The commonwealth. (Greenwood, Miss.) 1896-1923, 1898-04-21
The aGUI LGI8 System o. NIG Mississippi River.
aYHoN THOMAS c. oAToRINes, N. c.

smaller streams will prove effective up
on it If made use Of on scale cores
ponding to its gigantic proportions
The aluvial lands Of the Mississippi
river south Of Cairo. which are com
monty known as the Mississippi Delta
extend across 8 1-2 degrees Of latitude
being about 800 miles long, from 25 to
80 miles wide, embracing about 10000
square miles
They begin ata point few miles
above the mouth Of the Ohio river
where the Mississippi river cuts through
the foothills Of the Ozark mountains,
and at one time their whole area was
covered By the waters Of the Gulf Of
Mexico. The sediment brought down
during countless ages by the river and
its tributaries gradually took the place
Of these waters and nov, through its
own deposits, it descends in tortuous
channel to the Gulf. BY natural pro
eesses it has not only driven back the
waters Of the Gulf but cut itself off
from this great expanse Of land which
It has thus built up. While the water
Of the river is never clear its load Of
sediment is greatly increased during
food stages It's ability to transport
this sediment depends upon its velocity,
and is greater or less as It's velocity is
increased OF reduced. The channel is
incapable of accommodating The vast
foods which at times rush down to the
Sea, and tie how Of Che surplus water
which escapes over its banks is so re
tarded BY the increased frictional re
sistance which it then encounters that
il Immediately begins to part with its
sediment The heavier particles being
dropped first fall upon It's banks while
the lighter are carried back into the in
terror, In this way the banks were
built up higher than the lands further
back, and lateral channels were gradu-
ally closed up
Lake Borgne, into which an outlet Is
proposed, at some period in the past
was a part Of the great body Of sea.wa-
teriwhich covered the whole Delta, but
before it had been filed by deposits
and entirely obliterated, the Mississippi
river in the manner indicated had
built Up its banks 50 al to cut of com
with it. If we should now
make a connection between it and this
lake wewould be attempting to enforce
upon tile river that which it once had,
and which, when left to its own process
ses, II deliberately refused to maintain.
It has been proposed by some as
means Of preventing oyerHows to CON
struct outlets to carry off all water
which THE channel Of the river is unable |
to hold and to inaug0rate this plan
by emitting a canal one mile wide from
the Mississippi river to Lake Borgne. at |
q point about twenty miles below New |
Orleans which shall be capable Of dis
charging 500 600 cubic feet Of water |
per second It Is claimed that such
diversion Of water from the channel
would lower The aood surface as much 4
Is fifteen feet III the way up to Cairo
By al outlet u meant an opening
through The banks Of the river. 81 the
.evee 1n top Of Tie banks which will
sarry of water from the channel in
such q manner that it cannot again re
.1rn to IL but must make It's way to
lie sea BY some other rcute There Il
10 point below Cairo where such an
outlet can be bad until we reach the
head 0f the Atchafalaya river The es
sape of tile foods into TIE So Francis
basin, OF into the Yazoo BASIN for ex
simple. Is hot equivalent to al outlet
sorit is merely temporary ana they
.oon return u the channel At some
point lower down There + 2 glamour
u ineMtabIene abodl the outlet the
5ry wticn makes ct captivating to one
aho las not studied tho history and
avs d sedimentary tfeams f YES
.sl u alled with water we know That it
sill not bold 4 drop more bus that If
ge nlate 4 hole ia its Sue we can then
sontiHae indefinitely to pour As much I
ito il as ESCAPES tlrroagh ths hole with
1ut causing tha water to rHn over its
sin
il SPACE woHld allow il eqald rs
ly shown why thi principle ba5 40
application t0 Sly beating siream Il li