Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1899-02-18


District Commissioners today from Mr.. c.
C. Lancaster, president of the Citizens
Northwest Suburban Association:
LAS president of the Citizens Northwest
Suburban Association, 1 am advised that
on account of the unprecedented fall of
snow on the public roads west of Rock
Creek Park the citizens are practically
cut off from communication with each
other and the city and that they can
neither get coal provisions to their
houses. This condition of affairs is result
ing in great suffering and possible loss of
life. The situation is desperate and APP
peals to your feelings of humanity in a
prompt effort to relieve the blockade. ]
am advised that Connecticut and Wiscon-
sin avenues are practically opened for COM
Immigration but that the cross roads, such
as Pierce Mill, Grant, Broad Branch,
Loughboro' and others are filled with snow
from three to ten feet
IF a way is cut through these roads so
that the people could get access to Con-
necticut avenue and Wisconsin avenue coal
and provisions could be gotten TO them.
Il have to request that you will detail
a necessary force now engaged in moving
snow from the streets and public parks
| Of the city to clear these roads for travel
l have also to request that you will in
| struct the mounted police in this section
| to communicate with the residents and
! find out what assistance. If any, they may
need to prevent suffering and loss of life
The case requires immediate attention, and
| trust that you will act promptly and
grant the relief prayed
Mr.. Lancaster will be informed, it is
| derstood, that the Commissioners do
| ing, as they have done, all they possibly
can to relieve the people. Had ii not been
| for the heavy rain of Thursday the horses
| Of the soldiers at Fort Myer and the Wash
| ington barracks would have been utilized
| by the Commissioners to open the county
] ~ he
| War Department and Gen. Miles. But it
| is thought that in view of the rain and
| the resulting slush and mud, the horses
| cannot now be used eff ectvely, and the
| Commissioners, therefore, abandoned the
project.
| Bad Conditions Existing.
| Conditions along Monroe street and
! Nichols avenue, in Anacosta, are such as
! to require attention. On both these streets
| the railway companies have cleaned the
| snow from one track only, and consequent
| ly there is but little room, with great snow
| piles on either side, for vehicles and street
| cars to pass. Traffic from the country is
| now beginning to pass over these streets
| once more, and, in order to relieve conges-
| ton, it is suggested that some men and
| carts ought to be put to work and the snow
| hauled away. Mr.. c. f. Watson, superin-
| tendent of county roads, has had q force of
| men employed during the two days past
| cutting cutters through the snow drifts on
| various streets about the town.
number Of charitably disposed citizens
| sent to Sergt. Anderson, at the police sta
| ton, u supply of bread and lot of pound
| packages for the poor, and they were dis
tributed, relieving considerable suffering
| Snow plows have been sent out over the
| country roads, breaking down the big
| drifts. The country people who were snow
! ed up along various roads came together
| with their horses, improvised snow plows,
| and then beat down the great drifts that
| HON q q cit "
! Long Bridge as an Obstructio
! To the Editor of The Evening Star:
| beg leave to offer some suggestions as to
the effect of the Long bridge in aggravat-
ing the danger from floods of the Potomac.
| They are called out by the protests on the
first page of your paper this evening. A
| little thought Will make it quite clear that
| no obstruction in a river make the
flowing water higher below the obstruction
| than if the latter We're not there. The
| water may be higher above the obstruction
| to any extent according to how completely
| the flow is cut off; but 1t never be
| higher below it. Hence, If the Long bridge
| increases the food it can only do by
so obstructing the flow of the river that
| the water the north side of the bridge
| during the flood is higher than on the south
side. We can judge of this principally by
our experience during past floods.
| | do not know whether accurate ObserVa-
| lions OF the nelSnl OF the water beioW the
bridge in the floods of 1871 1881 and 1889
| Were made, as they were above but If so
they would at once settle the question.
| During one or two of these floods 1 care
fully watched the water going through or
| under the bridge, and never noticed
any perceptible difference in the height of
the water on the two sides. From the
freedom with which the water flowed
through / am persuaded that there could
| not have been any material piling up of the
water above the bridge, and therefore that
the latter did not cause any material in
crease of the flood. If this is the case, the
| removal of the bridge would do no good.
1t would be a great pity to take so severe
a measure an uncertainty.
| Here some consideration on river hydrau-
| lies may be appropriate. In order that the
| water in a river may flow there must be a
fall of certain fraction of inch or more
! in every mile. The narrower and the shall
| the greater this fall per mile must be. In
| ordinary states of the water the flow of
| the Potomac is so slight that the fall nee
| essary to 1t is practically nothing. But
| during flood it amounts to something.
| Suppose 1t to be only one inch a mile and
| that there are 100 miles of river below us
| Then We should have rise of eight feet
merely to get the necessary flow in the
| river. l do not claim this calculation to be
exact. L only use it to illustrate the prin-
| cipe.
| If We do have flood hope observations
| will be made to settle the question of the
effect of the Long bridge in causing it.
February II, 1899. S. NEWCOMB,
1920 street.