The sun., 1901-09-15
MISSOURI RIVER CHANGING.
% Has Turned East and Il Attacking the
Iowa Hank k-Re~uiting Lawsuits.

LINCOLN, Neb. Sept, I2-The Missouri
River has started east again. With one Of
i,s sudden periodical changes II has at
Tackled the Iowa bank and just north oi
Omaha is making Nebraska soil with great
rapidity Fifty years ago the river was
headed north. Twenty-Five years later
/, took IL into i,s head that the south pre-
scnted greater attractions. but IN recent
years IL has favored the east with its dts
tinguished consideration. SO far there
has l,een no uprising on the part Of the peo-
pie Of Iowa TO stay it, progress. hut its
maneuvrings have added greatly TO the
income Of Omaha lawyers. Ten cases.
qIarrels over the right to the accretions.
arr nov before tho Supreme Court.
Tho fact that there j. no other river In
the Cnited States which exhibits such
yagari,. and indulSe- In such mcander-
ing. a. the Missouri sets at nnughl the or
binary rules of Law as to apportionment OF
acsrrtiou- and puzzles the courts a. to
proper distribution. In some instances the
shor. lines 81 property hay" received al
ditions 20 tho extent of tOO to sta feet, a
fin" bit of property 10 Fight over. especially
when some sIuatter comee along nnd builds
IA. zhaniy claiming the right tp " a. Gov
crament land II all d"pcnds, too. upon
the basis ~ measurement from tho mean
der line ON the old survey linz. whether tho
HrcretiOns are upon ore plot ~ land or an
other.
The whole trouble lies ia the TACT that
the Missouri CUufsc~ through n valley
tho sul~trntum soil of which. As a re-, ult
oi the 'pusit of distant centuries. u largely
Of JtIi' lsand TIN current is Tar above
the Average IN rapidit" and hv reason 81
the SHOWS on the mountains There are ~ %
r...s. ia April aud June Of each wear. the
large volume Oi water coming down a.
40. 80 tluie- has great and rhpid action
upon the banks Where tnorc n . dep at
- soil soil above tho a. - sant, ~" Warn-
iug out 81 the htteT often caus' "A stimuli
tan..nu- falling Of great -tr'tcu'- 81 he
river hank. in som" u~tahN~' h"InW
~ Joseph and A'"hi-or, eating up iaii-
road tracks a. u did hsfore IN" railroad
Managers isacamr wiser
Where the law hecomes confused H. TINT
10" land tnuS taken from ono side L. not
dsp,-itel directly upon the opposite hams
aud no engineer can IN iact tell where th'
fallen earth go-r Ia. Al that IL krOwr ~
that there IL a gradual filing up On the
other -ide The riyc- l. aboW a quarter Of
a uilc wide un tho ayrragc along tn" Ne
hraska shore and there has leon Httic
chang m Ms width as the vears pas
Onc' IN whilc, ~ In 1917. IN" river socks
an entirely ncv channel. leaving largr
Hra- oi land available Tor occupancy,
and y l. generally over th"-" aCCretlons
that the larger lawsuits oCcur. In Homc
years the rycr has travelled % the east
one tH Two hundred fsrt year, hut >!nCr
rip-aJ- hhv" i-'u pat IN on IN" RIut,n -pii
H. prpgr~s has been hu' ton or fifteen feet
A. present IN" Nebraska bank II the river
j. from a hall a mile ~ mile cTat Of whore
~ was N iSJf
Tn" iev ~ acCrpi IONS il something of a
curiosity A. laid down IN III" toOks the
"a uslt II
tn ancient tank and cumput" how mu"h
zach riparian proprietor owned on the
river l'ne and thon 30 divide tho newly
formed hank OF river land into equal parts
and appropriate pruportiOnate amount
20 each proprietor The truuhlC IN apply
ing tho law to the Missouri lies IN the fact
that ~" new hnea ar" generally convergsnt
and thai The sharp pro iec' ,ons or deep
indeutstiuns cannot H. fairly included In
general line