The age-herald., 1899-06-21
MONEY SPENT J FOR NOTHING In Building Levees Along the
 Mississippi. RIVER COMMISSION MEETS Party of Prominent Louisiana Men Ex- plain the Dangerous Position of
 Certain Sections5of Land
 Along the Stream
RIVER COMMISSION MEETS

New York, June 2O.-The Mississippi river commission held It's second meeting today in the army building. The session was executive and may extend over until tomorrow. The object of the meetings now being held is to get all the special reports of the different members of the commits sion together and prepare them for the an- nual report, embodying the work and the recommendation of the year for the sec- retary of war.
 The president of the commission, Cal. G. s. Gillespie, presided at the meeting. The other members of the commission were Lieutenant Colonel A. Stickney, Major NJ. B. Harrod, Judge J. R. Taylor, Major T. II. Handbury, II. L. Marnigin. J. A. De- terson and Secretary Captain M. NJ. Pat rick and Captain b. E. Winslow, engin- eer of the first and second sections of the river from Carlo to White river; Captain w. c. Newcomer, engineer of the third section from White river to Vicksburg and Major Geo. c. McDerby engineer of the fourth section from Vicksburg to New Orleans.
 Many reports on the condition of the work along the river were made and those making them had numerous recommenda- tions to offer.
 The embodiment of these into the gen. eral report will be made as soon as pos- sible and forwarded to the war secretary.
 A delegation of prominent Louisiana gen. tlemen appeared before the commission to request 1t to recommend that 1t needed urgent Improvements to be made along the banks of the Mississippi river without de- lay
 The following gentlemen composed the delegation: Nolan S. Williams president of the Atchafalaya levee board: Sidney r. Lewis, president of the Louisiana state board of engineers; Arsne Perrellat presi- dent of Bayou Louisiana Fourche levee board, and Victor Mayrin, a member of the state board of engineers. Messrs. Perillat and others addressed the committee and clearly defined the condition of the levees along the river in the vicinity of New Or leans and Bayou La Fourche and express ed strongly the need for immediate reme- dial action.
 The serious condition of affairs at the junction of Bayou LaFourche and the Mississippi river about eighty miles above New Orleans was also discussed before the commission by the Louisiana gentlemen who stated that the frequent floods along Bayou LaFourche greatly damaged it's property and endangered life for a consid- erable distance along its length. These floods are caused by the breaking and inn proper strengthening of the levees along the bayou. The necessity Of these leVeeS could be obViated if the lock at the junction of the bayou and the river, the building of which has been projected since 1886 should be erected. This lock could be built at a cost of about $45O,0O0 and already $1,1OO,0OO has been expended in the construction of levees on Bayou LaFourche.
 Money NeedIessly Expended "This money has been quite needlessly expended" said Major Harrod, a member of the commission, and if the lock had been built in 1886 this money could have been expended in Improvements on the main stream"
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