion before the com. mission, touching the damages from the recent overflow and the protection which was afforded by levees, where the system was com, pleted, or nearly so, there was an entire or unanimous agreement oi opinion among all the people rep. resenting the Mississippi, Louisi anna and Arkansas levee districts that fully 75 per cent. of their ter. ritory had been saved from over flow. The commission manifested very great surprlse, If pot amazo ment when they learned of the proviso in the act authorizing the St. Francis Levee Board to issue bonds. 1t seemed so increditable to them that they enquired if any one had copy of the act, that they might see it.
 The effect of this remarkable at. titude of the people of the St. Francis. basin, upon the commis. sion was plainly to be seen when contrasted with that of the people just across the river from them in Mississippi. The upper Yazoo Mlss.) district beginning a few miles below Memphis and extend ing down the river 1855 miles, with an almost completed levee, went before the commission and stated they had just sold s500,000 bonds at par and said "BeIp us." and were given the amount ot.. SSS, 1925.
 There is no reason why the St. Francis basin might not have re. ceived equally as liberal a share of the appropriation if they had shown as much willingness to