Tensas gazette. [volume] (St. Joseph, La.) 1886-current, 1897-07-09
ANTE BELL UNI LEVEES

an interesting extract, which w
give below:
"The Herald is in receipt of ,
photograph of the Stop LANDING
erevasse, in Bolivar county, taker
to expose a number of large
number of stumps that were not
grubbed up when the levee was
built. Our correspondent, one OF
the most respected and intelligent
planters in this section, writes as
follows:
DEAR SIR:-As Won are interested in
levee construction, enclose YOU n pbo.
tograph of the "Stop Landinpu ere.
vase, showing four ont of the twenty.
FOUR stumps tat were left standing
when the levee was built over them
One OF these stumps is about seven feet
nigh and one that does not plainly show
In the photograph Is five feet In Diane
ter. Through the columns of your val
liable paper you can show to the tax
payers OF the Delta how their money is
applied in building l wees TO protect
them from overflow. Matters like these
should be held up to public gaze; calling
for more vigilance. in levee construc-
ton. "a
''The Herald is not aware of tbs
date of the construction of THE
levee at Stop, and on that fact de-
ponds the culpability of leaving
stumps in the embankment. Levee
building is a progressive art, and
prior to 1890, if we are correctly
grounded in levee history, con-
tractors were not required to grub
up stumps. Going back some
years farther, they were not even
required to have them free from
logs. Some years ago levee broke
inWashington county thathad been
built before the war by the planter
whom it would, IF broken, most
damage. When it did give way a
few years since, logs enough for a
good sized raft were washed out
and exposed. These were certain
ly left in the levee in ignorance of
the dsuger they contributed. 1t
Is more than probable that the
Stop levee was built prior to 1890,
after which date contractors have
been required to grub up and re-
move all stumps, to the deepest
roots. But the agitation of the
incident will do no harm. It
serves to place the authorities and
the people on their guard, to exer-
Disc more vigilance in time of high
water"
When We take into considera-
ton the fact that many of our
lbvees were built before the war,
and at times when little or no care
was exercised in seeing that they
were properly constructed, 1t Is
not surprising that we have ere
vases along our line where we least
expect them. This fact makes our
long line of levees during extreme
high water liable to. break any,
where in the old levees, and if we
could possibly do it, every one of
them should be torn down and re-
built according to modern ideas of
levee construction.
We suppose, however, that this
is impossible at this stage of levee
improvement, and we will there
fore have to hold our hands and
he at the mercy of the careless and
criminal levee contractor of the
ante-bellum days.
These lines of embankments on
both sides of the river protect the
houses and fortunes of so many
people, that'lt is indeed deplora-
bic to think we are at the mercy
Of such levees as those described
in the. article of the Vicksburg
Herald. l.
Fortunately, in this parish, we
have very few of such old levees,
and whenever leak or imperfec- ,
ion' has developed during flood +,
time, our authorities have been |
prompt, as soon as the water goes
/
Town, to repair the defect.
The day will come.after this VAL
ey becomes peopled with millions
vhere there are thousands now, :
ghen these lines of levees will re-
Give as, careful attention and in
pection in the construction as the
of q city during times of =
iege. :.
As the levees are built now, it is "
Imost impossible for foreign sub :
5auces- 10 be placed in them, as :"
,e work of each contractor is !"
osely inspected by Engineers,
no are generally men of the high =
n character and fraud is thereby y
SsoluteIy prevented. :,
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